The Importance of Effective Promotion
Even if you were to cut the price of your home in half, you could not sell it if no one knew it was available. That is why it is so important to properly promote your home. However, it is not enough just to put up a yard sign and place an ad in the Sunday paper. You must know where to put your promotion efforts, otherwise you might be wasting your time and money. The National Association of Realtors regularly polls home buyers to find out where they are learning about the homes that they are ultimately buying. The answers to the poll questions might surprise you. They are summed up in the chart above.
As you can see, the top 3 sources for buyers to find their homes are: agents, the internet, and yard signs. These three account for 75% of all homes sold today.
Agents
Agents were the number one source for buyers to find homes, accounting for 36% of homes sold. Keep in mind that this is just the percentage that first heard about their new home directly through an agent. Nearly all buyers, regardless of where they first found their home, retained the services of an agent to complete the transaction.
Internet
The internet has gone from non-existent to the second leading source for people to find the home they ultimately purchased. It accounts for 24% of homes, up from zero in 1997. It is displacing other forms of media such as newspapers and magazines. While an impressive 24% of buyers found the home they purchased directly from the internet, most of them still used a REALTOR to complete the sale. If you aren’t able to get your home listed effectively on the internet, you are missing out on a lot of potential buyers.
Yard Signs
Buyers found their homes 15% of the time simply by driving around and seeing a sign in the yard. Considering how inexpensive a yard sign is, this makes it one of the best values for promoting a property. That is also why it is important to make sure that the yard sign is attractive and easy to see. While yard signs are reasonably effective, keep in mind that there is only a one in seven chance that someone will find your home if you only have a yard sign.
Friends/Neighbors
Buyers found the home they ultimately purchased 8% of the time through their friends and neighbors. While 8% is not a very big piece of the market, it is still worth pursuing. You need an agent that knows how to reach those friends and neighbors through target marketing. Note: this is referring to the buyer’s friends and neighbors, not the seller’s.
Builders
Builders account for 8% as well. However, it would be more likely that they would be selling new construction and not pre-existing homes. So, unless you are selling a new home, a builder probably won’t be connecting you with a seller.
Print Ad/Newspaper
Buyers found the home they purchased only 5% of the time in print advertisements and newspapers. This looks like a very small number unless you happen to be the one person out of every 20 that sells their house this way! It is a matter of perspective.
Seller
Buyers found their homes 3% of the time directly from the seller. Are you networking with your family, friends, and neighbors to try to reach this 3%? Make certain that everyone you know is aware the home is for sale. Write, call, or email them; whatever it takes.
Book/Magazine
Books and magazines accounted for a combined total of only 1%. This is especially disappointing considering all the racks of real estate magazines adorning the front of every grocery store and strip mall. It is not that surprising though, especially in a growth market. That is because there can be a significant lag between the time you place a magazine ad and the time it hits the store shelves. In a hot market, it is not uncommon to have an offer before the magazine has even been printed. The effectiveness of magazines in a slow market might be slightly better. Most people would rather look on the internet, where they can filter their search for the specific type of property they are after, rather than flip through page after page hoping to stumble upon something they like.