5 marketing strategies to help first-year agents stand out

As a brand new real estate agent, you’re learning a lot at a fast pace. It can be tough to nail down exactly what you need to do and what you should let go until you get a little more experience.

To help you sift through the many strategies you’ll see, we’ve narrowed down a few tips and highly underutilized marketing tactics to help you stand out in your first year as an agent.

Get a personal website

Most agents think of their personal websites as a place for clients and prospects to search for homes. It’s nearly impossible for an individual agent to create the same user experience on his or her site to match a page like Zillow.

Instead, focus on making your persona agent website a place that clients and prospects will actually visit and use. And you do this by generating great video and written content to your site and promoting it through your social media channels including Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram and Medium.  As a NAR member benefit, Realtors can establish a free website complete with IDX feed on Placester.com/nar-members.

This way, you build direct relationships with your audience through engaging content not just post about newly listed homes or upcoming open houses.

Leverage influencers

Influencers might sound like people who have millions of followers on their social media accounts, but they don’t have to be. They can be anyone who fits the profile of your ideal client, regardless of the number of social media followers they have.

This strategy is perfect for your first few clients after you’ve given them a super memorable experience.

When they share the awesome experiences you created for them on their social media, it’s an amazing form of advertisement for you as a new agent. With their permission, you can even use their post to run targeted Facebook ads to reach an even bigger audience.

Shoot lots of video

It’s all about creating interesting content people actually want to engage with. Don’t be like every other agent who just talks about his or her latest listing and open houses on his or her social media and blog.

Instead, you can create storytelling situations that people actually want to read, watch or listen to. Here are some ideas to get you started:

• Do a two-minute video to inform your audience of the worst potholes in the neighborhood
• Interview local small business owners
• Tour various schools in your neighborhood (arrange a meeting with the headmaster or principal to make it even more engaging)
• Run a Facebook Live webinar to answer real estate questions

Keep in mind, once you create a video, it can easily be repurposed. You can write a blog post about it, shoot a Facebook Live video hyping it or even post a couple snippets on your LinkedIn page.

Invest in a videographer

It can be intimidating to pull out your phone and start recording video of yourself. However, it’s a lot easier when you have someone else shooting the video.

You don’t even need a full-time videographer initially. With a little networking and patience, you can find the right candidate to help you on a part-time basis one or two days a week.

Try speaking with the admin staff at your local film school to see if a student there would be interested in an internship with you.

Send modern handwritten notes

A common tip for agents in all stages is to send handwritten notes to clients and prospects. It’s super memorable.

Yes, it’s true that people love receiving handwritten notes. But let’s face it, it’s a big hassle to go out and buy a card, find a stamp, write a nice note in your best handwriting, find an envelope and then go out of your way to find a mailbox to actually mail it.

Luckily, I’ve found a better solution: the Felt iPhone app. This awesome app lets you create a personalized card with a photo and handwritten note on it. You can even handwrite the address on the envelope using the app.

Once you’re happy with the way everything looks, Felt will mail it out for you. Simple as that! You can even add flowers, chocolates or gift cards all with just a few taps of your phone.

A good digital marketing strategy can act as a catalyst to your new real estate business. Being consistent and regular in your digital marketing strategy will help you to increase your visibility.

Remember to be authentic with any of these strategies. It’s a long-term investment, but once you establish your online presence, you’ll build a reputation for yourself that’ll take you much further than other agents.