Real Estate Marketing: A Complete Guide for Agencies & Realtors

Today, staying ahead of the real estate game is about more than making a stellar impression on would-be property owners in person. It’s also about adequately leveraging solid real estate SEO strategies and showing up for would-be clients with genuinely helpful content.

According to research conducted by the National Association of Realtors (NAR), around 73 percent of buyers reach out to only one real estate agent or firm during their search for the perfect property. The vast majority of would-be buyers also prefer to start the shopping process by conducting their own research online.

You can increase your chance of being the one agent who truly stands out by ensuring your marketing content is easy to find, answers important questions, and convinces people that you really know your stuff. Here’s a closer look at everything you need to know to get started in the right direction.

The Landscape of Real Estate Marketing

The real estate industry is nothing if not competitive these days. Not only are there millions of real estate licenses active in the United States at any given time, but around 60 percent of real estate agents and realtors spend a portion of each day searching for new leads.

That said, you’ve got your work cut out for you if you’re serious about standing out and convincing future homeowners that you’re the right person to trust with their futures. Your real estate marketing strategy is the key to making the right impression on potential clients and inspiring them to choose you.

Successful agents understand the ins and outs of a would-be property owner’s unique buyer’s journey. They also grasp the importance of correctly marketing to potential clients at every stage of that journey. Realtors and agents with the ability to nurture clients through this process are inevitably the ones who close sales, regardless of how competitive the market becomes.

Building a Strong Real Estate Marketing Strategy

In addition to being competitive, real estate is the type of industry that sees many ups and downs. Key factors like the current economic climate, how the job market is faring, and the affordability of interest rates can drastically affect how eager consumers are to buy.

However, a solid marketing strategy takes all of these possibilities and more into account. It evolves with the market and changing consumer needs. Here’s an overview of what makes a real estate marketing strategy strong enough to make the most of any set of market conditions.

Market research and analysis

Successful marketing is all about meeting consumers where they live and tapping into their pain points on a level that convinces them they need what you have to offer. This is just as much the case with real estate as it is with anything else.

But before you can put together a proper campaign, you need to figure out who your target market is.

• Is there a niche market in your area that you’re uniquely qualified to serve?
• What current economic and social factors might be influencing that market at the moment?
• What unique problems, desires, and goals might your ideal real estate client be looking to address?
• Where is your chosen niche market likely headed next?

Conduct thorough market research to determine the answers to questions like these and keep your knowledge up to date. Compare what you learn about your chosen niche market to what’s going on in the real estate market at large, and don’t forget to scope out your competition, too.

The idea is to come up with a strategy that fills in gaps left by other agents and empowers you to bring something truly unique to the table.

Setting clear goals and objectives

Before you can win at the real estate game, you need a clear understanding of what you want to accomplish, as well as an actionable plan on how to get there. A solid approach to goal-setting is crucial, especially in a field as fiercely competitive as real estate.

When evaluating yours, use the SMART method to achieve the best results. SMART goals are always:

• Specific: Replace vague, generalized goals with specific, well-defined ones. What do you want to accomplish, to what extent, and by when?
• Measurable: Achievable goals come attached to measurable numbers that clarify progress and ensure you know when you’ve reached an objective.
• Achievable: While it’s great to think big and set high standards for yourself, it’s also important to ensure your goals are realistic and that you have a clear method in mind for pursuing them.
• Relevant: Is a goal actually in line with the long-term plan for your business and your future as a real estate professional?
• Time-bound: Actionable goals have clear deadlines, as well as additional milestones when applicable.

When setting new goals for your business, refer back to existing data and market research to ensure informed decision-making. Examples to consider include recent sales data, research on new demographics that you want to tap into, and your unique selling angle as an industry pro.

Are you new to the real estate game or not quite sure what to tackle next? Great goals can address various aspects of building your brand or creating additional awareness of what you bring to the market that the other guys don’t. Improving your customer care approach and boosting conversion numbers should be priorities, too.

Choosing the right marketing channels

Digital-age business owners, real estate professionals included, have many options to choose from when it comes to marketing. But no one can realistically give their best to all of them, so it’s critical to choose the right ones.

Start by considering your target audience. Who are they, what matters to them, and where do they typically go when they need information? Think about where they spend their time, and meet them there.

For example, if you’re looking to sell to upwardly mobile professional types, take a closer look at LinkedIn. Want to reach a younger crowd of potential first-time buyers? Try Instagram or TikTok. Looking to sell to people who have families or plan to soon? Incorporate traditional marketing options like mailers and local billboards into your strategy.

You’ll also want to consider your marketing budget. There are plenty of options out there that are free and merely a matter of doing the work, but don’t sleep on the idea of investing in your marketing.

For example, paid advertising on Google or social media is a terrific way to drive traffic and raise awareness, especially when launching a new marketing objective. Meanwhile, hiring experienced freelance writers and content creators can help you get your content marketing goals on track.

Developing an authoritative brand identity

Although branding has always been an important part of building a successful real estate business, it’s especially important these days. Modern consumers seek more than just great service from a potential agent. They’re looking for someone they connect with, preferably a person who makes them believe that their dreams can come true.

Your brand is what will ultimately help you stand apart from the rest of the crowd and start converting leads, so it needs to be on point. Important branding details to consider include:

• Your core values and reputation as a real estate professional
• Visual assets like colors, logos, website design, and font choices
• Your unique voice as a professional and industry authority: language, tone, etc.

If you’re currently developing a new brand (or revamping an old one), carefully consider how you want to put yourself out there as a professional. Who are you, what are you about, and how might you especially appeal to your ideal buyer? What makes you different from the other guys? What can you do that they can’t?

Digital Marketing Tactics for Real Estate Businesses

While people definitely still take factors like traditional advertising and recommendations from loved ones into account when deciding whether to buy property (and from whom), that’s not all.

As many as 97 percent of property owners say they turned to the internet at some point during their search for the perfect option. Among other things, they’re looking for answers to important questions, researching financing options, and checking out the lay of the land regarding how to purchase property in the first place.

Your digital marketing strategy is your opportunity to make sure your website is the one they land on when looking for answers and information. Remember, most people ultimately only contact one agent or company. Make sure it’s you by employing these effective methods:

Content marketing

Content is the key to dominating the online real estate landscape. But it’s no longer enough to simply set up a few standalone landing pages or post to a company blog every other week.

You need top-notch content capable of covering everything your potential clients might want to know about you or the home-buying process. And you need to publish a lot of it according to a regular schedule, so both Google and your prospective clients will know that you’re serious about what you’re doing.

Here are some additional real estate content marketing tips to consider:

• Think about hiring freelancers to help you with the process of researching and producing content for your blog, email campaigns, social media channels, etc.
• Customize content for different segments of your customer base, taking care to address the needs of consumers at every level of your marketing funnel.
• Vary your content topics to keep things interesting. Try sharing actionable buyer tips, educational how-to guides, information about desirable properties and locations, background about the story of your brand, and more.

Be sure to mix things up when it comes to the type of content you put out there, as well. For example, visuals are very important in the real estate business, so make sure you incorporate photography, infographics, real estate video marketing content, and other types of material into your approach.

Digital PR

Digital PR for your real estate business is all about taking your digital marketing campaigns to the next level and making your online brand pop. Naturally, your approach to content marketing is part of that. But so are elements like the design of your website, your SEO strategy, and more.

• Aesthetics and design are huge factors when it comes to real estate, so the design and flow of your website are critical. Your website should be beautifully put together, easy to navigate, mobile-friendly, and genuinely useful.
• Modern consumers expect to find and engage with the brands they buy from on social media, so a well-managed social media presence is a must.
• Ensure all of your content is not only creative and original but fully optimized for search engines so that your website is easily discoverable via Google.

Joining forces with other local businesses and brands can also help boost your online reputation and lend your brand more authority. The same goes for tactics like guest posting, email list building, and going out of your way to personally connect with new online communities.

Paid advertising

Techniques like search engine optimization and building your content catalog are important parts of playing the long game in real estate marketing. But paid advertising options can be just the ticket for driving fresh traffic and reaching new audiences in the short term.

Some popular options to consider include:

• Listings-based websites and platforms like Zillow, Trulia, and others
• Pay-per-click options like Google Ads and Bing Ads let you reach large audiences while only paying when users click your ads
• Paid social media marketing on platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram to help you fill in the gaps

When and where it makes sense, you may also want to explore things like influencer partnerships, sponsored posts, and so forth.

Scaling Your Real Estate Marketing Strategy with Content Cloud

At the end of the day, your real estate marketing strategy can make or break your reputation and bottom line, so it’s important to get it right. That means having the right tools for the job so every aspect of your campaign is on point.

Rock Content’s Content Cloud is a robust one-stop marketing solution that takes all the guesswork out of the process from start to finish. When you sign up for Content Cloud, you get:

• Stage: Rock Content’s top-tier WordPress hosting and management service
• Ion: Interactive content tools that make converting leads a snap
• Studio: The ultimate solution to team collaboration and coordination
• WriterAccess: Premium access to some of the world’s best and brightest writers, editors, and content creators

Get your Content Cloud demo today, and experience the magic firsthand!