Real estate agents: how often do you update your real estate blog? Odds are, the answer is not enough. Blogs are an inexpensive and extremely efficient online marketing tool for real estate agents. Your real estate blog – done well – will generate serious leads and attract a slew of sellers and buyers looking for an agent in your city. You want them to find you, not your competitor.
Blogs are also a fantastic way to showcase your knowledge of real estate, of your city, of specific neighborhoods, etc. How do you convince a reader – someone you’ve never met before – that you are trustworthy, well-informed, and the right person to buy or sell their home? That’s never easy over the Internet, but the task is made easier with a friendly and informative blog.
Here are 8 topics you should be writing about on your real estate blog:
1. Local events: What makes your city tick? Is there an annual carnival every year in the fall? Are there festivals celebrating the city’s diverse cultures? Maybe a weekend in December is dedicated to winter sports and activities. Write about them! There are dozens of highly-publicized – and often lesser-known events – taking place in your city’s neighborhoods throughout the year. Let potential clients know what a year in the city can be like. You’re not just selling a home, but a new lifestyle.
2. Answer e-mail questions: Chances are, you’re receiving several questions from buyers and sellers alike – people you’ve worked with, or hope to work with in the future – by e-mail. Share them on your blog. Post the question, and answer it online (Be sure to ask for permission first). Who knows, maybe one of your readers had a similar question in mind.
3. Decorating ideas: These are great for both buyers and sellers. If you demonstrate a shrewd eye for decoration and home-staging, sellers will be confident in your ability to sell homes quickly. Any good real estate agent knows proper decoration and staging can turn a good house into a great house, and a high asking price into an even higher one.
4. The neighborhood: How many neighborhoods are there in your city? If you operate in all of them, write about all of them! Any buyer will love to hear about that grocery store at the corner, or the shopping mall down the road, or the dog park within walking distance. Remember, you’re selling a new lifestyle. Tell potential buyers about shops, restaurants, churches, parks, and schools in the neighborhood.
5. About you: Like any good blog, aim for diversity. Potential clients looking for a real estate agent may want to know a little about the person they’re hiring. So tell them about yourself – pets, hobbies, favourite foods, etc. Maybe talk about your childhood home. And include pictures!
6. Architecture: What do homes look like in your city? A new home’s façade, its outer shell, is an important factor when buying a home. If you’re comfortable with the topic, talk about different architectural styles. Do most buildings in the downtown area have mansard roofs? Where can a future homeowner find a house with Roman columns? Guide your clients through the city’s different architectural looks.
7. City Council: Let people know about local governments. Are they very eco-friendly? Tough on crime? Are they planning to build more green spaces and bike paths? Knowing who the decision-makers are, and what kind of decisions they tend to take, is important for people looking for homes in the area.
8. Real estate stuff: Don’t forget this is a real estate blog. That means you need to dedicate some time to the nitty-gritty, especially what it means financially to purchase and sell a home. Cover topics like mortgages, credit scores, interest rates, foreclosures and first-time home buyer programs. There’s a lot of money in real estate; make sure people know what they’re getting into, and how they can get the most for their dollar.
To ensure your real estate blog doesn’t fall like a house of cards, keep content new and interesting. Make time for blogging; it should be part of the job description, and it will pay dividends. Real estate blogs are most effective when they’re continuously updated, offering new, fresh, and relevant content several times a week.
