• In today’s market, what do you feel is critical when connecting with today’s consumer?You really need to get into their shoes…their mindset. There’s a book out there titled “Stop Acting Like a Seller and Start Thinking Like a Buyer: Improve Sales Effectiveness by Helping Customers Buy.” The book, written by Jerry Acuff, explains to us how we have to prove that we understand the buyer’s needs and how to show a buyer that by working with us they are going to save time.Take for example using an MLS search tool in your website. You can’t just have a single property search generically placed in the home search section of your site. Buyers want to know what is for sale in a specific area (close to their work, their school and at the same time in their price range). The more your website is about them and less about you the better.
• There is a lot of talk about social media and how it can be used as a marketing strategy. What are some ways that social media outlets can be used as a viable marketing strategy?Recently I had a REALTOR® say to me they had heard in a class that websites where a thing of the past and social media would replace web marketing. That is totally misunderstood! A website is an important tool to use in your business for lead generation. At the same time, using social media gives you an opportunity to build your brand and your reputation by building a bridge between connectivity and credibility. This allows people to see you as more than just a Real Estate professional by presenting you as a three-dimensional professional and connecting you to a broader pool of consumers.
• What do you suggest when creating a fan page or discussion board on Facebook.When developing a fan page or a discussion board for Facebook, create one specifically about your market like “Seattle Real Estate Buzz.” This fan page will be where people will want to come to find out about the things happening in their area. The neat thing? You will be the one who is perceived as the expert bringing the informational resources together.PS. I can’t tell you how many agents are using their profile for real estate and don’t include their web address! Don’t forget the basics!
• Can social media help with Search Engine Optimization?Not necessarily. It’s more of a marketing channel to get people to your site after viewing your profile with your website info included. However, if you have a fan page that does get indexed in the search engines; it will allow search engines like Google to find it.
• How important do you feel it is to rank on the search engines?I think it’s a very important piece of a marketing strategy. A recent National Association of REALTORS® study was conducted and only 33% of REALTORS® were implementing a Search Engine Optimization plan in their web marketing! Wow! Imagine going on a listing presentation and explaining to sellers that 67% of Real Estate professionals don’t feel it’s important to be where the consumers are looking for them (like Google).

I’m a “Generation X” consumer myself, and I know how people my age go through the process of buying and selling—and I know the Internet is
a crucial resource for finding what we want. As an example, my husband and I have been looking for a home over the past year that fits our particular lifestyle. You see, we love to work hard and play hard! One of the most important enjoyments is spending time with friends and family on Lake Norman. We spend evenings after work going fishing and cruising the lake on the weekends in our pontoon boat with our 7-year-old son, Jordan. We load up the boat with a packed lunch, lots of sand toys, and meet with our great group of friends and their kids. We can’t imagine this not being a part of our lives.

With this in mind, we have kept our discussions about moving up and buying our next home with a focus on our particular needs and what we enjoy doing with our free time. This is why we start our search for a new home by using features like searching by map first. Why? Well, the answer is we just aren’t interested in looking at any house that doesn’t have easy boating access. We have no desire to tow our boat to the lake. The ability to easily search homes and neighborhoods by map and at the same time to be able to see what homes are actively for sale is extremely important to us. An example of showing properties by map is: http://www.lindahall.com/lake_wylie_map, while another example of showing properties for sale in specific neighborhoods is: http://www.kristancole.com/arabian_acres1.

You might say, “Well, Tricia, does everyone really want to search like you? You are talking about lake property and that’s very specific.” I’ll admit that’s true, but let me ask you something: If you were a lake property specialist who knew the local lake like the back of your hand and you also farmed the neighborhoods I’ve been looking in, wouldn’t you want me to connect with you? ABSOLUTELY!

The reality of today’s real estate market is that the Internet is the first place home buyers are searching for their new home, and therefore their REALTOR®. In fact, 80 percent of current home buyers begin their search online. Of those, 77 percent select their REALTOR online and are planning to purchase within 12 months! It becomes increasingly important for those potential customers, with particular needs, to find the services you provide in your market.

The key for you to connect with consumers like me is for you to be readily positioned so we can easily find the information we are looking for and that you can prove that you truly are the expert for specialized needs.

Happy Holidays

From a listing strategy perspective, featuring neighborhoods can help you gain credibility with your sellers and help you gain market share. Imagine going on a listing presentation and showing sellers that you have featured their neighborhood specifically in your website.

To maximize your results follow these specific strategies:

1. Make sure each neighborhood in your website has its own page of information like http://bradkorb.com/magnolia_park
2. Share with your sellers that featuring their neighborhood draws buyers instantly to their community, and in “one click,” will find their home quickly without having to do a tedious search. When coding the MLS search, it will only show properties in the specific neighborhood regardless of who has the listing. This gives the seller the assurance that their home is well positioned in a featured list of properties.
3. Buy a domain name for each of your core farming areas that can show that you are the hub for information about that area. For example, get a specific neighborhood domain name, like www.NameOfNeighborhoodListings.com, and then point that domain to pages on your website or stealth pages.
4. Buy a domain name specifically for market updates or Hot Properties new to the market in that specific neighborhood. For example, www.YourAreaMarketUpdates.com or www.NeighborhoodNameListingAlerts.com could provide information on what is active on the market as well as the ability to sign up for free listing alerts.
5. Buy a domain that leads a visitor to information about home values in your farming area. For example, buying the domain www.YourAreaHomeValues.com will give the site visitor access to a CMA request form to find out what’s selling in their neighborhood.
6. On any farming piece to the neighborhood, don’t forget to include the “call to action”. For example, on your just listed postcard, include verbiage like “Thinking of Selling? Check out the competition at www.NameOfNeighborhoodListings.com and then on that page they can see what’s for sale in the MLS.

Remember to think about the homeowner who lives in the area and give them information to show you are the expert. Give them what they want! At the same time, prove to buyers that they have come to the right place to find their special home in their favorite community.

Integrated marketing is where you are not just looking at one element of your marketing plan and think that its results will work independently from other marketing. An integrated marketing mindset means that you are massively mindful of what marketing you are doing and making sure there is cohesiveness in the flow of information and you leverage that message to insure the best return on investment. Here are 4 simple tips to building an integrated marketing plan.

1. Buy domain names (URLS) for ANY call to action that you might want to use in ANY of your marketing plans. Get Domains like www.FortMillHomeValues.com, www.FortMillShortSales.com, or www.FortMillForeclosureList.com to support any advertising you will run to generate leads.
2. Make sure every postcard you use has a specific “call to action” to drive lead generation on the web. For example a postcard that has a call to action saying “market conditions and home values are changing in this shifting market. Go to www.WasillaStateOfTheMarket.com and get your custom report on what is happening weekly in the market.” This will be much more valuable then a simple “just listed postcard” with no traffic driver.
3. Classified Ads – I know you are dying to ask me, “Tricia, isn’t newspaper dead? The answer is NO, especially if you use it as a specific driver in your web strategy. Imagine having different calls to action that go to specific pages in your website that create interactivity and lead generation. Ask your local newspaper what they charge for a simple 2×1 classified ad. You might be pleasantly surprised how inexpensive this strategy can be.
4. Stealth Marketing on Facebook – The ads on the right hand side of your profile or news feed screen are ads that you can create and run. This is where you have the opportunity to do stealth marketing and even better, select specific target markets that reach those people using facebook. Imagine having an ad like “Own more on your home than what you can sell it for? Click here for help.” This in turn could take them to a specific site that addresses this like www.GetShortSaleHelp.com (ps. This applies for Craig’s list, Google ad words, etc)

Note: When driving traffic to your website from ANY marketing channel to a specific form make sure that they go into a specific email follow up drip that supports the message and connects to them.

• Step 1: Understand your target: This is the key foundation to any plan of attack and marketing strategy as that marketing message needs to spill over to any marketing channel you decide to use to “get the word out”. You’ll want to create clickable buttons (“Call to Action” or “Engagement Points” sections) that are the questions in their mind. It’s these calls to actions that answer their “that’s what I am dying to know” or “Ah-Ha, I think I should look into that”. Interactive buttons like:
  Facing Foreclosure? There are options
  Has the market stabilized
  Foreclosure/Bank Owned Buys

  Step 2: Focus on the Homepage: Have these engagement points above the fold (where they don’t have to scroll down) to interact and click through. An interactive MLS search right on the front page of the site (ex: http://www.miketoste.com ) will create the “Stickiness” for the consumer to want to stay on your site.

  Step 3: Use that real estate on the Side bar: You know, the space below your left side navigation or the space on the right just below your top navigation. Once you have the calls to action on the homepage, strategically position the most important calls to action along the side bar and make it where its on EVERY SINGLE PAGE throughout the site.

  Step 4: Hook up the engagement point to an automated email drip: When they click on these sections you’ll want to capture the lead, and then shoot them into a specific email drip campaign focused on their needs. Now when I say an email campaign I personally believe it should be an automated campaign (meaning that when they fill out the form, they get right to your cell phone as a lead and then dropped right into the automated follow up. Remember you are busy listing and selling houses here so that means that as much as you can automate this process, the better). You must be positioned as the “top of mind person”, the “oh yea! I need to ask them about what this…” etc. If you are not positioned in front of them during this time then they will just move on. An automated email campaign with branded email stationary with a link back to your website is critical for conversion and even better, those call to actions on that stationary will engage them even better.

  ]]> http://www.realtybizcoach.com/calls-action-web-strategy/feed/ 0 http://www.realtybizcoach.com/components-page-results/ http://www.realtybizcoach.com/components-page-results/#comments Mon, 28 Nov 2011 12:30:57 +0000 Tricia Andreassen http://www.realtybizcoach.com/?p=2471 Now more than ever before, there is a desire from Realtors® in the industry to find ways to be found on the search engines without using the pay-per-click strategy. Many companies out there will say they can get you to rank on the first page of the search engines, but I will share with you three critical components to a successful search engine optimization strategy and how they must work together to create results.
  1. On-page optimization (aka targeted/focused Web site content to support the target with proper coding for every page) – Many agents think they can just add a bunch of Meta tags and one general description for their entire site and that should suffice. However, for search engines to index your site in their system and be attracted to your site, your home page content must be focused on a specific niche/target market. Take for example, www.MarcoRealtySource.com. The navigation itself shows the consumer that they have come to the right place to get Marco Island Real Estate information. In addition, there is home page content for the search engines to recognize and index. There are also pages that focus on specific Marco Island Real Estate markets such as condominiums, beachfront properties, new construction and luxury properties. Each property type described has its own content page with its own specific coding to go after that market. This way, the focus is not just to rank on the front page for Marco Island Real Estate, but also for Alan and Linda Sandlin to go after niche markets like beachfront properties.
  2. Off-page Optimization (aka link building strategy) – As early as two years ago, agents thought they could ask other agents, “Will you link to me and I will link to you?” Although this way used to get rankings, search engines have evolved in a more sophisticated manner so that the importance is to have INBOUND links coming to your site. Strategies like press releases can help RSS feeds syndicate your press release and create links to your site. Additional links like churches, chamber of commerce sites and industry directories can build this strategy. Also, link building every month is the secret, as to not spam them all at one time.
  3. Blogging – There is a huge “buzz” out there to blog. However, if you want to get the best ROI, then your blog should exist within your actual website platform. Think of your Web site as a book of information, and the more credible and updated the book, the better. Search engines will recognize that your site is staying fresh and is a “living, breathing source.” It doesn’t have to be difficult. Even adding a new listing, an open house or just a community event can be powerful.

  Finally, these three components must work in conjunction together. It’s a system of all these elements. The search engines will then say “Wow, what a great site.” It’s 1) focusing on the needs of the consumer with great and unique content; 2) is credible in the industry because other relevant sources want to link to it; and 3) is constantly being added to and improved for consumers.”

  ]]> http://www.realtybizcoach.com/components-page-results/feed/ 0 http://www.realtybizcoach.com/8-critical-steps-interfusion-marketing-strategy/ http://www.realtybizcoach.com/8-critical-steps-interfusion-marketing-strategy/#comments Mon, 21 Nov 2011 12:30:01 +0000 Tricia Andreassen http://www.realtybizcoach.com/?p=2464 With 2011 underway we must be “razor focused” and understand the mindset of the consumer we want to do business with. Tailor the presentation, the message and the information to engage them. An Interfusion Marketing strategy blends together the targeted focus message with website strategy, offline marketing and your social media so it reaches everywhere in a cohesive plan of attack. Here are 8 steps to make sure you do just that.
  • Step 1 – Understand your vision and who you want to attract Work certain towns; first time home buyer market, or short sales? Hone-in on where you want your business to come from. What does that type of consumer want? Where do they look for information? And how do they go about getting it? Tailor to their mind.
  • Step 2 – Have main website buttons with content and MLS searches Once they land on your site, you have only seconds to prove they have come to the right place. They should click on the button and go to a page about the area with photos and even a video that allows them to gather information from your perspective.
  • Step 3 – Give them what they want….LISTINGS Include an interactive MLS search on your homepage and have creative searches on your content pages that interfuse specific MLS searches by price or property type. Once they click on the listing details, romance them and gain their trust to engage with you.
  • Step 4 – Have “Calls To Action” – compel them to click through Engagement points (A.K.A. calls to action) should be sprinkled strategically throughout your site. Get into their head, “That’s what I am dying to know” or “I think I should look into that.” Tailor the message like:
    • Facing Foreclosure?
    • Has the market stabilized?
    • Foreclosure/Bank-owned Buys – click here!
  • Step 5 – Incubate the lead with automated email follow up Calls to action must be partnered with an automated email drip campaign. Make sure it’s on branded email stationary with links back to your site and be on schedule for at least a year. Be positioned so when they are ready to move forward they think of you.
  • Step 6 – Match the Calls to Action with specific landing pages and domain names. Remember the consumer can be at different phases of the process and many times they aren’t ready to talk to you just yet. Non-Branded pages like www.FortMillForeclosureList.com allow them to get information on their own terms which in turn get them into the email follow up.
  • Step 7 – Social? Offline? – Preach your message everywhere. If your marketing and advertising doesn’t have a call to action…it’s pointless. Whether its postcards, listing flyers, magazine ads, facebook ads, craigslist or even your facebook business page wall you need to remember it’s about lead generation!
  • Step 8 – Manage the leads and track the results. What advertising gets the most leads? Which calls to action get the most traffic? How many buyers are in incubation and at what point to they seem to convert? Be like the “FBI”. Profile and track your business so you know where to cut and where to spend.
  ]]> http://www.realtybizcoach.com/8-critical-steps-interfusion-marketing-strategy/feed/ 0 http://www.realtybizcoach.com/perceived-resource-distressed-homeowner/ http://www.realtybizcoach.com/perceived-resource-distressed-homeowner/#comments Mon, 14 Nov 2011 12:30:46 +0000 Tricia Andreassen http://www.realtybizcoach.com/?p=2456 This is a column that relates to a personal experience and I feel it compels me to share as it relates to us working with homeowners in distress and facing foreclosure. A few months ago while on my wedding anniversary vacation trip my husband Kurt was taken to the hospital. We had just ordered breakfast and were waiting for our drinks when he said, “I am not feeling so good….” After a few moments we realized that it was serious and we needed to call 911.

  The ambulance took him to the hospital and they ran some basic tests (we were on the interstate traveling on the way home) so they did not keep him overnight for observation. The doctor came in and shared the test results and sent us on our way and honestly we weren’t for sure what the steps should have been involved at the time to make sure his heart was healthy.

  After some research and my husband scheduling a physical with our Doctor in three weeks he started researching these keywords on Google: “left arm numbness, “heavy breathing with left arm tingling,” etc. This is what he did to prepare for his physical and see if he needed to have specific tests run like a stress test and such.

  Fast forward two weeks later and Kurt told me, “Tricia, I have to lie down.” I immediately felt the urge to ask him how he was feeling and he then told me “The same way I felt a couple of weeks ago.” I knew right away we had to take him to the hospital. While waiting in the emergency room they started to let us know what to expect in a step-by-step fashion so that we would feel comfortable in knowing that we would be taken care of. I can’t even describe how nervous we were but one thing that truly helped us communicate was the research we had done online. It allowed us to ASK EDUCATED QUESTIONS so we understood WHAT WE NEEDED TO BE DOING and WHAT TO EXPECT.

  Because of our research we were able to talk more knowledgeably about what type of stress test was needed, what other test they could run like a CT Cardio Score (I didn’t even know what this was until I started asking questions about blockage in the veins) and such.

  Why am I sharing this story so personally? I really feel in my heart that this is how distressed sellers who are behind on their mortgage payments feel. They are scared. They are overwhelmed. They are afraid to go down a path that might end in more distress. Just like me and Kurt, homeowners are feeling this way when it comes to their financial and emotional stress. I do feel that financial stress is like a physical illness. You are trying to turn for help but you also don’t want to feel like you are clueless when starting to talk to an expert. This is why I feel like having a short sale marketing strategy and a website that is built on education, built on resources, built on finding answers is truly the tipping point for a seller to understand what steps are necessary to take. This is what Kristan Cole does with her website www.WasillaShortSales.com.

  When the homeowner does the research and starts realizing that there are options to avoid foreclosure they then look to the expert who is supplying this information. Just like Kurt and I would look for a heart surgeon if that was necessary, the same applies to the homeowner facing foreclosure. They want an expert who deals with this situation and understands what is involved so that they can help carry the responsibility with them.

  ]]> http://www.realtybizcoach.com/perceived-resource-distressed-homeowner/feed/ 0 http://www.realtybizcoach.com/10-strategies-website-tiptop-shape/ http://www.realtybizcoach.com/10-strategies-website-tiptop-shape/#comments Mon, 07 Nov 2011 12:30:31 +0000 Tricia Andreassen http://www.realtybizcoach.com/?p=2452
• Remember, It’s Not About You…. It’s About Them – When buyers or sellers want information on moving it’s what on their mind that is going to get them to want to click and stay with your website. Whether it’s for a first-time, move-up or luxury home buyer, or a seller trying to find out what’s selling, you have to put yourself in THEIR shoes and have sections that matter to what is important to them.
• Have Highly Visible Buttons And Calls To Action – Utilizing targeted buttons and sections on your website allows your visitor to find information quickly and easily. Sure, not everyone is going to read content on that page (although that is important for search engines) but they will want to find out what each area offers. By having specific sections on your website focused on the areas you are an expert in you also show sellers that you are an expert in their area which in turn raises credibility for you to get their listing. See www.KristanCole.com to see how quickly you can get information without the hassle.
• Sprinkle In Specific Property Searches To Increase Quality Lead Generation – On targeted pages of your website, add the ability for a website visitor to search for specific kinds of properties and in specific price ranges. Every page should have the ability for some type of creative way to see listings. Think about even setting searches by farm area or neighborhood… now that’s creative! The integration of an IDX system is an invaluable tool in generating sales leads. See www.LindaHall.com/fort_mill to get an idea.
• Generate Leads With A Strong IDX System – There can be huge differences between an IDX that just shows houses for sale and an IDX that has “click-able components” which will generate a high quality lead. Visitors to your website who are searching for homes through your IDX will be prompted to register after viewing a set amount of listing details, thereby capturing your business another quality lead. Also consider adding features that allow a website visitor to schedule an appointment, to receive free email listings on homes that fit their criteria, and the ability to save a listing as a favorite, are key elements to success.
• Cultivate Leads And Stay In Front Of Them – There is a big difference in lead inquires and actual leads. You want to incubate the lead and keep them in front of you. Statistics show that home buyers start searching for homes months before they actually buy. A great way to cultivate quality leads is to have an automated email letter campaign that is sent out to home buyers or sellers in specific niches. For example, buyers looking for REO’s/Foreclosures should get letters that pertain to that specific type of market, not just genera.
• Develop A Website That Is Ready For A Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Strategy – What use is your new website if no one can find it? SEO strategies like meta tags and specific descriptions for your pages make it structurally sound and create amazing results. With the proper website platform that can be adapted to SEO strategies, your website and your services are more likely to be found than the cookie-cutter websites that are so often used and so often fail to produce quality leads.
• Make Sure You Are In Control – Having a website that is easily editable with abilities to add pages, customize forms, add video, password protected pages and more will help you have a website that you won’t outgrow. Even though you want and/or need to focus on real estate you do want to feel comfortable that you can make a change to your website without having to go through a custom designer for every little change. Remember, having a system that you feel you can make a simple change to when it’s needed will help you know that you stay focused on what you want to achieve.
• Create A Lasting Marriage – Traditional advertising—newspaper adds, post cards, listing flyers, etc.—isn’t dead. However, there should be a marriage between all marketing channels. Create a consistent look and feel between your traditional marketing materials AND your website to brand you and provide you with instant recognition in the market place. This consistency from your logo, your message and your understanding of the consumer, is incredibly important in establishing you as a recognizable expert in your real estate market.
• Include Social Media In Your Overall Strategy - Create a Twitter account for your local market to update potential home buyers and sellers what’s happening also brands you as the local real estate expert. Include links to your website that will drive them back to pages like your blog to create stickiness. By integrating social network outlets to your website you also open up additional doors for clients to find you and your services. Remember to have a link on your Facebook page to your website and your contact information.
• Keep It “Breathing” – Understand that your website is a living, breathing thing. It should always be a work in progress. As your business grows your website will grow with you. Twice a year commit to looking at your website with fresh eyes to see what you can be improved.  Have a focus group of your top sphere and ask them for their input. By focusing on improving you will always keep a step ahead of your competition.
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