Local Area Marketing Plan

When you work as a real estate agent today, your allocated area can be large and complex. You will have properties to research and people to find within that area. For that reason, and as part of successful local area marketing, it pays to split things into manageable chunks. 

Simplify your location coverage. You can then extract real estate business from priority locations and build relationships around selected people from that strategy. Make things simple for yourself through your daily organisation and personal systems. Consistency is a big part of real estate success.

What is the consistency idea all about? The primary way to grow real estate opportunities over the months and years is from the people you know in your allocated territory. Who are the people you know or should know? How are you connecting with them?

Career Opportunities

Real estate as a career can be pretty rewarding if you focus on connecting with more people and encouraging strong business relationships. Everything evolves from that over time. So, the essential rules in commercial real estate are proven and are basic to implement. Here are some ideas on that:

• Know the people in your location (prioritise them)
• Research the properties (categorise them)
• Create personal connections and maintain constant contact
• Ask questions and explore conversations
• Seek referral business
• Provide services and solutions when people need it

I have also given you a plan below to implement as part of your area coverage in your territory. Shape these ideas into your real estate week and across your region.

As you glean or uncover any opportunities, capture them in a note-taking system like Google Keep or Evernote. They are both very effective in capturing volumes of information, including images, text, and checklists. 

Strategic Notes

Every property opportunity can be identified and tracked in that ‘note-taking’ way. You never really know when a property discussion made today could be a listing opportunity in the future.

So, keep track of things and frequently return to your ideas and conversations. That is where your notes will support the growth of your real estate business. Use a note-taking app on your phone or computer that you can enter data and information into at any time, and that information is then protected in cloud-based storage.

Your local area or allocated territory will be full of real estate opportunities. But, how are you going to find them? Here are the ideas to help your local area penetrate the real estate market.

1. Property types and sizes – Choose the property types you like or know a good deal about. In making that choice, you will have plenty of things to talk about as you reach out to people locally. In addition, selected property types will be of more value to you over time with listings and or clients.
2. Property photographs and records – Take photos of properties and sales or leasing evidence notes. Keep that information online so you can draw on it at any time in a property discussion or real estate presentation. Pictures of properties will be helpful as you illustrate a point or provide some facts from the market.
3. Street and suburb coverage – You may have a large territory to work across, so breaking things down into manageable chunks of buildings and precincts is always best. From that point, your research and investigations get easier. Use a printed map to ‘colour code’ priority zones and precincts that you are working or will be working in.
4. Priority zones A, B, C – From the previous point, the street and suburb segments can be segmented into categories to create an activity or choose specific actions that can produce new business. That is where priorities of A, B, and C will allow you to measure things in the right way at the right time. You can also apply colours to those categories on your map. Copy the map and carry it with you on an iPad or similar smart device where you can update it as you go forward.
5. Referral relationships – It is wise to build relationships with the people you connect with or know. Many property owners know other people interested in commercial, retail, or industrial property. In addition, there will be requirements and needs in sales, leasing, and purchasing from time to time. So, referral relationships are suitable to create and encourage. It is a matter of asking the right property questions at the right time of a transaction or meeting.
6. Business owners – The local business owners will know about changes to the property around them or in their street or building. Perhaps another nearby business owner is considering moving. Maybe the landlord or property owner is discussing a property investment change. Questions asked of business owners during your cold calling sessions can help identify plenty of other situations or changes in local property
7. Selected Landlords, Investors, Property owners – Ultimately, these are the people with the money and the property ownership activity. Getting to know them is an ongoing process. Sales, leasing, and purchasing requirements will arise throughout the year. In addition, some property investors or owners would like to hold their assets for long periods, and others may want to change or upgrade an asset. Questions will help you find those change factors. Note-taking is an excellent process to establish in your real estate business as you talk to people frequently and need to refer to earlier property conversations and progress from the last contact.
8. Associated property professionals – These groups are the bankers, accountants, and legal people who support property owners and investors. Get to know these people locally, particularly those who run successful businesses. You can get many referrals from them as their clients need property ideas, support, or investment alternatives.
9. Other local listings – Track the other agent listings in your location as they will tell you something about prices, marketing methods, and time on the market. You will also need your listings to compete locally against the other agent’s property listings. What can you do to make your listings stand out as better value or more relevant to the targeted property people and real estate investors locally? Don’t be generic in your property marketing efforts. Be unique and direct as the agent of choice in your location.
10. Direct marketing and local telephone calls – These two strategies involve connecting with people. Meetings and telephone calls are proven ways to progress your real estate business. It all comes down to your diligence in the progress and your ability to repeat the connections over time.
11. Email-based autoresponders – You can use an email autoresponder to get information out as you connect with local people. Given that you talk to more people every day, the email autoresponder process is helpful. Emails are sent at intervals and on topics of your choice. This says that you should collect the email contact information of everyone that you talk to.

So, all these ideas are proven ways to penetrate the local property market. As an agent, and through your career or time in the industry, strive to create valuable client and prospect connections every day. Take your notes from every contact.  

Branding Alternatives for Agents

There are property promotion alternatives in real estate service, and you could likely help people in different ways. Be alert to and prepared for helping in sales, leasing, property management and property purchase situations; ask the questions, and you will find the business opening.

Remember that any real estate connection or conversation you make today is likely a future property transaction. You don’t know when that requirement will arise or when you can help the person.

So, stay in touch consistently for the long term and keep your notes. You will then find the commercial real estate business you are looking for.