Today it is a fact that email newsletters are a part of commercial real estate marketing. Every agency should have a solid system of client or prospect contact using a database and an email newsletter.
Permission marketing is part of the email process in that you should only send these emails to people that have agreed to be part of the process. You can easily get ‘permission’ through refined strategies when talking to clients and prospects. That will be in:
- Telephone calls
- Meetings
- Property inspections
- Previous marketing efforts with other listings
It should also be said that the email system you adopt should have an opt-out provision and capability so that any person can step out of the newsletter system if they require.
What do you want to do?
If you are going to create a newsletter in this form, it is essential to develop the right strategy and processes. There are just too many poor quality email newsletters sent today. Relevance is everything.
So let’s look at how you can improve the process and make it a valuable part of your marketing effort.
- Use an auto responder to send the emails and track the open rate. You will then see what articles or properties create more interest.
- Many agents struggle with the issue of frequency in sending the newsletters. At a minimum they should be sent every 2 weeks. In an ideal situation they should be sent every 7 days with meaningful and new market information and listing detail.
- The best time to send the newsletter is between Wednesday and Friday. The ‘open rates’ on emails are generally higher at that time. Publish on time every time. Get a pattern to sending your emails.
- It is easy to get an email template established to start your newsletter. You simple add content inside the shell of the email
- Add to the value of the contact process by providing quality professional photographic images of properties for sale or for lease. Think and display quality at all times in your newsletter. One poorly photographed property will detract from the entire newsletter.
- Your exclusive listings should be marketed in your newsletter. Open listings should not get the newsletter treatment (open listings are a process of luck). If the owner of a property did not trust you enough to give you an exclusive listing, then they do not get the quality marketing processes.
- Have property relevant information in your newsletter that tells the reader about the local commercial real estate market and any changes that are coming up. At the top of the email, have an editorial area for this process. As agent you should write the commentary of 3 or 4 paragraphs and include a photograph of yourself in the process. You are building your ‘brand’ remember, and a photograph will help with that.
- All of your newsletters should feature links to your website listings, your informational blog, and your social media channels (Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook). Make it easy for people to follow you.
- Each email newsletter sent should be about 6 properties in depth, plus an editorial. If you work on different property types, you may like to make the newsletter specialised to the property type (eg Retail, Industrial, or Office).
When it comes to marketing yourself and your listings today, these are critical issues to take your listings and your real estate business forward.
You can get more tips like this in our free Newsletter for Commercial Real Estate Agents.