On Vacation - Blog Highlights in the Meantime

I'm off for a week's vacation. In the meantime, here are some blog highlights from the last few months.

• What's in the postcard book?
• 10 reasons to download the book
• Choosing a postcard printing company
• What postcard companies won't tell you (but should)

-Brandon

Marketing Tips for Real Estate Agents

Quick tips on real estate marketing:

1. Add value to your marketing message.
The more you build value into your marketing message, the more likely your prospects will be to respond. Give people a good reason to call you. Hint: the free consultation is not that reason. You need something more significant.

What can you offer? You tell me. Do you know an interior decorator? Why not partner with them to offer free design consultations to new clients. "But incentives are against the rules," I hear some agents say. To which I would respond, "Well, you better find a way around that rule."

Here's the bottom line: A marketing message without some form of offer, incentive or motivation is not a marketing message -- it's just a message. People may read it, but they won't respond to it.

2. Be professional with your marketing.
Real estate is a detail-oriented business. One paperwork slip can put the entire transaction off track. Your prospects know this, so don't ever show the a real estate postcard (or flyer, or blog, or website) that's less than perfect. It only takes one sloppy design to blow your reputation, especially when you're not present to compensate for the mistake.

I once came home to find a real estate agent's flyer taped onto my front door. It had been printed on a cheap office printer that looked like it was running out of toner. The photo was fading as if the agent were disappearing into thin air. I could only read about half of the text, and within that half I noticed a huge typo right off the bat. There were more explanation points than you'd find in a comic book.

My reaction? "Are you kidding me? Why would I want this person to represent me in anything, let alone something as important as selling my house? They obviously have zero attention-to-detail."

3. Write an irresistible headline.
Many of the first-draft real estate postcards I see have weak headlines, or no headline at all. I've never understood this. A postcard has mere seconds to capture the reader's attention. That's what headlines were born to do!

4. Make your offer noticeable.
Making a strong offer is crucial with any form of marketing. Making that offer highly visible is just as important. After all, what good is a great offer if nobody notices it? When you make an offer on a real estate postcard, email or website, make sure it's the dominant item in that portion of the design. Remove distractions and let your offer have center-stage.

Look at the sidebar of this blog, for instance. What's the most dominant thing over there? My offer for you to download the postcard book. Sure, I could have cluttered that area up with all kinds of graphics and links, the way a lot of people do. But that postcard book would not stand out nearly as much, would it?

5. Make your offer clear.
Now that your offer stands out on your real estate marketing postcard (or email, or website, etc.), you need to make sure the reader understands it. This is not the time to show off your vocabulary or use clever language and puns. Make your offer clear, simple to understand, and loaded with value: "18-page survey of local schools. Exclusive information — yours free! Call today."

6. Be unique.
If your real estate postcards look and sound like every other real estate postcard your prospect receives in the mail, what's to make them notice you? You can be unique in a number of ways. You can make a stronger offer, create a more professional postcard, use more specific information, personalize your message, brand yourself in some memorable way, etc.

7. Leverage your website
Using your real estate postcards in tandem with your website can improve the performance of both marketing channels. I offer you plenty of ways to do this in the postcard book, so I won't labor the point here.

Like most things in real estate marketing, your imagination is your only limit here. Unleash some ideas of your own. Good luck.

Have questions about the postcard book?
Email me here: brandon@realestatepostcardbook.com

-Brandon

Real Estate Postcard Book - Reason #4 to Buy

Continuing our top-ten list of reasons to download the real estate postcard book, I'd like to present reason #4.

Reason #4 - Avoid costly postcard marketing mistakes.

Real estate postcard marketing is a numbers game, a game of attrition. In fact, almost every form of marketing is a numbers game. In marketing, the majority of those who receive your message will not respond to it. It's the minority who do respond that can make the difference.

With postcard marketing the minority "response group" can be fairly small. But even a small response can make the postcard mailing worthwhile. Say you sent 500 postcards and pulled a 1% response (5 people contacted you). Of those five, let's say that two went on to become clients. If you earned a standard commission off those two people, it would pay for your 500-postcard mailing many times over.

But what if you got a 0% response on your mailing? What if not a single person contacted you after sending those 500 real estate postcards? Well, you'd be out anywhere from $300 to $600, depending on the cost of the mailing. And if you repeated that same mailing (because a postcard company told you repetition was some kind of magic cure), you'd be out another $300 to $600. This is becoming an expensive habit!

These are the kinds of traps I teach you to avoid in my book on real estate postcard marketing. On the front end, I teach you about the kinds of postcards that generate a better response to begin with. And on the back end, I teach you how to monitor the performance of each mailing so you'll know when to adjust your approach. These two things used in conjunction will help you avoid costly postcard marketing mistakes.

Read the full list of reasons:
10 Reasons to Get the Real Estate Postcard Book

Have questions about the postcard book? Email me here: brandon@realestatepostcardbook.com

-Brandon

Real Estate Postcards - What is Your Offer?

If you're using postcards as part of your real estate marketing program, but you're not making a strong offer ... you could be wasting a lot of time, money and effort.

With that harsh truth out of the way, let me tell you how to avoid this costly mistake.

Real estate postcard marketing is a direct response type of marketing. That's one of the reasons it's called "direct" mail -- it goes directly to your prospective client, and it has the potential to generate a direct response.

But here's the key to the whole thing. In order to generate those direct responses (which in turn could become clients), you have to make an offer. What's an offer? Well, if you read my postcard marketing book, you'll understand this concept inside and out. But let's look at the basics.

A postcard marketing offer is what you provide in exchange for the recipient's response. Turn on your television for a few minutes, and I guarantee you'll hear some offers. "Act now, and we will include this limited-edition collector's plate for no additional charge." That's an offer. Granted, it's probably not the kind of offer you would make on a real estate postcard, but you get the idea.

The bottom line is this. If you only offer the worn-out free consultation on your postcards, you have not offered enough to motivate your reader. [See related article: Go Beyond the Free Consultation]

So ask yourself, "What do I have to offer that will truly motivate my prospects? What unique idea or service do I have in my arsenal? How can I distinguish myself by making a more effective offer?"

And remember, if you need help answering these questions, just download the book!

Have questions about the postcard book?
Email me here: brandon@realestatepostcardbook.com

-Brandon

Real Estate Marketing Tools: The Strongest One of All

Want to know what the most powerful real estate marketing tool is? I'll give you a hint. You see this powerful marketing tool each time you look in the mirror. That's right, it's you! As a knowledgeable real estate professional, you are your most powerful tool for real estate marketing (including postcard marketing).

Real Estate Marketing Tools - Exposed
Many companies clamor about the "power" of their real estate marketing tools. They make it seem like you simply have to turn them on and poof ... instant success with real estate. Here's a pitch from a company that makes real estate software. I've reworded it slightly for copyright purposes, but I assure you it's a nearly exact replication:

"Our revolutionary software will launch your real estate business into the stratosphere."

The stratosphere? Really? That sounds fantastic. But you'll notice there's an important ingredient missing from the above statement. And that ingredient is you! Whether you realize it or not, you are the most powerful real estate marketing tool you own. So the stratosphere claim would be more truthful if it added the words "will help you" ... as written below:

"Our revolutionary software will help you launch your real estate business into the stratosphere."

Now it's more accurate, because the advertising claim includes you. And you are by far the most important part of this equation.

You Are Your Best Marketing Tool
If you shop for a real estate marketing tool to take your business to the next level, you are going to be disappointed. Real estate marketing starts with great services and big ideas. The "tools" are just a way to communicate those services and ideas to your audience.

Top 5 Real Estate Marketing Tools
So what are some other important "tools" for marketing success? Here's my top-five:

1. You - Which we've covered already.

2. Imagination - Without imagination, you have no hope but to copy the marketing programs of other real estate agents. Mimicry will only get you so far, especially if you're copying a marketing strategy that's already being used in your area. Only imagination can help you find the next big idea in real estate marketing. And only big ideas can produce big results.

3. Persistence - Repetition is a big part of real estate marketing. You try a certain strategy, see how it works, modify it as needed, repeat it again, etc. This requires patience and persistence. Make sure you have these things before you try any form of marketing.

4. Enthusiasm - Whether you realize it or not, communicating with potential clients (and current clients) is a big part of your marketing program. When you communicate with professionalism and enthusiasm, your message becomes contagious. People will help you spread your message without even being asked.

5. Adaptability - Methods of communication change constantly. The Internet has opened up a whole new world of possibilities. For example, look at the current rise of real estate blogs we are witnessing. As the communication landscape changes, you must be able to change with it. You must be able to adapt to new mediums and methods. So make sure adaptability is part of your real estate marketing toolkit.

What do all of these real estate marketing tools have in common? For one thing, you can't buy them in a store or online. You're either born with them, or you work hard to acquire them along the way. But the good news is, you have the most powerful marketing tool already ... you have yourself. Everything else can be learned.

Haven't bought the real estate postcard book yet?
Join the hundreds of smart agents who have -- download yours today.

-Brandon