The best way to become the REALTOR® of choice and receive referrals is to be
known favorably by your targeted audience. How do you do this?
With great creativity! Of course, providing stellar customer service is one
very important criteria. This hooks your potential customer and encourages
loyalty - why would anyone continue searching when they found the best?
But that's only one part of the opportunity (remember, problems are only
misunderstood opportunities at heart). The other is positive exposure to your
audience, before they initiate the first contact.
Being recognized as an authority in consumer real estate will further your
reputation like almost nothing else. Customers love the reassurance of dealing
with not only a REALTOR®, but the REALTOR the rest of the
town listens to!
A great way to accomplish that is your local newspaper. As you might have
noticed by now, the real estate section (especially on Sundays!) is replete
with ads, ideas, spotlights on homes, etc. Truly a targeted audience reads
this section!
Offer more value to the newspaper. Can you solve customer blips before they
become problems of Godzilla proportions? Do you have a specialty? Do you have
timely, well researched advice to offer?
If so, look in your local newspaper, find the right contact, and offer to
write a weekly or biweekly column. Emphasize the value you'll be offering
their readership. Bingo! Instant publicity in a very favored marketing medium.
Finding your local newspapers online is easy. Simply go to NewsDirectory at
http://www.newsdirectory.com, and
select "United States" under "Browse Newspapers." You'll see online links to
just about any publication you can imagine!
Once you have found the newspaper you would like to target, visit their
site. For example, my local newspaper is the Asbury Park Press . Next, look for any
section that reads "Contact us" or "Contact Staff" or "Staff" etc. Chances
are, you'll have the email addresses of the editors and writers right in front
of you.
From that point, select the most logical choice (Editor of Real Estate
sounds great!), and send a polite introductory email
that demonstrates how by including your column they will enjoy more
readership. Close it with a line thanking them for their
time, and informing them you'll call during the week. This way, you can
mention your email as a lead-in when you initiate
phone contact.
Be prepared to give the editor a businesss plan which includes the nature of
the column, the target reader, sample columns ( at least three) and titles and
outlines for six to ten more.
It works in Internet ways too, of course. Is your ISP a major player and
provider of customer information like AOL? Find
where consumer real estate information is housed, contact the webmaster for
that section, and offer timely content that
educates the consumer. Make sure your link and the links of any companies or
individuals you reference or quote are included in any column you write.
Need help writing columns? Best Image
Marketing has a special service tailored towards this need. They will help
negotiate on your behalf to have a real estate editorial column included in
your local newspaper.
Are you a Realtor? Of course. Are you an entrepreneur? Surely! Add that
quality to your real estate career.
Remember, the worst thing someone can say is No. But when it's Yes, the
possibilities become unlimited.
Published: January 20, 1999
Use of this article without permission is a violation of federal copyright laws.
