Top 5 Places Agents Spend On Their Business

Wade Webb on November 10, 2021

top 5 places agents spend on their business

“You have competition every day because you set such high standards for yourself that you have to go out every day and live up to that.

“ – Michael Jordan

Curaytor recently surveyed real estate agents about what they were planning to spend their budgets on this fall. I know a lot of people say they don’t focus on their competition but the truth is we all take a peek. The reality is that if your competitors are planning on spending money to promote their business somewhere you may want to be there as well. Even if you don’t one thing we know for sure is that your potential future and past customers are going to be. Here are the top five ways agents plan on spending their budgets this fall:

1. Facebook Ads

Due to COVID-19 a record number of people are using Facebook and Facebook is the Internet. While it may not be as new and sexy as emerging social networks like Tik Tok, what Facebook has going for it is that it is proven. If you need traffic, leads and sales Facebook is still a clear choice for ad dollars amongst agents. In fact, nearly 60% of the agents we polled said they are planning on increasing their spend on Facebook this fall. That was more than Instagram, YouTube, Google and Twitter. Those who do will be glad to know that based on our research the cost per click and cost per lead on Facebook are both down. Partly due to the increased usage of people who have been sheltering in place. But also partly due to the fact that a lot of advertisers across nearly every industry have decreased their budgets. Let’s face it travel, retail and restaurants are all struggling and are not exactly in a position to be spending big bucks on ads. Thankfully, real estate is thriving right now and so with less competition for ads the prices have dropped while the eyeballs have increased.

Pro Tip: You can actually see every Facebook Ad any of your competitors (or agents and companies you admire) are running right now. Simply visit their Page and look for the Page Transparency section. Click “See All” and then scroll down to where it says “Ads From This Page” and click “Go to Ad Library”.

2. Instagram

Instagram just turned ten years old. And it is still going strong. In fact, besides Facebook the next place agents planned on increasing their spending the most was on Insta. Seeing that Facebook owns Instagram it looks like Mark Zuckerberg is going to have a lot of agent dollars flowing through his ecosystem in Q4. Real estate and Instagram are a match made in heaven due to the visual nature of both. Most of the photos of listings are taken by professional photographers and homes, architecture and landscaping are all popular types of content on the Gram.

Pro tip: You can actually use other people’s pictures from Instagram and embed them on your website to create content.

3. Retargeting

It is so much work to get someone to visit your website that retargeting them as they continue to browse the web and social media has become a no brainer. That is probably why 55% of the agents we polled said they were planning to increase their spend on it. This tactic become especially important as many buyers are currently having trouble finding a home they want due to low inventory and thus will be searching longer than normal. These ads create the “we see you everywhere” moment for consumers which is especially important when you are trying to generate seller leads and listings.

Pro tip: Retargeting historically required that someone visited your website in order to then show them more ads on different websites. But companies like the one we use (Adroll) are now offering geographic targeting options that don’t require someone to visit your site in order to show them ads. They simply need to live in the area that you choose and your ads will display to them.

4. Branding

One of the most surprising results of our survey was that nearly 70% of agents planned on increasing their focus on building their brand for the rest of this year. We all know the brands we look up to and admire and buy things from and refer business to but it is no small feat to become one of those. I’m glad to see that so many agents are making it a priority.

Pro tip: There are some amazing books about branding but two of my favorites are Building a StoryBrand by Donald Miller and The Method Method. I also highly recommend the 1000watt blog where they have become the authority on branding for the real estate industry.

5. Video

COVID-19 has accelerated the need for agents to be tech savvy and provide modern consumers with access to “seeing” properties online first. Nothing does this better than a well done video. I would argue that due to the pandemic this year video went from a nice to have to a must have weapon in your arsenal. Unsurprisingly, nearly 60% of the agents we polled said they are planning to increase their spend on videos and 40% said they plan to increase their spend on YouTube ads. In an industry where it feels like everyone is doing video how do you stand out? You elevate your game and you create videos that are a cut above the rest of the agents in your market.

Pro tip: One of the most important elements of a great video is actually the audio. In our experience any video that you produce should also have quality audio as well but most of the high end cameras don’t have a good mic built in.

So now you know where your competition plans to spend their money and time this fall. I know many of you are busy right now but don’t fall into the trap of stopping your marketing because you are. Make it a priority and do it well. And if you need help don’t be afraid to ask.

Strength and courage,
Wade

Video Topics That Increase Your Real Estate Brand & Generate You Leads

Wade Webb on August 11, 2021

video topics to increase real estate brand awareness and generate leadsHow many of us are still scared to go in front of a camera and embrace the “video” world we are living in today? Video is so powerful that google bought Youtube the second biggest search engine machine on the internet just to keep the top 2 spots on the internet for searching. Whether we love it or hate it as real estate agents we need to embrace it so let’s dive into video topic ideas that are easy to make and will position your real estate brand for success in your marketplace. We’ll start with some listing attraction videos.

Video Idea No. 1: Selling in [Your City]? Avoid this $25,000 Mistake!

What’s the most costly mistake homeowners tend to make when selling a house? Surely you can think of something compelling. Then make a video about it and tailor it to your market. It doesn’t have to be long… Grab the viewer with an alarming stat or statement. Establish your local expertise. Explain the problem. Show the solution. Get in, get out… one video done!

Video Idea No. 2: How to Sell Your [Specific Property Type Here] Home for Top Dollar. Does your marketplace have properties that naturally differentiate themselves from other homes? Do you want to get more listings in those markets by positioning yourself as the expert? Then make these videos! Maybe it’s waterfront homes. Maybe it’s gated community homes. Maybe it’s mountain homes. Maybe it’s golf course homes. Maybe it’s equestrian properties. Maybe it’s all of those and more! Yes, you’ll need to invest some time researching what makes those properties different, but the vast majority of advice you provide can be suggestions that apply to selling a home anywhere. By segmenting them out individually, you’ll establish yourself as an expert for those product types and those homeowners will feel you have a stronger understanding of their needs.

Video Idea No. 3: How to Prepare Your Home to Sell for Top Dollar. Simple… I’m sure you give people tips on how to prepare their home for sale during every listing presentation. Or at least once you take a listing and are preparing for showings. Right?

Whether they’re major landscaping tips or quick and simple fixes, take that information and make a video from it!

Video Idea No. 4: Selling Your [Your City] Home for the Highest Price. What’s hot in your market today? What drives certain home sales higher than others? Share the market trends and your tips in an informative video tailored to wherever you work.

Video Idea No. 5: Downsizing Your [Your City] Home – 15 Tips You Should Know. Are you starting to see a pattern here? Take any customer type – in this case, people looking to downsize – and create a video specifically for them that ties to your local market. Pretty simple, right? Just imagine you’re sitting face to face with people who told you they’ve lived in their four-bedroom house for the past 22 years and they’re ready to sell it and find a condo or townhouse. What advice would you give them? What questions would you ask? Put it on video and get that advice out into your market!

Video Idea No. 6: Selling in [Your City] & Leaving the State or Province – A How-To Guide! Again, pretty simple. What do people who are moving out of the area need to do differently than those who are moving within town? Share your best tips in a video and – if you’re part of a powerful referral network like our coaching ecosystem – demonstrate how you can help them connect with a world-class agent in their new destination. You got this!

Video Idea No. 7: Do I Have to Sell My Home in [Your City] When I Move to [New Location]? Some cities traditionally have migration patterns with others. If that’s the case in your market, make a video specifically advising those who might be considering that exact move. For instance, I know I’m not the only one who’s recently left California for Texas, and I would’ve loved to watch a video preparing me for that move. And it would definitely make a positive impression when choosing my listing agent who understands my goals and where I’m headed.

Video Idea No. 8: Moving to [Your City]? 7 Local Insights You Should Know. Now let’s transition to a few buyer attraction video ideas, and this first one will unquestionably establish you as the local expert. What would you tell someone who was moving to your town from out of the area? I’m sure you could come up with 100 things, but whittle it down to 7 or 10 or whatever catchy number works for you, and then create a video. You might want to mix in some local flavor like your favorite parks or restaurants along with tactical advice for their move such as what part of town they might prefer, current home price range, etc.

Video Idea No. 9: Buying an Investment Property in [Your City]: 7 Mistakes to Avoid. Working with investor clients is a great way to add diversity to your lead pillars, and making a video like this will surely attract them. Show off your local expertise and showcase your area to connect with locals and potentially attract out of town investors looking to buy in new markets.

Video Idea No. 10: Buying a Second Home in [Your City]: 6 Things You Need to Know. If you live and work in an area with lots of retirees and/or vacation homes, this is a perfect video to create. Walk people through the highlights of your area, what they can expect from the home-buying process, the taxes and local fees they might need to know about, local Airbnb regulations (in case they’re interesting in renting the property when they’re not there), local recreation and more.

Video Idea No. 11: What $[Dollar Amount] Gets You in [Your Town] This one has endless possibilities. You could create videos at all different price points featuring homes currently on the market or recently sold properties to give people an idea how far their money will go in your area. Better yet, create this video starting at the airport, showing them potential places they could stay when visiting town, and then walk them through various properties inside the MLS. Because of market fluctuations, this video might have a shorter shelf life than some of my other suggestions, but it’s worth it because it’s uber-compelling to those who might be interested. Once you create this video, I’d suggest you revisit it every six months or so to see if it’s still relevant. (If not, don’t take it down but DO create an updated version.)

Video Idea No. 12: Driving Tours of Every Community You Work. Now we’re getting into some more generic video ideas not necessarily targeting buyers or sellers, but they’ll still get you known throughout your community. This first one is an idea championed by L.A. Rockstar Christophe Choo, who created driving tours of all the West L.A. neighborhoods and all their distinctive differences, noteworthy properties and his insights. Even if your communities aren’t as glamorous as the Beverly Hills-adjacent neighborhoods Christophe serves, this is a surefire way to establish yourself as a local expert. And the beauty of these videos is that they live online forever, meaning more and more people will find you through them as time goes by. Simply mount your camera on your windshield, describe the community while driving through it, make any minor edits, and then post it on your website and YouTube for eternity. Then do the same thing for the subdivision next to that one. And so on and so on. Soon you’ll be the talk of the town and widely considered the local market expert.

Video Idea No. 13: 30 Questions About Real Estate in 30 Days. Here’s another simple one that has legs. I’m sure you can think of 30 thought-provoking questions clients have asked you throughout your career. Answer them one by one in a video series split over a monthlong timespan. Post them on all your social channels and create a buzz.

Video Idea No. 14: 22 Real Estate Lessons I’ve Learned Helping [Number of Past Clients] Families Buy & Sell a Home in [Your City] Maybe your number isn’t 22. Make it whatever you want. But sit down and think about some of the valuable lessons you’ve learned throughout your experience in the industry. Then share them with your community. This video has a dual benefit – not only are you educating and informing people with valuable real estate advice, but in the process you’re also demonstrating your strong ties to the community and impressive years of experience. Be sure to work in local references – what part of town you were working, etc., to further build those community ties.

Video Idea No. 15: How’s the Market in [Your City]? While most of the other video suggestions I’ve provided here have a long shelf life, this is a topic you should be tackling on a weekly (or monthly at the very least) basis. During this recurring show, provide a glimpse at the national real estate landscape, then localize it and talk more in-depth about market trends, happenings, and your take on it. You can also tell your clients’ stories and show how you help people move on to the next stage of their lives by achieving their home buying and selling goals.

Video Idea No. 16: How To Buy A Home Before You Sell. This is one of the biggest fears and reasons why we have no inventory all over N. America. Educate the sellers on how they can still list and be able to buy and not end up selling and being left out in the cold. List their home with contingencies like renting back, longer closing time or time to negotiate on something to buy.

Video Idea No. 17: How To Find Off Market Listings To Buy. Another great topic for buyers and sellers and share how you go and find the off market properties for them to buy versus all the other agents who sit and wait for something to come on to the market that most of the time doesn’t happen.  Buyers and sellers are looking for the creator agents and not the waiters!

Remember: If It’s Not on Your Schedule, It Doesn’t Exist. I’ve given you lots of ideas and you could easily get overwhelmed if you try to create too many of these too fast. My suggestion? Prioritize all 17 of these and slot them into your video shooting calendar, and then honor those commitments as sacred! Shoot one or two a week until you’re done.

Strength and courage,
Wade

Why Video Is So Important To Our Marketing

kelowna on September 6, 2017

video marketing for realtorsAs you probably know, there is a big shift in video across social media for REALTORS. Agents typically fall into 3 categories when it comes to video…

  1. They avoid it completely
  2. They do it but not very well
  3. They are crushing it!

What category are you and your real estate business in?

Video has become the normal way in which many people consume information online. Most agents are missing a big opportunity by not using video. Even from a listing point of view, listings with videos get 400x more inquiries! But videos are more than just a way to showcase a listing. They can also show the community, lifestyle, and even the agents selling the property! Most agents first professional video, let’s be honest, is not their best but they are like a fine wine and just get better with age! We all learn something valuable in the process. Even though we took some great pictures of the property, it wasn’t enough. We all start with some basic video, nothing at a professional level and then move to working with a hired professional, and the professional video is what sells the listing!

Generating New Business

Video is what has helped many agents stand out in the marketplace. Instead of just saying what they do differently, they can show potential customers how they are different. Besides listings, agents use video for testimonials, open houses, and client appreciation events. For testimonials, shoot the video at closing or at your client appreciation event. At your client appreciation event have a raffle, but those clients who do a testimonial video get an extra raffle ticket! At these events the clients are dressed up, having fun, and even have a few glasses of wine. Then take them to a private area for filming, so they don’t feel any stress on camera.

Content Is King

You have to make videos that resonate with your audience. “About me” videos are a good choice and help your potential customers get to know you and your team. Community videos are great too; you can start by interviewing local businesses. Good news, these businesses will share your video interviews on their social channels too! Also, if you are looking for video topics, think about what questions you are constantly being asked as an agent. For example, the market is very competitive and buyers want to know what they can do to get their offers accepted.

Maximizing Your Videos

Use Google Adwords to generate traffic to your videos. Videos are posted on your personal website, company’s website, and landing pages too. Videos are uploaded natively to Facebook to get more views. The videos also go to blogs and are emailed to agents and customers in their database. If there is a place to share the video, then share it there! Most of your main videos are maximum 3 minutes long but create some 15-30 second teaser videos specifically for social media.

YouTube

Make sure your videos are lined up for organic views on YouTube… This means filling out the tags and descriptions, as well as making sure your video is public.
Facebook Live – There is so much traffic on Facebook, and your live videos will get a great organic reach. Facebook Live can be used for events, open houses, or even interviews.

Getting Started

I recommend having a dedicated website you can share with people to see your videos. That also means getting a YouTube channel to host the videos. I also recommend getting a simple kit that comes with a tripod, mic, and wide angle lens for an iPhone (usually less than $100). You don’t have to have a bunch of fancy equipment to make a video. Don’t over analyze it, and your videos don’t have to be perfect. Just create a video and share it with the world!

The Future of Video

Videos aren’t going away, and remember Google owns YouTube. Videos can be one of the tools customers use to find you online.
It will also give you a way to stand out once you start working with your leads to showcase all the work you’ve done. So what are you waiting for?
Get out there and share a video!

Strength and courage,
Wade

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Secrets To Real Estate Video

kelowna on February 25, 2015

Engage Your Clients With A Real Estate Video Story

real-estate-videoWhy is it, not excluding myself of course, so difficult for the real estate industry to really embrace the world of video and take our real estate business to the next level?

Video is so valuable today that Google bought YouTube to maintain control of the number one and number two search engine tools online and doesn’t that have to tell us something?

Video in real estate is so much more than just a property tour. Video in real estate is something we use to create emotion and connection with our audience. Video lets the consumer see the real you and your true personality and allows us to capture their heart strings.

Humanize yourself in your video to your audience. The biggest mistake with real estate and video is that it is so serious and so boring for the viewer. Why not add something as simple as music to your videos from a site like www.royaltyfreemusic.com?

Agents need to stop being afraid of the camera and stop worrying about being polished and perfect and start considering the opportunities and relationships that come from video and real estate.

The biggest thing I have learned about video and real estate is we need to keep it real and need to keep it short. The ideal length of video is about 1 minute 20 seconds and must be under the 2 minute length for higher click thru rates.

One of my favorite real estate tools for video is the use of video email instead of the standard email message. I love to surprise people with a quick video email using www.eyejot.com or www.bombbomb.com

When it comes to engaging the consumer we need to think more like the consumer and less like a real estate agent and tell your story. Also, tell the properties story because every agent has a story and every home and family that lived in the home has a story and that’s what the consumer wants to hear and see in video.

The wedding videographer is a great example of how you tell a story and agents need to create story type videos versus the property tour video and connect emotionally to the consumer on so many different levels. See a great YouTube video example at the bottom of this post. Other great stories for video marketing is about your community, your complex, your subdivision, your business or company, your sellers, interviews, events and neighborhoods.

Here is my video nugget list for agents to take your real estate video marketing to another level:

  •  www.wevideo.com We video is a great simple to use video editing tool that agents can build their video real estate platform without the big financial investment
  • www.solostick.com Allows you to create unusual and interesting videos for real estate marketing using any video recording devices
  • www.videolicious.com Very cool build your own story telling videos for real estate marketing
  • www.tourfactory.com Popular video tour company for real estate agents
  • www.marketvideos.com Easy to do video newsletter for your local market

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Strength and courage,

Wade

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