There is no shortage of real estate marketing companies out there. Do a quick search on Google and you’ll find dozens that promise to send an avalanche of hot leads and referrals your way.
That may sound like good news, but it’s actually a problem. If you’re looking for marketing help, the last thing you want is to choose a company that ends up not working out for you. That would be a serious waste of time and dollars.
So, how do you choose the right real estate marketing company to help grow your business? Here are some criteria to consider:
- Experience. There may be some good start-up real estate marketing companies out there. But choosing one of them is risky. You don’t want to be on the receiving end of their beginner mistakes. It’s much safer to go with a company that has been working successfully with real estate agents like you for years.
- Systems. Successful marketing is rarely the result of a mish-mash of activities. To see results, it needs to be part of a system. For example, a client referrals system that utilizes several tactics, such as direct mail, email, and social media. Systems get better results and saves you time and money. So, make sure the real estate marketing company you choose provides systems, not merely services.
- Focus on content. Bestselling marketing author, John Jantsch, says that content is the voice of your marketing. It’s all about, “The right content, delivered to the right person, at the right time…” So, be sure to go with a company that creates high-interest and original content for your blog, direct mail newsletters, emails, and social media.
- Done for you. How much work will you have to do to get the marketing system or program up and running? Ideally, you want work with a company that does most of the heavy lifting for you, such as writing, design, production and mailing. The less “marketing labour” you need to put in, the more time you’ll have to see prospects, work with clients, and close deals.
- One stop shop. Would you buy a car with no wheels? Of course not. Then why would you buy a marketing program that only provides part of what you need to generate more real estate leads and referrals. Sure, there are some good companies out there who specialize only is social media or websites or real estate newsletters. But if you want to generate more leads and referrals, consistently, you need a complete It just too costly and time-consuming to pull together services from multiple companies.
- Testimonials. If a company doesn’t have many happy clients who are willing to go on record to rave about them, that’s a red flag. You want to see several glowing testimonials from active agents providing their full names. That is an indication that the company’s marketing systems work in generate leads and referrals for their clients.
The bottom line is, working with a real estate marketing company is a partnership. Ultimately, you want to find one that is committed to your success.