Real Estate Marketing Blog

By Rick Brown

This week, Reamark will release our freshly designed line of 2015 tear-off magnetic calendars with a new recipe for each month. With beautiful, vibrant colors, each recipe has been tested and approved by the Reamark team to be delicious and easy to make. No exotic ingredients needed, just real recipes for real people.

The tear-off magnetic calendars come in two different options: the ready to ship, peel and place business card design or a customized printed design that usually ships within 5 business days. With the customized printed design, you can choose from the standard rectangular magnet or stand out from the competition with the house-shaped magnet.

If you only do one real estate promotional item to your farm a year, this is it! The calendars are easy to use, they stay on the fridge all year long, and we provide you with free blank envelopes for easy mailing. This year our tear-off magnetic calendars will have double-sided print and new, high gloss paper for a refined, professional look. Additionally, we use stronger, reinforced pages that are high quality and won’t fall out after a few months.

Bonus feature: Each calendar features a quick kitchen reference on the back with common measurements, common substitutions, and food equivalents.

These new designs will be ready to ship by Friday, August 8th so get your order in now! If you order soon, you’ll not only save 20%, but your calendar will the first in the home and first on the fridge.

By Rick Brown

It’s hard to believe that another school year is just a few weeks away. At Reamark, we know the value of having all of those important school dates and phone numbers in an easy to access location like a refrigerator magnet.  What better way to establish yourself as the go-to neighborhood expert than providing this great resource for your farm?

What Should Realtors Include on Calendar Magnets?

There are a number of different things that you can include on our fully customizable magnetic calendars. Many Realtors choose to list important dates to remember such as start of school term, holidays, winter and spring breaks, and summer vacation or frequently called phone numbers. Local sports calendars are also extremely popular and wonderful marketing for sports-centric neighborhoods. You have the option of customized printed envelopes for easy mailing as well.

Our team of in-house designers makes it easy to customize a magnetic calendar that will work best within your community in three easy steps:

1. Select which size and calendar style you like best.
2. Provide us with your custom information that you’d like to display.
3. Within 48 hours, you will receive a proof of your artwork to approve.

Most of our orders will ship within 5 business days after the proof is approved, so you can get these great marketing tools in homes and on the fridge.

Let our team of in-house professional designers create a fully customized magnetic calendar for you today!  Order now for delivery by the beginning of the school year and save up to 30%!

At Reamark, we strive to provide our customers with the best products and service possible so that they can be successful within their own businesses. What better way to showcase all that we do for our clients than by hearing directly from them?  In today’s blog post, we interview the office of long time client, Charlie Commander of Century 21 Commander Realty, Inc in Panama City, who shared their experience with Reamark over the years.

Reamark: How long have you been in the real estate business?

C-21 Commander: Our office was opened in Panama City in 1969 by Charles Commander senior, who built the company to be the #1 Century 21 in Bay County year after year. His son Charlie Commander joined the business about 18 years ago and is currently the #1 agent in Panama City, FL in existing home sales.

Reamark: Which Reamark marketing products are you currently using and how often are you sending out into your farm?

C-21 Commander: We are big advocate of the real estate postcards and use them for every opportunity that we can. We send out into our farm about 10 times a year or more. We just sent out a Just Listed Jumbo Card, as well as a 4th of July card.

Reamark: Why do you choose Reamark over other companies?

C-21 Commander: With other companies, we just didn’t get the same response time. The Reamark staff is so easy to work with and they help us easily customize our postcards. Whatever we need, they can take care of for us.

Reamark: Is there anything else that you think others could benefit from learning about Reamark?

C-21 Commander: We have about 30 or more agents that work for us and encourage them to use Reamark’s marketing products often by participating in a reimbursement program for the agents. We have found so much success for our office with these mailings, that we like to tell our agents to promote themselves often into their farms as well.

Reamark: Thank you for taking the time to talk to us. We really appreciate it!

Have you found success with our marketing products or real estate post cards and would like to share your story? Check us out on Google Plus and leave a review. We love to hear how we can help your business grow!

There is something to be said for hometown advantage when it comes to real estate marketing strategies. As a current resident, you know the streets, houses, open spaces, schools, restaurants, and major benefits of your neighborhood. As a real estate professional, you even thought these benefits were enticing enough to buy a home in the neighborhood. It’s your neighborhood and you are the experienced real estate professional.

Your Neighborhood, Your Advantage

As a real estate agent, it’s essential to have a strong contact strategy for your own neighborhood. Creating strong real estate marketing strategies establish you as the go-to realtor for all your neighbors and friends. You live, work, and play in your “farm,” and you are the most knowledgeable real estate professional in the area. Your contact strategy for your own neighborhood should firmly establish you as the premier resource for real estate questions in your neighborhood. Your neighbors and local residents should see you as the only authority on real estate in your area.

Real Estate Marketing in Your Neighborhood

When targeting your own neighborhood, your contact strategy will be different from marketing in other areas. New real estate marketing tools are being developed all the time. A strong contact strategy for your local neighborhood can incorporate more than postcards for realtors. Set yourself apart from your competition with the latest mortgage postcards, real estate calendars, newsletters, door hangers, and other marketing tools. The marketing tools provided by ReaMark are designed from input received by over 40,000 real estate customers and can be customized to fit with your contact strategy.

Don’t wait for your competition’s postcards to show up in your local neighborhood. As a local resident and homeowner, put the hometown advantage to work for your real estate marketing strategy.

Check out our new real estate marketing tools and tell us what you’d like to see on a design!

By Rick Brown

You might be thinking, “football season is still a few months away, why do I need to order my football schedule magnets now?” The answer is because the first real estate agent to deliver a magnetic football schedule to a home is the first one to get their magnet on the family’s fridge. The fridge is valuable marketing real estate and football fans only need one team schedule on their fridge. Order football schedules early to ensure prompt delivery and get ahead in your market.

When it comes to real estate promotional items, magnetic football schedules appeal to a wide audience. Football is the most popular sport in the country and appeals to men, women, and children of all ages. Come Fall, many families will schedule their activities around the football game schedule. At ReaMark, we offer full-color football schedule magnets and have a variety of different styles and sizes to fit every marketing budget.

Order Football Schedule Magnets Now

Summer may have just started, but that doesn’t mean you can take a vacation from your real estate marketing strategies. In fact, now is the time to get ahead of your competition and put in your order for magnetic football schedules. Waiting until the end of the summer to order your magnets puts you at a disadvantage and increases the risk that another realtor has already gotten their magnet on the fridge.

Early Order Discounts

Ordering your real estate promotional items early has another benefit: cost savings. If you place your order for football schedules before July 1st, you get a discount on your order. Save between 20% – 35% on orders depending on the items purchased. Prices go up after July 1st.
Don’t put off ordering your football schedule magnets until it’s too late. Get a discount by ordering before July 1st and get your magnet up on the fridges in your local market.

By Rick Brown

It’s time that you make real estate marketing easier. The solution to simplify the process is Every Door Direct Mail, or EDDM. EDDM allows you to effortlessly deliver real estate marketing flyers to the neighborhoods you want to target. Real estate mailers become a piece-of-cake with EDDM.

What Is EDDM & How Does It Work?

Every Door Direct Mail (EDDM) is a retail service that gives you access to every home and address in a neighborhood. It requires minimal time and effort from you. All you need to do is to choose the neighborhood or neighborhoods you want to target and the U.S. Postal Service carrier delivers your real estate mailers along with the resident’s regular mail. In addition, the larger sizes of 6.5 x 9 or 8.5 x 11 gives you plenty of space to advertise your just listed / just sold / market updates and why the homeowner should choose you… The Real Estate Expert of the neighborhood.

Why Should I Use EDDM?

Using EDDM for your real estate marketing flyers is cost-effective, efficient, has a quick turnaround, and saves you time. The retail service includes a FREE custom design, does not require a permit (a $400 savings), does not require a list rental (a huge value), and gets you postage as low as 17.5 cents per mailer. The best part is the more mailers you order, the more money you save.
Each order must be in increments of 250 cards and only takes 4 days to print. For example, if you order 500 6.5” x 9” cards, you spend 49 cents per piece. If you order 1,000 cards, your cost goes down to 34 cents a piece. Learn more about your mailing route and determine what quantity will work for your business.

What Types of Designs Are Available?

Here at ReaMark we offer in house full design service. Just tell us what you want, send us any photos and we will professional design them based on over 75 years of direct marketing experience. We also offer variety of designs for real estate mailers available through EDDM. Check out the latest designs and see what the hot sellers are for direct mailers.

Take advantage of direct mail through our Every Door Direct Mail service. Pick your Neighborhood and get started NOW. Of course we offer live professional help to walk you through the entire process!

By Rick Brown

Are you sending out prospecting mailers and not seeing results? When real estate prospecting efforts aren’t getting results, there are three common reasons why. Your real estate prospecting isn’t working because you aren’t using the best mailing list, don’t have a clear call-to-action, and lack diversity.

Not Using the Best Mailing List

Postcards are essential to any real estate prospecting strategy. However, Realtors won’t have success if they aren’t sending real estate post cards to the best mailing list. When sending mailers, always include your personal mailing lists. Additionally, make sure you are not mailing to an area already dominated by a realtor or a particular real estate company. An area can be considered “dominated,” and therefore undesirable for mailings, when the realtor or company has 75% or more of the area listings.

No Clear Call-to-Action

Sending real estate prospecting postcards without a clear call to action is a waste of time. A clear call-to-action differentiates you from other realtors and drives website traffic. Entice buyers and sellers to call you by using appealing offers. Attractive offers can be a free market analysis or lower commission rates. A great offer and a clear call-to-action will set you apart from your competitors.

Lacking Diversity

Increase engagement by sending out a variety of mailers to your prospects and leads. Mix it up by sending out newsletters, calendars, and postcards. Also, be sure to include variety in your real estate postcards. Showcase your wins with Just Listed or Just Sold postcards, get better engagement with a recipe card or by sharing home tips, or educate your audience with market updates. By varying the look and feel of your mailers and postcards, you keep your message fresh.

By including these tips in your contact strategy, you will attract more new business. Don’t forget that frequency is key to a successful strategy. Send a mailing at least every two months, but keep in mind that monthly mailings are better. If necessary, you can cut your list size to stay within budget and continue to send monthly mailers.

Get started now with free custom design on Just Sold postcards or any other style of real estate postcards today.

By Rick Brown

It’s already the middle of May and although it may not seem like it, 4th of July is just around the corner. Time is running out to order your postcards so that you can get them in mailboxes by the beginning of July. Here are the top reasons that those 4th of July postcards could get you new listings.

Suggest the Best Fireworks Displays & Become the Expert

With Reamark’s customizable designs, you can easily add your favorite spot to watch the fireworks in your farm area. This shows that you know the neighborhood and as a bonus, they will keep that postcard on the fridge to remind them where they should plan on seeing the fireworks!

Continue Building Rapport

30% of real estate marketing success is how frequently you mail your list. Use every possible opportunity you can to touch base with your potential clients and keep your business top of mind when they are ready to sell their home.

Create a Sense of Camaraderie Through Patriotism

Homeowners want to feel that personal and trusting connection with their real estate agent and what better way to build that trust than with a show of patriotism?

Don’t wait any longer! Browse through our many designs of 4th of July postcards now!

By Rick Brown

Selling season is in full swing and successful real estate agents are blanketing their territorial farms with marketing pieces in order to get more listings. Whether you’re showcasing a recent sale or sharing your listings or marketing yourself as the neighborhood real estate expert, real estate door hangers have many benefits.

1. Stand Out from the crowd

With more and more marketing messages headed to the mailbox, why not stand out from the crowd with a door hanger that is sure to be noticed when home owners head home from their workdays? A door hanger must be removed from the door and therefore taken in hand by the prospect, increasing your changes of impressing your message rather than getting lost in the shuffle of traditional mail.

2. Save on Postage & Mailing Hassles

Another benefit of door hangers is that you don’t have to fuss with renting lists or preparing your own, let alone pay for postage. You are guaranteed to reach your target audience because you know your message is hanging from their front door. Marketing with door hangers is a cost effective and simple way to touch base with your farm.

3. Create A Custom Design

Marketing 101 will tell you that creating a design that stands out from the rest is the key to any successful marketing campaign. Using your picture, company logo, and even your own recently sold listings will establish your brand within your target neighborhoods and begin to build relationships you need for new listings.

Reamark knows that most real estate agents are not graphic designers, which is why we offer free design services for all of our products and door hangers. Choose from single or double-sided options that are designed to your specifications by our professional design team. Whether you want a fully custom design or would like to choose from over 25 quick ship styles that ship the next day, we can accommodate your needs. Get started today by browsing our many door hanger designs or call us at 800-932-2957. With over 30,000 real estate clients and selling more than 4 million door hangers, we know what works.

By Rick Brown
Fact: Market fluctuations are faced by all real estate professionals.
Fact: 20% of all real estate agents generate over 80% of all income
Fact: 62% of all Sellers use the first agent they call.
Fact: Only 12% of Sellers use a Realtor they’ve used before.
Fact: Virtually all top Producing Real Estate agents have utilized or currently utilize direct marketing as one of their main methods of producing more leads, listings and sales.

For the most part, people think “All Realtors are pretty much the same.” With all of these facts and if people really think that all realtors are the same, how are you going to differentiate yourself and become a top producer?

Since we receive over 100,000 calls per year and with over 30,000 successful realtors using the ReaMark direct marketing programs, we are experts in understanding what is working and what is not working. The first commonality amongst top producers is:

You Must Have a Marketing Plan to be Successful

This means you’ve got to prospect for new clients as well as maintain your current client base. Successful realtors get over 70% of their new business from referrals. Wow! let me repeat that: Successful realtors get over 70% of their new business from referrals.
But how can that be if it is a fact that only 12% of sellers will use the same realtor they used before? The answer is simple, obviously successful realtors have a higher percentage of repeat customers and referrals than the average.

Top Strategies of Real Estate Agents

The overriding key to success is to developing a personal list of people to become your referral base. This list should include anyone who knows you including past clients, friends, neighbors, school teachers, old business acquaintances, your kids friends parents, your fellow church members, etc. Again anyone who knows you and could act as a referral. Your list may start off small, as few as 100 people, you goal is to develop this list and grow it to its maximum size. Most successful realtors have at least 400 or more people on this list.

Once you have developed your personal list you should be in contact with these people at least once a month before spending any money on farming and prospecting. These contacts should include the following:

1)    Mail monthly at least one of the following marketing communication pieces: a postcard, newsletter, greeting card, or a calendar.
2)    You should always mail your personal list all Just Listed and Just Sold properties that you are involved in. Announce your success and you will be sure to get referrals.
3)    You should mention somewhere on most pieces that you rely on referrals and that their referrals are greatly appreciated.

Most successful agents will have a marketing plan that incorporate the following:

• New Years Card / Newsletter
• Spring Time Change Card / Newsletter
• 4th of July Card / Newsletter
• Fall Time Change Card / Newsletter
• Thanksgiving Card / Newsletter
• Holiday Card/ Newsletter
• Calendar usually sent out between August and December
• All Just Listed and Just Sold announcements

Most of our successful agents utilize the following products to mail to their client base:
Recipe Cards, Newsletters, Home Tips, Cartoon, Animal, Scenic, Recipe Calendars
Football & Baseball schedules, School Calendars, Monthly selections, Full magnet calendars, etc.

Again, in direct marketing your success is based upon:

• 40% is the list you mail
• 30% is the frequency you mail
• 30% is the marketing piece.

How to Farm successfully

Once you have established an ongoing consistent mailing to your personal list then you have to have means to build that list through farming and prospecting. Over two thirds of all top performers use a territorial or geographic farm.

Going back to the formula of direct marketing success, the most important aspect is the list you select. So choosing your farm should be based upon the following:
1)    Look for an area with and higher than a 8% turnover rate
2)    Make sure that there is not a dominate realtor or real estate company with more than 75% of the listings.

Once you have selected your farm, YOUR GOAL IS TO BECOME THE REAL ESTATE SPECIALIST IN THAT FARM.

You should again be in contact with each household at least 8 times per year. Again you can utilize these key dates listed above and if possible you should try to walk your farm (Deliver calendars, free gifts, etc) twice per year.

Other ideas could include:
a)    Advertising in the neighborhood newsletter. (If you do not have one develop one and get key local businesses to offset all or the majority of cost.
b)    Advertise the neighborhood activates such as: firework locations, school dates, neighborhood history facts, home market updates, free flag or pumpkin giveaways, charity events, etc.

Again these are just some of the more common characteristics of successful agents, for more ideas please contact ReaMark and we will help you develop and customize a personal marketing plan to fit your budget, lifestyle and goals.

Take advantage of our Postcard Special NOW and get 1 style Free when you order 5!