Digital Assets: 5 Areas Where You Need to Be Online
Social media marketing is a relatively new way to market property which has typically been subject to a traditional marketing environment. Walk past any real estate agent’s office, or into it for that matter and there are the plethora of brochures – a brochure for a new listing, a list of upcoming auctions, open for inspections, even printed photos in agency windows. But as a real estate agent, are you actively using social media to boost your marketing efforts?
Take a step back from marketing a property and think about your business. Your brand, its colours, its logos, its presence in the local community in terms of advertising and its presence in print media.
Now take a look at your digital efforts, your website, your social media presence, your email marketing campaigns or is your main presence reliant on third party websites such as realestate.com.au and domain.com.au?
To gain more exposure and get more eyes on your business, your digital presence is becoming increasingly important. In a time-poor society people don’t want to drive around looking at multiple properties that aren’t suitable, so digital marketing can put your brand and its properties in the arms or hands of the right people – all via their mobile device.
Website
Your website is essential to allow prospective clients to find out about you. Are people able to contact you from any page of your website? Can they find you on social media with clickable icons that link to your profiles and social media feed? Can people view upcoming details of your open for inspections and auctions and can they find an agent to contact or find out about your team?
Email Marketing
Do you offer something of value to your prospective clients from your website such as a clickable download? Do you use email marketing to push out relevant listing information to a list of subscribers? Producing a regular email marketing campaign of weekly inspections, or new listings fed from your property listing database is an effective way to get more eyes on your business and your properties.
Do you offer email automation say for people who are vendors where at different stages of their property marketing campaign they are sent information? This could be a simple email reminder each week of the times for the inspections that have been organised, what they need to do before an inspection or even in the week leading up to their auction give them useful information to help ease their nerves and stress.
Social Media Marketing
Social media marketing can be used in a number of ways from brand awareness (of your real estate agency) to promoting new listings, advertising rental properties and these key aspects are all achieved in different ways. New rental listings and promoting these on social media work differently to building awareness of your brand. One is more oriented to a specific date while brand awareness works over time and on a number of different levels – with your website, SEO and paid advertising.
Google AdWords
Google AdWords is an additional way you can market your business – effective for when you are targeting vendors. People looking to purchase in an area and who can’t recall the names of all the local real estate agents will typically search on Google to find contact details for an agent. They will then research the agents they will contact to meet before putting their property on the market. Vendors are also typically using Google search to seek information about fees, commissions, agents operating in an area and use this to determine who to contact to find out more information.
Local SEO
Search Engine Optimisation or SEO can also bring in organic traffic to your real estate agent’s website. Local SEO involves making sure your website has a Google MyBusiness listing that’s verified, up to date and offers an effective way to get your business on the local map results. When someone searches for a real estate agent in Ivanhoe, they will see what Google calls the ‘local pack’ and the top 3 results are given priority.
These are just some of the digital assets available to use to market your agency online. Need help on a specific aspect? Contact us to arrange a time to discuss.