Most real estate agents cast as broad a net as possible when trying to land clients. They market to anyone looking to buy or sell a home and waste a lot of marketing dollars in the process. It may seem counter-intuitive, but the secret to affordably attracting a steady stream of new clients is to narrow your focus and specialize in a real estate niche.
Specialization is the key to real estate success. People no longer want generalists. They want to work with a trusted adviser who has worked with people just like them and who understands their specific concerns, frustrations, obstacles and problems.
Marketing is primarily about psychology. While you might believe that no matter who you work with, the process for helping someone buy or sell real estate is similar, your clients think differently. For instance, a single first-time buyer will have completely different wants, needs, concerns and motivations than a couple buying a luxury home. The way you market to and address the concerns of each will be radically different.
That doesn't mean you can't have multiple niches. It simply means you need to have different marketing messages for each niche.
When choosing a niche, here are six questions to consider.
- What strengths and expertise do you have? Is there a particular group of people you feel most comfortable working with? What is your background? Which groups of people would most value your knowledge and skills?
- What are your prospects' demographics? Demographics include characteristics like age, income, marital status, gender, level of education and job position. Do any events like marriage, divorce, the birth of a child, or retirement trigger their decision to hire you? Demographics give you an idea of where your prospects are in life and what major life events might be influencing them.
- What are their psychographics? Psychographics involve how your prospects view the world and what motivates them. They take into consideration your prospects' interests, attitudes, opinions, values and lifestyles. For instance, your prospects may be optimistic or pessimistic. They may be the "take control of your destiny" type or they might be more inclined to play the victim of their circumstances and environment.
- Who are your competitors? How competitive is the niche you are considering? How many other agents advertise and take listings in the area? Are there one or two agents who dominate the market? It is extremely difficult to compete with more-established agents who have a larger marketing budget and have built their reputation as a real estate specialist in a particular niche.
- How do you reach prospects? Can you reach your niche easily through mailing lists, publications, associations, websites or other media that targets this group?
- What characteristics do your ideal clients have? Not every prospect makes a good client. You probably didn't get into real estate to work with people who don't value your services, constantly ask you to reduce your commission fee, are indecisive and never move forward, or are argumentative and drain your energy. Which types of clients do you wish you could work with all the time? What personality traits do they have?
Specializing in a real estate niche offers three key benefits. You can understand and address your prospects' key motivations, concerns, fears and problems in your marketing materials, thus making your marketing far more effective at generating qualified leads. You can reach a select group of people affordably because you know which media they are likely to view. And because you are perceived as a local real estate specialist, you can be choosier with the clients you work with - and even turn away prospects who might not be ideal for you.
Looking for more ways to market your real estate services? Download your free 43-page Real Estate Marketing Plan today. This hands-on workbook covers the 6 steps for creating your marketing strategy and includes a fill-in-the-blank marketing plan template you can use to craft your monthly marketing plan.
Krista Baker is founder of RealtyBizCoach.com, which provides marketing tips and advice for real estate agents. She is the author of the Lifelong Clients Workshop, which teaches real estate agents how to specialize in a real estate niche.
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