In today’s digital age, business growth relies on effective marketing. Video and email marketing can significantly impact your brand’s visibility and lead generation.
Video marketing: A visual storytelling tool
According to the National Association of Realtors (NAR), online video consumption has surged — especially since 2020. Many homebuyers and commercial real estate investors rely on video as a primary source of information during property searches.
Real estate videos provide a powerful solution to meet this demand, offering a compelling way to introduce your brand to this wider audience. Their content appeals to a broader demographic, as more people prefer watching videos to reading. And many real estate investors may not live close to the properties they’re interested in buying.
They’ve become an indispensable and versatile tool for real estate professionals seeking to attract and engage potential buyers at various stages:
- Generating organic search traffic and increasing visibility with embedded videos on property listing pages.
- Persuading potential buyers to take action, like contacting a broker or scheduling a viewing, with their compelling content.
- Showcasing properties in the best possible light, enticing sellers to choose a broker who can effectively market their listings.
Diverse video applications
You can use videos in many ways. Provide immersive experiences using AR or VR technology, offering potential buyers a detailed view of properties. Share positive feedback from satisfied clients via customer testimonials to build trust and credibility. Introduce brokers and agents, highlight their expertise, and the importance of choosing the right professional.
Leverage social media platforms to amplify video content and increase reach. You can offer detailed property views through drone footage and 3D tours. In fact, the quality of drone videography has exponentially increased our ability to capture stunning aerial footage to showcase property features and surroundings.
Highlight key amenities and building features in concise, informative videos. Help buyers visualize new developments and properties under construction through digitally created videos. Or create engaging advertisements that showcase property value and encourage action.
Pro tips
Keep videos under two minutes to keep viewers’ attention. People are more likely to watch shorter videos and retain what they’ve seen. Here are a few other suggestions and best practices.
- Avoid overwhelming viewers with information in one video. Focus on sparking curiosity and encouraging more exploration. Develop a narrative connecting your property with the community — when relevant.
- Video is a key tool but just one component of your marketing strategy. Take a “less is more” approach here, avoiding the temptation to copy the competition. Instead, strive for visually appealing content that differentiates you from others in the market.
- When planning a video production, find ways to repurpose the footage for different platforms and messages to get more bang for the buck. You can often edit larger productions into shorter social media clips. Be mindful of platform-specific formatting requirements like image aspect ratios to deliver an optimal display. Website and email content typically require longer videos, whereas social media posts are shorter.
- Determine the ideal platforms for your video. In addition to the traditional real estate portals, explore other options like YouTube pre-roll or Instagram. Each platform has specific requirements for aspect ratios and editing, so provide clear instructions to the videography team to ensure compatibility.
- Think beyond the ordinary, and don’t limit yourself to the standard fly-through videos. Consider alternative approaches like lifestyle and local area films. Lifestyle films can showcase potential lifestyles your property offers. If it’s a retail space, highlight how potential buyers and tenants can use it to grow their enterprises. Local area films highlight nearby amenities and attractions — perfect for mixed-use spaces and showing how a new healthcare clinic fits into the community.
Email marketing: Nurturing leads and tracking engagement
Email marketing allows you to build relationships with potential customers and guide them through the sales funnel. By sending targeted emails, you provide valuable information and encourage these potential clients to take action.
Email marketing platforms offer detailed analytics, enabling you to track open and click-through rates and other metrics. You can use this data to refine your email campaigns and optimize your marketing efforts.
For listing representatives
Listing reps can use automated newsletter-type email campaigns to reach tenant reps with timely updates on vacant properties and spaces. A robust marketing platform simplifies the process by providing a centralized database for consistent listing data, marketing materials, branding, and contact information.
Listing brokers receive notifications of upcoming properties. Before these spaces are officially listed, marketing teams can verify the accuracy of all property information and then use the platform to quickly generate tailored emails — even before properties are publicly available — to pre-selected lists of tenant reps.
Prompt communication is crucial when you respond to leads. You may start with a preliminary phone call to discuss options and availabilities, but prospects often request more information via an email summary. Listing reps can easily select desired spaces and generate comprehensive emails with brochures, virtual tours, and other relevant marketing materials. An integrated listing database helps you keep information up-to-date, accurate, and consistent with your brand.
Want to qualify leads and maintain engagement? Put follow-up emails to work. A comprehensive email marketing platform lets you send targeted follow-up messages with specific questions to filter out low-quality leads. You can vary questions based on asset type and include lease start dates, business specifics, company size, space preferences, and other relevant details.
For tenant representatives
Tenant reps can enhance their prospecting efforts by conducting thorough research and tailoring their approach to specific client needs. Personalized emails are more likely to engage potential clients and drive actions. When you create your lists, consider factors like:
- Role and seniority, identifying those with decision-making authority within an organization.
- Prior experience, targeting those who’ve had positive experiences with your services or are familiar with your expertise.
For example, a tenant rep specializing in retail and restaurant space could create a targeted list of potential clients in their market. Then, using the email marketing platform, they could quickly generate personalized, branded emails introducing themselves and highlighting their market knowledge. This strategy showcases their expertise and empowers them to offer their services to clients seeking new locations, relocations, or lease renegotiations.
When working with clients with specific space requirements, brokers can create emails outlining their clients’ needs and send them to a particular list of owners and landlord rep-focused brokers. This approach can help uncover hidden opportunities that meet unique client requirements.
The importance of long-term marketing investment
According to Litmus, investing in marketing pays off handsomely. One recent survey found that for every $1 spent on email marketing, the return is $36. A Wyzowl report found that 90% of marketers said video marketing generates good ROI and helps increase brand awareness. Over 85% said video helps generate leads.
The moral of this story? Effective marketing requires ongoing effort and investment. A successful marketing strategy often involves a combination of channels, including video, email, social media, a website, and more. Using multiple platforms lets you reach a wider audience and increase your brand’s exposure. Don’t be afraid to experiment with different tactics and adjust your strategy as needed.
Are you a commercial real estate investor — or looking for a specific property to meet your company’s needs? We invite you to talk to the professionals at CREA United, an organization of CRE professionals from 92 firms representing all disciplines within the CRE industry, from brokers to subcontractors, financial services to security systems, interior designers to architects, movers to IT, and more.
