Email Marketing – The Close

7 Real Estate Marketing Materials That Will Help You Build a Better Personal Brand

Emile L'Eplattenier — Tue, 26 Apr 2022 20:26:53 +0000

If you want to build a personal brand that generates business while you sleep, choosing the right real estate marketing materials is crucial. Why? Simple. Second only to your time and emotional energy, your marketing materials are your most precious assets. Think of them as the vehicle that delivers your personal brand to the world.

Of course, even experienced agents are having a hard time choosing which marketing materials to spend their hard-earned time and money on. That’s why we worked with our friends at SERHANT. to put together this definitive guide to the seven real estate marketing materials every agent needs to build a better personal brand in 2022. Whether you need Instagram Reels templates or business card advice, we have you covered.

1. Professional Pictures: One Headshot, One Lifestyle

(Source: Sell it Like Serhant: How to Build Your Personal Brand workbook)

One of the most important lessons that Ryan Serhant teaches in his Sell It Like Serhant: How to Build a Personal Brand course is that your personal brand needs to be curated and authentic. After all, people should want to work with YOU, not just “a real estate agent.” There are millions of real estate agents, but only one you. This is why headshots are by far your most important marketing material.

Pro Tip

For your lifestyle shot, pay particular attention to your body language. The goal is to look open and approachable, not guarded. You can see the difference in the two pictures above.

Your headshots literally put a face to your personal brand and are the only a that cannot be copied by other agents. So take the time to make sure your headshots are both curated and authentic. Ryan recommends creating two headshots to use in your real estate marketing materials: one professional headshot and one lifestyle shot.

When it comes to social media marketing materials, many agents make the mistake of assuming that bringing their authentic selves to social media means they need to create everything from scratch. Nothing could be further from the truth. Sure, that behind-the-scenes Reel you shot at your open house doesn’t have to look like a Hollywood movie, but it does need to look polished and professional.

This is where professionally designed social media templates come in. Instead of trying to reinvent the wheel every time you post on Instagram or Facebook, you can use templates designed for real estate agents by professional graphic designers. The difference between professional social media templates and generic templates from Canva is night and day.

You can see examples of some of the best social media templates along with the best places to buy them here:

3. A Website That Shows Off Your Personal Brand

After your headshots and social media templates, your website is your next most important marketing material. It’s also one of the only brand assets you will truly own. After all, no matter how hard you work on them, you don’t really own any of your social media profiles, or even the shiny new website your brokerage provides for you.

While you might be tempted to add bells and whistles to your website, like IDX listings, lead capture, landing pages, and a customer relationship manager (CRM), make sure it reflects your personal brand first. For a good example of a website that centers personal branding, check out Carlin Wright’s website above. Notice how she uses her lifestyle picture front and center? This was no accident. Her website is about her, not “real estate.”

If you want a site like Carlin’s, you can hire her designer, Luxury Presence, to build and host your website starting at around $180 per month, plus design fees.

Visit Luxury Presence

Or, if you want more control and want to level up your own skillset, check out our guide to building a website using WordPress here:

4. Strategically Designed Business Cards

Even in the age of Realtor TikTok stars, there’s just something about a well-designed business card printed on quality paper stock that can’t be beat. Sure, popping up in someone’s social media feed once a week is great, but your business card might get pinned to a bulletin board, kept in a wallet, or sit on someone’s desk for months on end. Not bad for a 50-cent piece of paper, right?

Of course, like your website, your business cards should reflect your personal brand. So make sure to use your brand colors, fonts, and if you’re brave enough, your headshot. As far as strategy goes—whether you’re working with a designer or creating them yourself—it can be helpful to ask yourself, “Is this a business card I would keep? Why or why not?” If the answer is no, you need to go back to the drawing board.

5. A Facebook Business Page

Even though your teenage niece will probably tell you Facebook is like, SO over, you still need a business page, even if you never post on it. Why? Demographics. The average age of a Facebook user is a little over 40 years old, and a whopping 20% are over the age of 55. Sounds dull, right? Well, what if I told you that according to data from Zillow, the average age of a homeseller is 45?

With demographics like that, a Facebook Business page is not optional for serious Realtors. It’s not all about demographics, though. If you want to advertise on Facebook or Instagram, you will need a Facebook business page. So even if you also think Facebook is like, SO over, you’re going to need to build one.

If you don’t already have one, we have an easy step-by-step guide to building a Facebook business page here:

6. Postcards (That Look Like Instagram)

Want to get laughed at? Tell someone under 30 that you’re sending them a postcard. If they’re under 20, you might have to actually explain what a postcard is. Of course, while we have nothing against 20-year-olds, they’re not exactly the right audience for your real estate marketing materials. Not even close.

According to the National Association of Realtors (NAR) 2021 Homebuyers and Sellers Generational Trends Report, the average homebuyer is 47 years old. Take it from me, people our age like getting postcards and older people LOVE getting postcards. My mother is in her seventies, owns several homes, and sits down on her recliner every morning to go through her mail. You know where she’s not spending her mornings? TikTok!

But just because you’re sending postcards doesn’t mean you can’t have fun with them—assuming your personal brand is fun, that is. For example, check out the Instagram-inspired postcard from Coffee & Contracts above. Why use Instagram-inspired design for your postcards? Simple. Television ads and even ads in newspapers are inspired by online design trends these days.

You can check out more real estate marketing templates from Coffee & Contracts, including Instagram Reels templates and memes, from The Broke Agent here:

Visit Coffee & Contracts

Like postcards, email newsletters are another crucial marketing material that will make your niece roll her eyes. It also happens to be one of the best ways to market to your sphere. Why? Simple. You don’t own your social media profiles, but you do own your email list.

Email is also much easier to scale than social media, and much less expensive than pay-per-click (PPC) advertising. The return on investment (ROI) for your time and effort is also better. According to statistics from Campaign Monitor, the average open rate (what percentage of your list opens one of your emails) is 21.7%. So as long as you keep growing your list, the number of people you reach with your content will continue to grow without any extra work.

If you plan a content calendar for your email newsletter, you can keep your sphere engaged for years with just an hour or two of work per week. Here are a few easy real estate newsletter ideas to get you started:

Over to You

Do you think these are the right real estate marketing materials every agent needs to build their personal brand? If not, what would you include instead? Let us know in the comments.

The post 7 Real Estate Marketing Materials That Will Help You Build a Better Personal Brand appeared first on The Close.

The 7 Best Free Real Estate CRMs of 2022

Chris Linsell — Mon, 25 Apr 2022 22:58:39 +0000

A free real estate CRM or customer relationship management tool is essential for any new agent looking to close more than one or two transactions a year. Good CRM tools help you organize your contacts, establish a consistent communication plan for each client, and ultimately, close more deals. But most real estate-specific CRMs come with a price tag.

When your budget is tight, knowing about free options that can bridge the gap until you can afford a paid version is critical. To determine the top-notch performers, we evaluated no-cost platforms based on ease of use, communication tools, automation capabilities, contact management features, analytics, customer support, and upgrade options.

Here are our picks for the best free real estate CRM platforms of 2022:

7 Best Free Real Estate CRMs of 2022

Free CRM	Best For
Insightly	(Best Overall) Agents looking for an efficient CRM with comprehensive analytics
IXACT Contact	Realtors who want to integrate their CRM with their marketing and automate their communication
Freshsales CRM	Agents who want to build relationships with personalized communication
HubSpot	Real estate agents who want a customizable real estate CRM
RealOffice360	Realtors who want a beautiful interface and a great pipeline management system
Agile CRM	Seasoned agents who are data-driven
Bitrix24	Real estate teams looking for a free platform

Answer a few questions about your business, and we'll give you a personalized product match.

Question 1

Have you had your real estate license for less than a year?

Question 1 of 3

1 minute approx

Yes

Question 2

Are you leading or a part of a real estate team?

Question 2 of 3

1 minute approx

Yes

Question 3

How important is customization when choosing your real estate CRM?

Question 3 of 3

1 minute approx

Very important

Somewhat important

Not important at all

Now that we’ve explored who each CRM is best suited for, let’s dig into each one in a little more detail.

Best Overall Free Real Estate CRM: Insightly

Insightly is a real estate CRM that packs a ton of optimum features into its free product, many of which help Realtors organize contacts and leads, as well as set up email campaigns and an outreach schedule.

Free for solo users or teams of two, the Insightly system is contact-based and task-oriented, making it the perfect tool to create to-do lists for each of your contacts (something Insightly calls “projects”). Then you can start checking off those tasks.

Best Insightly Feature for Real Estate Agents: Robust Analytics

Insightly offers some surprisingly robust analytics with their free plan. The email analytics give you useful data about open rates, times, locations, and even operating systems for your recipients. This data can be used to help customize your subsequent messages—upping your conversion rates and improving your performance.

Speaking of performance, Insightly’s task-oriented nature provides data points on an agent’s performance as well, making it a helpful tool for measuring your own effort.

While you don’t get many choices when it comes to customizing your analytics dashboard, Insightly offers many helpful metrics, like contact reports, team reports, and overall opportunity reports. These more than make up for any lack of customization.

Where Insightly Comes Up Short: Overall Customization & Support

The two major challenges of the Insightly free CRM are the lack of customization and customer support.

As a free subscriber, you’re unable to change some of the generic sales language on the interface to real estate-specific labels, which means there’s a bit of internal translation necessary for real estate agents. Not a huge deal, but if you’re onboarding a new team member or are new to the business yourself, these extra steps can be a stumbling block.

Also, Insightly’s free plan doesn’t offer any sort of person-to-person customer support. Instead, they provide a robust learning library and some very helpful forums, but if you’re looking to speak to another person, you’ll have to upgrade to the paid plan.

For real estate agents looking for a more customized experience, HubSpot is a user-friendly alternative to the statistical powerhouse of Insightly.

Insightly Upgrade Options

When you’re ready to upgrade, Insightly offers some very affordable choices. The Plus plan gives you appealing features like unlimited users, a handy Mailchimp integration, lots of field customization, and a whole bunch of email templates—all for $29 per user, per month.

The $49 per user, per month Professional plan adds virtually limitless customization, email scheduling, and automation, as well as a more advanced lead assignment and team management suite.

The Enterprise upgrade costs $99 per user, per month and makes the Professional plan available to everyone in your office.

Final Thoughts on Insightly

There is a lot to do on Insightly’s free CRM platform—enough to keep most real estate agents busy for quite a while before needing to upgrade. Because Insightly is so dense with options, it can take a little time to get up to speed, but once you do, this is a free real estate CRM that boosts accountability and data-driven decision-making.

Check Out Insightly

Best Free Real Estate CRM for an Integrated CRM / Marketing Experience: IXACT Contact

IXACT Contact is a premium real estate CRM that is actually on our list of the best (paid) real estate CRMs of 2022, so why is it also here? Because IXACT Contact offers “rookie Realtors” SIX MONTHS FREE (to anyone who’s had their license for a year or less). Plus, IXACT offers a full five-week trial for anyone interested in trying the platform, regardless of how long they’ve been licensed.

They are easily the most robust and sophisticated platform on our list, and the only reason they’re not our best overall choice is that they aren’t free forever. Still, if you’re a new Realtor and looking for a free CRM, you can’t get a significantly better deal than the one offered by IXACT Contact.

Best IXACT Contact Feature for Real Estate Agents: Keep In Touch Dashboard

The IXACT Contact “Keep In Touch Dashboard” is a great answer to Realtors dealing with the timeless “how often should I…” set of questions. Knowing when and how often to reach out, maintain relationships, and nurture leads down the funnel is critical to success, and this IXACT Contact tool does this very well.

As a contact moves through the CRM lifecycle, IXACT Contact adjusts the frequency of your outreach. It provides suggestions for email drip campaigns that might be beneficial. It also calls out important dates like birthdays or anniversaries that you note in a contact’s lead profile.

The Keep In Touch Dashboard is a simple feature with powerful results and precisely what you’re looking for in a real estate CRM.

Where IXACT Contact Comes Up Short: Only Free for a Limited Time

IXACT Contact offers a full-featured free trial to any new user for five weeks. No matter who you are, you can sign up for IXACT Contact, kick the tires, and find out if this platform is right for you.

If you’re a newly licensed (less than 12 months) agent, IXACT Contact offers you SIX MONTHS to use the platform for free, absolutely the best free trial available in the real estate CRM landscape.

Though we hate to complain about free stuff, it would be nice if IXACT Contact had a Free Forever plan like others on this list. Even a limited options / contacts plan would be attractive to agents who really can’t afford a paid CRM yet.

IXACT Contact Upgrade Options

Once your free trial ends, you’ve got some straightforward upgrade options with IXACT Contact. For $38 a month (billed annually), you get access to the CRM and its features, an automated newsletter, access to the mobile app, a website, and unlimited phone support.

If you want to upgrade your website to include IDX search, that option starts at an additional $13 per month. Adding on the popular Social Stream feature is another $20 a month, plus a host of other a la carte options you can use to customize your CRM experience.

Final Thoughts on IXACT Contact

Even though IXACT Contact isn’t free forever, it is definitely worth checking out, especially if you’re a new agent and looking for your first tool. They have a powerful, real estate-specific CRM. They offer many attractive features if you want to upgrade your experience, and you don’t need to sign a contract to use IXACT Contact. Also, if you’re going to try out the paid version for a month or two, you can do so without penalty.

If you want to read more about IXACT Contact, make sure you check out our full-length review, or just click below to visit their site and get started.

Check Out IXACT Contact

Best Free Real Estate CRM for Phone & Text: Freshsales CRM

Sometimes one of the most frustrating parts of a free real estate CRM platform is that communication options only start to ramp up when you upgrade to a more robust, paid plan. Not so with Freshsales CRM. You can send emails, SMS text messages, and even route phone calls to yourself and your team on this platform—all on their Free Forever plan (called “Sprout”).

Users have the option to upgrade their CRM to a paid version, unlocking a whole host of new abilities. As part of the Freshsales ecosystem, users can seamlessly integrate Freshsales into other products like Freshcaller, Freshmarketer, and Freshconnect.

Best Freshsales CRM Feature for Real Estate Agents: Email, Texting & Phone Integrations

Most free real estate CRM platforms offer basic email communication, and that’s about it. With Freshsales CRM, you definitely get that, but you get so much more.

First of all, by adding a few technical details about your email account, you unlock full-blown, two-way communication via email. The interface is just like you’d see in your native email browser but with all the bells and whistles that Freshsales CRM provides.

Secondly, using one of Freshsales’ text message partner providers, you can send and receive text messages from within the CRM window for as little as $.0075 per text or a monthly rate of $35 per month.

Same deal with the phone integrations, and you can purchase a phone number. Using the free version of Freshsales CRM, you can route calls to any phone you’d like, including setting up a rotation system so that leads are distributed to your team members.

Most free real estate CRM platforms require a monthly fee simply to access the option of paying for these extra services, so the fact that Freshsales includes it in its Free Forever plan is pretty impressive.

Where Freshsales CRM Comes Up Short: No Communication Automation Options

Despite all the fantastic communication tools available in the Sprout plan of Freshsales CRM, one area where it comes up noticeably short is in email automation. To put it bluntly, there is none.

If you want to schedule an email, create a drip sequence, or any sort of communication that you don’t have to physically hit the “go” button yourself when it’s time to send it, you’ll need to upgrade. Stepping up to the first paid tier does unlock these automations, but it would be nice to have at least a little something in the Free Forever plan.

Freshsales CRM Upgrade Options

Freshsales CRM offers plans for real estate agents at just about every level of their business.

The Growth plan ($15 per month) provides all the tools that 90% of real estate agents will need, including automated workflows, a free caller integration, and lead analytics, to name a few.

If you’re working with a team, stepping up to the Pro plan ($39 per month) might be the better route. You’ll get more sophisticated lead routing options and a few more flexible customizations for what you and your team are going to see on screen.

If you’re running a major operation, the Enterprise plan ($69 per month) might be worth it for you, if only for the Reports Dashboard that gets unlocked here. When you’ve got a team of 15 or 20 people working toward the same goal, the long-term success of your operation hinges on your ability to measure your team’s efficiency and identify where you’re dropping the ball.

The Reports Dashboard allows you to do all of that, create detailed revenue forecasts, track deals in real time, and compare agents and teams on several metrics.

The Forest plan ($79 per month) pulls out all the stops, but most of the features you get at the Forest level aren’t as applicable to the real estate industry, so the juice may not be worth the squeeze.

Final Thoughts on Freshsales CRM

With so many ways to enhance this platform, whether they be paid add-ons or upgrades to the next level of services, users of the Freshsales CRM Free Forever plan have all sorts of room to grow in their business. But, that doesn’t mean that the free version of Freshsales CRM isn’t helpful, efficient, and easy to use.

Although this isn’t a real estate-specific CRM, it works very well in the real estate space and should be strongly considered by any real estate agent in the market for a new CRM.

Check Out Freshsales CRM

Best Free Real Estate CRM for Customization: HubSpot

HubSpot is another CRM with a buzz-worthy free option. Unlike the task-oriented platform of Insightly, HubSpot’s bread and butter are the ways it enables conversations with your contacts.

HubSpot’s communication focus really shines with its contact outreach options. HubSpot integrates with your email provider, allowing agents to email straight from a contact’s profile. You can schedule emails and use HubSpot’s real-time email analytics to track when your contacts are opening your messages, and what they’re doing with them after they open them.

With a paid upgrade, you can also make calls straight from your dashboard, take notes on all your interactions, and even invite your contacts to schedule appointments with you using their Google Calendar integration.

Overall, this is an excellent platform for agents who want a customized communication experience with each of their contacts. If you thrive on details, HubSpot is a great choice.

Best HubSpot Feature for Real Estate Agents: Customization

HubSpot has a lot going for it, but we can sum up our favorite feature of the free plan in just one word: customization. Unlike other free CRMs, HubSpot’s free platform lets you customize just about every field, pipeline, template—and everything in between.

Since HubSpot is a not a real estate-specific CRM, this customization option goes a long way to making this platform feel more like home for agents who are still learning the terminology themselves.

One customization highlight for us is the 80 different fields you can choose from for a contact’s profile. Many of these fields are responsive, so that as your conversation and communication with your client evolve, so do the entries in each field.

Where HubSpot Comes Up Short: Email Automation

HubSpot doesn’t offer much in the way of automation other than scheduling one-off emails. Drip campaigns are powerful tools in the real estate business, so scheduling email communication one step at a time can be time-consuming. This feature is available in the upgraded marketing packages, starting at $50 per month.

Also, like most of the providers on our list, the customer support for the free option is basically non-existent with HubSpot. There are many user forums online where users help one another, but official customer support from the home office is reserved for paying customers.

HubSpot Upgrade Options

HubSpot offers a la carte add-ons to its free package, including upgraded sales, marketing, and services, as well as an advanced content management system for your website. Having all these options can level up your business, but it also means that costs can add up quickly when upgrading HubSpot.

You can package these items together into the HubSpot Starter Suite ($45 per month), or turbocharge the platform with an upgrade to their Professional Suite (a whopping $800 per month). They also offer an Enterprise Suite ($3,200 a month).

Most of the Professional and Enterprise upgrade features aren’t that useful for most real estate agents or even brokers. They’re designed for large, high-volume sales operations. Still, the Starter Suite brings together many expanded toolset and automation options that agents would find helpful.

Final Thoughts on HubSpot

Overall, HubSpot is a fantastic product that would benefit any real estate business. We’re excited to have it on the list. Its free option gives real estate professionals many of the tools they need to execute on their goals. Is it perfect? No, but for a free CRM, you get a lot of value here.

Check Out HubSpot

Best Free Real Estate CRM for Pipeline & Deal Tracking: RealOffice360

RealOffice360 is a platform designed specifically for real estate agents, something unique among the offerings in the free CRM space.

Their lead profiles are designed to ask specific questions real estate agents want to know the answers to—things like, “When did you buy your home?” and “Are you prequalified for a mortgage? If so, through who?” RealOffice360 also has a handy pipeline feature to visually track your clients’ progress and a Goals tracker specific to the real estate industry that is also very helpful.

Truth be told, RealOffice360 is a very helpful tool. While they aren’t doing anything necessarily innovative (we’ve seen every single one of these features before) and do lack some of the full-throated functionality of a paid platform, this is definitely worth looking at for the price.

Best RealOffice360 Feature for Real Estate Agents: Opportunity Tracker

Missing from many of the free CRMs that aren’t specific to our industry is a thoughtful pipeline management tool. Sure, they’re available when you upgrade to a paid plan, but with RealOffice360, this tool is native to the Free Forever plan.

The Opportunity Tracker shows you exactly what’s happening in your pipeline and offers customization options to add stages where you need them. Most interestingly, it lets you connect your lead generation directly to your tracker so that new leads coming in from tools like Zillow Premier Agent or BoldLeads are automatically dropped in the right place.

Where RealOffice360 Comes Up Short: Virtually No Marketing

If you decide to go with the RealOffice360 free plan, there are virtually no marketing options available. Yes, you can send individual emails through the platform. You can even link the CRM to your Skype account to make calls straight from your computer. But if you want even the most basic email marketing functionality, you’ll have to upgrade to a paid plan.

RealOffice360 Upgrade Options

There are three paid plans with RealOffice360, the most effective for most agents being Premium ($19 per month or $29 month-to-month). Upgrading to the Premium plan gives you access to email marketing via Mailchimp, customization options, priority support, and expanded file storage.

Final Thoughts on RealOffice360

The RealOffice360 free real estate CRM is a unique offering in this space. Yes, this is a platform designed for real estate agents specifically. One of the challenges with many options on this list is that they are intended for general sales professionals and lack some specificity necessary for ideal functionality.

RealOffice360 is an excellent toolkit for tech-savvy real estate professionals who want a tool that can streamline their process. Its attractive platform makes it a pleasure to use. While it will do just fine as a database tool and even a pipeline management tool, it doesn’t provide many of the higher-level marketing functionalities most agents expect from a CRM in 2022.

But, since this platform has a completely free-forever-no-credit-card-required option, you can try it out yourself today to see if it works for you.

Check Out RealOffice360

Best CRM for Seasoned, Data-driven Agents: Agile CRM

CRMs that don’t adapt well to the real estate industry are often more trouble than they’re worth, but that isn’t the case with Agile CRM. The free version of Agile CRM is flexible and customizable thanks to all their dashboards and interfaces, where you can apply your own labels and create your own custom workflows.

However, it’s not all good news; this customization requires a lot of time and effort, something not every agent is looking for.

That being said, the dashboard and interface are slick and modern, clearly designed with non-computer experts in mind. Agile CRM calls their interface “consumer-grade,” which translates to “everything here is intuitive and easy to use on day one.”

Where Agile CRM Comes Up Short: Confusing Features Availability

The Agile CRM free platform looks and feels exactly like the paid platform. All the menus are there, and all the options are there. However, the unavailable items with the free version are not indicated, so there’s a lot of clicking only to be given a pop-up that says an upgrade is required to access that particular feature.

Though we’re confident you’d learn pretty quickly which features are available in the free version, the hours leading up to that tipping point will be frustrating with all the clicking around to menus you don’t have access to use.

Agile CRM Upgrade Options

There are three upgrade options from the free plan. The first is the Starter plan ($8.99 per month), which unlocks some of the automation options useful for real estate agents. It also gives you further access to the widgets library and allows you to use more than one at a time. This plan opens up widgets and pop-ups you can put on your website to capture leads and build your contact list.

The Regular plan is the next step up at $29.99 per user, per month. This option unlocks every other bell and whistle on the platform, including expanding your number of contacts from 1,000 to 50,000, custom pipelines, and on-dashboard phone integration.

The final upgrade is to Enterprise for $47.99 per month, which expands access to every member of your company.

Final Thoughts on Agile CRM

Agile CRM is an ideal free product to kick things up a notch. Its many features really shine through in a real estate setting. However, the thing that most excites us about this product is upgrading it. Don’t get me wrong—there is a lot of utility in the free version—but the upgrade is so inexpensive and opens up so many doors. Agile CRM is a good choice for you if you’re growing and plan to take your CRM to the next level someday soon.

Check Out Agile CRM

Best Free Real Estate CRM for Teams: Bitrix24

If you’re on a real estate team, you know that teams need things like lead distribution and team accountability—things that individual agents don’t.

Bitrix24 is a team communication and collaboration platform that offers, among many things, a CRM that converts easily to the real estate space. This platform helps you keep your team moving in the right direction for clients, projects, contacts, even neighborhoods.

On the free plan, up to 12 users can access almost the entire platform. The only limitation is online storage space. On the free plan, users get up to 5GB of storage on the Bitrix24 server—space that gets gobbled up fast since this is a software as a service (SaaS) provider, and nothing is stored locally.

Even though Bitrix24 definitely has outreach and marketing tools, it’s clear right from the get-go that Bitrix24’s main strength is as an INTERNAL CRM for your team to ensure everyone is in the right place, at the right time—and then some.

Best Bitrix24 Feature for Real Estate Agents: CRM + Internal Team Management

The best part of Bitrix24 is the interface between the CRM and the internal team management platform.

Often, teams have to use two different systems to manage the clients and manage each other, but Bitrix24 has solved this problem by overlapping the two, making communication and decision-making about clients easy. When the internal and external systems are set on the same framework, you can decide on a strategy for a particular contact and assign them to a team member without even leaving the browser window.

This feature leads to fewer dormant leads, a more engaged team workforce, and, of course, no need to use Slack with your peeps and an entirely different platform for your clients.

Where Bitrix24 Falls Short: 100% Cloud-based

This platform is entirely cloud-based. You don’t even have the option through the CRM to save data locally. While this is fine for photos you’re backing up on your phone, a remarkable amount of your business is going to come through your CRM. For this reason, having some offline storage for things like disclosure forms, leases, and contracts seems like a prudent backup.

Also, the five gigs of digital storage space included in the plan go remarkably fast, especially when you consider that most CRMs have no storage space limit. Without an easy way of moving data onto portable storage devices or just onto your laptop, you and your team are kept in limbo.

Bitrix24 Upgrade Options

This platform is 99% full-featured right out of the box. However, the free plan only comes with 5GB of online storage. An upgrade to Start+ nets you 10 gigs and two users for $24 per month. Both the CRM+ and Project+ plans are priced at $69 per month. But the CRM+ plan yields 50 gigs and six users, while Project+ will allow for 24 users in your company and up to 50GB of storage. Each plan offers a mix of other features.

Bitrix24 also offers two business plans, including Standard and Professional. With the first, you’ll get 100GB and up to 50 users, and with the Pro version, you’ll enjoy unlimited storage and unlimited users.

Final Thoughts on Bitrix24

The CRM for Bitrix24 is fairly basic compared to other inclusions on our list. However, nobody else provides such a unified, internally focused structure. If you’ve got a big team and you’re having a hard time getting them all to point in the same direction at once, Bitrix24 might be a good option to try.

Check Out Bitrix24

(Nearly) Free CRMs Worth Mentioning

OK, so they aren’t totally free, but the following three CRM options are really great and so close to free that you need to hear about them. You can also read our Best Real Estate CRM article for a full list of the best paid real estate CRMs, starting at just $25 a month.

LionDesk

Recently named The Close’s Best Real Estate CRM of 2022, LionDesk is a nimble, feature-packed real estate CRM that is easy to start using on day one. New LionDesk customers can try out their entire platform risk-free for 30 days to see if it’s right for them, and if they decide to continue as a client, plans start as low as $21 a month.

Check Out LionDesk

Propertybase

There aren’t many products that can stand up to the platform that Propertybase has built. With a starting price of $89 per month, Propertybase isn’t the cheapest CRM provider on the market, but in our opinion, it is definitely the best. It offers a two-week, full-featured free trial with no obligation or credit card required.

Check Out Propertybase

Placester

Most real estate agents know Placester as a purveyor of IDX websites. Many people don’t know, unless you read the fine print of your National Association of Realtors (NAR) membership docs, that anyone who is a part of the National Association of Realtors is eligible for a basic website and lead capture system from Placester.

If you want to upgrade to the first paid plan, there is a CRM included as well. We recently featured Placester in our article 5 Clever Real Estate Landing Pages That Convert Like Crazy. Check it out to learn a little more about what it has to offer.

Check Out Placester

Bringing It All Together

If you are ready to move beyond the limits of how many names and addresses you can hold in your head and into a new world of communication automation, contact management, and ultimately, a better bottom line, then you need a CRM. Of all the free CRMs we reviewed, Insightly delivered the best features with the most efficient systems and provided the greatest value.

Try Insightly

The post The 7 Best Free Real Estate CRMs of 2022 appeared first on The Close.

7 Real Estate Copywriting Rules Professional Writers Swear by

Emile L'Eplattenier — Fri, 11 Mar 2022 05:14:01 +0000

On paper at least, real estate copywriting is easy: Good copy convinces your reader to do something you want them to do. Whether you want them to download your e-book, click on your Facebook ad, or RSVP to your open house, the goal of copywriting never changes. Good copy inspires action.

Although all Realtors think they’re natural-born salespeople, the cold hard truth is that most Realtors struggle with copywriting. That’s why today, I am giving you my seven real estate copywriting rules that professional writers swear by. As a professional writer, I can tell you from experience that these rules are a game-changer for writing persuasive copy.

As a bonus, I am also including a free PDF: 700+ Real Estate Words That Sell Homes.

Download 723 Descriptive Real Estate Words

1. Transform Features Into Benefits

The easiest way to get someone to act is to appeal to their emotional needs or desires. Studies show that most people use emotional arguments to persuade others without even realizing it. When it comes to persuasion, one good emotional argument is worth a thousand facts.

The only problem is that your listings don’t come with ready-made emotional arguments to persuade a buyer to attend your open house. Instead, you get a list of features. Your job as a real estate copywriter is to turn those features into benefits that will appeal to your readers on an emotional level. Here’s how to do it:

First, list all of the features of your subject matter. It could be a listing, an email newsletter, or even your brokerage or personal brand. Next, determine a benefit of each feature—one that appeals to emotional needs or desires. For example, let’s say one feature of your newest listing is that it’s close to major highways. Here are a few ways we can break that down into benefits that appeal to emotion:

Feature	Benefits with emotional appeal
Close to major highways	Spend less time commuting
	Never be late to work again
	Enjoy more time with family
	Have easy access to amenities like supermarkets, gyms, & restaurants

Now go through your list of benefits and pick the one that you think will have the biggest emotional impact for your reader. Do this for all the best features of your listing, and you’ll have a good rough outline for your copy.

2. Start With a Pain Point, Then Offer Your Solution

If you’ve ever tried to convince a friend or loved one of something, you know that just stating your side of the story isn’t enough. If you want to have a chance of persuading them, they need to know that you understand their side of the story, too.

This is why most good copywriters start their copy by acknowledging a pain point for their readers before even thinking about presenting their solution to that pain point. Good copy should get your reader to nod along as they read and say to themselves, “This person gets me!” Once you’ve built that bond, then you come in with your pitch.

For example, let’s say you’re writing copy for a landing page to get people to sign up for your email newsletter about off-market listings. Here’s how your copy might sound if you focus on your solution without acknowledging your readers’ pain point first:

Subscribe to my off-market listing newsletter today to get a free list of the best listings in Springfield before they hit Zillow. If you sign up now, you’ll get…

Now here’s how your copy sounds when you start by acknowledging their pain point first.

These days, the Springfield market is moving so fast that some homes have multiple offers before they even hit Zillow. If you want to get a jump-start on the best homes for sale, you need to act quickly. My off-market listings newsletter offers buyers access to the best Springfield listings before they hit Zillow. If you sign up now, you’ll get…

Notice the difference?

3. Write Without Fear, Edit Without Mercy

Every good Realtor knows that the money is in the follow-up. How you got your lead into your customer relationship manager (CRM) doesn’t matter at the closing table. The same is true for copywriting. How you start is way less important than where you finish. This is why all good copywriters write without fear and edit without mercy. Here’s how to do it:

Take your list of benefits and just start writing. No judgment, no editing. Just write. Once you have something down on paper, start editing. For now, don’t worry about grammar or spelling—you can fix that later. Just focus on your goal. Does your copy appeal to your reader’s emotions? Does it address a pain point and offer a solution? If it doesn’t, edit until it does.

If you’re lacking emotional punch, grab a thesaurus and try to find more evocative words to get your point across. Is that garden “nice” or is it a “lush oasis”?

If you want a cheat sheet of descriptive real estate words that appeal to emotion, check out my guide to descriptive real estate words here:

4. Write at Least 3 Versions of Your Headline or Subject Line

If you’re writing ad copy, landing page copy, emails, website copy, or any copy with a title, you should always write at least three versions of your title and pick the best of the bunch. Here’s why: If your title doesn’t draw them in, they will never read the rest of your copy. Your email could reveal the location of the fountain of youth, but if your subject line isn’t persuasive enough to get people to click, no one will ever read it!

If you have a hard time coming up with three different versions of your headline, try some of these common headline formulas:

FOMO Headlines (Fear of Missing Out)

XX Homes Just Sold for $XXXXX Over Ask in [your farm area]!
Here Are XX Market Indicators That Show Prices Will Explode in [your farm areas]
Owner Says to Sell Yesterday!

Ask a Scary Question Headlines

Are We Heading for a Recession?
Are You Ready to Sell Before Interest Rates Rise?
When Will the Housing Bubble Pop in [your farm area]?

Expert Advice Headlines

When XX Economists Think Interest Rates are Going WAY Up
X Home Stagers Reveal the Best Affordable Couches
A Lawyer Answers Your Most Common Real Estate Questions

Curiosity-building Headlines

Experts Say Painting Your Home This Color Will Help It Sell Faster & for More $$$
Zillow Research Says This Month Is the Best Time to Sell
The XX Home Renovations That Have the Best ROI

Pro Tip

Write & edit your copy first, and then work on your title.

Writing great titles can quickly drain your creative energy. You might find it helpful to write and edit your copy first, and then tackle your title. As an added benefit, if your copy changes direction as you write it, you won’t be stuck with a headline that no longer fits.

5. Writer Like Ernest & Albert

If you want people to read what you have to say, your copy needs to go down like ice cream. That means simple words, short sentences, and getting to the point as quickly as possible. Anyone can make a great fact-based argument in 20 pages, but great copywriters can do it in 20 words. The best writers can do it in six words.

Pro Tip

Discuss complex issues or write one-liners on Twitter. Your followers will give you instant feedback.

Want to learn to get right to the point without sacrificing emotion? Try discussing complex issues or writing one-liner jokes for your Twitter audience. If you already have followers you’ll get instant feedback on your writing.

Still stuck? Might be time to call in the experts. You can hire an experienced and talented real estate copywriter in Fiverr starting at just five bucks.

Visit Fiverr

6. Read Your Copy Out Loud

After you edit your copy, the next step is to edit for style. This is where even great writers stumble. Editing for style is hard. Like, really hard. You can spend hours editing your copy and end up with something that’s worse than what you started with.

Luckily, there is a trick that professional copywriters use to make editing for style easier: Read your copy out loud. Is it easy to read or did you stumble with some words or sentences? If it’s hard for you to read out loud, chances are it’s even harder for your reader to hear in their head as they read. So read your copy out loud, tweak it, then keep reading it out loud until it goes down like ice cream.

7. A/B Test Whenever You Can

One of the coolest things about writing copy in 2022 is that you have access to tools that would have cost tens of thousands of dollars even 15 years ago. One of the most useful is being able to test different versions of your copy on a real live audience to see how they respond.

In the digital marketing world, this is called A/B testing and it’s as close to a scientific study of how good your copy is as you can get. Remember the three headlines or subject lines I had you write in tip four? Now’s your chance to see which one actually makes your reader take action.

If you want to A/B test your emails or email subject lines, use a CRM or email marketing platform that allows you to A/B test. Mailchimp and LionDesk both have easy-to-use A/B testing features for email campaigns. If you want to A/B test copy for your landing pages, then use a platform like Real Geeks or Unbounce.

Over to You

Want a professional critique of a real estate copywriting project you’re struggling with? Sign up for our email list and I will personally critique your copy for you. All you need to do is sign up and forward the first email you get to me at emile@theclose.com, and I’ll help you with your copy for free.

The post 7 Real Estate Copywriting Rules Professional Writers Swear by appeared first on The Close.

36 Clever Real Estate Marketing Ideas for 2022

Emile L'Eplattenier — Tue, 25 Jan 2022 15:00:30 +0000

There is only one truth in real estate marketing: it’s constantly changing. If you’re trying to keep up, you will always be second-guessing yourself. Will the marketing you used last year still work in 2022?

To find out, we worked with some of the best agents and coaches in the country to find out how they are blending old-school and new-school real estate marketing ideas to build their brands this year. So turn off your phone, grab a cup of coffee, and dig into these 36 clever real estate marketing ideas for 2022.

1. Give Your Social Media Accounts a Boost (Without Hiring a Marketing Manager)

The Close Team

If you’re a busy agent, spending hours each day creating content for social media is probably not a good use of your time. In 2022, smart agents are using services like Artur’In to give their social accounts a boost from the pros while they concentrate on selling houses.

For a flat monthly fee, they will post engaging local, branded photo and video content to your Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Twitter accounts. They will also design and run Facebook ads for you with MLS integration. It’s like having a dedicated marketing team for less than what you probably spend on lunch every day.

Visit Artur’In

2. 3x Views & Engagement With Vertical Videos

Cody D’Ambrosio, Head of SERHANT. Studios

“Start your videos by shooting a quick introduction of yourself and the property—trying to take up as much of the frame as possible—before cutting to footage of your listing for the remainder of the video. We’ve seen a 3x increase in performance (both views and engagement) for videos that start in this fashion. Lastly, utilize the Reels component of Instagram. The platform is pushing this feature hard and by sharing your video as a Reel, it is more likely to receive prominent placement in your follower’s feeds, as well as the explore page of Instagram, allowing for greater exposure opportunity.”

3. Create an Actionable Plan to Get More Testimonials & Reviews

Beth Incorvati, Real Estate Coach & Close Contributor

“Even though social proof is more important than ever these days, many agents still just wish and pray for good testimonials and reviews. This rarely works! Even if it does, you will probably end up with reviews scattered around a dozen different websites.

“Smart agents know that maximizing the number and quality of reviews on the sites you want them requires an actionable plan. Check out my nine actionable tips below to earn more reviews below to start today.”

4. Become the ‘Digital Mayor’ of Your Farm Area

Sean Moudry, Colorado Real Estate Broker, Coach, Author & Close Contributor

“If you’re trying to farm your neighborhood online in 2022, becoming the ‘digital mayor’ on social media can bring big wins. The only problem is that this can take years of hard work, and the competition is fierce. Parkbench makes this process much faster and much easier.

“Here’s how: Parkbench creates a hyperlocal website just for you that helps build relationships with small businesses and local influencers to generate referrals. Then they provide expert training so you can start generating referrals quickly. The best part? They only allow one real estate agent per area, so you can become the ‘digital mayor’ without the competition.”

Visit Parkbench

5. Beat the Instagram Algorithm by Marketing Yourself on Instagram Stories

Eric Simon, Los Angeles Realtor & Founder of The Broke Agent

“If you’re a realtor using Instagram to market your business and you’re not posting Stories, you might be in for a rude awakening. Instagram’s algorithm now prioritizes short form video content like Stories and Reels. That means if you’re just posting images, your followers may never even see your content.

“This isn’t speculation. I built my own Instagram account to over 350,000 followers by focusing more of my marketing efforts on Stories and Reels and making sure they both gave the algorithm what it wants—engagement.”

6. Work With Local Clubs to Create Special Events for Your Listings

Michael LaFido, Real Estate Coach, Luxury Consultant

As the founder of the Luxury Listing Specialist designation and luxury Realtor, Michael LaFido definitely practices what he preaches in his bestselling book and luxury real estate marketing courses.

Most recently, LaFido leveraged his relationship with a local exotic car club to create an event that brought 80 high-net worth individuals in 40 Ferraris, Lamborghinis, and other supercars to his $9 million listing—the mansion featured in the hit series “Empire.”

7. Leverage Real Estate Specific Marketing Software

Tristan Ahumada, Los Angeles Realtor, Founder, Lab Coat Agents

“One lesson many agents learn too late is that not all marketing tools are created equal. Sure, you can make Canva or HubSpot work for a while, but at the end of the day, tools built for agents, by agents, will give you a better return on investment (ROI).

“PorchLyte is a Realtor-founded marketing platform founded by Tracey Henning, who worked as a Realtor for 27 years before starting the company. She offers agents templates and content for Instagram and Facebook designed just for realtors.

Visit PorchLyte

“My platform Lab Coat Agents Marketing Center is another great example. It’s the first marketing software created by and for real estate agents. We created it so that agents can get hundreds of gorgeous, easy-to-edit templates for everything from door hangers, to social media posts, to email templates—right out of the box. Everything is designed specifically for real estate agents.”

Visit Lab Coat Agents Marketing Center

8. Use Words That Sell in Your Marketing Copy (Swipe File)

Emile L’Eplattenier, Managing Editor, The Close

“When it comes to marketing your listings, the words you use matter. Simple, direct language tends to work best, but adding evocative words can help paint a picture for your potential clients—making it easier for them to daydream about actually living in the home.

“For example, if the kitchen in your listing gets lots of light, you could just call it ‘sunny’ or you could call it ‘sun-soaked.’ While ‘sunny’ gets the job done, which room would you rather spend your mornings drinking coffee in—a ‘sunny’ room, or a ‘sun-soaked’ room?

“If you want more words that sell in your copywriting arsenal, grab my free swipe file of 732 descriptive words that sell here: 723 Descriptive Real Estate Words Top Listing Agents Use to Sell Homes.”

9. Market Your Listings by Creating Videos That Sell a Lifestyle

Logan Link, Marin County Realtor, The Logan & Bernard Group

“To today’s buyers, falling in love with a property is less about square footage and fixtures—HGTV has taught us all that we can do things like update a kitchen. Now, it’s all about how the home and neighborhood will make them feel—what daily life could be like in this new place.

“Videos catch people’s attention and do a great job conveying emotion—especially short films that display well on social media. We tried this out recently and received a fantastic response, and put even more focus toward the concept.”

Check out the videos Logan and her team are using to market a lifestyle here.

10. Create a Detailed Listing Marketing Plan to Pitch Homeowners

Sean Moudry, Colorado Real Estate Broker, Coach, Author & Close Contributor

“A marketing plan is one of the most powerful tools you have to get new listings. After all, marketing skills are probably the main reason most homeowners hire an agent to begin with. So before you pitch your next homeowner, make sure you have a comprehensive marketing plan to show them. You can get started by checking out my 47-point listing marketing plan below.”

11. Fine-tune Your Marketing Messages With Predictive Analytics

Chris Linsell, Real Estate Coach & Senior Staff Writer

“Want to know which homeowners are the most likely to sell their homes in the next 12 months before they start reaching out to agents so you can market to them? With SmartZip, you can. Leveraging over 250 data points across the internet and from your local MLS, SmartZip uses a predictive algorithm to identify who is most likely to list their home for sale—giving you the superpower of knowing which homeowners you should reach out to in your farm area.”

Visit SmartZip

12. Market to Your Sphere Across Multiple Platforms

Jennifer Okhovat, Beverly Hills Realtor, Compass

“I think that the best marketing strategy for 2022 is to reach out to your sphere of influence in multiple campaigns: through direct mail, social media, and email marketing. When your contacts see you in not one—but all three—mediums of marketing, they are more likely to think of you when it comes to making any real estate decision. You are present to them wherever they turn!”

13. Find Your ‘Why’ & Integrate It Into Your Marketing

Sean Moudry, Colorado Real Estate Broker, Coach, Author & Close Contributor

“Since most leads make purchasing decisions based on emotion rather than facts, finding your ‘why’ should be on your list of marketing goals for 2022. If you want leads to resonate with your brand, your marketing needs to resonate with their values and ideals. After all, who will get excited to work with someone who’s just in it for the money?

“So take the time to really think through why you became a real estate agent and integrate it into your brand and marketing. Maybe you were excited about the idea of helping people build generational wealth. Or maybe you wanted to help build your community. Whatever the answer is, I guarantee it will help you find lifetime customers better than ‘I want to make lots of money.’”

14. Virtually Stage Local Listings in Different Themes

Emile L’Eplattenier, Managing Editor, The Close

“If you or another listing agent in your farm area has an empty listing to sell, spending a few bucks to have it virtually staged is a great way to increase interest and show buyers what it might look like staged differently.

“For example, a spare bedroom might look great virtually staged as a kid’s room with bunk beds, but staging it as a home office might appeal more to buyers who work from home. If you’re showing the listing and your buyer wants a home office, you’ll have a picture ready to go to help them imagine what it might look like.”

15. Anticipate Emotional Seller Objections & Address Them in Your Marketing Materials

Sean Moudry, Colorado Real Estate Broker, Coach, Author & Close Contributor

“Benjamin Franklin once said, ‘Failing to prepare is preparing to fail.’ When it comes to emotional seller objections, being prepared makes all the difference. Instead of waiting until you get them on the phone to address their objections, why not address them in your marketing materials? You can create an educational video series or drip campaign explaining pricing strategies or commissions, or better yet, address their objections in your listing presentation before they can even make them.”

16. Keep Former Clients Engaged With Experiential Marketing

Emile L’Eplattenier, Managing Editor, The Close

“As any experienced agent will tell you, five minutes of in-person engagement is worth hours of engagement online. That’s why many top-producing agents today are offering their former clients exclusive offline experiences like dinners, wine tastings, educational seminars, or charity drives. In the marketing industry, this is called ‘experiential marketing,’ and it is one of the hottest trends of the year for Fortune 1000 marketers.

“How hot is it? Well, one study showed that a whopping 98% of consumers created content like pictures or videos at live events, and 100% of those people shared that content on social media.”

17. 10x Email Engagement Rates With Facebook Messenger Ads

The Close Team

Here’s the thing. Changes to the Facebook Newsfeed mean more agents are going to try their hand at buying ads on Facebook. That means more expensive ads. Even if they don’t go up, learning the latest techniques to generate leads from your Facebook advertising is a smart move. One way to get noticed in the coming sea of Facebook ads from real estate agents is to try Facebook Messenger ads.

18. Turn Your Social Proof Up to 11 Using HARO

Emile L’Eplattenier, Managing Editor, The Close

“Over the past few years, I’ve been quoted as a real estate expert in The New York Times, Yahoo, Realtor Magazine, Fox News, US News & World Report, and many other publications. Does that mean I know more about the real estate industry than you do? Well … maybe, but that’s not why I get quoted so often. Instead, I know what kinds of quotes journalists need, and I know how to reach them with those quotes when they need them. You can do this just as easily.

“HARO (Help a Reporter Out) is a service that journalists use to source quotes from experts. If you want to get quoted and turn your brand’s social proof up to 11, sign up for HARO and start pitching reporters. You can learn more about HARO and strategic PR for agents (including scripts) here: 5 PR Strategies Any Agent Can Use to Get Free Press in 2022.”

19. Send Video Messages & Make Sure Your Videos Have Captions

Dan Smith, Real Estate Author, Speaker & Strategist

“Video. Video. Video. Messaging in video or through apps to make still photos appear video-like and with captions. Over 80% of videos will be watched without sound in 2022, and captions are a MUST!”

20. Run Facebook & YouTube Ads for Your Videos to Drive Traffic to Your Website

Tyler Marrin, Director of Marketing, Smith & Associates Real Estate

“Everyone knows that video marketing is hot, and it’s here to stay, but the real edge in 2022 will be to leverage it using hyperlocal targeting. We consistently produce videos for the neighborhoods we want to be the face of. We cover the numerous housing, entertainment, and lifestyle benefits of those areas.

“To best reach viewers in your preferred areas, keyword-stuff your titles and run Facebook and YouTube video ads with strong calls to action (CTAs) that drive traffic back to your website.”

21. Don’t Ignore the Giants

Emile L’Eplattenier, Managing Editor, The Close

“With 200+ million monthly visitors, ALL of your leads are going to be on Zillow at some point during their search, and many will never leave. That means marketing your services as a buyer’s agent or listing agent on Zillow is still crucial for success in 2022.

“Yes, it may be trendy to hate Zillow, but at the end of the day, leads are leads. Getting in front of them early and often is more important than likes on Facebook groups.”

[Related article: Is Zillow Premier Agent Worth the Cost?]

22. Boost Engagement With Contests, Polls & Q&A Stickers on Instagram Stories

Dustin Brohm, Host, Massive Agent Podcast

“Engagement is absolutely key, so use the Polls and Q&A stickers within Instagram (IG) Stories. Ask questions, use GIFs, and make the content as easy to engage with as possible. The more people engage with you, the more they will remember you, and the more you train the IG algorithm that you have great content, which IG will reward with more organic reach than if no one ever engaged with you.

“You can also run contests and giveaways within IG Stories. Master how to get people engaged and coming back for more, and you’ll win.”

23. Share Your Expertise by Submitting Articles to Local Magazines or Newspapers

Rose Sklar, Coldwell Banker Residential Real Estate in Florida

“Team up with your local magazines to work on a monthly real estate column. Always create relevant content highlighting your ‘Micro’ community. Become the ‘go-to’ person and community expert. After it is published, share the link on all of your social media platforms using a link tree tool in your profile and posts. This allows your content to live longer than the initial feed.”

24. Send Conversational & Video Text Messages to Your Sphere

Jay Macklin, Broker/Owner, Corcoran Platinum Living

“Conversational and video text messages are a great way for agents to humanize themselves and stay in touch with potential leads, as they are short messages that are more likely to be viewed by the recipient and do not feel as sales-y or bothersome. The key is to ensure that when you are drafting the text of the message, you sound genuine and not pre-scripted, so that your messages work toward building your positive relationship with the recipient.”

25. Get Out There & MEET PEOPLE in Your Farm Area!

Brian LeBow, Owner, BELL Properties Professional Management for Southern California

“This is the most simple and powerful way to build a real estate business—yet most agents can’t or won’t do it. I’m talking about door-knocking FSBOs and expires. This classic method is still one of the best if you know how to approach each seller and provide value at their door, and is an excellent way to build a fantastic business.”

26. Team Up With an Agent in Another State to Target Second Homebuyers

Joe Belz, Naples Florida Realtor, Compass

Joe ran multiple lead gen social media campaigns to target prospective second homebuyers. Joe was able to use fellow Compass agent Jeannemarie Conley’s positive reputation in the Boston area to gain trust that he could handle their transactions in Florida.

Not only did Joe gain leads, but he also gained a strong relationship with Jeannemarie that ended up in a referral for a $13 million listing that closed in February 2019. This works in 2022 because it combines a highly targeted digital approach with a referral-based strategy.

27. Collaborate With Influencers to Drive Social Engagement

Rebecca Blacker, Associate Broker, Warburg Realty, Manhattan

“Collaborating with an influencer is the new celebrity marketing. Influencers have thousands and millions of followers who are engaged with them every single day. Just as influencers promote products, they can promote real estate agents by getting the agent’s name and expertise out to a wider audience.”

28. Become a Contributing Member of the Communities You Serve

Christopher Fling & Karen Yang, Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage in Silicon Valley

“In a sea of agents and in a downshifting market, we believe true relationships and friendships will dominate superficial social media and other advertising. Get involved: volunteer regularly—’own’ an event or a time slot for a cause you care about—get to know both other supporters and recipients of the services.

“Door knock with purpose—pair old-school door-knocking with a social or community purpose. Get known for being a champion of not only real estate values in your area, but for adding to that value through community-building activities and support.”

29. Create Purposeful Content About Your Farm Area

James Rozanski, Associate Creative Director, Marketing, VTS

“There’s nothing more lifestyle than where a person lives—it says everything about who they are, what they value, and the places where they spend time.

“Create and recycle content about the life someone is going to lead if they lived in your listing—explore restaurants, coffee shops, gyms, parks, and any other highlights to market the full picture and not just the place itself (especially in cities where every neighborhood has its own feel).”

30. Join Local Organizations to Meet New People

Marilyn Blume, Sotheby’s International Realty

“Get involved in an organization that you are passionate about, which will continually expose you to new people. Follow up and meet each person (when possible) to get to know them better and learn how to help them by introducing them to someone new. Think of how you can help someone; people remember acts of kindness and will pay it forward.”

31. Use This Buyer Presentation That Turns Leads Into Clients in 15 Minutes

Chris Linsell, Real Estate Coach & Senior Staff Writer

“While most agents work hard on their listing presentations, most just kind of wing it with buyers. This can be a huge mistake! Today’s buyers are almost as picky as sellers when it comes to choosing an agent. They are more informed, more savvy, and take more time to research agents than ever before.

“That’s why creating and practicing an effective buyer presentation is the key to getting more buyers this year and beyond. You can learn how to create one and download my 15-minute buyer presentation for free below.”

32. Use Humor in Your Marketing

Eric Simon, Los Angeles Realtor & Found of The Broke Agent

“Contrary to what some agents think, only posting ‘real estate content’ that shows how awesome you are can backfire on you. Your followers will get bored and stop engaging. Quickly.

“A good way to be less boring on social media is to inject a little bit of humor into your content. You might find that your silly videos, memes, or even jokes get way more engagement than your millionth ‘look how awesome I am’ post. If you want some inspiration or just need a break, check out my article on 11 hilarious agents on Instagram or Emile’s article on real estate memes below.”

33. Give More Thoughtful Closing Gifts That Keep You Top of Mind

Beth Incorvati, Real Estate Coach & Close Contributor

“If you’re still giving low quality steak knives with your logo on them as closing gifts, STOP! The odds of them being stashed in a cupboard and forgotten about are virtually one hundred percent. Instead, do the work to figure out what your clients want or need so you can give them a gift they actually want that still keeps you top of mind.

“We have thirty great examples of gifts that do just that below. So now you have no more excuses for giving cheesy closing gifts!”

[Related article: The 30 Best Real Estate Closing Gifts for 2022]

34. Write a Great Slogan & Use It in Your Marketing Materials

Emile L’Eplattenier, Managing Editor, The Close

“Summing up your value add in one short sentence sure isn’t easy, but the benefits to your brand and marketing materials can be enormous. Writing a great slogan you can use on all of your marketing materials is a great way to do that.

“Great slogans are short, memorable, and will help you look more professional. If you don’t already have a great slogan, check out our list of 107 of our favorites. If you’re still not inspired, try using our free real estate slogan generator in the article.”

35. Upgrade Your Postcard Game

Chris Linsell, Real Estate Coach & Senior Staff Writer

“While other agents chase the latest digital marketing fads, try marketing your business by using what many old-school agents still swear by—postcards. Sure, just like online marketing, most people will ignore them, but the ones that don’t are way more likely to put them on their fridge and actually call you.”

36. Hire & Fire Based on Core Values

Beverly Ruffner, Real Estate Coach & Close Contributor

“One of the trickiest parts of effective marketing is ensuring that all of your hires, whether they be admins, transaction coordinators, or inside sales agents (ISAs), are a reflection of your personal brand. Since your brand will seep into your marketing messages, whether you like it or not, you need to ensure that everyone who works for and with you reflects your core values. After all, for many leads, your ISAs will be the first point of contact for your business. What do their attitudes and actions say about you?

“The short answer is EVERYTHING. So make sure to hire for personality and core values first, and skills second. Remember, you can always teach them new skills, but you can’t teach them to share your core values!”

Your Turn

Have any killer real estate marketing ideas that you think our readers need to know about? Let us know in the comments.

The post 36 Clever Real Estate Marketing Ideas for 2022 appeared first on The Close.

The Best Real Estate CRM for 2022: In-depth Reviews & Pricing

Chris Linsell — Tue, 18 Jan 2022 13:00:02 +0000

Ask any top-performing real estate agent what their go-to, must-have, can’t-live-without tool is, and chances are they’ll say a great real estate CRM, or customer relationship management system. The only problem is that there are so many options on the market to choose from that it’s hard to know which is the best.

Check out our top picks in the table below and read on to get an in-depth review of each product.

7 Best CRMs for Real Estate Agents, Teams, & Brokerages

Real Estate CRM	Prices Starting At	Best For
LionDesk	$25 / month	(BEST OVERALL) Budget-conscious agents who want automated email, texting, follow-up tools, and more
Top Producer	$60 / month	Agents looking for specialized lead nurturing tools like market snapshots and email drip sequences
Elevate	$110 / month	Agents who are looking for social media marketing
Market Leader	$139 per month, plus $25+ per lead (varies by market)	Agents who are also looking for built-in lead generation tools
IXACT Contact	$39 / month	New agents
Propertybase	$79 / month (per user)	Teams and brokerages
Wise Agent	$29 / month	Agents looking for best-in-class customer support

(Prices as of January 2022)

Now that we’ve shared how these customer relationship management (CRM) tools stack up against each other, let’s dig a little deeper into each one.

Best Overall Real Estate CRM: LionDesk

Prices starting at $25 / month
LionDesk sets itself apart by doing the fundamentals really well and by offering unique add-ons perfect for real estate professionals who are growing their business. They also stand out for their full-featured, 30-day free trial that doesn’t require a credit card.

When we first published this article, we’ll admit that LionDesk was in our top five but they weren’t our number one. What changed? Their consistent commitment to upgrading their products and rolling out new features like video messaging and their exclusive artificial intelligence (AI) assistant “Gabby.” We also love their best-in-class customer service that delivered prompt answers to us via phone and email.

LionDesk’s incredible value and affordable cost is what every other CRM product is now measured against.

LionDesk Pros & Cons

LionDesk Pros	LionDesk Cons
Easy to use and get value from, even on your first day	So many options create a slightly cluttered dashboard
Excellent mass communication tools, including bulk text messaging	Transaction management is very basic
Customizable lead profiles	Not the best option for scaling teams or brokerages
Artificial intelligence (AI) lead follow-up
Integrated dialer for click-to-call convenience

How Much Does LionDesk Cost?

Plan Name	Cost per Month Billed Annually	Cost per Month
Starter	$21	$25
Pro Plus	$42	$49
Elite	$83	$99

LionDesk Pricing Details

LionDesk offers three plans ranging from $21 to $99 per month, depending on which package you choose and whether you bill annually or monthly.

Starter ($21 per month): Robust and full of features—you won’t find yourself lacking in capability.
Pro Plus ($42 / month): Includes add-ons like a dedicated local phone number, video texting, and custom text-to-sell shortcodes, great for sign riders and other physical marketing.
Elite ($83 / month): Offers everything you’ll find in the Starter and Pro Plus plans, plus white glove, hands-on service and support that includes third-party integrations. This is worth mentioning because finding customer support when you’re trying to get your tools to work together is sometimes a no-man’s land. It’s hard to find companies willing to help you with someone else’s product, but that’s not true with LionDesk.

Our Favorite LionDesk Feature: Gabby, Your AI-powered Inside Sales Agent (ISA)

One of the biggest factors that affect a real estate agent’s conversion rates for leads is how quickly they can respond, or speed-to-lead. In an on-demand world, interested buyers and sellers expect a response within minutes, not hours or days.

But, we all know this isn’t always possible. We’ve got appointments, we’ve got closings, and, quite frankly, we’ve got to sleep sometime. That’s why LionDesk’s Lead Assist features are so powerful.

Their AI-driven text responder, known as Gabby, automatically follows up with any of your leads promptly, naturally, and with an uncanny ability to sound genuine and interested in what your leads are asking about.

Unless you identify to your lead that they’re not talking to a real person, many people can’t tell the difference until they’ve had a number of interactions.

Is LionDesk Right for You?

There are lots of things to like about LionDesk. Mixed automation, a customizable interface, graduated texting options, and AI responsiveness make LionDesk worth your time and money. LionDesk offers a 30-day, full-featured trial, no credit card required. Whether you’re ready for a change to your existing CRM or in need of your first CRM, LionDesk is a great option.

Try LionDesk

Best Real Estate CRM for Specialized Lead-nurturing Tools: Top Producer

Prices starting at $33.33 / month
Top Producer is one of the OGs in the real estate CRM space, and sometimes, being a product category originator can make you outdated and irrelevant, but not this product.

Top Producer has been working hard to not only keep up with the changing needs of real estate professionals but also to anticipate our next set of needs. Their forward-thinking approach is evident in their latest CRM iteration: Top Producer X.

Many CRMs offer an IDX feed as a part of their features, but Top Producer takes this a step further, adding value by actually connecting directly with your MLS to access all the data your MLS possesses. To put that in context, most IDX feeds pull about 20 data points for each property. An MLS feed pulls closer to 300 (or more) for every current listing, sold property, and even for expired listings.

Top Producer Pros & Cons

Top Producer Pros	Top Producer Cons
One of the best-integrated CRMs on the market, connecting with hundreds of different third-party platforms	12-month contract required
Excellent transaction management features that will eliminate the need for another tool	No automated SMS texting
Automated communication options that integrate with MLS data, making nurturing easier and more effective	No website included in any of the base plans

How Much Does Top Producer Cost?

Plan Name	Cost per Month Billed Annually	Cost per Month
Starter	$33.33	$40
Professional	$58.33	$70
Advanced	$66.67	$80

Top Producer Pricing Details

Top Producer offers three different tiers, ranging from $33.33 per month up to $80 per month. The costs depend on which plan you choose and whether you plan on paying annually or monthly. Top Producer also offers an add-on of a Top Producer website for just $10 more. They require a one-year commitment.

Our Favorite Top Producer Feature: FiveStreet Lead Management

FiveStreet is a product included in Top Producer’s Advanced plan, and if you’re running a team or dealing with a high volume of leads, this is a must-have.

This lead response and management tool offers next-level tracking for agents who want to know where leads are coming from, assign them custom paths to get to the right agent (or, if you’re operating solo, prioritized in the right order), and measure your results afterward.

The real power comes from the analytics you get. Imagine what you could do if you could get a report generated that would tell you how each of the agents on your team is performing based on lead type, their response time performance, and how far their leads are getting in the funnel? Next-level stuff.

This tool is a great way to maximize the effectiveness of the lead generation pipeline you’ve worked so hard to build by making sure that the right lead gets to the right person at the right time, every time.

Is Top Producer Right for You?

If you want to get to the next level when it comes to providing market-level data to your contact via an MLS integration, or if you have a team where your lead routing needs some work, definitely give Top Producer a closer look.

Try Top Producer

Prices starting at $110 / month
Elevate is a real estate CRM that recognizes managing your contacts and nurturing your sphere isn’t just about sending automated emails and text messages—it is about maintaining a marketing presence among your sphere of influence such that when the topic of conversation turns to real estate, you’re top of mind.

Elevate achieves this by offering content creation services, social media management, and paid lead generation, all as a part of the CRM package. For agents who are looking for a CRM and help to get social media marketing in shape, Elevate is a great option.

Elevate Pros & Cons

Elevate Pros	Elevate Cons
A unique, overall marketing and nurturing ecosystem	Limited analytics and performance tracking
Social media content creation done for you	Can be pricey if you’re choosing a package that includes paid lead generation
A fantastic, built-in CMA tool	Limited CRM capabilities for the most basic package

How Much Does Elevate Cost?

Elevate Package	Price Per Month	Includes
Social Pro	$110	CRM*, social media content, blog content
DMS	$200	CRM, website, blog content
DMS + Buyer Leads	$300	CRM, website, blog content, social media content, approx. 10 buyer leads per month
Elite Leads	$750	CRM, social media / blog content, approx 30 buyer or seller leads per month
Elite Pro	$2,000	CRM, social media / blog content, approx 80 - 120 buyer & seller leaders per month, up to five team licenses

*CRM access is limited to basic functionality and does not include automated email marketing.

Our Favorite Elevate Feature: Content Marketing Services

Creating content to demonstrate to your local market that you’re an expert, you’re involved, and you’re active is time-consuming and difficult, which is why most realtors don’t do it well.

However, well-curated content on your blog and on social media is often the difference-maker when it comes to winning a contested listing. Elevate takes the time and grunt work out of content creation by providing:

Original content, written by Elevate’s in-house experts
Market-specific, data-driven content perfect for including in your marketing (like mailers or email newsletters)
Content that is automatically uploaded to your Elevate website blog and social media accounts for you

[Watch: Elevate Real Estate CRM Review + Video Walk-through]

Is it a completely hands-off solution? No. You’ll need to be in charge or interacting with anyone who interacts with you. You’ll also need to step in and tweak content occasionally, especially if there’s something only someone who has spent time on the ground in your community would know.

Overall, this is a powerful marketing tool that takes the Elevate CRM to the next level.

Is Elevate Right for You?

If your needs include marketing strategy and content as well as a CRM, Elevate is the perfect combo for you. They bill themselves as more than a CRM—more as a marketing solution for real estate agents with growing businesses. If that’s you, you should check out Elevate today.

Try Elevate

Best Real Estate CRM for Agents Also Looking for Lead Generation: Market Leader

Prices starting at $139 / month
Some of you may be asking, “Why is Market Leader on this list? Aren’t they a lead generation company?” You are correct, Market Leader is primarily a lead gen company, but they offer a CRM as a part of their platform that is so good it needs to be in the conversation for best CRM as well. The real kicker? You can integrate the Market Leader CRM with virtually any real estate lead source, not just their own.

This is a platform that has all the bells and whistles of a top-rated CRM and also happens to be The Close’s first choice for real estate lead generation companies—worth a look for sure.

Market Leader Pros & Cons

Market Leader Pros	Market Leader Cons
Fully functional CRM with excellent automation options	Doesn’t have some of the more advanced analytic features
Great mobile app	The included website isn’t great
Easily scalable to teams and full brokerages	No onboard transaction management, CMAs, or other advanced features

How Much Does Market Leader Cost?

Since Market Leader is first a lead generation tool, their costs depend on leads, not on the CRM. Access to the Market Leader platform starts at $139 per month, plus an additional $25 or more per lead, depending on your market. Most Market Leader agents pay around $350 to $400 per month to get started.

Our Favorite Market Leader Feature: Guaranteed Leads

Again, you may be asking, “Why all the leads talk in a guide about CRMs?” Hear me out. Your CRM isn’t a static collection of contact information. It is a growing, living database that needs to be constantly fed with new contacts in order to fuel the growth of your business. Market Leader’s value proposition as a lead generation tool is that they guarantee a certain lead volume every month.

From a CRM perspective, that means that you’ll have new contacts in your database every single month, new people to run through your nurturing campaigns, and new opportunities to turn your contacts into transactions. With Market Leader, you’ve got a CRM with a 100% chance of growth.

Is Market Leader Right for You?

The crossover between paid lead generation and CRM makes a lot of sense, and with Market Leader, you get an excellent CRM platform as well as one of our top-rated lead generation options. Yes, you need a healthy budget to make this play work, but if you’ve got the scratch for it, Market Leader is a fantastic option.

Try Market Leader

Best Real Estate CRM for New Agents: IXACT Contact

Prices starting at $33 / month

IXACT Contact rivals Propertybase in terms of coming close to offering that all-in-one real estate agent solution we’ve been wondering about for a while.

For our money, nobody is quite there yet, but IXACT Contact is on the doorstep. IXACT Contact’s robust CRM also includes options for an IDX website and social media content, bringing them ever closer to completing that lead-generation-to-closing-table journey.

IXACT Contact Pros & Cons

IXACT Contact Pros	IXACT Contact Cons
Sleek design with user-friendly UX	The add-on websites aren’t competitive in terms of features and connectivity
Contacts’ social media handles auto-populated in their lead profiles	Doesn’t sync as easily as you’d expect with some third-party applications
A postcard and mass mail function built into the CRM	No mobile app

How Much Does IXACT Contact Cost?

IXACT CONTACT OFFERS SIX MONTHS OF THEIR SERVICE FOR FREE TO ANY AGENT WHO HAS BEEN LICENSED LESS THAN A YEAR.

Let that sink in for a moment. If you are a new agent in the industry, IXACT Contact is giving away their service to you. This is a singular offer in the CRM game—nobody has anything like it.

Now that we’ve got the shouting out of the way, the rest of IXACT Contact’s pricing model is intriguing, and there is a lot to unpack here. They offer an a la carte price option for real estate agents, so you aren’t paying for services you don’t need.

IXACT Contact Pricing Details

Basic version for a single user of the CRM plus an agent website: $33 per month
IDX website add-ons: $13 per month (standard), $33 per month (professional) plus $65.00 setup fee
Add team members: $23 per team member, per month
Additional IDX websites: Starting at $13 per month plus $65 setup fee
Social Stream: $20 per month
Mass emailing: Varies by volume

Our Favorite IXACT Contact Feature: Social Media Support

Obviously, we are pretty geeked about the free six months offered to new real estate agents.

If you somehow missed that above, IXACT Contact offers their CRM FOR FREE to any agent who has been licensed for less than a year. Nobody else is doing this, and if you are a new real estate agent looking for a quality CRM, you can get one. FOR FREE.

Also, their Social Stream option adds another level of service to this CRM that the others in the space just aren’t providing. It isn’t original content, but it is a lot of relevant articles from reputable sources, like Huffington Post and Better Homes and Gardens, that will actually be interesting to your contacts.

Is IXACT Contact Right for You?

IXACT Contact is easy to try. If you are looking for a CRM with an IDX website component, something with some social options, or, gosh darn it, SOMETHING FREE, you should give IXACT Contact a go. They also offer a five-week free trial to really kick the tires, so you don’t have anything to lose here.

Try IXACT Contact

Best Real Estate CRM for Teams & Brokerages: Propertybase

Prices starting at $79 / month

The Propertybase Salesforce Edition CRM is robust and full-featured, designed for real estate teams and brokerages that need more than just a place to store contacts. Propertybase, powered by Lone Wolf Technologies, also has a single-agent and small teams option called Propertybase Go that is perfect for smaller operations.

Propertybase offers all the features that high-powered teams and brokerages are looking for, including advanced analytics, lead routing, an integrated brokerage, team and agent website experience, and much more.

Their solid, easy-to-use CRM combined with a potent website development arm and a very effective lead generation platform make Propertybase an option all real estate agents should consider.

Propertybase Pros & Cons

Propertybase Pros	Propertybase Cons
Built on the rock-solid Salesforce platform	Certain functions like a dialer or SMS texting are not available natively
CRM and website are both fully MLS-integrated	High price point
Mass email functions allow you to get rid of email marketing platforms like Mailchimp and just use your CRM	Not available without a long-term contract

How Much Does Propertybase Cost?

Propertybase Salesforce Edition is ideal for larger teams and brokerages, starting at $79 per user, per month with a minimum of 10 users. The additional IDX-integrated website is an additional $299 per user, per month.

If you’re interested in Propertybase but don’t have the team or budget to support Propertybase Salesforce Edition, make sure to check out Propertybase GO—a great option for individual agents as well as smaller teams, with prices starting $349 per month for their award-winning CRM and a fully integrated IDX-website.

Our Favorite Propertybase Feature: Advanced Lead Scoring

Most CRMs offer some sort of lead score evaluation to allow real estate agents to quickly glance at a lead profile and determine what sort of attention that lead needs today. But no other CRM that we’re aware of allows you to adjust the criteria for that lead score, and certainly not with the granularity and detail that Propertybase offers.

Make adjustments to your lead scoring criteria based on things like a contact’s response to your outreach campaigns or time since last contact.

Is Propertybase Right for You?

Propertybase offers a fantastic CRM with tons of customization options, from the dashboard and user interface all the way down to how your lead scores are evaluated. But their value doesn’t stop at providing a great CRM—they also offer website and lead generation services that make them as close to an end-to-end platform as we’ve seen.

They offer a free, no-obligation 14-day trial—try them today.

Try Propertybase

Best Real Estate CRM for Real Estate Agents Looking for Comprehensive Support: Wise Agent

Prices starting at $29 / month

Wise Agent has been in the real estate CRM space for a long time (since 2002!). Even though the look and feel of Wise Agent sometimes reminds us of Windows 98, they’ve learned things along the way that make them a valuable platform for real estate agents.

If you’re looking for a CRM with great automation options and 24/7 support included with every package, Wise Agent is for you.

Wise Agent Pros & Cons

Wise Agent Pros	Wise Agent Cons
Offers data-based testing like A/B testing of your automated communication	Old-school interface feels dated
SMS texting included in your base package	Not a great choice for teams or brokerages
Straightforward, affordable pricing	No website option

How Much Does Wise Agent Cost?

Wise Agent has a straightforward pricing structure: $29 a month or $299 per year. Both options include a one-on-one onboarding call and round-the-clock support, 365 days a year.

Considering the fairly long list of features (great email automation, integration partners, and SMS texting, to name a few), you get a good bang for your buck with Wise Agent.

Our Favorite Wise Agent Feature: Extensive Customer Support

We know we’ve mentioned this before, but it bears repeating: 24/7 support, 365 days a year, with a real person. If you have a question about Wise Agent, there is literally always someone ready to answer it.

We wrote an in-depth review of Wise Agent if you want to really get under the hood and see how things function—check it out.

Is Wise Agent Right for You?

If service and support are number one for you, Wise Agent is a great CRM to check out. Their price is very affordable, and you can even try it for free. With a 30-day, full-featured trial, you can put Wise Agent through its paces and see how it could benefit your business.

Try Wise Agent

Frequently Asked Questions about Real Estate CRMs

Here at The Close, we talk a lot about CRMs. Everyone from rookie solo agents to multi-office brokers wants to know how they can get the most out of these platforms.

Of course, we get a lot of “Which platform is right for me?” (which is why guides like this one exist), but we’re also asked a lot of other questions. Here, we answer some of the most popular ones. Feel free to ask anything we haven’t covered here in the comments section.

Do I need a CRM with a website included?

The short answer here is no, but it’s a nice perk to have. A real estate CRM that is directly, organically connected to your website allows you to tap into efficiencies like having your lead’s website activity automatically recorded on their profile or their email drip campaigns personalized based on the property they view.

The long and the short of it is—if you’re also looking for a website, getting a CRM + website combo is absolutely the way to go.

Are there any worthwhile free real estate CRMs?

Yes, there are some platforms you should check out. First off, if you’re new to real estate, circle back up to the section in this guide about IXACT Contact. They offer six months free to anyone who’s had their license for less than a year. Otherwise, check out our buyer’s guide for the best free real estate CRMs.

What’s the biggest mistake people make when starting with a new CRM?

The biggest mistake agents make when starting with a new CRM is, if you’ve used a CRM before, looking at it through the lens of your old CRM. If you’re looking to replicate the functions of your last platform on the new platform, you’re missing out on the opportunities your new tool provides. Do your best to start fresh, and walk through the training as if you’re brand-new to the space.

If this is your first time using a CRM, make sure to avoid moving too fast, too soon. You were most likely sold on the product because of the advanced features it offers, but before you run, you’ve got to learn how to walk. Before jumping into the most sophisticated workflows and automations, before getting started with custom market updates and website integrations, make sure you know the basics.

Build effective lead profiles, start communicating through the platform, and use it to categorize and prioritize your leads. Once you’ve got the basics down, then you can start to level up.

How do I make sure my team / brokerage is using their CRM?

If you’re going to invest in a technology platform designed for teams or entire brokerages, you want to make sure everyone is using it. After all, these tools aren’t cheap, and they don’t work nearly as well if people don’t, well, use them. Here are three ways to ensure your team buys in.

1. Introduce the platform slowly: Even the most technologically comfortable agents aren’t going to jump headfirst into a new CRM; they’ve got clients to service and other parts of their business to maintain. Your agents can’t just put their entire world on pause for a week to learn a new platform, so offer them a transition period to get onboard.

2. Train, train, train: Assume that your team members don’t know anything until they show you they do. Most agents don’t come into the real estate industry with a technology background, so while they are successful on one platform, that doesn’t mean that they’re naturally successful on all platforms. Give them all the resources they need to learn the ins and outs of your new tool.

3. Offer incentives: If everyone on your team is on the same CRM, your productivity is going to go up, your lead conversion will rise, and you’re going to close more deals. That means more money in your pocket, so pass some of that along to your agents. Consider incentivizing them with a reduced split on a commission after successfully adopting the platform or other form of monetary benefit to give them a personal reason to buy in.

Bringing It All Together

With so many different business models, philosophies, and real estate agent types out there, it is easy to see why there are so many different real estate CRMs. Which of these seven is right for you? Is there a real estate CRM that we need to add to our guide?

Drop a comment below and tell us about your favorite CRM. Is it on this list? How has it changed the way that you do business?

The post The Best Real Estate CRM for 2022: In-depth Reviews & Pricing appeared first on The Close.

25 Real Estate Marketing Tools Every Agent Needs for 2022 (+ Reviews & Pricing)

Emile L'Eplattenier — Mon, 03 Jan 2022 13:00:02 +0000

If you’re not a tech geek, keeping up with the latest and greatest real estate marketing tools can be a challenge. That’s why we decided to update our list of the best tools available for realtors in 2022.

Click on a category below to jump to descriptions and in-depth reviews of The Close’s top picks for the best real estate marketing tools of 2022:

Real Estate Marketing Tool Category	Best Tools
Websites	Real Geeks, Propertybase, WordPress, Placester
Social Media Tools	Artur’In, PorchLyte, Coffee & Contracts, Hootsuite, Buffer, Tailwind
Marketing-focused CRMs	LionDesk, IXACT Contact
Community Engagement Tools	Parkbench
Graphic Design Tools	Lab Coat Agents Marketing Center, Adobe Photoshop, Canva, Kapwing, Unsplash
SEO Tools	Ahrefs, SEMrush
SMS Marketing Tools	SlickText, EZ Texting
Video Production Tools	Rode VideoMicro, Lumen5, Animoto

Websites

Real Geeks

Cost: $299 per month
Learning curve: Low

One of the earliest providers of all-in-one IDX websites and customer relationship management (CRM) tools, Real Geeks offers agents, teams, and brokerages a true turnkey solution for their online marketing efforts. There are way, way too many features to list here, but you will get a gorgeous IDX website optimized for lead generation, a powerful CRM, a property valuation tool, SMS texting, market reports, and—yeah, way too much to list here.

Visit Real Geeks

Propertybase

Cost: Starting at $89 per user, per month
Learning curve: Low

Originally Boston Logic, Propertybase is the professional real estate team’s secret weapon. They offer killer IDX websites with mapping features as well as an integrated CRM that is designed to help teams nurture leads long term and drive more referrals and business. If you already have a website, they offer a standalone CRM that was recently revamped to be even more effective at keeping teams organized and marketing like Fortune 500 companies.

Visit Propertybase

DIY WordPress Website

Cost: Free to $5,000 and up
Learning curve: High

If you’re a bit more tech-savvy and want to get your hands dirty, then you might want to try your hand at building a WordPress website to show off your brand online. While WordPress is easy to use compared to building a site from scratch, the learning curve for non-tech-savvy agents is high. You’ll also need to pay to add features like IDX listings, which come standard with most real estate websites.

Visit WordPress

Related articles:

Placester

Cost: Starting at $80 per month
Learning curve: Medium

While they don’t offer a robust, integrated CRM, Placester is definitely worth considering for one reason: they make lovely websites. While there is some debate on whether or not your website needs to be beautiful to convert leads, there is no debate that an ugly site will hurt your brand. So if you already have a CRM you love, you can’t go wrong with a Placester website.

Visit Placester

Artur’In

Cost: $199 to $399 per month ($300 setup fee waived for Close readers)
Learning curve: Low

One of the biggest problems agents have with social media is finding the time to post enough to stay relevant and feed the algorithms. Artur’In solves this problem by posting sticky, local real estate content to your social media channels for you. So instead of hunting for great content to post every morning, you can focus on creating high-value video content using Instagram Stories or Reels.

Visit Artur’in

PorchLyte

Cost: $47 per month
Learning curve: Low

Founded by Tracey Henning, a Realtor with 27 years of experience, PorchLyte offers agents social media posts, lead magnets, video scripts, blog posts, and training to put it all together into an unstoppable social media presence. She also runs an exclusive Facebook community to share referrals and swap social media strategies.

Close readers can claim 7 days of ready-to-go customizable social media templates from PorchLyte for free.

Visit PorchLyte

Coffee & Contracts

Cost: $54 per month
Learning curve: Low

Another Realtor-founded company, Coffee & Contracts offers agents gorgeous and trendy templates for Instagram. Founder Haley Ingram calls it “Your $54-a-month Marketing Manager” and we couldn’t agree more. Hiring a social media manager who keeps up with the latest trends as Haley does would easily cost you 10 times what she charges. Assuming you could even find one!

Visit Coffee & Contracts

Hootsuite

Cost: $29 to $599 per month
Learning curve: Low

Hootsuite is the social media software that 800 of the Fortune 1000 companies trust to plan, create, and schedule their social media posts to maximize views and engagement. Hootsuite lets you store frequently used assets like images and logos so you can create and schedule social media content for multiple channels like Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and more from one app.

Visit Hootsuite

Buffer

Cost: Free to $99 per month
Learning curve: Low

Like Hootsuite, Buffer also lets agents plan, create, and schedule social media posts. They also have a cool feature that lets you add the first comment to your Instagram posts to entice your followers to engage and include more info about your post. The best part is that, unlike Hootsuite, Buffer offers a limited free version that lets you manage three social accounts and schedule up to 10 posts. Most teams will probably opt to upgrade to the Pro plan for only $15 a month, though.

Visit Buffer

Tailwind

Cost: Free to $9.99 per month
Learning curve: Low

Spend lots of time on Pinterest or Instagram? Then an app like Tailwind is right up your alley. Tailwind lets you schedule social media posts for Pinterest and Instagram but also helps you discover key influencers to work with on Pinterest and trending hashtags to post with on Instagram. Even better, Tailwind has a free trial that lasts forever, so you can use a limited version of the app without paying a dime. Of course, if you want to upgrade, Tailwind is only $9.99 per channel, per month. So if you only want to use Tailwind for Instagram, you’re in luck.

Visit Tailwind

Marketing-focused CRMs

Speaking of automating relationships, a great customer relationship management (CRM) tool can do just that but on an even higher level than your phone, albeit with a less personal touch. That said, you can use it to automate text messages and schedule phone calls, so there’s a pretty good argument that your CRM is even more important than your phone for marketing. Here are two killer CRMs for individual agents and teams.

LionDesk

Cost: $21 per month
Learning curve: Medium

LionDesk is a lightweight, affordable, and easy-to-use CRM that has everything you need to start organizing and automating your relationships, and with transaction management thrown in for good measure. Even better, you can get set up with LionDesk starting at just $21 per month—less than half what other CRM companies charge.

Visit LionDesk

IXACT Contact

Cost: $33 per user, per month
Learning curve: Medium

When it comes to bang for your buck from a CRM with great marketing tools, IXACT Contact is hard to beat. For just $33 per month, IXACT Contact users get marketing extras like social media automation, a beautiful agent website, and an automated monthly e-newsletter. Agents even get “concierge” setup help and unlimited phone support to make sure they’re getting the best return on investment (ROI).

Click here to learn more and start your free five-week trial to check out this marketing-focused CRM.

Visit IXACT Contact

Related articles:

Community Engagement Tools

Parkbench

Cost: Varies by ZIP code
Learning curve: Low

When it comes to building relationships with local businesses that will get you tons of referrals, there’s only one game in town: Parkbench. Parkbench is the only real estate marketing tool that gives you a turnkey solution to building relationships and nurturing them to generate referrals.

Visit Parkbench

Graphic Design Tools

Lab Coat Agents Marketing Center

Cost: $59 per month
Learning curve: Low

LCA Marketing Center is like Canva on steroids. It gives you all the super-easy-to-use design tools Canva does but is only for real estate agents. That means you won’t have to struggle to force restaurant templates to work for your flyers. The designs are also top-notch and very professional-looking.

Visit Lab Coat Agents Marketing

Adobe Photoshop

Cost: $20.99 per month
Learning curve: High

Of course, if you want to get really serious, then Adobe Photoshop is a no-brainer. It is and has been the choice of every serious graphic design professional for more than 20 years now. Facing stiff competition from the likes of LCA Marketing Center and Canva, prices have gone down dramatically. The learning curve is high, though, so Photoshop will require an investment of time and effort to pay off.

Visit Adobe Photoshop

Canva

Cost: Free to $30 per month
Learning curve: Medium

Designed as a Photoshop replacement for the non-tech savvy, Canva is a must-have for agents who don’t have the time to learn Photoshop, or just want to create great-looking visual assets right away. It works a lot like Photoshop—the only difference is that it doesn’t offer nearly as many features. Instead, you get thousands of predesigned templates that you can customize and make your own.

Visit Canva

Kapwing

Cost: Free to $20 per month
Learning curve: Low

Have you ever wondered how we make all those hilarious memes (our mothers think they’re funny) that we share on social media? The answer is our secret meme-making weapon called Kapwing. Kapwing offers tons of meme templates that you can quickly and easily customize, as you can with Canva. Kapwing also lets you make and edit videos, add subtitles, add music to videos, and more.

Visit Kapwing

Unsplash

Cost: Free
Learning curve: Low

Venture capital-backed Unsplash is the best source for royalty-free images online. Full stop. This is where we get 99% of our stock photos for The Close. The only drawback is that the selection of images is limited compared to other sources. The quality is higher, though, so this should be your first choice for royalty-free photos.

Visit Unsplash

SEO Tools

Ahrefs

Cost: $99 per month
Learning curve: Medium

Over the past few years, Ahrefs has managed to wrestle the throne away from Moz and become the most accurate and most useful search engine optimization (SEO) tool on the market. It lets you take the guesswork out of deciding which articles to write by showing the keywords with the most traffic and the lowest difficulty to rank for. Don’t tell them I told you this, but you could theoretically pay for just one month and research your entire content runway for the year. If you’re more serious about SEO, then a monthly subscription makes more sense.

Visit Ahrefs

SEMrush

Cost: $83 per month
Learning curve: Medium

If you want to get serious about beating the competition, then SEMrush is an invaluable marketing tool. It lets you spy on the competition and figure out what keywords they’re ranking for, how much traffic they’re getting, and who is linking to them.

Visit SEMrush

Related articles:

SMS Marketing Tools

SlickText

Cost: Free to $139 per month
Learning curve: Low

SlickText lets agents send bulk text messages for new listings or open house details, schedule texts, add pictures, and set up opt-in text messaging lists to increase engagement automatically. If you start using SlickText to market to your clients and sphere, be ready to give your thumbs a workout.

Visit SlickText

EZ Texting

Cost: $39 to $119 per month
Learning curve: Low

EZ Texting lets real estate agents build SMS lists that people can subscribe to by texting a keyword to their numbers. You can also use EZ Texting to create SMS polls, drip campaigns, and more.

Visit EZ Texting

Video Production Tools

If we have to explain why video is a crucial real estate marketing tool in 2022, you might just be living on another planet. Video is no longer a bonus—it’s increasingly the primary way your leads will interact with your brand.

Rode VideoMicro

Cost: $59
Learning curve: Low

This tiny little video microphone will make your videos sound professional instead of crummy. Sound is even more important than image quality when it comes to video production. After all, your audience isn’t watching your videos to see what you look like. They want to hear what you have to say. If you buy anything to improve your videos, this should be it.

Visit Rode VideoMicro

Lumen5

Cost: Free to $149 per month
Learning curve: Medium

Lumen5 is the easy way to make professional-looking explainer videos with text, stock video, and more. Lumen5 has templates for social media as well as prosumer-level tools to help you create videos that look like they came from a Hollywood studio.

Visit Lumen5

Animoto

Cost: Free to $15 per month
Learning curve: Medium

Animoto is a drag-and-drop video editor that is designed for small businesses. It’s easy to use and gets you slick, professional-looking results without the hassle. Perfect for making quick listing videos, promotional videos, or anything else you want to make that needs to look and sound great.

Visit Animoto

Over to You

Are you using a killer real estate agent marketing tool we forgot? Let us know in the comments or join our Facebook Mastermind Group here.

The post 25 Real Estate Marketing Tools Every Agent Needs for 2022 (+ Reviews & Pricing) appeared first on The Close.

19 Best Real Estate Email Templates & Scripts for 2022

Emile L'Eplattenier — Fri, 08 Oct 2021 10:00:30 +0000

Since so many leads, especially millennials, prefer to be contacted via email, writing effective real estate email templates will help you close more deals in 2022. The only problem is that, for many agents, writing effective emails can be challenging.

We put together this resource of 19 effective real estate email templates you can use for inspiration to help create your own email templates. Check out my 15 rules for writing effective emails at the end of this article.

Download All 19 Email Templates

1. Discount Broker / Objection Handler Email

Tom Ferry, Top Ranked Real Estate Educator

Originally a phone script, Ferry’s excellent discount broker rebuttal is ideal to use on leads who prefer email.

Subject Line: Why you should avoid discount brokerages in today’s market

Hello [First Name]

As a full-service brokerage, we use all the available tools to showcase your home in the best way possible to the largest consumer base. Being exposed at that level allows us to reach the greatest number of buyers, causing you to sell at the best terms and price.

As a discount brokerage, they must be selective with the tools they use because they have to save money somehow. Too often, we find it is at the cost of your exposure and that this lower exposure often causes sellers to receive lower price offers. Buyers know discount brokerages are occasionally used so that they tend to try to low-bid the homes because they know the seller opted for fewer services. Does this make sense to you?

With the market conditions still not as solid as we would all like, I think you deserve the very best exposure, would you agree?

Want to learn more about email marketing mistakes to avoid from Ferry? Check out Episode 54 of the Tom Ferry Show here.

2. One-year Follow-up Email

Zvi Band, Contactually

Homebuyers you’ve helped into a new home are great sources of referrals, not to mention that after as little as on year in their new home, they may be ready to purchase a vacation home, an investment property, or even an upgrade on their current property.

Subject Line: Happy One Year in Your Home!

Hi [First Name]

Happy anniversary on the purchase of your home! I would imagine you’ve settled in nicely at your place now. However, if there is anything I can help with, please don’t hesitate to ask.

Also, as you know, real estate is strongly based on relationships. If you know of anyone who is searching for a Realtor, I’d be honored to have you pass along my information or have you reply with their name and contact information.

I hope to hear from you soon and thank you so much!

Best!

3. Seller Lead Email

Tyler Zey, Founder, Easyagent PRO

Check out this real estate email template designed to entice homeowners by inviting them to review their potential financial upside over coffee.

Subject Line: Like hotcakes

Hey John,

Every house in your neighborhood has sold for more than you’d expect this last year. Buyers are finally submitting offers like hotcakes.

Does 5 p.m. tomorrow at the Starbucks by your house work to show you this report I’ve drawn up? I think you’re going to LOVE the numbers.

Best,

Tyler

P.S. Have you seen my client success stories?

4. Lender Referral Email

Stacie Staub, Founder West + Main Homes

Shopping for a new home can be fun and easy, but sourcing a great lender and securing mortgage financing is often the most complicated aspect of home buying. Use this lender referral email template to help turn your prospects into active homebuyers.

Subject Line: Lenders I know and trust

Hi!

Here is the lender info that I promised. I recommend that you talk with a couple of them to see what programs they offer and to make sure that their communication style works for you.

This is the first step in your homebuying journey. Once you are pre-approved and have a solid idea of what your purchasing power will be, then we can set up a home search and start looking for some homes!

West + Main Homes has a video discussing the pre-approval process that you might also find helpful.

Let me know how it goes, and who you decide to work with.

[Insert contact details for your three preferred lenders, including links to their website, active links to their email, and a link to their pre-approval form if they have one.]

10 Questions to Ask a Lender
10 Things a Lender Will Probably Need From You

As always, hit me up with questions or concerns any time.

Thanks!

[Insert your full signature, which I recommend you include on EVERY email.]

5. Listing Feedback Email

Market Leader

Market Leader’s listing feedback email template helps you gather more informations about your buyer’s needs and wants for their next property.

Subject Line: Checking In

Just a note to make sure you received the listing information I sent and were able to view it. If you did have any problems, I can resend the information, send it via postal mail, or deliver it to you personally.

I am interested in getting your thoughts on the homes. Did any of them appeal to you? Did you enjoy viewing the listings? Did it give you a good idea of what is available?

If you would like to see any of these homes in person, I would be happy to set a time to get together and tour them along with any others that come on the market. Please feel free to call or email me for any further help or questions.

In the meantime, I will continue to send you valuable information about searching for a home, the buying process, and packing and moving. I welcome the opportunity to represent you and help you find the home of your dreams!

Do you need a quick infusion of leads without the hassle? Market Leader sells buyer and seller leads directly, which means you can start working leads right away.

Check to see if your ZIP code is available

6. Reconnecting With Past Client Email

Rich Gaasenbeek, IXACTContact

While originally designed as a phone script, this approach works great as an email template, and as a means of reconnecting with a client you may have lost touch with.

Subject Line: Nice to Reconnect With You

Hi, Susan, this is Candace Green from ABC Realty. It’s been a while since we worked together on selling your home on Maple Street.

I’m sorry that I haven’t been in touch more since you’ve moved. How have you and your family been?

Now that we’re back in touch, is there anything I can help you with? I’d be happy to offer you a home appraisal if you’re interested. If you’ve been thinking of making any changes around your home, I’d be happy to recommend some reputable contractors, landscapers, or decorators.

If you know of anyone who is considering buying or selling, feel free to share my contact information with them. I appreciate referrals from past clients.

Thanks for taking the time to chat today. It was nice reconnecting with you. I’ll be in touch every so often. Please don’t hesitate to reach out to me if you have any real estate or home-related questions.

7. New Lead Follow-up Email

Beverly Ruffne, Real Estate Coach

Doubling up and contacting a new lead by both email and text message keeps you top of mind so your new, budding relationship doesn’t wither on the vine.

Subject Line: Did you get the text?

Hello [First_Name],

Did you receive the text we sent about your home search? Just making sure in case it didn’t come through, it was sent to [phone number]. Is that the best number?

We want to be your go-to resource to assist with your real estate questions. What homes are of most interest to you and how can we help?

[Agent_signature]

[auto_login_link]

8. First Showing Follow-up Email

Emile L’Eplattenier, Managing Editor at TheClose.com

Following a first property showing, you’ll want to sum up the day and the offerings you showed your client. It’s a great time to demonstrate your honesty with a straightforward and realistic assessment of what you’ve seen together.

Subject: Following up

Hey [First Name],

Just wanted to send you a quick follow-up email to go over the homes we saw today, along with my take on them. Please keep in mind that although I have been studying this market for [number of years] now, that my opinion is just that—an opinion. At the end of the day, you’re going to be the one to live there, so please take my thoughts here with the proverbial grain of salt.

That said, it can be helpful to try to look at the homes you see more objectively, and that’s what I aim to achieve with these emails. Believe me, considering what we’re looking for, all the homes can and will become a blur eventually, so I am going to keep a running tally of homes we’ve seen so you can more easily compare and contrast them without relying on your memory.

[the first home you brought them to]

I think [the address] has a lot going for it. On the surface, it does seem to tick all your boxes, but I am still concerned about the potential foundation issues we saw. It could be nothing, but since there were so many other excited buyers there, I don’t want us to get swept up in a bidding war for a home with potentially serious issues.

[the second home you brought them to]

[the address] may have had a lovely pool area, but I think the asking price is way out of line with the neighborhood. I also think the layout is going to be very difficult to work with. The wall that separates the living room is structural, and really hurts the flow of the space.

[the third home you brought them to]

[the address] seems to be the strongest candidate so far in my opinion. Since you liked it so much, I am grabbing a coffee with the listing agent tomorrow to see if I can gauge the seller’s motivation.

Attached is a list of more homes I think will work for you. How does Sunday at 11:30 sound? Although the second place on this list looks great, please be aware that it is tricky to show, so we might not get in this weekend at all.

Looking forward to seeing you on Sunday! As usual, if anything else great comes in, I will send it over right away and add it to our list.

Best regards,

9. Second Contact With Seller Email

Zillow

Here’s another excellent email template from Zillow that you can use for your second contact with a seller. Offering a free, custom home valuation report is a great way to show your value to your client.

Subject line: [Contact name], let’s chat about selling your home

Hi, [Contact name]:

Thanks again for taking a minute to chat with me on [conversation date] about selling your home. I strive to make the selling experience as comfortable and enjoyable as possible. Is [previously discussed date range] still your timeline for selling your home?

I will create a custom home valuation report for your property and get in touch with you shortly with the finished report. In the meantime, please visit my website [website link] or, if you have any questions, feel free to email or call me at [your number].

Thanks again for your time!

[Agent signature]

10. Testimonial Email

Megan Swanson, BoomTown

There are few approaches as effective as providing real-world client testimonials to a new prospect to help them get to know the level of service you provide.

Subject Line: Varies

Hi Cindy,

I hope you have been able to browse some of the market updates I sent over in my last email. If not, I have a blog post here explaining the current market and how to position yourself as the best buyer in the lot.

However, in this market, it often comes down to negotiations between agents to close the deal on a home. I wanted you to hear a few stories about how I’ve helped some locals find their perfect properties over the past few months.

‘Annie worked magic in a market where I never thought I would be able to afford my dream home. She managed the process from start to finish and my family and I could not be happier.’

―The Jones Family

‘My home search was full of ups and downs, but Annie never stopped in the search for our home. After helping us sell our current home and finding the new place, we could not have asked for a better experience.’

―Matthew Trice

Browse more testimonials on my website here.

Starting the search is the first step in finding your perfect property, and I am here to help!

I’ll talk to you soon,

[Agent Signature]

11. Referral Request Email

National Association of Realtors

Since referrals will become the lifeblood of your business as you progress, here’s a great email script from the National Association of Realtors (NAR) for referrals.

Subject Line: Varies

Hello [First Name],

I hope this letter finds you and your family in good health and spirits. As you know, I greatly value the business and personal relationship that I have with you. I write today to ask a favor. I am looking to expand my business and work for more good people like you. Do you have any friends, family, or colleagues in need of real estate brokerage services?

As you may already know, my services include:

Real estate sales
Real estate purchases
Real estate home staging
Local real estate market reports
Local real estate market expertise and guidance
Real estate professional referrals (for those moving to another state or country)
Real estate leasing (commercial, industrial, retail, and residential)
Other: do you have a unique real estate issue that you need assistance with? I am happy to work with you to find solutions.

Again, thank you for supporting me and my business endeavors. I hope to hear from you soon!

Best wishes,

[First Name]

12. Listing Request Follow-up Email

Point2

As a follow-up to providing listing information to a prospective buyer, this real estate email template lets you dig a little deeper to find out your client’s likes and dislikes.

Subject Line: Follow-up

Just a note to make sure you were able to view the listing information you requested. If you had any problems, I would be happy to resend it another way or deliver it to you personally.

I’d love to get your thoughts on the home(s). Did it/any of them appeal to you? Did you get a good idea of what is available?

If you would like to see any home in person, let me know, and we can set up a tour. I can get us access to new listings as soon as they come on the market.

Please feel free to call, email, or text me for any further help or with questions about the buying process. Helping you find the home of your dreams is what I do!

13. New Agent Recruiting Email

Contactually

Here’s another great email from Contactually’s email script vault that offers up the value of your experience to new recruits.

Subject line: Before you delete this …

Hi [First Name]

I know I’ve reached out a few times, and you may have put the messages aside because you weren’t interested in making a move at this point in time.

I’m not looking to only talk to you about recruiting, however. I’d like to meet to connect on a professional level—a meeting I hope will be mutually beneficial for both of us.

I’m sure you know from your own experience that expanding your network is always valuable. What I’m asking is to get to know each other and chat—no strings attached!

I promise you’ll leave our meeting with something worth your time. I’ve been in real estate for [INSERT NUMBER] years, and I can, at a minimum, share with you some foolproof ways to grow your business.

Would you be open to an informal conversation?

14. Home Valuation Request Email

Follow Up Boss

Follow-ups for home valuation requests are another email you need to nail right away.

Subject: How much is your home worth?

Hello [Name],

Are you still interested in knowing how much your home is worth?

I think you’ll be surprised what I uncovered in my market analysis. Would you want to grab a coffee and walk through it?

How’s Tuesday afternoon?

Joe Agent

P.S. Getting homes sold above asking price is kind of like my superpower. Do you want to see how I do it? Grab my free guide on How to Get Max ROI (return on investment) Out of Your Houston Home.

15. Second Contact With a Passive Buyer Email

Realty Executives, Santa Clarita

Sometimes, the second touchpoint or contact with a lead or prospect is more important than the first.

Subject Line: Your Interest in [city, neighborhood]

Thanks again for taking a minute to chat with me on [date]. I understand not feeling ready to look at properties. It’s a big decision, and there is a lot to think about.

After we spoke, I set you up to receive an occasional email with listings similar to what we discussed. I’m hoping they piqued your interest, so shoot me an email or give me a call at [your number] to chat. I want to make sure I’m sending you what you need.

Thanks again for your time. If you have any questions, please let me know.

[Agent signature]

16. Annual Home Sales Report Email

Placester

Your emails offering a home sale report are important to get right. Placester’s real estate email template gets straight the point.

Subject Line: [Agency Name] Annual Home Sales Report

Hi [Name],

Do you want to see how the [market name] housing market performed in [last year] and what lies ahead for [upcoming year]?

Discover statistics that show home sales, prices, values and other key data during the 12-month period here in my in-depth report.

Multiply Your Open Rates With Personalized Video Emails

Since the vast majority of people would rather listen and watch than slog through long emails, it’s no surprise that studies have shown that video can increase email open rates by as much as 5x. Luckily for real estate agents, we have a dedicated (and awesome) app that makes recording, sending, and tracking quick videos a snap.

Just think—instead of sending a wall of text, you can record some of these email templates and put them in a video drip campaign. Check out BombBomb below for a free trial.

Visit BombBomb

17. Non-responsive Leads Email

Ryan Stewman, HardcoreCloser.com

Use this script to elicit a response from non-responsive lead. This email gives recipients a time limit for getting back to you in order to capitalize on an opportunity or offer.

Subject Line: Have you stopped looking for [insert result]?

[First name], we received your information in regard to [offer] recently. I’ve personally attempted to reach you several times via phone, email, and text. I believe you may have accidentally signed up for the wrong offer because most people who reach out to us end up taking advantage of our offer within 10 to 15 minutes.

I’ll be removing your contact information and never contacting you again if I don’t hear from you in the next 48 hours. If you are no longer interested in our product, I don’t want to continue taking up space in your inbox. We clean our email lists up often so that we are in compliance with the CAN-SPAM Act.

If you are still interested and want to take advantage of our offer, I’ll give you an additional 10% off the price, but ONLY if you respond to this email in the next 48 hours. Two days from now, the offer and my emails go away forever.

Have a great day,

[Agent]

18. Open House Follow-up Email

Jon Yourkin, Realvolve

Do you have a script for following up with your open house visitors? Check out this next email template that opens the door for a next meeting.

Subject Line: I know [neighborhood] is my dream locale too …

Hi [First Name],

Thanks so much for stopping by the open house for [address] last Sunday. It was great to meet you!

If you’re interested in seeing more homes in this neighborhood, there are a few I’d like to show you. It’s a competitive area, but my expertise buying and selling in [neighborhood] is unparalleled.

However, before we jump into anything serious, I’d love to learn more about what you’re looking for in a new home. I also want to share my approach to the homebuying process to make sure I’m the right fit for you.

If you’d like to set up a time to meet, click this link to book time on my calendar [link to meeting tool].

Talk to you soon,

[Agent signature]

19. Coming Soon Preview Email for Cold Buyer Leads

Jeff Manson, Real Geeks

No one can resist a “coming soon” listing, especially in an exclusive neighborhood like this one, with a very limited number of homes.

Subject: Still looking in Lanikai?

Hi John,

Are you still interested in Lanikai? I’ve got a new listing coming up (not yet on the market), and I wanted you to be one of the first to know about it!

Please let me know if you’re interested in more details.

Sincerely,

[Rock Star Agent]

15 Tips for Writing Your Own Highly Effective Real Estate Emails

1. Avoid Long Paragraphs & Confusing Words

To keep your mobile leads interested in your email, try to keep your paragraphs to no more than two or three lines each.

A three-line paragraph will be six lines or even more on small phone screens. This makes your email seem much longer than it is.

2. Don’t Use HTML Email Templates

Email templates might look great for your email newsletter, but they will do nothing but distract your reader for follow-up emails to your leads. You want them to focus on your message, not fancy layouts.

Also, HTML templates won’t work on all devices all the time. Better to err on the side of brevity and simplicity.

3. Avoid Using Too Much Jargon as Simple Direct Language Works Better

While many real estate agents think industry jargon will impress their leads, in reality, real estate jargon can confuse your leads and make your message less clear.

4. Create an Outline Before You Start Writing

One of the best ways to make sure you hit the right points in the right order in your email is to make an outline before you start writing. Figure out what you want to say, and then flesh out the email and work on language.

5. Use the Slide to Keep Readers Engaged

In copywriting, “the slide” is the language you use specifically to make sure your reader reads the entire message. Best practices include starting off with very short sentences. Building intrigue or asking a question at the beginning of the email and using bucket brigades—linking words and phrases like “How can you beat that?,” “It gets better,” “Think about it,” “Here’s the deal,” and “Let’s face facts.”

6. Use Playful Language Sparingly

While you may be tempted to use playful, informal language in your email to seem more personable, you should only use it sparingly. While it will help you and your message seem more personal, it can also very easily sound unprofessional.

7. Pay Special Attention to Your Subject Line

If you want people to read your email, you need to pay special attention to the subject line. Your subject line should be around 40 characters or fewer to avoid getting cut off on mobile devices.

Straightforward subject lines often work the best, but don’t be afraid to try something more creative by asking a frequently asked question or writing a teaser subject line to pique interest and get your leads to open your email.

8. Read Your Emails Out Loud Before Sending

To give your message the most impact, your language needs to flow smoothly. If your lead is stumbling with your language, it will muddle your message and lower its emotional impact.

Your email should also sound conversational and authentic. One of the best ways to ensure your language flows smoothly and feels genuine is to try reading it out loud before sending it. If you can read it easily without stumbling or unnatural pauses, that’s a good indication your leads will read it that way too.

9. Send Emails at the Right Time

Because your leads probably get tons of emails every day, you need to make sure your message doesn’t get lost in the shuffle. That means scheduling your emails to be sent when they’re most likely to read them.

According to the email marketing service Constant Contact, real estate emails perform best when sent bright and early at 5 a.m. local time on Mondays.

10. Remember to Follow Up

Because you’ll likely be competing with hundreds of other emails in your lead’s inbox, chances are you won’t reach every lead with the first message. That means that following up is crucial if you want to maximize your potential conversions. Schedule follow-ups for leads who don’t open your emails, and schedule more targeted follow-ups for leads who opened your email but didn’t respond.

11. Track Your Progress

Typing up an email and crossing your fingers won’t cut it these days. Instead, use a good customer relationship management (CRM) or email marketing program to track your open rates and response rates to tweak your subject like and message continually.

12. A/B Test Your ‘From’ Line

Here’s a great tip from our friends over at Agent Inner Circle. Don’t forget to A/B test your “from” line to increase your open rates. Does “Joe” work better than “Joe Realtor” or “Joe Smith: Realtor?” You won’t know until you test it.

13. Animated GIFs Are Your Friends

Used sparingly, animated GIFs can be a terrific way to add some personality to your emails without adding more words. Because let’s face it, the longer an email is, the lower the chance that your leads are going to read the whole thing. A GIF can pack more personality than a picture but isn’t quite as bandwidth-heavy as a video. Trust us―the kids are onto something here.

14. Try to Tailor Every Email for Buyers or Sellers

While including a tagline or something that asks for referrals in every email is kind of tacky, you can and should try to work in some buyer- or seller-specific language into every email you send. For example, for a simple Happy Thanksgiving email for a buyer, you could mention that you’re thankful you found them a place they’re happy in.

For a seller, you might mention something specific about where they moved to and why they moved there. For example, if your client moved to Florida, and you’re still in New York, you could mention something like “Happy Thanksgiving from snowy New York,” or something along those lines.

15. Don’t Get Too Personal

Even though personalization is the name of the game these days, that doesn’t mean oversharing, prying, or overly emotional emails are appropriate for your real estate business. Yes, there will always be those clients that you bonded with over a beer when a particularly tough deal finally closed, but you always need to remember that you are a professional first and foremost. It’s one thing to have one too many and get a little too personal with a client at a bar, but quite another to have that overly personal interaction immortalized in an email.

Bottom Line

To write great real estate email templates to engage your leads, check out what other agents are sending, then create an outline and write your own email and subject line.

To get the best results, consider using a professional service like Constant Contact to send and track your messages, and then tweak them until you get strong open and response rates.

Have any email tips you’d like to share? Leave us a comment with your advice below.

The post 19 Best Real Estate Email Templates & Scripts for 2022 appeared first on The Close.

9 Easy & Actionable Real Estate Email Marketing Tips for 2022

Emile L'Eplattenier — Tue, 07 Sep 2021 09:00:52 +0000

Considering that only 19.7% of the emails realtors send get opened, it’s clear that we need to do better with our email marketing. Part of the problem is that many agents still follow outdated advice and send emails that are too long, too frequent, to too many people.

Luckily, there are easy ways to improve your email game. If you want to send emails that actually convert, grab a cup of coffee and take a few minutes to read our nine easy and actionable real estate email marketing tips.

1. Write & Automate Follow-up Email Drips for Unresponsive Leads

Smart agents write and automate their follow-up emails instead of channeling their inner Hemingway every time they want to follow up with a lead. For example, real estate coach and Close contributor Beverly Ruffner created a series of six emails she sends to leads with bad phone numbers. When she gets a bad phone number, she uses her customer relationship manager (CRM) to automatically send these emails until she gets a response.

Here are the first two emails in Beverly’s follow-up series for leads with bad phone numbers:

Send Immediately

Subject: Oops–I think we got something wrong!

Hello [First Name],

I am just checking in one more time. Is [CELLPHONE] your correct number?

We still wanted to make sure of your property search and the area you are looking in. Do you have plans to purchase a property?

[Agent First Name] [Agent Last Name]

[Website]

Day 1

Subject: Where is your favorite location?

Hello [First Name],

I am just checking in one more time. Is [CELLPHONE] your correct number?

We still wanted to make sure of your property search and the area you are looking in. Do you have plans to purchase a property?

[Agent First Name] [Agent Last Name]

[Website]

To read the rest of her follow-up emails and learn more about converting leads with bad phone numbers, check out her article: How to Convert Leads With Bad Phone Numbers (+ Email Scripts).

2. Include a Brief Testimonial in Your Referral Emails

When you write emails asking for referrals, always include a brief testimonial from a referral client you’ve already worked with. This will give your former clients a subtle behavioral nudge to refer you to their friends and family. Yes, they probably already like and trust you, but including a testimonial from another referral will give them actual social proof that you will take their referral business seriously.

Here’s an example of how to include a brief testimonial in a referral email from real estate coach and Close contributor Sean Moudry:

Subject: Thank You, Sincerely!

I just wanted to drop a quick note to say thank you!

Did you know that my business relies on referrals from clients like you? In fact, last year over 20% of my business came from referrals.

Here is another testimonial from a referral I received.

“Sean helped me buy my first home for less than $2,000 down. This is less than if I paid a deposit and first month’s rent!”

— Jamie Smith

If you know someone who is interested in buying a home for as little as $2,000 down, like Jamie, please call me today at 555-555-5555.

Cheers,

Sean

3. Email Cadence Is Almost as Important as Quality

One thing many new agents don’t understand about real estate email marketing is that the timing of your emails is almost as important as the quality of your emails. In marketing, this is called “cadence.” If you want your emails to be successful, you should take the time to plan out your email cadence to different leads and former clients.

Here’s a quick cheat sheet for emails cadences for different types of leads:

Lead Type	Email Cadence
Buyer leads on listing drips	One email per week
Leads with bad phone numbers	Every three days
Former clients	Monthly or quarterly
Newsletter subscribers	One email per week
Seller clients	One email per week
Buyer leads on educational drips	Two emails per week

4. Turn Links Into CTA Buttons for Mobile Users

Like millions of other people in the world, I have fat fingers. In addition to being one of the many reasons I will never be a great guitar player, it means I HATE it when links in emails are just tiny hyperlinked text. So chances are, unless you’re offering me a free house, I am much less likely to click links in your emails if they’re just text.

This is where buttons come in. Buttons are much easier for people to click, which will mean more people will click them, and more people will visit your website. While you’re at it, try to label your buttons with calls to action (CTAs) rather than boring copy like “click here.”

Here’s a great example of a CTA button from Smith & Berg Partners. Note how much more inviting “view photos” is than a generic “click here.”

Tip from: Olivia Tormenta, Marketing Director at Manhattan luxury brokerage Warburg Realty

What is your value add? Curate your content and theme based on your unique expertise, skill set, or interests.

Olivia Tormenta, Marketing Director, Warburg Realty

For example, if you have a special talent for staging, take a time-lapse video of redecorating a listing and getting it ready for sale. Write about how important staging is in the current market, and cite past case studies that prove it gets the home sold faster.
Suppose you’re more of a number-cruncher with an audience in the finance world. In that case, your newsletter could be formatted as a market report with research on your city’s performance each quarter and your opinion for the forecast of where the market might be heading.
If you’re new to real estate and still finding your footing, you could start with a theme that explores a list of “the best of” a popular neighborhood in your city and cover a different area each time. We all love listicles! You could also focus on interests like food, music, pets, or fitness and find ways to tie those things back to real estate.
Interviews/Q&As with industry professionals is another interesting angle. Think of any architects, interior designers, artists, gallery owners, or fashion designers you know who may be shaking up the real estate industry in a unique way.

6. Write at Least 3 Versions of Every Subject Line

Tip from: Becky Brooks, Digital Marketing Manager & Email Marketing Specialist at The Close

Becky Brooks, the Digital Marketing Manager who manages our 90,000-subscriber email list, recommends writing at least three different versions of every subject line. Why? Because subject lines are the first thing your subscribers will read. Getting good at writing them takes practice! Here’s more subject line advice from Becky:

The job of a subject line is to be clickable so that your email gets opened. Pattern interrupters like emojis can work well to draw the eye toward your email in a crowded inbox. But ultimately, the copy you write is what will drive opens.

Becky Brooks, Digital Marketing Manager, The Close

“Think like a storyteller and leave people wanting to know more. Strong adjectives can go a long way to make your subject lines more enticing and speak to the emotions. As for length, 35 characters has traditionally been recommended. But like most things in marketing, as more people follow best practices, they become less likely to make you stand out. Play around with shorter and longer subject lines to gain attention in people’s crowded inboxes.”

7. Keep Your Emails Short, Sweet & Relevant

Tip from: Olivia Tormenta, Marketing Director at Manhattan luxury brokerage Warburg Realty

Offer relevant, interesting information in digestible amounts. Your newsletter shouldn’t take longer than five minutes to read. When it comes to nurturing emails, you need to focus on brevity even more. Get right to the point!

Here’s an excellent example of a short, sweet, and relevant email from Beverly Ruffner:

Subject: Did you get the text?

Hello {lead_first_name},

Did you receive the text we sent about your home search? Just making sure in case it didn’t come through, it was sent to {lead_phone}. Is that the best number?

We want to be your go-to resource to assist with your real estate questions. What homes are of most interest to you and how can we help?

{agent_signature}

{auto_login_link}

8. Don’t Base All Your Content Decisions on Analytics

While the analytics (performance data you get from your email marketing software) is crucial for success, you should be very careful about making content decisions based on this data. While making decisions based on data may seem like a great strategy, it can backfire quickly. Here’s why:

The problem is the sample size. For example, let’s say you send out a newsletter linking to a blog post about a new restaurant and 20% of the people who opened the email clicked the link to your post. Since average click-through rates for the real estate industry are only 1.77%, you might decide you have a winner on your hands and start sending out more emails about restaurants.

But what if only 50 people total opened the email in the first place? That means only 10 people clicked over to your post. Making big content decisions on numbers this small rarely gets good results.

9. Be Visual

Tip from: Olivia Tormenta, Marketing Director at Manhattan luxury brokerage Warburg Realty

Incorporate visually appealing images that are relevant to your topic. Free stock photo sites like Unsplash.com are a great free resource for high-quality photography. Services like Mailchimp and Constant Contact offer free newsletter templates with your paid membership; take advantage of those or hire a freelance designer to help create something more custom.

Bonus Tip: Memes Are Not Just for Teenagers Anymore

Memes (funny pictures with short captions like these) are now used by brands like Gucci and even government agencies to connect with their audiences. The reason why is simple. Like any good joke or pun, memes distill complex ideas into simple ones. They also make people laugh. There is no quicker way to connect with your audience than to make them laugh.

Don’t believe me? Compass Los Angeles Realtor Eric Simon built an audience of over 300,000 on Instagram just using memes. So if you want to connect with your audience and make them laugh, try adding some memes to your emails.

Here are some great sources for real estate memes you can add to your emails: The Broke Agent on Instagram, 79 Real Estate Memes Realtors Can’t Stop Sharing, Rise Realty on Pinterest.

If you want to try your hand at making your own memes and get to 300,000 followers like Eric, check out his free step-by-step e-book on making memes below:

Get Eric’s Free E-book

Over to You

Have a real estate email marketing tip you want to share with your fellow agents? Let us know in the comments.

The post 9 Easy & Actionable Real Estate Email Marketing Tips for 2022 appeared first on The Close.

The 9 Best Open House Follow-up Email Templates of 2022

Emile L'Eplattenier — Mon, 12 Jul 2021 10:00:40 +0000

When it comes to writing great open house follow-up emails, most new agents don’t have a clue. They either try way too hard, or worse, dump them into a drip campaign. The secret to writing follow-up emails that convert is to give leads something they want and make it easy for them to get it from you. Simple!

To show you how simple it can be, we put together this list of the best open house follow-up emails to send in 2022. After the emails, we’ll give you seven expert tips for boosting open and response rates.

1. The Off-market Listings Invitation Email

Subject line: Your Private Invite: Get the Best Listings BEFORE They Hit the Market!

Hi [contact name],

Thanks for stopping by my open house at [listing address] this Sunday. As you can imagine, these things can get hectic, so apologies if we didn’t have the opportunity to talk longer.

If you’re still interested in homes in [neighborhood] like [listing address], I’d love to invite you to my private Off-market Listings Alert emails.

Here’s how it works:

Once a week, I send you the latest and greatest listings the minute (or before) they hit the market.
If you want to see one, you can schedule an appointment right from the email. Simple!

The only catch is that these emails would be more helpful if I know what you’re looking for.

When would be a good time to set up a quick call so I can tailor this list to your needs?

Best regards,

[Your name and title]

[Your contact info]

2. The Coffee Meet Email

Subject line: Coffee This Week? (on me)

Hi [contact name],

Thanks for stopping by my open house this weekend at [listing address].

As you know, these things can be kind of crazy for agents, so apologies if I didn’t get a chance to chat with you in more detail about your hunt.

To make it up to you, I’d like to invite you over to the Starbucks near my office in [office location] for a cup of coffee (on me) to talk about how your search is going.

I’ve been in the industry for [years in real estate] years, so happy to just talk about the market, your expectations, or anything else you’d like to talk about.

My schedule fills up quickly these days, so click below to reserve a time on my calendar below.

[link to scheduling app]

Best regards,

[Your name and title]

[Your contact info]

3. The Honest Feedback Email

Subject line: Did You Hate It…?

Hi [contact name],

So nice meeting you this weekend at my open house at [listing address].

The reason I’m reaching out is to get some honest feedback for the listing. Did you hate it? Love it? In between?

I’m looking for honest feedback, no punches pulled, because I didn’t get to this position in my career by lying to my homeowners!

If you have a few minutes, I’d love to chat with you about your thoughts on [listing address] and your experience home-hunting in [neighborhood] in general.

Click below to schedule a call later this week.

[link to scheduling app]

Best regards,

[Your name and title]

[Your contact info]

Pro tip: If you’re serious about collecting emails at your open houses, an open house sign-in app like Spacio will offer a significant return on investment (ROI). Spacio will not only get you more numbers and emails, but will verify them and dig up social media profiles as well—automatically. It also sends out automated follow-up emails instantly and produces professional seller reports.

Visit Spacio

4. The Comparable Listings Email

Subject line: If You Liked [your open house address], You’ll LOVE These!

Hi [contact name],

Thanks for stopping by my open house at [listing address] this Sunday. As you can imagine, these things can get hectic, so apologies if we didn’t have the opportunity to talk longer.

I just wanted to drop you a quick line to offer no-strings-attached showings for these [number of bedrooms] bedrooms that I think would be perfect for you.

Which works better for a showing, Saturday or Sunday?

P.S.: If you’re not interested in these listings, let’s grab a cup of coffee (on me) sometime this week to try and narrow down what you’re looking for.

Click below to schedule an appointment.

Best regards,

[Your name and title]

[Your contact info]

5. The Open House Opinion Email

Subject line: I Need Your Opinion…

Hi [contact name],

Thanks for stopping by my open house this weekend at [listing address].

Really quick, what did you think of the open house?

I try to make my open houses fun and informative experiences for all my guests, but because we get so busy, I don’t always have enough time to hear from every guest.

I would love to get your feedback, warts and all. If something went wrong, that would help me get it right next time.

We can also chat about the market if you’d like. I have [number of years in real estate] years of experience in [your farm area], so I can talk about this market for days … I’m an open book!

What’s a good day to chat?

Best regards,

[Your name and title]

[Your contact info]

6. The Personal Connection Follow-up Email

Subject line: I Have to Ask…

Hi [contact name],

So nice chatting with you about dogs at my open house at [listing address] this Sunday.

If you or any of your dog-loving friends are looking for some no-nonsense real estate advice, would you be willing to come to my weekly Real Estate Q&A Session at [name of the local bar]?

The bar actually allows dogs, so feel free to bring [dog’s name] along.

If you’re busy on Sunday, let’s keep in touch on LinkedIn. I don’t share any listings there, but I occasionally write articles about real estate that might come in handy someday.

Best regards,

[Your name and title]

[Your contact info]

7. The Hot Lead Email

Subject line: This Weekend

Hi [contact name],

This is [your name] from the open house at [listing address] this Sunday.

I didn’t get your phone number, so I thought I would reach out here instead.

Just a quick heads-up, we have several pending offers on [the listing address] and wanted to give you the inside track since you loved the backyard so much.

Call me to talk. I can also set up some showings for three places. I know the owners will be flexible on pricing for you.

Call me on my cell when you get this: [your cell phone number]

Best regards,

[Your name and title]

[Your contact info]

8. The Open House Thank-you Card

Have open house guests you got along with swimmingly? Instead of sending an email (and assuming you have an address), you should think about sending a simple, handwritten, old-fashioned thank-you card. If you don’t have a home address and know where they work, send it to their office to their attention. Here’s an example of what you might say:

Hi [contact name],

Just wanted to drop you a line to thank you for being patient with me at my open house at [listing address]. These things can get busy, and FAST!

Looking forward to meeting up to talk about strategy and go out to see some listings!

Talk soon,

[Your pen and ink signature]

[Your name and cell number]

9. The Buyer’s Seminar Email

Subject line:

Hi [contact name],

This is [your name] from the open house at [listing address] this Sunday.

I just wanted to reach out to invite you to my new buyer’s seminar I am hosting at [local bar] next Wednesday at 7:30. I will be covering the many ways that buying in [your farm area] has changed this year. I also invited a mortgage broker for the Q&A session.

Feel free to call me on my cell if you have any questions before the seminar: [your cell phone number] If not, I hope to see you on Wednesday!

Best regards,

[Your name and title]

[Your contact info]

7 Tips for Boosting Open & Response Rates for House Follow-up Emails

1. Always Include a Call to Action (CTA)

When it comes to real estate marketing, one of the biggest mistakes we see Realtors make time and time again is forgetting to include a call to action (CTA). Open house follow-up emails are no different. If you don’t include a short, snappy, and actionable line asking your leads to take action (hence the name), you’re leaving money on the table.

To maximize your contact rates for your emails, website, and even voicemails, always include a short, actionable CTA that will inspire your leads to pick up the phone and call you.

2. Avoid Spammy Words in Your Subject Line

Although Google doesn’t release the exact criteria that can land your emails into someone’s “promotional” folder, or god forbid, their spam folder, there are a few best practices you can follow to make sure.

The first and most crucial step is to avoid using spammy words in the subject line or even the body of your emails. Words like “free,” “limited time offer,” and “Call now” can trip Google’s spam filters and ensure your message is never even read.

3. Follow Up Your Email With a Phone Call

If you’re not already doing it, you should make an effort always to follow up your open house thank-you emails with a quick, personal phone call. NO SLYDIAL.

Here’s Sotheby’s One Miami luxury agent, Selen Arditi, on her excellent open house follow-up system:

“The email should be followed up with a phone call to continue that personal attention and opening the line of communication to address any questions they may have.”

Selen Arditi

4. Avoid Using Questions That Can Be Answered With a Simple ‘No’

This is an old negotiating trick that we learned from several sources, most notably former FBI hostage negotiator Christopher Voss. Like many highly effective persuasion strategies, this one is dead-simple. All you need to do is replace any questions that can be answered with a simple “no” with more open-ended questions.

Here’s a quick example:

Instead of asking your lead if they have time to meet this weekend, ask them which day works better to meet, Saturday or Sunday?

The only caveat here is that you need to be careful not to come across as aggressive or forceful. Both can turn off prospective clients, buyers especially.

5. Keep Your Follow-up Emails Short & Sweet

Another common mistake we see agents make with open house follow-up emails is writing long, detailed emails chock-full of information. They always say the same thing: “But I want to give them as much information as possible!”

While this may be a noble gesture, it’s the kiss of death in the email marketing world for a straightforward reason. People are busy. Very few will have the time to open, let alone read, your 800-word email. Instead, try to stick to 250 to 350 words. This length is ideal because it only takes your lead a minute or two to read and get your message.

6. Try to Move the Conversation Past the Open House

This one is a bit trickier but worthwhile to try and master. While the open house gives you the excuse to email them in the first place, it’s often not a very interesting topic of conversation.

Instead, try to steer the conversation toward something more interesting in your first email. If you’re looking for a hint, learn every human being’s favorite word, their name, and a favorite topic of conversation—their wants and needs.

7. Use a Scheduling App

A scheduling app like Calendly can help improve the response rate on your emails dramatically because it makes scheduling an appointment with you easy. Instead of going back and forth with five emails, all they need to do is click on a button and choose a time.

Over to You

Have a great open house follow-up email template you think deserves to be in this article? Let us know in the comments. If you’re looking for more open house advice, check out our 29 Open House Ideas That Will Actually Get You Leads and our free open house sign-in sheets.

The post The 9 Best Open House Follow-up Email Templates of 2022 appeared first on The Close.

5 Easy Real Estate Newsletter Ideas With High Open Rates (+ Examples)

Emile L'Eplattenier — Tue, 20 Apr 2021 09:30:43 +0000

As a former NYC agent who now writes and edits for a living, I can tell you from experience that writing isn’t easy. Creating engaging, high-quality content for a real estate newsletter every week is even harder. So it’s no wonder so many agents avoid them.

That’s why today I am going to give you five easy newsletters that any agent can create in a half-hour or less each week after mastering the basics. I also include some real-world examples for inspiration and walk you through exactly how to create them. I wrap up with easy ways to create attractive templates for your newsletter.

Let’s start with the newsletter ideas:

1. Weekly Local Market Updates + Your Video Hot Take

One of the easiest and most popular newsletters you can send as an agent is the market update. After all, most people are joining your list because they’re interested in your local real estate market, right? Whether they’re “just looking” or want to buy or sell, people follow the real estate market like they follow the stock market. Since both are on fire these days, quick-hit market updates are more valuable than ever.

Of course, the problem with market updates is that what used to be “insider” market information is now everywhere. If someone even thinks about buying a home, they will be bombarded with market information on Google, Facebook, Instagram, or a million other places online. The algorithms that run these sites actually use advanced artificial intelligence (AI) to give your audience EXACTLY what they want. So there is little value in just sending them raw information.

In order to stand out in that sea of market information online, you need to give them something of actual value that an algorithm can’t: your own personal hot take that puts that information into context for them. Quick hit, one- to three-minute videos are the perfect way to do it.

Here’s a step-by-step process to producing these newsletters quickly every week:

How to Create Local Market Updates + Video Hot Take

Team leader Erica Rawls with her video setup

1. Find a High Quality & Consistent Source of Market Information

The first thing you’re going to need to produce hot take market updates is a consistent source of market information, preferably in a PDF. Your brokerage might produce these kinds of updates internally, or you can look at websites like Housingwire.

2. Tease Out a Compelling Hot Take From That Information

You should always try to hit two points in your hot take videos: First, the big picture takeaway for the week, and second, four or five key pieces of data that will be useful for your list.

3. Inject Some FOMO or Desire Into Your Subject Line

Once you have your big picture summary for the week, you need to summarize it in your subject line in a way that encourages people to click. Using FOMO (fear of missing out) or building desire are both excellent ways to do it.

Bay Area agent Michael Minson does this well in the example below with a simple and compelling “Why there’s cause for optimism in our market.”

4. Record a Quick Video

Next, record a quick video of your hot take and market summary and include it in your email. You can use an app like BombBomb or LionDesk to include the video in your email, or just screenshot the video and link out to your YouTube, or, better yet, a YouTube video embedded on your blog.

5. Attach or Link Out to the Deep-Dive Market Update

If you have access to high-quality monthly or quarterly market updates from your brokerage, remember to include them in your email as an attachment, or post them to your blog and link out to them.

Example Market Update Newsletter With Video

Here is a great example of what I’m talking about from Bay Area Realtor Michael Minson. Note the FOMO in his subject line and how the hot take video is front and center with a giant play button.

2. Timely Interior Design or DIY Tips

If you think articles about paint colors or DIY tips don’t have mass appeal, think again. There are DIY videos on YouTube and TikTok with millions of views. Pinterest, which pretty much specializes in DIY and decorating content, gets 450 million page views per month. Even better, there is one audience that is drawn to DIY and decorating like moths to a flame: people who are thinking about moving.

The trick to being successful with this kind of content in your real estate newsletter is to make it timely. Instead of just sending out an article on paint colors, send out an article on the hottest new paint colors, or the best paint colors of the year in February.

How to Create Timely Interior Design or DIY Tips Newsletters

1. Find a Trendy Source for Timely Interior Design or DIY Articles

This part is easy. There are a gazillion blogs dedicated to interior design and DIY, and they’re all trying to out-trend each other. Curbed and Houzz are both great sources for these kinds of articles, but if possible, try to find a source that’s relevant to your local market. For example, Southern Living probably won’t resonate with your list if it’s filled with Brooklyn hipsters.

2. Write a Catchy Subject Line & a Single Paragraph Summary of the Article (Include Your Opinions)

Next, write a quick paragraph summarizing the article and why it’s timely and relevant to your list. Use an email template that includes buttons, and link out to the article.

Example Interior Design or DIY Tips Newsletter

Here’s a great example of what I’m talking about from New Jersey Coldwell Banker Agent Lena Pesso. Note how her subject line builds FOMO and desire, and how she works in a bright, eye-catching image into the body of the email.

3. Local Market Buying & Selling Myth Busters

They say if you want to be a successful writer, write about what you know. As an agent, there is one thing you know for sure: Most people are totally misinformed about buying and selling real estate!

That makes clearing up misconceptions about buying or selling in your local market an easy newsletter to write that will get you high open rates. The FOMO is built right in.

How to Create Local Market Buying or Selling Myth Buster Newsletters

1. Write a List of Common Misconceptions About Real Estate

Writing up a list of common misconceptions about buying and selling should be the easiest thing you do this week, this month, or probably this year. Just think of all the crazy things your friends, family, and former clients thought about real estate.

2. Provide the Right Answers & Link Out to Sources

Just being right is not enough here. Instead, correct the misconceptions and whenever possible, link out to authoritative sources to back up your answers.

Example of a Local Market Buying & Selling Myth Busters Newsletter

Here’s a great example of what I’m talking about from Sotheby’s Long Island agent, Judy Mitchell. She took this a step further and created an infographic, but you don’t need one for this to work. That said, this is also a perfect topic for a video email.

4. Highlighting a Local Charity You Support

This might feel like cheating, or worse, bragging, but at the end of the day, highlighting a local charity in your newsletter will not only get you more opens, but will actually help make the world a better place. So you’ll feel good about it, your list will feel good about it, and hopefully someone in need will get help. Hard to argue with that, right?

How to Highlight a Local Charity in Your Newsletter

1. Get Involved With a Local Charity

Well, to begin with, you’re going to have to get involved in a local charity. Don’t worry if you’re pressed for time, though. Getting involved can be as easy as clicking on the “donate” button on their website.

2. Write a Heartfelt Paragraph or Two on Why You Think They’re Important

With so many worthy charities out there, persuading someone to donate to one you care about isn’t that easy. However, “selling” that charity to your list is easy, and you will generate good will with your audience whether they donate or not.

3. Link to the Charity’s Website

Since straight-up asking for a donation can be awkward, just tell people why you’re involved in the charity and link out to their website.

Live in New York City? Here are some local charities to consider:

The ASPCA
HousingWorks
Henry Street Settlement
CityMeals on Wheels
God’s Love We Deliver

Example of a Charity Highlight Newsletter

Here’s a good example of what I’m talking about from The Agency Real Estate in LA:

5. Weird or Noteworthy New Listings

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Zillow Gone Wild (@zillowgonewild)

Want to know a secret about The Close? Our most popular email ever linked to this silly list post of bad real estate listing photos. I don’t know why people love weird listings (maybe it’s like gawking at a car accident on the highway?), but that doesn’t matter. I know that people can’t help but click on them.

How to Create Weird or Noteworthy New Listing Newsletters

This couldn’t be easier! Just follow Instagram accounts like Zillow Gone Wild or blogs like Terrible Real Estate Agent Photos and look for funny pictures to send out to your list. Even though neither of them own the copyright to these pictures, you should always link back to them in your email. Think of all the work they put in looking for weird listing pictures!

You can also subscribe to blogs like Mansion Global to find examples of celebrity real estate listings. Local listings would be ideal of course, but listings from big name celebrities, especially eccentric ones like Shaquille O’Neal, will work just as well.

Example of a Weird or Noteworthy Listings Newsletter

I don’t have an example from an agent … YET. Consider this a free tip from your friends here at The Close who have an email list with 70,000 subscribers.

How to Create Attractive Professional Newsletter Templates

Of course, getting someone to open your email is only half the battle. If they don’t take the time to read your email, then you might as well not send it. In 2022, people are more distracted than ever before, so if you want people to take two minutes out of their day to read your email, you need to make sure it looks good. After all, you’re competing with Instagram and Facebook for their attention.

Here’s a quick guide to creating attractive newsletter templates your audience will actually want to read.

Use a Professional Email Template Builder

While it may seem easy, organizing the text and images in your newsletter in a readable, attractive way is actually very difficult. In fact, there is now an entire field of graphic design called UX (user experience) design dedicated to just that. Here are two ways to create professional-looking templates for your newsletter:

Use the Template Builder in Your CRM

For most agents, using the template builder in their customer relationship manager (CRM) is probably going to be the easiest way to quickly create great-looking templates. Propertybase, for example, uses the industry-leading Salesforce CRM to power its system. That means you not only have an easy-to-use, drag-and-drop email template builder (pictured above), but can access hundreds of templates via Salesforce plugins.

If you want to access true enterprise-quality CRM software for your team, Propertybase is an excellent choice.

Visit Propertybase

Use an Off-the-Shelf Template in Your Email Marketing Software

If you’re an individual agent or can’t afford an all-in-one solution like Propertybase, then you can create newsletter templates with standalone email marketing software like Constant Contact.

They have hundreds of email templates to choose from, and if you can’t find one you like, you can easily buy templates for Constant Contact from professional designers on Themeforest.

Visit Constant Contact

Go Easy on the Images

Since it’s so easy to create beautiful emails these days, many agents go overboard and add tons of images, GIFs, and videos to their newsletters. This can be a huge problem because they will load slowly for some users, and generally clutter up your actual message. For most agents, that message will be “I’m a talented market professional you want to hire” not “I’m someone who bombards you with pictures.”

As a rule of thumb, only use one or two images in each email. If you’re sending a video, you should make that the only image in your email. Remember, your goal is to get them to watch your video. Adding distracting images to that email will make them less likely to watch.

Use Buttons for Your Links

Some agents shy away from using buttons in their emails because they think they’re too salesly. In fact, buttons just make it easier for your readers to click on your link. First, because they’ve been “trained” to click on buttons by social media, and second because buttons are way easier to press than tiny text links on mobile.

Always Include a Play Button for Videos

Even if you’re not able to embed a video in your email, you should still include a play button. An easy way to do this is to take a quick screenshot of your YouTube video before you hit play.

Over to You

Have a great real estate newsletter that has high open rates? Let us know in the comments.

The post 5 Easy Real Estate Newsletter Ideas With High Open Rates (+ Examples) appeared first on The Close.

Email Marketing – The Close

7 Real Estate Marketing Materials That Will Help You Build a Better Personal Brand

1. Professional Pictures: One Headshot, One Lifestyle

Pro Tip

Real Estate Agent Headshots: 15 Industry Experts Share Their Best Advice

2. Professional Social Media Templates (Including Stories & Reels Templates)

29 Best Real Estate Social Media Templates for Facebook & Instagram

3. A Website That Shows Off Your Personal Brand

How to Build an IDX Real Estate Website in an Afternoon (2022)

4. Strategically Designed Business Cards

The Best & Worst Real Estate Business Cards of 2022

5. A Facebook Business Page

How to Set Up a Real Estate Agent Facebook Page to Get More Leads

6. Postcards (That Look Like Instagram)

7. An Email Newsletter

5 Easy Real Estate Newsletter Ideas With High Open Rates (+ Examples)

Over to You

The 7 Best Free Real Estate CRMs of 2022

7 Best Free Real Estate CRMs of 2022

Question 1

Have you had your real estate license for less than a year?

Question 2

Are you leading or a part of a real estate team?

Question 3

How important is customization when choosing your real estate CRM?

Best Overall Free Real Estate CRM: Insightly

Best Insightly Feature for Real Estate Agents: Robust Analytics

Where Insightly Comes Up Short: Overall Customization & Support

Insightly Upgrade Options

Final Thoughts on Insightly

19 Best Real Estate Email Templates & Scripts for 2022

Best Free Real Estate CRM for an Integrated CRM / Marketing Experience: IXACT Contact

Best IXACT Contact Feature for Real Estate Agents: Keep In Touch Dashboard

Where IXACT Contact Comes Up Short: Only Free for a Limited Time

IXACT Contact Upgrade Options

Final Thoughts on IXACT Contact

Best Free Real Estate CRM for Phone & Text: Freshsales CRM

Best Freshsales CRM Feature for Real Estate Agents: Email, Texting & Phone Integrations

Where Freshsales CRM Comes Up Short: No Communication Automation Options

Freshsales CRM Upgrade Options

Final Thoughts on Freshsales CRM

Best Free Real Estate CRM for Customization: HubSpot

Best HubSpot Feature for Real Estate Agents: Customization

Where HubSpot Comes Up Short: Email Automation

HubSpot Upgrade Options

Final Thoughts on HubSpot

Best Free Real Estate CRM for Pipeline & Deal Tracking: RealOffice360

Best RealOffice360 Feature for Real Estate Agents: Opportunity Tracker

Where RealOffice360 Comes Up Short: Virtually No Marketing

RealOffice360 Upgrade Options

Final Thoughts on RealOffice360

Best CRM for Seasoned, Data-driven Agents: Agile CRM

Best Agile CRM Feature for Real Estate Agents: Social Media Integrations

Where Agile CRM Comes Up Short: Confusing Features Availability

Agile CRM Upgrade Options

Final Thoughts on Agile CRM

Best Free Real Estate CRM for Teams: Bitrix24

Best Bitrix24 Feature for Real Estate Agents: CRM + Internal Team Management

Where Bitrix24 Falls Short: 100% Cloud-based

Bitrix24 Upgrade Options

Final Thoughts on Bitrix24

How to Start a Rock-solid Real Estate Team in 2022

(Nearly) Free CRMs Worth Mentioning

LionDesk

LionDesk CRM Review: Is It the New King of the Real Estate CRM Jungle?

Propertybase

Propertybase GO Review: The Next Generation of Real Estate CRM?

Placester

Placester Review + Video: Is It Really the Best Real Estate Website Builder?

Bringing It All Together

7 Real Estate Copywriting Rules Professional Writers Swear by

1. Transform Features Into Benefits

How to Write Creative Real Estate Listing Descriptions (+ Examples)

2. Start With a Pain Point, Then Offer Your Solution

5 Clever Real Estate Landing Pages That Convert Like Crazy

3. Write Without Fear, Edit Without Mercy

723 Descriptive Real Estate Words Top Listing Agents Use to Sell Homes

4. Write at Least 3 Versions of Your Headline or Subject Line

Pro Tip

5. Writer Like Ernest & Albert