Whether it’s attracting better listings, increasing occupancy rates or inking new contracts, staying one step ahead of the competition is a challenge – and opportunity – real estate pros face across all sectors.
For a residential brokerage firm in Manhattan, a New York City PR strategy could be the ticket to bolstering brand visibility and securing more “wins.” For a multifamily developer in the northeast, speaking at tradeshows that reach potential partners and customers may be the best fit. The question is, which thought leadership opportunities make the most sense for your team and where can you find them?
The power of podcasts
A study by Edison Research found that one in three people listen to one or more podcasts per month. Further, as of January 2020, there were 30 million podcast episodes on iTunes alone. What makes a podcast worth listening to? Clarity. Consistency. Creativity. And, of course, compelling content!
So, what can real estate pros talk about during a podcast? Market trends, industry innovations and featured listings, to name a few. And, hosting your own real estate podcast is also a great opportunity to interview fellow members of your industry who can bring added value to your listeners.
How do you drive listeners for your podcast? The basics of good real estate marketing still apply. Take a multichannel approach – website, email, social, word of mouth – and ensure the channels you use to push out the news are reaching the right audience(s).
Expert articles make an impact
Securing bylined/expert articles is an important part of a real estate thought leadership program. These articles may appear in industry trades, on partner companies’ websites and across various blogs. They are opportunities to put your stake in the ground and say, “I am the foremost expert on this topic.”
What makes a great expert article from a real estate pro? A unique point of view, data that supports the position being taken and a creative way of delivering the information. Whether it’s a stand out headline, strong lead or compelling visuals to illustrate the key points, focusing on how to package the information to maximize both readership and content retention is important.
Think about video
While being on camera comes more naturally to some than others, in a world where consumers watch more than 1 billion hours of YouTube footage each day – on a website that happens to be the second most visited after Google – video offers a significant opportunity to make an impact in the real estate industry. And, according to video email software company Covideo, people retain 95% of the messages from video, compared to only 10% from text.
A few things to consider when creating a real estate video:
- Visuals matter – if you’re talking about a featured listing, show the most alluring assets
- Clear audio is critical – while it shouldn’t sound like a robot is narrating the video, a story line that is clear, coupled with an articulate voiceover, is a winning combination
- Less is more – while there is a time and place for a lengthier video that profiles the team, short, succinct videos that viewers can easily digest reign supreme
As you hone your real estate marketing strategy to place a greater emphasis on thought leadership, focus on identifying opportunities to set your firm apart from the competition. Remain true to your brand values, be authentic in your message and, of course, choose the spokespeople that can sell your worth regardless of whether it’s in print, in person or through video.
