A Renewed Focus on the Consumer: MarylandHomeownership.com

BY CHUCK KASKY

Following the March 2024 National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) settlement in the Sitzer/Burnett case, consumers were treated to a frenzy of media reporting, most of it inaccurate, about what this case meant for buyers and sellers of residential real estate. Making matters even worse were self-declared real estate experts on social media, most of whom were providing incorrect advice and misinformed predictions to both real estate professionals and consumers. Also, NAR’s initial crisis communication efforts were rooted deeply in a defensive posture as it responded to the settlement, leaving members confused and unsatisfied.

As this unfolded nationwide, leadership at Maryland REALTORS®, led by 2024 President Chris Hill, directed the Association to create a plan that would speak directly with consumers about the realities of real estate and the transparency already in place in Maryland.

Maryland REALTORS® was better equipped than most other states in addressing this because: 1) Maryland law has required the use of written buyer representation agreements since October 2016; and 2) since 2019, Maryland REALTORS® was already speaking to consumers directly through its MarylandHomeownership.com website, which was created to provide honest and accurate educational information and resources about the homebuying and selling process, free of any ads and/or sales influence.

Leveraging various resources, including grants and our Legal and Regulatory Response Fund, we launched a robust Consumer Campaign to direct them to the resources available through our consumer site. Our primary goals for this campaign were straightforward: to encourage consumers to visit MarylandHomeownership.com to learn about the steps involved in buying or selling a home, including the VALUE and WORTH a REALTOR® brings to the transaction. We also wanted to bring additional transparency to the issue of compensation in real estate.

Our secondary goal was to encourage Association members to use assets and resources from MarylandHomeownership.com as they work with their clients. What follows is an executive summary of a report prepared by Maryland REALTORS®’ Senior Director of Communications Dan Patrell, which provided an update on the campaign so far.

Supported by an NAR Advocacy Grant and all 16 Maryland local boards and associations, Maryland REALTORS® placed full-page newspaper ads in newspapers throughout Maryland and digital ads on newspaper websites in the week leading up to the August 14 deadline for implementing the changes required by the NAR Settlement.

As mentioned above, MarylandHomeownership.com has been educating consumers since its launch in 2019. To prepare for a consumer campaign that would direct traffic to the site, more content in a variety of formats needed to be developed. With assistance from an NAR Fair Housing grant, Maryland REALTORS®:

• Updated the Buyer and Seller toolkits to reflect industry changes required by the Settlement

• Created Spanish language versions of our Buyer and Seller toolkits and our annual Fair Housing brochure

• Added weekly educational blogs

• Created new video content

With the combined efforts of Maryland REALTORS® Advocacy and Strategic Communications departments and the Housing Opportunity Committee, the Association created a constant stream of new content for the site. New videos, new blogs, and other resources have been added almost weekly. Our latest video content for the site is a series that explains to consumer how REALTORS® get paid.

The campaign ran for six weeks from late September through early November. To reach consumers, we advertised using almost a dozen methods. To gauge effectiveness, we tracked impressions, clicks, and click-through rates from each major point of advertising. In total, the campaign generated more than 17 million impressions and more than 35,000 clicks to MarylandHomeownership.com. Also, while the campaign was running, social media assets for MarylandHomeownership.com recorded significant growth.

We continually adjusted the site and utilized Search Engine Optimization (SEO) practices, which resulted in dramatically improved rankings and consistent appearance among the first search results. The bottom line: the campaign worked. From nearly 17 million impressions, the site experienced more than 160,000 “events,” actions taken on MarylandHomeownership.com.

Each event is a marker of a consumer performing an action on the site. In addition to page views, we tracked first visits and user engagement and more concrete actions like downloading a toolkit or signing up for a webinar. These actions will provide insights into what to promote in future campaigns.

As it was an important element in developing creative content, REALTOR® Value was tracked as well. Much of the audience brought in from the campaign spent time on the REALTOR® Value page.

After review of the results, and looking ahead to the spring market, Maryland REALTORS® will launch this campaign again, with new creative focusing on the spring market, set to begin April 2025 and running again for six weeks. We will adapt the campaign to what we learned and adjust our messaging accordingly.

Once again, we demonstrated our resilience in the face of great challenges. Keep the faith and let us know what we can do as we navigate through the ever-changing landscape. And remember: MarylandHomeownership.com is your resource as well, for the clients and communities you serve.

Chuck Kasky is CEO of Maryland REALTORS®.