What’s your favorite method of real estate lead generation?
Wearing your name tag and hoping to meet people who may want to buy or sell? Sure that’s fun and easy, but does it provide consistent real estate leads?
How about mailers? Those are easy and they are effective in many markets, but they can get pricey when done regularly.
Cold calling? Just kidding. No one likes cold calling.
What about blogging for real estate lead generation? This is probably the single most under-utilized lead generation method in the industry!
And today I’m going to show you how to master blogging for real estate leads.
Mastering Blogging for Real Estate Lead Generation
As a professional real estate blog writer (yes, that’s a thing!), I create real estate content that generates real estate leads for agents.
But you certainly don’t have to be a professional writer (or even hire one!) to take full advantage of blogging in your real estate business. In this post, I’m going to share my secrets to help you generate your own leads through strategic real estate blogging.
Quick note: this article was first published in June 2019. Here is the new and improved version.
How Does Blogging Generate Real Estate Leads?
There are 3 main ways blogging leads to real estate lead generation:
- Blogging increases traffic to your website
First, blogging improves your SEO, which helps prospects find you online. When buyers and sellers Google “Real Estate Agent” in your city, are you going to be on the first page? If you don’t have a blog, you have almost no chance! Blogs give Google more information on your website to index, making you more rank-worthy. Blogs also show Google that you are active, consistently providing new content to your audience. This also proves your worthiness to Google.
And when people can find you online, they come to you! You don’t have to spend all your time prospecting because people will be reaching out to you ’round the clock. For more info on SEO, check out my Introduction to SEO for Realtors®.
- Blogging demonstrates your expertise
Second, your blog demonstrates your expertise. You’ll be able to prove week after week that you know your industry and your market better than anyone else!
- Blogging increases engagement
If you’re posting valuable need-to-know info about your market, you’re building a relationship with your readers before you ever even hear from them. They start to trust you. And they start asking you questions in the comments in their early stages. That makes them much more likely to come to you when they’re ready to buy or sell.
So not only do you gain more leads from blogging, but you also generate better quality leads.
And blogging provides increasing returns!
The longer your blog is active, the faster your returns increase. We’re talking exponential growth here!
It works like this: you invest two hours in writing a high-quality post. Then that post exists on your site as a lead-generator for years to come! Your rewards will come in very slowly over a lengthy period. But once they start coming, they’ll continue to come faster and faster! You’ll experience exponential growth that you would never see buying leads or cold calling.
The Cost of Blogging for Real Estate Lead Generation
All of these benefits come at a fraction of the cost of traditional marketing methods!
Consider the cost of traditional marketing methods:
- Mailers: Mailers are a classic, low-cost method of real estate lead generation. They’re generally around $.25 per mailer, plus postage. So a few hundred dollars for each round of mailers. Sure, they work in many markets. I’m not against mailers, I just want you to get the biggest ROI possible on your marketing efforts. PS: Etsy is a little-known source of real estate mailer designs. The designs are inexpensive, and you can have a local print shop provide as many as you need.
- Door hangers: Door hangers are even less expensive than mailers since you don’t have to pay for postage. But you may want to hire someone to deliver them, so they’re still going to run a few hundred dollars. Again, check Etsy for inexpensive door hanger designs.
- Billboard: The cost of a billboard varies greatly by market, but you’ll spend at least several hundred, probably several thousand on a billboard campaign.
- Radio spots: Again, the cost depends on your market, but you could easily spend thousands on a radio campaign.
Now compare that to the cost of blogging:
- If you already have your own website, all you’re investing is your time. You can start this today at a total expense of $0!
- And if you don’t already have your own website, you can build one yourself for around $250 (which includes 3 years of web hosting!). Don’t think you can build your own website? Check out How to Build a Real Estate Website for completely free step-by-step instructions on building your own website. It’s easier than you might expect, and DYI-ing your site will save you thousands of dollars!
So why do only 11% of agents blog?
That’s right; only 11% of agents have a blog (according to the NAR). And let me tell you, if the blogs I find are any indicator, most of that 11% is garbage.
In my professional estimation, only about 2% of agents have a blog consistently updated with unique content.
What does that mean for you? It means you can edge out 98% of your competition simply by consistently writing one post per week! Now imagine how you can stand out if your posts are actually good!
The main reason so few agents blog is that they don’t know about the benefits of blogging.
But you typically won’t hear a real estate agent admit to ignorance! Instead, they’ll cite the downsides of blogging: it takes time, it takes skill, and it doesn’t provide immediate results. Let’s address some of these concerns.
It takes a lot of time
Spend your time blogging instead of cold calling and door-knocking. It’s a better long-term use of your time. And if you really don’t have time, outsource it! Professional real estate content writers like me are happy to write your blog posts for you! Learn more about real estate content writing services.
Writing is a skill that takes practice
Your writing will improve as you continue to post week-in and week-out. But again, if you would rather pay a pro to write your posts, you have that option.
Blog writing is very different than traditional writing
Even if you’re a decent academic writer, blog writing is totally different. Check out How to Write a Blog Post in 7 Easy Steps for proper blogging style.
“What would I even blog about?”
There’s plenty for you to write about! In fact, here’s your first blog post on a platter. And don’t worry, we’ll cover potential topics in your “Blogging for Real Estate Lead Generation” Game Plan coming up in this post.
Having a blog just sounds cliche
Most things sound cliche. Who cares?
It requires having your own website
You should have your own website anyway. More and more buyers and sellers continue to turn to the Internet to find their agents. It’s awfully tricky to be found when you’re just a page on your broker’s website. The good news is that it’s cheaper and easier than ever to get your own site. Here’s a guide to help you launch your site!
It’s a long game, so you don’t see results right away
You have to be patient to be successful at blogging. It will probably take six months to a year before you start seeing results. And it will probably be about two years before it really starts paying off. But again, thanks to those increasing returns, the longer you post, the more qualified leads you’ll get to your website every month. By year three, you may be able to do away with other forms of prospecting completely!
Commit yourself to incorporating blogging into your marketing plan asap.
Your “Blogging for Real Estate Lead Generation” Game Plan
Here’s a step-by-step game plan to start generating real estate leads through blogging.
Step 1: Choose Your Categories and Topics Wisely
Having blog post categories simply makes it easier for your readers to find the posts that pertain to them.
You don’t need many. Somewhere between 4 and 10 is good.
If you’re short on time, you can just borrow my most recommended real estate categories:
- Buyers
- Sellers
- Homeowners
- Locals and Newcomers
- Investors
These work perfectly for about 95% of all agents.
And now your topics…
Your real estate blog topics won’t be ground-breaking. And that’s ok.
Blogging isn’t about being the first to break a story and come up with entirely new concepts. Blogging is about building relationships with your readers and gaining new readers through engaging content.
“It’s all been said before.” Well, sure it has, but not by you. And your audience wants to hear from you. So take the topics that others have written about and put your own spin on them.
Do you want to know the secret of spinning your own unique content out of the same topics other agents are using? The best way to make your content unique is to localize it! Tackle your topics from a local point of view. It’s as easy as adding “in [your market]” to the end of your blog topic.
So instead of writing about how millennials can financially prepare to buy a home, write about how millennials can financially prepare to buy a home in San Diego.
“The Pros and Cons of Going FSBO” becomes “The Pros and Cons of Going FSBO in Denver”.
“How to Make the Most of Small Spaces” becomes “How to Make the Most of Small Spaces in Seattle“.
Sure, much of the information in your post will apply nationwide, but you’re not trying to reach the whole nation. You’re specifically speaking to people interested in your local market. So make sure to cover the details that make your local market different from the rest of the country.
To brainstorm topics, start by asking yourself what questions you get most often. Each question is a potential blog post.
Need a shortcut? You can purchase a done-for-you real estate blog content calendar on Etsy! And for luxury agents, check out this blog content calendar specifically targeting luxury clientele.
Step 2: Do your Keyword Research
Keywords are a critical component of SEO. When people enter words and phrases into Google, you want your website to show up in the first three pages, and ideally on the first page. Choosing your keywords strategically will help more of your blog posts rank higher on Google.
So what keywords do you need to target?
Each post should have its own targeted keywords. You want your chosen keywords to have low competition, as well as a healthy number of monthly Google searches.
Google’s free Keyword Planner is my favorite tool for researching keywords. For all the details on using Keyword Planner to carefully choose your keywords, check out Intro to SEO for Realtors®.
Researching keywords can be time-consuming. But it’s well worth it because it provides a huge boost to your blog traffic. And, as we’ve already discussed, you’re investing the time now to reap the benefits for the next few years.
Having said that, the done-for-you blog content calendar mentioned earlier includes researched keywords for a full year of blog posts. So it may be well worth the investment if you’re short on time (or patience!).
Step 3: Create Quality Content
What makes for “quality content”? It all starts with providing solid information and advice for your readers. That’s priority #1. Give your audience the answers they need.
From there, there are lots of little tricks for making your blog top-notch. Like using headers and bullet point lists for easy reading, and adding images to make the post more engaging.
Check out How to Write a Blog Post in 7 Easy Steps for some killer tips on creating compelling blog content for real estate lead generation.
Step 4: Publish Consistently
As with most tasks, consistency is the key to seeing results.
Jogging once won’t do much for you, but jogging consistently will change your body. Taking one music lesson won’t make you a musician, but playing consistently will! And you probably won’t get a single lead from a few blog posts, but publishing consistently will create sustainable real estate lead generation.
Aim to publish one post per week. Commit to doing this for one year and see where your business is at the end of the year!
Step 5: Promote Your Posts
The Internet is a big place! People don’t generally just stumble across blog posts (especially when you’re new to blogging and Google hasn’t taken notice of you yet). You can’t wait for people to find your blog on their own; you need to force your post in front of eyeballs!
And social media is the perfect way to do that.
You may have already started your social media marketing to reach potential buyers and sellers. But you can do so much more than post words of wisdom and memes! Posting links to your blog offers your audience a chance to learn more about real estate, see how much you know about your local market, and join the conversation.
You’re providing a ton of value to your audience, which will make them far more likely to remember you when the time comes to buy or sell.
Ways to Get a Head Start on Your Real Estate Lead Generation Blogging Plan
If you’re feeling overwhelmed by this process, remember, there are a few strategic shortcuts you can take to get a head start.
- Skip the planning and keyword research with a done-for-you blog content calendar.
- We’ve done the prep work for your first blog post, from your title to your keywords and outline ideas. Check out How to Crush Your First Blog Post.
Get a Small Win
Great victories are the result of small wins. Before you get busy with the rest of your day, get yourself a small win!
Today’s small win challenge is to plan at least one month of blog posts (or order a done-for-you blogging calendar so you’re ready to go for the whole year). Then schedule your blogging time for each week into your calendar.
This exercise will only take about 15 minutes, but it will put you on the path to serious success in blogging for real estate lead generation!
