You really need good real estate writing

Real Estate is a seriously tough, competitive business. Every agent knows that. And every agent knows that the first and most difficult task is securing listings. They are the foundation of your business. Successful agents know that if they have a good stream of listings, their sales and commissions will follow. Real estate is really about having something to sell; more than it is about being able to sell. 

In any given area, however, potential sellers have a raft of choice when it comes to picking an agent. You will rarely (if ever) have a monopoly. So something has to make you stand out and be the person a seller trusts with their multi-hundred-thousand dollar (or million dollar plus, as is likely in Australian cities), investment or home. 

You could use the old tactic of blitz advertising and promotion. Plenty of agents do. You can have your photo on all the signs and bus stops. Be all over the newspaper. Make a television ad. But this is hugely expensive, and of dwindling value in today's media-rich world. And it does not raise trust levels.

Sellers are now only a few mouse clicks and keystrokes away from detailed information on their suburb, sales statistics, and reviews of local agents. You can bet your bottom dollar they have already found you without reading their local bus stop advertisement. But they haven't just found you, they've also found everything written by you, and written about you. You want to be sure that this is positive stuff; that it steers them in your direction.

The only way to effectively do this is to be putting your word out there. Be it in newsletters, blogs, social media, even interviews with the press, you need to be putting your opinions out there. You need to be the expert that a seller can trust. 

It does take work to hold people's attention - you need to give them some interesting information. And not just on the property market; it works best when you also present yourself as a real human with community interests. All this takes time, but it is arguably the best marketing dollar you will spend. 

Yes, it can take time out of your day to write a blog. Or, you can get someone to do it for you. Yes, it takes time to produce a newsletter. Or, you can get someone to do it for you. Either way, this is how you connect with people, and that is how they will end up choosing you for their next sale.

I am not going to sell my own house. No, I would get an experienced agent who's far better at selling my house than I am. Likewise, if you're not fantastic at the keyboard (and we can't all be top-notch at everything, can we?), then outsource to someone who is. 

These days, putting your well-worded written opinion out there, regularly, is a major factor in being the agent of choice when it comes time for that choice. Don't let your years of experience get lost in the crowd. Get writing today!