MARKETING
ADS AND ROI
reach that audience. This information will also help determine the type of campaign you run and how you set your campaign goals. In order to effectively reach your target audience, you need to know where to find them. Think about it: If you want to reach homeowners facing foreclosure who are in a hurry to sell their properties for cash, you probably should be adver- tising in a very different manner than if you want to reach retirement investors actively building their portfolios. Real Estate Investor Pitfall: Not Enough Audience Details In the past, advertisers used to rely mainly on age demographics to identify their audiences. That was often the only thing they had to work with because there were not as many sophisticated ways to collect information about peo- ple at that time. In the present day, how- ever, with rich data and anyalytics at our fingertips, try to define your audi- ence beyond just age. The more specific you can be with your target, the greater your chance of campaign success and reduced waste. This information will also assist you in determining what me- diums to use to reach those targets. GUIDELINE #3 KNOW YOUR MEDIA Having a clear, deep knowledge of marketing channels will save you time, increase your odds of success, and help you make wiser media buys. Here are just a few of your advertising options in 2018:
of your advertising investment budget in just a few places or you might need to create a “team” to achieve your goals. In some cases, one media buy can incorporate multiple media. For example, you might make a package purchase that included radio airtime, print media, and a digital promotion. This can be a big advantage in terms of value and to create a coherent, effective brand message for your company. If you do not understand how different media work, however, then you may be less likely to be successful with a multi-channel approach. Real estate investors are among the most creative entrepreneurs out there, and they understand better than anyone how investing a relatively small amount of money in a solid strategy can yield extremely large, relatively fast returns. However, many new investors get carried away with marketing spending and do so without a cogent strategy. This essentially diffuses their marketing. If you are con- sidering buying advertising in multiple media spaces, be sure to discuss your goals and analyze how you will reach your target market and achieve those goals across the media you selected. DON’T FORGET THE FOUNDATIONAL PRINCIPLE While learning and then sticking to these three guidelines will move your marketing in the right direction, it is imperative to remember that your ad- vertising should be an investment rather Real Estate Investor Pitfall: Spending Without Strategy
3 Guidelines for Effective Real EstateAdvertising CLARITY BEFORE THE PURCHASE WILL GET YOU BIG RESULTS AFTERWARD.
For each of these examples, you should pick a specific, measurable met- ric. To determine quality, for example, you may consider how many of your captured leads are truly candidates for your product or service. When your campaigns are complete you have a clear indicator to compare and deter- mine which generated better leads. Real Estate Investor Pitfall: Too Many Goals, Not Enough Marketing Real estate investors are particularly prone to trying to squeeze multiple goals into one marketing campaign. If the goals all fit, that’s great! However, if your goals are not related to each other, then you may end up with a very confusing campaign. A confused audience does not respond, so keep it simple. GUIDELINE #2 CLEARLY IDENTIFY YOUR TARGET MARKET Knowing your target audience is a vital step in deciding what platforms to use to
by Rodney Halford
efore you spend a dime on adver- tising your real estate business, you must absorb and incorporate one vital, foundational principle: Advertising is an investment, not an expense. If you like, you can add an additional descriptive word, such as “strategic” or “responsible” or “wise” to the description of this principle, but at the end of the day, you must incorporate this principal into your marketing and advertising planning in order to succeed. If you failed to look at your marketing from this perspective last year, then change your point of view B
exactly what your goal is before you buy so that they can help you determine if they will be able to help meet your needs. An ethical ad salesperson will always acknowledge if they are not a good fit for you, but they cannot do so if you cannot state your goals clearly and concisely. Here are a few examples of a good, measurable, clear goal for an advertis- ing campaign: • Revenue growth • Improved customer quality • Higher volumes of leads and/or conversions
for 2018. Doing so will be more import- ant than ever as the range of options in advertising are constantly expanding both on- and offline. Use these three guidelines to help you make decisions about your adver- tising decisions: GUIDELINE #1 DEFINE YOUR GOALS Every marketing campaign should have a clear goal. That goal must be measur- able and detailed so that you know at the end of the campaign if it was a success or failure. Furthermore, you should be able to tell any potential advertising venue
• Broadcast television • Cable • Radio • Print • Digital • Social Media
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Each channel has a different strength, reaches different audiences, and is opti- mized to achieve different goals. Depend- ing on how you responded to guidelines #1 and #2, you might need to focus most
Rodney Halford is vice president of me- dia sales at Think Realty. His expertise lies in print, digital, and radio media. Learn more from Rodney at rhalford@ thinkrealty.com or reach him at 816-985-7726.
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