The Worldwide web is smashing the real estate industry big time and because of this, the industry is maximizing this opportunity by incorporating the usage of digital marketing trends to edge the competition, get some leads and sales.
Don’t miss your opportunity. Through this article, we will share to you all the real estate digital marketing trends that you should implement in 2020
Digital Marketing for Real Estate in 2020
As more and more people use the Internet, marketers all around the globe are utilizing this medium for their marketing strategy.
As part of the real estate industry, you have to adapt to this change too.
You see, in the last ten years, people buy houses in a different way already. People are now searching on the Internet before buying a product or a service. It was even found on the 2018 Real Estate in a Digital Age results that 50% of buyers found their homes through the Internet.
This is how digital marketing for real estate started to boom.
If you haven’t heard it yet, Digital marketing is any marketing effort that uses electronic devices or the Internet.
This includes search engine optimization, online advertising, social media usage and other strategies that would enable your company to reach your target audiences online.
Because of this, most if not all brands have already established an online presence.
However, because of thousands of competition, not all real estate companies become triumphant.
This is why you need a strategy that you can use next year and for more years to come.
So, how can you do this? Hop into the next parts to learn more!
Real Estate Digital Marketing Tactics
There is no magic trick in getting more real estate sales. You need to follow a set of rules and guidelines for your brand.
This is why here’s a list of real estate tactics that you can use in your online presence in 2020:
1. Solidify your brand.
Before starting your presence on the Internet, you should really understand your brand first.
Lots of brands have built their website and social media accounts but have stopped afterwards.
Why this is? Because these companies have no plans.
Digital marketing needs a lot of planning. Part of the planning stage is determining your goal, your target customers and the necessary tool or tactic for every goal.
Determine your goal
Image from Make Me Better
The first one to keep in mind is to examine the goals of your business. Do you have a goal? Is it targeted each month or just once a year? Is it specific, measurable, attainable, realistic and time-bound (SMART)? Or do you need to change some of it?
Carefully analyze your goals as it is a key factor in analyzing what strategy is suited for your company.
Remember, each goal corresponds to different tactics. You may have a goal that is best suited to implement through a video campaign other than a blog post. So, analyze it thoroughly.
Identify your buyer persona
Image from Disruptive Advertising
Moreover, you should also understand your prospects. You can do this by making a buyer persona.
If you haven’t known yet, a buyer persona is a semi-fictional representation of your ideal customer. As you may already have past customers, this will be easy for you because you already have an existing data of your customers that you can use in visualizing your prospects on the Web.
Keep in mind that a buyer persona should be a combination of demographic information (which includes location, age, income and job title) and psychographic information ( which includes goals, challenges, hobbies, interests and priorities).
Analyze SWOT
Image from Venngage
Also, determine the strengths and weaknesses of your business and use it to find opportunities and threats that you may face in the future.
For example, your real estate company might only have ten agents, this can be your weakness. However, as a strength, these agents can market above their quota each month. So, as an assumption, you want to hire more passionate agents and this one could be an opportunity for your business to expand. However, this might also have a negative impact on your agents as they have more competition in your company.
As they say, “It’s better to be safe than be sorry.”
So, really analyze the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (SWOT) of your company and as you are building your online presence, make sure to connect this analysis to it.
In this way, you are already prepared for the possible problems that your company may face in your real estate digital marketing journey.
Thus, in solidifying your online presence, make sure to figure out your goal, determine your buyer persona and perform a SWOT analysis of your brand.
2. Optimize your website.
image source: Web Brain for InfoTech
A strategy that you should never forget is to optimize your website.
A lot of marketers fail to do this and you should never allow this to happen as it will lessen the impact of your brand.
Invest in a website
Image from Web Solutions
The first thing to remember is to really invest in a professional website. Buy a domain name and web hosting.
Why should you by one if there’s a lot of websites like WordPress and Wix that offers free domains? Well, as you are a brand of your own, you should aim to look professional.
It might not cost a penny in building a free website in any site builder but you will surely drop your company’s credibility over time.
If a prospect finds that you haven’t even paid for the website that you are using, they will surely doubt your credibility. You aren’t even dropping money just for a professional website, so why should they hand you their money, right?
Give your company details
Moreover, don’t forget that you should also provide information on what your company is.
Make an About page on your website that could clearly reveal the name and purpose of your business. Also, add details to where your prospects can contact you. Provide an email address, location, telephone number, time availability and others. You can even show them a map into your business address and social media links.
Make sure to really do this as this is one way your prospects can contact you easily.
Present a visually appealing storefront
Another thing to remember is to make your website your storefront. People on the internet may don’t have the time to visit the actual location of your business but you can help them by making your website as a place to locate you.
For your real estate business, you might have a lot of new lists of houses that you want to sell. So, use your website to sell these houses. Post pictures or videos of the listings and make it shareable to social media sites.
In this way, you are not only engaging with your prospects but you are also making them as a path to gain more leads into your website.
Make it every device’s friend
Lastly, make your website applicable to other devices.
Accept it, people don’t just use a computer to connect to the Internet. Others use different devices wherever they are such as a mobile and tablet.
Why should you optimize your site to fit any devices?
Take this for example. A prospect wants to visit your website using her phone. However, your site is not compatible with mobile devices and takes a long time to load. In the end, that prospect might find another real estate site and never come back to your website again.
Remember that people also use mobile phones, tablets, laptops and other devices that may also use different operating systems.
So, as part of your tactic to gain more customers, make your website optimized into different devices.
3. Build your social presence.
Accept it, social media users are increasing and by users, this means your target customers.
In these times, your prospects might be interested in other real estate firms because you don’t have any social networking accounts for your business.
So, you should really create one and associate it with your marketing strategy.
How can you do this? Well, read the things that you need to do on the next paragraph.
Optimize your business profile
Image from CareerAddict
The first thing to remember, like how you build your site, you should also optimize your business profiles.
Give all the needed details like your contact number, address and availability. You can also post testimonials and reviews from your past customers to really give credibility to your business.
Connect and Engage with Audience
Moreover, the use of social media is to let people connect with each other and because you are using it too, your goal is to connect with your prospects and former customers.
By connecting with these people, you should not just promote but to also engage with them. Provide different forms of content that are valuable to them. Build a relationship with them by replying to their comments. Appreciate them by offering discounts and others.
Keep in mind that on these platforms, authenticity is key.
Add a CTA
Lastly, add a CTA in every post that you may have. It can be for your audience to visit your website, subscribe to your newsletters and others.
Remember, you use a social media account to gain more leads. However, in order to really convert them, always promote the site of your real estate firm as it is the main place where the conversion really happens. You see, websites are important!
4. Create helpful and engaging content.
Whether you are using your website or your social media business accounts, you should always produce content on these platforms.
As what Bill Gates said in his 1996 essay, “Content is key.”
It is a key in building your brand and engaging with your prospects in turning them as customers.
So, as a part of your digital marketing strategy, you should also provide content for your target customers.
Use appropriate content
Image from Entrepreneur
The first thing to keep in mind is that content doesn’t only mean a blog but also include photos, videos, GIFs, audio, infographics and a lot more.
Remember that each content have different usage and you should utilize it in relation to what your strategy is or what appeals better for your audience.
For example, you want your prospects to know how the inside of the house you are selling looks like. So, you are thinking of either take pictures or videos of it. Although a photo is a great way for your prospects to see the inside of the house, video is a better option because you can roam around the house while explaining its interiors.
Create value
Image from eLearning Industry
Moreover, your content should also have value. Making content that would engage your prospect is a great thing to build a relationship with them. However, you should also make your content helpful to your target customers. In this way, they will always come back to your site or accounts.
You can do this by posting content that shows a visual tour or open houses, tips and advice, behind-the-scenes, walk-through and others.
Add a CTA
Image from ClearVoice
Further, in each of your content, always provide a call-to-action (CTA).
You should use CTA to invite your prospects to do something. You can ask them to join your mailing list and in return, give them a discount.
Remember that in using CTA, it should be persuasive, so that you will really achieve your desired goal in making that content.
Post regularly
Image from AltusHost
Also, post content regularly. Once a day or five times a week sounds good.
As part of generating your prospects into customers, you should always remind them that you are always there in terms of their real estate problems.
You can do this by making a schedule of posting or if you find it difficult to post manually, there are a lot of applications on the Web that would help you automate the posting of your content.
Connect content with your goals
Image from MSME Africa
Lastly, your content should always be connected with your company’s goals and philosophies.
This is why we have started with solidifying your brand first because in this way, it is now easy for you to really make content in connection with your business goals.
5. Develop an email campaign.
Image from Maropost
Most people on social media do have email addresses and even if they are not on any of these platforms, they would surely have an email address.
So why should you get their email address?
It’s simply because email campaign is a way of making sure that your content is received by your prospects.
Create an email list
Image from OptinMonster
You can develop an email campaign by starting on making a CTA on every content that is asking your prospects to join your email lists.
But of course, no one would want their personal information without something in return, so always make your content valuable and helpful. You can also provide them free assessments, trials or demos.
By doing this kind of marketing strategy, you should also remind yourself that it doesn’t just end on getting their emails. It is only the beginning.
Make it content-worthy
`Image from Whitehat Media
After having the email addresses of your prospects, you should give them relevant content.
By relevant, this means content that is valuable to them. Not all of the people on your email list is already choosing your services, some may still be in the searching phase of buying a house. So, only give content to the email addresses that you think is suited to that content.
Personalize each email
Image from WPForms
However, before sending that very first email to your prospect, personalize it first.
Remember that an email is also an example of content. Put a subject that clearly states the goal of your message. Thus, make it personal like how you send an email to someone important to you.
6. Advertise your brand.
Image from Lucid Advertising
Other way that you could extend the reach of your brand into your target customers is through advertising.
As the Internet continues to grow, a lot of opportunities have opened to businesses like yours and one of these is to advertise your brand.
Where on the Web would you advertise?
Choose what platform
You can choose either promote to search engines or on social media platforms.
Google, the largest search engine, gives you the chance to advertise through their platform’s Adwords. Other search engines like Yahoo and Bing also gives you this service.
Also, social networking platforms give you this service too. Some of these are Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Youtube and Snapchat.
But before choosing what platform you want to advertise your real estate business, know these things first.
Choose what payment options
Image from eGHL
The first one to keep in mind is how you should pay the advertising service.
You can pay them through cost per click which means that you will only pay when someone clicks your advertisement.
The second one is through cost per action wherein you can track if someone who has clicked your advertisement has made action or have been converted into your website.
You can also pay the advertisers through cost per thousand impressions which means that you will only pay when your ad was shown to a viewer for a thousand times.
Facebook also allows you to pay through cost per like or when a user like your advertisement.
Do keep in mind that these payment options vary from every platform. So, better read the agreement thoroughly before start advertising.
Track the progress
Moreover, during the advertising campaign, you should track everything.
Whether you are using social media platforms or search engines, you should monitor the performance of your advertisement. In this way, you will be able to analyze what your campaign still needs or does it have to end.
Analyze the outcome
Lastly, whether you have failed or not, analyze the outcome of your advertising campaign. Check what went wrong and how you should solve it.
Afterwards, do another campaign for your brand and use the data from the past to really achieve your goals.
7. Utilize different tools.
image source: 2440 Media
Every platform on the Internet provides different services for real estate businesses like yours.
So, what should you do? Utilize it!
Some of it is either free in the platform you are using or you still have to pay an amount of money. Nevertheless, invest in the tools that you need in your digital marketing strategy.
There are a lot of tools to choose for your strategy from building a site into analyzing your different campaigns.
Digital marketing tools
Image from Sine
Here are some of the tools that you need:
Asana – This helps you manage all of your employee’s tasks in one place.
WordPress – This will help you in building your website and other things that you will need to keep it up and running.
Google Keyword Planner – This tool helps you in knowing potential keywords that would be needed in your content creation.
Canva – This helps you in creating visual content.
LeadPages – This tool allows you to make and optimize your landing pages.
SumoMe – This tool allows you to track the behavior of your prospects in your site using their Heat Map and Content Analytics.
Hootsuite – This helps you scheduling all of your social media posts and checking all of it in the same place.
MailChimp – This will helps you in automating your email.
Feedly – This tool helps you collect all of your favorite content in one location.
Google Analytics – This gives you important input about your site’s performance.
Utilize social media features
Image from SalesForce
Moreover, because you are also using social media platforms, might as well use the features that come with it.
Some of the features that you should utilize in these platforms include analytics, live video sharing, Stories, polls, keyword search and chatbots.
Remember that the best thing that you could do in social media platforms is to send clients to your site.
As mentioned above, these platforms are a way to gain more leads but to really convert these prospects into customers, you need to bring them into your website.
8. Gain trusted links and referrals.
Image from Sitechecker
The last tactic that you should do is to really increase referrals and trusted links for your real estate business.
On the Internet, most people don’t know what your business is. So, if they come across to one of your advertisements, there’s a big chance that they will not use your service.
This is why you need to increase referrals and trusted links.
Ask for referrals
Image from Easy Affiliate
As long as you have exceeded the expectations of your past customers, you can easily get referrals from them.
You can simply ask them to share how wonderful your service is to other people or post a picture of their new house through their social media accounts. In this way, you are increasing your brand’s word-of-mouth either online or offline.
Because of this, people who have read or knew about your service can be your prospects or they can also refer you without even using your services.
Gain trusted links
Image from Team Viewer
Another way that you can increase your authority in the industry is to have trusted links.
Gaining trusted links is important as it is the key in increasing more leads that would soon be your customers. Thus, you will have more sales.
How links will affect your sales?
You can do this by continue creating content and also connecting with other businesses that is related to your industry.
For example, because you are in the real estate industry, you might be connected with furniture business owners. If they have a site and they have mentioned your brand and even linked yours with it, then you already have a trusted link.
If audiences from that site is interested in your service, they will surely click your link.
Thus, you have new leads that can be converted into customers.
Conclusion
Millions of people are already using the Internet. This is why the real estate industry is also utilizing this medium to gain more customers and increase their sales.
However, getting this goal is difficult if you don’t have any strategy. This is why here is a list of digital marketing tactics that you can use in 2020:
- Solidify your brand
- Optimize your website
- Build your social presence
- Create helpful and engaging content
- Develop an email campaign
- Advertise your brand
- Utilize different tools
- Gain trusted links and referrals
So, use these tactics for your real estate company to increase more sales!
A digital marketing company for you!
However, if you find it difficult to handle your digital presence, worry no more because ESTRAT Digital Marketing Agency can solve your problem!
ESTRAT is one of the leading digital and social media marketing agencies in the Philippines. The company will help your brand grow through their relevant, up-to-date and effective Internet marketing strategies. This ensures you that ESTRAT will provide a professional service that is perfect for your business!
So, for your digital marketing needs, hire ESTRAT now!
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