CLOSE
Wednesday, October 9, 2024

business plan

    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

      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

      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

        Those brake lights you see up ahead? Some are from home prices, while others are from buyers and sellers, confused as all get out about what’s in store for the housing market.

        What we do know is that home prices are decreasing, homes are remaining on the market longer than we’re used to, and mortgage rates are rising. 

        As of this writing, the average rate for a 30-year fixed mortgage is 7.24%. We’re looking at 5.62% for a 5/1 ARM, which many buyers are pursuing right now. The current inflation rate is 7.75% (the long-term average is 3.27%).

        So, what is in store for next year? As we all know, no economist has a crystal ball, and most are all over the place when it comes to predicting the 2023 economy and, specifically, the housing market.

        If things have slowed down a bit in the days ticking down to the start of 2023, use this time to prepare your business as if the ‘busy season’ promises to be gangbusters. 

        In other words, “Hope for the best, prepare for the worst.” 

        The Get More Listings Scheduled Campaign is shown above. To learn more, Click HERE.

        Clean up your CRM

        Even the most robust CRM is ineffectual if it’s brimming with bad information. While fixing the problem is time-consuming, the importance of doing so can’t be overstated. Here are a few steps to consider:

        • Get rid of any duplicate entries. There’s nothing more unprofessional and impersonal than sending duplicate information to the same recipient.
        • Now go through the database and rid it of entries for which there is no contact information. 
        • Pull up all contacts with whom you have a personal relationship, be it friends, family, former coworkers, etc. Have any of them had a change of address? A divorce? Automated emails to couples when they are no longer couples not only make you look out of touch but also insensitive. If you’re unsure of any contact information, reach out to them.
        • Get rid of the wild-goose chases. This isn’t easy to do, we know. Take your time with this part of the process, studying each entry to determine how much time and effort you’ve expended and what you honestly think you’ll get out of it in the end. Any that seem like a waste of time should either be placed in a “barely breathing” category or deleted.
        • Think about marketing campaigns for the leads in your CRM. This one, too, sounds easier than it truly is, especially if you haven’t yet completed your 2023 business plan, but it’s still doable. Remember, your SOI and ‘hot leads’ require a different approach than those folks you don’t know and/or are still on the fence about buying or selling. Once you’ve settled on the campaigns, get them scheduled so that touches are delivered consistently throughout 2023.

        Nothing you do now is set in stone, so relax. Your CRM requires input all year, but now you will have a plan to nurture new contacts.

        Happy 2023!

        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

        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 BusinessBase, SOI building system

        The most effective thing you can do to build a real estate business is to become more visible, more likable, and remembered more often. The BusinessBASE™ not only checks these boxes but is also a business-building machine. In two easy steps, you can build a robust sphere of influence that will provide you a lifetime of repeat business and referrals. – Click Here

        4. The Free Interactive Real Estate Business Plan

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

        5. 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

        6. The Take a Listing Today Podcast

        Watch the ProspectsPLUS!, Take a Listing Today Podcast for actionable content to help you get more listings. – Click Here

          “Overnight success” isn’t a label typically slapped on the heavy hitters in the real estate industry. In fact, some say that, in any endeavor, overnight longing for success is a common obstacle to becoming successful. 

          The truth is, “Behind every overnight success story is someone who worked really, really hard,” according to Gary Vaynerchuk, investor, adviser, and co-founder of VaynerMedia.

          Vaynerchuk is a proponent of business-building as a “long game” and suggests that a long-term thinking mentality will help us achieve genuine success and happiness.

          Let’s take a look at some of the long-term strategies that agents can and should be using to be successful during the market slowdown 

          Reach out, over and over and over and . . .

          It’s the real estate agent with a killer follow-up strategy that is a long-term thinker. Instead of constantly trying to drum up new business, he or she understands that the fortune is in the follow-up.

          More important is the consistent follow-up. Not just for the first few months but for the rest of your career in real estate. 

          Despite this being a basic tenet of sales in any industry, too many agents feel that they lack sufficient time, and they allow the nurturing of potential clients to fall to the bottom of the to-do list.

          Those who do pay attention to it gain a competitive edge.

          All it takes is to find out that a former client listed his home with another agent (because the former client “forgot” that you are in real estate) to understand the power of reaching out consistently to every person in your CRM.

          The Get More Listings Scheduled Campaign is shown above. To learn more, Click HERE.

          Leave no lead behind

          “Internet leads suck.” You’ve heard that one before, right? That opinion stems from that same drive to obtain the instant deal.

          Do yourself a favor and ask the champion cold caller in your office how many of her calls result in instant deals. 

          The truth is she cold calls for leads. When she gets one, the long game begins.

          Those online leads may be the best you’ll ever lay your hands on. These are people who are actively looking at properties online. 

          And, because looking online for a home is the first step most take (according to NAR studies), they probably don’t have an agent.

          Vaynerchuk advises that “… your number-one job is to tell your story to the consumer wherever they are, and preferably at the moment they are deciding to make a purchase.” 

          You know those friends (I think we all have at least one) who pay monthly for a gym membership, never show up there and then complain that they’re out of shape?

          They’re like the agents who have leads, don’t work them, and then complain that the leads are weak.

          Use the downtime while the real estate market is in flux to determine how you’ll follow up with leads and how often you’ll reach out, and then set consistent reminders to do so.

          Take the steps necessary to win the long game. “Your steps may number in the hundreds,” says actress and stand-up comedian Gayla Johnson at Backstage.com. 

          “They may number in the thousands. But rest assured, each and every one of those steps will better prepare you for that glorious and triumphant …” overnight success.

          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

          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 BusinessBase, SOI building system

          The most effective thing you can do to build a real estate business is to become more visible, more likable, and remembered more often. The BusinessBASE™ not only checks these boxes but is also a business-building machine. In two easy steps, you can build a robust sphere of influence that will provide you a lifetime of repeat business and referrals. – Click Here

          4. The Free Interactive Real Estate Business Plan

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

          5. 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

          6. The Take a Listing Today Podcast

          Watch the ProspectsPLUS!, Take a Listing Today Podcast for actionable content to help you get more listings. – Click Here

          123...5Next Page 1 of 5
          © 2024 ProspectsPLUS! | Real Estate Marketing Blog