Happy New Year! What Will You Do Differently in Your Real Estate Business This Year?

Jan 2, 2024

Although the attribution is under debate, Albert Einstein famously defined insanity as “… doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.”

Regardless of who truly gave that one to the world, it sure is true, isn’t it?

As we head into a fresh, new year, it’s time to do a lookback at 2023. What worked? What didn’t? What did you hope to accomplish that you didn’t? Where are the gaps in your marketing plan that need to be filled?

Is this the year you’ll hire help?

Today we throw out some ideas. No, nothing new, but perhaps new to your business in 2024.

Understand your audience

“Census data shows that 4 in 10 Americans are finding it difficult to cover their expenses,” according to Emma Newbery at Fool.com.

“On average, Americans need an additional $11,434 to afford the same standard of living in October 2023 compared with January 2021 …,” suggests Aimee Picchi at CBSNews.com, citing a study by the U.S. Senate Joint Economic Committee.

Sadly, the media doesn’t seem to understand the plight of average Americans in this economy. They deliver the news as if we’re doing peachy, making money hand over fist without a care in the world.

Naturally, those struggling the most are not likely in the market to buy a house right now. But, rest assured that a chunk of the higher earners in that 40% of Americans just may be.

The Get More Listings II Series is shown above. To learn more, Click Here.

Are you online enough?

Strengthen your online presence via social media and a robust offering of advice and information on your website.

The secret? Ensure that what you post is irresistibly sharable.

These topics don’t all have to be real-estate related. In fact, those that are shared the most tend to be community-related, such as those about local coffee shops, restaurants, dog groomers, etc.

Yes, you’ll want to throw in educational real estate pieces to show your expertise and educate your followers. But social media is a place for them to get to know all aspects of who you are.

Get a Niche

Have you considered specializing in a real estate niche? Focusing on one group of people, type of property or neighborhood is an amazing way to stand out from the crowd of other agents in your area.

Popular and lucrative niches include:

People – veterans, ethnic, foreign buyers, generational (for instance, baby boomers, or Gen X), new-home buyers.
Geographic – as mentioned earlier, this might be specializing in a particular neighborhood, condo community, or beach-front properties for instance.
Property type: luxury, starter homes, condos, multi-generational homes, new construction, waterfront, golf course.

Use your content, both website and social media, to show them you’re not blind to their plight. Keep them abreast of the local market, but have some fun too. Any positive news you can provide will have them coming back for more.

When you have time…below are some marketing tools to help support your success.

1. Put Your Real Estate Business a Step Above with Your Own Branded Magazine

Homes & Life Magazine is a customizable magazine with rich, full-color content and a sharp, professional aesthetic. It includes compelling, direct, response-driven articles written by real estate industry experts and engaging lifestyle content. Send out Homes & Life Magazine in Just Minutes – No Minimums Required. Or we’ll ship it to you. Homes & Life Magazine is the ultimate “Coffee Table Lingerer”! …and it costs less than sending a greeting card! – Click Here

2. The Free 6-Month Done-For-You Strategic Marketing Plan

The Real Estate Marketing Planner is a powerful 6-Month Guide that strategically defines what marketing to do and when. Four key market segments include niche Markets, geographic farming, sphere of influence, and past clients. – Click Here

3. The Free Interactive 6-Month Real Estate Business Review

The Free Interactive 6-Month Real Estate Business Review allows you to enter your business goals for the remainder of the year and get a breakdown of how many prospects, listings, closings, and so on are needed to reach your goals. – Click Here

4. The Become a Listing Legend Free eBook

This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is Become-A-Listing-Legend-3D-Book-White-274x300.jpg

Ready to take a vertical leap in your real estate career? If you’re looking for inspiration…and the tools and methods to dominate a market and go to the top in real estate…you’ll find them in this free book. – Click Here

Behind the Wheel: Uncovering Tax Savings From Your Vehicle Expenses

Dec 28, 2023

“Hello Mary, this is Edith at the IRS and I notice that you missed claiming several deductions on your tax return,” is a phone call nobody ever has or ever will receive.

Yet, despite all the terms and conditions placed on them, about 39.6 million Americans claim more than $1.1 trillion in tax deductions on itemized returns.

Sounds like a ton-o’-money, doesn’t it?

Consider this: 2.2 million tax filers who didn’t itemize, but took the standard deduction instead, gave the government nearly $1 billion that they didn’t have to.

Sure, itemizing is a hassle but that’s why we hire accountants, right? Your only job is to keep track of all of your expenses.

And, as a real estate professional, you have a lot of expenses that can be transformed into deductions.

Document everything

Guesstimates of your mileage, how much gas you used and other auto-related expenses will get you about as far as a Zestimate gets a homeowner looking for home value.

Relying on them may cause you to leave money on the table.

Then, the IRS requires accurate documentation, should you be audited.

“The devil is in the detail,” warns Bill Zumwalt, former tax coach to real estate agents. “If you have documentation, it will be your friend.”

OK, so let’s jump into some of the more common automobile deductions that apply to the real estate professional and some tips on how to document them.

The Empty Nest Series is shown above, Click Here.

Bought a car in 2023?

Yup, it’s a fact: being a buyer’s agent means practically living in your car.

Without getting too technical, if you’re thinking of getting a new tin can to be locked up in all day, and it happens to be a “heavy” SUV, you may want to purchase or lease a 2024 model.

A heavy SUV, by the way, would be something like a Tahoe or Land Cruiser— any vehicle with a gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) of more than 6,000 pounds. You can find a list of qualified vehicles at mileiq.com.

The depreciation deduction falls under Section 179 of the IRS code. “Section 179 is a provision of the US tax code that allows businesses to deduct (i.e., write off) the purchase price of qualifying equipment, vehicles, and software in the year it was purchased, as opposed to depreciating it a little at a time over several years,” according to the experts at Crest Capital.

You can bone up on the details at IRS.gov.

Deductible auto expenses

Keep careful records of your mileage this year because you’ll get more money per mile than you did last year: 65.5 cents per mile driven for business use.

And, keep in mind that mileage may just be your biggest tax deduction, according to CPAs at Rick C. Reed and Company in Texas.

Don’t neglect the following expenses, though:

Car washes
Repairs
Gas (including tax on gas)
Tires
Parking
Tolls
Depreciation
Maintenance costs
Vehicle registration fees
Lease payments
Insurance

Learn more about vehicle expenses online at IRS.gov.

When you have time…below are some marketing tools to help support your success.

1. Put Your Real Estate Business a Step Above with Your Own Branded Magazine

2. The Free 6-Month Done-For-You Strategic Marketing Plan

3. The Free Interactive 6-Month Real Estate Business Review

4. The Become a Listing Legend Free eBook

A Closer Look at Two Often Overlooked Tax Deductions for Real Estate Agents

Dec 11, 2023

Today, we’re offering two tax tips to help take the sting out of 2023.

Home office deductions

And, here you thought the biggest perk to working from home was not having to deal with office politics.

Having a home office offers a slew of tax deductions and, according to Crumbaugh, many agents miss a lot of them.

And, even tenants can take the deduction. So, part of what you pay every month in rent on your home would be deductible.

Some of the more commonly overlooked expenses, a percentage of which can be deducted, include:

Homeowners or renter’s insurance
Mortgage interest
Property taxes
Utilities
Repairs and maintenance (of the office area)
Depreciation
Casualty losses

As you can imagine, the IRS has a number of stringent requirements to meet before these are considered allowable expenses and they all have to do with whether or not your home office is really an office.

Oh, those silly skeptics at the IRS.

Basically, your home office must be your primary place of business and you must use the space regularly and exclusively.

Read the fine print at IRS.gov.

Assigning work to your kids

Dusting, wiping the mud off signs and lockboxes, and even doing online research are all jobs that your kids can do for you. In fact, if there’s something you normally hire someone else to do, consider hiring your child or grandchild instead.

“The IRS has accepted that your child may be an employee of your business,” says author and attorney, Stephan Fishman at nolo.com.

We aren’t talking about child labor here, but what we’re talking about is well within the limits of the Fair Labor Standards Act. The rules are different when the child is working in a family business.

Now, those are the federal agency’s guidelines. State rules vary, so speak with your accountant or with the state Department of Labor.

You’ll be able to deduct your child’s salary and any fringe benefits you offer, such as health insurance. And, check this out:

Your child won’t be subject to Medicare or Social Security taxes if your business is “a sole proprietorship or a partnership in which each partner is a parent of the child.”

And, if the kids are younger than 21, you won’t have to pay unemployment taxes for them.

Finally, your child won’t have to file a tax return as long as his or her income doesn’t exceed the standard deduction—helpful information when deciding how much to pay the child.

Get more information on hiring your kids from the IRS. We aren’t tax professionals but what we do know is the power of tax deductions. Work with a professional to ensure you get every deduction you are entitled to.

PLUS: When you have time…below are some marketing tools to help support your success.

1. Put Your Real Estate Business a Step Above with Your Own Branded Magazine

2. The Free 6-Month Done-For-You Strategic Marketing Plan

3. The Free Interactive 6-Month Real Estate Business Review

4. The Become a Listing Legend Free eBook

5 Ways You Can Optimize your Real Estate Website to Get More Eyes on it

Nov 29, 2023

Quick! What is the purpose of your real estate website? It’s a given that some of the most common purposes are to showcase your listings, offer IDX for home shoppers, and create brand awareness.

All worthy goals for real estate agents.

Reaching those goals requires website traffic, otherwise, you’re just whistling in the wind.

If you want your real estate website to attract visitors and generate leads, you need to pay attention to it. Today, we take a look at five ways you can optimize your real estate website to get more eyes on it.

1. Is your real estate website design responsive?

“A responsive web design automatically adjusts for different-sized screens and viewports,” according to the folks at bluecorona.com.

Why is this important?

U.S. adults spend more than five hours per day on their smartphones, generating more than “… 60% of website traffic,” according to Robin Layton at allconnect.com, a broadband marketplace.

This means that the chances are excellent that your website traffic will come via potential clients searching on their smartphones. If your site isn’t responsive they most likely won’t stick around to see what you have to offer.

You can test your website, free, with Google’s Mobile Friendly Test.

2. What keywords are you targeting?

Real estate agent websites seem to draw more traffic when keywords are local.

Oh, imagine that! All real estate really is local.

If I want to purchase or sell a home in Las Vegas, NV, I won’t be asking Google to show me homes for sale or listing agents in Nevada.

Since all real estate is local, all keywords on your site should be local as well. This includes specific neighborhoods.

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3. Are you consistently adding new content to the site?

The best way to do this is by blogging, consistently.

Keep visitors up-to-date on what’s happening in the local market. Offer reviews of places you like to eat, drink (coffee or cocktails!), get your dog groomed, etc. The topics are endless.

Be sure to send copies of business reviews to the business owners. You may just earn a spot on their blog! Instant traffic.

Don’t forget to shoot these blog posts out to your social media platforms as well.

4. Include testimonials

This tip isn’t so much to help generate traffic as it is to help impress the visitors you are able to attract.

Sure, you can toot your own horn, but that will most likely go in one ear and out the other.

Social proof is far more convincing and relatable and can positively impact their choice of an agent.

Visitors are also more likely to stick around longer. After all, others find you trustworthy, so why shouldn’t they?

PLUS: When you have time…below are some marketing tools to help support your success.

1. Put Your Real Estate Business a Step Above with Your Own Branded Magazine

2. The Free 6-Month Done-For-You Strategic Marketing Plan

3. The Free Interactive 6-Month Real Estate Business Review

4. The Become a Listing Legend Free eBook

Outpace the Competition: Build Your 2024 Real Estate Marketing Strategy Now

Nov 15, 2023

The end of the year is creeping up on us and with it comes the inevitable look-back on your real estate business. How’d you do?

If you didn’t get the results you were aiming for, your year-end business planning may require an overhaul of your real estate marketing plan.

It takes money

It may sound like a “well, duh” statement, but a marketing plan requires a marketing budget. Study your current year’s revenue numbers and commit to spending at least that on next year’s marketing.

A couple of years ago, Attom Data Solutions published the results of a survey of real estate agents, brokers, owners, and marketers to determine where they are “spending their largest portion of marketing dollars” and which method brings the best results.

Thirty-five percent of agents spent the most on social media while 20 percent spent the most on buying leads.

Regardless of how you spent your marketing dollars this year, the most important aspect of planning is that look back to figure out what worked and what didn’t. Naturally, you’ll want to reconsider underperforming real estate marketing methods and amp up anything that worked.

Chop your efforts into segments, such as:

Lead generation
Client retention
Building your SOI

Then, decide how much you’ll allocate for each in the budget. Naturally, you’ll want to spend the most on which effort brings you the best results. For some agents, client retention dollars result in the best ROI, while others may choose to go bigger on real estate lead gen.

Even if it’s just 2 percent of revenue, you’ll have enough money to engage and retain current clients “with simple tools and strategies,” according to Chris Beecher, president of thewholebraingroup.com.

Next, determine the strategies you’ll employ, such as social media, paid advertising, blogging, email, and direct mail marketing, and allocate an amount of the budget to each.

The Looking For Listings Series is shown above. To learn more, click Here.

How will you broadcast your marketing message?

How you will market in the coming year depends a great deal on your budget but also on those segments we mentioned earlier. Lead generation is costlier than client retention, so you may want to take a look at some of the less-expensive methods if you choose to focus on the former.

These might include beefing up your social media presence (by blogging more and posting to your preferred social media platforms), knocking on doors, etc.

A planner will help keep you on track

A planner is a must if you hope to keep your marketing efforts on track all year. We offer a Free 6-Month Real Estate Marketing Planner to help with this task (a new 2024 Planner will be available soon, so watch for the announcement in our weekly emails).

Although it’s important to create a coming-year marketing plan for your real estate business, don’t become a slave to it. If something doesn’t appear to be working, replace it with something else.

The key to success in real estate lead generation and client retention is consistency. Having a plan will ensure this.

PLUS: When you have time…below are some marketing tools to help support your success.

1. Put Your Real Estate Business a Step Above with Your Own Branded Magazine

2. The Free 6-Month Done-For-You Strategic Marketing Plan

3. The Free Interactive 6-Month Real Estate Business Review

4. The Become a Listing Legend Free eBook

Reawaken Connections with Your Sphere This Holiday (Part 2)…

Oct 25, 2023

We recently gave you some ideas on how to reach out to the people in your CRM over the holidays. And, we promised you more, so let’s dive right in.

We left off talking about holiday blog posts

Blog posts should never be permanently rooted on your website. Propagate them and share them on your social media platforms.

“Cross-promoting your content on social media can help drive traffic to your blog,” according to Melanie Tamble at socialmediaexaminer.com. It also helps generate additional exposure for your brand.

Whichever platforms you use, ensure that what links back to your blog contains a catchy headline. Then, engage, engage, engage with commenters.

The quick pop-by

If you’re short on cash (and who isn’t right now?), save this one for the hottest of the hottest leads and referral sources in your CRM.

Here are some ideas for the seasonal pop-by:

Deliver boxes of cookies or confections (homemade are especially appreciated).
Toys for the pet(s)
Goodies for the kids
Boxes of sparklers for New Year’s Eve
Champagne or champagne glasses to toast the New Year
Hot chocolate kit. You can make these yourself to save money. Open hot chocolate mix packets into a small cellophane bag and use a shiny twist tie to secure it. Place this in a basket or larger bag along with a peppermint stick and small marshmallows.

A handwritten tag that simply, and with class, wishes the best of the holiday season or a fantastic 2024 will cast you in a non-salesy light.

Go traditional

There is a reason our mailboxes fill up with holiday cards every year: it’s a relatively inexpensive way to reach out.

ProspectsPLUS offers numerous holiday postcard options for the coming holiday.

Consider scheduling an automated monthly holiday campaign to make your real estate marketing easier in 2024.

You can schedule a holiday campaign in just minutes, and once set, holiday postcards will go out every month throughout the year, keeping you in front of your market and reminding them who to call for real estate assistance.

Heading into the holidays can very often be a hectic time for agents, what with trying to close before all the lenders, title and escrow folks, and attorneys take time off.

If you start now, however, you can get those holiday touches taken care of and reap the benefits in 2024.

PLUS: When you have time…below are some marketing tools to help support your success.

1. Put Your Real Estate Business a Step Above with Your Own Branded Magazine

2. The Free 6-Month Done-For-You Strategic Marketing Plan

3. The Free Interactive 6-Month Real Estate Business Review

4. The Become a Listing Legend Free eBook

Next-Level Real Estate Marketing. Fresh Ideas for Memorable Campaigns

Oct 23, 2023

Over the past few years, direct mail real estate marketing has seen a resurgence. Experts chalk it up to the overuse of email marketing, but direct mail outperforms most digital marketing tactics, according to the Association of National Advertisers (ANA).

Direct mail marketing’s “response rate ranges from about five to nine times greater than that of email, paid search, or social media,” according to the pros at datatargetingsolutions.com.

Pretty impressive, right? Yet, at least in the real estate industry, it’s still not utilized like it could be.

This leaves the door open for agents seeking an additional marketing vehicle and a way to stand out.

Niche real estate postcards

A few years ago, scientists at Temple University’s Fox School of Business Center for Neural Decision-Making teamed up with the Postal Service to study the circumstances under which email or direct mail was more effective.

Postcards were more effective in five of the nine tests performed.

The most popular postcard agents are familiar with are the time-tested Just Listed and Just Sold postcards, which are still highly effective. To stand out further in this market, consider a local market update on the postcard back or a QR code leading to a valuable direct response flyer opt-in.

To think outside the postcard box, there are a multitude of real estate niches that you can drill down and focus on to stir up interest.

Some popular niches include baby boomers, high-income renters, expired, absentee owners, FSBOs, move-up markets, and investors. The more obscure niches include divorce, foreclosure, estate sale, and notice of default.

ProspectsPLUS! has postcard designs available in all of the niches listed above, already done for you with the perfect message for the niche market.

Education Direct Response Reports

Direct response reports are a great educational tool, filled with valuable information homeowners appreciate.

You can share them on social media as a “free offer”, include them in your email newsletter as a free offer, add them to your website as an opt-in in exchange for an email address, or add them to your listing presentation folder and pre-listing packet.

Personally branded agent magazines

Consider a personally branded agent magazine to level up your real estate presence in a way that few agents do. Homes & Life Magazine is a done-for-you magazine with rich, full-color content.

It includes compelling, direct response-driven articles, and engaging lifestyle content, and costs less to send out than a greeting card!

Sphere or farm scheduled postcard campaign

When clients need a real estate agent, it pays to have an easily recognizable name at their fingertips. But coming up with fresh, eye-catching content and sticking to a regular schedule of sending this content out is incredibly time-consuming.

A scheduled, recurring postcard campaign is the easiest way to maintain brand exposure and stay relevant while freeing time for more high-level tasks.

According to Lenskold Group, 78% of marketers reported that marketing automation increased revenue.

And 75% of brands saw a return on investment within 12 months due to using automated marketing campaigns (Focus Research study).

Launching a scheduled marketing campaign is the best way to make every moment count in your business, raise your brand profile, and stay relevant.

ProspectsPLUS! offers over 40 scheduled postcard campaigns, including sphere, farm, renters, absentee owners, holiday, and other niche markets.

PLUS: When you have time…below are some marketing tools to help support your success.

1. Put Your Real Estate Business a Step Above with Your Own Branded Magazine

2. The Free 6-Month Done-For-You Strategic Marketing Plan

3. The Free Interactive 6-Month Real Estate Business Review

4. The Become a Listing Legend Free eBook

The Real Estate Coaching Series Part Two: Selecting the Right Coach For You

Oct 2, 2023

A few years ago, when Spencer Krull, Director of Training and Productivity Coach at Keller Williams Santa Monica, CA, was a working agent, he talked to me about his coach, Steve Shull of Performance Training.

“Real estate agents always like to complicate things, and we love getting in our own way. Steve simplified the process for me,” he said.

Although he resisted the idea, his coach convinced him to try door-knocking. “I door-knocked three times a week. It worked,” Krull said. “Coaching is only of value if you’re going to do what your coach tells you to do.”

From simple steps, such as those suggested to Krull, to attitude adjustments, there’s a lot to be said for business coaching.

“I am really in the breakthrough business. I help people to find a way to break through from where they are to where they want to be,” Tony Robbins tells Inc. editor-in-chief Eric Schurenberg.

How to choose a real estate coach

When you’re thinking of hiring a coach, consider the different types and formats out there. There are many options, from real estate specialists to general business and inspirational coaches.

Coaching comes in various formats, from e-courses to teleconferences and webinars to live, one-on-one sessions.

Choosing “the one” isn’t easy and gets even more confusing if you turn to Google to learn how.

The Inspiration Series is shown above. It’s available for single postcard mailings and as a scheduled campaign. To learn more, Click Here.

Entrepreneur Tim Kitchen hired a coach to help him with his startup, Exposure Ninja. It’s a rather long story, but the coach’s advice cost Kitchen loads of money. The lesson learned is to “ … only take the advice of people who have done what I want to do,” he tells Alison Coleman at Forbes.com.

Sometimes, someone who hasn’t walked in your footsteps may be just what you need, as President Bill Clinton found out when he sought out the help and advice of Tony Robbins.

On the other hand, many coaches specific to the real estate industry have done what you want to do. And, because results are dependent on so many variables, it’s challenging to pick “the best.” Some agents have worked with several coaches before finding the right fit.

Take a look at this blog post over at TheClose.com. Emile L’Eplattenier breaks down The Best Real Estate Coaches of 2023 and lets you know what niche each fulfills.

Don’t give up if you don’t feel comfortable with the first coach you try because finding the right one can launch your career to heights you never thought possible.

PLUS: When you have time…below are some marketing tools to help support your success.

1. Put Your Real Estate Business a Step Above with Your Own Branded Magazine

2. The Free 6-Month Done-For-You Strategic Marketing Plan

3. The Free Interactive 6-Month Real Estate Business Review

The Free Interactive 6-Month Real Estate Business Review allows you to enter your business goals for the remainder of the year and get a breakdown of how many prospects, listings, closing, and so on are needed to reach your goals. – Click Here

4. The Become a Listing Legend Free eBook

Why Hiring a Coach is the Key to Real Estate Revenue Growth

Sep 27, 2023

Learning on the job isn’t a bad way to become a successful agent: it’s safe to say pretty much every agent follows that path. After all, real estate school teaches nothing about how to run a real estate business.

That path, however, diverges at some point, separating the highly ambitious from the more complacent.

While those on either path can benefit from a business or life coach’s services at some point in their careers, it’s typically the former who seek them.

“Struggle + Coach = Achievement”

This is claimed by the amazing author Sean Everett at medium.com. “If you remove the struggle, there’s no need for a coach because it means you’re not working towards anything great.”

If you are working toward greatness and have hit a wall, a coach may be just what you need to break through it. But there are other benefits a coach can offer as well.

The Holiday scheduled campaign is shown above. To learn more, Click Here.

How to know if you need a coach

If you haven’t a clue about last year’s production (hey, you’re not the only one!), let alone the past three years, if you don’t have a business plan or a marketing budget, if you have no idea how to raise your production, you need a coach.

Some top coaches on Forbes Coaches Council suggest additional symptoms of someone needing a coach:

Feeling overwhelmed – that you don’t have control over your real estate business, or “feeling like there is too much to do and too little hours in the day.”
You need someone to talk to about your business, to bounce ideas off.
You’re frustrated because you know what to do yet don’t do it.
You aren’t getting the results you want in your business.
You feel paralyzed.

What you may get out of working with a coach

The late and legendary NFL coach Tom Landry summed up coaching in one sentence: “A coach is someone who tells you what you don’t want to hear, who has you see what you don’t want to see, so you can be who you have always known you could be.”

All agents, even newbies, can get something out of working with a coach.

Don’t agree?

An Inman survey from a few years back shows that “the vast majority of agents working with coaches see a return on investment.” In fact, 90 percent of them said that in their first year of working with a coach, their production increased 10 percent or more.

Thirty-five percent said their business increased up to 26 percent more and nearly 10 percent saw an increase from 100 to almost 200 percent.

Convinced yet?

Think of a coach as being a fresh set of eyes. Someone who can look at you and your business in a way that you can’t.

It’s lacking that “big picture” thing that causes many of us to hit the wall. Then, paralysis sets in and we’ve no idea how to lift our legs and, if we can, which direction to tell them to carry us.

Come back soon for part 2, where you’ll learn how to choose the perfect real estate coach for your business.

PLUS: When you have time…below are some marketing tools to help support your success.

1. Put Your Real Estate Business a Step Above with Your Own Branded Magazine

2. The Free 6-Month Done-For-You Strategic Marketing Plan

3. The Free Interactive 6-Month Real Estate Business Review

The Free Interactive 6-Month Real Estate Business Review allows you to enter your business goals for the remainder of the year and get a breakdown of how many prospects, listings, closing, and so on are needed to reach your goals. – Click Here

4. The Become a Listing Legend Free eBook

Unlock the Power of Words: Turn Listings into Sold Properties

Sep 25, 2023

Think back to 2006. You may remember hearing about the launch of a new social media platform, Twitter. However, you most likely didn’t because it came with little fanfare.

Posts to the social media platform were dubbed “tweets,” and tweeters were limited to only 140 characters at that time.

Does that remind you of anything?

As you know, each MLS has a limit on how many words (or characters) agents can use in the public-facing listing description. We attempted to determine the average word count restriction, but couldn’t.

Unless you write professionally, listing descriptions can be challenging to craft. But they don’t have to be if you follow a few simple rules.

The anatomy of a listing description from a buyer’s point of view

It’s common knowledge now that most house hunters turn to the internet for their initial search.

It’s also well known that these buyers won’t look at a listing that doesn’t include photos (2011 ocular tracking study E.V. Williams Center for Real Estate, Old Dominion University).

That study showed us that homebuyers overwhelmingly scan the listing photo first and spend the most time doing so. They check out the property description next.

The agent’s listing description was the last item they were interested in perusing, and 20 percent of the homebuyers studied didn’t bother reading them.

Because of this, the researchers claim that listing descriptions are unimportant.

Did they miss the fact that 80 percent DID read the agent’s listing description?

This is an important statistic for listing agents to concentrate on when writing the listing description.

Use your words . . . strategically

When asked by Shakespeare’s Polonius what he was reading, Hamlet replied, “Words, words, words.”

What he was reading, obviously, was meaningless. Words with meaning, on the other hand, are powerful and can actually help sell a home.

We don’t advocate outright lying in a listing description, but Spencer Rascoff and Stan Humphries beg to differ:

“Bottom-tier homes described as luxurious tend to beat their expected sale price by a whopping 8.2 percent.”

They go on to claim that if your listing’s value is “$110,000, but your listing includes the keyword ‘luxurious,’ you could pocket an extra $8,965.”

Additional money-making words from their study include:

Captivating
Impeccable (listings in the lower price ranges that include this word sold for nearly 6 percent more than the list price)
Stainless (a 5 percent bonus if your low-priced listing has stainless steel appliances and you incorporate that info in the listing description)
Landscaped
Granite (no surprise here, right?)
Remodeled
Beautiful
Spotless

Check out the rest of the list at Zillow.com. Be aware that the list is a bit old, but some of these trends still exist, such as granite (or quartz) countertops. Research is your friend.

Sure, brilliant listing descriptions aren’t that critical in the current market. But, markets change and often do so on a dime. Keep the aforementioned information in your back pocket and pull it out when homes aren’t selling as soon as listed. And, remember, adjectives, apparently, are money-makers.

Sprinkle liberally for a brilliant listing description.

PLUS: When you have time…below are some marketing tools to help support your success.

1. Put Your Real Estate Business a Step Above with Your Own Branded Magazine

2. The Free 6-Month Done-For-You Strategic Marketing Plan

3. The Free Interactive 6-Month Real Estate Business Review

The Free Interactive 6-Month Real Estate Business Review allows you to enter your business goals for the remainder of the year and get a breakdown of how many prospects, listings, closing, and so on are needed to reach your goals. – Click Here

4. The Become a Listing Legend Free eBook

Five-Star Roadmap:How Customer Feedback Fuels Your Real Estate Business

Sep 17, 2023

At ProspectsPLUS!, we fully understand the profound impact of our customers’ feedback. It is a testament to their level of satisfaction with our service and underscores our commitment to providing world-class products and service.

With this in mind, we’re thrilled to announce a significant milestone we just achieved: ProspectsPLUS! surpassed 5,000 five-star customer reviews!

We would like to take this opportunity to thank you. This remarkable accomplishment would not have been possible without your continued loyalty and support.

Now, let’s delve into the topic of why customer reviews are indispensable to the success of every business, specifically a real estate business.

Why Customer Reviews Are Crucial

They Build Trust and Credibility

Real estate transactions are significant life events, often involving substantial financial investments. Customers want to work with agents they can trust.

Positive reviews from previous clients act as a vote of confidence, assuring potential clients that you are a reputable and reliable professional.

Provide Social Proof

In a highly competitive industry, social proof is invaluable. Customer reviews are authentic testimonials that demonstrate your ability to deliver excellent service.

They give prospective clients a reason to choose you over your competitors.

Positive reviews can also improve your online visibility and search engine rankings. When potential clients search for real estate services in your area, a strong presence with favorable reviews can help your business stand out.

Highlight Your Expertise

Customer reviews often highlight an agent’s specific skills, expertise, or standout qualities.

These insights can attract clients seeking a particular skill set, such as expertise in a specific neighborhood or property type.

Encourage Referrals

Satisfied clients are more likely to refer their friends and family to you. Positive reviews create a ripple effect, potentially expanding your client base through word-of-mouth recommendations.

How to Earn More Customer Reviews:

Make It Easy: Streamline the review process by providing clients clear instructions and links to review sites. The easier you make it, the more likely they’ll follow through.
Timing Matters: Ask for reviews at the right time. It’s often best to request them shortly after a successful closing when the positive experience is still fresh in the client’s mind.
Offer Incentives: Consider offering small incentives to clients for leaving their feedback. Make sure to adhere to FTC guidelines when offering any incentives for customer feedback.
Engage on Social Media: Actively engage with clients on social media platforms. Share success stories and client testimonials to encourage others to do the same.
Ask for Reviews: Don’t hesitate to request reviews from satisfied clients. After a successful transaction, politely ask them to share their feedback on platforms like Google, Yelp, or your website.
Respond to Reviews: Engage with both positive and negative reviews professionally and promptly. Your responses demonstrate that you value feedback and are committed to improving.

By consistently delivering exceptional service and proactively encouraging reviews, you can harness the power of customer feedback to grow your real estate business and establish yourself as a trusted professional in the industry.

PLUS: When you have time…below are some marketing tools to help support your success.

1. Put Your Real Estate Business a Step Above with Your Own Branded Magazine

2. The Free 6-Month Done-For-You Strategic Marketing Plan

3. The Free Interactive 6-Month Real Estate Business Review

The Free Interactive 6-Month Real Estate Business Review allows you to enter your business goals for the remainder of the year and get a breakdown of how many prospects, listings, closing, and so on are needed to reach your goals. – Click Here

4. The Become a Listing Legend Free eBook

Edit Like a Pro: The Top 3 Non-Photoshop Tools for Real Estate Photos

Sep 5, 2023

Even if you use the services of a professional to photograph your listings, there are still plenty of other parts of your real estate business for which your own photography skills might come in handy.

These include snapping neighborhood shots for your neighborhood blog, photographing attendees at your client appreciation events, photos of your buyers standing in front of their new homes, and other opportunities.

These photos are brand-propelling if done and used right. Today, we start with editing these gems and introduce you to three very popular editing apps to help you out.

PicsArt

Price: 7-day free trial, $0, $60 or $84 a year

Who needs this: Those who appreciate a clean, quick way to remove backgrounds.

Pros:

With PicsArt you can edit both photos and video, a boon for agents who utilize video in their marketing.
No steep learning curve.
Easy to use.
An impressive range of editing options, such as AI tools.

Cons:

“PicsArt is fine while using in iOS device but it was responding very slow in most of the Android apps,” according to one reviewer at G2.com.
The free version is loaded with ads for the premium version, popping up in the middle of editing.
“They are gradually moving some of the free features under the payment plans,” says one reviewer. Keep this in mind if you hope to be able to use the free version in the future.
Options are limited on the free plan. For instance, you must go premium if you want to use the video editor.

The Multiphoto Series is shown above. To see more, Click Here.

Pixlr

Price: Free (very limited), $1.99 a month, $7.99 a month, $12.99 a month

Who needs this: Agents who must collaborate remotely with clients, partners, etc.

Pros:

Pixlr is cloud-based, allowing you to access it from anywhere.
Offers an option that edits images through AI.
Simple, easy-to-understand interface.
Well-suited to the novice editor.

Cons:

Although they use it primarily for on-the-fly editing, some reviewers experienced in photo editing claim that Pixlr is “basic” and that many of its functions require updating.
Ads pop up at inopportune times.
Although the template library is growing, it’s a bit paltry at this point.
Since this is an internet-based product, those with a slow connection might want to choose something else.

Snapseed

Price: Free

Who needs this: Agents who are new to photo editing as well as those who need on-the-go editing capability.

Pros:

Owned by Google, the Snapseed app is available for iOS and Android. The desktop version was discontinued in 2018.
Little editing experience is required when using the app’s editing tools.
The price (can’t beat free!)

Cons:

“Snapseed does not automatically save changes, so you need to click the export button to save any edits.” (colesclassroom.com).
Although most features are easy to use, some may stymie the newbie.

Download here for Android and here for iOS.

PLUS: When you have time…below are some marketing tools to help support your success.

1. Put Your Real Estate Business a Step Above with Your Own Branded Magazine

2. The Free 6-Month Done-For-You Strategic Marketing Plan

3. The Free Interactive 6-Month Real Estate Business Review

The Free Interactive 6-Month Real Estate Business Review allows you to enter your business goals for the remainder of the year and get a breakdown of how many prospects, listings, closing, and so on are needed to reach your goals. – Click Here

4. The Become a Listing Legend Free eBook

Lisa Gray

Understand your audience

Are you online enough?

Get a Niche

Document everything

Bought a car in 2023?

Deductible auto expenses

Home office deductions

Assigning work to your kids

1. Is your real estate website design responsive?

2. What keywords are you targeting?

3. Are you consistently adding new content to the site?

4. Include testimonials

It takes money

How will you broadcast your marketing message?

A planner will help keep you on track

We left off talking about holiday blog posts

The quick pop-by

Go traditional

Niche real estate postcards

Education Direct Response Reports

Personally branded agent magazines

Sphere or farm scheduled postcard campaign

How to choose a real estate coach

“Struggle + Coach = Achievement”

How to know if you need a coach

What you may get out of working with a coach

Convinced yet?

The anatomy of a listing description from a buyer’s point of view

Use your words . . . strategically

Why Customer Reviews Are Crucial

How to Earn More Customer Reviews: