Does Inbound Marketing for Real Estate work?

Inbound marketing is the latest and most effective way to capture leads, and this is done by using modern media and advanced communication tools to make the process of lead generation simpler and more efficient. 

This new strategy has changed the game for the real estate industry and has turned real estate marketing on its head. Rather than designing and constructing expensive billboards or creating print ads that reach potentially unqualified leads, inbound marketing places emphasis on getting your message to quality leads who are actively seeking what you are offering. 

Before the era of social media, real estate salespeople would sift through hundreds of cold leads with the goal of “warming” them up to consider taking a look at your real estate listings. This is traditionally done through cold calling or advertising via print publications, and even direct mail campaigns. Of course, as purchasing property is not an impulse buy, the conversion rate with this process is exceptionally low - and before inbound marketing salespeople had no choice but to try for quality over quantity to make their chances of selling that much greater. Before the digital age this kind of tactic was a no brainer as salespeople had nothing else to work with, however this tactic is costly, psychologically and emotionally draining and all out frustrating. 

With the advent of the internet, consumers now have access to limitless information and have the ability to find what they are looking for online, and the entire sales process has been somewhat reversed. Now, an effective marketing strategy is not just about finding people - it is about helping people find YOU - welcome to the age of Inbound Marketing. 

Introducing Inbound Marketing for Real Estate

Marketers across the world have had to adjust because the consumer’s buying process has been significantly altered thanks to the internet - and it has been altered for the better. You see, you are now able to reach the consumer while they are actively seeking your product - and you have the ability to reach them at every stage of the buying process. This is what is known as inbound marketing!

Inbound marketing has completely revolutionised lead generation strategy for a variety of industries including the real estate market and we are here to tell you why and how. 

So, how does inbound marketing work and what would an inbound marketing strategy look like for the real estate industry?

Understanding your Buyer Persona

As stated previously, inbound marketing offers salespeople the opportunity to reach the highest quality leads, that is: people who are actually actively seeking real estate offerings. According to the National Association of Realtors (NAR) the majority of home buyers search for properties online before they make a final decision - and this is where realtors need to find their potential clients - or have potential buyers find them.

For even more insight into why this is important, NAR found that 84% of buyers state that the information they discovered online played a major role in their home buying journey. With these  statistics, online marketing cannot be ignored by real estate salespeople and marketers. 

Content Marketing for Real Estate 

Once you have an understanding of what they are looking for you are able to implement an online content strategy that shares knowledge and answers buyer questions, giving you the opportunity to develop a bond with potential buyers and gain their trust. 

When you distribute helpful and informative content online, your target market will easily find your website and think of your brand as an industry leader, helping them through the buying process. As opposed to simply trying to “sell,” you are opening the way to brand loyalty which allows you to guide a prospect through the entire buying journey. 

Content marketing not only establishes you as an industry leader, it plays a big role in helping you rise up the search engine results ranks - and you will begin to rank for the topics that matter most to your target audience and prospects. You can publish your content on your website blog page, and create and share content across social media networks to gain further reach. 

You should also create free, high-quality content such as e-books and e-guides that your prospects are able to download - but there is a catch - they will need to provide their contact information when they download your content. This strategy helps you gain valuable lead information that can be used in the engagement stage of the Inbound marketing process.

You are also able to create targeted ad campaigns via your social media platforms which will increase brand awareness and help you gain lead data - and through each stage, you will be able to analyse your marketing efforts and keep yourself informed on what content is working and what kind of content needs to be improved. 

So, when it comes to inbound marketing for real estate - content is king! 

Customer Relationship Management 

Once you have analysed and attracted your prospects, it is time to engage with them and help your real estate sales grow. This can be done through email, chatbots, live chats or messaging applications. The best way to store, analyse, and nurture leads is through Customer Relationship Management software such as HubSpot. 

HubSpot allows your sales and marketing team to analyse content success, create landing pages for lead capturing, understand each lead and where they are in the buyer's journey, send out personalised email campaigns, qualify leads and more. 

With lead data stored in a single place, you are able to personalise the entire buying process for the lead by using smart content, email nurturing campaigns and advanced workflows. Email marketing automation is vital in the engagement and nurturing of potential and current clients, and CRM platforms such as HubSpot allow you to deliver the right information and message to the right person - at the right time in their journey. 

The benefits of inbound marketing for real estate: 

• Provides solutions and solves a prospects problems through content creation.
• Build trust through thought leadership content.
• Increases brand awareness across search engines and social media marketing.
• Drives organic traffic through search engine optimisation.
• Collects data of high quality leads.
• Nurtures brand awareness and guides a consumer through the entire buying journey.

Since 2005, Nexa has provided inbound marketing and sales lead generation for the real estate industry.  We are proud to be the region’s leading and only HubSpot Diamond Agency Partner and have been recognised as thought leaders and innovators within this field.  If you are looking to generate leads for your real estate business, we can help. 

Contact Nexa today and drive highly qualified sales leads for your business.