Does your website have a perception problem?

Months of inventory. Tighter mortgage money. Continuing sub-prime blues. Your real estate marketing message doesn't matter. Wait, what was that last one?

It sounds harsh, but it's completely true. One of the hardest principles for real estate professionals - and all advertisers - to accept is that their intended message is not really important compared to audience perception. You may spend countless hours carefully honing your brand image and value proposition, but you're just the sender.

First, your message passes through the Internet, a channel with its own challenges for online marketers. Then, the audience on the receiving end of the channel defines what your message means by the actions they take (or don't take). Your message is not what you intend, but what your audience perceives and acts upon.

So what can you do to make online marketing effective? One key is managing visitor perceptions. In fact, aligning three types of perceptions – personal, peer and credibility – provides a powerful formula to move prospects to take action. Think of these perceptions as a three-point strategy to improve response:

1. Personal perceptions

Personal perceptions are what website visitors think of you and your value proposition. Agents typically spend most of their time managing personal perceptions. The most important success factors include presenting information clearly, specifically, and in the right order. It sounds simple, but if you visit a dozen real estate websites, you will find lots of focus on wonderful agents and brokers, and considerably less information on benefits for prospects and clients.

- A clear value proposition should answer this important question for site visitors: Of all available agents, why should they choose to work with you?

- Use your Web presence to clarify the benefits of doing business with you. This goes back to your unique value proposition...can you do something for the website visitor better than everyone else? If so, make it clear. "Contact me for all your real estate needs" sounds vaguely positive, but it's a weak call-to-action if you want prospects to pick up the phone.

- Many agent websites also have no clear starting point to get visitors' attention, and no reason for them to become further engaged. Interactive marketing gurus Bryan and Jeffrey Eisenberg call the process of converting prospects to satisfied customers AIDAS - Attention, Interest, Desire, Action and Satisfaction. Jumping ahead to the Action without establishing Interest or Desire means trouble. In marketing, as they say, marriage is better than a one-night-stand.

2. Peer perceptions

Peers may include current and former clients, and other professionals involved in the real estate transaction. Peer reviews and testimonials can be critical to conversion success. A recent study by Deloitte Consumer Product Group found that 64 percent of online shoppers read reviews by other consumers in deciding whether to buy. More than 80 percent of the survey’s respondents said reviews affected their buying decision, and a remarkable 98 percent found consumer reviews “very” or “somewhat” credible.

Adding testimonials can make your website more effective, especially if for newer or lesser-known agents. Be sure your testimonials are current, brief, and mention specific benefits you provided. "Fred is wonderful" is not as good as "Fred helped me find an affordable home near an A-rated elementary school." Adding client photos can help personalize a testimonial, particularly if that person is well-known in the community. The moral? Don’t blow your own horn. Ask your loyal fans to do it for you.

3. Credibility perceptions

Accreditations and association memberships are important sources of credibility. For real estate professionals, these may include the REALTOR® designation, as well as various accreditations such as Accredited Buyer Representative (ABR), or certified residential Specialist (CRS). Also, don't forget to include academic degrees and other licenses and certifications that may help.

To make the most of credibility indicators on your website, be sure to explain their significance. Don't just add an e-Pro logo to your website, explain how that training benefits clients who work with you. Have other academic degrees? Use these on your Web site and in your promotional materials. Prospects may not know what a GRI is, but they are familiar with a CPA or MBA, and may have one of these designations themselves.

Even in traditional mass marketing, when there were three fuzzy television stations and no Internet, consumers controlled their perceptions of marketing messages. Today, consumers have even more control and more options to manage their media experiences. Digital video recorders, SPAM filters, pop-up blockers and do-not call lists are all popular ways to fend off unwanted advertising. To make your marketing messages more successful, check them for perceived value and credibility before sending them out to the world.

For more real estate marketing ideas and insights, visit www.eneighborhoods.com

Can You Get Rich with the Right Real Estate Niche?


Many agents are reluctant to position themselves as specialists, for fear of limiting their earning potential. A broad range of potential customers is both a blessing and a curse for real estate agents. If you're a generalist, nearly everyone you meet is a potential client. On the other, being all things to all people can lead to unfocused business plans and lackluster results.

In reality, there is little risk in foregoing commissions you don't have a reasonable chance to earn. Few agents have the time and resources to market to a very broad audience, so choosing a professional niche in which you can excel makes sense.

In addition to helping you differentiate your services from other real estate practitioners, you can build credibility and focused expertise. Better still, as you you develop a reputation for a specific area of expertise, you are actively reducing competition for your services.

Now all that's left is choosing a highly profitable niche. To help you get started, here are some suggestions for highly lucrative niches, and also some to avoid:

Good agent specializations:

- Homes near top-rated schools
- Equestrian properties
- Income-producing properties
- Waterfront or beachfront properties
- Townhomes
- Vacation homes
- Historic properties
- Green or energy-efficient homes
- Ranch or farm properties
- Upscale and luxury real estate
- Mountain views
- Active retirement communities

Bad agent specializations:

- Agent with obvious toupee
- Agent still using high school yearbooks photo
- Agent whose car always needs vacuuming
- The Bad Haircut agent
- The agent who repeats lines from Sienfeld episodes
- Agent who never wears socks
- The too-much-perfume agent
- The agent who talks about her cats
- The really irritable agent
- Agent who also sells Amway and Herbalife
- The agent who could use a shave
- Agent with a comb-over
- Agent who apparently doesn't own an iron

Obviously, some niches are better than others, and there are still plenty of real estate agents out there trying to please everyone.

The bottom line: Prospects today are not looking for a salesperson, they are looking for a trusted advisor to guide them through important financial decisions and complex transactions.

Does your professional niche brand you as a a real estate expert, or someone who sells real estate? As author and sales consultant John Graham says, it's better to be known for knowing something, not just selling something.

Charles Warnock is Marketing Director at eNeighborhoods in Boca Raton, Florida. eNeighborhoods provides powerful marketing tools for real estate professionals, including Neighborhood Reports, CMAs, Buyer Tours, NewsLetters, Maps / Aerials, and the InstaLead Marketing System. eNeighborhoods is part of Dominion Enterprises, a leading provider of real estate media and marketing services.

www.eneighborhoods.com
Charles writes often on interactive marketing, marketing strategy and real estate marketing.