Everyone in the real estate industry is zigging… ok, not everyone, but enough. Most real estate agents (and unrepresented sellers) think that tossing a couple ads on Craigslist and claiming the house on Zillow is an Internet Marketing Strategy. Most real estate agents are actually cutting back on their marketing efforts… money is tight, slow the spending is the mantra. Everyone is clamoring for buyers… afterall, it is a buyer’s market, and sellers are having a hard time competing… so abandon them and concentrate on buyers, they are bringing the money.
I’m going through the MLS looking for something in particular. And what do I see? I see properties in the MLS with no pictures. We are allowed a dozen. About 10% of listings have that many. Only about 20% have a virtual tour of any type. Property specific website? Almost immeasurably small percentage.
In order to sell, sellers need to have their property WELL represented and marketed.
When I started in real estate, I came in as a buyer’s agent. That still represents most of my business. At that time, agents wanted listings. Buyers were a dime a dozen, and listings were hard to come by. I saw a need for good buyer representatives. I was amazed at what I saw… and as the market reality shifted, I became more and more amazed.
When we were in a seller’s market, it was normal to see properties listed with two or three pictures (eight was the limit then). Descriptions were sparse. Online marketing was almost non-existent. Sales were easy, why spend money and time? But as the market shifted, sales weren’t so easy, and a new excuse was needed to not really market a property. Back to Money is tight, slow the spending.
I am transitioning to listing more properties. Sellers need someone that understands buyers. Being an agent for 100 years isn’t enough. I have dealt with too many “listing specialists” that have totally forgotten what sells houses, and have only managed to focus in on what sells themselves. Imagine having an agent that is supposed to be representing the best interests of the seller tell you… “It’s a numbers game. I know that only 20% of the listings will sell, so I just take more. If the seller isn’t realistic about price, that’s ok. I get business from having my sign in their yard.” And yes, that is a quote.
I can proudly say that my selling/listing percentage is 4x the market average… and climbing. I have built a portal that offers buyers a unique perspective on property, and is tailored to unique buyers. Instead of just an ad on Craigslist (which I have regularly), I am building a an internet marketing presence that works for properties with better than average garages. I am building single property websites with some killer options that are just not used in this market.
Google cool garages Atlanta or garage home Atlanta or house cool garage or 4+ car garage gwinnett. Did you notice that there were a lot of top spots held by Active Rain (for one of my blogs), LaneBailey.com (this blog), Blogspot.LaneBailey.com (my old blog, points to this blog) and GarageHomesUSA.com (my website)? I have page 1 rankings for ALL of those terms and many more. Everyday I get better in the Search Rankings for those and similar terms.
If you are selling a home in Gwinnett or the surrounding areas, I am ready to put this to work for you.
photo credit: k4cay
