Four Ways of Looking at Real Estate Marketing
Marketing. What is it?
It’s not about tactics. Promotions. Or advertising.These things are useless without a sound foundation of research and analysis.
Marketing is about consumers.
It’s about understanding how they think, behave and talk. It’s about proper communication, segmenting and powerful distinctions.
Most importantly, its about understanding what works–and why. Without this last piece, everything else you do is simply blowing in the wind.
To help you understand this concept of marketing in real estate, lets look at four of the most popular and proven ways marketing shows up in real estate.
Social Media
It’s hard to argue with what is hot. Right now, social media is hot. But is there a payoff?
Becky Boomsma thinks so. She says “If you are interested in defining your expertise in specific geographic areas or on specific real estate topics, social media participation is extremely effective in developing and differentiating your expertise and brand.”
On the other hand, Redfin’s Glenn Kelman wonders if this is the best way to talk to his clients.
Glenn quotes a New York Times article by Clive Thomson called Brave New World of Digital Intimacy that suggests social media like Twitter or Facebook is at best creating an awareness of your actions–that’s best suited for people under 30.
For a business, it seems rather absurd.
That’s why I like to go back to stalwart advice from online experts Brian Clark and Jakob Nielson.
Jakob Nielson said in his article Web 2.0 Can Be Dangerous, “AJAX, rich Internet UIs, mashups, communities, and user-generated content often add more complexity than they’re worth. They also divert design resources and prove (once again) that what’s hyped is rarely what’s most profitable.”
And in his article Blogging Is Dead, Brian Clark said, “Blogs that provide true value by teaching, informing and offering unique perspective are thriving….Value will always be key.”
Mass Marketing
Is mass marketing dead? Good question.
Mass-marketing used to mean making one pair of black Nike shoes and getting the whole world to wear them–even if someone wanted a pink pair and another wanted a red pair.
Today, we’ve moved into the world of target marketing. Nike makes shoes in every color for every sport. Anyone is bound to find a shoe that’s perfect for them.
But target markets are very large. So, target marketing is nothing but camouflaged mass marketing.
How does this work in real estate marketing?
Segmenting your audience into specific needs. Seniors who want to buy an upscale second home. Young urbans who want to buy their first home condo downtown.
For you, this means finding a niche–and owning that niche.
While you may market mass amounts of email, postcards or phone calls to this niche, I think it still means that mass marketing is dead. You cannot make money throwing large amounts of mud at the wall. The same holds true for the next real estate marketing medium.
Branding
Will anyone recognize your brand? This is the question Steven Van Yoder asked in his article on real estate branding.
That’s an important question.
Why? Establishing a brand is equal to defining who you are. Establishing your brand requires determining who you are, what makes you different than everyone else and why anyone should trust you.
Establishing your brand helps you focus on your business. It helps you identify what you can offer consumers that no one else can offer. And it will help you grow.
But you can’t focus on branding alone. Branding is very difficult to monitor and measure. That’s why you need a predictable and proven marketing strategy like direct response.
Direct Response Marketing
What can direct-response marketing do that social, mass and brand marketing can’t do?
It can tell you what works and what doesn’t. Quickly.
Direct-response marketing is the bread and butter for marketers who want to not only survive, but thrive–in any economy.
Think Bill Jayme. QVC. Billy Mays.
Obnoxious, you say? Think twice, as the Direct Creative Blog argues:
I think few would say they “like” to watch a Billy Mays commercial. He’s considered obnoxious by many. But that’s irrelevant. Just as people say they dislike catalogs while continuing to place orders, they say they don’t like Mays’ in-your-face style while emptying the store shelves of the products he pitches.
The one thing you should learn about direct-response marketing is this: learn from what works–not from what you like.
Here’s What You Must Learn
Your best bet? Train yourself to think like a direct marketer–then test new marketing mediums like social media. Or experiment with target marketing.
That way you can avoid the over-hyped. You can avoid flushing money down the toilet. You can avoid trying to keep up with an overwhelming amount of stuff.
When you test everything, you are making decision based on facts. And, I think you’ll agree, that’s the best way to do business.
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