What’s your real estate marketing plan for 2011? If the first thing you thought of is “Well, hopefully the market conditions allow for a good year,” it’s time to reevaluate how you approach your career. When you operate from a proven game plan, success comes much easier. And that’s what this month’s article is all about. It’s about taking what you know, using your resources to the fullest and making things happen instead of waiting for market conditions to dictate your success.

If you’re serious about success, this article is all about helping you create a winning marketing plan for 2011. But remember – a plan isn’t a plan unless it’s written down, so start by creating your game plan. Then, follow the comprehensive year-round marketing plan you’ve mapped out. Your own plan may vary based on your budget, what’s available in your area and other factors, but try to follow it as closely as possible.

Once you’ve mapped out your own game plan, it needs to become your guide to the coming year. You should review it every quarter and chart your progress.

The problem I see far too often is that agents don’t plan their marketing in advance and then their marketing suffers by operating under a shotgun approach that lacks focus and consistency. Too many times agents operate in the deal-to-deal mentality – “It’s been a bad month, I better do some marketing.” That approach is ineffective and a total waste of money. You need to stop operating from deal-to-deal and develop a long-term plan for growing your business. That’s exactly what this game plan is all about – setting a plan and sticking to it over an entire year to get all your marketing money working together to present a consistent image.

Develop Your Mix

The first step toward a successful 2011 is determining how you’re going to disseminate your marketing message. There are virtually limitless combinations of various channels at your disposal. Analyze which marketing methods will be most effective for you. If you’re not quite sure yet, this article will walk you through many of your choices.

Your year-round marketing plan should be built from a combination of the following aspects of personal marketing: online marketing, social networking and email farming, direct mail, strategic networking, advertising and public relations.

Start with the Basics

No matter what combination you choose, make sure your plan calls for continual communication with your PSAs – Past clients, Sphere of influence and All leads generated – via both direct mail and email farming. This critical group provides the core of your business and must be tended to before you target anyone else.

Now let’s examine some of the methods you’ll choose to include in your marketing mix.

Web Sites and E-mail Farming

It never ceases to amaze me how many agents still do not have an adequate web presence in today’s Internet age. Agents are shooting themselves in the foot by choosing the cheapest option just so they can say they have a web site. Many others don’t have one at all or simply rely on a tiny section on their company’s site.

You should be driving traffic to your site through both search engines and your marketing. But it’s not enough to simply get people to your site, however. The key to success on the web is providing valuable content to your visitors. Don’t only give them a reason to visit, but you also need to inspire them to return frequently. You want their experience on your site to make a positive impression and convey a sense of quality and trustworthiness.

That’s why your annual marketing game plan needs to have scheduled time to work on adding new content to your web site. These activities need to be scheduled and executed with purpose. The beauty is that continually adding new content to your site will not only lure visitors back repeatedly, but it will also increase your search engine ranking. The more timely and relevant information your site can communicate, the more business your web site will generate.

Your site should also demonstrate the value you bring to your clients by offering free special reports and other “opt-in” opportunities. For purposes of your 2011 game plan, your focus should be on increasing your “opt-ins” and growing your email database. The larger you grow your email database, the more you can take advantage of this powerful and virtually free of charge method of generating more leads and increasing your bottom line.

Social Media Integration

Social media has grown up and transformed from “that thing the kids are doing” into an essential element in business. From a marketing perspective, there’s great strength in generating a strong following on Twitter, building relationships on Facebook and LinkedIn and becoming a trusted resource for valuable information through your personal blog. Your 2011 game plan should include time reserved specifically for working on improving and capitalizing on these – and any emerging – social networking opportunities.

This doesn’t mean just “having” accounts on the various social media sites and posting without purpose, but truly using them to your advantage. Establish yourself as the authority on your local real estate market by providing timely, market-related updates via the various social media outlets. To maximize your effectiveness, you need to map out how many posts you’re going to make a week. You should aim for a balance of personal and professional content in your posts.

If you’re not sure where to start with social media and feel you’re falling behind, get educated in this topic to avoid making costly mistakes.

Direct Mail

Right now is an outstanding opportunity for you to make a big impression in your farm area using direct mail. By following a consistent mail plan and continually providing new content to homeowners in your mailings, you can build credibility and generate more leads.

We recommend mailing an average of three times per month to each person in your direct mail farm. This way, you’ll establish name recognition quickly and maintain it consistently. Some of the tools to consider in your direct mail toolbox include:

• Powerkards

• AdKards

• Personal Letters

• Past Client Contact

The keys to success in direct mail are to follow a plan and resist the urge to make rash decisions. Tailor your content to your audience and market conditions, but do not let those factors encourage you to deviate from your plan. The more you can hit your specific market segments with timely messages and important content, the more your phone will ring, and the greater return you’ll see on your investment.

Strategic Networking & Referrals

With all the talk about agents wanting to “get back to basics” and some even resorting to doorknocking, we feel it’s important to stress the effectiveness of strategic networking. Note that word “strategic” in that last sentence, because having a strategy is the true difference maker when it comes to making the most of networking.

Networking is an essential part of any holistic marketing campaign. What that means is that it’s not a haphazard activity, but rather one that has a written plan, written objectives and a desired outcome. In simpler terms, you need to strategically schedule your networking activities to ensure maximum effectiveness. Otherwise, it’s all too easy to tell yourself that you’ll get around to networking someday, yet it never happens.

• Strategic networking involves setting a goal to hand out a certain number of personal brochures every month (100 is a good number) and then holding yourself accountable to this goal. To get started, answer the following questions:

• What do you currently leave behind when you meet someone in a networking scenario?

• How many personal brochures do you hand out on a weekly or monthly basis?

• How many opportunities are you missing by not making a concerted effort to engage in strategic networking on a regular basis?

• What will you do to ensure you hand out more brochures on a consistent basis in 2010?

When it comes to referrals, most agents view them as bonus clients that fall from the sky. It doesn’t have to be this way, though, if you schedule a concerted effort to generate more referral business. Don’t be afraid to ask your past clients and sphere of influence for referrals on a regular, planned basis. Schedule letters on a quarterly basis to keep these important relationships prosperous.

Far too often, agents do not consider these activities as part of their overall marketing mix. The irony is that strategic networking and referrals are powerful, inexpensive methods to generate more business. Don’t overlook this essential activity in the coming year.

Print Advertising

Unfortunately, for many real estate professionals, only one thing comes to mind when they think of advertising. That’s definitely not what we’re talking about here. We’re talking about personal, emotionally based, image-building advertising that promotes you and helps you establish a relationship with your target audience.

Your advertising dollars should be split into segments such as: ads in “home” publications, ads in newspapers and magazines, billboards and cable TV. Each of these advertising outlets should have their own line on your game plan.

You need to determine which of these categories will be most effective for you in reaching your target market and focus most of your advertising dollars there. For this example, I’ve divided everything into a fairly even mix to give you an idea of what a full-scale media campaign looks like.

On the sample game plan I’ve provided, I’ve divided print advertising into two categories: “homes” publications ads and newspaper ads. We chose “homes” publications simply because that is where many agents place a majority of their advertising, and because those publications are typically widely available in most areas.

However, don’t limit your options to just to these publications. Take a look at all of the publications available in your area. Focus especially on those that appeal to your target market. Pay close attention to any publications designed specifically for a niche market or geographic area you may be farming. Don’t worry if other agents aren’t advertising in particular publications. As long as you know the publication is well read by your target market, it may be just what you need to stand out.

Television Advertising

Cable TV offers a new advertising frontier for many agents. We’re not talking about house ads on TV or dull, “I’m the best agent” infomercials, but actual 30-second spots that promote you as an individual, capture your audience’s imagination and tie in with your personal marketing campaign.

Because of the cost effectiveness of this medium, advertising on television is no longer just for the big national advertisers. Like outdoor advertising, rates will generally be higher in large metropolitan areas, but if you check with your cable company, we’ll guarantee you’ll be surprised at how inexpensively you can purchase airtime.

Scheduling your TV commercial time is similar to billboards and outdoor advertising, with bursts of frequent air times followed by off times. Your cable representative should be able to provide you with market analyses and demographic information to help you determine the best time of day and the best programming for your ads.

The Public Relations Plan

An oft-forgotten but important part of your marketing mix is public relations. Having an article written about you or being quoted by the newspaper or local TV news show is powerful advertising that you can’t put a price tag on – and it’s free!

But the only way to get this exposure is to make yourself known to the local media, and that’s why it’s so important that you plan your public relations schedule ahead of time. Schedule sending between one and three press releases a month to editors and reporters in your area. Your schedule should include specific topics for each press release you plan to send. Otherwise, when the time comes to send out a release, suddenly you need to think of a topic and write the release, and chances are you won’t do it because you’re simply too busy for that kind of undertaking.

Knowledge is Power

Finally, you cannot overlook continuing education in your marketing mix. If you’re serious about personal marketing, you need to attend an absolute minimum of two personal marketing seminars each year. Not only will this expose you to new ideas to keep you on the cutting edge of marketing, but each visit will recharge your batteries and keep you excited about your career. Just like your marketing, you must plan these activities now.

Make Your Plan Work for You

A major part of having an annual game plan is analyzing what generating the best results. Once your plan is finalized, you need to stick to it like glue. But that doesn’t necessarily mean that you follow it blindly. Once per quarter, you need to sit down and analyze what has been most effective and make adjustments as you see fit. Be careful, though, not to do this more frequently. You don’t want to end up in the “plan of the week” mode. Review your plan quarterly, and then stick to it.

Putting Your Plan to Work

It’s been said that a plan isn’t a plan if it’s not written down. Well, I couldn’t agree more. You cannot underestimate the power of your game plan worksheet. It should be one of the most frequently used sheets of paper you will use in the next 12 months. Post it on the wall as a visual reminder of your progress!

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The single biggest question I get from people getting started in real estate (and experienced for that matter) is “how to find deals?” They say, “I don’t know what to focus on in real estate. Should I focus on rehabbing? Should I focus on finding absentee owners? Should I focus on direct mail?”

The problem with those questions is that the real estate investor is confused about the whole business of real estate and the marketing plan behind finding the deals. I understand that you go to a three-day real estate training, or you buy a home-study course, and every angle of real estate investing is attractive. You can see the potential in all these different markets.

First things first, you have to get focused! This is the only way to get good at overcoming objections and solving problems unique to different types of motivated seller markets.

Let’s simplify this whole real estate marketing game and boil it down to this:
Who, What, When, Where, Why & How (And How Much)!

Who:
Who is that we are going to be talking to? Who is that we are going to be trying to purchase homes from? You may want to work in one or two of the following markets: foreclosures, absentee owners, our probates, divorces, for sale by owners, tired landlords. This is your market – the who.

What:
What are you going to say in your marketing? This may be a real estate marketing script that you follow, a direct mail postcard system that you roll out, or specific copy in your advertisement. Understand, that you are looking for motivated sellers to take action. If you’re taking the time to write a letter, place an ad, etc you want your prospect to do something like call you or email you or listen to a recorded message!

When:
When are your prospects going to receive your marketing message? Timing and consistency is everything to your real estate marketing campaign. You need to be the single person (or company) they think of when the moment strikes at which they realize they are, in fact, a motivated seller!

Where:
Where are they going to receive your message? Obviously if you’re door knocking, you’ll meet them at their home. But if you are marketing to personal representatives of an estate, the attorney may receive the letter and pass it on. It’s important to think about where your potential seller is going to “see” your message because this will affect the action they take.

Why:
This is where your real estate investing exit strategy comes into play. What are you going to do with the property once you’ve gained control? Are you going to wholesale it to another investor? Are you going to fix it up and flip it yourself? Are you going to hold on to it for rental?

As you grow into your real estate business, you’ll have a number of options for each deal depending on what’s most suitable for the piece of real estate. You may have properties that you can assign, rehab OR rent. But, initially, decide where you are on your real estate investing scale and work within those parameters. If you are asking: “Should I focus on rehabbing houses or should I target probate?” you’re asking two different questions.

How:
The next thing is the communication method. That is ‘how are we going to talk to our potential motivated sellers?’ So let’s suppose your market is foreclosures or pre-foreclosures (the who). The next question is how? There are basically only four methods that we can use to communicate with our target market.

1. Driving for Dollars (or door knocking)

2. Telemarketing

3. Direct mail

4. Mass marketing

How Much:
I toss this in because this is going to affect your real estate marketing strategies. How much can you afford to spend? Understand for a few dollars a day, you can have an extremely profitable real estate investing business. It doesn’t take a lot of money to bring in home run deals!

Here’s a quick real estate marketing business plan that you can implement immediately using the Who, What, When, Where, Why & How approach:

Who: Pre-foreclosures within 2 weeks of sale at the courthouse (note how specific this is)

What: Yellow legal pad letters

When: Two weeks prior to the sale

Where: Prospect’s Home

Why: Seller is more motivated and has run out of options

How: Hand-written, hand addressed, first class postage and return address label

How Much: Based on a budget of $100/month, I will send 59.5 letters each week (remember to figure out your marketing budget down to the penny – stamps, ink, paper, envelopes, etc.)

And there you have it! 7 Simple Steps for your real estate marketing plan.

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Do you want to learn more about real estate marketing to make sure that your sales will increase? Well, the only way to do that is to learn more about strategies. Marketing is an essential tool in any business and if you lack that, it is about time you adapt techniques for the real estate business.

There are simple marketing strategies that will help increase your sales in the industry. You may have come across these ideas but failed to remember them most of the time. If you did forget them, it is a good idea if you review the foregoing tips.

Eight marketing strategies for selling properties

The following strategies will give you an edge in making a sale of a property. You should abide by these rules to increase your sales at the same time boost customer satisfaction.

Know the desires of your customers. You should be able to establish what your customers learned about you. In this manner, you know what they desire from a transaction with you.

Be visible. You should set-up an attractive website that will increase your visibility to consumers. Invest on that particular aspect. You may also be part of social networking sites if you want.

Be environment-friendly. The generations of today are aware of the need to go green. Make sure that is part of your legacy if you want to increase real estate sales.

Use appropriate words as marketing tools. Do not focus on marketing your credentials. Always make sure that your client’s needs will be first on your list. Use “you” words more than “me” or “I” words.

Be an expert in your field. You will only gain the confidence of your clients if they know that you are an expert in your chosen field. You may start by writing about tips on purchasing these properties.

Have fun in the process. Being a professional does not mean that real estate marketing should focus much on the glossary of terms for the industry you are working for. It is better if you show your clients that you love your work and that you are having fun with it.

When marketing strategies knock, use them. Every marketing strategy you may utilize should be grabbed all at once. For instance, you may use your calling cards to include a quotation that is true to the business. Buying or selling tips will also be good enough.

Be who you are. You should not strive hard to show someone you are not. It is best to be proud of yourself and allow your clients to notice that. This is considered an essential real estate marketing strategy.

These eight marketing strategies are actually very simple. They will help lessen the hassles of closing a transaction while you work hard enough to increase your sales. You should learn these tips by heart and you will notice how it will help you in the long run. If you can memorize more than 30 terms linked to the industry, there is no reason you will not learn these eight strategies by heart.

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