Ubertor:
How would you pick a Realtor to sell your home?

Seth Godin:
Someone I trusted
Someone respected
Someone who was the clear and obvious best choice!

We couldn’t agree more. Which is why we’ve been providing a marketing solution that allows you to do just that: (1) win trust (2) build repoire (3) offer something valuable to prospects that makes it easy to choose you over others.

Thanks Seth!

Using Google Adwords is certainly an option, however, here’s the problem with this channel of marketing: it’s not personal enough. If you think about it, you’re using the same thing as your competition to attempt to stand out and appear different. A simple looking headline along with two lines of body copy. Is that really enough? Where’s the experience for the customer? There isn’t one. And the fact is it doesn’t take much for them to move past your ad and go to a larger competitor like Ziprealty or Redin who are buying up better ranking Adwords in the area you work. Bottom line: it’s too easy to get eaten by the big guys and not enough to stand out for the customer.

The answer to all of this is using real estate postcards to market your website. If you really want people to get a sense of what you’re about and what you can offer them put something in their hand. Give them something in their hand they can interact with and experience. Remember, according a 2005 National Association of Realtors study, most home sellers and buyers contacted only one agent. That means prospects aren’t doing a lot of searching out there for Realtors. So it’s best to go to the prospect first and meet them at their doorstep in the form of a postcard.

Another benefit about marketing with real estate postcards is that your marketing material is only competing for attention with mail that the prospect has received for that day (and chances are it won’t be another agent’s postcard right then and there.) So, again, using our website postcards will give you a better chance of standing out and securing a customer. It’s about increasing chances not taking them.

On our site there are three main benefits we share about postcard marketing. Here they are:

1) Open Mail (no need to open)
When mailing brochures, packages, and envelopes, you’re left hoping that prospects take the time to open and read your message. However, with postcards the visuals and message go to work immediately without any need for opening. Prospects are hit upon contact. This is important since research shows that your marketing pieces have only 3 seconds to capture the attention of potential clients.

2) Effective -vs- other methods
Aside from being cost-effective, real estate postcards beat out other real estate marketing methods by sheer circumstance. Unlike an ad, your postcard competes with only a handful of items in the mailbox on that day, rather than with the 250-300 ads in a typical newspaper or magazine.

3) Personal Interaction
Unlike emails or websites, postcards are held in hand while read. The act of consciously picking up a postcard is the first step toward opening up your prospect to your message. Remember, the prospect is physically holding your message and has to interact with your postcard (turn it over) for more information. This experience makes for a loose personal contact between you and your prospect from right within their home.

And there explains the massive move toward more traditional marketing like postcards. However, mind you, traditional marketing with long over due treatments to postcard marketing. Realasponse.com

So we here a Realasponse.com are announcing a site in the works that will provide agents across the country with FREE Open House Flyers that you can edit yourself. You heard right 100% FREE with no strings attached. The reason for our announcement is due to the market saturation of so many sub standard Open House Marketing Flyers. If we all want the market to do better we should also do better by the market.

Prospects want more for agents in a time where commissions are under attack. Well, we’re helping you out! Stay tune for updates.

The problem with these postcards are twofold. First, let’s start with their messages. Ofttimes the typical just sold postcards consists of one message entirely: “Just Sold!”. That’s not good enough in a market where prospects have been numb to this message over years and realize the market has changed. The best thing to do is put the “Just Sold” message in context with today’s market, as seen here: Just Sold Postcards . The reason these postcard messages work (aside from prospect-researched layout) are the fact that the postcards don’t ignore where the market is currently at, however, embraces it and finds a way to use it toward an advantage.

Remember, clients are smart today and have access to much of the same information as you have. So, if you come with the same-old-pitch, they’re thinking “same-old-agent”; and the “same-old-agent” can’t get my home sold in today’s market.

The same applies for Just listed postcards. Where’s the ‘UMF!”. There’s no spark in seeing a postcard with a headline of solely “Just Listed”. Again, putting things in context with today’s market will set you apart from the countless agents who haven’t got a clue as to what they’re doing.

So, while others may be drowning in a sea of slow transactions, you’ll be hitting the mark with robust messages and presentation that keep you afloat.

1) Home holding needs to be dropped
Wait…let me think on what’s being said here, “My home is in good hands with you?”, “You build model homes?” or better yet, “You passed GO, collected $200, and want to place a house on Boardwalk.” No, but seriously, the home holding images are one of the most overused images to date in real estate. Prospects are numb to its meaning and it carries to “pop value”. To prospects, it’s just another quick give way sign of a “real estate person trying to sell me something.” Brand building is not built on commonality…it has to have pop.

2) Trash the recycled messages
I’ve seen them, you’ve seen them…you may have even used them. The “card board-cutout” messages of five and ten years back. Sorry, but they don’t work in today’s market. A free consultation is NOT an offer, it’s expected. Asking someone to call you if thinking about “buying or selling”…….
One question?

WHY SHOULD THEY CALL? You’ve told them nothing.

Branding is NOT blending in.

3) Branding without borders
Kids cover your eyes!!! And yes, this is a real postcard. What are we saying here?! “I’ll present your open house half nude and bring Bruiser with me?” There are standards in NAR, remember?. If you care to show yourself down-to-earth and adventurous you can, however, marketing is for the prospect, NOT your ego. Most prospects care about the bottom line, “What can you offer ME that others aren’t?”

4) Out dated photos are out of style
Ok, so you put on a few pounds over the years or managed to pick up a wrinkle here or there. It’s natural. But don’t resort to using your high school photo to cover your shame. Over the years I’ve seen agents use photos that clearly misrepresent what they look like. The problem here is that some prospects, after seeing you in person, may feel a sense of disappointment and equate your slightly dishonest representation with the type of service they might come to receive as a client. You might find yourself asking, “ What happened…everything seemed to be going good by all signs?”.

Get a nice photo that represents today’s YOU and get it retouched if you care to. Remember, honesty builds repoire.

5) Recipe marketing gets cooked
They say the way to some peoples heart is “through their stomach”, however when did this apply to real estate? The common misplaced belief when marketing with recipe postcards is that “perhaps the prospect will remember me by offering something useful.” Come on, do you really think people would make one of the most important financial decisions of their life by referring to a recipe? Also bad, is its natural ability to eliminate possible business by discrimination. Look, I love Sloppy Joe, however, my mother doesn’t…and she’s not alone, vegetarians don’t like it either. Get the point?

But for many agents that choose to market themselves with real estate postcards that are plagued with recycled messages and weak visuals; their days at marketing to today’s buyers and sellers are almost just about up. Why? Because today’s seller and buyers knows the game and is being persuaded by the “commission debate” to seek out selling or buying a home themself. Companies such as Redfin are helping consumers to see that the market and times are-ah- changin’. What agents have to do is PROVE their value. And guess what? Offering a Free Market Analysis or Free Consultation is not going to cut it! They expect a consultation and are being moved daily to refer to ball-park estimates on Zillow or Trulia (regardless of how far off they are).

Postcard marketing is not dead, however, the old way of just sending any postcard in the name of having to touch the prospect is absolutely the wrong way to think about effective marketing. Prospects aren’t laughing real estate postcards with animals having talk bubbles with cheesy saying. It’s no time to be cute! It’s all about being effective. With the market the way it is, they’re looking for answers.

And what’s better than meeting prospects at their door and offering to address what is already on their minds; then by sending postcards that do, in fact, that. Grab they attention and get them to act.

Check out Realasponse.com and view our demo for more.

For one, most agents and brokers will be wasting money on holiday postcards and seasonal gimmick items that get treated like abundant fruitcakes that EVERY ONE is giving. From the clients perspective, it’s just another, “agent trying to get in good to get my business”.

Also a good reason to market this winter is because many agents won’t survive this winter. It’s sad, but true. Many agents have been bracing themselves for a market miracle which isn’t coming anytime soon. The reason you market hard in the winter is because you want to build repoire come spring and summer. And guess what? With less agents in the ‘08 market you’ll be able to stand out more easier. But it’s not just showing up at their door that will get you into their “housing life”, but offering something valuable that addresses the concerns and needs of today’s prospects that PROVES you know what you’re talking about. For more on that check out: www.realasponse.com

Now don’t get me wrong, real estate postcard marketing is a numbers game and frequency does matter. However, not every week. It’s important to remember that a normal mailing has a lifespan of about two weeks. You’ll generally receive the first half of your responses the first week and the remaining half the second week. Although you’re certain to have a few trickle in weeks after.

A monthly farming campaign with a reasonable number of postcards generally will do the trick. Remember, it’s not so much about mailing 2,000 postcards in as much as it’s about mailing EFFECTIVE postcards. If your postcard has no call-to-action, guess what? You guessed it…no calls. To increase your chances of receiving calls you must offer something of value to the prospect. You need to offer something that has the prospect to say, “Man!! that would help!!” Don’t offer senseless crap that hints to the prospect that you’re cheap and tasteless. Offer information that stands to save them hundreds of thousands of dollars as a result of having received your report. And you’re bound to receive a call!

An easy way to achieve all of the above said is to check out proven products from www.realasponse.com that save you time and money on good real estate postcard marketing and position you as the go-to person in the eyes of your prospects.

The #1 thing real estate agents sacrifice when creating real estate postcards using online tools is quality. It’s true. The tools you’re given to make your postcards are limited in flexibility.

FONTS
You can only choose from a certain number of fonts. This is a big mistake given that fonts add character and mood to a really good real estate postcard. Most companies will only provide the basics because they could care less about spending the $50-$100 needed to create great looking copy.

EFFECTS
Another effective visual for any real estate postcard is the ability to use drop shadows and gradients on headers to allow certain elements to jump out and grab the prospects attentions. You can’t do this with do-it-yourself online tools.

LAYOUT BALANCE
Also bad is the ability to easily add and move elements around to maintain balance. Generally adding a new element to your real estate postcard means settling for clutter. With a company like Realaspones.com designing it for you (same day) resizing, moving and cropping elements can be done to maintain order and impact on the postcard.

All in all, the truth is many agents get suckered into believing that do-it-myself postcards mean saving a coupling pennies and possessing equal impact. WRONG! You may save a FEW pennies, however, in today’s market, it’s worth paying pennies more to have a message stand out and be seen and also maximize the chance of a transaction happening because you’ve used all the tools needed to make it happen.