What Is a Pop-by Gift?

Real estate pop-by gifts are small gestures of appreciation that help you stay connected with your clients. When you “pop by,” you’re not just dropping off a gift. You’re nurturing your client relationships in a meaningful way. These thoughtful gestures help you stay top of mind, build trust, and pave the way for even more leads and return business.

Pop-by Ideas for Real Estate 

With these realtor pop by ideas, create a routine to see your clients face-to-face throughout the year regularly. Your goal should be to keep the gifts simple but memorable and, most importantly, have fun with them!

1. Tea & Honey: ‘Clients Like You Are Tea-rific!’

• When to give: Fall, Winter
• Cost: Around $5 to $15 per pack of tea and honey (+ $.50 per printed tag)
• Purchase: Herbal Tea Sampler Variety Pack + Honey Sticks from Amazon

Tea has a way of making people feel all warm and cozy inside. That’s why it makes for the perfect real estate pop-by gift during fall and winter. There are so many delicious flavors to choose from, including limited-edition holiday options. If your clients are tea connoisseurs, consider going for a high-end tea. And don’t forget the honey—go for a local brand if you can.

Once you’ve chosen the perfect tea, search online for a customizable tag to add your own branding and message. Pop the tea bag and a honey stick in a gift bag, tie it up with your custom tag, and voila—you’ve got a thoughtful and heartwarming gift. 

2. S’mores Kit: ‘I’m Never Too Busy for S’More of Your Referrals’

• When to give: Summer, Fall
• Cost: Around $18 for kit of 18 (+ $10 one-time fee for digital download)
• Purchase: S’mores Kit—Makes 18 S’mores from Amazon and S’mores Pop by Tag from Etsy

Who doesn’t love the nostalgic feeling of sharing s’mores? Giving your clients a s’mores kit and a cute card will help them think of you as someone sweet. The best part about these kits is that you can keep it simple or fancy it up by including gourmet chocolate and handcrafted marshmallows. This pop-by gift is the perfect go-to option for visiting multiple clients since you can easily make many s’mores kits at once.

3. Heart-shaped Cookies or Chocolates: ‘You Are the Heart of My Business!’

• When to give: Winter, Valentine’s Day
• Cost: Around $3 per cookie (+ $5 one-time fee for digital download)
• Purchase: Heart-shaped cookies from Wicked Good Cookies and Pop by Tag from Etsy

Roses are red, violets are blue, holidays are the perfect excuse to do realtor pop-bys for you. Choose festive heart-shaped cookies for Valentine’s Day and spread the love to your clients and sphere. Even better, order custom cookies with your branding on them! 

4. Bag of Goldfish Crackers: ‘Fishing for Your Referrals’

• When to give: Anytime
• Cost: $9 per box of 20 packs (+ $5 one-time fee for digital download)
• Purchase: Goldfish crackers from Walmart and Pop by Tag from Etsy

Don’t be afraid to couple your pop-by with an “ask” on occasion. Make custom stickers with the phrase “fishing for your referrals,” along with your information, and place them on any fish-themed snack. Switch between sweet and savory by picking up Goldfish crackers and Swedish Fish. This sweet and salty gift idea is a light-hearted way to ask for referrals while showing your clients that you appreciate them.

Pro Tip: While you’re in the spirit of asking for things, consider asking your client for a testimonial that you can use to promote your business. Sometimes, a testimonial will be just what you need to lead to your next client.

5. Packet of Seeds: ‘Thank You for Helping My Business Grow’

• When to give: Spring
• Cost: Around $6 per variety pack (+ $45 for 25 custom seed envelopes)
• Purchase: Seed variety packets from Walmart and Pop by Envelope from Etsy

One of my favorite spring pop by ideas for realtors is a packet of seeds. It’s the gift that keeps on giving! Whether it’s plants, veggies for their garden, or beautiful flowers, your clients will surely think of you as they watch them grow. Get a variety of seeds and order personalized packets to put them in, creating your very own blossoming business cards.

6. Bag of Popcorn: ‘Popping by to Offer an Update on the Current Market’

• When to give: Anytime
• Cost: Around $6 per box of 12 (+ $.50 per unit for tags)
• Purchase: Popcorn from Amazon and Pop by Tag from Etsy

When it comes to simple yet delightful gifts, nothing beats a bag of popcorn. Whether it’s microwave popcorn or individual-sized bags, it doesn’t get easier than this. Order custom tags or stickers to attach to the popcorn featuring your personal note and contact information. Keep these tags on hand, and you’ll always be ready to brighten a client’s day with a friendly visit. This gift really puts the perfect POP into your real estate pop by gifts. 

7. Sparklers or Flags: ‘You Add So Much Sparkle to My Business’

• When to give: Summer
• Cost: Around $9 per 6 packs of sparklers (+ $4 one-time fee for digital download)
• Purchase: Sparklers from Walmart and Pop by Tag from Etsy

If you’re looking for sizzling summer pop-by ideas for realtors, this could be the one for you. Buy some sparklers, pop-its, or American flags to create a fun and memorable celebration for your clients. These goodies are sure to bring smiles to everyone’s faces. If sparklers aren’t an option, anything with an American flag theme will do the trick. 

8. Small Pumpkin & Carving Kit: ‘I’m Always Ready to Carve Out Time for You’

• When to give: Fall
• Cost: Around $7 per kit (+ cost of pumpkin)
• Purchase: Pumpkin carving kit from Amazon (+ pumpkin from your local nursery)

If you’re stumped for gift ideas, stick with festive and fun. Whether you align your pop-by with an upcoming holiday or choose something seasonal, coordinating your visits with a purpose makes it easier. After all, it’s not about finding the perfect gift; it’s about sharing a warm gesture and building a solid connection. In the fall, pick up some small pumpkins and carving kits, then head on over to your clients’ homes to share the joy of the season.

Pro Tip: Include a note encouraging your clients to tag you in a social media post with pictures of their carved pumpkins to enter a drawing to win a gift card!

9. Bottle of Wine: ‘I Have Nothing to Wine About With Clients Like You’

• When to give: Anytime
• Cost: Around $8 or more per bottle (+ $4 one-time fee for digital download)
• Purchase: Wine from Walmart (or local liquor store) and Pop by Card from Etsy

Offering a bottle of wine is said to be a gesture of appreciation. While this might initially seem extravagant, it doesn’t have to be. Reserve this option for your loyal clients or those who have referred business to you. There are so many different price ranges from which to choose, allowing you to select the perfect bottle.

Pro Tip: Be mindful when gifting alcohol, as not everyone drinks. If you’re unsure whether or not your client would appreciate this option, choose one of our other gifts to stay on the safe side. 

10. Free Cup of Coffee: ‘Thanks a Whole Latte for Your Referrals’

• When to give: Anytime
• Cost: Around $5 to $10 per gift card ($15 for ten pre-printed cards)
• Purchase: Coffee gift card from Starbucks (or your local coffee shop) and Pop by Card from Etsy

Not all real estate pop by ideas have to include beverages, but we can’t leave out coffee. It’s hard to go wrong with a gift card to a local coffee shop, and it would work perfectly for people who have just moved into a new neighborhood. With this option, you’ll get the added bonus of supporting a local business.

Pro Tip: While it may not be the same as an in-person visit, you can still brighten your client’s day by sending them a virtual cup of coffee (in the form of a gift card) via text or email. This virtual gift is a beautiful way to express gratitude if you’re pressed for time and can’t make it for a face-to-face thank you.

11. Pumpkin Pie or Fall-themed Treats: ‘Grateful for Your Referrals’

• When to give: Fall
• Cost: Around $15 to $20 per pie ($15 for 10 pre-printed cards)
• Purchase: Pecan pie from Wood Pecan Company (or your local bakery) and Pop by Tag from Etsy

Showing your clients gratitude is what pop by gifts are all about. So, lining up some of these visits with Thanksgiving is a no-brainer. Pick up some pies and tie a thank-you note to the pie with a bow, and you’ll be all set! Make sure to time your deliveries close to the holiday so your clients can share the joy with their loved ones. You might even land a referral when their friends and family ask where they got the tasty treat. 

12. Easter Candy: ‘Your Referrals Are Eggstra Special’

• When to give: Spring, Easter
• Cost: Around $2 per candy (+ $7 one-time fee for digital download)
• Purchase: Reese’s Easter Egg from Walmart and Pop by Sticker from Chevelly Designs

You can’t go wrong with a simple and easy gift idea that your clients might really look forward to every year! Get your hands on some limited edition Reese’s Easter egg-inspired chocolates (you know the ones!) that only come around once a year, and add a personalized sticker to the wrapper. If you’re feeling extra fancy, you could even put a few in a cute gift bag and throw in some other festive candy.

Whenever you give food as a pop-by gift, be mindful of allergens. When in doubt, avoiding common food allergens like nuts, soy, dairy, and wheat is a good idea.

13. Flashlights: ‘Don’t Be in the Dark About the Real Estate Market!’

• When to give: Anytime
• Cost: Around $38 per pack of 30 (+ $5 one-time fee for digital download)
• Purchase: Mini Flashlights from Amazon and Pop by Tag from Etsy

The beauty of real estate pop by gifts is that they’re designed to be small tokens of appreciation that keep you on your clients’ minds. Flashlights may seem ordinary, but they’re a great way to remind your clients that you’ve got their back. They represent your ability to guide them every step of the way. Just attach a card with a friendly note and your contact information, and you’re all set!

14. Lotto Tickets: ‘Lucky to Have You & Your Referrals’

• When to give: St. Patrick’s Day or Anytime
• Cost: Around $2 to $10 per ticket (+ $20 for a set of ten cards)
• Purchase: Lotto tickets from your local store and Pop by Card from Etsy

Let your clients know how lucky you feel to have their support, and spread that good luck by giving them a lottery ticket. Whether it’s St. Patrick’s Day or any time of year, show your appreciation with this fun pop-by gift idea. Get a set of custom cards that can hold your business card and the lotto ticket. Easily grab these whenever you want to stop by and see your clients.

15. Sunblock: ‘Don’t Let Your Friends Get Burned in This Market’

• When to give: Summer
• Cost: Around $38 per box of 24 (+ $7 one-time fee for digital download)
• Purchase: Box of travel size sunblock from Amazon or your local dollar store and Pop by Tag from Etsy

Catchy real estate marketing helps set you apart from other agents and gives you a chance to show a bit of your personality. For example, in the summer, give out sunblock with a tagline like, “Don’t let your friends get burned in this market.” It’s simple yet memorable; every time your clients use the sunblock, they’ll think of you. Opt for travel-size bottles and buy in bulk to cut your costs.

16. Cooking Seasoning: ‘From Your Seasoned Real Estate Professional’ 

• When to give: Anytime
• Cost: Around $3 per bottle (+ $4 one-time fee for digital download)
• Purchase: Cooking seasoning from Amazon and Pop by Tag from Etsy

Don’t be afraid to brag about yourself a little! If you’re looking for a pop by gift to remind your clients of all your hard-earned experience, hand out cooking seasoning. Not only is it a practical and long-lasting gift, but it’s a subtle way to show that you really know your stuff when it comes to real estate. Purchase various seasonings and stick a custom label on them, dubbing yourself a “seasoned agent.” 

17. First Aid Kit: ‘Let Me Be Your First Aid for All Your Real Estate Needs’

• When to give: Anytime; or in September for First Aid Day
• Cost: Around $2 per kit (+ $8 one-time fee for digital download)
• Purchase: First aid kit from Amazon (or your local dollar store) and Pop by Tag from Etsy

When all else fails, check out the “national days” that take place throughout the year for some gift inspiration. September is all about safety and national preparedness, but on the 2nd of the month, it’s also “first aid day.” This season is perfect for connecting with your clients, raising awareness, and giving out mini first aid kits.

Pro Tip: Team up with a home security company to amp up your promotional efforts and show your clients that you genuinely care about their safety and well-being. If possible, add an exclusive discount code for a home security system to the back of your card to give them a little extra something.

18. Donuts: ‘Sprinkling Joy & Gratitude for Being a Sweet Part of My Business!’

• When to give: Anytime
• Cost: Around $2 per donut (+ $6 one-time fee for digital download)
• Purchase: Donuts from your local bakery or donut shop and Pop by Tag from Etsy

When you’re creating your marketing plan and scheduling your realtor pop by ideas, you don’t always have to think outside the box. In fact, some ideas are best inside the box. Take donuts, for example! Whether it’s a single donut or a whole dozen, pair them with a card to express your joy and gratitude that your clients have chosen you as their real estate resource. This option also allows you to support a local bakery and build connections in the community.

19. Shout Wipes: ‘Give Me a Shout for All Your Real Estate Needs’

• When to give: Anytime
• Cost: Around $3 per pack of 4 (+ $6 one-time fee for digital download)
• Purchase: On-the-go Shout Wipe from Amazon and Pop by Tag from Etsy

Want your clients to give you a shout? Gift them some Shout wipes, letting them know you’re available whenever they’re ready to buy or sell. Yes, your pop-bys can be this quick and easy! Plus, you might get a thank-you call the next time your client encounters a coffee stain emergency.

20. Hand Sanitizer: ‘If I Can Give You a Hand, Please Call’

• When to give: Winter or Anytime
• Cost: Around $9 per pack of 5 (+ $4 one-time fee for digital download)
• Purchase: Hand sanitizer from Bath & Body Works and Pop by Tag from Etsy

Gifting hand sanitizer is a great way to remind your clients that you’re here to support them with all their real estate needs. It’s a simple and thoughtful gesture they can use often, helping keep you top-of-mind. Purchase hand sanitizer in bulk to grab and go for spontaneous visits. Don’t forget to tie a short note around the bottle to make it more personal. 

How to Send a Pop-by Gift 

When putting together your real estate pop by ideas, don’t forget to think about the best way to deliver them to your clients. While traditional pop-bys involve visiting your clients in person, alternative methods exist. Whether you operate in a city with numerous buildings and gated communities or simply want to respect your client’s privacy, physically visiting each client’s home may not always be an option. 

• Stop by your client’s house: The first option for giving a pop by gift is to actually visit your clients in person. This most personal approach will lead to a stronger connection and bond with your clients.  
• Use a delivery service: If you’d still like a personalized delivery, you can hire a delivery service to bring the gifts to your client’s house for you. This service is not the same as showing up and conversing, but it could be an option if you have a fragile gift that you want hand-delivered when you can’t make it. 
• Put a gift in the mail: If you find it challenging to get to your clients’ houses or work in a location where it’s impossible, schedule your gifts to be delivered via mail. This approach will require you to choose gifts that are easy to mail, but it can still be done. 
• Send a digital gift: The quickest and easiest way to get a gift to your client is to send a digital gift. There are various gift card options that you can send and other online gifting services that allow your clients to select a gift of their choosing.  

As a general rule of thumb, giving your clients a heads-up before you stop by their house is always a good idea. Unexpected visits might not have the effect you’re hoping for. Once your clients get into the swing of these visits as part of your business, they may even start to look forward to them. 

How to Choose the Right Gift

When sorting through realtor pop-by ideas and making a plan for the year, consider the following steps to choose what gifts you’ll send, when you’ll send them, and how much you’ll spend. Planning out your pop-bys is as important as planning any other business task. 

• Decide on your budget
• Categorize your clients
• Decide what holidays you will gift for
• Choose the seasonal gifts you want to send
• Align gifts with market conditions
• Order cards or tags for each gift
• Decide on your delivery method
• Set the pace and timeframe

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Do pop-bys work for realtors?

How do you make yourself stand out in real estate?

How can I impress a real estate client?

Bringing It All Together

Staying in touch with your people doesn’t have to be extravagant or expensive. Use these pop by ideas for real estate marketing or to come up with your unique gift-giving concepts. Make connecting with your clients an enjoyable experience; remember, the bond you create is what really counts.

Are there fun or affordable gifts you swear by? Know a great source for nice-looking pop-by gifts? Let us know in the comments.

The post 20 Clever Real Estate Pop-by Ideas to Get More Referrals appeared first on The Close.

I’m talking logos, social media graphics, free stock photos, templates—the whole nine yards. I’m even diving into when to call in the pros and hire a designer. Oh, and did I mention the free Real Estate Branding Guide I’m throwing in? Yep, I’m giving you everything you need to create a brand that’s so good clients won’t be able to resist. So, let’s do this!

Why Graphic Design Matters for Real Estate

Your brand is way more than just a logo or website. It’s the whole package—everything that shapes how people perceive you and your business. The great news is that you have the power to guide their perception by creating a unique combination of messaging and visuals that’s all your own.

Whether we like it or not, potential clients form opinions about a property and the agent representing it based on the visual appeal of their real estate marketing materials. As a real estate agent in a transitioning market, standing out from the competition is critical. But, with the right branding strategy, you can showcase your personality, expertise, and what sets you apart. You can connect with your target audience and build trust before they meet you.

Branding is a powerful tool for your success, so take the time to develop a brand that truly represents you and your business. Watch as it helps you attract your ideal clients and close more deals. Trust me, it’s worth it!

Benefits of Graphic Design for Real Estate Agents

Whether you’re using DIY tools or paying a pro, your real estate business will benefit from high-quality graphic design. Don’t underestimate the power of branding. Spend time defining your style, colors, and the statement you want to make in the world. Great graphic design will create the following:

• Increased brand recognition and memorability
• Enhanced credibility and professionalism
• Improved communication of key information
• Higher engagement rates on marketing materials
• Competitive advantage in the market

As your brand becomes more visible, both online and offline, your business will attract more clients, and you’ll close more deals. So, don’t skimp on the design details of your brand right up front. Invest in high-quality real estate graphic design to gain the most benefit from your marketing strategy. 

First, Establish Your Brand Identity

Without delving into branding, you can’t get too far into real estate graphic design. Now that you clearly understand why graphic design matters and its benefits, it’s time to start building your personal real estate brand identity. 

Establishing the look and feel of your brand is a critical step in creating effective real estate marketing materials. Spend some time on each of these elements to develop a brand identity that aligns with your personality and professional goals.

• MVV: Your mission, vision, and values (MVV) are the core identity behind your brand and all marketing materials you produce. They will help guide you through most graphic design choices you make. 

• Branding: Consistent branding is crucial for real estate agents. This includes using a specific color palette, font family, and logo across all marketing materials to create a recognizable and professional brand identity.
• Color psychology: Colors can evoke up to 90% of an initial impression. You should understand the basics of color psychology and use colors that create the desired mood and attract your target audience.

• Logo: Your real estate logo is the face of your brand and should be memorable, unique, and reflective of your brand’s values.
• Typography: Choosing the right fonts can significantly impact the readability and overall appeal of your designs. Choose legible and professional fonts that align with your brand’s personality.

Once you have established your brand’s color palette, typography, and logo usage, maintain consistency across all marketing materials, including business cards, property flyers, social media posts, and other marketing collateral. This will create a cohesive and recognizable brand identity.

Need a little more in-depth guidance on setting up your unique brand identity? Worry not! We’ve got you covered. You can download our Real Estate Branding Guide and go deeper into all the details of developing a brand that represents you and resonates with your audience. Check it out!

DOWNLOAD YOUR REAL ESTATE BRANDING GUIDE

DIY Design Tips for Real Estate Agents

You may not be a pro real estate graphic designer. Still, you can certainly learn a few design tips to help create stunning images for consistent social media posts, email marketing, real estate infographics, postcards and flyers, and more to keep your brand identity consistent no matter what you need to create.

Tip 1: Use White Space Effectively

White space, or negative space, is the empty space between all your design elements. It’s like the secret sauce to making your designs look clean, organized, and easy on the eyes. Don’t be afraid to give your elements some breathing room.

Tip 2: Create Visual Hierarchies

This is just a fancy way of saying you should arrange your design elements in order of importance. Use size, color, and placement to first guide your viewer’s eye to the most critical information. Make those headlines and key details pop by using larger or bolder fonts to draw attention to them. Use subheadings, bullet points, or numbered lists to break up text and make it more scannable.

Tip 3: Use Contrasting Colors

Using contrasting colors can make important elements stand out, like a neon sign. Use a color wheel to find complementary colors for maximum impact, choosing colors from the opposite side of the wheel. Just make sure your text is still legible—you don’t want people squinting while trying to read your graphics. But caution: use contrast sparingly. The last thing you want is to overwhelm the design and your reader. Focus on highlighting the most important elements.

Tip 4: Align Elements Consistently

Alignment is key to creating a polished, professional look. Use a grid system to keep everything in line. Make sure related elements, like text and images, are aligned to create a cohesive look. Consistent alignment makes your designs look polished and easier to read.

Tip 5: Embrace Simplicity

When in doubt, keep it simple. Stick to a limited color palette and font family for a put-together vibe. Avoid going overboard with decorative elements or busy backgrounds that can distract from your main message. Focus on delivering key information with clarity. Never sacrifice your message for a pretty design.

Tip 6: Use High-quality Images

There’s no excuse for not using high-quality images in your real estate graphic designs. Use professional, well-lit photos that show off a property’s best features. Make sure your images are sized and optimized for their intended use, whether digital or print. If you’re using stock photos, choose ones that look authentic and relate to your message.

Tip 7: Be Unique

It’s great to get inspo from other successful agents and see what design elements really catch your eye. But here’s the thing—don’t just copy and paste. Get inspired, but then create something that’s uniquely you. Put your own spin on it and let your personality shine through. That’s what will really make you stand out from the competition.

DIY Design Tools for Real Estate Agents

Ready to get started designing your stunning real estate graphics? I’ve pulled together a list of some of the coolest DIY marketing design tools to get you started.

Real Estate Graphic Design Templates 

Since you’re most likely not a professional designer, one of the easiest and fastest ways to create your gorg graphic designs is to use templates. Most of the platforms created for DIY design come with a plethora of templates, including some easy-to-customize social media templates you can peruse and customize to fit your brand. Check out some amazing templates I’ve seen in the wild below.

Templates from Coffee & Contracts

Modern market update template (Source: Coffee & Contracts)

Testimonial template (Source: Coffee & Contracts)

Templates library for social media, postcard, and marketing (Source: Coffee & Contracts)

Templates from Canva

Reel template (Source: Canva)

Just listed template (Source: Canva)

Educational post template (Source: Canva)

Stylish, customizable real estate templates for all your needs (Source: Canva)

Templates from Agent Crate

Template dashboard with several posts (Source: Agent Crate)

Engagement post template (Source: Agent Crate)

Educational post template (Source: Agent Crate)

Just sold template (Source: Agent Crate)

Agent Crate produces new monthly content and templates to customize your brand. (Source: Agent Crate)

Inspo: Examples of Real Estate Graphic Design That Slays

Here are some gorg examples of well-designed real estate marketing materials to inspire and guide you in creating your own designs.

Example 1: SERHANT.

If you’re looking for inspo for your branding, look no further than the man who has created one of the most recognizable brands in real estate—Ryan Serhant. This logo is one of my personal favorites for a myriad of reasons. It’s clean. Simple. And confidently stated. It’s simply his name in all caps and blocky letters, but the period at the end makes all the difference. Serhant. Period. See what I mean?

Example 2: The Agency

I know a lot of people on the internet talk about The Agency, including some of us here at The Close. But I can’t help but love how clever this real estate logo is—a bent paperclip in the shape of an “A” and the simple title underneath. It’s so simple, it’s brilliant. The white sans serif font on a bright red field stands out and screams sophistication. It’s a great example of less is more.

Example 3: Compass

Compass has done an amazing job with its branding, standing out as a leader in sophistication and class. Its branding conveys luxury without being bougie and techy without being boring. The simple black-and-white colors are fresh, modern, and stylish, with sans-serif all-caps lettering spaced out just enough to be open and inviting. With Compass, you’re going places. 

Example 4: Aaron Kirman Partners

I love the overt masculinity of this logo—it says power, sophistication, and boldness—definitely traits shared by its namesake. The simple, black-and-white design fits hand-in-hand with the use of negative space on the website. It also fits nicely with the tagline “The Evolution of Luxury.” This logo means business, just like its namesake and the brokerage itself. If you’re looking for powerful real estate graphic design inspiration, this one ranks up there.

How & Where to Hire a Real Estate Graphic Designer

Traditionally, when a business needs graphic design work done, they hire an advertising or creative agency. Sure, that’s one way to get premium real estate graphic design for your business, but you can also hire a freelance designer, which can be more economical. A freelance designer generally works on a per-project or hourly basis. 

Start small with freelancers once you’ve had a chance to check out their portfolio. Hire them to complete a few small projects to make sure they’re a good fit. Have them complete a few different types of projects—for example, a social media graphic, a listing brochure, a real estate flyer, and a postcard. Doing so will help you get a feel for how well the designer takes direction, how often they meet deadlines, and how easy they are to work with. One project isn’t enough to assess someone’s talents. Plus, you will also want to determine if they understand you and your unique brand.

Here are a few places to look for freelance graphic design for realtors, broken down by average cost and design quality. Keep in mind that prices vary based on the freelancer and task. Instead of hunting for one freelance designer, you can also run a contest on sites like 99designs, where you can pitch your project, and multiple designers will create designs. You can then choose the best option for your needs.

Freelancer Website	Pricing	Design Quality
Upwork	$–$$$$	Entry-level to mid-tier
Toptal	$$–$$$$	Mid-tier to expert
Dribble	$$–$$$$	Mid-tier to expert
Behance	$$–$$$$	Mid-tier to expert
Working Not Working	$$$–$$$$	Expert
99Designs	$–$$$$	Beginner to expert
Fiverr	$–$$$$	Beginner to expert

Bringing It All Together

We’ve covered a lot of ground in this ultimate guide to real estate graphic design. From understanding the importance of visual branding to mastering design basics, you’re now equipped with the knowledge and tools to create marketing materials that will make you stand out from the competition. But remember, this is just the beginning of your design journey. Keep exploring, experimenting, and pushing the boundaries of what’s possible.

Now, I want to hear from you! What’s your favorite design tip from this guide? Have you created any killer marketing materials using these techniques? Share your thoughts, experiences, and even your designs in the comments below. Let’s keep this conversation going!

The post Real Estate Graphic Design: The Ultimate Guide for 2024 appeared first on The Close.

1. Expired Listing Prospecting Letter

Expired listings can be an excellent source of real estate leads, as these homeowners already want to sell. Most often, the main reason a home doesn’t sell is pricing. The owners might not have listened to their listing agent when they recommended a lower price, or—even better for you—maybe their listing agent wasn’t confident enough to price it correctly in the first place. 

The trick to writing real estate letters to potential sellers that persuade these owners to relist their homes is simple. Empathize with their problem and offer a fresh solution to fix it. In this letter, the perspective is shifted away from blame and focuses on a simple, tech-savvy solution:

copy to clipboard

Dear {first name}:

As a Realtor of {#} years in the {your farm area} community, I was surprised to see that your home did not sell. It has {a unique feature of the home} and {a desirable feature of the home} that many {your farm area} buyers who call our office are looking for. In fact, I sold {local comp you sold} to a couple relocating from {city} recently for well above asking. They were in love with the neighborhood, and after my presentation, they also fell in love with the home.

So why did this home sell over asking while yours didn’t? Simple. Most buyers have a hard time imagining themselves living in any new home. Sometimes, we need to nudge them by showing them exactly what a home could look like once renovated.

This is actually a lot easier and more affordable than it sounds. Using state-of-the-art virtual staging tools, my team creates realistic renderings of what your home would look like renovated and decorated to house hunters’ tastes. When buyers see the renderings, their faces light up, and they see the potential in your home.

I would love 10 minutes to show you some of the creative virtual staging and renderings I’ve used to sell other homes in your neighborhood to see if they might work to sell your house for over asking, too.

Text me at the number below to set up a time for a quick, no-pressure Zoom call. I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised with the results.

Sincerely,
{your name}
{your cell phone number}
{your website}

2. FSBO Letter

Inevitably, you’ll meet homeowners who say they want to sell on their own. Savvy agents like you understand that these sellers simply want to save money. They don’t truly fathom how much work goes into marketing a home. Your approach to FSBO owners must demonstrate the value you bring to a real estate transaction. Use one of our best FSBO scripts to master the conversation. Offering free, actionable, hard-won advice on marketing their homes is an excellent way to persuade an FSBO that you are there to help, not sell. And it’s a great way to get a foot in the door and build trust. Here’s a good example:

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Dear {first name},

I wanted to congratulate you on your success so far in listing your home on your own. Marketing homes is not easy, and I love how you {something they’re doing right with their listing, such as persuasive copy or nice pictures}. That’s something that some agents skimp on, so kudos for doing a great job with it.

That said, your {something they are doing poorly} can use some work, and I wanted to offer some quick and free advice on improving it.

First, you need to {actionable way to improve}, which you can do by {specific way to do it}. If you decide to take my advice, I would love to know how it works out.

Of course, as you may be discovering, selling a home is a lot of work, and the trial and error involved can mean a slower sale or even selling for a lower price. I can help you save time and money on that trial and error, and since I have {#} years of experience selling homes in {your farm area}, I’m confident that the price of my commission will be covered by the higher price I can get for your home.

If you’d like to discuss how I can sell your home faster and for a better price, please text me on my cell below.

Sincerely,
{your name}
{your cell phone number}
{your website}

3. FRBO Market Research Letter

Not all sellers are created equal. You’ll eventually encounter rental property owners using one or more real estate investment strategies. They look at their property differently than someone who lives in their home; they want to maximize the money they can make from their real estate investment. When you talk with one of these investors, you’ll want to get straight to the point and speak their language. That means telling them immediately that you can get them a better return on their investment than they are now.

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Dear {landlord’s name},

I just came across your rental listing at {address of FRBO} and wanted to let you know that you could easily double or triple your investment tomorrow by putting your property on the market.

Even in this market, my research shows that {type of property} homes like yours have increased more than {percentage} in the last five years. However, trends indicate a slowdown on the horizon due to new developments and regulations that may kill investment values.

If you have a few minutes for a coffee sometime this week, I’d love to show you my research in detail. You might be surprised at what your {type of property} is worth in today’s market. Or, if you prefer, text me at my cell phone number below and I can send you a free PDF with my analysis.

Best regards,
{your name}
{your cell phone number}
{your website}

4. Absentee Owner Letter

The struggle for property owners who don’t live in the area is real. It’s not uncommon for a homeowner to move before they can sell or inherit a property in another area they don’t live in. These unexpected landlords practically have to hire someone to manage their rental on their behalf. But you can offer a solution to their long-distance rental woes.

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Dear {landlord’s name},

As you undoubtedly know, owning property that is far away from you can be challenging. Problems tend to become magnified by distance and often lead to anxiety and frustration.

Despite current market conditions, my brokerage is selling property at a brisk pace. I believe that we can sell your {type of home} in {your market community} at an attractive price.

In fact, we would be happy to prepare a comparative market analysis to show you what you might expect to receive from a sale in the present market without obligation to you. Text or call me at my cell phone below if you would like more information about what we can do for you.

Sincerely,
{your name}
{your cell phone number}
{your website}

5. New Agent Announcement Letter

There are so many different real estate prospecting approaches, especially when you’re just starting out. Announcing your new career as a real estate agent to friends and family on Facebook is a great way to build your sphere of influence. The problem is that your post is too easy to ignore. On the other hand, a heartfelt real estate farming letter isn’t. Most people in your sphere will be impressed that you actually took the time and effort to send a letter. That alone makes it worth it.

Real estate coach Sean Moudry’s sphere letter below is an excellent example of a real estate farming letter. Hit your strengths as a new agent, and remind them they have you as an insider in the real estate industry.

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Dear {name},

If you’re anything like me, chances are you’re only reading this letter out of sheer curiosity. After all, why would someone go through the trouble of writing a letter in {year}? What could possibly be so important that Facebook, Instagram, email, texting, and LinkedIn just aren’t good enough?

Why did I go the extra mile here? Simple. Big changes lead to big opportunities. Let’s start with the changes: Last month, after {years} in {previous industry}, I proudly joined {your brokerage or team}, one of the most respected and talented {brokerages or teams} in {your farm area}.

Now for the opportunities. Here are some of the potential benefits of having a personal real estate insider in {your farm area} that you might not have thought of:

Integrity: I will answer any real estate questions you have with complete transparency and honesty.

Access: I can hunt down information on any property you’re curious about whenever you need it.

Accountability: Since we are personally connected, I have a financial and social obligation to work harder for you than any other agent in {your farm area}. But I don’t want you to hire me just because we are personally connected. I plan to earn your business.

If you have a few minutes this week, I would love to buy you a cup of coffee at {local coffee shop} to talk about the market and how I can help you achieve your real estate goals this quarter, this year, and for many years to come.

Sincerely,
{your name}
{your cell phone number}
{your website}

6. Referral Request

Referrals are a real estate agent’s honeypot and typically provide the largest pool of prospects they can tap into. When you reach out to your sphere of influence, you connect with people who already know, like and trust you, so you don’t have to spend time convincing them how awesome you are. Reach out directly and ask them if they know anyone who might need your services. It’s also a great way to remind them you’re their friendly neighborhood real estate pro.

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Hi {name},

I hope this letter finds you well. Can you believe how fast time is flying by? It feels like just yesterday we {shared memory or event, like closing on their home}.

I’ve been up to some exciting things in the real estate world, helping people find their dream homes and make wise real estate investments. It got me thinking—who do I know who might be looking to make a move or invest in property? And, of course, you came to mind.

I’m not asking you to pack up and move (unless you secretly want to), but if you happen to know anyone—friends, family, co-workers, or even your neighbor—who’s thinking about buying or selling real estate, I’d be super grateful for the heads up.

Word of mouth is powerful in this business, and I know that if you recommend someone, they must be amazing. If there’s anyone you think could benefit from my real estate prowess, just drop me a line. A simple “Hey, my friend might be interested—I’ll connect you guys!” would be pure gold.

And, of course, if you ever want to chat about real estate, life, or anything in between, my door (or phone) is always open. Catching up would be fantastic. I’ll buy the coffee!

Thanks for being awesome, {friend’s name}. Looking forward to hearing from you soon!

Warm regards,

{your name}
{your cell number}
{your website}

7. Local Business Prospecting Letter

Entrepreneurs and businesses can become great allies in your community. Show entrepreneurs that you’re a valuable asset by aligning your services with their business objectives. Engage with genuine curiosity about their businesses and a willingness to provide meaningful support. Focus on building long-term symbiotic relationships rather than seeking transactional opportunities.

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Hey {business owner’s name},

I just wanted to let you know that my team and I are thoroughly impressed with how your company has grown and become such an essential fixture in {your community}. Building a brand that people actually care about isn’t easy, and {your farm area} wouldn’t be as fun without {their business name}.

That’s why I’m reaching out today. My brand has been working on creating engaging experiences for prospective homeowners at open houses. I am averaging {approximate number of attendees} people per open house.

All of them are interested in buying a home in {your farm}, and a warm welcome with your {their product or service} would be an excellent way to introduce them to the community. Adding your services would be an excellent way to welcome our open house guests and allow you to show off your {product they sell}.

What day this week works for a quick call—or better yet, a meeting over coffee at {local coffee house}?

Best regards,
{your name}
{your title}
{your cell phone number}
{your social media and website links}

8. Divorce Prospecting Letter

Since transactions after a divorce are often stressful, they may not be the best choice for newer agents. The sellers in divorce transactions will register high on the emotional scale and will take a lot of patience and grace to complete. The truth is they need someone to get them through the process, but the key players in this situation will require a delicate, empathetic, diplomatic approach. If you’re an experienced agent ready for the challenge, here is a letter you can use to get divorce leads.

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Dear {name},

Buying or selling a home in {your local market} is hard. Add in the stress and confusion of a divorce, and it becomes 10 times harder. Hire a real estate agent who has never worked with clients who are getting divorced before, and it becomes 20 times harder. The good news is that it doesn’t have to be.

Throughout my {#} years working as an agent in {your farm area}, I have helped many clients smoothly navigate the tricky process of buying and selling homes after a divorce. Many of them have said that after their families, friends, and attorneys, they valued my help most of all. I’ve included {#} testimonials from former clients at the end of this letter.

My {#} years of experience can help de-stress buying or selling after a divorce. Here are a few things I’ve learned over the years to help close real estate transactions after a divorce with as little stress as possible:

• Experience matters: New agents are often so hungry to close a deal that they fail to guide you through the process smoothly. They usually end up adding stress when they should be helping to reduce it. With {#} years in real estate, I have the experience you need.
• Integrity matters: Since you likely need to buy or sell quickly, many agents will rush you through the process—again, adding stress when they should be helping to reduce it.
• Skills and empathy matter: While many agents just offer empathy, I offer something far more valuable: the marketing, sales, and negotiation skills to de-stress your transaction as much as humanly possible.

If you would like to talk over your options for buying and selling real estate or just need some quick advice, you can text me 24/7 at {your cell phone number}.

Sincerely,
{your name and title}
{your cell phone number}
{your website}
{testimonials from former divorce clients}

9. Probate Prospecting Letter

Like divorce transactions, probate listings come with so much stress and red tape that we generally don’t recommend them for new agents. While it’s true that probate listings tend to sell quickly, dealing with grieving families and lawyers takes patience and a few years of experience. If you’ve done your homework and feel ready to take on the challenge, here is a letter offering empathy and showing off your agent skills.

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Dear Mr./Mrs./Ms. {last name},

I am writing to you to offer my condolences for your recent loss. I did not know {decedent’s name} personally, but having been through this myself, I know how surreal and stressful it can be to navigate the labyrinth of lawyers, paperwork, and red tape accompanying the grieving process.

I know it’s a small consolation, but I would like to help you alleviate some or all of that stress so you can focus on remembering {decedent’s name}. I have been an active Realtor in {your farm area} for {# } years. As you can see from the testimonials attached to this letter, I have extensive experience selling homes quickly, and without the stress of hard-sell negotiating with deal-hungry investors or endless open houses that most Realtors use to find clients for themselves rather than to sell your home.

My promise to you is that I will never waste your time, and will only act in your best interests—always. If you would like to talk about next steps, please don’t hesitate to send me a text or call me on my cell below.

Sincerely,
{your name and title}
{your cell phone number}
{your website}
{testimonials from former probate clients}

10. Preforeclosure Prospecting Letter

Preforeclosure letters are not easy to write. But in a challenging situation, your letter and services just might help someone out of a tricky financial crisis when they most need it. The key to converting these leads is empathizing with their situation and remaining optimistic and realistic. Here is a sample letter you can use:

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Dear {first name},

I know you’re probably tired of getting letters in the mail about your home, but I am writing to offer you something most are not: hope. I won’t insult you and pretend this situation is easy, or that I have the perfect solution to save your home. Instead, I am offering two simple things: empathy and options.

Empathy: I know this might not sound sincere from someone you don’t know yet, but I have helped many people in your exact situation get through this process with the least amount of stress possible. I will be your advocate, both legally and as a person with sensitivity and experience.

Options: There are many ways to get through this process quickly and with the least amount of pain. A short sale—which will allow you to avoid foreclosure and rebuild your credit faster—is an option that many of my former clients chose as the best solution. I have extensive experience with the short-sale process and can be a staunch advocate for your best interests. But I’m happy to walk you through other choices if you’re interested.

If you have five minutes and an open mind, please call or text me at my cell number below to chat. I know it might not seem like it now, but this too shall pass. Hopefully, I can make it easier for you.

Sincerely,
{your name and title}
{your cell phone number}
{your website}

11. Open House Follow-up Prospecting Letter

Obviously, you want to circle prospect before an open house. But if you want to make a more personal connection with your open house guests, a quick letter—or better yet, a handwritten card—will have an excellent return on investment. Just remember to keep it light, short, and friendly. Here is an example of a real estate letter you can use for inspiration:

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Dear {first name},

I just wanted to send you a quick note to personally thank you for coming to my open house at {open house address}. It is always a pleasure to meet new people in {your farm area}. I am passionate about serving {your farm area} and I genuinely believe that even small connections at events like my open house build stronger communities. Chocolate chip cookies certainly help!

If you ever need advice about this crazy real estate market or just want to grab a coffee sometime, please don’t hesitate to call or text me at my cell number below.

Best wishes,
{your name and title}
{your cell phone number}
{your website}

Prospecting Letter Templates

Like what you saw in this article? Download our PDF of 24 letter templates, including the 11 I share in this article, and get ready to boost your lead gen.

7 Tips to Write Real Estate Prospecting Letters

As you can tell from the wide variety of prospecting letter samples above, there are as many ways to write a prospecting letter as there are agents in your area. Drawing from my years of experience in copywriting, I spent years warming up leads and reaching out to prospects with real estate letters. To help you craft your unique prospecting letter templates, I’ve compiled this list of best practices designed to improve your response rate.

Copywriting is all about being persuasive and encouraging your readers to take action. The right words can make the difference between a letter that generates leads and one that ends up in the trash. Keep these key points in mind when crafting your prospecting letters:

Tip 1. Make it personal

Personalize your letter. Use the recipient’s name and adopt a friendly tone. Make your greeting feel warm, like you’re writing a letter to a friend.

Example: Hi, John!

Tip 2. Grab attention

Try using an attention-grabbing lede in your opening paragraph. The goal is to draw your readers in quickly before they toss your letter out with the recycling. When you use a strong hook to get your reader’s attention early in your writing, you’re more likely to draw them into your story and keep them interested.

Tip 3. Make a connection

Once your reader is hooked and interested in what you have to say, it’s time to make a meaningful connection. You do that by pointing out a challenge your reader is most likely facing and empathizing with their situation. Let them know you understand where they are and how they feel.

Example: I understand how challenging the current market is and how it must be weighing on your decision.

Tip 4. Give your unique value proposition

Now that you’ve made a meaningful connection with your prospect, it’s time to set yourself apart from your competitors. Share what you do that makes you a better choice than any other agent. What do you provide to your clients that other agents don’t? 

Example: When you work with me, you’ll get an empathetic ear, a caring touch, my years of probate expertise, and the professionalism to see your transaction through smoothly.

Tip 5. Provide the solution

You’ve introduced yourself, made a meaningful connection, showed empathy for their current situation, and shared what sets you apart from the competition. Now, it’s time to present the solution to the prospect’s problem. In case you’re wondering what the solution is, it’s hiring you. 

Example: Let me simplify your home sale, ensuring you get the highest price for your home in the least amount of time.

Tip 6. Include a call to action

Now that you’ve convinced them that you are the solution to their real estate needs, tell them what you want them to do next. This doesn’t have to be sleazy or pushy. Make it simple. Just give them some direction on how to get in touch with you so they can hire you.

Example: Send me a text or call me at the number below to get things started.

7. Finish like a champ

Be sure to thank them for reading your letter and considering you for their real estate needs. It’s courteous, and you want to end on a positive note. Also, don’t forget to include all of your contact information under your signature. You might want to include your website (especially if they can find testimonials there) if they want to learn more about you.

Example: Thank you for taking the time to read this and for allowing me to present my value. I hope you’ll consider working with me to get your home sold.

FAQs

What are real estate prospecting letters?

Do real estate prospecting letters work?

Why are real estate prospecting letters effective?

Over to You

Have a unique real estate prospecting letter that converts well for you? Let us know about it in the comment section.

The post The 11 Best Real Estate Prospecting Letter Templates appeared first on The Close.

So grab a coffee, turn off your notifications, and dig into our 23 best real estate marketing ideas for 2024.

Branding & Engagement Marketing Ideas

One of the most important steps in establishing authority In your market area is creating your brand story. Your brand should reflect who you are authentically to give your target audience away and make an emotional connection to you.

1. Create Your Brand Story

Start your real estate journey by creating a compelling personal brand story that resonates with your target audience. A solid personal brand does something that a website or glossy headshot never will—it helps you build a unique selling proposition that separates you from your competitors. That is more important than ever in 2024 because every agent in your farm area can access the same marketing tools—including gorg templates, artificial intelligence (AI), and intuitive nurturing systems.

The way to create a brand that elevates you is to first focus on your clients’ needs. Spend time uncovering what you bring to the table for them that no one else does. Start by creating a mission, vision, and values statement to guide your marketing strategy. 

2. Focus on Values

Your marketing needs to reflect your values, aligning with your lead’s values. So think about why you got into real estate (besides making gobs of money). Maybe you want to help people create wealth or feel a connection with a specific group of people. As a military spouse turned real estate agent, I felt compelled to work with military families to help them through their permanent change of station (PCS) transitions because I know what that feels like. It’s essential to identify your tribe and figure out how to best connect with them.

Now that you’ve figured out your unique value proposition, merge it with your unique personality. One key thing to remember is don’t try to be something you’re not. Be honest and authentic. You are not a perfect fit for everyone, so don’t try to be. Your vibe attracts your tribe. The people who resonate with you will be drawn to you, like bees to spring flowers.

3. Create a Compelling Slogan

You should clearly know what you have to offer once you’ve created your mission, vision, and values and established your unique brand. The next key element of your marketing identity is a slogan—a short, memorable phrase that summarizes your value proposition. Think of it as a one-sentence elevator pitch.

Summing up your value prop in one short sentence isn’t easy, but the benefits for your brand and marketing materials can be enormous. A compelling slogan in your marketing quickly makes a personal connection with your audience.

The best slogans are short, meaningful, and inspiring. I like to use the word “sticky.” If you don’t already have one or think yours needs work, check out our list of the 107 best real estate slogans for inspo. If you’re still not inspired, try using the free real estate slogan generator embedded in the strategy guide.

4. Generate Referrals From Local Businesses 

Experienced agents know that local business owners can be a sweet referral source. Who else is as plugged into your community as the local salon owner, restaurateur, or florist? They know when people are getting married, divorced, or making other life changes that might lead to a transaction. And people trust them. So, if you want to generate motivated referrals, you can’t go wrong building these relationships. 

You’re probably already working with several businesses right now (photographers, movers, staging companies, home inspectors, insurance companies, etc.) that know you well. You might consider hosting an event together. Try some of these ideas:

• Host a workshop with a qualified home inspector to educate potential military homebuyers about the VA inspection process.
• Invite a lender to a first-time homebuyers event to help boost the prospecting potential. They can help answer questions about how to get started. I worked with my favorite lender on multiple workshops, including real estate investing strategies, first-time homebuyers, and military VA loans. 

By the way, these work equally well as in-person events or online webinars. Hosting an informational event around a specific real estate topic is easy. You just have to market it well to get a good turnout. Use Facebook Events as well as print marketing to get the word out.

Looking for a free referral network to boost your lead gen efforts? Sold.com delivers high-quality buyer and seller leads that convert easily. And you don’t pay for any leads until they close!

Real Estate Marketing Ideas for Social Media

There’s no denying that you must have an online presence for people to build trust. Use some of these creative real estate marketing strategies to help save time, stress, and frustration.

5. Use Templates to Scale Facebook & Instagram

If you want to scale your social media accounts to generate leads, you need to increase the number of times you post per week or even daily. Coffee & Contracts suggests posting daily, but only if you share high-quality content. While that might sound like a lot, it’s what the Instagram (IG) algorithm rewards. So, to build your social media accounts to market your brand, you must start posting more.

One of the best ways to tackle this real estate marketing idea is to use templates from marketing companies like Coffee & Contracts, LabCoat Agents Marketing Center, and Agent Crate. Unlike Canva templates, these templates are real estate-specific and created by real estate professionals. 

These companies create beautifully designed and prewritten posts providing first-time buyer education, market updates, home maintenance tips, and staging advice. They even include templates for Stories and Reels.

Here is a quick rundown of my take on the best social media template providers. You can go deeper with our deep-dive reviews to get more info.

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Template Platform	Best For	The Close Score	Deep-dive Review
Coffee & Contracts	Agents focused on increasing engagement on Instagram	4.7	Read full review
LabCoat Agents Marketing Center	Teams and brokerages	4.6	Read full review
Agent Crate	Agents on a budget who want automated social media posting	4.6	Read full review

6. Adopt Social Media Strategies From Top Influencers

If you want your social media accounts to help you generate leads and market your brand, learn from the best and copy what they’re doing, like Taya DiCarlo does on her Instagram. Tony Robbins stated it best: “If you want to be successful, find someone who has achieved the results you want and copy what they do, and you’ll achieve the same results.” Just make sure to put your personality and spin on their strategies. Copying their content verbatim is unethical and might turn off your followers if they follow the same influencers as you.

Start following a few real estate influencers you resonate with and see which topics get the most views and engagement for their Reels, Stories, and posts. Create your versions of the same type of content and add them to your marketing calendar. The key, though, is consistency. Once you start your social media marketing, you must stay with it for the algorithm to reward your efforts.

Here are five excellent real estate influencers to follow:

For more social media tips from top influencers, check out our guide to the best social media strategy tips.

7. Create Engaging Vertical Videos

Vertical videos are videos viewed in vertical mode on a phone or PC. The skyrocketing success of vertical video platforms like TikTok over the last few years is a crucial trend you must pay attention to. Instagram, Facebook, and even YouTube have all taken note and are now pushing quick-hit vertical videos in a major way. So, if you want a chance of getting your content in front of your followers on any platform in 2024, you need to learn how to make compelling vertical videos.

While there are opportunities for Realtors on TikTok, focusing your vertical video efforts on Instagram Stories and Reels will be much easier and more effective than starting a whole new account on a different social media platform. The cool thing is you don’t have to look polished in your vertical videos. Your audience wants to get to know you in real life, so you’re free just to be you.

Don’t worry—they’re easier to make than you think. Here are some tips to help you get started:

• Use your smartphone to shoot a close-up video of your face, taking up most of the screen. 
• Introduce your listing, share tips, or discuss the market—any topic you choose. You can also add your listing footage from your professional photographer. Easy-peasy! 

Once you start making vertical videos, you will quickly learn that engagement, not views, prompts Instagram to show your content to more people. While there are many ways to get engagement on Instagram, contests, polls, and Q&A stickers layered on your videos are what most influencers use to make their posts go viral. They’re especially effective in Stories.

For more inspo, check out our list of 31 real estate social media ideas. It’s chock-full of vertical video ideas you can try.

8. Outsource Your Social Media Marketing

If you’re a busy agent, spending hours each day creating content for social media is probably not the best use of your time. Hiring a virtual assistant or social media marketing company can save time and money. Or outsource to a service like Coffee & Contracts.

In 2024, savvy agents use services like Coffee & Contracts to simplify social media. Unlike some social media marketing platforms, Coffee & Contracts doesn’t just offer templates for Instagram and Facebook posts. They also provide monthly content strategies and done-for-you real estate marketing tools so you can get the benefits of social media marketing without the hassle.

Pro tip: When it comes to tools like social media automation or marketing-focused customer relationship managers, you must do your homework before diving in. Check out our article, The Best Real Estate CRM: In-depth Reviews & Pricing, to find one that fits your needs and budget.

9. Use Facebook Messenger Ads to Boost Open Rates

If you’re not getting the results you want from Facebook advertising or email marketing, Facebook Messenger ads can be an excellent addition to your marketing tool kit. Your potential customers probably get dozens of emails and see hundreds of Facebook posts per day. But they only get a handful of private Facebook messages.

According to the latest research from the National Association of Realtors (NAR), the median age of homesellers in 2022 was 60 years old, and more than 35% of Facebook Messenger users are over 45. If you’re trying to connect with your potential clients, your chances are pretty decent that you can reach them through Facebook Messenger.

Set up an Ads Manager account in Meta to get started. Once you’ve created your account, click Create to build your ad.

Here are six steps to get you started:

1. Choose the engagement objective.
2. Name your campaign and set your budget.
3. Set the engagement option to Messaging apps and select Messenger or Instagram.
4. Set your ad duration, designate your audience, and choose your ad format. 
5. Customize the greeting people see after clicking on your ad.
6. Edit your ad and hit Publish.

Marketing Ideas for More Referrals

Well-established real estate agents know that the secret to success is in getting referral business. Use some of these real estate agent marketing ideas to help generate more referrals to grow your business exponentially.

10. Build Social Proof With Video Testimonials

A few years ago, the only social proof Realtors needed was a few 5-star reviews on Zillow. And while Zillow reviews are still a crucial part of your online presence, they are not enough. With so many fake reviews on sites like Amazon, people are starting to feel skeptical of written client testimonials. They are just too easy to fake.

Video testimonials, on the other hand, naturally feel more authentic and are nearly impossible to fake. As a bonus, they can be used in your realtor marketing across Instagram, Facebook, landing pages, websites, and even YouTube. Here are a few quick best practices to help your video testimonials shine this year: 

• Keep them short: Shorter videos are more likely to be watched to the end, an important engagement signal for most social media platforms. 
• Consider shooting vertical videos: This will make them easier to share on Instagram Stories, Reels, TikTok, and YouTube Shorts.
• Send questions in advance: This will make it easier for your clients to think of responses, and they will be less nervous the day of the shoot.
• Done is better than perfect: You don’t need to make a big production out of your testimonial videos. Sometimes, candid videos shot on your phone work better.

Check out our testimonial video strategy guide for more tips and inspo for shooting testimonials.

11. Automate Your Review Collecting Process 

You leave money on the table if you don’t ask for client reviews and testimonials. However, agents get busy and may forget or feel awkward asking for a review. And once some time has passed, it’s more challenging to reconnect with past clients for the ask.

Instead of manually chasing down past clients to leave reviews on multiple websites, savvy agents automate their review-gathering process with reputation management platforms like Birdeye. These platforms have tools that reach out to your clients to ask for testimonials. This strategy reduces the friction (and awkwardness) of asking for reviews on multiple platforms, so you get more reviews on more websites with less work.

12. Engage Past Clients With Experiential Marketing

As any seasoned agent will tell you, five minutes of in-person engagement is worth hours of engagement online. That’s why many top-producing agents offer their former clients exclusive offline experiences like dinners, wine tastings, educational seminars, and charity drives. This strategy is called experiential marketing, one of the hottest trends in marketing right now.

At my brokerage, we host an annual holiday party where we invite our past and current clients, family, friends, and our favorite vendors. We give away tons of prizes, including a vacation package, throughout the event. Everyone loves attending and talks about it for months afterward, and we generally shake out around one to two new transactions per agent after each event. That’s a pretty impressive number for simply hosting a party.

Even more, one study showed that a whopping 74% of consumers said they were more likely to purchase after attending a brand’s event or experience. Learn how to pull it off in our experiential marketing deep-dive guide.

13. Give Memorable Closing Gifts

While closing gifts are an excellent way to boost referrals, most Realtors focus too much on promoting themselves instead of learning what clients actually want. Savvy agents get to know their clients during the process and choose gifts that match what their clients really want or need. If you give them a gift they will actually use instead of that cutting board with your brokerage logo,  you’ll have a much greater chance of staying top of mind.

I love to give my clients things they can use. I’ve been known to gift baskets of goodies, including any combination of the following:

• Pasta and sauce with a pasta spoon 
• A bottle of champagne with flutes 
• Kitchen towels
• An Amazon Echo Dot 
• Assorted cooking tools 
• Cutting boards 
• Popcorn or candy
• DVDs
• A small set of tools
• Pancake mix
• Laundry basket with towels
• Decor and towels for a half-bathroom

I think about how difficult it is to move into a house while everything is still in boxes. I want my clients’ first night or two in their new home to be fun and easy. If I can think of things that help facilitate that, I’ll throw it in a gift basket and give it to them after they close. 

If you need more inspo for fun closing gifts, check out our buyer’s guide with 32 examples of gifts that stand out and keep you top of mind.

Real Estate Marketing Ideas for Listings

If you can’t list, you can’t last. At least, that’s what I was taught. Use some of these realty marketing ideas to score more listings in your real estate business.

14. Improve Curb Appeal on a Shoestring Budget

Many listing agents I know ignore curb appeal. But you owe it to your sellers to learn how to improve it—even if you only have a tiny budget to work with. Curb appeal is essential for attracting prospective buyers. It’s the first and last thing they see when driving to the home. Great curb appeal also attracts those who drive by. You never know when Aunt Jane lives a block away and is looking for neighborhood homes for her nephew and his fam.

Here are some simple low- or no-cost curb appeal fixes to try with your next listing.

• Create an inviting seating area on the porch
• Perk up drab brown grass with lawn paint
• Replace the mailbox and house numbers
• Decorate the entrance with potted plants and flowers
• Upgrade porch lighting
• Tidy up hedges and replace dead or scraggly ones
• Add fresh mulch to the flowerbeds
• Powerwash the exterior of the home, including the drive and sidewalks

For more ideas, check out our curb appeal strategy guide.

15. Leverage AI to Write Better Listing Descriptions

The real estate industry may be shifting, but 2024 could be the easiest year to market your listings ever. Artificial intelligence (AI) apps like ChatGPT are finally starting to deliver on their promises and could become a goldmine for savvy Realtors. You just need to find the right picks and shovels.

My only caveat is that these tools are much better at improving existing copy or helping you brainstorm and write outlines rather than writing from scratch. I like to get ideas from ChatGPT first and then brainstorm how to improve my copy after I write. I also use Grammarly while I write to avoid simple syntax errors or misspelled words. Think of AI apps as the editors you never had. Here are four AI tools you can use to write better real estate marketing copy this year:

Of course, you need to know the basics of compelling listing descriptions to get the most from these tools. Check out our guide full of examples of creative listing descriptions to learn more.

16. Create a Detailed Listing Marketing Plan

“Those who list, last” is a well-worn real estate cliche, but for good reason, because most long-term agents regularly list properties rather than exclusively represent buyers. Whether you’re a seasoned listing agent or still working on getting your first seller client, a detailed marketing plan is your key to success.

Your marketing plan is one of the most powerful tools you have to land listings. Marketing skills are probably the main reason most homeowners hire an agent. So before you pitch your next homeowner, ensure you have a comprehensive marketing plan to show them during your listing presentation. 

Here are some essential features of an effective marketing plan:

• Create a listing presentation and prepare, prepare, prepare
• As part of your presentation, have a strategy for overcoming common objections
• Identify unique selling features of your new listing
• Research the area to create a thorough and accurate comparative market analysis (CMA)
• Make sure the home is prepared for showings and photography
• Hire a professional for visual assets, including high-resolution pictures, video walk-throughs, aerial footage, and a 3D tour
• Use highly descriptive words in your listing description
• Reach out to your sphere of influence to announce your listing
• Post on social media and place ads on Facebook and Google to get the word out  

17. Virtually Stage Listings With Different Themes 

If you have an empty listing to sell, spending a few bucks to have it virtually staged with a few different options is a great way to increase interest and show buyers what it might look like in different contexts.

For example, a spare bedroom might look great virtually staged as a kid’s room with bunk beds or as a home office. Whether you’re showing a listing to a young family or someone who works from home, you’ll have a picture ready to help either buyer imagine how the home could meet their needs. Check out our virtual staging software buyer’s guide to find the best fit for you.

18. Leverage Virtual Reality Home Tours

The latest virtual reality technology allows potential buyers to immerse themselves in a property. So many tools are available today to create interactive virtual tours where potential buyers feel they’re walking through your listings. This is essential since 74% of buyer’s agents see having video tours and 42% see virtual home tours as some of the most important features for selling a home to their buyer-clients.

A unique way to capture prospective buyers is to start with a 3D video and virtual reality headset. Some agents gift headsets to buyer clients who don’t live locally after signing the buyer’s agreement. The buyers can use the headsets to have an immersive virtual experience, whether it’s of a listing on Zillow or listings you send directly from your MLS. The headsets also work with 3D walk-through video, like Matterport.

Imagine you have homebuyer clients overseas looking in your area, and you’re the agent who gives away virtual reality headsets. If you share this strategy in your marketing, you can potentially corner the buyer’s market outside your local area. It makes you stand out as unique and willing to give your prospective clients an excellent experience. Oh, and did I mention you can buy virtual reality headsets on Amazon for around $25 a pair? As an agent who specializes in military moves, I use this with my clients and find this tool essential.

19. Get Real Results From Freelance Designers

Unless you want your graphics to look like every other Realtor’s, taking the time to learn how to hire freelance designers—and, more importantly, get the best results—is becoming an essential marketing skill for agents.

Here are four of my best tips for getting the most out of your consultation with design professionals:

1. Prepare and share your mission, vision, and values statement first so they know what you’re about
2. Decide on fonts, brand colors, and style before you hire a designer
3. Shop around for a designer who will meet your needs and budget
4. Don’t share feedback on revisions right away—take some time to absorb the work so you can identify the parts that need to be reworked and, more importantly, why 

If you have the patience and a dash of artistic talent, you can download do-it-yourself (DIY) design apps like Canva or Adobe Express and use templates from Envato Marketplace or Etsy to create fresh designs. But you will want to work with a design professional at some point in your career. Even if you’re just using companies like Tailor Brands that create your logo for you, you need to know what you want and how to get it.

Check out our strategy guide to learn more about the best DIY graphic design apps and working with freelance designers.

Creative Realtor Marketing Ideas

The more accessible you are online, the easier it is for your audience to connect with you and develop trust. Try implementing some of these additional realtor marketing techniques to increase your exposure.

20. Create a Buyer Presentation

While many agents work hard on listing presentations, most just wing it with buyers. But in the wake of multiple lawsuits, it’s essential for you to make the extra effort with your buyer clients to go through a proper buyer presentation. Today’s buyers are better informed and savvier and take more time to research agents than ever before. That’s why creating and practicing an informative buyer presentation is the key to getting more buyers this year and beyond.

Here are tips for delivering the perfect buyer presentation:

• Break the ice with small talk
• Tell them exactly how long the presentation will take
• Ask specific and open-ended questions to build a buyer profile
• Don’t mislead your clients—make sure they understand the commission structure and their responsibilities along with yours
• Let your buyer do most of the talking
• Role-play your presentation with another agent before doing it live

You can download our 15-minute buyer presentation template for free and learn how to create your own here.

21. Write Scripts & Pre-record Videos for Text Messaging

Some research over the past few years shows that over 80% of consumers open text messages within five minutes of receiving them. That’s 10x the number who respond to emails in that same time frame. And that stat is trending up. So, if you use this rapid-fire communications tool in your real estate agent marketing campaign, you must be ready to answer prospects’ questions faster.

Most customer relationship managers (CRMs) will let you save frequently used texts as templates, and others—such as Wise Agent or BombBomb—will let you save and send video messages. Your text messaging scripts don’t have to be Shakespeare, either. Just ensure they are clear and friendly and get straight to the point. 

For example:

copy to clipboard

“Hi {lead first name}, this is {your name} with {brokerage name}, and I am looking forward to talking with you about your home search. I will try calling as soon as possible, but in the meantime, are there any homes you want to look at? {auto-login link}.”

I saved several videos in my BombBomb account that I could easily shoot off to my leads and clients whenever situations arose. But I also had videos that go through each step of the homebuying process that I sent out in a drip for all my buyers. Some videos dealt with living in Florida (hello, strange bugs and high humidity!), and others covered the next steps. The best part is that I also built rapport through the videos while informing my clients about their new hometown.

Learn more in our related strategy guide: 11 Best Real Estate Text Message Scripts for Agents Who Don’t Like Calling Leads.

22. Launch a Real Estate Podcast

Starting a podcast is a simple way to showcase your communication skills, personality, and local area knowledge. Use your podcast to spotlight local businesses, interview other adjacent business owners (think vendors, like local lenders or photographers), or spew some of your market wizardry and real estate expertise. You won’t take long to build up your authority and establish credibility in your area.

Invite expert guests on your podcast to boost your credibility and build your audience quickly. If you’re lucky enough to have a local influencer with a decent following in your area, seek them out and offer to work with them. They can help promote you and your listings to their followers to boost visibility in your local market. Consider being a guest on their podcast, where you answer questions about your area’s current real estate market.

You can also be a guest on other relevant podcasts to cultivate listeners. If you want a little podcast inspo, check out this article on the best real estate podcasts.

23. Create Neighborhood Spotlight Videos

Make videos highlighting specific neighborhoods or communities in your market area. Showcase any unique features, amenities, schools, and local businesses that stand out to give your potential buyers a wide-lens view of what it’s like to live in the neighborhood.

Example of a neighborhood spotlight video (Source: YouTube)

These videos are easy to make, and you can do them in either long or short form. I created tons of these videos in long form and posted them to my YouTube channel. Then, I took small sections of each video and repurposed them for my social media outlets. I used hashtags and geotags so my audience could find my videos. It worked exceedingly well and kept a constant flow of leads funneling my way. 

Your Take

With the endless variety of marketing tools out there claiming to do everything except wash your dishes, staying up to date takes a lot of work. Worse, many agents chase the latest fads and waste time learning the ins and outs of the latest shiny object. If you want to make real gains in marketing this year, you need to think strategically about the marketing tools you spend time learning.

Have any killer realtor marketing ideas that you think our readers need to know about? Let us know in the comments.

The post 23 Clever Real Estate Marketing Ideas appeared first on The Close.

All real estate professionals think they’re natural-born salespeople, but the cold, hard truth is that most real estate pros struggle with copywriting. That’s why I am giving you 12 real estate copywriting rules that professional writers swear by today. As a professional writer, I can tell you from experience that these rules are a game-changer for writing persuasive copy.

As a bonus, I include a free PDF of descriptive words for selling homes.

1. Transform Features Into Benefits

The easiest way to get someone to act is to appeal to their emotional needs or desires. Studies show that most people use emotional arguments to persuade others without realizing it. 

The only problem is that your listings don’t come with ready-made emotional arguments to persuade a buyer to attend your open house. Instead, you get a list of features. Your job as a real estate copywriter is to turn those features into benefits that will appeal to your readers on an emotional level. Here’s how to do it:

Determine each feature’s benefits that appeal to emotional needs or desires. For example, let’s say one feature of your newest listing is that it’s close to major highways. Here are a few benefits that appeal to emotion:

• Spend less time commuting
• Never be late to work or school again
• Enjoy more time with family and friends
• Easy access to amenities like supermarkets, gyms, and restaurants

Now, go through your list of benefits and pick the one you think will have the biggest emotional impact on your reader. Do this for all the best features of your listing, and you’ll have a good rough outline for your listing description. You can follow this same template to help readers see the benefits of your brand, sign up for your email newsletter, or any other call to action you might feature in your real estate copywriting.

2. Start With a Pain Point, Then Offer Your Solution

If you’ve ever tried to convince a friend or loved one of something, you know that just stating your side of the story isn’t enough. If you want to persuade them, they must know that you understand their side of the story too. 

This is why most good copywriters start by acknowledging a pain point for their readers before presenting their solution. Good copy should get your readers to nod along as they read. Once you’ve built that bond, you come in with your pitch. 

For example, let’s say you’re writing copy for a landing page to get people to sign up for your email newsletter about off-market listings. Here’s how your real estate copy might sound if you focus on your solution without acknowledging your readers’ pain point first:

Subscribe to my off-market listing newsletter today to get a free list of the best listings in Springfield before they hit Zillow. If you sign up now, you’ll get…

Here’s how your copy sounds when you first acknowledge their pain point.

These days, the Springfield market is moving so fast that some homes have multiple offers before they even hit Zillow. If you want to get a jump-start on the best homes for sale, you need to act quickly. My off-market listings newsletter offers buyers access to the best Springfield listings before they hit Zillow. If you sign up now, you’ll get…

Notice the difference?

3. Use Conversational Language

The secret to getting your reader to take action is to build trust with your message. The fastest way to do that is to write in a conversational style. That means writing in first person, using “I” and “you” in your copy. 

Conversational style is like having a chat over a cup of coffee. After all, you wouldn’t use a lot of big, flowery words if you were talking to a friend about a product you love. You would simply say—in common everyday words—how much you love it, what it does for you, and that your friend should get it. 

When you use common language in a conversational style, your readers will feel more like you’re talking directly to them. And that makes them feel like they know you. People buy from and do business with those they know, like, and trust.

4. Tell a Good Story

I spent a lot of time in bookstores picking up books with eye-catching titles and covers, reading the first paragraph, and putting them back on the table. If I got through the first paragraph and were interested, I would continue reading the next paragraph. If the book’s first page kept me reading, that was a sign to buy the book. The same is true for your copy. 

See what I did there? I just told you a short story to keep you reading and engaged. When you start your copy with a story that draws in the reader, you’re more likely to keep their attention throughout the rest of your message. It doesn’t have to be a novel—just a few sentences are enough to share a quick story that gives your message additional impact.

5. Write Without Fear, Edit Without Mercy

How you start is way less important than where you finish. This is why all good copywriters write without fear and edit without mercy. Here’s how to do it: 

Take your list of benefits from my first tip, and just start writing. No judgment, no editing. Just write. Don’t worry about grammar or spelling—you can fix that later. Just focus on your goal. Once you have something down on paper, start editing. Does your copy appeal to your reader’s emotions? Does it address a pain point and offer a solution? If it doesn’t, edit until it does. 

If you lack emotional punch, grab a thesaurus and find more evocative words to get your point across. Is that garden “nice” or a “lush oasis”? If you want a cheat sheet of descriptive real estate words that appeal to emotion, check out my guide to descriptive real estate words here:

6. Write at Least 3 Versions of Your Headline or Subject Line

If you’re writing with a title, you should always write at least three versions and pick the best of the bunch. Here’s why: If your title doesn’t draw them in, they will never read the rest of your copy. 

If you have a hard time coming up with three different versions of your headline, try some of these common headline formulas:

FOMO Headlines (Fear of Missing Out)

• {#} Homes Just Sold for ${#} Over Ask in {your farm area}!
• Here Are {#} Market Indicators That Show Prices Will Explode in {your farm area}
• Owner Says to Sell Yesterday!

Ask a Scary Question Headlines

• Are We Heading for a Recession? 
• Are You Ready to Sell Before Interest Rates Rise? 
• When Will the Housing Bubble Pop in {your farm area}?

Expert Advice Headlines

• When {#} Economists Think Interest Rates are Going WAY Up
• {#} Home Stagers Reveal the Best Affordable Couches 
• A Lawyer Answers Your Most Common Real Estate Questions

Curiosity-building Headlines

• Experts Say Painting Your Home This Color Will Help It Sell Faster & for More $$$
• Zillow Research Says This Month Is the Best Time to Sell
• The {#} Home Renovations With the Best ROI

7. ‘Stick’ With One Simple Idea

This one can be tricky for a lot of agents. You must focus on one simple idea to create a message that sticks with your readers. The way to do this is to figure out who your audience is and what they are most interested in knowing. Craft a special message for them and provide one solution for their big problem. Your audience won’t remember if you try to share five ideas in one message. But focusing on one thing will stick with your readers long after they’ve finished reading your copy.

Let’s say your target audience is first-time homebuyers. When looking at the features and benefits for your listing mentioned in tip one above, which would make the biggest impact for your target audience? Would they be more likely to have young children and be interested in nearby schools? Would they like nightlife and access to gyms, restaurants, and bars? Figure out which will most likely apply to most of your readers and focus on that message. 

Zeroing in on one message instead of trying to be everything to everyone will make your promise “sticky,” which means your people will remember you over the noisy competition.

8. Turn Complex Ideas Into Analogies

We often assume our readers know more than they do. As real estate agents, we’re in the thick of a lot of complexity and use jargon when chatting with other agents in our sphere. But our prospects and clients most likely don’t hear the language of our industry very often. 

The best professionals can take a complex situation and break it down into a one-sentence metaphor. For example: Shopping for houses before you get pre-approval from your lender is like getting married before your first date. 

When you can simplify terms in a way your clients can visualize and understand, it will put you in a position to reach your audience in a way others can’t.

9. Write in Simple Language With No Fluff

If you want people to read what you have to say, your copy needs to go down like ice cream. That means simple words, short sentences, and getting to the point as quickly as possible. Anyone can make a great fact-based argument in 20 pages, but great copywriters can do it in 20 words. The best writers can do it in six.

10. Read Your Copy Out Loud

After you edit your copy, the next step is to edit for style. This is where even great writers stumble. Editing for style is hard. Like, really hard. You can spend hours editing your copy and end up with something worse than what you started. 

Luckily, there is a trick that professional copywriters use to make editing for style easier: Read your copy out loud. Is it easy to read, or did you stumble with some words or sentences? If it’s hard for you to read out loud, chances are it’s even harder for your reader to hear in their head as they read. So read your copy aloud and tweak it until it goes down like ice cream.

11. Use Testimonials as Social Proof 

Think about the last time you bought something on Amazon. Did you check the customer reviews before clicking the “Buy Now” button? We all like the reassurance that we’re making a smart decision, whether buying a new pair of shoes, selecting a good restaurant for dinner, or choosing the right real estate agent to work with. Social proof is how it’s done.

If you’ve spent time collecting testimonials and reviews from your past clients, use them in your real estate copywriting to help your future clients get over the hump. The more social proof they have, the easier it will be to decide to choose you as their agent. 

If you’re creating an email to potential sellers, include firsthand accounts of how great a job you did from your past listings. If you’re writing up a social media campaign to attract homebuyers, share some emotional testimonials from the buyers you walked through to the closing table for the first time. These personal stories from your past clients will make you look like a miracle worker, and you won’t even have to humble brag about yourself.

12. A/B Test Whenever You Can

One of the coolest things about writing copy in 2024 is that you have access to tools that would have cost tens of thousands of dollars 15 years ago. One of the most useful is testing different versions of your copy on a real live audience to see how they respond. 

In the digital marketing world, this is called A/B testing, and it’s the closest you can get to a scientific study of how good your copy is. Remember the three headlines or subject lines I had you write in tip four? Now’s your chance to see which one actually makes your reader take action. 

If you want to A/B test your emails or email subject lines, use a customer relationship manager (CRM) or email marketing platform that offers this feature, like Mailchimp or Wise Agent. If you want to A/B test copy for your landing pages, use a platform like Real Geeks or Unbounce.

Over to You

Copywriting for real estate is a skill that anyone can learn, but it takes practice. Take these tips and implement them in your marketing as a starting point. And continue to educate yourself on these techniques in copywriting for real estate. 

Have you used these tips and noticed a change in your marketing return on investment (ROI)? Did I miss any real estate copywriting strategies in this list? Let me know in the comments below.

The post 12 Real Estate Copywriting Rules Professional Writers Swear by appeared first on The Close.

There are so many great real estate door hanger ideas out there you can use to reach prospects and stay top of mind in your market. I scoured the internet to find creative real estate door hangers to inspire you. Some examples are Canva templates you can customize, and some are predesigned you simply order as is. But they’re all fabulous!

21 Fun Real Estate Door Hanger Ideas to Inspire You

1. Join Our Open House

These adorable hangers will surely stir up some visitors for your open house marketing. Hang these on all the neighbors’ doors, and you’re sure to impress. If you’ve never shopped Zazzle for your printables, you need to get over there and check them out!

2. Homeseller Checklist

I love the use of both sides of this Canva template door hanger. And a seller checklist is always appreciated. Stand out in your neighborhood with these elegant marketing powerhouses.

3. Also Your Neighbor

These adorable hangers, in the shape of a house, can be customized in your chosen color. I love how they have a spot for your business card too.

4. Just Sold Your Neighbor’s House

These elegant door hangers will announce your expertise. Just sold door hangers are a great way to let your neighbors or your farm know that you know the neighborhood.

5. I’m Not Just an Agent

What can I say? I’m a sucker for house-shaped door hangers. And these are simply adorable! They’re the perfect way to introduce yourself to your neighbors, don’t you think?

6. Just Listed

Look how adorable these door hangers are. This is a Canva template that you can customize to fit your style, but who wouldn’t love it as it is? I’m obviously a big fan of utilizing both sides of the door hanger, and this one does a great job.

7. You’re Invited

There are so many creative designers out there creating amazing things for real estate agents. Here is another beautiful Canva template that you can customize with your picture, colors, and more. Use these templates for your next open house.

8. I’m Your Neighbor

I love how the word “neighbor” stands out on this particular hanger. This one gets 5-star reviews from agents who have ordered them and used them in their neighborhoods. Adorable.

9. What Does a House Wear?

This one made me giggle, and I’m sure it will make your prospects giggle too. Who doesn’t love a good dad joke? Grab some of these to use any time you need to add a little boost to your marketing efforts.

10. Hey Neighbor

Here are some more printed door hangers to canvas your neighborhood that will make you stand out from other agents. Pair this with a magnetic business card and you’ll be present in your neighborhood for months. When they need a cup of sugar, they’ll know where to go.

11. I Have Buyers

Ready to stir up some listings? Check out these house-shaped door hangers announcing you have interested buyers! They’re simple, eye-catching, and direct. If any homeowners have thought about moving, your message will certainly stand out.

12. Should You Keep Renting?

Ready to start converting renters into buyers? These smart door hangers are perfect for hitting up an apartment complex. You could even organize a first-time homebuyer seminar and add an invitation to these two-sided customizable templates.

13. Ready to Move?

These gorgeous templates are fully customizable and simply stunning. I personally love the jewel-toned inspo from these examples. What a great way to hit your farming area and your neighborhood to drum up some business. You’ll look like the rock star agent you are.

14. The Holidays in Your Dream Home

The holiday season is upon us. Why not snag some of these adorable door hangers and canvas your neighborhood and farm areas? They’re colorful, playful, and get to the point. These will certainly plant the seeds and help you reap the harvest in the coming months.

15. What Is Your Home Worth?

The thing I love about these door hangers is the QR code. You can easily create a QR code for your listing inside Canva while customizing this template. Imagine tracking the response rate to these door hangers. After all, when you remove obstacles—like having to pick up the phone and call you—your prospects are more likely to engage with your content. 

16. Fall in Love

Ah, fall! The cooler weather, the pumpkin spice, and the natural slowdown of the real estate season make autumn the perfect time to fill your pipeline with new prospects. It’s a great time to canvas your neighborhood with a gentle reminder that a new home is always a good idea. I love how this door hanger breaks down reasons to sell your home in the fall.

17. Buying or Selling Your Home?

These smart door hangers get right to the point with style. Use these door hangers to expand your farm area to neighborhoods you don’t actually live in. Ready to grow your listings? This is a classy door hanger to do just that.

18. Home for the Holidays

What can I say? I’m in love with the adorable, house-shaped cardstock door hangers from MarketDwellings. And these holiday ones are just too precious. I love the colorful font, the fun wintery scene, and the message on the back. Order these and have them delivered to your home before December so you have plenty of time to spread the holiday cheer.

19. Fireside Chat

Can these be any cuter? There’s no place like home for the holidays, indeed. These door hangers look like Christmas cards, and your neighbors are sure to fall in love with them. You can choose your color cardstock, so if red isn’t your brand, choose ice blue, green, white, or your own favorite hue.

20. Happy Holidays

These door hangers are a simple and elegant addition to your real estate marketing. And that’s what makes them awesome. The object is to stand out and be seen in your market over and over again. The more your prospects see your face, the more likely they are to remember you when the time comes to hire a real estate agent. These Canva templates are easy to customize so you can create stunning hangers that represent your personality.

21. Dear Renting, Let’s Break Up

And lastly, check out these wonderful door hangers from MarketDwellings targeting renters. You’re sure to make a lasting impression with these fun yet educational points to help renters become buyers. Who could throw these away?  

Your Take on Real Estate Door Hanger Ideas

Door hangers are a tried-and-true method for reaching your neighbors and farm for a small investment with a high return. You can stay in front of the people you want to work with, and all it takes is a bit of sweat. 

Etsy and Canva have made creating amazing door hangers, among other marketing materials, super easy and fun. And now Canva even offers printing services so you can order directly from inside the site. So, you don’t have any excuses for not doing some canvasing with some of these amazing door hangers. 

And for new agents just starting out, canvassing neighborhoods you prefer to work in, including your own neighborhood, is the perfect way to announce to the world that you’re open for business.

The post 21 Fun Real Estate Door Hanger Ideas to Inspire You appeared first on The Close.

But I didn’t stop there. I want to spread the feeling of the season, so I created some fully customizable door hanger templates and real estate Christmas cards in Canva for you to use in your joy-filled marketing cheer.

Download Your Holiday Canva Card Templates

17 Christmas Real Estate Ideas to Get More Clients

1. Hand Out Turkeys, Hams, or Pies

These are great gifts for past clients. For every home you closed this year, purchase a ham or turkey and hand-deliver it to each client. Dress it up with a nice Christmas card, and don’t forget to schedule some extra time to chit-chat when you deliver these gifts because your people will definitely want to visit for a bit when you show up with this gift. 

With inflation pushing grocery prices through the roof, this year is an especially great time to arrive with a ham or turkey. Your gift—providing the central part of a special family dinner—will seem especially thoughtful.

If dessert is more your thing, try delivering pies to your people instead. But don’t skimp and have it delivered—the secret to this gift is the personal delivery. You’ll instantly shoot to the top of everyone’s minds through the rest of the year when they see your smiling face in their doorway.

2. Holiday Tour of Homes

Put together a small tour of homes—decorated for the season—that you can hold open for a tour. This is particularly lovely when you do it in the early evening when the Christmas lights are on. It’s practically magical. You don’t need a lot of homes for this (around three works well), and you can hold each home open just like you would for a broker tour or caravan. Start in one of the homes and have everyone go together from house to house. Or you can even have a different agent set up in each house and have folks pop by as they wish. 

Serve some hors d’oeuvres and mulled wine to keep everyone warm and happy. Print out a brochure featuring all the homes on the tour. This works well with an open house as well. But a small tour of homes from the same brokerage pushes that credibility factor through the chimney.

Promote your tour on all your social media channels easily with Agent Crate. They offer hundreds of stunning, easy-to-edit templates for everything from door hangers to social media posts to email templates.

3. Adopt a Family for Christmas

The holidays are a great time to help those less fortunate. Work with a local church organization, The Salvation Army, or a veterans’ organization to support a family in need. Ask your sphere to help contribute with toys, non-perishable foods, or funds. 

Promote your adopt-a-family drive through all channels—social media, postcards to your farm and past clients, phone calls, and even door-knocking. You can do a lot of good in your community while making connections. 

A cool way to promote your drive is to create a website or page that shares information, provides a list of what’s needed most, gives directions on how to connect with you, and includes a lead capture feature that allows you to continue reaching out to them after the event concludes. Canva now has single-use landing pages and website templates available that would work well for this.

4. Sponsor a Toy Drive

Similar to adopting a family, you can reach out to your entire community with a toy drive, asking for gift donations for families and children in need. You can work with a church organization, Toys for Tots, or local women’s shelter.

Promote your toy drive to your community through social media, postcards, door hangers, and reaching out to your sphere. You can even go on local radio, television shows, or podcasts to talk about your toy drive. Show up to your monthly chamber of commerce meeting and let everyone in your community know about it.

5. Send Recipe Postcards

I love sending out postcards to my farm sharing something useful, like a fun seasonal recipe. That way, it’s less likely to end up in the circular file. I found these postcards on Zazzle with one of my favorite recipes already printed on them. 

You’ll find preprinted recipes for desserts, side dishes, and additional cocktail options that are sure to fit your personality across a multitude of design and printing sites. Look for something that fits who you are and share it with your farm, past clients, and even some favorite vendors in your community.

If you need some additional inspo for holiday postcards, or for any time of the year, we’ve got you! Check out this article I wrote on the top 23 lead generating postcard templates to get your creative juices flowing.

6. Send Out Christmas Cards to Past Clients

It’s a shame that so few people still send out Christmas cards. But think of how much you’ll stand out when your handwritten Christmas cards arrive. Spend a little time writing a few each day instead of trying to do them all at once and it’ll feel much easier. And when your people receive your beautiful card with your handwritten thoughts inside, you’ll make a major impression that will last well into the new year.

7. Host a Holiday Party With Vendors

This one takes a little planning but it’s well worth the effort. Organize a Christmas party for a couple hundred people. You should make this a team or brokerage event where all agents invite their past and current clients, favorite vendors, sphere, and family members. 

Get sponsors for the event to cover the costs of the venue, food, cocktails, and plenty of prizes to give away. Send out invitations and include the sponsors’ logos. In this relaxed and fun atmosphere, you don’t have to be a pushy salesperson. Just have conversations with as many people as you can and enjoy the merriment.

8. Holiday Door Hangers

You can easily take a few afternoons and hit up your farm area with some festive door hangers. They act like real estate Christmas cards and remind everyone that you’re the real estate professional who knows their neighborhood. Not to mention how much you can save on postage.

And I’ve made this one easy for you. I created some stunning Christmas door hangers that you can customize in Canva. You can find them in the download above. But act fast to ensure you have enough time to print them before the season ends.

9. Throw Your Buyers a Holiday Housewarming & Invite New Neighbors

Just sold a house? Throw your buyers a housewarming party! Create some festive door hanger invitations that you can take to the neighbors. Tell them they have a new neighbor and you’re throwing a housewarming party. Be sure to include the date and time to attend. 

Make sure your buyers feel comfortable with the idea first, of course. You might need to give them a week or so to get in the house before the housewarming party so they can organize and unpack. Once you’ve nailed down the date, gather the food, drinks, and anything else you need to make this party successful.

Do some door-knocking a day or two before to reinforce the invitation. Take a few extra door hangers along with you just in case anyone says they didn’t get their invite. Let everyone in the neighborhood know about the party. 

When it’s time for the event, have everyone sign a guest list so your clients can remember all the new neighbors they met and you can follow up with each of them with a nice thank-you card. During the party, have a lot of conversations with the guests.

10. Host a Christmas Market With Local Vendors

When I lived in Germany, I always looked forward to the vendor markets around Christmas time. Every year, so many gifted, crafty people created beautiful things. There was plenty of great food, ornaments, art, and household items that made great gifts. 

You can start a tradition in your community by organizing an annual Christmas market. Invite vendors to participate in this event where they sign up (for a small fee, if necessary) to reserve a spot with a table to sell their wares. You might be able to find local vendors on Facebook Marketplace that would like to participate in a live event. 

Make sure you have your own booth or table at the event. You can couple other marketing ideas, like your adopt-a-family or toy drive, and some fun giveaways at your booth. But don’t forget to have a stack of business cards to hand out to people after you have all those conversations at your event.

11. Host a Charity Fundraising Event

Here’s another idea you can use at a vendor event like the Christmas market—sell baked goods as a fundraiser for a charity. Have your agents bake some muffins, cookies, cake, candies, or anything festive. Get some gorgeous packaging to make these baked goods look extra beautiful and print up some cards that introduce the charity you’re raising money for. 

Be sure to promote your fundraiser to all your marketing channels, letting your people know the cause or charity you’re raising money for. Pairing this event with a vendor market or even your holiday tour of homes will give you a talking point to start a conversation with just about anyone.

12. Host a Christmas Meal for Charity

This could be a really fun way to make a positive impact on your community. You can do this by working with a local restaurant (for a nominal fee) or by having other people prepare dishes. The way it works is you promote a holiday feast and invite everyone in your community to join for a free holiday meal. Serve by the plate or make it buffet-style—that’s completely up to you. The food is free to everyone with a suggested donation to the charity you’re raising money for. 

It’s a lovely way to promote community, enjoy a wonderful holiday meal, make connections to people in your area, and raise money for a charity you support. You can follow up with an announcement of how much money you raised.

13. Join a Christmas Parade

If your town organizes an annual holiday parade, make sure not to miss it. You don’t have to put together a float. You can prepare some marketing materials, like your real estate Christmas cards, and hand them out while walking in the parade. It’s an easy way to get out in front of people, smile, and spread goodwill in your community.

14. Send a Slydial Christmas Voice Message

A great way to put an instant smile on anyone’s face is to leave them a Christmas voicemail message. And you can pair this marketing strategy with any of the previously mentioned methods. You can use it to promote your other marketing events. Invite people to the holiday party you’re hosting or encourage them to donate to your toy drive. Don’t forget to wish them joy this holiday season.

Slydial allows you to record one message and send it out to your entire list simultaneously. So, not only does it spread Christmas cheer, but it also saves you tons of time.

15. BombBomb Video Christmas Message

Take your Christmas wishes up a notch with a video message instead. Use a service like BombBomb to send a prerecorded video out to your entire network all at once. A video takes your holiday message to the next level, making your message personal, warm, and extra special. Be sure to let your people know about your other events in your video.

16. Cookie Exchange Party With Clients & Past Clients

Who doesn’t love a good cookie exchange party? You get to meet up with friends and walk away with tons of different cookies you didn’t have to bake yourself. Invite your friends, family, past clients, and even your vendors, and have everyone bring at least a dozen cookies. 

Each person will empty their cookies onto platters you’ll have laid out. Then, they will turn around and fill their container with an assortment of one dozen cookies chosen from all the varieties available. While everyone is clambering over the crazy cookie selection, you’ll have plenty of face time to make those connections, start conversations, and remind everyone that you’re the neighborhood real estate pro.

17. Create a Holiday Display Guide for Your Community

This is a needed guide every year. People love to see Christmas light displays but may not know how to find the best ones. Showing that you know where they all are is a subtle cue that you’re the neighborhood expert. 

You can put together a Christmas display guide and send it out to your network. Email it to your existing database. Then post it in your social media channels as a free download (don’t forget to ask for their email address so you can send it to them). You can add those people to your database and keep in touch with them throughout the year.

Your Take 

We at The Close love the holiday season and the many opportunities to connect with new people and reconnect with those we haven’t seen in a while. We all get busy throughout the year, and it’s a challenge to stay in touch with everyone. The holidays give us a chance to slow down, laugh, and enjoy this special time of the year.

I hope these Christmas real estate marketing ideas encourage and inspire you to look for ways to get out into your community, be seen, start authentic conversations, and see where they take you. Get excited for the coming year and all that awaits you. Real estate is nothing if not an adventure, and I’m excited to see what 2024 brings. 

Do you want to share a fabulous Christmas real estate marketing idea? I would love to hear your creative strategies. Add some joy to the comments below.

The post 17 Christmas Real Estate Marketing Ideas to Get More Clients (+ Templates) appeared first on The Close.

When I knew I needed to make a change, I had no idea which brokerage I would choose, when the right time would be, or where to start. And would people still want to work with me? That’s why I wrote this step-by-step checklist to take away the stress—so that you can focus on the excitement and growth ahead of you! Plus, I want you to feel confident that you can make the switch without losing clients. If I did it, so can you!

But let’s be honest: Getting out of our comfort zones isn’t easy. Still, nothing great comes easy, right? Let’s jump in make sure you’re prepared to make the transition to a new brokerage as smooth and efficient as possible. 

1. Make a Pros & Cons List

Remember, the grass isn’t always greener on the other side. If you are thinking about switching brokerages just to get more clients, then my advice would be to sit down with your team leader or broker and have an open conversation with them about your wants, needs, concerns, and goals. If you like the people you work with, and they can support you in achieving your goals, then it may not be time to make a change. 

But if there’s something that you know is absolutely not aligning, and you’d truly be a better Realtor and better serve your clients elsewhere, then I’d say it’s time to make the switch.

I’d like to challenge you to think deeply about why you want to make a switch. Do you want to go from being a solo agent to joining a team, or vice versa? Do you need more support, more advanced technology tools, more marketing opportunities, or more commission? Would you like to place yourself in a different location or niche area? Are your goals and direction not aligned with your brokerage or team anymore? I do believe that if you’re not growing together, then you’re growing apart.

If you find yourself having a lot of back and forth thoughts about your decision, I find it’s best to write it all down. Make a list of all the pros about working with your current brokerage, and then make a list of all the cons. Also, write down your goals for 2024! Do the targets set by your current brokerage align with your goals?

 You can find more insight on knowing when it’s time to make a switch in the article below.

2. Meet With Potential New Brokerages

Keep an open mind at this point. You need to start having these conversations before you decide whether you are making a switch. Connecting with other companies may make you realize you want to stay with your current brokerage.

In Person or Phone Calls?

Have as many in-person meetings as possible. This is a big decision, and in person is the best way to get to know what someone is like and how they run their business. If you can’t meet the actual broker in person, then try a Zoom meeting or phone call. Email is the least desirable option, but may be necessary at some larger companies. 

Meet the Other Realtors

Speaking with other agents in the brokerage is important. Get as much inside information and honest feedback about what it’s like to work there as you can. Ask how long they’ve worked there and about their pros and cons in terms of the brokerage. Also, meet with the team leads in the brokerage—even if you are not joining a team—as well as any other employees they may have (transaction coordinators, office managers, and coaches).

3. Meet With Your Current Brokerage

If you’ve found a new company with more pros than cons, it’s time to share your decision with your current brokerage face to face. I know this can be nerve-wracking, but take a deep breath, and feel confident about your decision. I promise they will respect you for speaking with them in person. 

Don’t Burn Bridges

When giving notice, be honest and open. Thank them for the prior opportunity to work with them. My team lead ended up telling me that I was always welcome to come back if I wasn’t happy with my decision, and so I still have a good relationship with those team members. 

While you do want to be honest about why you’re moving on, there’s no need to burn any bridges. You never know when you could come across an opportunity to work with them in the future. What if they have a home listed that your client is interested in? You’d want to be on good terms, right? 

Deals Currently Under Contract

During this time, you will also discuss details of deals you may currently have under contract or listings that haven’t sold yet. Your contract with your brokerage or team should include details on how these situations will be handled. They differ from brokerage to brokerage, but it’s best to talk them through during this discussion to make sure that everyone is on the same page. Here are some important questions to ask:

• Will my current listings stay with the brokerage, or will I take them with me? If they stay with the current brokerage, you may just be able to continue selling as normal and keep your regular split upon closing. If you were to take it with you, you may need to give a referral fee to your current brokerage. 
• What kind of referral fee will I pay my team lead or broker if a lead from their database calls me to take care of them? It may be tempting to keep this quiet, but if a client from your old database calls you, tell your old broker or team lead right away! 
• How will my sphere-of-influence contacts be handled? Be sure that your personal contacts will be exported and sent over to you in some format that will allow you to take these clients with you. Also, confirm that they will be deleted from any previous drip campaigns or brokerage marketing emails.

Again, these terms all differ from brokerage to brokerage. And you all may decide that another plan outside of those terms will work best for a particular situation. From my personal experience switching brokerages, the deal that I had under contract just stayed and closed with my old brokerage, and they mailed me the commission check as normal. Honestly, the most important part for me was that my clients didn’t feel any shift or lack of care during my transition. 

4. Make It Official

Congratulations on completing (what I think is) the hard part—now onto the paperwork! Here’s a checklist of the little things you’ll need to take care of at this stage:

5. Switching Out the Swag

You will need to give any items you may still have back to your old brokerage, and yes, this includes the lockboxes you forgot you had in the trunk of your car. Don’t forget open house signs, for sale signs, swag, postcards, etc. 

The exciting part is ordering new items! You’ll need new sign riders and swag. If your brokerage doesn’t provide lockboxes, then go ahead and purchase one to prepare for that new listing you’ll be getting soon. Again, this will vary from brokerage to brokerage. Some may provide these items, and some may not. 

6. Schedule New Headshots

There’s something about taking your new headshots that really makes it all feel real! If your brokerage doesn’t have a photographer that they already use, then I recommend asking someone who knows you and can bring out your confidence. Make sure to wear a color, style, and fit of clothing that is going to make you feel your absolute best. Or choose a color from your new brokerage brand colors. If you’re not sure what to wear, then you can hire a personal stylist to help!

7. New Email Signature & Business Cards 

Once you have your new photos, you can order new business cards! If you don’t want your photo on your cards, then you can go ahead and order them back in step five. You can also use your new headshot to set up your new email signature and social media profiles.

8. Finally, Let’s Get Social!

Now for the most fun part of your big transition. You can go ahead and make that social media announcement that you have joined a new brokerage! Of course, you can post stories throughout your entire journey, building excitement in real time and sharing behind-the-scenes footage. But below I’ll give tips on making official announcements over multiple social media platforms.

If you want to use my version as a jumping off point for writing your own, here’s a template you can copy, paste, and edit in Insta:

copy to clipboard

I am ecstatic to join {new brokerage name} and continue my growth as a Realtor!

So grateful for the people that have helped me get here and extremely thankful for the people that are providing new opportunities.

Consistent growth personally and professionally is what it’s all about! This is what allows me to provide clients with the absolute best experience possible.

I’m here and ready to help you with all things REAL ESTATE. Don’t hesitate to reach out!

The Close Recommends

If you’re not sure how to make a big splash with your announcement, check out Coffee & Contracts. They have templates for all kinds of common situations in real estate, including telling your sphere about your big move.

Check Out Coffee & Contracts

9. Set Up Your New CRM

Typically, brokerages already have a customer relationship management (CRM) platform for you to use, but if for some reason they don’t—or you want to use a different one—there are a ton of good options available out there!

As soon as you’re logged in, start building your new CRM! Import your existing list and add in as many family members, friends, business partners, or anyone else you can think of that you had put off adding in to your old CRM. This is a very important step to building your foundation at your new brokerage without losing clients or prospects. 

10. Email Announcement 

Use your excitement to get others excited about their real estate goals! Now that you’ve got your sphere in your CRM, it’s time to send out an email announcement about your big move.

I’d recommend a short introductory video, with a written-out email below it, and a link to your new website. Try to keep the video portion under one minute. Your CRM program should have a form of email blast marketing template, but if it doesn’t, then you should use a program outside of your CRM that is video-friendly!

11. Get to Know Your New Tribe

Time to get to know your new fellow Realtors, if you don’t already! Join your new brokerage text message groups, Facebook groups, team meetings, and happy hours as soon as possible. This is your new tribe, and it will make for a smoother transition for you if you feel connected!

12. More Social Media Announcements

Keep the excitement going! Create another social media post announcement and make it a fun reel or video this time. Below is a boomerang reel I posted on Instagram when I received my new brokerage sign riders. I shot it in my new office (to the song “If You Need Me, Call Me”). This could also be a video of you showing off your new business cards. Get creative!

13. Go Make It Happen, Captain

Now that you’ve completed all the steps and you’re settled into your new brokerage, it’s time to get to work! I believe that you’ll be able to help even more people in the new year than you did the last. If you make a shift the right way and for the right reasons, you’ll soon see that you didn’t lose any clients from making the switch, and you’ve actually gained even more.

14. Pop the Champagne

Oh, yeah: Don’t forget to pop the champagne and celebrate your accomplishments. Congratulations, you did it!

It’s important that you don’t underplay this moment in your mind. What you just accomplished is hard! I realize what it takes, and empathize with you on the pain points of making the change. It can feel as if you’re having to start all over again in a way. But let me remind you that you aren’t. All of your experience that has gotten you to this point will remain as your foundation.

It can also be a daunting thought to have to make the time to switch all of your marketing, complete the paperwork, and so on. But I hope this article challenged you to change your perspective and think about it as an investment of your time in order to create a larger return on investment than you are currently seeing. 

When I made the switch, I struggled with the idea of potentially losing my clients and the connections I had built. But after making the switch to a new brokerage a year ago, I have found that people actually never associated me with the brokerage I was with—they simply want to work with me because they like who I am as a person and they trust me.

I’ll leave you with two of my favorite quotes for inspiration as you start your journey ahead.

• “If it doesn’t challenge you, it won’t change you.” – Fred DeVito
• “If it’s both terrifying and amazing, then you should definitely pursue it.” – Erada

The post How to Switch Real Estate Brokerages in 2024 (+ Template & Checklist) appeared first on The Close.

Fall is typically a great time to focus on a few marketing strategies to refill your pipeline after the busy summer rush. And Halloween presents a bone-chilling opportunity to scare up clients with some creepy-crawly fun.

Worried you won’t get your scream-tastic marketing done in time? Fear not! We created some boo-tiful, fully customizable door hanger templates in Canva for you to use this season.

14 Fun Halloween Real Estate Marketing Ideas

1. Haunted Open House

One of the most ghoulish Halloween events I ever participated in was opening a listing on Halloween. We had so many people come through the home and got tons of leads. 

We hired a DJ to spin in the driveway, blasting half the neighborhood with monster-themed tunes. We also decorated the whole front yard in Halloween style with spooky lights and some scary sounds. In addition, we had bales of hay set up around so people could sit and just hang out.

We invited everyone in to tour the open house. Tons of people stopped, looked through the home, and asked questions about the listing and selling their own homes. We coupled the open house with a fall basket giveaway, which included samples from a local spa, and some coffee with accouterments from our favorite coffee shop, encouraging people to fill out one of our forms to be entered into the drawing.

Get Boo-tiful Social Templates From AgentCrate

2. Pumpkin Count or Weight Contest

You can tackle this idea in one of two ways: Stack several pumpkins (or get one giant pumpkin) and have everyone guess the weight. Or you can place a bunch of smaller pumpkins in a large container and have everyone guess how many there are. Either way, it’s fun for the community, and someone walks away with a prize.

This is a great way to make sure everyone knows where your office is. Keep the pumpkins on display in your office so people can see them when they come in. When people come in to guess, it’s a great opportunity to start up a conversation.

Most of the people who come in will be past clients, current clients, or people in your sphere. Some may be renters, if your brokerage manages rental properties. Take advantage of the fact they’re stopping in. This is your chance to offer your expertise and your services.

3. Give Out Branded Candies to Trick-or-Treaters

When the kiddos come knockin’, make sure you have plenty of candy with your name and contact information all over it. You can get candy with your info printed on it if you order early enough. But if you run out of time, you can do it the old-fashioned way—attach your business card to the wrapper. (I did this three years in a row! ) Either way gets your name in front of the parents of those trick-or-treaters.

4. Host a Trunk-or-Treat Event

How much fun are trunk-or-treat events? Everyone pulls into a big parking lot in their own car or truck and decorates the backs of their vehicles. Kids come around trick-or-treating to each person’s trunk, and the owners of the vehicles hand out candy. The kiddos love them, and they’re really a lot of fun.

You can partner with another group, like your local church or a school, and get as many people involved as possible to participate. Get all of your agents to bring their own cars and hand out branded candy or little gift bags with their business cards inside.

5. Scary Door Hangers With Candy

If you want to focus on your farm, there’s almost no easier way to make a connection than with door hangers. You can easily create some fun Halloween-themed door hangers, attach some candy to them, and tag your entire neighborhood. The best part is it won’t take long to hit several homes with your ghostly goodies.

We’ve taken some of the hard work out of this project. Grab our fully customizable Canva templates to make frightfully delightful door hangers. We created a few for you to choose from. Use one or use them all!

6. ‘Spooky’ Homebuyer Event

Homebuyer seminars are popular and always a great way to scare up new business. But at this time of the year, make it Halloween-themed to make it more memorable. You can use copy like, “Don’t get spooked,” “No need to be scared,” “Let’s find your boo-tiful home,” “Don’t let deadlines creep up on you,” and so many more. You can probably come up with your own real estate Halloween marketing copy if you give it some thought.

7. Fall Fire Pit Homebuyer Event

If you’d rather not have a spooky homebuyer event, make it a campfire instead. Invite would-be homebuyers to enjoy a fall fire pit, roast marshmallows, and make s’mores together while you alleviate your future clients’ fears around homebuying.

This idea works just as well for sellers if you tweak the content. You can host a fireside chat about investing or downsizing in a chill, marshmallow-laden conversational setting.

8. Have a Hayride in Your Farm

If you know someone with a truck and trailer, get some hay and let everyone in your area know that you’re giving free hayrides on Halloween night. You can use the door hangers from tip #5 to let everyone know you’re providing some chills and thrills for the whole family. 

Make stops at every corner during the entire trick-or-treating window (it’s typically two hours in most places), allowing people to get on or get off wherever they choose. Keep a cooler in the back filled with drinks on ice that everyone can enjoy. (These small custom labels on bottles and cans work great, and make sure to keep a bucket for trash and recyclables handy for empties.)

Your neighbors will have spirited memories of the gesture. And when they get ready to choose a bewitched and crafty Realtor, they will remember that you live in their neighborhood.

9. Costume Networking Event

I don’t know about you, but I love dressing up! Halloween is the perfect opportunity to get out your best costume, use your imagination, and try to impress your friends with your frightful dress-up game. 

Organize a networking event at a local business, like a restaurant or a bar and grill, encouraging everyone to come in their best costume. You can even partner with the business to share in the marketing efforts. At the event, have everyone vote for their favorite costume and reward the winner with a gift basket. 

Silent auctions are great for these events too. Use them to get contact information from everyone who bids on items in the auction. Get donations from people in the community to build multiple gift baskets for your guests to bid on. 

Use your imagination. There are so many different ways you can go with a networking event like this one.

10. Costume Drive for Underprivileged Families

Sadly, many kids don’t get the opportunity to dress up in fancy new costumes. So, host a costume drive! Talk to a school in your community to find out what specific needs their students have in this season and ask if you can partner with them. They will almost certainly say “yes” to a costume drive. 

Ask friends in your community to bring new or unworn costumes to your office. Offer a drawing for them to enter while they’re there. Have the drawing after Halloween and announce the winner on social media. In fact, do a live video to draw the name. 

This is great for multiple reasons. First, you’re doing something awesome for kids who can’t afford to get their own costumes. Second, you’re doing something in the community that’s positive. Whenever you do anything for your community, whether you think so or not, people take notice. The more good you put into your community, the more positive things come back to you.

11. Hire a Food Truck for Your Neighborhood on Halloween Night

If you have kiddos, you know that trick-or-treating can be utter chaos. Parents are dealing with a lot while kids run around, scaring each other, eating candy, screaming, crying, and pretty much acting like little demons. 

You can be the good witch of the evening by hiring a food truck (with or without adult beverages) and providing food and drink to anyone who wants it. Hot cocoa is usually a big hit. Make sure to hand out your information to everyone who comes to the truck for a respite. You can also put a big sign in your yard announcing your treats. (No tricks here!)

This, like the neighborhood hayride, will stick in people’s memories like a sticky, bloody abscess. When they are ready to hire a Realtor, they’ll remember where you live. Win-win.

12. Host a Costume-making Event

There’s a special kind of magic in creating a unique and original costume for Halloween. So, tap into that wicked energy and host a workshop to create costumes that really scream. You can check out the fangnificent tutorials and kits on Etsy, like the stilt spirit costume in the photo above, and have everyone make their own version of it. Or you can run to your local craft store and load up on a cryptful of different costume pieces so everyone can create their own designs.

Ask some of your favorite vendors to sponsor the event to raise funds and provide supplies. And put the event on somewhere with a lot of open space, like the local high school, a church activity center, or even the local chamber of commerce. Invite locals of all ages to join in to make eerily cool costumes either for themselves or their little demons. 

This is the kind of event that’s meant to be enjoyed by the whole family, so invite as many as you can accommodate. But make sure your name is visible. And, of course, make sure to break up the cryptic creativity from time to time to thank your vendors for sponsoring, and encourage cauldrons of sinister laughter. Maybe you can even do some giveaways during the event. Take tons of pictures and post them on social media.

13. Haunted House Tour

I love this next idea, and if you’re the type of person who likes to have the bejesus scared out of you, you’ll love it too. If your brokerage has a few vacant houses in your database of listings, why not turn them into haunted houses—with your sellers’ permission, of course—and offer a tour of them caravan-style? Brilliant, right? 

Offer these tours the week of Halloween, showcasing the houses and community features in a fun and twisted way. Invite the entire community to join in the tour. You never know how many people are in the early stages of homebuying. And this is one spooktacular way to stay top of mind with those people. 

This marketing idea might catch on so well that your neighbors come to expect it from you year after year. You’ll definitely solidify your place in your community. 

14. Ghoulish Social Media Photos & Videos

If you’re already decorating your vacant listings (or occupied ones, as long as you have permission), why not have a little ghastly fun with your photos and social media videos? Take some photos of your decorated house to add to your MLS listing. And make some fun videos too, like this one from Shawn King! Have fun with this and let your creativity drive you. Spin some spine-tingling stories for TikTok or Instagram Reels, or try creating parodies of your favorite scary movies to get curiosity piqued and make things wickedly fun.

Your Take on Real Estate Halloween Marketing

These are just a few of the many Halloween real estate marketing ideas you can use this year and beyond. But I’m sure there are many more. Halloween is so much fun to plan around. It’s a ghoulishly good time to do extra marketing that incorporates mischief and mayhem.  

I know I’m only scratching the surface. What kind of fun Halloween marketing ideas have you tried in the past, or are planning on doing this year? I would love to hear about them. Maybe I’ll update this list next year to include your ideas!

Happy Halloween!

The post 14 Spine-chilling Halloween Real Estate Marketing Ideas 👻 appeared first on The Close.

Of course, even experienced agents have a hard time choosing which marketing materials to spend their hard-earned time and money on. That’s why we used our expertise to put together this definitive guide to the eight real estate marketing materials every agent needs to build a better personal brand in 2023 and beyond. Whether you need Instagram Reels templates or business card advice, we have you covered.

1. Professional Pictures: One Headshot, One Lifestyle

One of the most important lessons that Ryan Serhant teaches in his course, Sell It Like Serhant: How to Build a Personal Brand, is that your personal brand needs to be curated and authentic. After all, people should want to work with you, not just “a real estate agent.” There are millions of agents, but only one you. This is why headshots are by far your most important marketing material.

Your headshots literally put a face to your personal brand and are the only marketing piece that can’t be copied by other agents. So take the time to make sure your headshots are both curated and authentic. Ryan recommends creating two headshots for your real estate marketing materials: one professional headshot and one lifestyle shot. 

Once you get those gorg headshots, it’s time to build marketing collateral that impresses. Hire a freelance graphic designer on Fiverr to touch up your headshot photos. You can even order those hero shots that look fab on your postcards and other collateral.

Fiverr freelancers offer all the services from logo design to listing flyers to social media post design to content creation to help you build your business from the ground up. And it’s super simple—find a designer to match your style, click the order button, fill in the project details, and pay. Your designs, on demand.

2. Professional Social Media Templates (Including Stories, Reels & TikTok Templates)

When it comes to social media marketing materials, many agents make the mistake of assuming that bringing their authentic selves to social media means they need to create everything from scratch. Nothing could be further from the truth. Those behind-the-scenes Instagram Reels and TikToks you shot at your open house don’t have to look like a Hollywood movie, but it might help if they look more polished. 

This is where professionally designed social media templates come in. Instead of trying to reinvent the wheel every time you post on Instagram, Facebook, or TikTok, you can use templates designed for real estate agents by graphic designers. The difference between professional social media templates and generic templates from Canva is night and day. 

Looking for sleek and stunning templates for your social media? Coffee & Contracts has the most gorg templates, including Instagram Reels, carousels, Broke Agent memes, and more. You’ll get access to fresh content and new options every month as a subscriber.

3. A Website That Shows Off Your Personal Brand

After headshots and social media templates, building your real estate website is the next most important piece of your marketing materials. It’s also one of the only brand assets you truly own. After all, no matter how hard you work on them, you don’t really own any of your social media profiles or even the shiny website your brokerage provided for you. 

While you might be tempted to add bells and whistles—like IDX listings, lead capture, landing pages, and a customer relationship manager (CRM)—to your website, make sure they reflect your personal brand first. For a good example of an agent website centered on personal branding, check out Carlin Wright. Notice how her lifestyle image is front and center? That’s no accident. Her website is about her, not real estate.

In Hawaii, the warm weather and outdoor lifestyle are what Kinga Mills is selling. So much of her website is focused on her personal brand—videos of surfers, lush mountains, palm trees, and the turquoise ocean feature prominently—capitalizing on the very well-established Hawaii brand.

If you want a site like Carlin’s or Kinga’s, you can hire Luxury Presence to build and host your website starting at around $180 per month, plus design fees. Get $500 off by clicking the button below.

Visit Luxury Presence

Or, if you want more control and want to level up your own skill set, check out our guide to building a website using WordPress here:

4. Business Cards That Set You Apart

Even in the age of Realtor TikTok stars, there’s something about a well-designed business card printed on quality paper stock that can’t be beat. Sure, popping up in someone’s social media feed once a week is great, but your business card might get pinned to a bulletin board, be kept in a wallet, or sit on someone’s desk for months on end. Not bad for a 50-cent piece of paper, right?

Of course, like your website, your business cards should reflect your personal brand. So make sure to use your brand colors, fonts, and headshot. As far as strategy goes—whether you’re working with a designer or creating them yourself—it can be helpful to ask yourself, Is this a business card I would keep? Why or why not? If the answer is no, head back to the drawing board.

5. Facebook Business Page

Even though your teenage niece will probably tell you Facebook is so over, you still need a business page, even if you never post on it. Why? Demographics. The average age of a Facebook user is a little over 40 years old, and a whopping 22% are over the age of 55. Sounds dull, right? Well, what if I told you that according to data from the National Association of Realtors (NAR), the typical home seller was 60 years old last year? 

With demographics like that, a Facebook Business page is not optional for serious Realtors. It’s not all about demographics, though. If you want to advertise on Facebook or Instagram, you will need a Facebook business page. So even if you also think Facebook is so over, you’re going to need to build one. 

If you don’t already have one, we have an easy step-by-step guide to building a Facebook business page (along with specialized advertising and cover photo advice) here:

6. Instagram-quality Postcards

Want to get laughed at? Tell someone under 30 that you’re sending them a real estate postcard. If they’re under 20, you might have to actually explain what a postcard is. Of course, while we have nothing against 20 year olds, they’re not exactly the right audience for your real estate marketing materials. At least, not yet.

According to the NAR’s Homebuyers and Sellers Report, the average first-time buyer in 2022 was 36 years old, while the typical repeat buyer was 59. Take it from me, people our age like getting postcards, but older people love getting postcards. My mother is in her seventies, owns several homes, and sits in her recliner every morning to go through her mail. You know where she’s not spending her mornings? TikTok!

But just because you’re using old-school marketing materials (don’t forget about brochures, flyers, and letters, too!)doesn’t mean you can’t have fun with them, no matter what your personal brand is. For example, check out the Instagram-inspired postcard from Coffee & Contracts above. It’s classy and professional, with a tiny bit of sass. 

Why use Instagram-inspired design for your postcards? Simple. Television and newspaper ads are inspired by online design trends today. 

You can design your own, use a fresh template in Canva, or work with some of the predesigned templates inside ProspectsPLUS! to amplify your marketing message. Select your target audience, upload or create your design, and let ProspectsPLUS! do the rest. They will deliver dazzling Instagram-worthy postcards directly to your audience, showcasing your marketing brilliance.

Build Instagram-worthy Postcards at ProspectsPLUS!

7. Email Newsletter

Like postcards, email newsletters are another crucial marketing material that will make your niece roll her eyes. It also happens to be one of the best ways to market to your sphere. Again: You don’t own your social media profiles, but you do own your email list. 

Email is also much easier to scale than social media, and much less expensive than pay-per-click (PPC) advertising. The return on investment for your time and effort is also better. According to statistics from Campaign Monitor, the average rate at which people open marketing emails is 21.7%. So, as long as you keep growing your list, the number of people you reach with your content will continue to grow with very little extra work. 

If you plan a content calendar for your email newsletter, you can keep your sphere engaged for years with just an hour or two of work per week. Here are a few easy real estate newsletter ideas to get you started:

If you want to really stand out in your farm area, you might consider a more robust approach. Parkbench makes it super-easy to dominate your market as the community leader. They create a hyperlocal website filled with neighborhood news, market info, events, real estate listings, and more, all with your logo and contact information to put your face in the forefront of your community. Watch your trust factor soar and leads start flowing in. They only allow one agent per area so, don’t wait! Check to see if yours is still available.

Check Your Market’s Availability With Parkbench

8. Marketing Videos

Whether you love it or hate it, video is definitely taking over the digital marketing space. From shorter vertical videos, like the ones on Instagram Reels or TikTok (above), to longer-form videos on YouTube, video will drive your business faster and more effectively than static forms of content. 

Think lifestyle or walk-through videos set to music on Reels and TikTok or educational videos on the buying or selling processes on YouTube. Putting your content in video format will boost your exposure and get you in front of more potential clients since Google and Facebook both favor video over static images or text. 

You can typically get your pro photographer to shoot some of your polished videos of listings. But you can also easily create your own lifestyle or educational videos with your smartphone.

Over to You

Do you think these are the right real estate marketing materials for every agent to build their personal brand? If not, what would you include instead? Tell us in the comments!

The post 8 Real Estate Marketing Materials to Crush Your Personal Brand appeared first on The Close.