Saturday, September 14, 2013

Budgeting to Market Your Real Estate Career

Making a living in real estate is very different from being an employee . You do not just "get " be your own boss , you get to take care of their own business expenses.The biggest, of course, is the tax. If in the U.S. Should allow about 15% of self-employment Social Security and Medicare , and then from 15 % for federal income taxes and state - depending on your total household income . I advise to deduct much of each check and hide in a savings account .To reduce tax debt , consult your tax advisor for a list of allowable deductions and start recording all deductible expenses , as soon as you start your career.After that, self marketing and competing for office # 2 with his car . Budget of gasoline - and also for regular maintenance , tires and the eventual replacement of the vehicle.
Your marketing budget should include the initial expense of setting up your website, divided into 12 or 24 months. This was the money from his pocket and must "pay back " of the working committees . But even if you need to borrow a little to do , you should have a website.
 According to the NAR , over 80 % of all buyers search the internet before visiting a real estate agent . Informal survey says that sellers are also on the Internet - to find the Realtor who does the best job of promoting their ads.Buying a domain name and setup your page is relatively cheap, but do the budget as a monthly hosting cost .

Depending on your own experience in writing copy that will appeal to your visitors and the search engines , much of this spending will contract the services of a copywriter. Do not skimp on your website, and your website is the first impression you have many prospects .At the same time , do not go overboard. Graphics and colors are nice, but sometimes confuse the issue . The purpose of the site is to show visitors why they have to call for real estate - not to show her artistic side .So you do not have to pay for expensive web design , and while you must walk away from a $ 10 per page writer, you also do not have to pay several thousand dollars a page for your copy. Shop copywriter web sites , look at the samples , and make an informed decision .Choose writer with a conversational tone that sounds like you. Too much jargon sounds immature and unprofessional , but they sure do not need Miss Picklefeather grammar .After that, be sure to allow the replacement of your business cards and personal brochures , postage and printing for regular shipments to its sphere of influence and prospecting list , plus postage and printing thank you cards, just listed cards , greeting cards, etc.
  
Your newsletter :In my opinion, after the website, your newsletter is the most valuable marketing device . It keeps you in your prospects minds giving them valuable or interesting information , so it is set as the expert in your market. Because it gives a good content, is read instead of "cast on arrival. "Equally important are the thank you cards to be sent daily. This makes you stand out from the crowd and creates a feeling of warmth in their recipients. What better way to make people think of you in a positive way ? 

Print advertising :You may feel that you have to print advertising because your competitors are doing. I doubt it .A full page in a magazine Homes is expensive , so if you do, track the results and discontinued if there is none. You really have to be there because there are other people. If you think you should have a presence , see if you can share a page with other agents.Your local newspaper may or may not be a good place to advertise . Again, the key test . But I firmly believe that you should use " advertising paper" instead of blocking ads that essentially say "I am a realtor and I need your business, so give me a call . " Your articles need not be long, just informative and useful .Find out the cost of a decent size ad and put it in your budget. But if you do not get results , stop and use that money elsewhere - such as expanding the newsletter recipient list .

Miscellaneous:Even if your office their signs , allowing the money to invest in the corridors sign with your name on them . If the office does not provide boxes of brochures and flyers printing your home, add to your budget as they are important.Depending on your previous career , you may need to add to your wardrobe . Put it in the budget and do it slowly . Remember that your customers do not see every day, so you do not need a new outfit for every day of the month. New shoes are not really part of marketing unless all are old sneakers . A good jacket it is, because it will convey a professional image .You definitely need a cell phone - customers expect to be able to find, even when you are out showing or eating food . Try to find a plan with unlimited minutes so you can make those expensive long distance calls from your cell phone .And speaking of food, make room in your budget to take clients to lunch if you schedule a full day of show . Hopefully, you will be able to say that customers are worth the investment , and that only you are using as a tour guide . Sad but true , some do. Some even visit Realtors and look at the houses or properties as a hobby.Prepare your budget, track your return on marketing investment , and adjust your expenses accordingly. One of the biggest mistakes a company can make is in failing to see that their customers are and continue throwing money in marketing without return on investment.

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