Keeping it real(tor)

How real estate agents are using email marketing in a tough economy

If there’s one thing realtors are good at, it’s staying positive in the face of unexpected challenges. They greet screwy inspections, needy clients and delayed closings with a smile and a can-do attitude. The past few years have presented plenty of opportunities to push agents to get creative, especially in marketing their own services.

With restrictive lending regulations, higher foreclosure rates and fewer Americans making the jump into home ownership, an agent’s precious advertising dollars need to make a lasting impact. Savvy realtors are developing cost-effective email strategies — turning these challenges into new opportunities.

Are you a real estate agent and not sure where to start? Check out examples from three realtors who sold me right away …

Cindy Kelly | A monthly newsletter

The monthly newsletter is a real estate staple, as important as freshly baked cookies at your Open House. Your newsletter should be branded, relevant and, most importantly, packed with helpful information. I love this example from Cindy Kelly in Bellevue, WA. Cindy continues to service her clients after the sale by offering them information on home care. Each article provides information about preventive maintenance, and Cindy provides a referral to a local expert. In doing so, she’s also reminding them that she is a housing professional. Going the extra mile no doubt earns Cindy the recommendation of her clients.

+ See a recent newsletter
+ Follow @Cindylive on Twitter
+ Visit Cindy’sblog

Stephanie Lawrence | Current listings feature

Your monthly email is a great place to share your current listings, link each to your website and track which recipients show interest (via click-throughs). That’s exactly what Stephanie Lawrence of Zeitlin & Co. is doing. Each listing gets an image and a short blurb that links back to her blog and the embedded MLS information. With one click, a buyer can get more information or even schedule a showing. The best part is every click is tracked so Stephanie can keep up with her subscribers. For example, let’s say there’s a price reduction on a home. Stephanie can log into her Emma account, see who clicked to view that home, then email a follow-up with the new pricing info to those folks only. The buyer is excited to receive the news, Stephanie closes the deal, and the home seller is wowed by the quick sale. (That’s the plan, anyway.) Win, win and win.

+ See a recent newsletter
+ Follow @agentsteph on Twitter
+ Visit Stephanie’s website

Angela Barnshaw | Specific property details

As a real estate professional you come into contact with lots of other agents, home inspectors and lenders. Ask them to join your email list and you’ll not only build a strong, permissions-based list, you’ll also create professional relationships that will return more sales. Angela Barnshaw (aka Agent 06) does a splendid job of creating an email specific to each property and sending the campaign to her industry contacts. Each email provides all the information an agent needs to match the home to a potential buyer, and recipients can share the information with their social networks. It’s a powerful marketing tool to add to her arsenal.

+ See a recent campaign
+ Follow @GetAgent06 on Twitter
+ Visit the Agent 06 website

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Want more examples? Take a look at the slideshow below.

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