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Friday, December 20, 2024

Blog Content

    I hate to sound like a nag, but if you aren’t blogging in 2019–why?

    I recently read a blog post directed at real estate agents about various forms of marketing. One of them was blogging and the writer listed the pros and cons:

    • It is time-consuming or “costly” (if you hire someone to write your posts)
    • The results aren’t instant: It takes time and a commitment to a strategy to build traffic to your blog.

    Neither of these “cons” should be a consideration. In 2019, blogging is non-negotiable. You simply must have a blog on your website. Then, you simply must promote it.

    And, by the way, which real estate marketing method is “instant,” I wonder?

    So, clear a spot on your daily “to-do” list for either the writing or the hiring of someone else to write your real estate blog posts. Then, take a look at our 3 places to find inspiration to get you going.

    By the way, your blog posts don’t all have to be about real estate. In fact, the best agent blogs offer a mix of items of local interest, real estate and homeowner topics. All three offer a ton of opportunities to show your expertise and personality and to engage with potential clients.

    Realtor marketing postcards for neighborhood updates with a free offer
    Keep them up on area trends (Available in the postcard section under Neighborhood Update Series)
     1. Amazon.com

    Knowing your audience (what they’re thinking about, their pain points, etc.) is critical to crafting a winning blog post. A brilliant way to find out what’s currently on many homeowner’s minds is by checking the best-selling products on Amazon.com.

    For instance, high on the best-selling products list right now is a gadget that keeps hair from going down the shower/tub drain. A post on clogged drains, how to unclog them and prevent them in the future would work well.

    Several floor cleaning products make the list, from vacuums to mops. A post on caring for different types of flooring may be interesting to your audience. Or, write about the different types of floors and how they stack up against one another.

    It’s spring, so don’t neglect checking out Amazon’s patio and garden category to get a feel for what potential clients are doing around the home’s exterior.

    Right now, for instance, their battles seem to be with flying insects, ants and cockroaches. Write a post about DIY Spring Pest Control. You’ll find inspiration at Angieslist.com, FamilyHandyman.com and Clark.com.

    To get started, go to Amazon’s best sellers list. On the left side of the page are the various categories you can browse. Home & Kitchen and Patio, Lawn & Garden are two good places to start.to discover what subjects are currently on peoples minds.

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     2. National real estate sites

    Since you should rotate homeowner-focused blog posts with real estate-related posts, use your current clients’ questions and concerns for blog post topics.

    When you get stuck, visit national real estate sites for inspiration. Zillow.com, for instance, offers Porchlight, its consumer-facing blog.

    Current topics include many addressed to sellers:

    • Curb appeal boosters
    • To-dos before listing
    • How to negotiate the counteroffer

    Check the site’s Tips & Advice section in particular. Redfin has a busy blog as well, and you’ll find endless inspiration for your blogs.

    Today I took a spin around it and found posts about the best day to list a home for sale, home staging tips and digital home closings. 

    3. Local flavor

    The most share-worthy posts you will write will be hyper-local and one of the best is published in spring: a guide to local summer camps for kids. No time to research your area’s summer camps? Hire someone to do it for you. Find inexpensive freelance researchers online at Fiverr.com and Upwork.com.

    Keeping with the spring/summer theme, and keeping it local, check with your local parks and recreation department to learn about upcoming events.

    Then, head to Yelp.com. Find the best eateries that offer patio dining, the best ice cream or fro-yo shops, places where kids eat free or dog friendly restaurants and create a listicle around each one.

    Create a perfect Father’s Day scenario, complete with brunch or lunch and his favorite local activity. Or, choose a summer month and show how it’s celebrated locally.  For inspiration, check out Anchorage, Alaska’s Unity Home Group blog.

    Inspiration for your real estate website’s blog posts is everywhere. All you need to do is get them written, posted and then shared on social media.

    Beats cold calling.

    Send at least 100 Free Home Market Analysis postcards from the Call to Action Series to an area where you want more listings.
    Get hands to raise with a popular Free Market Analysis Offer (available in the postcard section under Call to Action series)

    Need help targeting the perfect niche of buyers or sellers? Use our mailing list tool to create the ideal list (it’s easy) or call our support team for assistance at 866.405.3638!

    PLUS: When you have time…here are Free ways we can help you have an INVINCIBLE 2019!

    1. Become a Listing Legend Free eBook 

    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 

     

     

    2. “Get More Listings” Free Online Webinar

     

    “Get MORE Listings & Begin to Dominate Your Market!” Free online webinar. Learn the 3-7-27 strategy for explosive growth, why 95% of agents have less than 20% market share, and how to become the agent everyone competes against. – Click Here

     

     

    3. The 12 Month Done-For-You Strategic Marketing Plan

    The Real Estate Marketing Planner is a powerful 12-Month-Guide that strategically defines what marketing to do when. Four key market segments are included, Niche Marketing, Get More Listings, Geographic Farming, and Sphere of Influence. – Click Here

     

     

    4. The Free One-Page Real Estate Business Plan

    Treat your business like a business it is vital to long-term success in this industry. Some agents may put together elaborate business plans, yet there’s something powerful about keeping it simple. Check out our one page Online Real Estate Business Plan.  – Click Here

     

     

    5. The Free Online ROI Calculator

    Consistency and automation are the keys to success. Discover how effective direct mail marketing can dramatically increase your bottom line. Enter your statistics in our Free online ROI Calculator and click the ‘CALCULATE MY ROI’ button to see your results instantly! – Click Here

    At the risk of sounding cliched, content is even more of a king now than when Sumner Redstone coined the “Content is King” mantra.

    Gone are those days when a 100-word post, unartfully packed with keywords and links, ranks anywhere near Google’s first-page search results.

    It’s not merely content that is king, it’s quality content. Writing for the reader and not the search engine, with relevant, valuable and shareable content is today’s challenge.

    If you struggle with content creation, read on.

    Determine a content strategy

    Your content strategy is best determined by first figuring out your goal in writing it. Sure, we all hope to generate leads with content, but go deeper than that. Are you looking to close more deals, build a referral base or maybe set yourself apart as a niche expert?

    Once you’ve nailed your ultimate goal, you’ll need to figure out your target audience or audiences. Creating personas helps you narrow down your audience and helps you provide more relevant and, thus, valuable content.

    Need help? Hubspot.com has available, Make My Persona, as a fun tool to help you build your target audience’s persona.

    All of your content must be appropriate and of value to this audience. Kelton Ried at Coppyblogger.com calls this an “audience-first mentality.” He goes on to suggest that “Without a deeper understanding of the needs, hopes, desires, and dreams of your audience, you’re doomed to turn them away.”

    You have your goal in mind and you know who to target, so let’s get started creating a content strategy action plan.

    Creating content to help you meet your goal

    If you’ve taken our advice and you are clear on your target audience’s persona, you’ll find that writing becomes a whole lot easier.

    If you specialize in a niche, writing content is even easier. An agent who specializes in military relocation, for instance, has an endless number of topics to write about. The same holds true for condo, ranch, waterfront, and luxury real estate specialists.

    Generalists, on the other hand, just need to keep the focus on what type of information is valuable to their target audience. Buyers naturally want to know about mortgage rate changes, how to get a mortgage, the mortgage process broken down into layperson’s terms, information on the area’s neighborhoods and, of course, they want to see listings.

    TIP: Ask the pros in other industries to write guest posts. This might include your home inspector, favorite title company representative, and lender. Hang on to these for those days when you’re too busy or too writer-blocked to come up with a post.

    Make your content work hard

    Content should act as a magnet to draw people to your website and it can’t do that if you don’t promote it. The best place to do that is on social media.

    Remember, posting a piece of content to your website isn’t the end of that piece. Push it out on social media.

    Since most social media platforms are visually oriented, repurpose your content into quick, easy to read infographics. The most commonly shared post on Facebook, by the way, is an image.

    Whatever you post, ensure that it grabs the eye – use Canva.com or a graphics program to create compelling photos.

    Create a content schedule

     Ask any SEO specialist how often to post content and you’ll get a ton of different responses.

    We think it’s important to come up with a posting schedule that meshes with your business schedule. Sure, you can promise yourself that you’ll write and post content three times a week, but if you don’t have an assistant or you get busy, the posts won’t get written, posted or promoted.

    The best time of day to post and promote your content is another hotly contested issue. Many of the big SEO pros we follow to claim that mid-day or lunchtime is ideal.

    The name of the game when considering a content schedule is to bite off just enough that you can chew and stick to it. Consistently.

    Start by writing some content centered around the Free Report, “How to CHOP $24,000 & 4 Years OFF Your Mortgage”. Order 100 of this Free Report today to have on hand for requests.  

    Need help targeting the perfect niche of buyers or sellers? Use our mailing list tool to create the ideal list (it’s easy) or call our support team for assistance at 866.405.3638!

    PLUS: When you have time…here are 3 free ways we can help you STILL CRUSH IT in 2018!

    1. Become a Listing Legend Free eBook.

    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 

    2. The 12 Month Done-For-You Strategic Marketing Plan.

    The Real Estate Marketing Planner is a powerful 12-Month-Guide that strategically defines what marketing to do when. Four key market segments are included, Niche Marketing, Listing Inventory, Geographic Farming, and Sphere of Influence – Click Here

    2. The Free Online ROI Calculator. 

    Consistency and automation are the keys to success. Discover how effective direct mail marketing can dramatically increase your bottom line. Enter your statistics in our Free online ROI Calculator and click the ‘CALCULATE MY ROI’ button to see your results instantly! – Click Here

    Also…check out these cool tools 

     Three Click Postcards – Just snap a home photo & create a postcard all from your mobile phone

    MLSmailings.com – Automated Just Listed, Just Sold Postcards

    Market Dominator System – Become a neighborhood brand

    Want to Refer a friend or colleague? Refer them, Here. THEY get a Free $25 Gift Card and YOU become their hero. BTW, you also get a $25 Gift Card too (now that’s what I’m talking about)!

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