Thinking Outside the Box: Market Strategies for Beginning Real Estate Agents
When it comes to marketing, the real estate industry is in a league of its own. There are some fundamental differences in the methodology of marketing for real estate as compared with most other industries. For example, in a typical business setting, you have to market the products or services that you provide. While this also rings true for real estate, you have the added weight of having to market yourself.
If you’re just getting started, it may seem like a daunting task to have to prove to the world that you can do it. Here are some tips to implement in your overall strategy to help get yourself out there:
Price Slightly Under Market Value
You don’t sell a house with the intentions of losing money. However, if you have a property that’s been sitting for a while with no offers, you might want to consider reducing the asking price. Say, for example, that the fair market value of your home is $287,900 and you were thinking about reducing it to $282,900. The effect on increased showings would likely be close to nothing. However, if you dropped all the way down to $279,900, you will probably see a lot more activity as you are now appealing to buyers who won’t even consider looking at a home above $280,000.
The purpose of the price drop is to make your home seem more appealing financially in order to attract more buyers. You don’t have to wait for the listing to go stagnant to lower the asking price; simply discuss the benefits associated with this kind of strategy with your seller.
Blog Regularly
As far as cost-effective marketing tips go, blogging is one of the most efficient methods available. There are so many blog options available on the internet and most of them will cost you nothing but your time. Make sure to share each of your posts across your social media channels (and you should have them all — Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, etc.). Gather any satisfied clients and create testimonial videos about their experience of working with you.
Providing social proof is a great way to build trust with your target audience, which is especially important if you’re just starting out. Trustworthy is one of the first things that you want to be perceived as when you’re stepping into your local market.
Limit Showings and Invent a Deadline
When you limit how many showings you will carry out at one of your properties to a single open house event (likely for 3-4 hours), you will ensure that the event is packed with potential buyers. When an open house event is crowded, attendees will feel more pressure to make a bid sooner rather than later.
It also helps to create a deadline for receiving any offers. For example, if the open house was on a Friday, let attendees know that any offers must be in by noon Monday. What that does is create a sense of urgency on the part of the buyer, who must now move much quicker than they normally would. Use a CRM for real estate to help you manage all the new clients and prospective buyers you’re going to get!
Getting started in the real estate world is a huge task. However, if you stick to a good strategy, you’ll soon find that you’re working toward success.