Advanced Real Estate Marketing Funnel: How Big Ones Do It

A real estate marketing funnel is the system that guides visitors through your website or to your landing page. It turns visitors into leads, helps you nurture them into legitimate prospects, and eventually turns them into clients.

This real estate marketing funnel post covers the basics of how to set up a marketing funnel, but the post you’re currently reading is for the advanced agent or investor who already has a business that’s growing. If you’re already generating consistent leads, closing consistent deals, how do you add that lever in your marketing, and take it up the next level?

Because that’s where it gets exciting. You start to add magnitudes of results to your business by making some simple switches in your marketing.

And the reason I’m saying this is because in a competitive market, like the time I’m recording this video right now, your sellers, your buyers, they have lots of options.

So, if anyone is kidding themselves to think that you are the only option for your prospect net market, it’s not true.

Advanced Real Estate Marketing Funnel

How A House Seller Decides…

The 5 stage process that all house sellers ponder as they sell their house. Does your marketing meet them at each stage and advance them to the next step… or does it leave them hanging?

How do you make sure that you’re delivering the message that’s going to crack through all that marketing clutter out there? That delivers that message.

It’s going to crack through that prospect so that they choose you versus the dozens of other competitors that you’re working around. How do you do that? Well, it’s by tapping into what’s already going on in your prospect’s brain.

“Evergreen” Marketing

One of the biggest real estate marketing resources that we oftentimes don’t use is the conversations that are going on in your prospect’s brain before they ever reach to you.

This is “Evergreen” marketing approach helps control the conversation. The first thing I’d really encourage you to do is get to learn your prospect inside and out. Better than they know themselves.

How do you do this?

When you’re on the phone with your sellers or your buyers, ask them questions. “Hey, how did you get to my website? Where did you find out about me? Man, so why did you give me a call versus all those other direct mail … those postcards on there? What was it about me that stood out?”

After you close those deals, ask them those questions and get those testimonials. But ask them the questions, not just so you get the testimonials, so you can get the data and information on how your prospects think, and I’m going to show you how to use it in your marketing.

Here Are A Few Examples Of Brands Or Companies When I Google Their Name…

Show Them You’re the Best Solution

So, once again, you close the deal.

“Hey, awesome. So, how did you find out about us? What was it about us versus the other agents or investors you were working with that kind of tipped you over the edge to have you work with us?”

They’re going to say specific things, and those specific things are giving you a direct line into their brain and the way that they think. And now we can start to use those words, use those conversations, to connect with them better, to show them how you are the best solution.

To make sure you’re crafting your marketing, so you’re the clear best solution. Not just the one that offered them the most money. If you do this right, you can offer them less money than your competition and you can still close the deals. All right. I’m going to show you how.

Understand Your Prospect

How do the big boys do market … big boys and girls … do marketing in a big way? The first thing is, once again, you have to understand your prospect. You can’t do amazing marketing without understanding your prospects.

Many real estate agents and investors do marketing only at this first level and second level. That’s it. Most investors are stuck in problem aware and solution aware, and then they say,

“Hey, here’s how we’re going to be able to offer you a price for your house.”

Or,

“Here’s how you buy a property from us or rent a property from us.”

But where the meat is, where so much leverage is right now that investors and agents aren’t focusing on is this stuff in the middle.

It’s this stuff in the middle. It’s dragging them, pulling them, guiding them from problem aware to solution aware to verifying to making a decision and then referring out.

And one thing that’s a big, big, big myth and a big, big, big issue with real estate … not as many agents. Agents get this. You guys get this part. But real estate investors don’t, in general. That you work the deal thinking it’s a one-off transaction. That you’re never going to work with that seller or buyer again, especially sellers.

People are treating it this way.

But if you do this right, your sellers are going to refer you over to other people that you can work. So, you’ve gotta do all this. This one deal can turn into two, three, four, five deals for you if you work it right.

Your Strategy

Here’s what we’re going to do. So, the first thing in problem aware is the very first stage that your sellers or buyers or anyone is going through before they ever even see your message. This is where they just inherited the house. This is where they’re going through that divorce. This is where they just need to sell the house.

They’re moving.

And whatever that situation is… their listing expired with an agent and they don’t want to relist it… they now have a problem, and they’re aware of that problem. Before that problem exists in their life, they’re not going to notice your bandit signs. They’re not going to see your direct mail pieces and think twice about them. They’re not making the searches on Google to find you.

So, one key is knowing that they’re problem aware.

• What are those problems they’re having?
• How are they feeling?
• What things are they searching?

As soon as you know that, put those messages into your direct mail. Put those messages in your bandit signs on your websites. At this stage, they’re going to notice that bandit sign, and call you up.

They’re going to see the direct mail and go, “Man, are these people going to be able to solve this problem.” So, that’s why the direct mail piece and your website copy and ads need to be direct to that point. “Hey, do you have this problem? Sweet, we can solve it.” That sounded like a Vanilla Ice song for a second.

Real Estate Marketing Funnel: The Solution Aware Stage

So, right here, then they’re solution aware. As soon as they see you’re advertising somewhere and your competitor’s advertising, now they know there are solutions out there to their problem.

Now they know, “Okay, well, I can list this house. I don’t really know what that looks like. There are also these things called house buyers out there, or I can buy investment properties from these entities or there are places to rent-to-own.” And then they know that it exists.

But, how do we then make sure that your solution is the one that stands out in their mind? Well, over here on your website, in your marketing, in your ads, things like that when you’re talking to them, at this point, they’re wanting to compare things. How does X’s service compare to Y’s service? How does your service compare to other real estate investors?

That’s where you’ve gotta have your unique selling proposition. Check out our USP Whiteboard Video, and our USP CarrotCast.

You’ve gotta have a clear, clear value on why you are different than the others, and also compare you as a real estate agent versus a for sale by owner. Or you as a real estate investor versus listing with an agent. Compare those with the content on your website and in your advertising.

Build Credibility in Your Process

Next, you need to build credibility in your process. Because people want the process to be transparent. They want to know going into it that they’re pretty clear how the process is going to go down and this is one of the biggest things.

I want to challenge you guys as real estate agents and investors… for some reason, there’s something in the psyche of a real estate investor, a house flipper, and a wholesaler, that makes you believe that you cannot be completely transparent with the way you’re developing your offers.

If that mindset stays in your brain over the long-term, you’re going to lose deals versus the investors who grasp that,

“Hey, you know what? Our prospect really cares.”

They really want to know how this works, and if I can add transparency to the process if I can gain trust and credibility … if I can show them exactly how I’m coming up with that offer, and not think that by doing that it’s going to put me at a disadvantage,” you’re going to win.

How is Opendoor, a company that’s valued at over a billion dollars just in three to four years … how is Opendoor winning the game in the markets that they’re going after?

It’s not because their marketing is that much better. It’s because they have a very clear value proposition and people know exactly how their offer is going to be calculated.

Exactly.

And then the process is transparent throughout the whole thing.

Strengthening Your Position

So, next what we need to do is if we’ve done the comparisons with content … we have ads that pop up on Facebook that say, “Selling a house to an investor versus an agent,” or an ad that says something to the effect of … Brad Chandler of Express Homebuyers, had a great ad that says, “Don’t work with those fly-by-night investors. Here’s why.”

Then it serves up a testimonial that has a seller that talks about working with two of those fly-by-night investors that didn’t fulfill on their promise of their offer, and how Brad did. So, that’s comparing.

That’s planting seeds of doubt in that prospect about the other people and strengthening your position.

Real Estate Marketing Funnel: Vetting and Verifying

Next, once they understand there are options out there and how they differ, now they’re going to go, “Man, so, there’s four options, or three options, or two that I really think are pretty good. Which ones should I work with?” So, they’re going to go in the vetting and verifying phase.

They’re going to be Googling your company name. Your company name plus reviews.

They’re going to be looking for Better Business Bureau. Not just that you have a BBB profile, but you have a positive review profile. You’ve got a dozen or two dozen reviews that are four out of five or five out of five.

On the agent side, they’re going to be looking for credentials and work history.

This is where you start getting testimonials and video testimonials of your prospects and clients talking about the experience of working with you. Talking about your character. That you follow through and close your deals. That you fulfill the promises you make.

That you don’t weasel out of your contracts because you can. And this part is huge, because if there are four or five options they’re looking at, and they Google you and they don’t find anything that gives them that warm and fuzzy, that they really want to work with you but they do with someone else, they’re going to win the deal.

I have a question for you. Who has ever purchased a product or decided to not purchase a product, any product, because of one review that you saw? Just one. That happens all the time. You’re on Amazon and you’re looking at it, and there’s one review that’s like, “Ah … man. I’m not going to get it. Because if that person experienced it, there’s a chance that I might as well.”

So, if we’re not thinking that same way in our businesses … that one review, that one testimonial, that one bit of credibility can completely tip the scales from someone working with you to someone working with someone else, then we’re kidding ourselves. So, in this phase in the competitive market, the vetting and verifying market, is big.

How do you do that with your ads?

Make sure you’re putting great case studies and testimonials in your Facebook ads, in your Google ads. Make sure you’re putting great case studies and testimonials in your credibility kit when you’re meeting with your sellers or with your buyers.

They need to know that you’re a great company to work with, and there needs to be overwhelming proof that you’re a legit person. You’re honest, trustworthy, and you will fulfill your promise. All right?

Last right here, decision. How do you pull them to a decision? First of all, you’ve gotta have a really clear call to action. Say, “Here’s what you do next.” Present them a real offer. Follow up on that offer. Don’t assume that they’re going to contact you if that offer is good. Follow up, be courteous, but follow up.

Timing is a big thing there.

Real Estate Marketing Funnel: Transparency

Transparency, once again. Add as much transparency to the entire process as possible. Someone opts in on your website, don’t just kick them out a generic email and then just land on their doorstep in two doors.

Send them an email or pick up the phone and say,

“Drew is actually going to be at your door at four o’clock tomorrow. Drew’s been with us for two years, or five years.”

Or,

“It’s actually going to be me. I’m going to be pulling up in my truck that has XYZ on it, so expect that. And here’s a few things I’m going to be walking through when we get there, and then we kinda talk about what we find and we can talk about the value of the home, and kinda work out a fair offer there for you. Does that work?”

So, then they know exactly how the process is going to work, and then you can walk them through it too. “Once we make the offer, here’s how that works. We can close within seven days, or whatever that is.”

Be crazy transparent during this process because the more transparent you can be at their point of decision, the more that they’re going to want to work with you and it adds credibility to that vetting and verifying phase.

Sharing the Love

Last, don’t stop loving on them. Once again, so many real estate investors … the agents are better … but so many real estate investors are not in the relationship business when you should be. You’re in the transaction business.

“I closed 14 deals this month.” or, “I closed two deals this month.”

How many of those deals did you send a thank you card 30 days after you closed it? Probably none of them.

How many of those deals did you give them a care package at the closing table? Probably very few. How many of those deals did you follow up six months later and see how they’re doing after the move or after the sale, and find out if there’s anything else you can help them with?

Or if there are any other people that they know that you can help? Probably very few of you, because you’re thinking so short term.

And short term is not a fun way to build a business, and it’s not a profitable way to build a business over the long term. And you’re not going to build a great business. You’re probably going to be out of business within two to three years if that’s all that you’re doing. So, make sure you’re building all this up so referrals happen, and start loving on them.

Business is way more fun when you love on your clients and client’s love on you.

I’ll Finish This Advanced Real Estate Marketing Funnel Post With This…

I’m going to finish it with this. I’ve been to masterminds with the largest house flippers and wholesalers in the country. I asked them this question once … there were 50 people in the room … I said, “Raise your hands, anyone in this room who would love to have a beer, have a drink with your clients?” 2 people raised their hand out of 50 people.

And I’m saying this because this isn’t about marketing. This is about building a business you love. About building a business you love, and you can only do that if you love your clients. And loving on your clients does all this way better.

It’s going to make your marketing really powerful. That’s how we’ve grown so much. Thousands of members because we love on our clients.

We’ve realized that you are human beings that have real needs, real desires, real hopes, real fears, and we’re going to help you through that stuff.

Do the same thing for your customers.

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