Real Estate Marketing Mistakes: Boring Ads

Most real estate self-promotion ads are boring – and are no help at all to consumers.

How many times have you picked up your local newspaper and seen an ad for a real estate agent that looked just like the ads for every other real estate agent in your community?

My guess is that you’ve seen the same ads so many times that you don’t even remember whose name is on them.

Why? Because they all look alike. They all say things like “Your hometown expert” or “Million Dollar Seller.” And do you care? Not likely. And neither do the people those ads are designed to reach.

The people at the newspaper office will tell you that those ads really do get results. By putting your name in front of people over and over you’ll create recognition, and that will get you business.

To some extent, that could be true. But if a dozen other agents are running the same ads and striving for the same recognition, what good does it do you? You’re still just one of a crowd of agents that people in your community recognize.

So do something different!

Create a message that makes you stand out from the others.

How about something that lets your prospects know what you’ll do for them? It could be something as simple as saying “I return phone calls within one hour.”

Or, it could be something that proclaims the niche you work in. I know, that’s scary. You’d really rather appeal to every single buyer and seller. You don’t want to miss a client, even if it’s the wrong client.

But by focusing on your niche, you can position yourself as the expert in that niche.

And if you were a buyer or a seller, wouldn’t you prefer to work with a specialist? Wouldn’t you think it was to your benefit if you hired an agent who knows all about the kind of home that you want to buy or sell?

On top of that, when you work in your niche, you do a better job. You impress those clients with your knowledge, and they’ll tell other people how good you are. And then you get referrals.

But… perhaps you’re in a small town and no niche offers enough opportunity.

You can still do something different.

Instead of placing the same kind of ad that all your competitors use, consider using that ad space to give clients some useful information. It could be tips on getting a home ready to sell, or tips on narrowing the search when you’re buying. Or, if you have an interesting listing, it could be a brief narrative about the property’s history or construction.

You’ll also get more value from name recognition if you do something newsworthy and use it in your ad. It’s even better if you can write about it in a press release and get your newspaper to print it as news. A news story is the most valuable advertising you’ll never pay for!

What can you do? Head up a food drive or a coats for kids program. Volunteer with a local non-profit and play a visible role in one of their events. Buy 1,000 American flags and hand them out in front of the post office on July 3.

Think about what you can do, then do it. And make sure that someone happens to take a photo that you can send along with that press release when you give your local newspaper the opportunity to do your marketing for you!

Real Estate Marketing Mistakes: Boring Ads