Content marketing is one of the most important elements for success in almost all industries, and real estate is no exception. Yes, selling properties is the number one priority, but so is building relationships, establishing authority and providing value to potential clients.

Did you know that a study showed that 47% of home buyers start their house hunt with an online search, and only 18% contact a real estate agent first?

That’s why both experienced agents and those just starting need to know the best practices of content marketing. Posting informative and compelling content that resonates with your target audience will position you as a trusted advisor in the process.

In this article, we’ll explore the best practices for real estate content marketing while also highlighting the most important dos and don’ts.

Dos of Real Estate Content Marketing

Let’s start with the dos that should be used in real estate content marketing.

Know Your Audience

You can’t really do successful content marketing without fully understanding your audience. If you know who you’re targeting, you can customize your content to their specific needs, preferences, and pain points. Then, you can speak directly to them and establish a strong connection.

Researching and identifying your target audience in real estate involves several strategies:

1.  First, analyze your current client base to identify common demographics, interests, and motivations.
2.  Then, you can conduct surveys, interviews, or focus groups to gain deeper insights into what resonates with your audience.
3.  Additionally, leverage data analytics tools to track website traffic, social media engagement, and any other relevant metrics. This data can provide insights into audience behavior, so you can refine your content strategy further.

Provide Valuable and Relevant Content

When it comes to content marketing, you should always keep one thing in mind: quality over anything else. It’s not enough to simply produce content, it also needs to be valuable and relevant to your audience.

Valuable content needs to address their questions, concerns, and interests. It can take many forms, including market insights, neighborhood guides, property tips, and how-to articles. The key is providing information to help potential clients make informed decisions about selling, buying, or investing in real estate.

So, when creating content, put yourself in their shoes and consider what information would be most beneficial to them. Keep it concise, engaging, and easy to digest, ensuring your audience finds value in every piece of content you produce.

Use Multiple Content Formats

Written blog posts are no longer the only form of content marketing. Today, consumers expect a variety of formats to cater to their diverse preferences and consumption habits. If you use different content formats, you can reach more people and keep them engaged across various platforms.

Some common content formats in real estate content marketing include blog posts, videos, infographics, podcasts, and social media posts. Each format offers unique advantages in storytelling, visual appeal, and audience engagement.

Also, you can appeal to different learning styles and consumption preferences. For example, visual learners may prefer videos or infographics, while auditory learners may prefer podcasts or audio guides.

Don'ts of Real Estate Content Marketing

Now, let’s see what to avoid in the content marketing strategy for your real estate business.

Overly Promotional Content

One of the biggest pitfalls in real estate content marketing is creating overly promotional content.

While it's natural to want to showcase your services and listings, bombarding your audience with sales pitches can quickly turn them off. Instead of building trust and credibility, overly promotional content can come across as pushy and insincere.

Potential clients are likelier to engage with content that provides value and addresses their needs rather than focusing solely on promoting your services. To avoid this pitfall, strive to strike a balance between promoting your offerings and providing helpful, informative content.

For example, instead of directly promoting your listings, you can create content that explains the advantages of living in a particular neighborhood or offers tips for first-time homebuyers. Then, subtly incorporate your services into content, and you can attract clients without overwhelming them with sales pitches.

Ignoring SEO Best Practices

Visibility is key to success in real estate content marketing. Ignoring search engine optimization (SEO) best practices can significantly hinder your efforts to reach your target audience and drive traffic to your website.

SEO is crucial in improving your website's ranking on search engine results pages, as it makes it easier for clients to find you online. If you optimize content for relevant keywords, improve website speed and usability, and build quality backlinks, you can improve your online visibility and get your website more organic traffic.

Common SEO mistakes to avoid include keyword stuffing, neglecting mobile optimization, and ignoring metadata optimization. Instead, focus on creating high-quality, relevant content that addresses your audience's needs and interests while incorporating SEO practices to improve the website's ranking.

Neglecting Consistency and Frequency

Consistency and frequency are also important components of successful content marketing. Neglecting to maintain a consistent posting schedule can undermine your attempts to engage your audience and build brand awareness over time.

Updating your website and social media accounts frequently with up-to-date, relevant content will keep your audience engaged and also show search engines that your website is authoritative and active. This, too, can positively impact your website's ranking and visibility in search results.

To ensure consistency and frequency in your content marketing efforts, you can:

•  Create a content calendar outlining topics, publication dates, and distribution channels.
•  Set realistic goals and allocate time each week to create and schedule content in advance.
•  Additionally, repurpose existing content to maximize its reach and longevity.

Conclusion

So, if we’ve learned something about real estate content marketing, it’s that the key to success lies in authenticity, value, and consistency. To do so, know your audience very well, create valuable content, and use different formats.

Keep these dos and don’ts in mind, and don’t be afraid to experiment, iterate and refine your approach along the way.

With a little dedication, creativity and a genuine desire to help your audience, you’ll be well on your way to content marketing success!