Marketing

Realtor’s want business. So, they will often say or do a lot to get the opportunity to list your home. I’m going to tell you what Realtor’s often don’t or won’t say. This article will help you make important distinctions. You’ll know what to ask of agents, how to see through smoke screens and how to wisely interview to find the best listing agent for you.

I’m going to tell you what works for you, and why.
I’m going to tell you what doesn’t work for you, and why not.
Along the way, I’ll mention what sets my approach apart from that of most Listing Agents.

• Two distinct “customer pools” to which marketing must be directed
• The essential question that determines impact
• Typical shortcomings Realtors make in using this tool
• Leveraging your home for greater exposure on the MLS

• Why most flyers actually keep people from calling
• Evidence ignored by Realtor’s that can cost you a sale
• Essential ingredients of a flyer designed to work for you, the seller

• Targeting buyers that are 100% more likely to want your home
• Give buyers a compelling reason to buy
• Secrets to marketing inside your home
• Creating a competitive advantage for your home.

• Realtors’ delight, at Seller’s expense
• An embarrassing secret of the trade

• Three questions you need to ask
• Selling a Realtor or your home?
• The what and the who of successful mailings

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The Multiple Listing Service

All Realtors will list your home on the Multiple Listing Service (MLS). Optimally used, this can be the single greatest marketing tool at any Realtor’s disposal. Unfortunately, many Realtors do not use this tool to its maximum advantage, thus shortchanging themselves and their clients.

What few Realtors realize is that the MLS reaches two very distinct types of customers: other Realtors, and potential buyers. There are subtle but important differences in marketing to these respective “customers”.

Each Realtor typically scans dozens (if not hundreds) of listings daily using the Multiple Listing Service (MLS). They are usually searching within a limited criterion, for a particular client or clients. They ask the computer to show all the listings within a price range, a size range, and perhaps within a specific location requested by their client.

Essential question: What makes a Realtor elect to show your house instead of the others that meet their buyer’s criteria? A listing agent must keep this question foremost in his/her mind, because the answer significantly impacts the length of time your house is on the market. Your agent must “sell” the other Realtors on your home first, so they will show it to their clients! Very simply, Realtors respond to how the house looks in the photos, and how good it sounds for the price and location.

Each house listed in the MLS can showcase eight different views of the interior and exterior of each home. The majority of listings do not make maximum use of this opportunity. Often fewer than eight views are utilized, and often these photos don’t even highlight the most attractive features of the house! These agents surely underestimate the importance of visional impact on the sales process.

Did you know that the Multiple Listings Service (MLS) is now available to anyone with access to a computer? More and more buyers are doing their own searches! Realtors have access to comments, address and contact information that the buyer cannot see. So, when buyers find something that interests them they contact an agent to learn more.

It is essential that the limited information available to the public be presented in a way that immediately grabs their interest! Believe it or not, some agents enter absolutely nothing in the section available to the public! Some use jargon the public doesn’t readily understand. Most write something, but surprisingly few make optimal use of this tremendous opportunity to directly reach a potential buyer.

Since the MLS is the most powerful “first point of sale” available, what gets included there and how it is communicated is crucial. It is imperative that the reader’s imagination be captivated – whether the viewer/reader is the Realtor or a potential buyer.

As your listing agent, I use the Multiple Listings to aggressively market your house to two different types of “buyers” – Realtors and potential homeowners. I make sure that the Realtors Only section has the hot buttons that encourage Realtors to show your house. What I write for potential buyers does more than just “describe.” I use it to motivate the buyers to want to see it for themselves. I use photos as eye candy to highlight the best your house has to offer, enticing both Realtors and buyers to come check it out.

Now I’ll share a “top secret” tool I employ to maximize exposure of your home in the MLS. Realtors use specialized programs to search for properties. These programs are set to show the Realtors only what’s “new” or what has had recent changes. This simplifies the task for Realtors, who would otherwise have to sort through the same listings every day. However, it also means that if your home didn’t appeal to the Realtor on their first search, you’re out of the running.

I’ve learned how to “tweak” my listings to have them re-appear, time after time after time. I make minor changes weekly to your listing, which fools the screening programs, putting your listing back in every Realtor’s view at least once a week. Maximum exposure increases the odds of decreasing your home’s time on the market. It’s a convoluted statement, but an important marketing fact. I leverage the use of the Multiple Listings to get your home sold as soon as possible.

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Yard Signs and Flyers

Most Realtors will put a sign in front of your house and create a flyer to promote your home. A signpost with flyers in your yard can be a helpful marketing tool. It will attract the attention of neighbors, who may tell friends. Sometimes buyers drive through neighborhoods that interest them, looking for signs. Agents often give clients a list of addresses to “drive by”, later taking them to see those that they found appealing.

For the most part, these are serious potential buyers. If the buyer finds your house appealing she/he will get out of the car to grab a flyer for more details. (See the “Staging” area of this website for tips on enhancing your home’s “curb appeal”.) Sadly, most of the flyers posted at yard signs do a poor job of marketing the home, and the majority are actually detrimental to getting the house sold.

Most agents create a flyer by using a computer program that takes information and photos off the listing sheet and arranges it into a flyer format. Presto! A flyer that provides barebones information about the house, a photo, and agent contact information. It’s quick, easy, and serves a limited (though usually lethal) purpose.

This type of flyer does not sell the house, nor does it even adequately market the house. Quite honestly, it usually keeps people from calling! Sadly, this information simply helps most people decide that the house isn’t the one they want. It tells them the house costs more than they want to spend, doesn’t have the spare room they wanted, or lacks the basement they had hoped to have. Whatever. They glance at it, and 98 times out of 100, quickly dismiss that house as being their potential home. If you don’t believe me, ask any agent how many brochures they typically put in the flyer box at the signpost. Then ask them how many calls they get off those flyers. If they answer honestly, they will tell you, “pitifully few.”

How can a potential buyer get excited about your home simply by knowing (for example) that it has 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms and 1800 square feet? Unless it’s selling for $100,000, that isn’t enough information to excite them! You might as well put up a sign that reads “This is a house pretty much like every other house in this neighborhood, for which we hope to get a fair price.”

A flyer has to be designed to work for you, the seller, not against you. This means it must quickly and clearly communicate the appealing aspects and benefits of your home. It has to let the potential buyer know what makes your home uniquely special. It must instantly convince them that it is definitely worth their time and attention to get inside and see more.

Some agents will argue this point. They claim if you give too much information, the potential buyer will feel it’s unnecessary to view inside. Statistical evidence has repeatedly proven that, in print marketing, detailed descriptions sell best. A flyer won’t convince anyone to buy a house significantly smaller than they want, or to buy beyond their target price range. However if the house is within the buyer’s price range and size needs, the more information provided (especially if it’s well presented) the more likely they are to respond.

I frequently receive “flyer generated” calls. Rather than use a computer-generated program, I individually create each flyer to highlight the most useful features of that specific home. Flyers must be graphically compelling and highly informative. I view the flyer as a pivotal point of sale. It must do more than communicate information. It must compel the buyer to further action. Unless it sizzles with juicy details, it just isn’t good enough. Click here to see some sample flyers from previous sales

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Where Most Realtor’s Fall Short

Almost all agents will put effort into seeing that people know your house is available. They will put it in the Multiple Listings, put up a sign, make a flyer, and maybe run an ad. But most Listing Realtors fall short in marketing to the most motivated buyers – the ones who are 100% more likely to buy your home. Most Listing Realtors do little or nothing to “sell” the buyer while they are actually inside your house! Before being inside your house, the potential buyers have already viewed your home’s MLS listing. They have quite possibly already driven by, and have asked their Realtor to show your home. These buyers are interested and motivated! What’s needed is the added “something” that sets your home apart from the competition.

Many Realtors place a notebook in the home with information about local schools and churches, distance to the grocery store, etc. All this information is computer generated, and I assure you I’m being generous in saying that only one in 25 people who view your home will even glance at it. Why? Because they’ve seen notebooks like this in every other home. The information there is dry, statistical and legal. Typically it relates more to the community than to the house. It does nothing to “sell” the buyer on the unique advantages your home offers. In short, it’s almost useless and it’s certainly not effective marketing!

Generally, when people put their home on the market, they eagerly tell their Realtor lots of details. They explain all the improvements they’ve made and the unusual or beneficial features of the home. They point out certain aspects they think makes their home a cut above or different from others. Some people provide tidbits about the neighbors or neighborhood that they assume, if known, would add to the desirability of their home.

In the majority of cases, the lion’s share of this valuable information is lost. It goes into the Listing Realtor’s ear, and stays there. Rarely does anyone ever hear those juicy details (other than the few potential buyers guided through the home by the Listing Realtor him/herself). This is because the listing Realtor does not show each potential buyer or even all the other Agents through the home and therefore is not available to pass this information along.

Statistics indicate that the Realtor who lists your home (the Listing Agent) is not likely to be the one who actually brings you a buyer. How do other Agents, those representing hot-to-buy clients, show your house to it’s best advantage without knowing that detailed information? They can’t.

The Buyer’s Agent (and you and your house) are at a distinct disadvantage unless the Listing Agent puts forth some very special effort to communicate your home’s unique details. Sadly, this very, very rarely happens. I know, because I often represent buyers, and I wish I had more details to help them make their decisions! This means it takes longer than necessary to get your home sold. Without those details, your home may not stand out from the other homes the buyer views that day. The buyer needs a compelling reason to act, to buy. You home’s unique details could tilt the balance from indecision to investment!

When I represent you in selling your home, I make sure that everyone gets all the details. I don’t leave it up to the other (Buyer’s) agent to “make the sale”. Every home I list, I market from the inside, whether I am there or not! Here’s how I do that.

When I begin working with you to get your home on the market, I ask you to give me a detailed guided tour, telling me everything special and unique about your home. I want to see it through your eyes, with the intent to soon have perspective buyers noticing and appreciating what your home offers!

Then, I create signs (tasteful, but obvious, so as not to go unnoticed). These signs are put in appropriate places inside your home. For example, a kitchen cupboard might have a sign stating: “Great pull out drawers add to your convenience! Open this door and look inside!” Near a bedroom closet door might appear a sign that reads: “The organizer in this closet is adjustable! Customize to your needs!” Or, on a patio door that leads to a particularly well-landscaped yard, the sign might list all the various trees or unusual bushes.

The bottom line is this: your house is competing with every other home on the market in your area within a reasonable price range. You want a competitive advantage. You want prospective buyers to recognize why your house would be a better value, and offer them a more comfortable living experience for the money they invest. Strategically placed interior signs highlight details that might otherwise go unnoticed. These details help sway a buyer who likes your house but is mentally comparing it with other homes. Interior signs help your house sell faster.

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Realtor’s Tour

On Tuesdays, most Brokers have all the agents in their office tour the homes that have come on the market that week within their company. This event could correctly be called “Realtors’ delight, at the seller’s expense.” Let me explain.

Historically, before the Multiple Listings were available on the computer, this tour day served a vital purpose. A house could be sold before it ever appeared in the printed listing book, which was out of date before it’s biweekly publication. These days, the tour still serves a purpose, though not the one you, the seller, would hope. You hope it increases your home’s exposure and results in more showings to qualified potential buyers. It has some potential for this, but it primarily serves as a social function for Realtors.

These days, as soon as an agent inputs the information about a new listing into the computer, it is available to every agent. Agents search regularly for everything within their clients’ criterion. They depend on the computer to help them find the right property out of thousands listed. Absolutely no agent will depend solely on his or her own company’s listings. That would be like taking a client to lunch at a first class smorgasbord and limiting their selection to just one section of the serving table! Regardless of how great that section is, why limit the choices?

Busy Realtors, the ones with clients who are ready to buy homes, cannot see every new home listed on the market. However, they will make an effort to see anything new on the market whether or not it’s on “Agent Tour.” And they will see it as soon as it comes on the market, they don’t wait for Tour Day. This, quite simply, is because homes within their clients’ criterion mean a potential sale and money in their pocket! They are motivated!

The needs and interest of a client is just one reason a Realtor may view a home on Tour day. Another is whatever is the office rules and protocol for tour. Often, agents who answer phones and do “floor time” are required to view new listings so they are informed and able to answer questions about the company’s listings. Obviously this serves a useful purpose for the company and for you and your home.

The other motivator for agents to participate on Agent Tour Day is actually quite embarrassing. Agents tempt Realtors to view their listings by giving them food! Many Realtors want a free lunch! They choose which houses they will tour based upon what kind of food is being served!

If you think I’m exaggerating this point, consider this:
Originally, tour sheets listed the address of the properties on tour, the size, price and a few other details. When the computer made tour day less important, food became a motivator. The information on the tour sheets evolved to indicate (yes or no) whether food would be served. However, this simple indication resulted in hungry agents showing up to be greeted with store bought cookies, much to their disappointment. So, now there is space to indicate what the menu will be at each house on tour! Realtors get very creative in using food to attract agents on Tour day!

Though I find my colleagues’ motivation a bit embarrassing, it’s not really my concern. You are! Typically, the Agent, not the homeowner, pays for the food service. So, why do I say tour day happens at your expense? Because the typical homeowner believes this tour day will amount to something. The seller hopes the home will gain exposure, which will help to sell their home. But how much can this exposure help if the agents viewing have no clients for your type of home? (Remember, the ones who have potential clients will come anyway - with or without a special Tour; with or without food!) Agents with time on their hands, with maybe too little money in their pockets, and who come seeking a free lunch aren’t likely to bring a buyer for your home.

Sellers put special effort into getting their homes ready for this big day. They invest eagerness and anticipation in this event, and rarely does anything come of it. It takes the owners’ energy and enthusiasm and gives little or nothing in return. That’s why I say it’s at the sellers’ expense.

Personally, I don’t consider Agent Tour Day to be an important marketing strategy. It’s a hold over from a by-gone time, which now serves a very limited purpose. It appears in this marketing section solely because most Realtors tout “Tour Day” as one of their marketing techniques. This article explains the true (limited) value of this “marketing effort.”

Do I put my listings on Realtor Tour? Virtually always. Having the home appear on the Tour Sheet is a spot of promotion. I don’t want to skip anything with the slightest opportunity to benefit my sellers.

However, I am frank and clear about what sellers might expect. I act according to what I think is truly in my client’s best interest. The decision to put the house on tour depends on the home, on the family’s circumstances, on the location, the neighborhood, the competition, on how the market is working at that particular time, and much more. I make those choices based on conversation with you, the homeowner. In all cases, I avoid misleading you, and do everything possible to make the event as beneficial as possible.

Now let’s move to another dinosaur in the Real Estate Industry, Open Houses.

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Open House

Most Realtors will host an Open House for your home. The reason for doing this is not to sell your home, however! The odds of selling your home through an open house are only slightly better than winning the lottery. But, hosting an open house does serve two important purposes, both of which aid the Listing Realtor, not you, the homeowner.

The custom of hosting an “Open House” originated before the days of computerized multiple listing. In those days, it was beneficial to hold the house open for the public to view it, so it wouldn’t sit on the market for weeks prior to appearing in the listing book. Agents and public alike scanned the Sunday paper to see what was new on the market.

But now, agents depend on the up to the minute, computerized multiple listing service.

Who comes to an open house?

1. Your neighbors. They want to see inside your house because they are curious. They want to know more about you, and they want to know how their house compares to yours, and they want to know (based on the comparison) what their own house might be worth on today’s market.
2. People who are driving by and want to compare homes in your neighborhood to those in their own. This is a variation of what interested your neighbors.
3. People who do not have a Realtor, but who think they might some day be interested in buying a house and who happen to drive by your house or see the ad in the paper. This group represents the most likely candidates as potential buyers for your home. But we’re talking extreme long shots.

Sadly, none of these people are interested in buying a house right away. And even if they were interested, they are probably not in a position to do so. Motivated buyers who are qualified to purchase a home, are usually working with a Realtor. They can view your house without attending an Open House.

So, why do Agents ever hold an Open House? Two reasons.

1. To satisfy the desires of sellers who, not knowing the reality of what does or doesn’t transpire as a result of an Open House, expect the agent to hold it Open.
2. The agent hopes to turn those people in the third category above (the wanna-be-a-home-owner-someday) into clients.

An Open House is a fantastic marketing tool. Unfortunately, it markets the Realtor, not the home.

Did you know that few (virtually none) of the successful Realtors ever hold an Open House? They might schedule an Open House. But they will inevitably have a beginning or junior agent in their office host the actual event. Why? They know it’s highly unlikely that your house will sell at an Open House, and they (unlike the new agents) don’t need to recruit new clients.

What served a useful purpose in a different sales era, I believe now rarely serves the Seller’s best interest. An Open House means you must gussy up your house and then leave home for the afternoon. People will come through your home that may have not intentions of buying. The truly motivated buyer, with an intent to buy soon, will call the agent listed on the signpost or will call their own Realtor to get an opportunity to see your house.

Do I schedule an Open House for my listings? Occasionally, but not automatically. I do everything I believe will be of benefit to the Seller in getting the house sold. I won’t mislead a seller into believing it is essential, and won’t do it if the potential exposure doesn’t warrant the inconvenience to the seller. Bottom line: everything about marketing your home should be done with your specific home and your specific circumstances in mind, including the decision of whether or not to host an Open House.

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Post Cards

• I use them to market homes I’m representing.
• As far as I know, I do it differently than any other Realtor.
• Without a doubt, my cards do a better job of promoting than most.
• Unlike most agents’ efforts, my postcard mailings often get results for the seller.

Only a relatively small percentage of Realtors offer postcard promotions because of the expense. Of those that do, they often use the cards to market themselves more than the home.

If a potential listing agent offers postcards as part of their marketing package, be sure to ask the following questions.

1. How many are sent?
2. To whom are they sent?
3. Can you see samples from previous mailings?

I imagine you’ve received cards in the mail like this: One side has the agent’s photo, company logo and contact info along with a statement: “I have been selected to market the property located at 1234 A Street. If you or someone you know is interested in this property, or any other real estate information, please give me a call.” The reverse side will have a photo of the house.

Or it may be even more blatant in marketing the agent, not the house. One side might say: “I’ve just listed a home in your neighborhood at 1234 A Street. I’m the top listing agent in this area, and I’d love to help you sell your home!” The other side will have a photo of the agent the company logo and contact information. No photo of the house, no details at all.

These cards are typically mailed within a radius of your home, using addresses supplied for free through a Title Company. Some agents mail 100 cards, some more. These random mailings rarely garner much response for the noted home. This may be why agents use them more for self-promotion rather than promotion of your home. (The thinking being that if it’s not going to sell your home, maybe that investment can gain a new client.)

These postcards originate from a cookie cutter template on which the address is simply changed from one mailing to the next. This is the fastest, most economical way to produce them. However, it doesn’t necessarily prompt the kind of response that you, the seller, would like to see!

Marketing is a numbers game. You want as many people as possible to know your home is on the market. However, you also want those people to be responsive!

I use postcards created specifically for your home. Like the flyers at the signpost in the yard, I believe the postcards need to be chocked full of details about your house. In a nano-second the card must capture attention. Then, details must convince the reader that your house represents a great opportunity – due to price, location, features, whatever. Then, it must compel the reader to action. That’s a tall order on a small postcard, but it’s possible. Click here to view previous mailing samples

These postcards are mailed to two important groups. One group is your neighborhood. These people often have friends and family who are familiar with the area and who might be interested in living nearby. I have sold homes through this type of mailing, and know that with the proper card design, it can be effective.

The other group is several hundred people on my private mail list. The people on this list know me personally. My reputation with them is impeccable. They trust me, and are interested and responsive to my mailings. I know, because I receive lots of calls each time I mail out a card. Sometimes it’s just a casual “hello” to keep in touch. Other times it’s genuine interest in the property being promoted. There is always a line in the postcard that encourages people to tell friends and co-workers who might be interested, and my friends do!

Summary

Since I customize the marketing approach specifically for your home and needs, everything can’t be covered here. Primarily, I’ve tried to convey that although many agents offer similar services, the effectiveness of those services may not measure up to the quality I offer my clients.

What you’ve read here will help you make distinctions. You’ll know how to listen between the lines, how to ask clarifying questions and how to wisely interview listing agents. I hope you’ll consider letting me serve you. Let’s talk soon!

Give me a call today (503-319-4777)
or e-mail me at RealtorInquiry at AmoveInTheRightDirection dot com

I regret that in an effort to foil spammers, who have previously high-jacked my e-mail address, I have removed the automatic link to my e-mail. Please type the address, using the @ symbol to replace the word at, and use the period key to replace the word dot in the e-mail address above. Do not leave spaces. They are used here only to help you read the address.

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