27 Ways to Get Listings

To avoid any legal issues with these types of ads, you do need to disclose that you're a real estate agent — you can include something in small print at the bottom, like “This ad is not intended to solicit business from homes already listed with an agent. This is a paid promotion by AGENT of BROKERAGE in LOCATION.” For example, you could run an ad promoting a “Find Out Your Home’s Value for Free!” service. With that said, we've seen house value ads like this explode on Facebook over the past few years, so you need to word or design yours in such a way that it stands out. As more agents have begun to post them, their effectiveness has decreased. But creating an unbranded ad, so to speak, can be a really good idea. Granted, there are pros and cons to this approach. Pro: It's easier to track your return on investment. If you're using a unique domain name and a unique phone number for that service, you can track your specific ROI from that ad. Con: A lot of the leads generated from this system aren't necessarily going to convert right away. You’ll need to nurture and follow up with everyone over time. So if you are going to do unbranded or blind marketing, you want to be prepared to follow up over the long term. ● Branded Advertising Branded advertising involves promoting something you’ve done or something you offer with the intention of having people reach out to you for more information. This can include an ad promoting your listings or a free CMA/other service/product (including your book). These ads can be done on social media, on postcards, in magazines or newspapers, on the radio, etc. On these ads, you can include your name, photo, brokerage logo, and maybe even the cover of one of your books. Photos of recent homes you’ve listed or sold work well. Pro: The leads you generate from this type of advertising are more likely to convert in the immediate or near future. You won’t normally produce as many leads, but the leads who do respond to you are likely prepared to list with you right away. Con: If you use your standard contact info for these types of ads — name, email, phone number, etc. — it’s hard to track their success rate. ● Facebook Ads An advertising method I think a lot of people overlook is creating custom audiences on Facebook. Using this tool, you can take your past customers, your sphere of influence and your unconverted lead database and upload them into a custom audience. You can then target them with advertising, which is a great way to stay at the top of their minds.