Switch to Postcard Marketing in Commercial Real Estate Brokerage
There are many ways to promote your services as a broker or agent in commercial real estate. Many of them work in today’s market, and ‘postcard’ marketing integrates well with all of them.
The fact of the matter is that you can send a postcard to your current and new contacts in a regular and ongoing way. The important thing here is that you do so to a plan and you change the message on the card each time. The postcard marketing system can extend the value of the original contact or the last conversation. It helps you consolidate your personal brand with the contacts in your database.
I am a great believer of sending a postcard to all contacts and prospects at least once every 90 days, and always enclosing a business card in the process. You can also send the postcard to the general business community in your town or city. Regularity and consistency is the key to making this work.
Here are some rules to help you get started with this promotional system:
- The ideal shape of the card is a standard ‘DL’. That will go through the mail system quite easily.
- Where possible get cards created that are heavily linked to you as the agent or broker. You want people to call you, and not just your agency or brokerage.
- The paper stock that you use should be ‘rigid’ and not ‘flimsy’. This sends a message of ‘quality’ as part of sending out the cards. Flimsy paper stock sends a ‘cheap’ message to the market place.
- Feature your mobile telephone number on all of the cards. Also enclose link details to your website, blog, and social media. Make it easy for people to contact you.
- Consider a specific theme for each series of cards that you send out. Have separate cards for landlords, property investors, tenants, and business owners.
- The front of the card should feature professionally designed or captured images, headline and text. Use a ‘copywriter’ to put together the key messages on the card.
- Headlines and dot points on the cards work a lot better with conversions than long sentences. Most adults only scan marketing material, looking for the facts and the main points.
- A personal photo on the card will be valuable. Get a professional photograph taken to use in this way.
- The design of the card should be different and eye catching. Consider using a specially selected photo that sends a message and promotes action.
- Purchase a few books on ‘words that sell’ to help you with promotional phrases and captions. You can also use the books with your website, blog, and advertising material.
- Some brokers have series of postcards that build on the momentum and issues of the last card. You can do that when you are sending to a targeted group.
One valuable factor of postcard design to consider is the ‘white space principle’. Essentially you can leave plenty of ‘white space’ on the card to help with readership and impact. Top marketers do it all the time and build a simple message using dot points.
