The UK real estate market is incredibly competitive, with up to 53,000 estate agents vying for the attention of buyers and sellers. However, there are plenty of real estate marketing ideas to help you make your mark in the industry, and this guide is chock-full of them.
Guiding you through the ins and outs of marketing for estate agents, we’ll explore the difference between organic and paid marketing, some examples of marketing techniques, and how to optimise your website to attract more clients. We’ll also explore the importance of third-party property websites like Rightmove and Zoopla and how to make the most of them.
By the time you finish reading, you should have the tools to develop your profile as an estate agent and reach more customers. Let’s get started!
Skip to:
- What is real estate marketing?
- The difference between paid and organic marketing
- Examples of real estate marketing
- How to use your website to your advantage
- Top tips for real estate marketing
- Final thoughts
What is real estate marketing?
Real estate marketing covers the techniques used to reach more customers. As an estate agent, these customers will be buyers, renters, landlords, and private sellers looking for places to list their properties.
What’s the difference between paid and organic marketing?
Paid marketing methods include PPC (pay-per-click) campaigns, display ads, and anything you pay for to get results. Organic marketing includes search engine optimisation, writing engaging content, and having a social media strategy. These usually don’t have any upfront cost.
An organic marketing strategy is designed to generate interest in your business over time. The advantages of PPC are vast and let you target people quickly.
Examples of real estate marketing
Let’s explore some marketing ideas for your business.
Email marketing campaigns
Email marketing helps you connect with old and new customers and puts you at the front of people’s minds when they need your services.
A key form of email marketing is a newsletter, which is highly advised for estate agents. It gives you the chance to provide industry news, listing opportunities, properties for sale, and updates about your business. Sharing positive customer feedback can also help persuade people to choose you for buying or selling a property so include these in newsletters.
As well as newsletters, you can craft engaging sales emails advertising properties to buy or rent. You might consider a discount for sellers looking to list properties on your website.
When carrying out email marketing, segmentation is important and ensures your emails go to the right groups of people. You don’t want to be sending three-bedroom houses to buyers looking for a studio apartment, for example, and you wouldn’t send the same email content to landlords as you would to private individuals.
If you’re looking for examples of content, emails for landlords might include industry news to keep them up to date with their obligations, such as tests and certification. Emails for private buyers, on the other hand, could include lists of properties that match their requirements.
Listings on property websites
The property industry is dominated by Rightmove, Zoopla, OnTheMarket, and other property websites. So, as well as optimising your website to entice more customers, you should ensure your properties are listed on these websites, too. They attract the most people on the market and give you a better chance of making sales.
To get properties listed on leading property portals, you’ll need to be registered with an estate agent. Most of them don’t allow for properties to be listed directly by private landlords or sellers, apart from the likes of Gumtree and Facebook Marketplace.
Sponsorship and partnerships
Local businesses like home removal companies are ideal partners for estate agents as both have similar clients. Other partnership prospects include:
- Furniture shops.
- Home service providers.
- Mortgage brokers.
- Legal professionals dealing with divorce and estate planning.
- Storage companies.
- Food subscription companies.
You can even partner with estate agents from different areas and refer customers to each other without stepping on each other’s toes.
As well as partnerships, sponsorships can help improve your reputation and get more eyes on your business. Local football and rugby teams typically provide opportunities for sponsorships and can provide fantastic marketing possibilities.
There are also charities that you can associate yourself with and donate to regularly, which you can then shout about on social media to warm people to your business.
Social media marketing
Regularly posting on social media helps to establish your business as a thought leader and increase enquiries. Here are ways estate agents can use three of the most visual platforms, Facebook (or Meta), Instagram, and TikTok to promote their business.
Facebook is full of paid and organic opportunities for real estate marketing. Start by creating a Facebook Business Page and come up with social media content pillars that might resonate with your target demographic.
Examples of social media posts can include:
- Polls.
- Infographics.
- Enticing photos of properties for sale.
- Benefits of using your service as a property buyer or seller.
- Video content such as tours of properties and explainer videos.
You can also use the platform to join local Facebook groups. Answer questions that relate to the regional housing market to establish yourself as an expert and reply to comments about the property industry or your business.
In addition, you should keep an eye on your Facebook inbox as many potential customers will use this tool to contact you about your services.
One of the best ways to use Facebook for estate agent advertising is through Meta Ads which can be highly targeted. Targeting parameters include age, gender, interest, and more, and Facebook ads are a form of paid advertising.
Run different Facebook campaigns and track their success to streamline your approach moving forward and reach the right people. You can also use the help of a social media marketing expert who can save you time, effort, and money.
Instagram is visual by nature so lean into this with your estate agent advertising and marketing. You can target potential buyers with videos and photographs of properties, and you can sway sellers to use your website by showing you know your stuff. Location tags are also useful and help your account appear to local users, and you should always optimise your profile and caption descriptions with relevant keywords to appeal to your demographic.
Demonstrating your knowledge can come in many forms and you can share information about your properties on Instagram and information about the property market in general. Video Q&As and polls are popular on Instagram and be sure to use posts, reels, and stories to expand your reach.
TikTok
TikTok is the fastest-growing social media platform on the planet with over one billion active monthly users.
A video-based platform, use TikTok to answer questions about buying and selling properties and don’t forget to show off your personality. TikTok is great for targeting younger demographics like first-time buyers, and short, snappy content is extremely popular. Jumping onto trends is also encouraged to maximise engagement.
Influencers have a massive pull on TikTok, so consider reaching out to them to help you promote your business. This can help you tap into a massive audience, but only partner with influencers who are relevant to the property industry and have reach in the location(s) you operate in.
How to use your website to your advantage
Your website is fundamental and helps you target more buyers and sellers. Here are some ways to improve your website as an estate agent.
Create engaging visual content
Photography is the cornerstone of any successful property listing. Hire a professional with a track record in the industry and somebody who understands how to make a property shine.
Videography is also prevalent, and virtual tours are a great way to show off a home in all its glory. Drone footage is highly recommended for houses as you can show off the exterior in a unique way as well as the front and back garden.
Write compelling property listings
Well-written property listings can entice customers into buying or renting properties with your estate agency. They can also appeal to sellers by showing that you put extra effort in. Having your listings synced with property websites like Zoopla and Rightmove is also advised and gets your properties in front of the most people.
If you struggle to write engaging property listings, hire a professional copywriter with expertise in the property industry. They’ll help your homes stand out and will likely encourage more sales whether on your website or on third-party real estate portals.
Ensure your website is optimised for mobile
There are over 63 million mobile internet users in the UK so having a mobile-optimised website is vital. Optimisation ensures people can easily view properties on their mobile devices and listings won’t be skewed or difficult to read.
It’s standard practice for web developers to include mobile optimisation when designing a new website, but make sure this is the case for yours. If you’re designing your own, lots of templates include desktop and mobile versions.
Failing to have a mobile-optimised website will be hugely detrimental to the customer journey and your search potential. Search engines like Google value mobile-optimised websites over non-optimised websites, as they are quicker to load and easier to use.
Create content
Content marketing is an excellent way to stand out in the real estate market. Examples of content include blogs and newsletters as we’ve mentioned above, as well as local guides for areas where you have properties listed.
Videos are also increasingly popular and answering common questions about buying or selling properties can attract more customers. Keep track of how your content performs and make tweaks where necessary to grow and improve over time.
Tackle SEO
SEO (search engine optimisation) is how easily your website is found on search engines like Google. It can be a game changer for estate agents and we’d advise that you use it to get more properties to sell and let out.
Why? Because potential clients looking to sell or let properties often turn to Google to find estate agents. Strong SEO ensures you appear where they’re searching, making it easier for them to find and choose you.
SEO is a complex beast but start with the following and you’ll be on the right path:
Carry out keyword research
Conduct keyword research to see what customers are searching for in your industry. Tools like SEMrush and Google Search Console are popular, effective options.
Create SEO-optimised content
Use your keywords when writing website content to attract more visitors. This includes on-site content like landing pages as well as meta titles and metadata.
Write a blog
Using your keywords as a base, formulate blogs that are likely to appeal to your target demographic of property buyers and/or sellers.
Build backlinks
These are links to your site from other places online. Examples of backlinks for estate agents include local listings and guest blogs on property websites.
Set up a Google Business Profile
Local SEO is important for many reasons and Google Business Profile (formerly Google My Business) is a great way to promote your business locally. Optimise your profile using keywords from your research and improve your reputation with positive Google reviews from clients.
Optimise imagery
High-quality imagery is highly advised for your website, but don’t forget to include alt-text describing exactly what each image shows. This helps visually impaired readers navigate your website and helps search engines crawl (and rank) your site pages.
Install Google Analytics
Google Analytics helps you monitor your SEO performance by tracking website visits, devices used, user location, page clicks, and more. Understanding what performs best helps you better optimise website pages so they can perform more effectively.
Top tips for real estate marketing
Real estate and marketing work in tandem but don’t just dive in with a random approach. Instead, carry out some housekeeping of your own with the following tasks.
Research your competition
To maximise exposure and generate leads, see what successful estate agents are doing in your area and around the UK. This can inspire your marketing efforts and give you an understanding of what works and what doesn’t, which helps you achieve more.
Start your research by checking out your competitors’ socials and websites. Look at the kinds of things they post, what performs best, and what they’re writing about in their blogs.
As well as analysing keywords, SEMrush and Ahrefs are brilliant for checking out how your competitors are performing online, although these are technical tools that require SEO knowledge.
Identify goals
A scattergun marketing approach is destined to fail, so consider your objectives before committing to a strategy. Do you want to target more buyers and renters, or do you want more sellers to list their property on your website? Are you targeting a national market or going local? Do you want to grow your social media presence or increase website traffic?
Use your goals to tailor your marketing approach and come up with a strategic plan to achieve them.
What’s your USP?
Your USP (unique selling proposition) is what sets you apart from other businesses in your industry. Think about what you do better than anyone else and don’t be shy about asking customers for their feedback.
Examples of a USP for estate agents can be a personal touch you provide throughout the property buying journey, knowledge of the local area, or an understanding of national market trends.
Understand your audience
Understanding who you want to appeal to will drive your marketing efforts and help you create more engaging content. This is arguably the most important factor of any marketing strategy and forms the basis of everything you post.
Final thoughts
Helping you reach more people, list and sell more properties, and build your brand, real estate and marketing go hand in hand. However, you’ll need a clear strategy to stand out in an overcrowded industry and resonate with your target audience.
We understand that running a successful estate agent business is difficult, which is why we’d always recommend speaking to an expert about marketing yours. That’s where we step in. With experience in marketing for multiple industries, we can help you do more online and attract more clicks, enquiries, and sales.
Ready to take your estate agent business to the next level? Give us a ‘buzz’ on 01904 373 069 or email hello@beefound.agency.
