The online environment is growing, and with so many people surfing the internet, many businesses seize the opportunity to market themselves on the internet. It’s not just big companies that leverage the benefits of digital marketing but also independent agents such as realtors. In a post-pandemic era, the real estate market of 2021 looks more promising than ever now that the covid vaccines are here.
In today’s highly competitive market, a good marketing strategy can set apart a successful real estate agent from one that is not so successful. The online environment is the perfect place to advertise as a real estate agent because it requires a low effort and yields great results. In fact, some of the most effective online marketing strategies for real estate businesses only need an internet connection, and you can start implementing them right away.
As a real estate agent who is always looking for innovative and effective ways to advertise, the internet is one of the most popular methods. As a real estate agent, you know that the internet is a crucial part of your job. In today's world, most people will do their own research online before meeting with you and looking at homes in person. If you're a real estate agent and are looking for new places to promote your business, this post will provide you with some great tips regarding online advertising!
Use social media to target a specific audience
With the world of social media growing, having an online presence on these platforms can help you scale your business quicker than you might think. Facebook and Instagram are more than just posting pretty pictures. More than 3.27 billion people are active monthly users on these platforms, which represents a huge opportunity to advertise online to different audiences.
Because social media is free to use, you are guaranteed to get noticed by a large segment of your target audience by choosing the right marketing strategy. With Facebook, you can post new listings, and with Instagram, you can post pictures of luxury real estate. Chances are you might be active on multiple social media accounts, so it’s up to you to define how you’ll use each platform.
Is social media a must to be a successful realtor? Some might argue that it isn’t; however, it is an amazing way to boost your online presence, and it is free. From sharing content that is relevant to your audience or special offers for certain listings to sharing industry news or client testimonials, there are many ways you can engage with potential clients on social media. Use it to your advantage to advertise online and get more exposure.
Have a website
If you want to step up your online advertisement game, you should have your own website aside from using social media. If you don’t have one already, consider creating one, and if you have one, make sure it’s professional and easy to navigate through. A well-designed website should contain anything from client testimonials, listings, real estate related content, contact information, agents specialize in profitable real estate niches, and much more.
With technological advancements, we can even create virtual tours and close real estate deals from a distance using virtual tech. All these functions and many more can be a great addition to your website, and they can funnel potential clients at an impressive rate.
The better you build your website, the easier it is to navigate, the better it will be to generate leads. With such a high number of tech-savvy consumers that spend plenty of time on their mobile devices, it is essential to have a responsive website. This means that it is paramount for your website to be mobile-friendly, and if you incorporate a mobile app for listing reviews, the better results you will yield.
If today’s consumers can avoid doing a lot of legwork themselves when making a big purchase, they will most likely take that patch. For many potential homes, buyers getting all the information they need from the internet may be the selling point, and that is what you should aim for with your website. Make it easy for users to access the information, and have everything a client might want to know or see at their disposal.
Have great photos on your property pages, create virtual tours, and offer easy access to Google Maps or Google Earth so your client can get a good feel for the area. If you follow these tips, you should be way on your way to making an awesome website.
Text ads, display ads, and video ads
Advertising through ads is not uncommon for real estate agents and businesses, and each type offers different benefits. Unlike social media engagement, which is often free, successful real estate ads rely a lot on your ability to create ads and your budget. But is online advertising still worth it? Let’s find out!
Text ads are one of the most basic online ad types, which allow you to include a short promotional copy and a real estate link to a homepage or specific property page where you want to drive traffic. Keep in mind that the copy that accompanies the link needs to be concise, and most of the ad networks don’t allow more than two lines of text. Given the size of the content, it is imperative to get to the point quickly and clearly.
Display ads are moving a step further than text ads because they allow you to add anything from static banners to interactive animations. They differ from text ads because they feature some type of graphic along with the promotional text. Display ads offer real estate agents unique advertising options by using them on social media or market websites.
Last but not least, video ads are the third most popular real estate advertising tool. Short clips promoting your business or services can be used to create a promotional video that can then be uploaded to YouTube. Also, video ads are arguably more effective than text or display ads, and they are surprisingly simple to set up. These online advertising tools are just a few creative ways to get real estate leads and gain an advantage over your competitors.
Use content marketing to share information
With the internet being part of everyone’s life nowadays, more people are researching before working with a real estate agent. As of 2017, about 84% of home buyers use online research for their home search. However, people interested in buying properties don’t research only finance options, neighborhoods, and home types; they are also researching agents.
Many websites regarding real estate have a similar layout: a page for listings, pages with content for sellers and buyers, and a contact information page. The same structure can be found on our website, where we offer informative content and The OFFICIAL Real Estate Agent Directory® where you can reach out to real estate agents specializing in specific niches. Websites might also include pages with client testimonials and pages for other additional services.
Gaining trust to sell your services is best done by blogging and adding more resources to your website. That way, visitors can see your value as a real estate agent, and by having a blog, you can drastically increase your online presence. You can start your blogs by giving some market insights or writing about housing trends, or offer solutions for buyers and sellers.
If you want your content to reach a target audience, use search engine optimization (SEO) basics to make the content or the site easy to find. That way, when someone searches for similar information on Google, your blog shows up on the first page. If you want to incorporate SEO into your content, consider doing keyword research, including keywords in the content, writing a quality blog, and sharing it on social media.
Real estate portals
Not every agent might have their own website set up, but luckily, real estate portals like Zillow, Trulia, and RealEstateAgent.com, offer agents another way to target leads in their local market. If you get listed on RealEstateAgent.com for better online visibility, you get all the benefits of having an online website without maintaining it or adding new content. These platforms offer services for agents who look to advertise in the online space.
Advertising through real estate portals offers you a lot of exposure in the relevant areas you want to provide agent services. With real estate portals, visitors can see a complete description of your experience as a realtor, get full contact details, and the advertisement can include links to your own website and your listings. Targeting leads in your local market as a real estate agent is easier than even through real estate portals, and you shouldn’t ignore this effective way of advertising online.
Real Estate Agent Advertising - Online Marketing Strategies
Once you have the basics covered, you can apply these concepts to your online marketing strategy. Any real estate agent you might ask will tell you how competitive the real estate market is, and that’s a fact. It is one of the most competitive industries, and finding a way to stand out isn’t easy.
The verb googling results from the excellent marketing strategy used by the big tech company - It’s how people think of Google when they need a piece of information. You want people to know your name, brand, or business and go to you directly when thinking about buying or selling a property. It is why you barely ever hear of other search engines and why googling is such a common term.
Getting to that level takes time and a lot of resources, but real estate agent ads don’t need that amount of exposure. Real estate agents usually work locally, dealing with local competition. However, when it comes to online competition, the strategies change. The best thing about online real estate agent ads is that they can be done from anywhere in the world as long as you have an internet connection and a bit of know-how of the online world.
Next, we’ll go over the best way to advertise online through real estate agent ads that are easy to implement for anyone with a computer, laptop, or mobile phone. Here are some real estate agent advertising ideas that you can apply to your business.
Real Estate Agent Website
Do real estate agents need a website of their own? Why not? I mean, there are many listing sites available out there, but having your own won’t take up unavailable space on the internet. That’s the best thing about the internet. You have all the space you could use to promote anything, so why not promote your business?
What you should consider, however, is that many real estate agent websites get lost in the online clutter. That’s the worst thing about the internet. There is just so much information out there and so many websites that it’s not easy to make your website stand out. That’s why it’s essential to build an optimized and focused website. Like that, your website will be able to shine in the limelight and generate leads. Your website’s user-friendliness and content are crucial, but so is the level of dedication you put into it. Following, you’ll find ways to increase your brand awareness, boost online presence, generate leads that don’t fall through, grow your business credibility, and educate your audience at the same time.
Keywords SEO
The first thing anyone says about increasing your website’s visibility is SEO. SEO stands for search engine optimization. Simply put, it is the process that makes your website be found on online search engines. Nowadays, the first thing people do when buying or selling a home is to go online. Your job is to make it so that your website is among the first results they find.
When it comes to the content you put online, the first rule of SEO is keywords. Keywords are what people write in their search bars most often, and you have to figure out what those keywords are. Finding the right keywords to work with requires knowing your audience and what they are looking for.
Doing keyword research will help you determine the most searched keywords. Once you find them, use them. For example, if you’re a real estate agent in New York, your audience most likely types “homes for sale in New York” or “home sales New York” or something like that. You can use them in any written content on your website. It might be a description of your business, a blog post with tips for homebuyers, or city descriptions.
Becoming the first result of a google search isn’t something you can do overnight, but with consistency, it can ensure results for your business. Your website will rank higher in Google through strategic keyword placement by optimizing your website.
Consistent Blog Posts
As we mentioned consistency in the last subsection, let’s see what it means. You can achieve successful online marketing for real estate agent advertising through a real estate blog. This can be a section on your website, something extra you provide for your targeted audience. By giving your prospects advice about their real estate decisions and tips on different real estate topics, you don’t limit your interactions to real estate transactions. While that might be your end goal, nurturing relationships with a broader audience helps you in the long run. After all, your business needs long-term goals as well.
But providing advice isn’t enough. You have to be consistent with your blog. Sporadic posting isn’t going to cut it, so make sure you provide new content consistently. In the beginning, it’s best to limit yourself to one post per week, but post on the same day and around the same time. Like that, your audience will know to expect new content from you every Tuesday, for example. Starting a blog only to post new content sporadically will make you seem untrustworthy, and trust is the most important thing people expect from their realtors.
Write about things that you know, like the real estate market, the area you’re active in, and compelling information from the real estate industry. What are the latest trends in home decor, or how your kitchen utensils can save the planet? Write about anything to do with the household, and as long as you are consistent, your audience will grow. Your audience would have something to talk about, share, and interact with you if a topic sparked their interest. If they want to learn more about something, they can simply contact you.
Low-commitment Application Form
A website that generates leads is supposed to be easy to utilize by your audience. You don’t want people to contract your services but get lost in all the information you demand from them. A too complex application form requiring too much information is doomed to fail your audience, get them frustrated and make them leave your website.
When you create an application form on your website, it is best to keep requirements to a minimum. It’s part of your job to make it so that your prospects don’t have to struggle to pursue your services. Three or four fields are enough to get the necessary details and contact the user. Anything besides their name, phone number, and email address is irrelevant at this stage, so don’t ask for more. Going above and beyond to be contacted by a realtor will lose your prospects for no other reason than taking up too much time. Keep it simple, and your online real estate marketing will work for you.
Introduce Yourself
While people will browse through your website, searching for properties, services, or valuable information, that’s not all they are interested in. Most online real estate marketing strategies only focus on providing those details. While they are essential for your business, the third most-viewed page is the “About” page on any given website.
Who you are is just as important as what you do. Real estate agent and client relationships are based on trust, and when someone chooses a real estate agent to work with, they want to know what kind of person they are. By introducing yourself, your core values, a mission statement, and pictures of you, you will bridge the gap between you and your audience. You will put a face and an ideology behind your website while at the same time being more approachable and relatable. Like this, you’ll stand out from fellow real estate agents.
Video Testimonials
The best type of publicity is word of mouth. When a satisfied customer talks about you to their friends, they promote you free of charge. Still, seeing as that might get your brand known to a few other people, recording video testimonials and posting them on your website can reach a far bigger audience.
These video testimonials are powerful whether you want to call them customer success stories or case studies. They work to prove that you provide high-quality services and let your audience know that you are serious about your business.
One of the first things people seek when they reach your website is whether or not they can trust you. Suppose you give them evidence that other clients of yours enjoyed working with you. Past clients can share their experience of working with you, reassuring other people and making it easier for you to get new clients. This is one of the best strategies in online marketing for real estate agents.
Implement an IDX
Having a real estate agent website, first of all, means that you’re a real estate agent, and second of all, means that people who arrive on your website want to see house listings. IDX stands for Internet Data Exchange and is a software for third-party vendors (yourself) which allows you to provide MLS listings on your website.
Many people enjoy browsing through real estate listings in their free time, and by providing them with this option, they are likely to spend more time on your website. Users who come to your website searching for real estate agent services are most likely also interested in seeing properties. It makes your offers more readily available, and who doesn’t like to look at house listings? Just use the real estate agent advertising rules, and your IDX should make your website stand out and fall in line with your high-performing competitors.
Location-specific Landing Pages
If your business covers a wide area, let’s say a big metropolitan city or a county, consider that people might land on your website from various neighboring areas. By creating location-specific landing pages, you will target each user’s specific location. Your website will speak to them directly by giving them information about their particular area when your website’s landing page loads.
People living in an area with waterfront properties will find it more welcoming to see a photo of a home by the water than one in the mountains. Even area-specific activities can go a long way. Take the New York example above. Someone living in Staten Island might find it more relatable to see a picture with a ferry or roller coaster than one with the World Trade Center Memorial.
Social Media Branding & Consistency
Every social media account you create should be used thoroughly. Meaning that only posting is the basic level of activity you should strive for. Regardless of the platform you use (the more, the merrier), you should include some information about yourself on it. For instance, for both Instagram and Facebook ads for real estate agents, you should complete the bio area with relevant details about your business. When someone clicks on your bio, you want them to get a great first impression of you and a general idea of what your business does. The sooner they become aware of this information, the better.
Your social media bio is a simple but effective tool of online marketing for real estate agents. Use it to your advantage and get ready for market domination. But why do real estate agents need social media? Well, social media is an incredible and easy-to-use tool for real estate agent ads. The National Association of Realtors (NAR) social media platforms became a valid real estate agent marketing tool and a great way to get new clients and close more deals. Around 77% of real estate agents use social media for their business, and 47% of real estate businesses consider it a venue for high-quality leads. When we look at the clients, you should know that 99% of millennials and around 90% of baby boomers start their home search online, but generational behaviors are important in the home buying process.
One thing to consider is that social media posting should be consistent, but you’re not limited to your listings or blog posts. You can share your success stories, any relevant real estate market news, tips and ideas for home renovations, milestones, and events that you have coming up on your social media platforms.
Share your Brand and Business
Once you have all your online activity available for the public, share it. Share it with your friends, family, and acquaintances to generate word-of-mouth promotion. If you have any new services that you can offer your potential clients, make your circle of friends aware, let them know, and when someone bumps into a prospective home buyer, they will be able to give them a referral, share your content, and put the two of you in contact with each other. Approach and be approachable to your target audience, and through personalized messages, you can bridge the gap between you and your potential clients. Facebook ads for real estate can be as simple as joining groups and making the members aware of your services through direct messages.
Invest in High-quality Visuals
When you join in the race with Facebook ads for real estate, the quality of your visual aid is essential. So go ahead and invest in a good quality camera or pay a professional to get the best quality possible. Seeing as we are trying to recover from the effects of a global pandemic, the online world proved just how useful it could be, and there’s no reason against continuing to use it to its total capacity.
If you’ve been working during this pandemic, you probably had to deal with virtual tours or live tours. If not, it’s never too late to start. Just record a video tour of your listings and make them available to your audience, share it on social media and your website so that people can get a better and more detailed view of the properties. Just because there seems to be a light at the end of the tunnel regarding the pandemic doesn’t mean that we should let go of every real estate marketing tool we discovered due to the restrictions we have to respect. When life gives you lemons, make lemonade.
Instagram Real Estate Marketing
Instagram pages are most commonly used as tools to share pretty photos, so why not use them to share and promote your listings? Instagram provides a brand new world of opportunities for real estate agent ads. Seeing as there are over one billion active monthly users, sharing the best pictures of your best listings on Instagram will give you access to thousands of users.
Just think about how many people around you browse through beautiful Instagram pictures on their breaks or even while they work. This makes it a great platform to promote attractive and eye-catching images of your properties.
Make sure to include details about the properties links to website listings, and make your contact information readily available. If you want, you can even share tips for other realtors, buyers, and homeowners related to real estate property or business. Provide links for blog posts with inspiring home designs and the latest trends.
Set up a Marketing Budget for Online Real Estate Agent Ads
Getting into real estate agent advertising can be free of charge, but if you want to be professional about it, you might need to spend some money. Start thinking in advance and plan your budget so that you set some finances aside for online advertising. Social media advertising can be free through posts and sharing. Still, Facebook ads for real estate through PPC metrics can increase your lead-generating marketing technique and help grow your business.
Google ads also go a long way and bring you on the first page of the search engine results. However, while SEO can do that free of charge with time and persistence through keyword optimization, Google ads do that in exchange for a fee. Both tools work great to increase your market authority and business profitability, but you should plan the budget in advance to know how much you can invest without spending too much.
Real Estate Webinar
Starting a video series about the real estate industry can help your clients get a broader understanding of how the industry works. You don’t have to be a coach or a guru to start a webinar, but you can use a webinar to promote your business, share tips and tricks and share any other real estate relevant information. You can use any social media platform to promote your business, including YouTube.
Google My Business Account
You can achieve some easy-to-access SEO traffic through a Google My Business Account. With an account set up, your business will be visible on simple google searches for real estate agents in the area. It will provide a map of your office location and allow clients to review your activity.
Getting as many positive reviews as possible is another great marketing strategy for real estate agents. Just contact your former clients and tell them to review your real estate services on your Google My Business Account. The more reviews you get, the more likely it is that people will contact you when searching for a real estate agent. Just contact your former clients and tell them to review your real estate services on your Google My Business Account. This is one of the best real estate agent marketing tools because if your clients are satisfied, they will give you five-star reviews, which will help you cut to the front line in the SEO competition battlefield.
Get a Zillow Profile
If you created your real estate agent website, it doesn’t mean you can’t collaborate with other listing websites. The most extensive listing services in the US are sites like Zillow, Redfin, or Realtor. Having a profile on Zillow will give you access to over 245 million unique monthly users. That’s an audience that can transform your business. Creating a Zillow profile will provide prospective clients the chance to contact you directly and close deals much faster.
Become a RealEstateAgent.com Directory Collaborator
By becoming a member of the RealEstateAgent.com Directory, you start your journey on the front line. Besides a comprehensive wealth of available resources, this website does all the content work for you, ensuring traffic for partnered real estate agents and realtors. At the same time, it gives buyers and sellers access to top real estate agents in their area, along with all the information needed to make an informed decision about the next page in their story.
We make sure clients know what they want, have all the information related to their real estate venture, make an informed decision, and are easily connected to real estate agents and realtors closest to their location. With the opportunity to reach a growing audience that is well informed, this platform doesn’t only take care of their needs, but of yours as well.
Conclusion
There is no shortage of options available to you as a realtor when it comes to online advertising. Through a successful marketing campaign, your target audience can see the value you provide and gain confidence in working with you. Through this article, we have highlighted some of the most effective ways to advertise online as real estate agents. Whichever online marketing strategy you use, we hope you find the combination that works for your audience and generate the leads you’re looking for.
Do you agree with our list of online marketing strategies? What do you think are the most effective ways to advertise online as a real estate agent? Let us know in the comment section below. If you enjoy our content, don’t hesitate to share it with your friends on your social media platforms.
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