Top 25 Real Estate Marketing Ideas

Looking for real estate marketing ideas to build your brand and attract more business? Marketing is key to success as a real estate agent, so here are our top 25 ideas to jump-start your efforts.

1. Create a real estate marketing plan
2. Sharpen your industry expertise
3. Keep an eye on the competition
4. Partner with local businesses
5. Become a local sponsor
6. Host a webinar or record a how-to video
7. Become a Zillow Premier Agent
8. Segment your real estate leads
9. Use niche marketing to target leads
10. Maximize your open house efforts
11. Create Zillow 3D Home™ tours
12. Use drone photography and video
13. Hire a professional real estate photographer
14. Build a lead-generating website
15. Create informative content
16. Start an email marketing campaign
17. Establish a social media presence
18. Implement a paid advertising campaign
19. Invest in real estate mailers
20. Purchase professional business cards
21. Build a system for referrals
22. Show appreciation for your clients
23. Ask for reviews from past clients
24. Make yourself easy to contact
25. Keep a trusted list of service providers on hand

Check off the ones you’ve completed so far — and consider the ones you haven’t.

1. Create a real estate marketing plan

Real estate is a competitive business, and having a sound marketing plan is essential. Make sure to outline your basic goals and strategies to grow your business, and stay on top of it by regularly revisiting and updating your plan. A real estate marketing plan will help you:

• Discover the right tools and messages to effectively reach your audience.
• Establish better ways to serve your clients.
• Guide your business to where you want it.
• Measure the performance of your marketing strategy.
• Recognize when and where you need to make a course correction.

2. Sharpen your industry expertise

Wondering how to market yourself in real estate? Easy — become the local expert and share your industry knowledge with people in your area. Catch up on industry blogs, magazines and news sites to stay current on the issues and trends that affect your business. You can share interesting news and reports on social media to engage your audience, and reconnect with your real estate mentor to get feedback and a fresh perspective on your work (you have a real estate mentor, right?). 

Being highly knowledgeable is important — according to the Zillow Group Consumer Housing Trends Report 2018, 76% of buyers conduct research to size up an agent’s expertise.

3. Keep an eye on the competition

What are other real estate agents doing in your target market? How do their websites look? Are they active on social media? Keep an eye on your competition, see where they have an edge and identify if there are areas where you need to beef up your real estate marketing efforts.

4. Partner with local businesses

This is more than simply dropping off some business cards. See if any local businesses want to partner with you. See if they’ll give you an exclusive coupon or discount code that you can pass on to potential clients — creating a win-win for you and the business. Many coupons can be used in both print and digital real estate marketing. You could also negotiate to buy a number of gifts cards at a slight discount, which you can use as gifts to nurture your clients.

5. Become a local sponsor

A great way to establish your presence and let people know you care about the community is to sponsor a youth sports team or a community event like a food drive or school fundraiser. You may even be able to partner with a lender to get help with funding and reduce expenses. Gaining credibility and recognition in your area is one of the most effective marketing strategies for real estate agents.

6. Host a webinar or record a how-to video

Videos are becoming more and more popular, and as technology evolves, so should you. Whether you use YouTube, Facebook Live or Instagram Stories, you can easily conduct a webinar or create an educational video by inviting speakers from your pool of lending, home improvement and interior decorating experts to provide tips and tricks for home buyers, sellers and owners.

Bret Calltharp, Zillow’s industry outreach director, sees videos as a top tactic in real estate agent marketing. “Every step of the home-buying and selling processes are ripe for video content. Hire a video guy for a day, and cover one or two questions your clients might have.”

For example, you may want to create a video on the most valuable home improvements for sellers. Team up with a home improvement expert who can give advice on simple projects like testing paint colors, repairing small holes and eliminating stains or odors.

7. Become a Zillow Premier Agent

Gain access to real estate leads, powerful technology and exclusive client data. As a Zillow Premier Agent you can: 

• Appear on the largest online real estate network and connect with buyers who are ready to move.
• Predict your clients’ needs by seeing the homes they’re viewing, saving and searching for on Zillow and Trulia.
• Easily interact with clients and manage your pipeline on the Zillow Premier Agent app.

8. Segment your real estate leads

Make sure your contact list database has a space for noting how you found each lead so you know which lead generation methods are the most effective. And check out the Conversion Playbook for tips on converting your connections.

9. Use niche marketing to target leads

Review your past sales to identify where you’ve succeeded the most, and focus your efforts there. Is there a property type you’re best at selling? Does one demographic resonate with you more than another? Are there certain neighborhoods you should focus on?

10. Maximize your open house efforts

A successful real estate marketer doesn’t just attract buyers to open houses — they also attract sellers and neighbors who are interested in comparable homes in the area.

Attract more prospective clients by using these strategies when hosting an open house:

Leverage social media: Market your open house on Zillow, and share it on social media with the time, date and location in the caption. Another way to increase visibility is to boost your posts with Facebook ads.

Host a private event for neighbors: A special open house just for the neighborhood can help spread the word for your public open house. Walk the neighborhood and invite residents in person. These extra efforts will keep you top of mind if any of them decide to sell their house.

11. Create Zillow 3D Home™ tours

Watching a recorded video of a home is important to 45% of Gen Z buyers and 41% of millennial buyers — and 3D Home™ tours offer unique insight into a home’s layout and best features. The free Zillow 3D Home™ app makes it easy to create immersive tour experiences, add them to your listings, then share on social media.

12. Use drone photography and video

Another unique real estate marketing idea is to include drone photography and video in your property listings. Drones allow you to:

• Capture aerial views of the property and land.
• Show the property’s proximity to neighborhood amenities in the surrounding area.
• Highlight the home’s best features.
• Provide buyers with a visual that simulates walking through the home.

The cost of owning a drone has become more affordable, with many priced under $1,000, but you may be required to take training and obtain certifications. It’s easy to hire a pro to take your photos and videos for you.

13. Hire a professional real estate photographer

Listing photos are typically a buyer’s first impression of a home, which is why it’s important to give them an accurate representation of the home’s best features. Build relationships with Zillow Certified Photographers, and consider hiring a pro to ensure your property listings stand out. It’s an easy tactic to use when differentiating yourself from the competition — an important part of successful marketing for real estate agents.

14. Build a lead-generating website

One of the most productive real estate digital marketing strategies is to create a lead-generating website that establishes you as a resource for prospective buyers in the area. Make sure your website is mobile friendly, easy to navigate and search engine optimized to help drive traffic. You can purchase an IDX (Internet Data Exchange) website, which taps into MLS listings and displays them on your website. This way, buyers and sellers can view homes and contact you directly.

15. Create informative content

The best real estate marketing materials all have one thing in common — informative content. Whether you’re writing a blog post, a home tour highlight, sharing something on social media or putting content on your website, make sure it’s informative and valuable to your audience. We found that 79% of buyers find it highly important that an agent is knowledgeable about local market or neighborhood-specific conditions. Good content answers homeowner questions, provides valuable insight into the local market and is easily shared so your audience can pass it along to people who are looking to buy or sell a home. 

16. Start an email marketing campaign

Real estate drip campaigns are an effective way to nurture your leads and clients. You can send out market updates, service reminders and answers to common questions that people have at each stage of the buying and selling process. A savvy agent will even package their content into a monthly newsletter and include images of homes that link to their listings.

17. Establish a social media presence

Platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Pinterest can be valuable real estate agent marketing tools if you take advantage of each platform’s strengths and maintain a consistent presence. It’s a good idea to:

• Create social accounts specifically for your business.
• Share short videos of your listings, team, happy clients, neighborhood events and anything else that will engage your audience.
• Ask questions that engage your followers.
• Make sure your branding is consistent across platforms.

18. Run a paid advertising campaign

A paid real estate advertising campaign is a good way to generate leads. Search engine marketing, which increases your website’s visibility on search engines, is a wise place to invest — as is social media advertising on platforms like Facebook and Instagram. Whatever route you choose, the key to success is tracking your costs and leads to determine what works and what needs fine-tuning.

19. Invest in real estate mailers

Did you know that 31% of sellers and 21% of buyers still use direct mail to search for or promote their homes? Consider using real estate marketing materials like flyers, newsletters and postcards that can be sent through direct mail to establish yourself as a trusted source of knowledge about the local real estate market.

Real estate marketing flyers also are a great way to advertise open houses. You can customize a real estate flyer template to showcase the best features of a property.

Real estate newsletters provide homeowners with local market updates and community information, as well as answers to real estate questions and other helpful information. Download and customize a real estate newsletter template to match your brand and content strategy.

Real estate postcards are economical to produce and send and can provide homeowners with neighborhood news. Customize a template and make sure to add something of value, like a calendar of local events, that will prompt homeowners to keep it around.

20. Purchase professional business cards

While real estate agent business cards aren’t as important as they once were, it’s still a good idea to have some on hand in case a client wants to pass on your information. “You should also have a digital business card to share,” says Bret. “They reinforce your brand, tell people who you are and provide ways to get in touch.”

Keep your card simple enough that it’s easy to take in the information it contains but elegant enough to stand out.

Always include your:

• Name
• Website
• Email
• Phone number

If you do a lot of sharing on social media, consider including your handles as well.

21. Build a system for referrals

Another excellent real estate marketing idea is to establish a system for referrals. Real estate referrals often come from people you interact with daily — in fact, 27% of buyers and 28% of sellers found their agent through a referral from a friend, relative, neighbor or colleague. You can manage your lead pipeline and close more deals with Zillow Premier Agent’s integrated CRM. 

While one of the best ways to get referrals is to ask for them directly, you can also nurture clients and those in your sphere of influence by following up in person, over the phone, through email or with a text message. Just make sure that whatever method you choose, the time is convenient for them and you are prepared with a referral script.

22. Show appreciation for your clients

Hosting a client appreciation event or giving a gift outside of the holiday season is one of the best marketing strategies for real estate agents. Most agents only nurture their clients during the holidays, so by reconnecting with past clients during the off-season, you’ll stay top of mind — and one step ahead of the competition. Jot down items that clients mention they like or want for their new home, and then present one of them as a thank-you or housewarming gift after closing. You can also:

• Host a “paint your dream home” night.
• Offer tickets to sporting events, theme parks, home shows or wine tastings.
• Give services instead of stuff — like meal delivery, spa treatment, lawn maintenance or housekeeping.
• Create moving kits personalized with your information, including marker pens, box labels and tape.

23. Ask for reviews from past clients

Online real estate agent reviews help potential clients see what to expect. Since 86% of sellers and 81% of buyers say the top quality in an agent is trustworthiness, it’s important to establish that before the client even meets you. If you want to make the process smoother, you can use a script when asking for reviews.

You can ask clients for reviews to add to your Zillow Premier Agent profile. Leads can sort profiles in Agent Finder, Zillow’s searchable directory that matches prospective buyers and sellers with agents, based on reviews, listings and sales. 

Want your reviews to really stand out? Consider creating real estate testimonial videos that can be shared on your website and social media.

24. Make yourself easy to contact

You can use all the real estate marketing tips you want, but if you aren’t easy to find online — and get in touch with — prospective clients may move on in their agent search. We found that 81% of sellers and 80% of buyers feel it’s very or extremely important for an agent to be responsive.

Make sure your contact information is readily available by:

• Setting up a local Business Profile on Google
• Including all contact information on social media platforms
• Creating a contact page on your website

25. Keep a trusted list of service providers on hand

Work your sphere of influence by inviting local service providers out for coffee or lunch. And when one of your clients needs help, you can refer them to one of your trusted service providers. These include:

• Mortgage officers
• Inspectors
• Attorneys
• Staging or interior designers
• Cleaners
• Movers
• Landscapers
• Roofers
• Plumbers
• Electricians

Many of these professionals are contacted by people looking to buy or sell a house — so if you’re their trusted contact, you’ve got the opportunity to pick up clients. Just make sure to pass some business their way too.

Those are our top 25 real estate agent marketing ideas. For more articles, tips and trends for agents, visit our Zillow Premier Agent page.