How To Design Effective Real Estate Ads

Olgivy method example on effective ad design

 

 I recently spoke at our annual conference and delivered a presentation on effective ad design for maximum results.  I’ve been in the real estate advertising business for over 14 years and have personally been responsible for a bad design or two when I get a little too creative.  The bottom line is that if you stick to the Olgivy method with some minor tweaks for the real estate business you will deliver maximum results for your homesellers and generate buyer leads as well.  What’s the Olgivy method?  Here it is:

  David Olgivy Method: 

1.      Visual – one strong graphic element

2.      Caption for visual if necessary

3.      *Headline – The most important thing you want to say.

4.      Ad copy – with a strong lead-in

5.      Signature – contact information (limit to the most important)  

 

 How can this method be directly applied to real estate advertising? 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

4 Most Common Design Flaws That Reduce Effectiveness

 

 Too many ways to contact you. 

Which do you want most? Phone calls? Or web traffic?

 Bad or misused photography

Good quality photos reflect a good quality agent.  Bad photography . . . .

 Too much copy

Only include area, BR/BA, price, few key details, and a trackable phone number.  Keep it brief for readability and give them a reason to act!

 Unclear message or call to action

State clearly what you want to happen as a result of the ad. Don’t make the consumer work for it.

 

These are the basics.  We know this from experience.  We track phone calls and have learned that real estate agents and brokers advertising in The Real Estate Book generate between 18-53 calls per page per issue depending upon the market area and the price of the homes advertised.

 

Are there other methods that you are using effectively in today’s real estate market?

 

If you’d like to see the full presentation, please email me at twalker@treb.com and I’d be happy to send you more information.

5 Truths About Real Estate Marketing

1.    Your Competitor is Talking About Your Marketing Plan.  The marketing plan is the #1 reason sellers chose an agent and the #3 reason agents lose listings.*  If you are not talking about yours, your competitor will.

2.    Today’s Consumers are Multi-Media Multi-Taskers.  Home shoppers consume information and use about 4.5 sources** when choosing a neighborhood, a home, an agent.  Every piece of information they see is relevant, whether it’s online, in print, or on a social site. They use them all.

3.    Your Advertising Reflects Your Professional Reputation.  Premium positioning and good design reflect a quality agent.  Low priority positioning and bad design reflects a lower quality agent.

4.    Be Clear About Your Call to Action.  Most advertising fails because the consumer is confused.  Should they call, email, go to your site or your blog? Why?  More information? More listings?  Market statistics?  Tell them specifically why and how to act.

5.    It’s Not About You.  Think benefits.  #1 Buyer’s Agent?  You helped more buyers find their perfect home and wisest investment.  #1 Sales Agent?  You helped more sellers get the best price for their homes – even in a difficult market.

 

Real Estate Book Representatives help you stand out and get results in print, online and through social networking – and we’re willing to be measured. Go to Store.RealEstateBook.com to learn more.

Are you misreading the map?  Like Hansel and Gretel on their way to the house of sweets, consumers leave a bread crumb trail of the activities they use to search for real estate and real estate professionals.  The only problem is that the Hansel and Gretel’s of today are not cautiously stepping down a single path.  They might as well be flying over dumping breadcrumbs with a crop duster.

You see, today’s consumers are not using any single media.  We search magazines, newspapers, websites, blog sites, social sites, mobile apps, television, radio, and billboards – basically anything that enters our stream of consciousness.   We are inundated with information and are accustomed to digesting and analyzing large amounts of information.  The National Association of REALTORS survey of home buyers and sellers indicates that they consciously searched, on average about 4.5 sources of information when shopping for a home.  And, that sounds low to me.    

I recently read an article on the Six Ways to Effectively Track Offline Sales on eConsultancy.com – an interactive site for digital marketers.  It lists a number (6) ways to link your offline advertising efforts to your online presence – with a reminder to digital marketers that the ultimate goal is to map the effects of consumer behavior throughout an integrated offline and online campaign. 

If you were to map your behavior, for example, you might find that you watch TV while reading the newspaper, or a magazine, or surfing the net.  You see an ad in a direct mail piece for a restaurant and you look them up online and check their reviews online or on a mobile app.   The brands you find most memorable and the purchases you make are often influenced by the frequency and quality of your interaction with that brand – through multiple means.

That’s why saying that you are investing all your efforts, money or business in your social media marketing plan, or your website, or just your print ad, for that matter, means that while you’re looking for Hansel and Gretel on a wooded path, they are flying over in a crop duster.

NEW iPhone app for The Real Estate Book

A new iPhone appfjor The Real Estate Book  is now available for you to download! It is a great tool to have if you are out and about searching for a home either in your own backyard of Lake County or anywhere is North America.