Estate Agent Marketing Ideas?

[Joanna87]

Hi

Firstly I'm a newbie so apologise if i have posted the thread in the wrong section of the webpage.

I've recently set up a family run Estate Agency , having worked for a large corporate for over 10 years and noticing a change in the market. (most leads from rightmove & a more online presence etc)
The USP of the agency i have set up is;
1.Family run business-people know exactly who they are talking to every step of the process.
2. As we own the office outright, our overheads are low, enabling us to reflect that in our fees to extremely competitive rates.
3. A personal,reliable service, guaranteeing feedback through every step.
4. not a 9-5 agent, we operate outside the 9-5 to suit the needs of the client.

So far, in our local area my daughter and I have dropped 10,000 leaflets with a good quality glossy leaflet introducing our service to the area. We also had a local press launch whereby our local newspaper did a fantastic article and write up about the company following the sale of our first house.

I was wondering if there are any marketing experts or Estate Agents that could offer any other marketing ideas to get our brand known besides what we are currently doing which is:

leafleting, local press, all the online portals such as rightmove, zoopla etc

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated

Many Thanks

Joanna

 

[telemax]

How have your efforts worked out so far?

 

[Joanna87]

leaflets Ive had about 5% back
Zoopla ive had triple the amount of leads compared to Rightmove which is interesting as Rightmove are triple the price to be on..

local press didnt interest much at all but i understand its an ongoing brand awareness with them.

 

[telemax]

All sounds really good so far!! If it was me I'd be knocking on the doors of houses that have been lingering on the market for a while.

 

[Joanna87]

yes i think you are right there, ive already started looking at whos been on for a while. Thank you for the feedback

 

[Deleted member 138423]

Yes, targeted leaflets to those houses would be a good start. Maybe sponsor a flower bed on your local main route into the town/city roundabout, ads on local buses/bus routes, placing your name in places where you build the brand awareness, local restuarants, pubs etc...

 

[thelegalstop]

How about some video marketing? Have you thought about it? And testimonials from clients will do as well

 

[Joanna87]

I must admit i'd not thought of video marketing, but only because i know nothing about it. Testimonals is one i will use with the local press in their weekly homebuyer ad.

Thanks for everyones help

 

[JonathanSEO]

Gumtree.

I've seen a few estate agents get signs / banners put up on buildings / roundabouts.

Maybe a website.

 

[vvaannmmaann]

Hi Joanna,welcome to the site.
Where are you based?

 

[Joanna87]

Thank you, Gloucestershire

 

[Psl]

Video marketing is a marketing method that I think would work very well for house sales. make sure they are rendered correctly for mobiles and get yourself a youtube account for them.

You could also create a separate web site, a couple of pages maybe, for each house you have on your books,with the video embedded and all the information.

Highlight the fact that you do accompanied viewings, if you do them that is?

 

[baincol]

Targated google adwords works for estate agents

 

[fluffyfluff]

I've had a lot of experience in London in estate agency and can give a bit of advice.

Look, and sound cool and modern, company image-wise. This is extremely important.
Never let your office look shabby.
Never overvalue just to get the instruction.
Don't be afraid to be aggressive, but not too aggressive.
Concentrate on your motivated vendors.
Employ intelligent people. Estate agency has the lowest IQ staff of any industry type in the UK. By employing intelligent people, you'll blow the competition out of the water.
Remember that business is business and that some aspects of employment law are there to get votes for politicians but are not in your favour. That's all I'll say about that
If you must plaster your logo all over your company cars, try to make them a little bit subtle.
Don't cut corners.
Make sure that your employees are drug-free.
Smile.

 

[ThePublisher]

Don't allow as I saw earlier outside a local EA, your staff to all stand outside together 'aving a fag in the carpark......

 

[sebsuma]

Someone has already said it but I would seriously consider a few videos. If they are done well and are a little witty they can go viral and every hit your website gets will of course help your SEO and thus sales. Videos are cheap and stay online forever. Have you also thought of merchandise? Create a little (3inc) cuddly toy bear in your businesses colour scheme and give them away, leave them lying around etc. More great marketing ideas include sponsorship, go to the local go kart track and see if any children need a sponsor, this could really help you and them. Partnerships are another way to market yourself, maybe go into partnership with a solicitor (the same ones you will use to sell the houses). Any advertising they do will then also help you. Be creative and be different.

 

[EllaAccountant]

Funny enough there was another Thread about Estate Agents on UKBF to which i replied and mentioned my disappointment at the estate agents i had used recently.
They didn't attend the viewing, the vendors showed me around, i found this disappointing, didn't make me feel valued.
There was no call to check if i was going to go
No call to check whether I did go
No call to know about my feedback on the property. This showed they didnt CARE.

Hope the above can help with your USP....the outside 9-5 hrs is really good! I work so need agents that can pick up the phone after 5. Show that you care about the Vendor selling and the BUYER..- house buying/selling is an emotional experience...

Marketing wise, the above suggestions are good but i would say add- networking! Organise a free champagne (or something else) event where you can showcase the houses you have for sale and also get a chance to meet local residents, offer your advice to vendors/buyers. Give away something small at the end...

Good luck!

 

[lilyhollies]

Social media, blogging and SEO. I cannot emphasise this any more.

 

[jack_sparrow]

Just try to answer the question where would you look for some information on estate agents and start advertising there. For me, it's mainly Internet nowadays.

 

[GC Construction]

Thank you, Gloucestershire

Hi Joanne I cannot give any answers for your post but I was wondering if you could give me abit of advice

I am thinking of opening a letting agency very soon, at the moment I am in process of leasing a business premises. Do I need to register with any regulated bodies?, do i need a obtain a data protection licence as I have personal data for tenants, etc?, And finally could you recommend a good credit referencing company?

Thanks Saana

 

[amphis software]

if I had to choose an estate agent I would look at the Sold signs to see who sells the most.

but if I was to run an estate agent I would push the boundaries a bit, open all day Saturday and Sunday which is the only chance most people get to view properties. also stay open late in the evenings. reply to emails and answer the phone well in to the evening. the days of 9-5 are long gone.

Tom

 

[Socio South West]

Social media, blogging and SEO. I cannot emphasise this any more.

Granted this is ONE vital part of a campaign, but it's a mistaken belief that everyone is glued to some aspect of social media, and the mad scramble for SEO results in many companies paying ridiculous amounts of money to get traffic which is totally irrelevant to their business - This goes for just about all businesses, not just in the OP's case. Web traffic is ok... but a bit of a scattergun approach.

I have a family member who works in estate agency in a fairly rural part of the country, and like the OP is always looking for different ways to get their services out to a broader audience.
She came up with a scheme which has had a great take up, and early results look promising too...

Bearing in mind the funding restraints on schools, her company now sponsor the printing of newsletters and other publications put out by schools... These go into family homes, and are often passed on to other family members who may not have school aged children.
The schools like it as it helps with their budget, and the companies logo and message appear on almost everything printed by the school - and as the family years are fairly high on the list of periods that house moves are made, it is looking like a win-win situation without endless flogging round streets dropping leaflets, or endless envelope stuffing as most of the distribution work is done by the schools.
She currently has five primary schools and one secondary school in the area - well away from Gloucestershire, and having started in September this year, is already receiving several enquiries arising from school publications.