Seller's Marketing Tools

A Great Ad

For Sale: Elegantly remodeled 4-bedroom, 2.75-bathroom Craftsman located on a tranquil, tree-lined street just minutes from downtown by city bus. This beauty has a large, new, open-plan kitchen and dining area ideal for entertaining; a new 10-foot by 8-foot master bedroom closet; refinished wood floors throughout; original marble fireplace mantle; and a finished "rec" room in the basement perfect for a children's play room or a media room. And if you enjoy bicycling and tennis, this home is for you. A quarter mile from lakeshore bicycle trail and five blocks from municipal tennis courts. What are you waiting for?

Sounds wonderful, doesn't it? The price for this home will of course depend on its location and housing prices in that market. But wherever this home is and whatever its price, this advertisement placed in the Sunday real estate section of the daily newspaper is bound to catch the attention of plenty of would-be buyers.

Advertising Tips

One reason this advertisement will make certain house hunters' hearts flutter with excitement is its careful wording. The ad manages to give a glimpse not only of the house but it also hints at what kind of people might most enjoy living there; e.g., people who like to cook or entertain, people with children, people who cycle or play tennis, people who like the classic elegance of wood floors and marble fireplace mantles.  And it drops enticing clues about the neighborhood. The neighborhood is quiet. There are lots of trees. It sounds like an oasis just minutes from the excitement and amenities of downtown.

An advertisement that leaps out at your target market is one of the best marketing tools available to you as a seller. (See How to Read a Listing for info on how buyers decode an ad.) If you are working with an agent she will most likely write the advertisement and place it in the newspaper.

Agents have plenty of experience at this and know how to word ads to play up your home's best features. But it's wise for you to know something about it too; you can easily ask the agent to show you the ad before its printed.

If you're selling your home yourself expect to spend time crafting the best ad you can, keeping in mind that successful ads are more than just the nuts-and-bolts description of your house. Like advertising for anything from cars to breakfast cereal, the ad for your home should make people want to buy the product. (At the very least to make them want to come to your open house.)

Anatomy of an Effective Home Sales Ad

Whether you write the ad or your agent writes it, here are some tips:

1. Always list location, price, and number of bedrooms. These are the basic information nuggets that every house hunter wants to know. Never say "asking" when stating the price since that suggests you're willing to negotiate. You may be, but no point in signaling that at the outset of your marketing.
2. List your home's best features, such as having four bedrooms, a big kitchen, a lake view, or a large backyard. Describe these briefly.
3. No need to mention drawbacks, such as older bathroom fixtures or floors that need refinishing. Never say "needs repair."
4. Never lie in an ad. You can't say the basement is finished if it's not, or that the house is on a "quiet" street if you're next to the fire station. It's possible you could be sued. And it will only turn off potential buyers when they discover that you've misrepresented the house.
5. Be careful of using sweeping descriptions that are open to interpretation. Don't say "completely" updated kitchen unless you really have updated not only the range and the counters but also all electrical and plumbing lines leading into the kitchen. Better to say "updated." 
6. The architectural style of a home is often important to buyers. Is your home a Craftsman-style home? A Cape Cod? Tudor? Ranch? Dutch Colonial? If your home has a distinctive architectural style you might as well mention it. Some buyers may be turned off by a Ranch style, for instance, but that's just what others are looking for. 
7. Other amenities worth mentioning are number of bathrooms, finished basements or recreational rooms, sunrooms, large decks, garages, and add-ons such as mother-in-law units.
8. Use cliches judiciously. Everyone knows that "cozy" in a real estate ad means "very small" and that "charming" probably means "old-fashioned." And "adult occupied" often means that it hasn't been cleaned or updated for the last 30 years. Better to give real information, like the number of bathrooms or the fact that there's a two-car garage.
9. If you're selling your home yourself, remember that you're paying for every line in ads in newspapers and magazines and on some Web sites. So avoid the fluff and stick to the facts. Are you having an open house? If so, say so. 
10. Remember too that if you add your phone number and address you can expect people to call and or knock on your door at any time, even if you give an exact time for an open house. So be prepared.
11. Follow Fair Housing Guidelines
12. Here's an example of a straightforward, get-to-the point ad: 4 BR, 2.5 Bath, Dutch Colonial at 123 Main Street in the Murray Hill neighborhood on 1.5 acres. Finished basement, 2-car garage, wood floors throughout. $325,000.  Open Sunday 1-5 p.m.  (phone number)

Note: Most agents write and place their own ads for properties they represent. Feel free to ask your agent to review the text first and make suggestions. Also ask whether the agent plans to run a photo of your home. Most real estate agencies have general guidelines about placing ads and running photos, and these guidelines vary from agency to agency. If your house isn't the highest priced or aesthetically interesting one being advertised by an agent or her firm, it may not automatically get a photo with it. But there's no harm in asking for a photo. Remember, the agent is working for you.

Along with getting your home listed on your local MLS (see Where to List Your Home), you should also list it in the classified ad section in your local newspaper, in its online edition, and perhaps in other local publications such as your city's monthly magazine. However, before spending bucketloads of money on print advertising, make sure that the print distribution is adequate and that there's enough readership to justify the cost. You may be better off focusing your marketing dollars on on-line marketing efforts instead.

Get Passers By

But remember that there are other marketing tools you can use too, from fliers posted on community center bulletin boards to a notebook full of facts on the history of your home, your past remodeling projects, and additional information about your neighborhood's amenities. And don't forget the For Sale sign in your front yard. If you use an agent she'll give you one. If not, post a For Sale sign and attach an all-weather box for fact sheets. People who pass by and see the sign but who may not make it to your open house can at least grab a fact sheet and find out the basics about your home. Be sure to include your phone number and the price.

Seller's Tip: If you're selling without an agent, be sure never to use words like "asking" or "negotiable" when stating your price. The pros don't do this and neither should you. In reality, home prices are often negotiated unless your market is so hot that there are multiple offers on a home. But there's no point in making it appear from the outset that your price is not firm.

Seller's Tip: If you are printing up your own home fact sheet or flyer, be sure to include a photograph of the exterior of the house. This will help people remember it. To take the best photo possible of your home make sure the yard is perfectly groomed and that there are no cars in the driveway or toys on the lawn. Shoot your home in sunlight and try to avoid having deep shadows fall over part of the exterior. If you have space for one more photo find the most attractive room in your home, perhaps a newly remodeled kitchen or elegant living room, and shoot that too.

Seller's Tip: More about fact sheets for FSBOs -- go all out and include as much information as you possibly can. Visit other open houses and match their fact sheets item for item. The more info the better. In fact, the more pages the better. Why not include a schematic (two-dimensional plot) of the property? How about a floor plan? You can draw your own using a drawing program like Google SketchUp. Add an extra page of photos.

More Marketing Tips

1. Write an ad for your local newspaper that entices buyers. If you work with an agent, make sure she places it prominently in the Sunday real estate section so it stands out from the rest. If you're selling yourself, be sure to place the ad starting the weekend of your first official open house.
2. If you are FSBO and there are other properties for sale nearby, you might be able to forego the ad. Just check the open house ads for the upcoming weekend (usually in Friday or Saturday's paper). When you know a nearby open house is set to take place, get your signs out on the traffic routes to draw in drive by house hunters. Let the other sellers pay for the ad while you both get potential buyer traffic.
3. Whether using an agent or not, consider putting fliers up in local businesses, such as mom and pop grocery stories, that have community bulletin boards. Print the flier so that you include a contact phone number on little "fringes" at the bottom. That makes it easy for people to tear off one of the "fringes" and take the number with them.
4. Keep a good supply of your home fact sheets in an all-weather box attached to the For Sale sign in your front yard. Check regularly to see that the box is full. Joggers, walkers, and half the people who pass by will pick one up to pass on to friends who are house hunting.
5. During your open house, be sure to have a "scrapbook" on your home available for people to browse through. This should include the basic facts of about your home but also a bit about its remodeling history, perhaps including the records of the remodel such as architectural sketches, before and after shots, and copies of the necessary permits. House hunters also appreciate seeing copies of utility and property tax bills and information about the neighborhood. Include the names of the neighborhood public schools, the location of nearby public parks and libraries, and other tidbits that make your neighborhood desirable. Are you on a direct bus line to the downtown art museum, the zoo, or the university? Say so!

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