How to Set Up a Successful Postcard Marketing Campaign
One of the most trusted, proven marketing strategies for real estate professionals is direct mail postcard campaigns. There are several reasons real estate postcard campaigns are so effective.
- They can be targeted to a specific “farm” or zip code
- They can be custom designed
- They build brands and gain attention
- They are less expensive when sent in volume
In addition, real estate postcards and mailers can be sent to serve as timely reminders or include pertinent valuable information creating a longer shelf life. Examples include time-change postcard reminders and sports schedules or home and garden tips.
When real estate professionals build year-long campaigns using these powerful marketing tools, their effectiveness increases as potential prospects turn into leads and leads become sales.
One of the biggest mistakes those in real estate can make in planning a postcard campaign is not setting the right objectives. Here are some thoughts to keep in mind.
Four Tips for Setting Postcard Marketing Campaign Objectives
Know the Value of a Qualified Lead and Prospect
When setting objectives it is important to know the value of a quality or qualified lead and prospect. In real estate, this value can be quite high. Knowing this helps set the proper expectations for a real estate postcard campaign and the resources you invest in it. A single quality lead can ultimately be worth thousands of dollars to a real estate professional. If a postcard campaign returns several of these quality leads, it can pay significant dividends.
Determine Your Core Objectives
If your core objective is to gain immediate leads, your message may need more urgency than if you are building your brand and nurturing potential leads. For example, a postcard that touts the sale of a nearby home or new listing, or other area real estate-related news may have more urgency than a postcard that has a seasonal recipe. Keep in mind any contact with a postcard still increases name recognition and exposure.
Know Who You are Targeting and Why
Real estate postcard campaigns are not meant to be “mass marketing.” Real estate postcard marketing campaigns are generally targeted to a specific geographic area, demographic, income level or style of home. This eliminates waste by focusing your efforts on the group of prospects with the most potential value to you. The better you define your target market, the clearer your objectives can be and the more likely you will achieve them.
Test and Track Your Results
There are a lot of variables that need to be taken into account in creating real estate postcard objectives. Is it a buyers’ or sellers’ market? Do you already have a reputation in the business or are you building one? What are you asking recipients to do? If, for example, you are giving away a valuable prize and only want recipients to sign up on your website, you will likely get more responses that if you initially ask them to request a free in-home appraisal. Test various types of cards with differing calls to action to determine expectation and objectives for your next campaign.
We Can Help!
For almost two decades ReaMark has been helping real estate professionals create, design and implement successful postcard campaigns. We can assist you. Our professional staff will help you develop a campaign that will be effective and that meets and exceeds your expectations. We offer free design assistance and a wide selection of products created to deliver results. We can even help in creating your EDDM (Every Door Direct Mail) campaign. Contact us today and meet your objectives for real estate season with ReaMark!
Photo credit: Natalia Łyczko on Unsplash