Real Estate Marketing Tips: Telling A Story - Part III

Want to know more about storytelling? Here are a few tips:

What are the possible roots for your story? Well, ask yourself what’s interesting about your project, something that no one else can say. Is there a rushing river nearby that you can research and bring to life in your development? Do you have the best views? Is there a particular local animal known to visit a particular spot on your property, and could the story revolve around that? Is there something unique in the developer’s motivations for bringing this project to life – something meaningful and personal that other people might relate to?
When you’re looking to craft a story about your project, do it early. Only then can your salespeople, your marketing campaigns and, to some degree, even your design be shaped by that story.

The three best salesmen I have ever seen.

Without a doubt, there are salespeople who are extremely skilled at this kind of story-telling. I was just showing a colleague a resort in Puerto Vallarta called Punta Mita. They have three of the best salesmen I’ve seen in my entire life, with one of them earning between one and three million dollars a year in commission alone. And if you watch how these guys work, it’s all story selling. They’re not talking to clients about floor plans, square footage or granite counters. Instead, they’re selling dreams and aspirations.

Facts tell, stories sell.

We’ve all heard the line: facts tell but stories sell. Never have truer words been spoken, especially with real estate. Whether it’s an office project in a downtown core, a beachside villa or a suburban family home, describing your project with just the facts conveys only half the story to a potential buyer. People, like projects, are made up of two halves. One side focuses on reason, the other side on emotion. One side is more concerned with magic, and the other side with logic. That’s why any successful marketing campaign should take into account both halves – and speak to both.

Women control 92% of the purchasing decisions related to the home.

Study after study has found that women control 92% of the purchasing decisions related to the home. Those decisions include where to travel, what furnishings to buy and – you guessed it – what home they want to purchase. But most developers do the opposite with their advertising – they focus on the men. Maybe it’s because a large percentage of them come from male-dominated industries like construction or finance, and so this point hasn’t hit home with them. But it needs to. Women make the decisions and you should be marketing to them.

Example: Two Competing Restaurants.

Two restaurants sit on opposite sides of the street. The cuisine and atmosphere of both of are of equal quality and the menus are comparably priced. But when potential diners see a line of people waiting at one of the restaurants and not the other, they assume the busy one is superior and they follow the crowd. It’s a phenomenon known by many names - pack Mentality, peer pressure, following the herd. And it plays a critical role in selling real estate.

How to create a touchpoint plan that works? Here’s how.

First off, create an actual plan that covers off at least 17 different ways that a potential buyer’s interest can be maintained.Reaching out can take a variety of different forms – ads, website, phone calls, emails, return visits, and so on – but make sure they are numerous and use a variety of different methods to keep the momentum going. Also, write the plan down and ask salespeople to use it as part of their toolkit to keep track of how they’re staying in touch with leads.

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