CBTPE: How to Market Your Listings

How can I market my

Listing?

A GUIDE TO GOING THE EXTRA MILE TO GET YOUR PROPERTY SOME EXTRA EXPOSURE.

WHAT CAN I DO TO MARKET MY LISTING?

Let’s Get Your Listing Sold Real estate can be incredibly unpredictable. Sometimes it’s fast-paced, and sometimes something beautiful will sit on the market for ages. How do we try to combat the latter? Selling a home isn’t just about making a listing live on the MLS; it’s about telling a story that grabs people’s attention (think of it as adding a personal touch to your property’s journey to find the perfect owner).

When sellers team up with an agent, they’re not just hoping for a routine sale—they’re expecting miracles to happen that will make it sell fast, for top dollar, while having to do the least amount of work possible.

Wouldn’t that be nice, huh?

Today, you’re expected to market the basics: flyers, MLS, open houses, etc. But you’ve got to get creative, too. Sellers want their agent to go all out, exploring every possible avenue to make their property shine.

So, what does this approach look like? It’s the immersive virtual tours, the constant communication to other agents and interested groups, and social media campaigns that make you stop scrolling.

It’s about blending hard facts with a touch of artistry to make a property not just seen, but remembered.

We’ll walk through some of the options that take things a step further than what the CBTPE Marketing Department is doing, and what you’ve likely already done. We’ll focus on: •

DIGITAL (PAID & FREE)

•

MAKING CONNECTIONS

•

PRINT (PAID)

•

THINGS OUTSIDE YOUR CONTROL

“If your message matches the market, you’re going to ”

win.

—JON CHEPLAK REAL ESTATE LEADERSHIP AND PRODUCTIVITY COACH

Waiting for perfect

is never

as smart as making

progress.

—SETH GODIN AUTHOR, ENTREPRENEUR

Print & Digital STARTING WITH SOCIAL MEDIA PINTEREST: This will require you to sign up for a free account. Create a board for your listing--title it the street address, pin the landing page for the listing, write a keyword-optimized board description (so people searching on Google for houses come across it). Every pin should have a description about the pin to that board, and should link to something (content or landing pages). Pin gradually--a few a day. Share the board on social channels. Things you can pin: social posts (make sure they’re public!), landing pages, blog posts, history about the area, news articles, local things to do, etc.

FACEBOOK: On your business page, create a photo album that showcases only the BEST photos of the listing (please do not put every photo taken). Title the album the property address. Ensure each photo has a description. Create an event for the open house. Upload a video or link to a video in a post. Boost posts or create an ad. Share in targeted online groups. Do a LIVE tour of the home (if you do a LIVE right before the open house, you can invite people to come see it or say you’ll schedule a private tour for anyone interested). Note: If you do not have a large following, boosting posts or creating ads is the way to go.

INSTAGRAM: Make sure your Facebook and Instagram business pages are connected. On any post, tag your listing location. Tell a story in the post and use the top 4 best photos of your listing. Use appropriate hashtags on every post. If you aren’t sure what hashtags people are using, Google for the most popular Real Estate, Home Sellers, Coldwell Banker, etc. Use those.

NEXTDOOR: When you make a post, you can create an event for open houses, or simply post about a home that is coming up for sale in a specific neighborhood. One of the most underused social platforms for real estate.

Using the tools:

free vs. paid FREE TOOLS:

ZILLOW/TRULIA/REALTOR.COM: Create a free account, fill out your Realtor profile (you’ll need your MLS ID and your agent license number). Search for all your listings and click to claim/connect them to your account (your MLS ID and email must match those used for the listings in the MLS).

REVERSE PROSPECTING

REVERSE PROSPECTING: Search the MLS for a similar price point that any Realtor that has represented a buyer in the past 2 years. Then create an email that includes the Seller’s Disclosure Form, MLS Detail Sheet, link to ALL the pictures, and ask if they would please consider adding the listing to their buyer’s home tours. Scan the QR code to the right, then skip to 4:17 in this video tutorial for more info on how to do this.

COLLABORATION CENTER: A very easy-to-use portal for collaborating with fellow Realtors. There is a seller side that is fairly underused, according to the Cheyenne MLS office. Scan the QR code to the right to learn how the Center works.

COLLABORATION CENTER

PAID TOOLS: BOOST: Boost is a tool for real estate agents and brokers to advertise their listings and promote themselves on Facebook, Instagram, Nextdoor and a network of over 1,0000 websites. Scan the QR code to view the How To Use guide. Avg cost: $119.

BOOST ADS

META BUSINESS

YOUTUBE ADS

META ADS: While you can’t get super granular in who you direct the ads to, having a boosted post or a carousel ad for your listing will exponentially raise awareness about your listing. If your Instagram and Facebook are linked, you can place one ad that will be sent to both platforms. Scan the QR code to head to the Meta Business center. Avg cost: $50-100.

YOUTUBE ADS: Youtube is the second largest search engine in the world, with Google ranking #1. Create a free Youtube channel attached to your Google Business account, make a short (15-30 second) video with music and intro/end slide of your property (Boxwood can make the videos). Scan the QR code to head to the Youtube Advertising Center. Upload to a campaign. Avg. cost: $100.

PRINT MEDIA: While not recommended as the first line of defense in selling a house, you can always send postcards, print flyers for local bulletin boards, place ads in the Wyoming Tribune Eagle, Trader’s and Preview. The Marketing Department has information on sizing, prices and contacts you can place ads with. Avg cost:$50-250.

Have you updated the

Listing?

If a listing has been in the MLS for longer than 30 days, chances are that agents and home buyers have already seen it. As they continue to look for homes, they’ll scroll right past that option as they say, “Saw it. Same thing. Next.” Sometimes simple updates to the listing can help get people to take another glance.

Scrap the description. Write a new one with property history and SEO-friendly keywords.

Don’t upload all the professional photos at once. Upload more or swap out some after 30 days.

Consider virtual or in-person staging. Sometimes people need to see themselves in a home.

Film a 3D walk-thru video.

Tell a story about the property on social media and your website.

Create a single-property website (offered through CB, Boost and Boxwood)

Use the single-property website in a campaign and drive traffic there.

Consider sticking up flags and special signage to make your property more noticeable.

Film a narrated video. About the house, the neighborhood, or things nearby.

Professional Photos:

All Day, Everyday!

Options that are outside of your control as agent

Today, more than ever, more people are relying on websites to get a first impression of a home. The better quality they are, the better the home shows. But professional photography doesn’t necessarily mean take a do-it-yourself approach with a professional camera.

Too often, this is what is seen in the industry: Individual A needs photos of X home. Individual A grabs a camera (whether a cell phone or a DSLR), snaps photos of X home, uploads to MLS, and makes the listing active.

Unfortunately, there’s a large misconception that by having the “fancy high-tech camera,” you’ll also have the result of professional photos. This couldn’t be farther from the truth. There’s a lot of digital editing happening behind the scenes, as well as the expert manipulation of settings on DSLR cameras. Always take professional photos. Always.

•

•

•

•

According to a Chicago-based study, homes marketed with professional photos sell faster. Real estate listings that include professional photography sold 32% faster, spending 89 days on market compared to 123 days for other homes.

It’s important your marketing uses the correct type of photos: web-based sizes for MLS and social media; print-based sizes for all print materials. Professionals will know the difference.

According to Zillow.com research, 22-27 is the ideal number of photos per listing. Homes with fewer than 9 photos are about 20% less likely to sell within 60 days. Interestingly, homes with more than 28 photos take longer to sell, too!

Consider: 3D walk-thru, dedicated landing page, and video about the neighborhood/closest fun things to the property.

Oftentimes, these topics will result in difficult conversations with your seller... but know that these are rooted in research and recommended by CBTPE: • Lower the price. If it’s not selling, the market says that’s the wrong price.

• Consider lowering the price on Thursdays to ensure listings get noticed. Buyers are starting to plan their weekends and looking at houses on Zillow or Realtor.

• Get pre-inspections (and take care of the repairs ahead of time).

• Declutter and de-personalize.

• Spruce up the exterior.

• Perfect the entryway.

• Repaint in neutral colors.

• Double-check on any lingering odors.

• Add an incentive to the purchase.

• Offer a lease-to-own option.

• Have listings go live on Wednesday nights.

• Host an open house the first two weekends the home goes live.

Making the right

Connections

ATTEND THE TUESDAY CBTPE OFFICE MEETING: Let your fellow agents know about your listing. Tell them as much as you can about it (while getting to the point. No one wants to hear you say the same thing four or five times!). Make sure it’s memorable.

ATTEND THE WEDNESDAY CHEYENNE MLS MEETING: Held at Wyoming Bank & Trust so you can hear what other brokerages have as new listings. It means they get to hear yours, too!

SEND AN EMAIL TO YOUR SOI: Hoping you’ve been saving email contact information from everyone and anyone you’ve ever met or worked with. Send them an email and talk about this amazing home you have listed!

EMAIL OTHER REAL ESTATE PROS: Have you thought about emailing the entire MLS group of real estate professionals? Their emails are publicly available! And consider reverse prospecting (which we mentioned a couple pages back).

HOST A SPECIAL OPEN HOUSE: Make an event on Facebook for the public, then boost the ad. Host an open house specifically for the neighborhood and send postcard invites. Host an event specifically for agents/offices/brokers/industry professionals--and make sure to invite lenders!

WORK WITH A LENDER TO PROVIDE DIFFERENT PRICING OPTIONS: Market this with the property (pin, post, video). See if they’ll send out info about the listing to their SOI, too!

ASK A LOCAL INFLUENCER TO HELP: Have them appear in a video, share on their socials, or get their honest reaction in a walk-through (just ensure the sellers are okay with any comments made).

“The best marketing doesn’t feel like marketing.”

BEFORE STARTING, ASK: What’s the direct competition look like? Higher price or lower price? Better photos?

Better lighting? What makes it different? What makes it better? What makes it stand out from the competition?

That’s what you focus on.

That’s your little gold nugget to market the heck out of this listing.

—TOM FISHBURNE FOUNDER & CEO, MARKETOONIST

255 Storey Boulevard, Cheyenne 307.632.6481 | marketing@propertyex.com www.propertyex.com/links

WHAT CAN I DO TO MARKET MY LISTING?