Real Estate Marketing in the "NOW"

According to informal surveys from Real Estate Agents and Professionals that we speak with, allot of changes are happening right before us. Here is a short list of some of the things I've heard:

• Bad Agents are coming out of the woodwork.
  
• Buyers are more informed and discriminate.
• Buyers are coming from other MLS areas more than before, and it's hard to capture their business.
• Listings are taking much longer to sell through traditional methods and a large percentage of homes don't even sell after being on the market.
• Internet usage is becoming the overwhelming norm to view properties, time for marketing is hard to find.

If you are a Real Estate Professional in today's market, you undoubtedly have heard some, or all of these remarks from either the media or other colleagues.

We have to really take a look at these problems and try to find a solution. While a single solution to solve all of these issues seems unlikely, the right type of "Press" can help overcome these challenging statements.

Before I go any further, let it be said that "Print Ads" and "MLS Systems" are NOT a thing of the past. What I'm saying is that the internet is not being utilized by the vast majority of Real Estate Professionals correctly.

Even though, I do see allot of Agents utilizing services like Trulia and Neybor.com to help get the word out, it isn't enough to have a website with featured listings, and send an email to every agent within a 500 mile radius to market your listing. All of these are great tools, and must be used, but even the so-called "Bad Agents " are even using these tools and doing well. How do you compete?

The answer is a process and is completely FREE...... "Social Media." The vast Majority of Agents don't have a Twitter or Facebook account, and if they do, they use it mostly for personal chat. I would be willing to bet that many of these same agents haven't even heard of Digg, Mixx, or Stylehive. These sites are only 5 of thousands that can help Put your name and your product (Property) in front of people who want to see them... let me rephrase that.... who NEED to see them. You, your brand, and your listings have to stand out above the rest.

The process of Networking, Bookmarking, and Blogging can be difficult and time consuming. However, there are allot of companies that provide this service for an extremely fair rate. Even though I own one of these marketing companies, I encourage all of my clients to embrace Social Media- even if they do so on a small scale. If done correctly, you could generate at least 30% new business from Social Media alone... I do.

So what are you waiting for? Get those free accounts set up and get with the times. The Future is NOW.

Good Luck and I hope to see you around!

Nathan Strauch

Hot Shots Digital

A Colorado Virtual Tour and Marketing Company

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"4" Marketing Tips From a Marketeer!

As a salesperson or a business owner, marketing is of utmost importance if you want to be and remain successful. You can never advertise enough, however, you must advertise correctly. Here are the top 4 tips on how to Market your Business, and if done correctly, will produce a long-term and continuous stream of leads for almost any type of Business.

TIP #1
Advertise with small local companies! The Owners of these companies often do most of the work, and always inspect the final product. Not only that, you are creating a “Word of Mouth Referral Machine” by partnering with them. Think about it… the small companies are only successful if you are, and they know it. They will always run circles around the “Corporate Minimum Wage Trainees” in the larger firms to ensure your success. If you can, you should avoid “Corporate” companies as much as possible in all aspects of your business.

TIP #2
Marketing your business should be looked at like an “Investment.” New restaurants are probably the most visible example of this tip, because they often times have no capital left over from their initial investment to get the word out. Consequently, their “Investment”, or lack thereof, dwindles quite rapidly, and by the time they start getting traffic in the door, they are too far in debt to recover.

Another example that comes to mind are the “Could be Great Businesses,” but didn’t entertain the idea of advertising. I like to call this one the…. “If You Open the Doors, Customers Will Come- Philosophy”....

How many times have you seen a building in a great part of town have many different Businesses come and go? I often make cold-calls to these places and they all have one common phrase amongst them: “We don’t do any advertizing.” That’s completely okay with me, because in a couple of months there will be a new business in the same spot that might employ my services. I actually ran into a former business owner here in Loveland the other day. He told me how his booming business just started going south and how his competition had stolen his business. I felt bad for him, however, I felt equally awkward because I own the Marketing Company that works for his competitor. As you probably already guessed, he “didn’t do any advertising.”

The truth is that Businesses who open their doors and fail to tell the public about the; who, what, where, when, why and how, will without a doubt fail.

TIP #3
Of course, there are ways to spend allot of money and get results, but by spending money, your overall ROI can be drastically minimized. Focusing on free methods of advertising can be the most effective means to secure your future. The only downside to “Free” is that work is almost always involved. But what better ROI is there than an “Investment” that you didn’t pay for, and is yielding income?

After exploring thousands of methods of free ways to market, I have been compiling a list of what I call “Blue Chip Freebies.” I haven’t tried them all out “YET”, but for the few hundred methods that I’ve tried over the last year and a half, some actually work very well. I must admit, that I am going nuts, but I hope to eventually save someone else from the Looney Bin by trying these ideas. (I will be publishing these soon)

TIP #4
Results should always be measured and tracked on a regular basis when doing any form of marketing. We all track our expenses so that we can pay the mortgage every month, so why would we not track our Marketing so that we know how to pay our mortgage best?

As a Colorado Virtual Tour and Marketing Provider, most of my clients and prospects have little to no idea where all of their sellers or buyers heard about them. Of course, I do much of the tracking for them from what I do, but what about that Newspaper Ad, or the Highway Sign that they’re paying a handsome fortune for? The truth is, methods of marketing become cyclical with the market, and some even go extinct. Do not let this happen to you.


I hope that this has helped with your marketing efforts, and look for my next Blog on Free and effective marketing for your business, or “Blue Chip Freebies” as it will be titled.

Nathan Strauch
Hot Shots Digital of Colorado
See My Colorado Virtual Tours
http://www.hotshotpros.com
Order a Virtual Tour (970) 669-6844

FSBO: 2 Story Tent w/ dog run- Ready for move in!

Remember your first lesson about sales? If you're like the vast majority of people in the Real Estate industry or any sales business for that matter, your first lesson was entirely about "Staying Positive" and "Good things will happen". "Yesterday" many of us rarely read the news, because of the negativity that it showed. "Today" we can't get enough of it! The fact of the matter is that the news is always going to get you down! Why is it that, even though we all know bad news sells and most news is inherently "bad", we are compelled to it as if we need an excuse why we aren't making any money. From the vast majority of the Realtors that I speak with, I hear all about how homes aren't selling; Jumbo Loans this or Escrow that, FSBO's are taking over. WHAT! I can't believe what I'm hearing. I understand that while it's very important to know your Current Industry News, many are using the so-called "State of the Market" as a platform for failure. I am not a Realtor, but my success relies greatly on my fellow Realtors' success. I keep up on my current events only because I have to. But as I do, I keep an open mind for the "TRUTH", and I sift out all opinion. For instance:
Sales ARE down from last year---BUT---Call me when people no longer need housing, and we're all searching for the perfect 2 Story Tent with a dog run.
Credit IS tight--- BUT---The banks are still open! Call me when we all start trading in seashells.
FSBO's ARE many---BUT--- the average Real Estate I.Q. of Joe Public is bordering on "Duh." Call me when he gets his "Masters". (Better yet, call him and make a lasting impression! Then call me!) I'm not blind to the fact that there may be fewer buyers---BUT--- We ARE salespeople, when did we actually start thinking that we only sell to people who call us? Does anyone remember the 2nd sales lesson? "People always make purchases on emotion!" If you are down, what do you really think that does to your buyer..... and worse yet, your ability to keep that buyer interested? All that I can say is that unless there is a deadly rattlesnake latched onto your leg, "Do not shoot yourself in the foot!" (Try to get the snake first though) Once again, I am not a Real Estate Agent. Although, other than all of that fun legal stuff that a Realtor does, I am in many ways doing the same thing that people want from a listing agent. As the owner of a small Virtual Tour Business in Colorado, I can tell you that my business is through the roof right now, mostly with FSBO's. The only real reason is because I don't sell Virtual Tours. I sell exposure for homes and try to get listings on the first page of google.(with a tour of course) There is absolutely no reason why I can get all of this business and agents can't. However, my clients give me reasons all of the time. The top two reasons are:
We were listed with _______ , but our home wasn't getting any traffic and we couldn't see the benefit.
The problem with this is EXPOSURE! There are millions of people in Colorado, and their agent couldn't get 3 or 4 qualified buyers to even see this listing? While I can't give out my secrets, I can say that there are literally thousands of "FREE" platforms to get this done. All that it takes is a little bit of work! (I marketed a "Bill of Sale" property for one day and it was gone) 2. We can't afford to lose 3-7% by listing with an agent.
YES they can! Home sellers read the news too, and they really think that their house is only worth "X" amount of dollars. The solution to this is that you simply become what you were born to do, become a salesperson. Sell them the benefit, and follow through with your promises of, here it is again...... "EXPOSURE". In conclusion, your business is only what you make of it. Success is out there for everyone, but only for those who go after change and do it with a great attitude will attain it. I truly hope that this has helped someone. I understand that I am no "Zig Zeigler", but what comes around-goes around! (I love Cliche's)

Good Luck!

Nathan Strauch
Hot Shots Digital
www.hotshotpros.com