The real estate industry today is competitive for real estate agents worldwide. Standing out in the crowd for long enough to grab a customer’s attention requires a mix of strategies that are built into daily routines. For a real estate agent looking to attract new clients, the integration of technology into your day-to-day sales activities is now vital.
In this article, we’ll share with you some tips to help you differentiate yourself from your competitors. Begin by incorporating a couple at a time until you begin to see your numbers (leads and sales) grow.
Table of Contents
- Build a website to amplify your property listings
- Invest in a real estate CRM system to automate tasks & activities
- Leverage your email list to engage with prospects
- Get on social media to reach your target audiences
- Become a real estate influencer and trusted authority in your niche
1. Build a website to amplify your property listings
A real estate website is key to showcase your property listings to a wider target audience. But to be impactful, you need a site that:
- properly highlights your real estate portfolio in a way that compels the user to click
- offers an exceptional user experience that is feature rich with functionalities like advanced search, dynamic dropdowns, related properties, wish lists, map search, and more
- is mobile friendly and responsive on all devices with clear text visibility, high-quality videos and photographs, and intuitive navigation optimised for all screen sizes
- is optimised for search engines through the integration of SEO best practices so that homebuyers can find your site
- delivers informative content that builds authority in your niche
- can integrate with a CRM system that makes updating your website easy and quick
At Qobrix, we work to build real estate websites that highlight your listings, engage visitors, generate leads, and boost sales. Take a look at some of the work we’ve done here.
2. Invest in a real estate CRM system to automate tasks & activities
One of the biggest challenges a busy real estate agent faces is properly managing daily sales tasks and activities. A CRM built specifically for the real estate industry can help mitigate these challenges. In doing so, you become more productive with your time, enabling you to focus on nurturing leads and making sales.
The Qobrix CRM system is a leading, end-to-end CRM solution that offers all the tools you need to streamline essential workflows. It provides an easy way to record, organise and monitor all tasks, activities, and viewings, making you more time efficient. By having a comprehensive overview of all client interactions, you can immediately optimise your service offering to maximise conversions.
In this blog, learn about 6 of the top challenges facing real estate agents and ways to solve them.
3. Leverage your email list to engage with prospects
Benchmarket tells us that “over 4 billion people use email — and that number is growing. By 2024, it’s expected to reach 4.5 billion. Email marketing is so effective because it’s a direct line to engaged prospects. And with more people using email as time progresses, that’s more opportunity for businesses to connect.”
For real estate agents looking to stand out, a dynamic email marketing strategy to reach out and engage with prospects is key.
“Email continues to be the main driver of customer retention and acquisition for small and midsize businesses. According to the data, 81% of SMBs still rely on email as their primary customer acquisition channel, and 80% for retention”. (Oberlo)
Factor in a strong ROI – for every $1 you spend on email marketing; you can expect an average return of $42 – the benefits of leveraging your email list are pretty evident.
So, what type of content could you as a real estate agent include in your email campaigns to stay top-of-mind for new prospects?
- Free resources (neighbourhood guides, school guides, housing renovation tips, etc)
- An analysis of current real estate market trends for new homebuyers or sellers
- New listings announcements
- Virtual video tours
- Testimonials / client success stories
4. Get on social media to reach your target audience
According to Sprout Social,
- 77% of realtors actively use social media for real estate in some way, shape or form
- 47% of real estate businesses note that social media results in the highest quality leads versus other sources
- 99% of millennials (and 90% of baby boomers) begin their home search online (as opposed to in-person referrals)
If you aren’t on social media, you could be losing out on a lot of business. You may also be missing the opportunity to directly engage with your target audience where they’re at. This includes actively responding to queries the channels generate or replying to comments instantly.
But what should you be posting? Well, this depends on the social media platform you’re posting on.
- Facebook is where most of your target audience will likely be at so publish property related content consistently and make use of its feature to book appointments. Monitor for comments and messages and focus on building a community to keep your followers engaged. Share company updates and your most recent listings too.
- As far as visually stimulating content is concerned, Instagram is where you as a real estate agent needs to be. Share high-quality photographs or videos of your listings. Use Instastories to share moments and engage with your audience in real time. Remember, there are currently more than 1 billion monthly active users on Instagram worldwide. Of those, 500 million accounts watch Instagram stories daily. Leverage these numbers.
- LinkedIn is a great option as far as networking is concerned. Set up a company page and publish content regularly. Establish yourself as a thought leader in your industry by sharing insights on current market trends and consumer behaviours. Use it also to promote your listings.
If you want to learn more about the use of hashtags in your social media posts, take a read through this blog on the best hashtags for real estate.
5. Become a real estate influencer and trusted authority in your niche
To truly stand out in the crowd, brand yourself as an influencer or trusted authority in your field. Showcase your expertise as a real estate agent by way of industry articles, establishing yourself as a thought leader in your niche. Optimise your social media presence by sharing diverse, high-quality content consistently, be this highlight reels of your listings, your insights into the real estate market, tips for prospective homebuyers, etc.
Other tips by Forbes include,
- “Specialize and niche down. Rather than trying to be a jack of all trades, zero in on a specific skill you excel in. You cannot please everybody. It takes twice the work, money and time if you choose to serve everyone. As you narrow down your prospects, you can better understand and focus on your chosen field. As a result, you gain more knowledge and expertise in dealing with every nook and cranny of your industry.
- Get featured in prominent publications. A tried-and-true way of gaining the public’s trust is having your name featured in a reputable magazine or newspaper. These brands have years of backing and integrity, which is hard to contest. Thus, readers expect nothing but quality content from these publications. Build connections with editors, reporters and journalists, which can lead to securing a foothold in publishing companies. Your value as an expert in your industry increases as soon as you get published.”
Implementing these tips should give you the push you need to stand out as a real estate agent, increase your visibility to prospects, and grow your business.
