In previous posts, we’ve discussed some of the ingredients that go into successfully marketing a piece of property. So far, we’ve touched on the importance of strong ad copy, great pictures, and staging that puts properties in their best light. In this post, we’ll focus on how digital marketing across multiple platforms can eliminate the choice between quantity or quantity of views on a property and give you the best of both worlds. We perform this dizzying balancing act by advertising on three distinct platforms that each have unique and key strengths: The LandCrazy site, land.com, and Multiple Listing Service MLS.
One for the Fans
Believe it or not, the LandCrazy website is not on the list of the top ten most visited websites in the world. In fact, it’s not on the list of the top hundred or even the top thousand. Though the site’s Google ranking may not place it somewhere below Facebook or Wikipedia, those who do visit the site are passionate about properties in Western North Carolina. They know they want to buy land; they know they want that land in North Carolina; they know that they want it to be in this corner of heaven. These are your diehards.
If the LandCrazy site were a band, these visitors would be the ones who come to every show, know every album by heart, and recognize that their obsession makes them a little eccentric. Those who do eventually find it are the kinds of people just crazy enough to flip to either page two or three of their Google results. “They almost vet themselves,” Tom says. “They are serious buyers because they found us.”
In other words, those who come to the LandCrazy site come with passion. They are also probably exhausted. As Tom says, they’re sick of looking at listings for something that is “as expensive as a Ferrari” that only has one picture and a vague description. This type of marketing may only produce ten leads per week, but these are quality leads simply because they have come to the site with purpose.
Maximizing Exposure
The second approach is by using land.com, which is all about exposure. After all, the site has 12 million unique visitors per month, which translates into tens of millions of potential eyeballs looking at each listing. Of course, not everyone who visits the site is as gung-ho about buying a piece of property in North Carolina as those who visit the LandCrazy site, but this could be because they’re not sure where they want to go. When they see one of our listings with high-quality pictures, fantastic copy, and stunning views of Western North Carolina, they’ll realize that search is over. “We speak the language they’re so desperate to hear,” Tom says.
The fact that each property posted by LandCrazy is a featured listing for the first two weeks it’s on the site ensures that the most people see the property.
Playing the Numbers
The third platform in this three-prong approach is MLS, which syndicates each listing to more than 30,000 sites, including Zillow, Trulia, Redfin, or other regional or specialty sites. The listing is also accessible to more than 22,000 brokers. That’s a lot of khakis and blazers!
This is by far the biggest net that we cast since we’re not only marketing to people who are interested in Western North Carolina properties or those who are looking for their own idyll regardless of location; we’re also marketing to people who won’t be entirely sure of what they want until they see what your listing has to offer.
The LandCrazy Experience
Throughout his 17 years of experience working in Western North Carolina property, Tom has realized that achieving digital marketing zen requires a multitiered approach. You have to find the right balance between playing to a local crowd of diehard fans and being as accessible as possible.