21 Best Real Estate Marketing Ideas & Strategies for Success
Gina is a licensed real estate salesperson, experienced trainer, and former high school educator of 1,000+ learners. She writes for Fit Small Business with a focus on real estate content.
This article is part of a larger series on Real Estate Lead Generation and Marketing.
Trying new real estate marketing ideas and refining your strategies for email marketing, personal follow-ups, niche targeting campaigns, and more allows you to pinpoint the tactics that work best for you and your business goals. Use the 21 creative, budget-friendly ideas and strategies below to differentiate yourself from the competition.
You can also create an online hub for your marketing efforts by using a platform like Placester to build and design your website. It offers customizable templates and landing pages so you can easily tailor the site to represent your brand. Plus, you can integrate IDX listings for lead generation, ensuring that website visitors can search for properties that fit their criteria.
Here are our top 21 best real estate marketing ideas and strategies for success in real estate:
1. Create a Real Estate Website & Landing Page
Landing page example (Source: Campaign Monitor)
A real estate website is the foundation to an online presence for your business. It provides prospective clients with the pertinent information they need to know about you and the services you provide. A well-curated website will build brand awareness and generate leads from your target audience.
The website should be visually appealing, easy to navigate, and have a distinct call to action (CTA) for those who visit your site. The overall design should connect with the type of client you are looking to work with. For example, if you want to work in the luxury space, the aesthetics of your website should be sophisticated and elegant, whereas if you’re marketing to first-time homebuyers, your website should include educational materials to bring value to their experience.
Adding landing pages to your website is another means to market to and generate leads. These are singular pages designed to focus the attention of the site visitor and encourage them to leave their contact information while you offer something in return. For example, real estate landing pages can be used to capture the contact information of visitors who want to view listings or obtain a free market report or home valuation.
Agents looking for the best real estate website builders for landing pages should check out Real Geeks. They provide lead-generating websites connected to the Internet Data Exchange (IDX). The IDX allows you to capture leads through property searches on your site. Real Geeks also provide a variety of customizable landing page templates such as a property landing page or coming soon landing page.
2. Ask for Referrals & Give Referral Gifts
Real estate referral postcard (Source: Quote Gram)
Referrals are among the most successful and cost-effective marketing ideas for realtors. Referrals have a 30% higher close rate than leads generated through other channels. Agents can obtain referral leads from colleagues, family members, or friends, and asking former clients whom you have a great relationship with is equally (or even more) effective because they already have developed trust with you.
Developing relationships with agents whose business is complementary to yours is an effective strategy for real estate referral lead generation. Because you cannot work every lead you receive due to limitations like specific area knowledge or property type, you can still benefit from that lead by earning a referral fee from the agents you refer to.
If you receive referrals, always remember to send a thank you or a gift regardless of whether the referral closes a deal or not. You want to make sure those sending you business feel appreciated, but you want them to continue to keep you in mind in the future. A small token of appreciation will go a long way in growing your business.
You can connect a platform like EvaBot to your customer relationship management (CRM) software to automatically send gifts on your behalf. It uses artificial intelligence to determine the recipient’s gift preference and makes sure they don’t receive the same gift twice.
3. Host Open Houses
Open house sign (Source: Inman)
If you have access to exclusive real estate listings, take advantage of the opportunity to host open houses for extra exposure. Place open house signs in the yard and the neighborhood to help market yourself and the listing. Make sure your signage includes your logo to reinforce your branding.
Open houses give you the opportunity to engage with people who are interested in living in the neighborhood and invite them to attend. In addition, you’ll attract prospective buyers who have the potential to become your next client if they’re not already represented. Make sure you collect the contact information of attendees and add it to your CRM so you can follow up with listing updates and automated email drip campaigns.
Lead nurturing updates like these can even be automated using Market Leader’s marketing automation tools. The platform can help produce direct mail, listing emails, social media posts, and individual listing websites to promote your exclusive listings. Other tools connected to the CRM can produce professional newsletters and pull in contacts from real estate-based websites to increase your contact lists.
4. Be Active on Social Media
AdEspresso Facebook post example
Social media marketing can help with brand awareness and drive leads to your website. It allows agents to reach a broader audience since you’re not limited to only marketing on real estate-specific sites. A few of the top social media platforms to generate leads are Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, and LinkedIn. Each platform has differentiating characteristics, so you’ll have to tailor your marketing message accordingly.
Platform | Tailor Your Strategy | Read More |
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LinkedIn |
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Facebook |
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Instagram |
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TikTok |
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YouTube |
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Increasing your social media following can take up a lot of time. Agents can outsource social media marketing to companies such as Artur’In that specialize in real estate-specific social media and digital marketing on platforms like Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter. While you focus on developing relationships and closing deals, Artur’In automatically handles your social media posts, profile management, newsletters, and getting more reviews on your behalf.
For more social media marketing ideas for realtors, visit our article Top 15 Ways to Crush Your Real Estate Social Media Marketing.
5. Write Personal Notes to Stand Out
Handwritten thank-you note (Source: Inman)
Personal notes are a tried-and-true real estate marketing idea to develop deeper relationships, show your appreciation, and leave a lasting impression with clients, colleagues, and peers. It’s important to avoid any business promotion in your notes and personalize them to be more impactful. Plus, writing personal notes is one of the most cost-effective real estate marketing ideas.
Write a thank-you note when you receive a referral, close a deal, host an event, or when someone simply gives you their time. Make sure you send thank-you notes promptly since waiting too long will appear as an afterthought. Life events like a birthday, the birth of a child, or a career switch are great opportunities to send a personal note.
6. Develop Real Estate Email Marketing Campaigns
Email campaign templates (Source: eCampaignPro)
Effective real estate email marketing campaigns increase engagement with your business and keep your services top of mind, which in return drives more leads and sales. Before sending email campaigns, develop a targeted list of contacts. For example, you’ll send a different email campaign to sellers than to buyers or investors. You can also curate email marketing campaigns based on levels of interest, such as new acquaintances versus hot leads that are ready to look at homes.
Each email campaign should have a specific marketing goal. Maybe you want to welcome new subscribers, introduce yourself, or boost engagement. Whatever the goal may be, make sure the content matches the goal intent and is sent to the right segments of your audience.
Your email campaigns can be set on autopilot through a CRM so you don’t have to remember to send them or manually add contacts as new emails are created. CRMs like Top Producer are created specifically for real estate professionals, with useful integrations to collect leads from your website or sites where you advertise and send personalized emails on your behalf for a better client experience.
7. Real Estate Marketing Ideas for Niche Targeting
Popular niches (Source: McKissock)
Niche marketing is a way to hyper-target your marketing efforts and differentiate you from the competition. Niches can be based on location, property type, buyers or sellers, or different community interests. Real estate agents should target their message to the specific niche to establish their expertise with prospective clients.
Once you’ve identified which niche you want to market to, you’ll have to find the right channels to connect with clients within that niche. You can use direct mail, community events, or leverage local social media groups to market to clients. You’ll want to keep engaging with prospective clients within your niches consistently to create brand recognition. To discover your real estate nice, read our article 10 Most Lucrative Real Estate Niches & Why They Work.
8. Support & Partner With Local Businesses
(Source: Intuit)
Agents can connect with local businesses to expand their marketing reach, client base, and increase revenue through cross-promotion. The partnership should have common goals of driving business to both companies and be a company you can personally support. For example, if you’re a vegetarian, partnering with a local butcher shop may not be the best fit for you. However, because you’re in the real estate business, partnering with a local furniture or moving company can provide an added incentive for clients to work with you.
The strategic collaboration can leverage the contact lists and brand power of both businesses to drive leads. Once a partnership is established, you can promote the partnership on each business’ social platforms, website, events, and through email marketing campaigns. In addition, both parties can send clients to each other continuously as the relationship grows.
9. Provide Complimentary Services
(Source: Mark Pryor)
It seems counterintuitive to offer complementary services as part of a real estate marketing strategy because you’re trying to generate revenue to grow your business. However, offering complementary services can be a strategic way to support your business in the long run. Free items tend to draw interest and excite prospective clients about your services.
For example, provide a free comparable analysis to sellers as a way to collect email addresses for future marketing campaigns. Create social media contests to encourage business, increase your following, and grow your email subscriber list. This real estate marketing idea helps prospective clients understand your business and what you have to offer so they return to you for paid services.
10. Publish a Neighborhood Guide
Neighborhood map (Source: National Geographic Society)
Another creative marketing idea for realtors is to publish neighborhood guides. They are helpful resources for prospective clients interested in an area. Publishing a neighborhood guide can drive leads to your business when clients come across your information when learning more about a prospective area.
Neighborhood guides can position you as the local expert and should include your contact information with a call to action so potential clients can reach out. Make sure your neighborhood guides are as authentic as possible and don’t just re-up generic information from other resources. Some things to include in your neighborhood guides are:
- Housing market trends
- Area amenities
- Educational establishments
- Transportation options
- Dining options
- Fun facts about the area
Since you’re targeting buyers and sellers within a specific area to position yourself as the neighborhood expert, include information that is pertinent to your ideal client types. To assist with the design and creation of neighborhood guides, hire a freelance designer through Fiverr. It’s a great resource for cost-effective, one-off real estate marketing ideas that need a quick turnaround, with prices starting as little as $5.
11. Throw Co-branded Events With Other Real Estate Professionals
Co-branded marketing materials (Source: Jungo)
Co-marketing events with other real estate pros is a mutually beneficial partnership. These relationships should have differentiating business goals so you are not in direct competition. Develop partnerships with industry professionals who complement your business, such as loan officers, title company agents, mortgage brokers, contractors, appraisers, property developers, home remodelers, painters, landscapers, and so on.
Before hosting an event, understand the target audience for each partner in order to craft a joint marketing message to prospective clients. Real estate agents should also understand each prospective partner’s goal so you can support and provide value to each other. Some possible events to host are first-time homebuyer seminars, how to purchase distressed real estate, how to obtain a mortgage, and so forth.
12. Produce a Monthly Real Estate Newsletter
Newsletter example (Source: Follow Up Boss)
Newsletter marketing is the practice of sending informational and business-related content to your contact lists to keep your services top of mind. You can use real estate marketing ideas like newsletters to establish your expertise, keep your brand top of mind, provide forward-to-a-friend-worthy content, and give prospects information that is interesting, educational, or entertaining.
Use a catchy headline, add a clear call to action, and produce a newsletter that is easy to read and comprehend. You can send your newsletter electronically or through direct mail weekly, biweekly, or monthly. There are many real estate newsletter ideas you can implement, like holiday-themed, current market trends, or recipe newsletters.
When you send your newsletters through a CRM like Follow Up Boss, you can capture quantifiable metrics to determine if this real estate marketing idea was successful. These metrics can show you if your subscriber count has increased, how many people opened your newsletter, and how many have clicked through the call to action.
For additional assistance creating real estate newsletters, check out the 12 templates provided in our list of the Best Real Estate Newsletter Templates.
13. Send Farming Postcards
Postcard campaign example (Source: ProspectsPLUS!)
Real estate farming is a proven lead generation strategy and marketing idea for realtors for targeting homeowners in a specific neighborhood. Use real estate farming postcards to implement this strategy in order to get your brand and contact information in front of prospective clients. Postcards should display your contact information and showcase your experience, knowledge, and personality with engaging content. They should have a distinct call to action to drive leads and grow business.
To save time, use a service like ProspectsPLUS! to customize and send your postcards. ProspectsPLUS! is a direct marketing company that sends promotional mailers. Their services include designing, printing, and publishing mailers. They have provided mailing lists to target geographical areas, demographics, and lifestyle-based mailing lists if you don’t have your own.
14. Volunteer & Sponsor Local Charities
(Source: U.S. News)
Volunteering your time to local charities connects you to like-minded people who share your values, and is an effective real estate marketing idea for building connections. Real estate agents and brokerages should view these events as a networking opportunity to connect with other professionals and sponsor events for additional brand exposure.
These relationships can be a catalyst to help you drive strong leads and referrals as you stay connected to the contacts made while volunteering. You can add these contacts to your CRM and assign them to your real estate newsletter audience as well as various general real estate marketing campaigns.
Monitor your lead-nurturing efforts using a CRM like Pipedrive, which provides detailed communication tracking. The platform allows you to make calls directly to your contact and logs the activity automatically. It also provides insights on email activity, so you can see which contacts have been engaged with your communications.
15. Start a YouTube Channel
Top real estate channels (Source: VanEd Real Estate School)
As the second-largest search engine next to Google, YouTube is a free video-sharing platform that allows users to create and store videos for prospective clients to watch online. Similar to real estate postcard framing, consistency of uploading videos on a predetermined schedule is key to satisfying video subscribers. Once published, they can help to generate leads over and over as they are viewed on the platform, shared on social networks, or embedded into your website and email marketing content.
Provide a video introduction of yourself, your services, and valuable information your viewers might enjoy. In order to attract viewership on YouTube, use specific keywords in your video header and the description. Agents can also take these videos and use them on social platforms, email marketing, or post them as a library of information on your website.
16. Write a Blog
(Source: Key Real Estate Resources)
Real estate blog posts can be personal or business-related to share your thoughts on topics that may be interesting to your target audience. Blogs help with search engine optimization (SEO) to attract new visitors to your website and are an impactful real estate marketing idea for lead conversion. Like real estate newsletters, your blog posts offer another way to keep prospects up to date on new listings and provide more in-depth information about listings, services, and yourself.
According to HubSpot, a CRM platform with marketing and sales integrations, a blog is used to drive traffic to your website to create an opportunity to convert those visitors to leads. Attaching a CRM like HubSpot to your website can nurture leads through automation by sending your website visitors updates when you post a new blog.
17. Distribute Promotional Materials
Promotional products (Source: VistaPrint)
Branded real estate marketing materials can be distributed during an event, open houses, or mailed with a note. These items can be used as a way to keep your contact information available to prospective clients, especially if the item distributed is useful.
Agents can get as creative as they want by using items that really stand out instead of just a pen or notepad that sometimes are easily tossed. For example, items like branded reusable water bottles, cell phone cases, or recyclable grocery bags are cost-effective, demonstrate your success in the real estate industry, and can help you obtain new client and listing leads.
While branded materials are a traditional real estate marketing idea, putting your own spin on materials will increase the likelihood of being remembered by prospective clients. A wide selection of unique promotional items can be found at AnyPromo. They offer fast and free shipping with a real estate industry-specific selection to help capture the attention and interest of your clients.
18. Participate in Community Events
(Source: Eventbrite)
Participating in a community event is a great real estate marketing idea that helps agents connect and attract prospective clients at the local level. These events allow you to make a lasting impression and attract the attention of fellow community members. They also help you increase loyalty with those around you, as it helps you develop deep relationships with others while coming together for a singular goal.
Make sure you participate in events that are authentic to your interests or your efforts may seem insincere. You can even reach out to clients on your contact list within the area and invite them to join you, which is another opportunity to leverage a community event to drive leads.
19. Write for Real Estate Publications
(Source: REALTOR® Magazine)
Real estate publications further allow you to market yourself, establish your real estate expertise, and create valuable exposure for your website and social media profiles. Choose topics the publication’s readers would find relevant and valuable so they return to keep reading your column. Not only will prospective clients find you, but you’ll also drive traffic to your website, grow your subscriber and follower lists, and expand your reach beyond locational barriers.
In order to have the opportunity to write for a publication, agents can network and make valuable connections with the editors of the desired publication or the current writers. LinkedIn is a great platform to introduce yourself and connect, and attending real estate events hosted by the publication is another opportunity to meet.
Websites like Help a Reporter Out (HARO) connect writers to expert sources for their content pieces. To use HARO, sign up for topic-specific requests from journalists and submit pitches for those you’re most interested in contributing to. You will then (hopefully) get published in online articles that link back to your website and showcase your expertise.
20. Pay-per-Click Ads Online
Zillow Premier Agent app
In addition to generating real estate leads organically, you can also use pay-per-click advertising to grow your business as a supplement to traditional real estate marketing ideas. The cost structure for paid advertising may be based on clicks or impressions by visitors. This ensures those who are engaging with your ad are active within their search. Social media ads, print advertisements, and search engine marketing are all forms of real estate ads.
Social media ads rely on high-quality photos and targeted taglines to create a call to action. Print ads can contain a Quick Response (QR) code to send people directly to your real estate website or landing page to gather leads. Advertising on Google and Google local search help you attract leads that are ready to convert based on search intent, and remarketing display ads put your brand in front of people who have visited your website in the past to keep your services top of mind.
Zillow Premier Agent enables agents to generate buyer leads from the most popular real estate website. The program allows agents to have their contact information displayed on listings based on their chosen ZIP codes and allocated budget. This allows buyers to select your contact information to provide them with information instead of the listing agent. Zillow Premier Agent provides agents with a back-end application to help track incoming leads, conversions, and overall business performance.
21. Offer Zoom Client Meetings
(Source: Zoom)
With busy schedules and many clients working remotely, offering Zoom client meetings is a valuable opportunity to connect with clients in a way that’s more time-efficient. Agents can connect with prospects or clients to discuss the market, understand their wants and needs, or answer any lingering questions they have post-showing. Virtual meetings allow for easier scheduling because they can be set at odd hours since you don’t have to meet in person.
Using virtual communication tools also opens up the opportunity to prospect for new clients without the need to host a physical in-person event to provide real estate information. The ability to have voice and visual communication creates a realistic environment, which is beneficial for prospective clients who may be physically located within your service area. Agents can use virtual events to showcase their expertise to a broader audience or offer free consultations that can turn into leads.
Bottom Line
For an agent or brokerage, effective real estate marketing ideas are key to growing your business. Determine your marketing budget and business goals before executing these marketing ideas for realtors. Keep in mind that your real estate marketing strategy should be a combination of online digital, print marketing, and in-person relationship development to consistently keep your sales funnel full.