As an agent, what is the purpose of sending a newsletter?
One word…UPDATES.
In this fast-paced real estate game…we have to be all over it, all of the time. You can’t not make a call back, you must send an automated email to new contacts, landing pages have to deliver requested information immediately, etc…
With that said, if you have a buyer or seller who is on the fence or is “kinda” interested but not quite ready to commit, then it is absolutely necessary to keep in contact. This type of communication should not be invasive, just passive. They may not buy or sell now or even a year from now…but they will, and this is the primary reason why we need to stay in front of them or as I like to call it, “Top of Mind.” Informative and useful newsletter campaigns can easily motivate your customers to take some sort of action.
As it stands now, email marketing has proven to be way more successful than marketing on social media. For obvious reasons, our customers don’t necessarily expect to meet face to face anymore. What they do expect from their agent is a locally informative email that is personalized. You can achieve this type of communication and automation with very little effort by using a powerful and real estate content filled CRM (Customer Relationship Management).
In our world this is part of what is called a SPHERE campaign. The SPHERE drip campaign is vital to regular communication with your customers without being “advertisey.”
By sending a newsletter monthly you can achieve several things:
- Keep customers updated on your newest listings.
- Keep customers updated on local happenings.
- Keep customers updated on market values.
- Keep customers updated on your neighborhood.
- Keep customers updated on best practice for home maintenance.
Seriously, the list can go on and on and on…but the key is to keep customers interested in opening your emails. This will instill trust and capability when the time comes for them to choose an agent when they are are ready for assistance to buy or sell a home.
Recommendations for content and design when sending a newsletter
Headers: Reflect your branding and make sure to incite your customer to keep reading.
Logos: Make sure your color scheme of the newsletter is based on your logo colors.
Imagery: Add cool and exciting photos that reflect who you are and what kind of amazing personality you have.
Content Layout: Make sure your newsletter is easy to read. Use headers and sub headers to make it easy for them to steer easily and directly to the subjects they want to read.
Include Fun Stuff: Believe it or not, I always include something like a puzzle (sudoku, word search or crossword) or a recipe that I love. I know it seems off the charts, but this is another way to instill trust and relatability. This is just one other simple thing that you can do to stay “Top of Mind” for when the time comes for them to make a decision on their house.
Personalize: With the right CRM you can easily personalize each and every newsletter that you send out by using a merge field. See the image for a great example of the merge field for EngageMore CRM that will insert the name of your contact directly on the newsletter.
Get that newsletter into the Inbox!
Now that you get the idea of sending a newsletter, you need to get it into the inbox.
Amongst your internet service provider (ISP) spam protocols, email algorithms and your customers account settings – you’ve got some bullets to dodge. I have some excellent and effective suggestions for avoiding the spam folder.
Just keep in mind that while we live and work in a digital world, at the end of the day you need to be trustworthy and identifiable. Keep your nose clean and don’t be a nuisance and all should be well.
• Contributing editor: Andrea Hendrix
