How to do Content Marketing in Real Estate

It’s no secret that the real estate market is overcrowded with realtors, house-flippers, wholesalers, investors, etc… Fortunately, some of them haven’t caught up with technology yet and don’t utilize the internet as much as they could, which is a big plus for you.

The internet is driven by content, and you need to know how to use content as a tool to drive leads. It could be motivated buyers and sellers for your agency/brokerage. You might be looking for distressed sellers to wholesale or flip.

Whatever it is, you need to use content to find them.

A content marketing strategy that integrates social media is your best friend if you want to get noticed by potential customers and have your properties stand out from the crowd.

Plus, it’s reported that content marketing gets three times more leads than paid search advertising. That’s a huge deal!

Real estate content marketing takes some planning but, with the right help, it doesn’t have to be a giant headache.

So, we’re going look at some real estate content marketing strategies we use as well as the social media marketing tips to boost your online presence. Hopefully, this guide will help you generate leads.

1. Blog Posts and Articles

Blog posts or articles are a go-to for real estate content marketing (or any marketing for that matter).

To write blog posts that appeal to people who want to buy houses or property, you need to understand your audience. You want possible leads to land on your blog and your website to get answers to all their questions.

Check out our example website – Sell Your House Fast in Worcester

Once they’re on your website, visitors can search and see the property available to them or anything else you have to offer.

Your blog posts and articles can be about mortgages, loans, avoiding foreclosure, or even decorating new homes. These are topics that are important to homeowners or homebuyers.

Ask yourself:

• Who is my audience?

• What are potential buyers looking for in real estate?

• What steps do they have to take to purchase a property?

• How can you assist them along with those steps?

36% of readers prefer list-based blog posts that walk them through the steps or information they need.

These blog posts should use search engine optimization (SEO). (You can read all about SEO for real estate blogs and lead gen sites here) Google uses these keywords to rank websites according to what people are searching for. Don’t forget to use the name of your city or neighborhood to attract people who are looking for houses in your area.

Structuring Your Articles

This content should also be of high quality and full of information. People want long-form content that gives them every bit of information they need to know.

While you’re writing these blog posts, don’t use complicated words that a home buyer might not understand.

Some websites also try to use fluff to move up in the Google ranking but this never works. especially long term.

Blog posts should be on topics that people will want to know about for years to come to keep readers coming back years later. This is called evergreen content.

If you only post content that’s relevant to a certain time frame, it’s will be useless later on for getting new leads.

With these blog posts, you want to clearly establish your brand without forcing it down the reader’s throat. Also, don’t advertise a piece of property with every post. Content shouldn’t be too salesy and should have value for the reader, enticing them to sign up for a newsletter, which brings us to the next content marketing strategy.

2. Newsletters

With the right blog posts and a call-to-action, your audience will want to sign up for your newsletter, whether it’s to deliver blog posts to their inbox or get a free e-book on mortgages.

If you don’t have an opt-in yet, go over here and read about squeeze pages for real estate sites.

Your newsletter can contain blog posts or partial blog posts (to entice them back to your website to read the rest). You can also add the property you’re selling and tell your personal stories about purchasing real estate or taking out loans.

You can promote anything that helps you generate leads and sales.

Tips for creating newsletters that subscribers open and respond to:

• An interesting subject line to draw in the reader. If you’re advertising a property, use the headline to declare it’s an urgent sale or that the price you’re offering is only a limited time.

• Use eye-catching images. You want images that stand out from the boring text. If you’re advertising a piece of your property, use the best photos of that house or piece of property.

• Don’t advertise yourself. You’ll appear spammy and nobody likes spammy content.

3. Eye-Catching Infographics and Eye-Catching Images

Every blog post you publish, every newsletter you send, and every social media ad you create needs images that stand out.

You need high-quality images of the house you’re selling. That includes high-quality photos of the inside of the house. Stage it like you would a walkthrough. The leads want to imagine themselves at home in a house they purchase.

Don’t be afraid to hire a photographer. The money that you spend is worth the investment when you find the perfect person to buy your property.

Instagram is a great platform to advertise using these high-quality photos of your property though there are infinite gorgeous photos on Instagram so make sure yours stand out.

Infographics are another fantastic form of marketing images and have become really popular lately. What’s great about infographics is that it’s easy to add them to a blog post to develop authority but you can also post them on social media with two clicks.

Tips for creating a great infographic:

• Create an infographic that’s a decent size. You don’t want a large infographic that takes up the whole screen nor do you want a tiny one that someone has to zoom in on. The right size varies depending on where you’re sharing this image. That said, the standard size of an infographic is no more than 600 pixels wide and 1,800 pixels long.

• Design a prototype of the image before you make the final one.

• The title of the infographic should be short but catchy. It needs to establish what the info on the image is about.

• Keep your brand voice and don’t forget to target your audience.

• Use lists and graphs to present the information.

• Use colors that make your infographic pop out. Make sure the color scheme matches.

• Make room to leave your sources for facts and stats.

4. Video Content

In a world of technology, video content sells. People are more likely to consume content through real visuals, particularly of the property you’re selling. It’s fast and easier for multitasking.

55% of people that use the internet watch videos.

Do walkthroughs of the house you’re selling. Tell a personal story that revolves around the real estate world. You can even go over a topic that your audience wants to learn about instead of writing a lengthy blog post.

Some people like to create a video that provides the same information as a blog post that they’ve published. This is so the audience can consume the information in a way that works best for them.

Another great video idea is to live-stream while touring the property or discussing what you’re selling. Audiences love live-streams because it seems more personal and they can interact and ask questions.

There are so many types of videos that you can make for your audience and leads. These marketing videos must be of high quality and well-edited so the audience can follow the information easily.

Your website isn’t the only place you can upload your videos – they’re great for social media marketing, too.

You have to ask yourself what platform your audience uses the most and what platform they follow you on.

A few great social media platforms to present videos on include: YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

5. Use Social Media

Social media is one of the most important marketing tools you have to advertise your properties and your website.

There are so many social media platforms that it can be overwhelming but there are software choices out there that can link all your accounts together.

For example, if you post a blog to LinkedIn, it can also be uploaded to Facebook.

It helps to use your blog posts and newsletters to entice your leads to follow you on social media as well. Links to your social media accounts should be on the homepage of your website.

Evaluate your audience and the general homeowner to find out what social media platform they utilize the most.

In general, Facebook is used by older millennials and Gen X whereas Twitter is more commonly used by the younger generation.

Pay attention to what your competition is doing on social media and how their audience reacts. You need to post consistently on these social media apps to get your audience’s attention.

If your audience is small enough, interact with them. If they comment on an infographic you’ve posted on Facebook with a question, answer it. Give them your business contact information if they have more questions for you.

Be personable and reachable. This can go a long way for leads and sales. Your leads need to trust you if they’re going to buy a home from you. If you’re distant, they’re not going to trust you as much.

6. Advertise Open Houses

You can use the above real estate marketing tactics to advertise an open house for a property or give them a chance to schedule a walk-through with you.

This old school strategy still works for house and property sales and integrates seamlessly with modern technology. Social media is the best way to reach out to your leads and bringing them into the property is a bonus. They get to meet you and speak to you. They can ask questions and you can help them with their concerns.

This gives you a chance to build trust so even if they don’t purchase that particular house, they may come back in the future for another home you’re selling.

They’ll take a business card. They’ll get on social media and follow you. They’ll visit your website, read your blog posts, and subscribe to your e-mail newsletter.

Of course, an open house also gives your leads a chance to experience the house in real life. They can get a sense of the home they can build in that house. They can imagine how it will feel relaxing after a long day at work or their children running through the house.

Like any open house, you should stage it. Don’t forget to serve appetizers to make your leads comfortable.

Final Thoughts

Real estate marketing is important if you want to flip homes or sell other pieces of property.

The internet is a wonderful place for marketing. Almost everyone is online now and people consume content almost 24/7. Use this to your advantage. We hope this guide to real estate marketing helps you up your selling game.