Compared to a decade ago, real estate agents are fortunate to have the benefit of online marketing and industry-specific applications for quick and easy communication and increased market exposure.
When looking for a home, buyers predominantly search online first to see photos of a listing or to view more competitive offers on other websites.
If you consider yourself an experienced, top-notch real estate agent and wish to increase your client base, you may need to revise your digital marketing strategy.
Consider these tips below:
1 – Have a Functional & Impressive Website
Research shows the average time spent on a website is around 45 seconds so your real estate website must have what it takes to keep the attention of your visitors.
By keeping your website clean, professional, and well-designed, you could see an increase of new clients simply because they liked what they saw and appreciated the benefits of what you represent as a real estate professional.
If you are too busy or you feel like you lack creative expertise, you could hire a website designer to take care of it for you. A new website design is often fairly affordable and done reasonably quickly, depending on the amount of work that is required.
2 – Ensure You Have Effective SEO
SEO, or search engine optimization, is a primary source of leads and an excellent way for businesses to ensure their presence is well established online.
When a potential customer initiates a search query on a search engine, businesses or websites relevant to that query take place on the search engine results page (SERP).
The higher the search result is on the page, the more likely the user will click on that link. Ensuring that your website has the proper front and back-end SEO could help boost your presence in search results, especially in your chosen demographic.
If you do not have the time or ability to put a strategy in place, be sure to contact a professional who can help you achieve the desired results.
3 – Social Media Marketing
A great way to generate leads is by marketing yourself on social media.
Use your property listings, set up a post (or create content relevant to home buying, renting, selling, etc.), and then boost that post through all your social media platforms to target a specific demographic.
A considerable number of people spend around three hours a day on social media (insane, right?!), so by maintaining a relevant and active presence on all the major social media channels, you could easily generate many more leads.
4 – Pay-Per-Click
Using pay-per-click (PPC) digital marketing is a cost-effective and quick way for businesses of all sizes to reach a virtually unlimited, targeted audience, and is recommended as a tool to use in conjunction with SEO.
Each time a searcher clicks on your ad, sending them through to your website, you pay the search engine a small fee. Research has shown that searchers click on paid ads more often than any other form of digital advertising.
You can easily monitor and adapt your advertisements to ensure they target individuals who have shown interest in buying real estate, whether by searching or visiting websites that relate to real estate.
If you are new to this form of advertising, it is advisable to contact a digital marketing agency to guide you with the perfect strategy to suit your budget.
In Closing
When considering where to spend your marketing budget, remember customer referrals are one of the most powerful selling and marketing tools, and a tremendously cost-effective way to increase your client base.
Word of mouth is the primary factor behind 20 to 30 percent of buying decisions so don’t be shy to ask your happy clients to rate your service and, with their permission, use this feedback to populate your social media platforms.
Good luck to all estate agents out there and happy selling!