The use of 3D virtual tours, videos, and automation will only grow stronger in this year’s real estate market. However, the following are trends that should be on your 2019 top real estate marketing ideas and strategies.
Real estate agents and realtors will need to invest in more digital marketing tactics because buyers in different generations—such as millennials and boomers—are competing for the same homes today.
The national homeownership rate rose to 64.4% in the third quarter of 2018, largely attributed to the increase in first-time homebuyers. ~ U.S. Census Bureau Click To Tweet1. Rising mortgage interest rates will cause buyers to change strategy
Aaron Terrazas, director of economic research for Zillow, says that in 2019, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage reaches 5.8%, giving a real impact on housing affordability and will prompt many buyers to pause and analyze their purchasing power and strategy. This means that as an agent, you’ll need to take more time to help your clients reevaluate deals and understand what their money can buy in this shifting market.
2. Trust-based marketing promotions for your real estate business
If someone is looking for a real estate agent in your city, do you think you can show up on the first page of their Google search? If you’re not coming up or worse, if they don’t find anything about you on Google, then you are losing opportunities.
Most real estate professionals spend their time on closing deals with clients. But a Real Estate Virtual Assistant can help you create these trust-based marketing campaigns to stay ahead of the curve:
- Creating and maintaining a website that provides information to potential buyers
- Gathering online reviews and homeowners’ testimonials
- Creating video and written interviews of your past and current clients
- Creating an e-book that will serve as a guide to what a home buyer needs to know about your neighborhood
- Writing blog posts about the real estate market and industry trends
3. Automating operational and marketing processes
Automation and outsourcing will be one of the top marketing tips for real estate in 2019. This is because many real estate agents are aiming to save time by working less and accomplishing more, doing things faster and more efficient.
There are several ways you can start automating processes. One is by installing chatbots on your website and social media pages to respond and interact with visitors and answer questions that can immediately add value.
You can also develop a text message marketing or email sequence campaign to engage with leads and move them down the sales funnel. Build your relationship with your clients by segmenting lists and following up at customized intervals.
4. You need a virtual office to make your online presence stand out
Next on our real estate marketing tactics is social media’s continued impact. A real estate seller’s strong online reputation will make headway to influence people’s buying decisions. This generation relies heavily on online reviews and social media presence.
For example, you will be more appealing to millennial clients if you will showcase homes on Instagram—one of the widely used social media platform today. Stand out and provide crucial information, especially to the younger generation of first-time homebuyers.
80% of today’s homebuyers are looking for a new home online. Click To Tweet5. Don’t be generic. Focus on the design and content of your email marketing
Still considered the best form of marketing by many experts, email marketing is your best bet this 2019. But those generic emails blasting “just sold and just listed” don’t work anymore unless you have an established relationship with people.
Virtual marketing assistants can work with you to design your email with relevant content. It should be formatted right (for mobile) and well spaced out. Change the design and do it over and over again until you get the right touch to develop trust in the prospect.
Some ideas for your email newsletter are:
• Monthly open house invites and personalized open house invites
• Weekly/monthly deals, news and events of your local community
• Case study of clients – what did you do to promote their property?
• Single property blasts and why you think it’s a good investment
6. Start using social video to generate more online shares
One of the most effective real estate marketing ideas over the years is the use of videos. Social videos have been shown to generate far more shares on social media sites than text and images combined.
You can use videos to create stories. Do you have clients who were thrilled with the home you sold them? That’s a great video story right there. Are there exciting new things going on in the community where you’re selling homes? Record a video and upload it to YouTube, and then include a link to that video in your email.
7. Millennials will keep contributing to the increase in first-time buyer demand
Odeta Kushi, senior economist for First American says, “The housing market in 2019 will be characterized by continued rising mortgage rates, making housing less affordable. But there will be a surging demand, as the largest cohort of millennials will be turning 29 this year, entering peak household formation and home-buying age.”
Millennials will continue to make up the largest segment of buyers this year, accounting for 45% of mortgages, compared to 17% of Boomers, and 37% of Gen Xers. Click To TweetOverall, demonstrate who you are and why you stand out among other real estate agents. Make buyers feel they can trust you and let them know how you are going to make the entire home buying process simple and efficient.
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Reference:
rehrealestate.com
www.realestateexpress.com
magazine.realtor
www.chatterbuzzmedia.com
