Promotion.
Promotion includes all elements of the marketing plan that expose your home to as many buyers as possible. Your real estate agent will apply five key promotional tools:
- Online promotion.
- Traditional or physical promotion.
- Open houses / viewing appointments.
- Neighbourhood engagement.
- Signage.
Online promotion.
Virtually all home searches begin online. All the steps involved in promoting your home online are designed to encourage potential buyers to make an in-person visit. In some cases – such as working with an out-of-province buyer – the online presentation may be the only version of the product your buyers see before making an offer. With technology such as video, 3D floor plans and virtual tours, a small percentage of buyers purchase a home without even stepping through the door.
Online promotion includes:
- Professional photographs.
- Professional video tour.
- Professional measurements and floor plan.
- Social media posts and advertising.
- Exposure on MLS sites like REW.ca and others.
- Exposure on your agent’s website and other agents’ sites.
- Paid advertising on consumer sites like REW.ca.
- Your agent’s e-newsletter to clients and the real estate industry.
Your agent can dramatically boost awareness of your home by including more than just the online listing in their marketing materials. Professionally measured floor plans and quality photos and video on real estate websites and social media give consumers more information in multiple formats. Some buyers love a video tour, while others don’t have the patience to watch them. Some buyers actively search online listings every day. Others are less engaged, but may find your listing on Instagram or Facebook and be intrigued enough to attend an open house.
Your agent’s job is to not rely on a single channel, but to generate more exposure for your home.
Traditional or physical promotion.
Most homes are now promoted extensively online. However, there’s still room for proven, real-world tactics. Marketing materials that potential buyers can hold in their hands, early access for neighbours and effective signage to catch people’s eyes as they’re walking by can complement our online efforts.
Quality full-colour brochures.
Since buyers spend so little time in the homes they visit, it’s important to offer them a high-quality brochure with several photographs, the professionally measured floor plan and a list of the home’s best features. This takeaway material helps them to remember your home, especially if they’ve seen several other homes in a short period of time.
A few years before I got into real estate, my husband and I were looking to move from our condo into a townhome, duplex or even a small house. We weren’t in a big rush, but we had a baby daughter and hoped to welcome a second child in the next couple years. We knew we’d need more space. So, we moved into research mode and started looking at a few properties each weekend; some with our agent and some on our own.
After several weeks and many showings, we made an offer on a duplex, but we couldn’t come together with the seller on price. Then we offered on a house and were blown out of the water in a bidding war. We were starting to feel discouraged.
One day, I was organizing a bookshelf and discovered the glossy brochure for a townhome in Vancouver’s Mount Pleasant neighbourhood. We had viewed it three weeks earlier when we were still hoping we could afford a house. So, while I remembered liking it, we hadn’t pursued an offer at that time. As I flipped through the pages, I saw my handwritten note that read “Perfect!” I showed it to my husband that night and we wrote an offer the next day. We bought that home and lived there happily for nine years with our two daughters. If I hadn’t found the brochure when I did, I doubt we would have circled back to the townhome. That was a powerful piece of paper.
Great photographs, videos and online promotions can entice potential buyers to call their agent and visit your home, but don’t forget the power of promotional materials such as print brochures and flyers.
Neighbourhood open houses or sneak peeks.
Who knows your neighbourhood better than the people who live within a few blocks of you? Extending special invitations to your neighbours and letting them know you’ve listed your home can be a great way to spread the word. Highlight your home’s special features and indicate when they can come to view it. Creating an invite-only viewing party with refreshments can also make guests feel special and encourage them to tell their friends about your home.
Signage.
Placing signs on the lawn or in front of the building encourages people to look it up online. Sometimes house hunters – especially local buyers – love a certain building, street or even your house. Potential buyers often call listing agents because they saw the sign out front.
A Q&A with Mary Cleaver, the author of You Can’t Live in the Ceilings.
Mary Cleaver recently published You Can’t Live in the Ceilings, a practical guide to everything about buying and selling real estate in BC. We sat down with her to ask why she wrote this book and what she hopes Homeseekers will gain from reading it.
