“Marketing is not an event, but a process… It has a beginning, a middle, but never an end, for it is a process. You improve it, perfect it, change it, even pause it. But you never stop it completely.” - Jay Conrad Levinson, Best Selling Author of Guerilla Marketing.
As a Real Estate agent, YOU are the product you sell.
You have to convince people to “buy” into your product! It is imperative you sell yourself.
Want more listings?
You aren’t selling listings, you’re selling yourself as the best agent to list with!
Want more buyers?
In the search for a perfect home, people first have to find the “perfect agent”. Again, you have to sell yourself as the best agent for the job.
First impressions are everything. Think of shrinking yourself down to doll size and standing on a shelf with dozens of other “agent dolls”.
Would YOU catch people’s eye?
Would they pick you out of the row of agent dolls? Nobody wants to buy an ugly product, so be sure you are putting your best foot forward every day!
Get a professional head-shot of yourself. Save the selfies for your friends, and leave the glamour shots to high schoolers. What you need is a professional photographer who puts together a good portfolio for you.
Professional photographs have a big impact on the sale of homes, it’s a no brainer they’ll do the same for you!
Take time to create a strong bio that positions you as an expert and authority in your business. Nobody likes to hear you tooting your own horn, EXCEPT when they click on the “About Me” page of your website! The bio is your one chance to toot away!
BUT... before you rush off to sing your own praises, remember this: you are still selling. It’s been said that marketing is no longer about the “stuff” you make, but the stories you tell. This is especially true when the “product” is a person!
Use your bio to share a story of how you got into the business, what drives you, and (most importantly) how your skills can benefit others. Answer the “What’s in it for ME” question in a fun and engaging way, and your bio will become a secret selling tool.
Building out your personal website is mandatory.
If you wanted to buy something, how would you search for it online? Probably by typing the product name into your browser’s search bar. When people Google YOU, what do they find?
You wouldn’t head out to a preview or listing appointment without a business card would you? No way! As a newbie agent, it’s even possible you got your cards made before finishing your real estate license...
Having a business card almost seems more important than having clothes with most agents! Yet, it’s amazing how few agents take time for the same thing online: your personal website.
Smart Agents know it’s equally important to have an online “business card”.
Sure you may work for a brokerage who provides some ‘corporate’ site, but I’m talking about YOU here. Head over to GoDaddy or your preferred domain provider, and buy your name immediately!
It’s a cheap investment, that will repay you back many times over.
Building out your website can be anything from a simple redirect to an extensive web development process. But it doesn’t need to be complicated.
It can be as simple as redirecting your domain to whatever ‘corporate’ site your brokerage has provided. Simple and easy. That way, people who Google you will find YOU. And if you do change affiliation, all you have to do is redirect your domain to a different site.
Make use of your site and your social media platforms to promote your local area. Either take pictures of it or use some that don't have a copyright on them. Familiar landmarks, skylines and high-quality images are going to help you sell the entire area in a way.
Taking out a local sponsorship or ad will really get your name out there. Have it redirect to your site as well. When creating your ads, make sure that they are trying to attract a certain niche.
Even just establishing your name as your area's expert or maybe just even one neighborhood is a major differentiator.
Then use testimonials from past clients to back up those claims. If you can strategically place them on your website and ads it will go a long way.
One of the most important things is to advertise and show all the different type of ways you'll market their house. Passing out brochures or fliers with everything you offer is a good start. Make it similar to many of the facets that we talked about on how to showcase your marketing during listing presentations.
Even more overlooked than personal websites is the personal email address. As someone who’s done a lot of marketing, let me tell you this. Your email address says A LOT about you. It's also a good tactic to take leads from Facebook or your website and send out a newsletter to them via email.
The newsletter doesn't have to strictly focus on real estate. A great way to get people to open your emails is to have it feature a list of events going on in your local community or things of a similar nature.
In many forms of communication, your email address IS the first firm handshake between you and the client.
Treat it like that, and you'll make a good impression. Most people won't notice, UNLESS it's old, or seems "odd" to them.
The thing is, you will be judged by your email address by a lot of clients. Just like they would look at you different if you referred them to a company's website, or your personal website.
Using yourname@yourname.com or something along those lines, is worlds better than yourname@AOL or Yahoo. Even if you work for a brokerage, create your own email and have the companies email forward to that one. Branding people by your name/biz as the thing they remember will make it much more likely for you to bring get referrals.
Smart Agent's members already have a personalized domain and email address set up for them, it's just another thing that can separate you from the rest. Another great way to stand out is to push blogs from your personal site. You can write these yourself or hire someone to do it for you.
These are great for promoting yourself on social media and getting clicks onto your site. Make sure the content stays fresh and is well done. Just like a community newsletter you can write about events in the community but here it's even more acceptable to talk about real estate things.
These are a few ideas, but many are a MUST do, if you want to stand out.
UNTIL NEXT TIME, BE SMART, AND WORK SMARTER!
Joe Nickelson is a real estate professional dedicated to helping home buyers and sellers achieve their dreams of owning property, and helping real estate agents stop using the sometimes-vicious tactics that weigh on their consciences. He believes that the Smart Agents books will, quite literally, change people’s lives for the better. Check out his full bio here!
