Are all real estate marketing companies the same?

Imagine you meet someone at a client appreciation event you’ve organized. It’s a friendly conversation, but when the topic of real estate agents comes up, that person says, “Well, all agents are pretty much the same, aren’t they? After all, they all sell homes. They all help you buy a new home. There’s no major difference between one and another.”

How would you react?

You’d probably feel that person is seriously mistaken! That’s because you know there can be huge differences between agents. If a homeowner chooses the wrong real estate professional for her sale, the consequences can be devastating.

And yet…

Some agents think all real estate marketing companies are pretty much the same. In a similar conversation, one of these agents might say, “Well, most real estate marketing companies do social media, help you with your website, claim to generate real estate leads for you. They all offer pretty much the same services.”

But just as choosing the wrong agent can turn a sale into a nightmare for a homeowner, working with the wrong real estate marketing company can cost you money, time and opportunities — while slamming the brakes on your career.

Consider this:

• Do you believe experience counts? Many real estate marketing companies are new with only a few years in business. However, a handful of real estate marketing firms have decades of experience — and a long track record of generating real estate leads and referrals for their clients. Which would you prefer to work with?
• Do you believe specializing in our industry counts? There’s no doubt about it. The real estate profession is unique. So can you trust that a generalist marketing agency with clients in multiple industries will fully understand how to get you leads and real estate referrals?
• Do you believe client loyalty says a lot? For many real estate marketing companies, most of their clients have been with them for only a year or two. Isn’t it more advantageous to work with a real estate marketing company with hundreds of clients who have been with them for several years?
• Do you believe systems are better than services? Any company can offer to create social media content for you or print flyers to stick into door handles. Those are a-la-carte marketing services. However, you’ll get better results — more real estate leads, more referrals — if you use a complete real estate marketing system that’s proven to work. So, isn’t it better to buy a system than a service?

You could probably add more questions to that list. The point is, just as all agents are not similar, all real estate marketing companies are not the same. There are significant differences between such firms, which is why choosing the right real estate marketing company to partner with is so important.