How far has adoption of blogging and other conversational marketing tools come? Not nearly far enough based on my one industry: real estate. And here's why:
I live in a neighborhood of Minneapolis, MN called Longfellow that has around 20,000 residents. Here is how real estate agents market themselves:
1. Advertise on bus benches saying, "I know Longfellow" or a similar message.
2. Advertise on billboards saying, "I know Longfellow" or a similar message.
3. Sending "Just Listed" and "Just Sold" cards to my home.
4. Sending calendars to my house.
5. Sending magnets to my house.
6. Sending flower seeds to my house.
7. Sending key chains to my house.
8. Sending events calendars to my house.
9. Email me about properties outside my price range or geography.
10. Advertise listings in a paper I don't read.
Out of those ten marketing strategies, the only one that proves to me that they know something about my neighborhood is #3: just listed and just sold cards. This proves they're actively working in the neighborhood.
Here's none of them do:
1. Blog about the neighborhood. Explain how the local market is doing. Tell me what's up with the condo development that appears to have stalled.
2. Tell me about homes for sale and what makes them so special. It may help me understand what types of home improvements I could be making and inspire me to make them (which would lead to a larger commission for the agent when I sell).
3. Tell me about cool open houses. Is there a home with an awesome renovated kitchen? Tell me about it. I don't care if it's not your listing. This is the kind of thing that interests me and I'd appreciate hearing about.
4. Stats. tell me about how long homes are sitting on the market and in which price ranges. Help me set realistic expectations for when I get around to selling.
5. Pictures. supplement MLS listings with additional pictures of of homes you visit on your blog. Just because the listing agent does a crappy job listing a property doesn't mean your potential customers should have to suffer.
6. Use video. Drive around the neighborhood and PROVE to me that you really know the area. Have someone ride shotgun and film you while you point out neighborhood features and landmarks, parks and schools. Hang out at the local coffee shop with the camera person and have them film you until someone recognizes you and interrupts to say hello. That's the kind of thing that builds credibility and expertise.
An agent who follows those six steps can go from being an agent who works in Longfellow to "
The Longfellow Real Estate Agent."
The sad thing is,
there probably already is an agent that's the "The" agent in Longfellow, but based on their current marketing strategies, I just don't know about them.
