Lead generation is an important aspect of any real estate business.
Clients of this type of service use it once and may not use a similar service again for 3 to 5 years. Even when they do it will likely be with a different company. Therefore generating new client lead information is essential to being profitable for any realtor.
There are a variety of ways to obtain this information based on the budget of the real estate company and the quality of leads needed. Real estate leads are some of the most difficult to work in industries where leads are used.
After a company buys or otherwise procures information about potential customers, realtors then go to work calling, emailing, or mailing advertising and sales information to these people.
In real estate, finding qualified clients can be difficult because the nature of the business involves people making a very large and emotionally charged purchase. This makes people more likely to change their minds in regards to buying or working with a particular company.
Realtors can expect about a 1 percent return on mass mailings or phone prospecting that they conduct using leads. This means that if a company mails out 1,000 advertisements for real estate services to good leads, they will get about 10 responses from interested parties.
About one-third of these will actually use the services of the real estate company. Procuring leads without buying them is a common strategy among realtors.
Many professionals will set up lead capturing websites where users must enter information such as a name, phone number, and address in order to obtain access to certain parts of the site such as real estate listings or answers to questions.
Although there are costs involved in starting and maintaining a website, leads generated from the site are free unless a realtor is utilizing a site that provides all setup services and charges for leads generated.
Buying leads is one of the most common and easiest ways to get information about new potential customers. Realtors will buy customer information from other companies that collect information.
Companies that specialize in this service get information from a variety of places and those details may not be clear even when purchasing the information. While there are many reputable companies, professionals should tread with caution as some businesses may have outdated or otherwise junky leads.
Considering the already inherently difficult nature of generating actual revenue from real estate needs, realtors should be especially careful about the quality of the company and leads that they are purchasing.
5 Essential Real Estate Marketing Strategies to Generate New Leads Online
1. Social Media Marketing
Listing properties on social media is very easy. Simply copy the URL of the property listing that you are trying to sell, then past and post it on your personal and/or company Facebook page.
This action will result in displaying your property to everyone who liked your page or to those who are in contact with you.
Posting regular articles and updates about your business and industry will position you as a reputable real estate agent with great knowledge and authority.
Facebook is one of the best sources for real estate leads generation.
There are several social media strategies designed to engage and encourage the user to provide their contact information through a simple form. This may be fulfilled in exchange for a free home evaluation or a list of foreclosed homes in a particular area.
Social media marketing provides advertisers with the tools and options to target users both geographically and demographically as well as by interest.
Social media marketing campaigns when designed and implemented properly can result in providing a large number of leads at an affordable cost.
Twitter is another alternative mode of social media for advertising. What is significant about it is that it cost considerably lower than Facebook.
LinkedIn is the best social media platform for business networking. Building a network on LinkedIn can help you generate solid leads. As they say “Your network is your net worth”.
2. Video Marketing
Creating and posting client video testimonials stating your expertise, achievements, why should people do business with you rather than with your competitors, and informative real estate tips can have a tremendous positive impact on increasing the chances of those visiting your webpage to reach out to you.
Once you have created a video clip or more you can use the videos to advertise on Google’s display network which includes YouTube and Facebook video ads. Those video clips can also be shared and promoted on several social media networks.
3. Content Marketing (Blogging)
Nowadays knowing how to write a good blog has become a very important part of any online marketing solutions and real estate leads.
Blogs have been proven to be effective in generating leads. It is advisable to create and maintain a blog. Posting at least one blog per month is a must to secure its effectiveness.
Blogs provide you with the opportunity to appear on more relevant real estate search terms and provide your current and potential clients with helpful information that will ultimately increase their loyalty and trust.
4. Real Estate SEO
SEO is the ability to optimize a real estate website to appear on the top ten search results for relevant real estate keywords, such as “Real Estate Agent in Montreal” and “Homes for Sale in Laval”.
Make sure that the title, headlines, and content of your website includes relevant real estate keywords.
Good SEO practice is to constantly build links to your website. You can do that by hiring an SEO agency or make time every week to work on getting quality websites to link to yours preferably related to the real estate industry.
5. Real Estate Web Design Layout and Features
When you give away your business cards to potential clients they are more likely to visit your website before they even consider calling or sending you an email.
Therefore it is crucial that your real estate web design is professionally designed and clearly presents the properties being advertised for sale as well as the value you provide to your customers.
Your real estate agent website should be easy to use with a visible menu to help users navigate the site. It should have several lead capture forms on most if not all pages preferably with different calls to action.
Let your potential clients know that you have tremendous experience selling real estate properties in their cities or areas. Write an interesting meet the team page comprised of fun and a creative paragraph about each member in your team.
Make sure to deliver a strong message that you and your team are capable of helping your client buy or sell real estate while making the entire experience easy and enjoyable.
If the majority of your business comes from certain communities make sure you list any community work you have done in these communities.
Andrew Thomas is the author of four highest selling books related to Real Estate. He has 20 years of experience in Real Estate Management. Thomas writes mostly for ZipBrands.
