“What do we need to do about our digital marketing at a time like this?”
This is a question we’ve received every day recently.
If you worked through the GFC in a real estate business (myself included), you will remember what it was like back then. But this situation is very different. We now have a set of restrictions in place making it even more difficult to run our real estate businesses.
Here are some of the other questions we’re getting from clients right now…
- When it comes to digital marketing, where should we spend our time and money to get the best result?
- What sort of messaging should we be putting out?
- What channels should we be focusing on?
Well, firstly, let’s get the cat out of the bag… A lot of people aren’t selling or buying right now. So there are fewer people in the market, of course. So the question you should be asking yourself is “how do I get in front of the people who ARE in the market, at the lowest cost?”
Ultimately, marketing should be as much about saving money as it is about making money right now.
Two Things You Must Adjust In Your Marketing During These Crazy Times
1. Your messaging
The messaging that you were putting out a month ago will not work today.
You need to have empathy. You need to have some feel-good content out there because people are hurting. People are losing their jobs.
By putting the wrong subject line in an email, the wrong words in a blog article or the wrong image in a Facebook post, you’re going to rub people the wrong way. You need to be conscious of that before you publish anything online.
One strategy that we’re seeing work well for a lot of agents right now is the production of hyper-local content – articles and/or videos about the people, the businesses and those who are doing goodwill in the community – and spreading it throughout their marketplace.
Lindy Harris: Publishing stories about local people, businesses. Visit https://oneagencylindyharris.com.au/.
People are craving feel-good content right now. Be that voice in your community.
2. Your technology
A lot of agents are promoting online auctions, virtual tours and 3D floor plans right now.
I get it… open homes and live auctions are banned and you’re just trying to show that it’s ‘business as usual’.
But if every other agent in your local market is posting to social media “we do online auctions and virtual tours” (and they are!), is your message really all that effective?
Instead of just saying you do these things, SHOW people you do these things.
Your own website is the only place where you can showcase all of these amazing technologies in one place and, not only that, it provides an experience to buyers and vendors that they can’t get anywhere else on the internet.
Software companies like Diakrit add yet another layer to your digital marketing – allowing buyers to digitally furnish a property and even style the kitchen, right there on your own website. Buyers can tour the property with panoramas and 3D floor plans. It’s pretty amazing stuff.
Don’t just post all over social media that you use these technologies. Send people to your own website so they can see how it works. SHOW them. Don’t just TELL them.
In summary…
- Get that hyper-local feel-good content out there as much as possible and watch your messaging and tone of voice.
- Use all of the latest technologies, sure, but don’t just talk about them. Show people how they work on YOUR website.
But most importantly, I hope you, your family and your team are doing okay right now. Stay safe and keep smiling.
