Want listings? Forget the email and bring on the snail mail

 

“Using direct mail for real estate makes you look old school,” according to an online author-we’ll-not-name who claims to help Realtors increase sales.

How?

By offering, for sale, an “email marketing solution,” that’s how.

Ah, the agenda rears its ugly head.

If we were to meet this author/business owner in person, we would, as gracefully as possible, point out how very, very wrong she is.

Sellers LOVE direct mail

We recently explained to you that members of Generation X are totally worth pursuing because (among other reasons) they want and need to move up and have the financial power to do so.

Right behind them, we suggest you go after baby boomers.

And, the best place to reach both cohorts is through their mailboxes. No, not their email inbox, their snail mail boxes.

More than half of the members of Gen X and nearly 60 percent of baby boomers say that direct mail for real estate influences their buying and service provider decisions, according to a study conducted by Yes Lifestyle Marketing.

So, although some may think it’s an “old school” marketing method, you’ll be laughing all the way to the bank to cash your commission checks.

Direct Mail For Real Estate – Do it right

You may intuitively know from personal experience which types of direct mail messages actually compel the recipient to act.

Think about it: Why did you act?

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Because the mail piece hit your mailbox at just the right time. It addressed a need you had and offered a compelling solution. That’s what you’re aiming to do with this direct mail for real estate approach,

If you already work in a particular real estate niche, determining your target audience, their needs and how to fulfill them, will be a snap.

Generalists will have to work harder to determine which group of real estate consumers to target. As we mentioned earlier, Gen X is profitable if you’re looking for listings.

Their need is typically for a larger home and their pain point is that it’s a pain in the hiney to find these homes in the current market.

Figuring out your audience takes care of half the battle. From there, it’s time to pursue them.

Craft your message

Haven’t yet figured out your audience’s needs and pain points? In the current market, it’s safe to say that many homeowners who may want to sell and buy another home can’t stomach the thought of jumping into the overcrowded and hyper-competitive buyer pool.

Make a list of their possible needs and problems and how you can overcome them. Owners of expired listings, for instance, may have had an agent who didn’t properly market the property. Or, maybe the home has cosmetic problems that the first agent didn’t address.

We know from NAR statistics that for-sale-by-owners are trying to save money by not having an agent but that they’ll actually lose money.

Move-up buyers, such as those in Generation X, may be afraid they can’t afford a larger home in this overheated sellers’ market. They may not understand that their home has appreciated in value as well, giving them more equity to use for the next home.

Decide on the best medium to get those listings

Many agents we’ve spoken with swear by using a market update as their first contact. This makes sense, if you’ve carefully crafted a call to action to go with it.

Homeowners, especially absentee owners, whether they’re thinking of selling or not, are curious about their home’s value and a consumer-friendly market report will most likely get read.

This is why that first call-to-action should be compelling. Offer them something, such as a free, no-obligation seller’s guide, a CMA or whatever you think will get the best response.

Then, keep the contact ongoing. Send just-listed and just-sold postcards for homes in their area to remind them that other people are selling and making a killing. Remind them over and over how much equity they have built up during this amazing sellers’ market.

Never forget that the fortune is in the follow-up, so be consistent and keep on mailing.

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