Successful real estate agents know how to make meaningful connections with clients. Buyers and sellers want useful information and details to help them make educated decisions. Discover eight smart ways to use data and storytelling to sell homes quickly and build a profitable client base.
Weave a Believable Tale
The best marketers are also excellent storytellers. The tales behind an agent and home make them different from anyone or anything on the market. The goal is to develop a unique approach to selling services and homes. A good story connects people and elicits an emotional response from them. Stories make a house feel important and desirable, compelling buyers to tour it and want to live there. An outstanding story can attract multiple buyers who are ready to pay above listing price to own the house, creating a bidding process that means the house sells for more than the listing price. A property description can simply describe the house or outline how beautiful living there can be. People are attracted to the idea of walking to the local park for a sensational sunset rather than simply stating the home is near recreational facilities.
Research the Target Audience
Well-crafted stories begin with intelligent research. Know about comparable sales in the area to ensure the listing or sales price is on-point. Then determine the target audience for a home to find ways to connect with buyers. Who are the typical buyers in the neighborhood, how old are they, and what type of homes are they searching? Local government offices provide demographic information. Google Analytics offers insights about search patterns, helping real estate agents define the target audience’s motivations. An agent should get to know the typical buyers and what motivates them to develop a story that encourages them to take action.
Create a Need and Satisfy It
Stories are more than colorful descriptions of a property. An agent assesses the home, talks to the owners, and finds out what the place offers to potential buyers. Using this information and data about the target audience is an effective way to determine the details to highlight. An example is buyers with children who want to be near schools, libraries, and parks. Rather than stating the proximity of the home to these places, create a story about walking home from school and stopping at the park to have fun before doing homework in the private home office.
Share the Story of the House
Understanding the story of a house is another way to use data to tell appealing tales. Does the house have a historical past or did a celebrity own it years ago? Was the property part of the neighborhood evolution and what role did it play along the way? Real estate agents use these facts to spin stories about the robust history of the home and what made it special to the past occupants. Buyers appreciate knowing what happened at a house because it makes the experience more personal. Once a connection is established, buyers start to develop an emotional attachment to the property.
Add Alluring Images
Every story needs imagery to bring it to life. Add professional photos, video, and tours of the property that showcase the details of the story. Use storytelling content on web pages, property descriptions, and social media posts. Infuse the stories with facts about the home, creating a robust description that goes beyond basic details. Use images to complete the tale, making the home visually and emotionally appealing. Better Homes and Gardens® affiliated real estate agents have access to a library of photos to complement their descriptive stories and get buyers to take action.
Accentuate the Positive
Savvy real estate agents take note of all the desirable features a home offers potential buyers, such as an in-ground swimming pool or wood burning fireplace. Crafting stories around positive elements is easy. Buyers can imagine themselves cooling off with a swim on a hot summer day or curling up by the fireplace with hot cocoa in the winter. Agents also need to recognize the negative aspects of a home to put a positive spin on them. For example, buyers are wise to words such as cozy, that indicate a house is small. Instead, describe the house as the perfect intimate setting for newlyweds or active retirees.
Edit and Update
A story’s message becomes cloudy with grammatical or spelling mistakes. Readers are distracted by errors and make feel the content is unprofessional or untrustworthy. Reread and edit all content before publishing it to ensure it reads smoothly. Use grammar software and apps or work with another agent to avoid overlooking small mistakes.
Keep Track of Analytics
Keep track of Google Analytics to determine the progress of all marketing content. Determine how much traffic it attracts, who the target audience is, and examine conversion rates to find out if the content works. If the stories fall short, edit them to include keywords commonly used by potential buyers to find local properties. Make sure to add well-trafficked, low competition keywords to the backend, such as title and metadata. Using search engine optimization strategies attracts more buyers to listings, helping agents sell properties faster.
Learning how to tell a tale that resonates with readers is the first step to becoming a profitable agent. Data and storytelling are the ideal marketing combination to sell homes quickly. Agents who make emotional connections with clients list and sell more homes.
