How Successful Real Estate Agents Choose their Geographic Farm in 5 Steps

Geographic farming (also called community marketing) is by far the best way to generate high quality contacts.

You can’t be the number one real estate agent in every community across the country, but you can be the number one real estate agent in a specific community. And being first in one well-chosen area will get you more business than would coming in second place in several areas.

With that said, you cannot simply point at a neighbourhood on a map and declare yourself the real estate ruler of that town or subdivision. To be the top agent in your geographic farm, you must choose the right community to target, and keep in touch with the homeowners consistently and with the right messaging.

But how do you choose the right geographic farm to keep in touch with? Simply follow these 5 steps.

5 Steps to choosing your geographic farm:

1. Map and list possible communities (towns or sections of a town, intersections, suburbs or condos, for example).

2. Narrow the list of neighbourhoods to those in which the residents share demographics and common characteristics. For example, young families who are first-time buyers.

BONUS TIP: Look for a community that has a name that homeowners use. For example, “I live in the Beach,” or “There’s a festival in The Valley this weekend.”

3. Perform competitive research. Is there another Realtor who already “owns the farm”? If so, this will be a huge barrier to entry, and it might be best to look for a less competitive space that still meets your criteria.

4. Of the remaining communities on your list, choose the ones that have a 3% turnover rate or higher. Of course, a wealthy neighbourhood with a lower turnover may offer the same income as a mid-income neighbourhood with a higher turnover. Do the math but also decide if you’re comfortable with the possibility of less sales in a year.

5. Finally, scrutinize the neighbourhoods on your list based on personal fit. For example, if you’re considering a skiing village but you don’t ski, you may not be able to sell as well as a Realtor who knows all the slopes and can speak the community’s language. Or, if the demographic of a neighbourhood is baby boomer-heavy and you’re a millennial, it may be difficult to connect on a personal level with the residents.

Personal connection is arguably the most important aspect of geographic farming because you cannot be number one if you don’t build relationships with the residents.

Now that you’ve chosen a geographic area to farm, it’s time to set yourself up for success with a comprehensive Community Marketing System that guarantees you reach your geographic farm with the right messaging at the right intervals. Before you know it, you’ll be THE go-to real estate agent among homeowners and buyers in your chosen community.