Real Estate Marketing - Attrition is Your Sworn Enemy
Attrition is the enemy of real estate marketing. So to be
successful in your marketing, you first have to understand the concept of
attrition. You also have to work hard to reduce it.
This article will help you understand attrition and give you tips for reducing
it within your real estate marketing program. Let's begin with a basic
definition.
What is Attrition?
The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines attrition as "a reduction in
numbers usually as a result of resignation, retirement, or death." Don't
worry, we're not talking about retirement or death here. But we are talking
about a reduction in numbers -- and the size of that reduction has a direct
impact on your real estate marketing success.
Now let's convert that definition
for real estate marketing purposes.
Real Estate Marketing
Attrition
In your marketing program, attrition refers to the number of people who do not
take the actions you want them to take. At each step in the marketing process,
you stand to lose some people. The more people you lose along the way, the less
successful your real estate marketing program will be. So let's talk about
minimizing attrition by using the following example.
A Real Estate Marketing
Scenario
Let's consider a marketing campaign that combines real estate
postcards and web-based lead generation. It's a solid marketing strategy --
one that I've seen used successfully many times in the past. But like any real
estate marketing strategy, it has attrition points:
- Attrition
Point #1 - When you mail the postcards, a certain
percentage of them will not reach the intended recipient's due to bad
addresses and the like.
- Attrition
Point #2 - Of those people who do receive your
postcards, only a small percentage will respond and visit your website.
- Attrition
Point #3 - Of those people who visit your website, some
will not find what you want them to find. Or they simply won't be
interested and they'll leave.
- Attrition
Point #4 - Of those who visit your website and take the
action you want them to take (perhaps signing up for market alerts), some
will mistype their email address.
- Attrition
Point #5 - Finally, of those who (A) get the postcard,
(B) respond to it and visit your website, (C) take the action you want
them to take, and (D) have no technical issues ... only a portion of them
will be qualified prospects.
I don't tell you all this to
discourage you. On the contrary, I want you to understand the concept of
attrition so you can build a real estate marketing program that minimizes
attrition as much as possible.
Attrition is a fierce enemy that
cannot be defeated entirely. But you can certainly reduce it, and thereby minimize
the impact it has on your real estate marketing success. For instance, let's
refer back to the marketing scenario above. Here are some ways we might reduce
the amount of attrition at each of the five points listed:
- To
Minimize Point #1 - You can optimize your postcard deliverability
by updating your mailing list, or by purchasing a fresh list from a
reliable vendor such as InfoUSA.
- To
Minimize Point #2 - You can increase your postcard response by
adding value to your offer (even in a non-monetary way) and strengthening
your call to action.
- To
Minimize Point #3 - You can help people find what they came for
on your website by adding a graphical link to it on your home page.
- To
Minimize Point #4 - You can minimize the number of people who
mistype their email address by using double-entry verification on your web
forms.
- To Minimize Point #5 - You can increase the percentage of qualified prospects who respond by using an offer that will only appeal to certain people (sellers, for example).
Understanding marketing attrition
is the first step in reducing it. So think about your own real estate marketing
strategies. Map out the various steps in the process, and jot down the
attrition points. They should be fairly easy to spot after reading this
article. Then think of all the things you can do to minimize each point of
attrition, and work hard to do exactly that.
Brandon Cornett provides real estate Internet marketing services and SEO support for real estate agents nationwide. Visit the author online at http://www.armingyourfarming.com