While an open house presents a great opportunity to attract potential buyers to your listing, it’s also the perfect time for you to attract potential clients to your business. As part of the Better Homes and Gardens® Real Estate National Open House month, we’re sharing the below ten tips on how agents can effective market themselves at open houses.
- Be Social!
Using social media, email newsletters or posting in relevant forums helps you alert potential buyers in the area that you’re 1) having the open house, and 2) accessible and easy to reach online. - Memorable Messages
Open house signs are pretty standard and usually a balloon or two on the mailbox will be enough to alert people that you’re in there, but what about street traffic? Can your sign be seen from the entrance of the neighborhood or subdivision? Optimize your message by making your signage visually appealing and more importantly, easy to remember! - Stay in Touch
Place a nice bowl on a central table to collect business cards. This gives you an easy chance to build a re-targeting list afterward. Also don’t forget pre-registration beforehand and sign-in sheets for guests who arrive so you can compare those who registered versus those who showed up. On your sign-in form ask guests if they would like to receive emails about other possible listings to help spread the word about your business and keep prospects in the sales loop. - The Small Things Matter
Giving away small tokens like key chains with your logo on it or magnets that feature your social media handles may seem overdone, but it’s actually a smart and effective marketing tool that sets you apart from other brokers and also makes your guests feel special. - Form a Team
Partnering with the homeowner to provide a fact sheet or FAQs about the home and neighborhood can help ease potential buyer concerns, and it’s a great confidence booster for you since you can easily answer most questions that might come up. Also, bringing in a lender to help approve interested parties on site is a great way to show prospects how far you’re willing to go to help them find a home. - Get Digital
Technology exists to make our lives easier, so why not take that approach with your open house? Use iPads for sign-in and registration, offer charging stations for visitors with low cell phone batteries, and feature apps like HomeZada or Homesnap to establish yourself as the authority on all things real-estate related. - Work the Home, Not the Room
This may seem pretty elementary, but it’s important to be an active presence at the open house so that potential buyers know that you’re engaged and prepared to address any concerns they may have. Also be sure to highlight even the smallest details in the home, such as track lighting, built-in sound systems or any smart electronic features, that will appeal to tech-savvy buyers. - Know Your Surroundings
It’s extremely important for any listing agent to have a solid grasp on the neighborhood where the home is being sold. Buyers will want to know how far the grocery stores are, what commuter options are available and whether or not there is ample street parking for guests (and/or residents). - Think Outside the Box
Most open houses take place on the weekends between the hours of 1-4 p.m. Get creative with your strategy – offer lunchtime refreshments at a daytime open house for downtown properties, host a happy hour mixer for weekday evenings, or offer private tours for busy potential clients who would benefit from a more customized experience. - Be Insightful
Use the data you gathered from registration and sign-in forms to track efforts and help you strategize for your next open house. Make sure to build and maintain your follow-up lists so that undecided buyers can stay up to date on all your offerings.
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