Becoming a Direct Mail Superstar!

Step 1

Choosing a Farm. First and foremost, select an area in which you feel most comfortable socializing and interacting. You must be 100% comfortable with the people living in your farm. It will be easier to succeed if you and those in the area in which you market yourself have similar personalities, ties, interests, hobbies and styles. If you do not feel 100% comfortable with the people in your farm area, you are probably wasting money.

Once you have compiled a list of possible areas in which you feel comfortable, below are a few other things to keep in mind:

  • Ideas & Tips
  • The best direct mail farm area is an area that could be considered a niche market, meaning an area whose residents share commonalities and truly identify with the community in which they live. A community within a town.
  • Evaluate your competition. If another agent has 30% or more market share in a particular farm, then eliminate that farm from your list of choices-The costs of competing will be massive.
  • Ensure there is a sufficient turnover rate. If homes are not selling, don’t enter the market. Look for a minimum of 5% turnover for a potential market.
  • Research and Know your Owner Profile.
  • Know the product available in your farm area-TOUR
  • Socialize with and patronize the local businesses

Step 2

Choose a large enough area to farm to achieve your desired goals. A farm should have twice as much turnover as your listing goal. For example, if you want to take 15 listings from your farm this year, then make sure that at least 30 homes have sold in previous years. To figure out the minimum number of pieces you should mail each month, divide the total number of homes required to sell (30) in your area by the turnover rate (5% is average) or 30/.05=600. So the minimum number of homes you need to mail to help you reach your goal is 600 pieces. This is just a guideline. If you have multiple agents marketing in your area, you will need to mail to a wider audience. Direct mail farms of 100 to 500 homes are so small the average turnover rates do not produce the return you need to succeed. A good rule of thumb is 1000 homes. If you can afford it, 1500 to 3000 homes is the ideal size for the best return on your investment.

  • Ideas & Tips
  • 40% of direct mail success can be attributed to your database. Be certain that every address on your list is a potential client. Drive or walk your farm crossing off those blocks or streets that do not meet your target. Research the last time each home sold. It may sound exhausting, but the #1 cost associated with direct mail marketing is postage. Increase direct mail effectiveness by spending time reviewing your list.
  • Review and update your list every 3 to 6 months.

Step 3

Your direct mail material must stand out from others and promote you. Here is a way to test it. Pick up a piece of your direct mail campaign and glance at it. Then write the most dominant thing your remember. If itís not your photo, your name or the catchy slogan, then immediately revise your marketing pieces.

  • Ideas & Tips
  • Research shows that the most dominant image on a piece of direct mail is the only thing that is remembered 90% of the time.
  • Your direct mail must also make you stand out from all the other agents who are sending out marketing pieces. The good news is that these goals are not hard to reach since most agents don’t mail on a regular basis.
  • Every piece of direct mail you send must have your picture in full color. Research shows full color materials get noticed and remembered 21% more than two color pieces and have a 16% greater response rate than two color materials.

Step 4

Consistency & Frequency. Two words synonymous with direct mail success. People forget fast, so you must mail often to keep ”top of mind” with your farm or sphere. This is where most agents fail. Some agents will only mail when they sell a home or on a quarterly cadence. This is not enough to build awareness and is ultimately a waste of money. If you are not going to commit to mailing regularly, don’t mail at all-itís a waste of money.

  • Ideas & Tips
  • Research shows, in today’s market place, you must advertise with at least three exposures a month for a minimum of six months to get your name into the conscious awareness of a prospect. If you are interested in building awareness quickly and you are mailing to a new farm area, a good solid plan is to mail one piece per week for eight weeks. Then mail three pieces per month for the rest of your real estate career. If you mail one piece per week for eight weeks, 40% to 60% of the people in the area will know your name. And most of those will assume you have been in the business for years not just weeks.

Step 5

Successful advertising campaigns always have a consistent look and feel to them, but have fresh content or new information so the ads do not get repetitious and boring. Provide your farm with valuable information-Don’t be afraid to show-off your knowledge about their neighborhood. Teach them about their home, their schools, the home sales cycle.

Finally-keep all your marketing pieces consistent. Carry the look and feel of your direct mail pieces to your web site, property marketing brochures, your letterhead, business cards, personal brochure and notepads. The strong continuity across all your marketing pieces will enforce your awareness and dramatically increase the effectiveness of your entire marketing campaign.

Ways to Compliment Your Direct Marketing Efforts

Not all your monthly advertising exposure needs to be in the form of direct mail. Get creative with a variety advertising mediums
  • Look into placing an ad in your farm’s local high school sports programs
  • Grocery Store Dividers
  • Local health clubs or sports organizations
  • WALK your farm—personalize your contact—People want to do business with who they know—make sure your farm knows you personally—21% of your business comes from acquaintances!
  • Join a club-involve yourself in the neighborhood—Remember 21% of your business comes from acquaintances!
  • Hold Open Houses—Be sure to keep consistent in the area you hold open house so you see the same buyers and sellers every weekend.
Think of the marketing campaigns that are most memorable to you. They aren’t ads you saw once or even a couple times. They are the campaigns that infiltrate every aspect of your life. They are everywhere you look.

Whatever you do, never stop advertising-the minute you stop advertising, people will have assumed you left the industry.