Every business owner or entrepreneur is looking for an edge. We're all seeking that next big technique, platform, or strategy that will help us reach a wider audience, boost sales, and vastly improve our bottom line. That's especially true if you work in the ultra-competitive arenas of real estate or mortgage lending, where any new technology could put you months or even years ahead of your competition. But, it's just as important to have a cutting edge marketing plan if you're a CPA, financial planner, insurance agent, or sell any product or service. Chatbots in the burgeoning field of Artificial Intelligence do exactly that, offering a clear advantage and ultra-efficient way to engage new clients. So, today, I'm super excited to give you a great introduction to chatbots, the marketing tech of today! Is Artificial Intelligence real? Yes, but we’re not talking about the Terminator kind of Artificial Intelligence (AI). Instead, AI is defined as any self-directed technological process, appearing to “think” for itself. A closer look at chatbots Chatbots are one kind of AI that’s growing increasingly common these days. In fact, more than 15,000 companies and brands in the U.S now utilize chatbots, with those numbers are growing every day. They can be programmed for use on a website or app like Facebook Messenger and Instagram (by the end of 2019), effectively respond and react to a plethora of situations, inquiries, or cues. “Having a chatbot means that your clients and prospects will always get immediate, personalized service and answers to their questions." says Jordan Glickman, founder of North Carolina-based Impremis Marketing. “In this on-demand economy, you can’t afford to let a prospect go elsewhere for information or wait around for you to get back to them. Therefore, chatbots are like the perfect employees who work 24-7, never call in sick, and never are late!” How chatbots generate leads As a Realtor, mortgage broker, or any small business owner, finding and converting leads is the lifeblood of your success. Chatbots are an incredibly efficient way to funnel traffic from a website, Facebook ad, or email campaign, turning visits into qualified leads – with none of your time or effort. When someone comes to your Facebook page, for example, the chatbot will initiate a conversation with the viewer via a pop-up message. The ‘bot will then answer their questions with pre-determined scripts and proposing questions or encouraging classification that narrows down the visit by certain criteria. Of course, you can program your chatbot to filter by certain criteria or focus on any specific Call-to-Action you wish, including post-sale follow-up and garnering testimonials and reviews. It's important to note that they don't replace human contact, but start a basic conversation with your prospect, pre-qualifying them as to their needs, desires, timelines, and other valuable information. Then, the chatbot system hands all of that to you on a silver platter when it's time for "human takeover" as it's called in the business, whether that's a phone call, a meeting scheduled at your office, an invite to an event or seminar, or even an open house How can chatbots prequalify your prospects? For instance, a chatbot can ask a visitor if they are looking to buy a house or sell a house. If they answer affirmatively to one of these two, the bot can then ask how soon they are looking to make this purchase/list their home/ if they've been pre-approved by a lender/ if they've signed with a listing agent yet/etc. The bot can even schedule an appointment or phone consultation based on their responses. So, by the time you receive an alert, all of this information has been gleaned and the visitor pre-qualified as a lead. Chatbots also provide value to visitors by answering FAQs, directing them to certain pages of your website or other resources, and more. Visitors who are determined to not be qualified prospects at the time aren't abandoned or lost in the shuffle. Instead, they can be assigned to categories for follow-up marketing campaigns like re-targeting, education emails, guides or informational reports they can download, and scheduled for a check-in down the road. Chatbots as part of your marketing funnel The key to making a chatbot work effectively is funneling a large number of people to your webpage, Facebook, Instagram, or email marketing campaign. They work best when integrated into some sort of paid ad or promotion that garners a significant number of visitors who can then be narrowed down into qualified leads . “Chatbots are a far more efficient way to market compared to traditional methods like handing out flyers or expensive mailers," says Glickman. "With a bot, you can be laser focused in delivering the right message to the right prospect at the right time. We routinely see 85% open rates and 60% click-through rates with our messages and emails using chatbot systems, which blow industry averages out of the water.” Chatbots actually personalize the process
On the user end, they realize that they're "speaking" with an automated process, not an actual human being. However, you'll find that chatbots aren't cold, soulless automatons, but actually add personalization and foster human interaction. You’re encouraged to preset your chatbot’s responses based on your personality, how you speak, and even have some fun with it. Chatbots will also set you up for far more phone calls or face-to-face meetings than a plain website, email, or Facebook page, adding to the human connection. Chatbots will help build and deepen relationships with your audience! Benefits to using a chatbot: 1. Turn prospects and visitors into qualified LEADS, LEADS, LEADS! The huge, compelling benefit to using a chatbot is seeing qualified hot leads popping up in your email, smartphone, and on your schedule. 2. Attract and engage a younger audience. This includes Millennials, who are comfortable interacting with technology and apps, and constitute massive online spending power. 3. Gather data. Collect your visitor's name, phone number, email, age, birthdate, homeownership status, and a host of other demographic and lifestyle data through chatbots – all valuable information to qualify your audience. 4. Build a larger audience Gain subscribers, likes, followers, and add to your email list, etc. 5. Save time - and a whole lot of money. You can provide instant, personalized service 24/7, never leaving a potential client waiting for answers or help, all without hiring employees or answering services. 6. Exponentially increase the ROI of your ads Most businesses and entrepreneurs are using paid Facebook or Instagram ads these days or other pay-for-play web techniques (or, you should be!). But, it's awfully reactive to pay for an ad and just hope for the best. Instead, funneling these ads to a website or Facebook page with a chatbot will exponentially increase the effectiveness of those ads, boosting ROI. So, what does it take to set up a chatbot (and how much does it cost)? Just about any brand or business can see the benefits of a chatbot, which is really marketing technology of the future in its first phase of mainstream development today. To get started, consider having a bot set up on your website but definitely on your business Facebook page and soon, your Instagram account. Of course, you’ve probably been wondering about the cost of chatbots since the opening line of this article! Designing, building, and implementing a fully-customized chatbot can range from hundreds on the low-end to thousands for most brands and entrepreneurs, and more for bigger and more complex business systems. While that's significant, if you're in real estate, mortgage lending, financial services, or sell any big-ticket item, that's probably far less than what you'll earn when you attract your first client using that chatbot! Can I see a chatbot in action? For a demonstration of what a chatbot may look like for a real estate agency website or Facebook page, check it out here. And if you have any questions or would like more information to get started, you can drop me a line or contact Jordan Glickman of Impremis Marketing. I promise you that he’s a real live human being! Your friend, -Norm :-)
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Do you remember the early 80s song, “Video called the radio star?” Well, some people may think that video marketing has killed the blogging star these days, but that’s actually not true. In fact, posting a blog on your website and sharing it on social media and via email is still a valuable and essential marketing tool. Studies show that people not only trust blogs more, but look to blogs for information and recommendations before making a purchase (like a home or a home loan!). These blogs can be short (and optimized for reading on mobile devices), but, basically, if they're not getting this information from you, they're reading it on your competitor's blog or website! Since 2011, I estimate that I’ve written about 3,500+ blogs and articles for Realtors, mortgage lenders, and small business owners, along with countless social media posts sharing this content. Part of my job is also keeping track of analytics, so I measure how many people are clicking, reading, and reacting to these blogs. Based on that experience, I put together this list of the TOP PERFORMING BLOG TOPICS for any real estate agent. I’ve noticed what works best for Realtors and gets the most reaction from their audience, time and time again. I’ve even formulated a scoring system based on total number of page views, clicks, likes, comments, sharing, and other engagement metrics. You’ll see that I rated each blog with this engagement score, just for purposes of comparison. If you want likes, followers, inquiries, and a fast-growing database, go down the list and offer these blogs via your professional social media accounts, emails, newsletters, on your website, and other marketing. Written and crafted correctly, these blogs will yield the results you want: more leads, clients, and, ultimately, closed deals! And if you're not a Realtor but a mortgage lender, financial planner, CPA, or any other small business owner, contact me for the list of top-performing blog posts in your field! The top-10 performing blog topics for Realtors: 1. Neighborhood profiles Home buyers aren’t just interested in a brick and mortar structure, but the lifestyle that their new home affords them. Therefore, blogs and profiles on certain neighborhoods score remarkably well with real estate audiences, who are looking to compare locations as much as houses. In these neighborhood-centric blogs, you can cover a brief history, what it’s best known for, restaurants, parks and recreation, festivals and events, typical architecture, nearby amenities, commute times, and staple mom-and-pop businesses. Yes, you should also cover real estate market data and recent home prices. Tip: You can even document famous people from that area, local trivia, and other interesting facts, but there are a few things that you CAN’T mention in these blogs (see below). Blog engagement score 96% 2. Pointing out common mistakes (negative-slant themes) What are the 10 mistakes first-time homebuyers make? What 5 mistakes are costing sellers big bucks? Why should you definitely avoid these landlord mistakes with your new rental properties? Research shows that the human motivation to AVOID PAIN (in this case, usually wasting money but also time, energy, liability, etc.) is even stronger than our motivation to pursue GAIN. For that reason, blogs with a. negative spin, i.e. what NOT to do, or which mistakes NOT to make, perform surprisingly well with audiences. Tip: Don’t be afraid to hit ‘em with the truth, because this is your one chance to scare your audience a little bit - for their own good and to be helpful. Blog engagement score 92% 3. Local market update (including home values) Do you specialize in a certain neighborhood, or have a marketing campaign “farming” a specific area? You should exhibit to your audience that you’re the authority on the matter, offering up-to-date and accurate data on home values, buying and selling information, and other pertinent housing and economic data. Tip: I recommend drafting a Special Report every quarter with local housing data and emailing it out. The key is to make it as predictable and consistent as clockwork so your audience grows to look for it!. Blog engagement score 89% 4. How to make more money Did I catch your attention already? Home ownership is the most significant lifetime investment for most consumers, so a lot is riding on getting it right. In fact, just by knowing how to fix up your home before selling, whether to stage or not, or knowing if it’s the right time to sell could put tens of thousands of extra dollars in your sellers' pockets. And for buyers, their choices are just as critical, so any information that helps inform and guide them towards a great home that will appreciate exceedingly well is invaluable. Tip: Be specific. While “How to make more money when selling your home,” is fine, a blog with the title “How to increase your net profit by 1.5% in 3 easy steps when selling your home” will practically jump off the page at the reader (or jump off the computer screen.) Blog engagement score 87% 5. How-To’s Consumers are always looking for sound, fundamental information about home buying, selling, and just about everything else when it comes to real estate and home loans. First-timers, in particular, find this extremely valuable. So, keep writing those stupid-simple guides to buying a home, house hunting, investing, the escrow process, and getting a mortgage. Tip: Set these up as a easy-to-skim list based on FAQs, add a few graphics, and save it as a PDF so it's a information report that you can easily send out to clients and potential clients. ***
Look for part two of this blog coming soon, where I'll cover the next 5 top-performing blog topics for Realtors. And you can always contact me for help or just to chat about your marketing! Your friend, Norm :-) Imagine if you had your name, company name, and even an authoritative quote featured in a news article. What kind of (free) exposure would you enjoy if you were the go-to Realtor/Mortgage Lender/Business Owner for your local media outlets? What would it be worth if you were routinely mentioned, quoted, or even invited live to television shows, radio programs, and in newspaper and magazine articles? It's easier than you may think to get press coverage that reaches hundreds, thousands, or, potentially, tens of thousands of people – all without paying a cent in advertising. In fact, writing and distributing a press release is one of the most underutilized promotional tools for real estate professionals or any business owner, yet so few do it. Of course, I know why more people don’t send out press releases. If you don’t know how to properly write and send them out, it can be confusing, a little intimidating, or just a waste of time. So, in this blog, I’ll walk you through the right way to write a press release that will look like a PR expert drafted it. First off, I wanted to give you some examples of topics for a press release: XYZ real estate office grand opening. Home sales heating up in CITY NAME. Free homebuying workshop offered in CITY NAME. XYZ Mortgage gives back to community with day of service. Buying a home may be more affordable than renting in CITY NAME. Home values in CITY NAME now back to pre-recession levels. How to pick the right neighborhood when buying a home. Home fire safety tips. NAME honored with award/promotion/inclusion on list, etc. The options are abundant, as long as you remember that it has to be about something specific, tangible, and of value to the audience – not just self-promotion for its own sake. But remember that it doesn’t need to be YOUR statistic, data, or happening for you to write and send in a press release. It can be about anything in your field of real estate, mortgage, or whatever field your business operates in, as long as it’s credible, fits that media’s editorial needs, and within their scope. (Don’t send in a press release only about Sacramento to a national magazine, etc.) It’s also imperative that you structure it as a press release from the title all the way to the end, which I’ll break down for you now: What is a press release? A press release is an official announcement issued by a company, agency or organization that’s distributed to the news media. Press releases are sometimes also called a “press statement,” a “news release,” or “media release.” These releases disseminate the information necessary for one potential news story or important happening. What ISN’T it? A press release is not an advertisement. It’s not a commercial, a bio, an interview, a general informational piece, or a personal profile. Press releases are not subjective, opinion without factual basis, or written to sway or persuade the reader. How long should it be? Press releases are usually just one page long on a printed page, but they should never surpass two pages in length. These days, most press releases are sent via email, but you should still aim to be succinct. The goal is to provide enough information for the media outlet to write their own notice, announcement or news story, so 400-600 words is an ideal target range for an unsolicited release. To keep it short, provide links to your website, blog, or how they can contact you if they would like to learn more. Header The press release starts with a header, including the always-present tag line in capital letters stating, "FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE." The header also contains the contact information for the person that can be reached for more information (name, email and phone number) as well as the date of the release. The FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE and date are always left justified, while the contact information is right justified. Headline Immediately after the header, you'll find the headline (don't get those two confused!), which serves as a bold announcement to get the reader's attention and succinctly tell them what the release is about – all in eight words or less. But headlines don't need to be full sentences, although they should be written in present tense (even though the rest of the press release is written in past tense) with clear, direct language and action verbs. Dateline and lead After the headline, you’ll find the dateline. The dateline is the city name in capital letters, followed by the state abbreviation in most cases, and then a dash. Next up is the lead, which acts a subheader, expanding on the important points of the release for the reader – all within 32 words. The body This is the meat and potatoes of the press release, so cover the Who, What, When, Where, How, and What’s Next of your statement in the body. Share this information directly and clearly, without elaborate or flowery language. If you start using words like “super,” “special,” “best,” “amazing,” or even “very,” the media contact reading it will know right away that you’re an amateur just looking to promote their business. First paragraph In the first paragraph of the body, always answer the question, “Why should they (the media contact and their readers) care?” It’s a good idea to include a direct link to your company’s website in the first paragraph of the body, as well as cite data, statistics or other references with their corresponding links. Statistics, data, and facts about the real estate market, local sales, mortgage markets, buyers or sellers, etc. are great to share, so make sure they are clearly featured. Quote Good quotes humanize the information and also add credibility.So, round-out the information you're trying to convey with a quoted statement. Every press release should have at least one quote; two is ideal, but you should never have more than three quotes. Quotes can come from a credible source like the company president, happy client, official or agency, or another third party that's involved. Of course, this is the ideal place to submit your own quote, offering some sage advice and key takeaways. THIS is the best way to get your name injected into the news story and shared widely in the media! Background info The last paragraph of the press release doesn’t focus on the story or the relevant announcement but adds some background and supporting information for the reader to put in context. This can be a little bit about the sender/company (the Realtor/Mortgage Broker/Business Owner and their service), and even the field. You can also cover how you are different and future trends or next steps the reader should be aware of. ### Three pound signs are placed at the bottom of a press release, signaling to the reader that they've reached the end of the document (and that they aren't missing any pages.) Sometimes you'll also see "End" instead of these three pound signs to conclude the release. Speaking of end, that's all for today! Oh, I almost forgot... ###
Instagram is an invaluable platform for Realtors, mortgage lenders, or any small business owner or entrepreneur to market their services. There are a lot of tools within Instagram (which will soon surpass Facebook as the most popular social media account on earth) that allow you to reach your audience and grow your brand efficiently, and none are more powerful than Instagram’s video features. In fact, 73% of consumers report that their purchase decisions are impacted by a brand’s social media presence (including Instagram), and videos on IG garner 21% more interactions than photos alone. Instagram is tailor-made for consuming short video content on mobile devices, but all of the options and features for posting videos on Instagram (IG) can get a little confusing for the layperson - or anyone over 25 years old! The IG video posting options:
If you don’t know how, when, and why to use each of these, your marketing could be a lot less effective than you’d like. So, today I’m going to give you a quick breakdown of the each of those Instagram video options, with notes, parameters, and best practices. Post videos directly to your Instagram account.
Instagram Stories
Instagram Live
Instagram TV
*** So, which Instagram video tool is right for you and your business marketing? Let’s talk and find out! -Norm :-) You can be the best real estate agent, loan officer, or business owner in the world, but If you don’t have enough clients, your business will die – and quickly. In fact, prospecting, networking, lead generation, and sales constitutes about 85% of your actual time and energy! (Or, it should.) So, the golden question for any sales professional is, “How can I exponentially increase my pool of potential clients?” While there are no magic tricks in marketing, the closest thing you’ll find is publishing a book. I wrote the book on ______. It's also a damn-good way to leave your competition in the dust. Envision this - you walk into your next listing appointment/home loan consultation/sales meeting and end with, "Oh, by the way, I literally wrote the book on _______." and then plop your newly published work down on the table. Effective, huh? I’ve written and self-published eight books myself now and co-authored or worked on at least twice that number for clients. So, I know how any Realtor, loan officer, or business owner can utilize it as a powerful lead magnet and secret weapon for closing more deals! To be clear, you aren’t going to make money selling your book. If you think you’ll amass significant coin by peddling your eBook for $2.99, forget about it. (I'll share an awesome marketing system using your book to generate leads.) But, done correctly, publishing a book is an incredibly powerful marketing tool that will allow you to:
Your book will serve as a powerful lead magnet! There are far more benefits to publishing a book in your field:
Plus, a book release party will be damn fun! Let Amazon.com and Apple market for you! On Amazon.com – the world’s largest bookseller between print and Kindle eBooks – 200 million people shop or browse EVERY SINGLE DAY! Apple Books (formerly iBook), Barnes and Noble.com, Nook, and other smaller distributors see tens of millions of people searching for books and content every day. That’s a monumentally huge untapped resource of consumers who are actively looking for information and content in a particular subject. That includes the subjects of buying or selling real estate, getting a home loans, real estate investing, market updates, How To’s, or whatever field your business operates in. Think of it like this – so far, you’ve probably been fishing in a small pond (and doing well), but think of the sales potential now that you’ll get a chance to cast out into the ocean! Don't worry - it doesn’t have to be Moby Dick! I’m not talking about penning your juicy real estate tell-all memoir (although that would be entertaining to read!) In fact, it doesn't even need to be 100 pages long. We can call it a “book” for the purposes of this article, but writing and self-publishing content can come in many different forms, including:
Some of these can be as short as a dozen pages, or as long as short as you’d like since the material will be instructive and professional. Here are some examples: The First-Time homebuyer’s Handbook, by __________ (Do you think that might generate more than a few first-time homebuyer leads?) 10 Mistakes Home Sellers Make That Kill Their Profits, by_________ 25 Things Every Consumer NEEDS to Know About Home Loans, by________ 10 Tips to Save Money on Your Mortgage, by ___________ It’s even better to get super specific in your niche and add geo-targeting if you only do business in your local city or region: Your 2020 Sacramento Real Estate Report & Forecast, by _________ Investing in Sacramento; Everything you need to know about real estate for profit in the 916, by_________ Your California Down Payment Assistance Report, by _________ You get the idea – and the possibilities suddenly get our pulse racing. The goal is to get your name, face, messages to the largest number of people who are eager to read what YOU have to say and get YOUR help. But I don’t know how to write a book (and I don’t have the time)! Yup. That’s where I come in! And you’ll be amazed when you see how efficient and cost-effective it can be to write and publish your own content, from A to Z. (Not to mention, your potential ROI is through the roof when you sell real estate or home loans). Feel free to hit me up if you’d like more information or just to chat about the possibilities. -Norm :-) P.S. Look for part two of this next week when I break down the perfect marketing system to leverage your new book into emails, leads, prospects, and closed deals! Today, I'm super excited to share my interview with Rico Rivera, team leader at Silicon Valley East Real Estate in Sacramento, CA. Rico is one of those guys that everyone knows and loves, is omnipresent at every event, party, and charity fundraiser, and seems to be the most natural networker you've ever seen. However, there's a lot of thought, education, strategy, and hard work that goes into becoming the Networking King, as we'll find out. Rico also talks honestly about his unbelievable childhood and life growing up, and ends the podcast with one of the funniest stories you'll ever hear! Enjoy and give me a shout if you'd like to be featured on this podcast or need anything at all! -Norm :-)
Does anyone read your website? 10 Tips for web copy that attracts clients and drives sales.3/29/2019 Just about every Realtor, mortgage lender, and business owner has a website these days, but does anyone actually read it? Too often, potential home buyers, sellers, borrowers or clients will log into your website only to take one look at the home page with its mismatch of endless paragraphs of text, and click right out. In fact, studies show that the average website visitor spends about 30 seconds on a site, and 55% of visitors spend less than 15 seconds! When that happens, it’s like having a big hole in your marketing funnel, with potential leads (and money) leaking right out. With website copy, every word, title, header, bullet point, and sentence is critical since you don’t have much time to make a good first impression. A good site with well-written copy will really grab your visitor, helping to pre-sell them and directly leading to more closed sales. Professionally written websites boost your search engine ranking, acts as the hub of your social media wheel, and establishes you as a credible expert in your field. You probably think that your website copy is “fine” or “OK,” but you probably wouldn’t read it, either if you were a new visitor. Objectivity is difficult when it’s your own site. And it’s not that most business people can’t write well; it’s just that they don’t know how to write website copywell – a totally different art in which less is way more. AIDA rules for web copy: When writing copy for your website, it’s best to keep the AIDA strategy in mind, an acronym that stands for: A – Attract Attention I – Trigger Interest D – Create a strong Desire A – Call to Action Let’s take a look at 10 methods to write clear, engaging, and persuasive web copy that homebuyers and sellers will actually read: 1. Use concise text Check out the websites for the biggest brands in the world and you’ll notice that they are big on simple, intuitive, and visual content that leads to the next step – not endless words. But if visitors to your website see a vast amount of text in paragraph form, they’ll automatically tune out. Use short words, short sentences, and even shorter paragraphs. As a good rule of thumb, write your web copy and then cut the word count in half, and then in half again. 2. Make sure your site is easy to scan When it comes to websites (and social media or just about anything online), people want to scan – not read. Research proves that only 16% of web visitors read text word for word and 79% just scan. So, break up text with headers, subheaders, numbered lists, bullet points, and even different fonts to make the information easily digestible in chunks. Oh, and don’t forget plenty of photos of beautiful houses and happy past clients! 3. The secret behind writing amazing web headlines Headers and subheaders are so important for effective web copy. Since most people just scan your website, creating compelling headlines or headers is crucial. Studies show that headlines with numbers (“10 Ways to buy a house in a good neighborhood”), those that promise to solve a problem or provide a benefit, play on words or common phrases, or use the tactic of negative knowledge (“5 Ways not to make costly home selling mistakes”) perform best. Contact me if you want more help with this! 4. Eliminate fluff Use clear, no-frills language. Avoid the temptation to fill your copy with adverbs and adjectives. Always write in the active voice and have a professional editor go through your copy. 5. Be clear about what you’re offering When someone goes to your web page, they should know in within seconds – the time it takes them to scan – what exactly you can do for them, but also your unique value or specialty as a Realtor. Highlight if you specialize in working with buyers, sellers, high-end homes, first-timers, in certain neighborhoods, or have awards, publishing credits, or other designations that will benefit them. 6. Ask your potential clients what they want! Any good website should include opportunities for visitors to offer their needs, desires, and feedback. You can do this with surveys, questions, and pop-ups that give them some sort of incentive to share their opinion. People love to be asked their opinion, especially when it comes to homes and real estate! 7. Create a Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) section Instead of going on and on about every detail of your job and what you can do for them in paragraph form, create a detailed FAQ section, categorized by potential client’s questions and clickable, so it’s easy to navigate. 8. Be a real person People want to engage with a real person, not a robot or a faceless corporation. Tell your story, show your passion, and feel free to write in a familiar voice – just as long as you stay clear, concise, and always appropriate. Especially in the real estate field, it’s encouraged to have fun and show your personality, while also maintaining professionalism. 9. Be careful about what you can’t say Your clients look to you for invaluable information, but there are very tight rules (see: Fair Housing Act) that govern what Realtors can and can’t disclose. Likewise, mortgage lenders will end up in trouble if they advertise “Lowest rates around!” on their website. For Realtor web copy, even mentioning specific topics or answering certain questions could result in fines, loss of license – or even trigger litigation. So, don’t offer specifics about relative wealth socio-economic class of a neighborhood or area, school ratings, crime statistics, religious or ethnic demographics, etc. or you could get in hot water. 10. ALWAYS have a call-to-action Your website’s text should always conclude with a clear call-to-action, which simply leads them to the next step. It could be entering their email to get a free report, signing up for your blog or email newsletter, registering for a market analysis of their home price, or any other giveaway that provides help and value. *** With these tips in mind, take the time to pull up your website and look at it objectively. You probably don’t need to rewrite all of your site’s copy, but by implementing these best practices, you’ll soon notice an uptick in the number of visitors that stay on your site longer and contact you – and therefore, your number of clients! Contact me if you’d like a free look at your current website to see where it needs improvement – I’m happy to help!
There’s little doubt that you’re using Facebook as a platform to tell people about your business and attract new clients. But, if you’re like most Realtors, mortgage lenders, and even small business owners, you’re probably using your personal Facebook profile to do so, at least to some extent.
Uh oh. Sure, you created a Facebook business page a long time ago (about half of all real estate professionals and business owners do), but I’m guessing it’s now an afterthought. Instead, you prefer to interact, post content, and share your day-to-day business on your personal page. That’s a mistake. You’re wasting invaluable opportunities to market, promote, and grow your business. In a field where even one or two more home sales, closed loans, or new clients makes a huge financial difference, it’s critical that you not only set up a Facebook business page but utilize it correctly. I know what you’re thinking – but the people I know interact with me more on my personal page, and I don’t want to abandon that and start over with a business page. I have a quick and nearly-effortless solution that’s a win-win, so scroll down to the end if you want to see it. So, what are the benefits to a Facebook business page instead of just your personal profile? I’ll cover 10 important reasons why they are better than personal pages here and 10 more reasons in part two of this blog. 1. No limit to the number of fans Facebook personal profiles are capped at 5,000 friends, which you can reach pretty quickly if you have a growing business or practice. But with pages, there is no limit on the number of fans and followers you can engage and interact with. (Samsung is the top brand with 159 million likes, followed by soccer star Cristiano Ronaldowith 122 million likes.) While you may never reach Samsung/Ronaldo status on Facebook, don’t sell your business short by capping its potential growth at just 5,000 people. 2. Reach a Targeted Audience This is so important. If you’re a real estate agent, growing a social media following with people who live 100 miles away won’t do you any good. But you do want to market hard to your city, the 10-mile radius around your office, or even a certain neighborhood. And if you’re a mortgage lender, most of your business may come locally, but you can close loans throughout your home state. Likewise, local business owners need to carefully zoom in or out on a geographic target market to optimize business. Facebook business pages allow you to do just that, pinpointing your social media presence on the map. (I’ll talk more about targeting with ads and boosted content in part two of this blog.) 3. Facebook Insights With a Facebook page, you don’t need Google Analytics, as Facebook Insights will do the job for you. With Insights, you can access a mountain of data about your viewers, audience, reach, etc., using it all to improve your reach. You can even download a custom Insight report for more detailed stats and data, but this is only available on pages – not personal profiles. 4. Facebook Tabs You may notice on sophisticated and well-built Facebook pages that there’s a tabbed area under the cover photo, like a horizontal menu on a website. You can customize those tabs (sometimes with the help of third-party apps) to do just about anything, from Search Now and other call-to-action buttons to newsletter and blog opt-in forms, giveaways (we’ll talk about that next), video introduction, featured listings, and much more. Sorry – can’t do that with your personal profile. 5. Run contests, raffles, and giveaways Facebook is pretty specific with their rules regarding contests and giveaways on personal profiles – you’re not allowed to do it. But Facebook pages are the perfect place to run these special offers and fun contests, energizing your audience, creating a buzz, and feeding your marketing funnel (gathering emails, etc.). If you’re not doing some of these on a regular basis, you’re missing out on a HUGE opportunity (just make sure to check DRE for any regulations). 6. Reviews and testimonials Garnering 5-star reviews and glowing testimonials are so important in the real estate, mortgage, or small business game, where establishing social proof and building trust are paramount. You can do exactly that with a Facebook business page, but the only one leaving you a testimonial on your personal page is your disgruntled ex. 7. Connect to Facebook Places When your Facebook business page is optimized correctly, that page will connect automatically to the appropriate Facebook Place. Not only will that display all of your professional contact info, but it allows your clients and friends to check in. Check-ins are huge for growing your business because they show their friends that they’ve using your services, even in a mobile business like real estate, as well as sharing photos, videos, comments, and reviews of your services. That’s a very valuable promotional opportunity – and free with Facebook Places. 8. Contact info and other nuts and bolts I can’t tell you how many times consumers find a business website, page, or other social media account but can’t locate the most basic of info, like their phone number, email, address, website, and hours of operation. There is no good place to highlight these things on a personal profile, but with a business page, all of that will come across loud and clear – helping eager home buyers or sellers find you! 9. Enhanced privacy Business pages offer many more ways to monitor, screen, and filter the content that others are sharing on your timeline and page. Likewise, since your business page deals with your vocation and not your personal life, you’re creating a safety buffer to protect your identity, data, and even your family. I can’t stress that need enough as these days, being cautious and safe is so important for all Realtors, but especially female agents and business owners who might be working alone. 10. You can convert your personal profile to a business page Have you invested years of time and work into your profile, building it up to a few thousand friends? If that’s the case, then you definitely don’t want to lose that social media account, but the good news is that you can convert your personal page to a business page seamlessly, keeping your existing friends but opening up to all of the benefits of a business page. (However, you will lose your past content, so download all of your Facebook photos in a zip file first.) *** Here’s the easy solution I promised you: Don’t want to split your attention between your personal profile and a business page? Post content to your business page first, and then share it to your personal timeline. It will still reach your personal audience but also help make them aware of your business page and promote it, garnering likes, comments, and more interaction. Boom! Look for part two of this blog soon with 10 more reasons you NEED to use your business Facebook page. -Norm :-) Interviewing someone is a fantastic marketing tool for any Realtor, loan officer, or professional. Recently, I had an epiphany while running on the treadmill. (No, it wasn’t that my shorts are too short or that I run too slow.) Instead, it was this: my humble Real Estate Marketing with Norm brand may not be anything special yet (although growing steadily), but I do have access to some incredible and inspiring professionals that people would love to hear about. So, why not tap into their wisdom, experience, and expertise by setting up a series of interviews? That’s exactly what I’ve undertaken, as once I was off the treadmill, I furiously sent out emails to some of the most accomplished and coolest real estate pros I know (as well as buying some longer shorts). Today, I’m super excited to share the marketing benefits of interviews, as well as the nuts and bolts of why they’re so powerful. The problem with most marketing Marketing tends to get “I-centric” for lack of a better term. “I can help you buy or sell your home,” “I’m the best professional to do the job,” and “I’m the greatest of all time.” Go to MY website, call ME, and I can get you a great mortgage loan – it’s all about me, myself, and I. Sometimes, if Realtors, loan officers, and business owners really “get it,” they elevate their marketing to focus on the client, instead – highlighting the benefits, stories, and help and value they received. That’s a huge shift from “I-centric” to focusing on your audience’s needs, challenges, and wants that will make all the difference. But there’s a next-level resource for your marketing that’s incredibly simple but also surprisingly powerful and effective: the interview. No matter if you’re a real estate agent trying to focus on a certain neighborhood, a lender narrowing in on a specific demographic, or any business owner targeting their marketing, an interview will serve you incredibly well. The marketing benefits of an interview An interview will also be a promotional coup for you, offering:
2X your audience – and increase your business Let’s talk about that last one for a moment. One of the chief benefits of creating these is cross-marketing to an exponentially larger audience. For instance, if you write up a nice piece about your favorite mortgage broker, they will probably super appreciate the effort and share or repost it with their social media followers and audience. With that, you’re given a warm introduction that includes your name, profession, social media links, email, blog or website, and a boat load of built-in trust and credibility. You may gain exposure among hundreds or even thousands of new people who didn’t know about you before, and benefit from potential new business accordingly. In fact, I’ve seen one simple interview 2X the size of someone’s audience! Think of the potential if you do a whole monthly series! Who should you interview? That’s the fun part, as the possibilities are limitless. Of course, you can interview someone who works with your clients, like a lender for Realtors or vice versa. Or, show some love to a referral partner by highlighting their business. Here are some examples:
You get the idea! Not only will most people agree to an interview, they’ll feel appreciated and honored and answer your emails or calls immediately! Conducting the actual interview To carry out an interview, it couldn’t be easier – just ask someone if you could spend 15 minutes asking them a few questions. Shoot them a list of perspective questions or topics ahead of time so they can think about it. Sit face to face or call them on Skype, Facetime, or just over the phone if you’re not in the same area. You can either video the interview or just record the audio using one of the many programs available on your laptop or even your smart phone. Where to post the interview Either way, you’ll edit it down and can use it in several places:
Give it an interesting name You can call it an interview, or some other catchy title like: 10 Fast Facts with _________. 10 Quotes by __________. 5 Questions with ___________. 10 Minutes with __________. Inside the mind of ________. Confessions of a _________. Etc. Aim high with the subject of your interview But it’s also a good idea to aim above your pay-grade on this one, so to speak. What I mean by that is don’t limit yourself to your best friend or someone who is already giving you business. Send out a few emails and requests to interview people who are notable, iconic, and even famous in your local city, region, or nationally. Why the heck not? You have nothing to lose. Think big. Profiling someone famous In a slightly different strategy, you can also write up a profile on someone famous instead of interviewing them, like I did here with real estate couch Mike ferry. It’s not an interview and I never talked to the man, but I put together a profile with a quick Google search that he’d find favorable. Remember we talked about cross-marketing to an exponentially larger audience? When profiling someone famous, enjoys name recognition, or anyone who holds a certain amount of gravitas, you really can tap into their massive number of fans and followers just by using the right hashtags or tagging them. A final word on interviews With interviews, you’re simply offering useful, interesting, and fun content to your audience and turning the spotlight from yourself to others. Pretty soon, someone will want to interview you! *** Need help setting up an interview for your business? Or, do you have some great insights you’d like to share in one of my real estate marketing interviews? Hit me up! -Norm :-) Download and share your high-quality PDF version:
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