What Does Direct Response Marketing in Real Estate  Look Like?

Now, let’s talk about what direct response marketing should look like.  By the way, I got tired of stealing Michael Russer’s terminology, so instead of irrestible offers, I’ll talk about compelling propositions – thank heaven for thesauruses.

To do direct response marketing right, you first need a compelling proposition.  You need to motivate your target audience to respond to your marketing in order to receive something that they perceive to be valuable.   The proposition doesn’t have to be a $1000 check, but something that is valuable enough to be worth taking the trouble to complete the action you’re requesting. 

In the example of the TV ad, making the requested telephone call will get you a product that will solve a big problem for you.  And, the TV ads often go even further – convincing the audience that if they call quickly, they’ll get even more of the wonderful product.  Of course, according to my research, that’s not true.  I once checked one company’s website hours after I saw their TV ad, and the 2 for 1 offer was still prominently displayed.  So, don’t go crazy with this offer!

Once you’ve identified your compelling proposition, put it on your website.  Set it up so that the visitor will have to sign up to receive it.  I think immediate gratification is best.  So, I’d set it up using an autoresponder.  The prospect provides their name and email address, and the valuable information is instantly sent to the email they provide.

Similar to the earlier examples, the key here is that you have to be able to track the response you’re getting.  If you’re sending out postcards or doing print advertising, for example, there is a fairly significant investment involved.  It’s critical that you calculate your return on investment so that you don’t end up doing a promotion over and over with no idea whether it’s worth it.

Track the Results! 

There are several advantages to using your website for the response.  First, people are much more likely to drop by your website as opposed to calling you directly.  Second, tracking results with a website is easy.

Let’s say that you normally have this compelling proposition on your website.  Your site visitors can reach the compelling proposition using a button on your home page and a tab on your menu.  That’s fine for normal traffic.  But, when you’re doing a direct response marketing piece, make one more investment - purchase a domain name that is directed right at the page where the offer is located.

Then, whenever you do marketing to drive traffic to that offer, post the special domain name you purchased in your marketing piece.  Since I’m sure you’ve arranged to have in-depth traffic statistics available to you on your website, you can easily track the response to your marketing by checking the traffic to that domain name.

DON’T FORGET TO COMPLETE THE POLL IN THE LEFT COLUMN! 
The results so far are pretty darn interesting!

It’s been a couple years since the last time I wrote about direct response marketing.  Boy, time really does fly!

Direct Response Marketing – Overview

If you do direct response marketing, you’re including a call to action in your marketing initiatives that encourages your audience to do something very specific.  For example, you’ve seen those crazy product commercials on TV that encourage the audience to call an 800 number for a special offer – usually only for the next 10 minutes! 

That is a direct response ad.  Make this phone call – get something valuable in return.  It’s direct contact between the consumer and the advertiser.  It’s different than a more traditional ad.  Traditional television commercials don’t use direct response principals.  You’ve never seen a TV commercial for corn flakes that displays an 800 number that can be called to order two boxes for the price of one!

Does direct response marketing work?  I guess it must since they keep producing those types of commercials.  The key is that the advertiser can tell if it’s working because they can simply count the number of calls received by that 800 number.  And, the advertiser can tell if  they’re getting a reasonable return on investment, too.  They can compare the revenue generated by the phone calls to the cost of the TV ad.

What Does Direct Response Marketing in Real Estate  Look Like?

I’ll start this discussion by describing what is not direct response marketing.  I received a series of postcards from a local real estate agent.   If I had to give them a name, I’d say they were “image” pieces.  The content talked mostly about the agent; the path the agent had taken to come to be a real estate agent and so forth.  Written in type so small I almost needed a magnifying glass.  One part of the card did contain somewhat larger type and offered this call to action:

• Ready to buy or sell your next home?  Call [the agent] for a copy of her personal brochure to learn more about her successful approach to selling your home.

The italics were on the postcard, not my idea.  I guess the agent thought that receiving a copy of a personal brochure was the irrestible offer that would get people to call.  And, if you looked at the card very closely, you’d finally notice that her telephone number was printed in very small letters at the bottom of the card, in a color that blended so well with the background as to make it almost unnoticeable.

I’m not sure if this agent thought she was doing direct response marketing, but I certainly hope not.  Needless to say, a search for her name related to real estate in Georgia produces no results!

So, what does direct response marketing in real estate look like?  Stay tuned for part two!