Google ads for real estate: Pros, cons and everything in between

Easy Agent Pro Blog Lead Capture Lead Generation
Shannon March 11, 2021
Google ads for real estate: Pros, cons and everything in between

 

Generating business is the “hamster wheel” of every real estate agent in the country. From the day your feet hit the ground, waving your shiny new license, until retirement, lead generation is the most critical duty in your real estate business.

Many agents that we work with choose the least expensive ways to market themselves and their services, especially during the rookie stage. That’s completely understandable.

Door knocking, direct mail, email and digital marketing all have their place in real estate. But they require time—lots and lots of time—and consistency to reap rewards.

Real estate marketing is a long game

So, how to survive in the meantime? Buying Google ads for real estate agents is one way and, although it waxes and wanes in popularity among agents, it’s worth a look if you’ve never tried it.

Google Ads is the indisputable king of paid online advertising, so it’s a good place to start for those unfamiliar with the process.

In a nutshell, the search giant employs both keywords and cookies in choosing search result pages on which to place your ad. When a user clicks on the ad, you, the advertiser, pay.

Today we take a look at Google ads for real estate agents – the pros, cons, what’s new and more.

First, a bit of history about Google ads for real estate agents

Those first couple of search results from Google, clearly labeled “Ad,” are paid for by advertisers. This advertising platform, dubbed “… the world’s first self-service online advertising product,” began life as “Google Adwords” 21 years ago.

At that time, it was a monthly service and the techies at Google managed all campaigns. It boasted 350 advertisers in its first year.

Fast forward to the summer of 2018 and Google decided to rebrand the platform, renamed it Google Ads but maintained their in-house campaign managers.

Last year, according to statista.com, the platform brought in nearly $147 billion in ad revenue for Google.

For more info on Google Ads, check out this webinar that runs through everything you need to know about Google Ads for real estate agents:

But, what can Google ads for real estate agents do for your bottom line?

  • According to a 2019 Hanapin Marketing study, nearly 80% of advertisers say that Google Ads have been “… beneficial for their businesses.”
  • A Google study found that paid ads lift brand awareness by 80%, even if the searcher doesn’t click on the ad.
  • Folks who visit your site via a paid ad are 50% more likely to use your services than those who find you via organic search. (unbounce.com)
  • Decent ROI. “Businesses make an average of $2 in revenue for every $1 they spend on Google Ads,” according to Brad Smith at wordstream.com, citing a Google study.
  • According to Unbounce co-founder Oli Gardner, “After setup, [Google Ads] results are almost instant. Compare this to the months it will take to achieve organic search results.
  • You can start with a small budget, so even a new agent can give it a whirl.

And, the downside to Google ads for real estate agents

The effort required to achieve results with Google ads for real estate agents is nothing near that required when aiming to rank in organic searches.

It does require some time on your part, however, especially at startup. You’ll need to figure out the right keywords, determine a budget for them and track your results.

The learning curve for these tasks may be time-consuming, depending on your current knowledge level.

To add even more to the time suck, you’ll need to factor in ongoing maintenance (additional keyword research, tracking, adjusting).

There are companies that are happy to take on these tasks for you. A few to consider include:

While it doesn’t cost anything to set up Google Ads, the aforementioned companies do charge for their services. However, if done right, they may just pay for themselves.

Finally, keeping abreast of Google Ads updates is critical. For instance, in early March, 2021, Google announced the release of two new features of the Google Ads mobile app.

Meant to “… help you monitor and improve performance in real time,” the app offers the ability to set up custom notifications.

Google also rolled out a handy feature that will notify you “… if there’s a significant performance change, and an explanation describing why the change occurred. You may also see a recommendation to help you resolve the issue.”

Pay attention to Google’s in-account notifications that are labeled with a blue icon.  This is where you’ll learn about updates. Email notifications may also offer some info on updates, most especially in the newsletter, so opt-in to accept these emails.

Learn more about recent Google Ads updates at adpresso.com.

Getting started with Google ads for real estate agents

The best walkthrough we’ve found for getting started with Google Ads comes from Google. You can find it here.

There are several others that are quite informative- We’ve even written a guide specifically for agents using Google Ads here.

Here’s your in-a-nutshell description of the first step to take if you want to get started with Google Ads.

First, you’ll want to choose your search terms. To do this, think like a real estate consumer. Agents tend to call single-family residences, “homes,” while most consumers use the word “houses.”

So, “houses for sale in Surprise, AZ” is better than “homes for sale in Surprise, AZ.”

Although those in the industry tend to use the term “real estate” frequently, the general public doesn’t.

To get a feel for which terms are used the most by consumers searching on Google, log into your Google Ads account. Click on “tools and settings” and then “Keyword Planner” and, finally, “Discover New Keywords.”

Coming up with keywords for your ad plan may take some time. Once you have figured them out, the rest of the process is relatively straightforward. Learn how here:

Prefer video tutorials?

Finally, check out our Easy Agent Pro discussion of things to keep in mind when choosing keywords.