Tag Archive for 'realtor outreach'

Being Ready for the Bounce: Four Marketing Fundamentals

Published
by
NDG
on July 30, 2009
in articles and new home sales marketing
. 0 Comments

From the Washington Post:
“The battered housing market appears to be on the mend, with sales climbing nationally and prices leveling off, even rising in some spots….On Tuesday, the Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller price index, a closely watched gauge, showed that single-family-home prices rose 0.5 percent from April to May, the first monthly increase since 2006. Earlier this week, the Federal government reported an 11 percent rise in new-home sales from May to June, the largest monthly gain in nine years.”

So, according to a key indicator of the housing market, for the first time in nearly three years home prices actually rose month-over-month across the nation. Foreclosures have slowed as well as lenders address new loan-modification programs, and economists think there’s now enough data to show that the housing market is  recovering and even bottoming in some parts of the country. Even the conservative Wall Street Journal reports this indicator data as a possible “change in momentum” for the housing market.

Now that reliable data shows that the bottom is being reached across the nation, it’s time to prepare for the bounce in your market. But your budgets are still tight, and you’re not even sure how to prepare after such an extended downturn. Here are the four marketing fundamentals every homebuilder or real estate brokerage should be doing to prepare for the bounce, with little cash expense required:

1.    Follow Up: Odds are, you already know the person who’s going to buy that house. They’ve likely already visited the community if not the very same unit. Go back to your prospect list and follow up.

2.    One Person’s Inventory is Another’s Content: Utilize the free and low-price targeted online advertising available to you, including trulia.com, zillow.com, newhomesindex.com, move.com, craigslist.com, realtor.com, google base, and others to give the right online searchers numerous opportunities to encounter your offerings, all at incredibly low cost or, at some sites, for free.

3.    Reach Out: Nationwide, more than 50% of all new home sales in 2008 were through a realtor. In fact, some builders saw this figure rise as high as 90% in the last year. It’s not enough to have just an introductory event and send out an occasional postcard. Your outreach must be coordinated, consistent, and actually connect—create events that encourage realtors to bring their clients to experience what your products or communities have to offer, stay up-to-date, and boost the frequency of your contact with them. Get more solid advice on Realtor Outreach from the NDG Blog.

4.    Start Listening: All those nifty social media tools like facebook and twitter are just the means to an end. We’re not just using them to be using them; we’re using them to have a new kind of conversation. Social media channels aren’t like the old, 1-way, broadcast channels where you just yelled at people, frequently. Online, people are talking back, and you must hold up your end of the conversation by genuinely listening and honestly responding. Listening will give you incredible insights; not listening will become dangerously reckless.

Commit to doing these four marketing fundamentals, and you’ll be cost-effectively connecting with your prospects and opening new channels in preparation for the rebound.

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REACHING OUT TO REALTORS, Part 2

Published
by
NDG
on January 22, 2009
in advertising, marketing, new home sales marketing and real estate marketing
. 0 Comments

In this post, we continue our discussion of how to properly reach out and engage Realtors in your sales process.

Remember, what the realtor wants more than anything is more REFERRALS. Even with cash incentives, the realtor may feel compelled to pass on some or all of this benefit to their client to get that coveted referral. So if you can structure a program that offers the realtor other incentives in addition to bonuses and good commissions—such as trips to a spa, or travel gifts—you’ll provide a spectrum of rewards that will help you attract more realtors.

And, if you can provide just as many rewards for the realtor’s clients such as upgrades or additional options, or help with costs or down payments, you will have given the realtor every reason to bring clients to your property.

Contact is also very important—It’s not enough to have just an introductory event and send out an occasional postcard. Create events that encourage realtors to bring their clients to experience what your community has to offer, and do them more often. Provide give-away gifts or drawings that reward both the realtor and client for attending.

Always remember: Providing incentives is the key to successful realtor outreach, and that without realtor participation, you’re missing possibly more than 50% of your potential sales.

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Reaching Out to Realtors

Published
by
NDG
on January 20, 2009
in marketing and real estate marketing
. 0 Comments

Here are some cold, hard facts about New Home Sales in the 21st Century: Nationwide, more than 50% of all new home sales have been through a realtor. In fact, some builders have seen his figure rise to as high as 90% over the past year. Why is this the case?

In our challenged marketplace, with the overwhelming negative press the economy and the housing market have received, prospective buyers are now simply afraid, and feel that they must have representation to help them buy a home, and protect them from what they perceive as predatory sales people. This perception, while not often based in reality, is not one that will go away any time soon.

So, to market new homes, we must have a complete and easy REALTOR OUTREACH PROGRAM that clearly tells the realtor two fundamental facts:

First: What’s in it for the realtor? Offer clear incentives—a co-op percentage, bonuses, and any other incentives like trips, etc—real motivators for the realtor to bring prospects to your property, and put them right up front in all of your outreach.

Second: What’s in it for the realtor’s client? What can you do to help with price reductions, closing costs, financing, etc? And can you offer more options or upgrades?

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