Advertising your business, what do you do?

N2124v

N2124v

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Austin, TX
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N2124V
I have a real estate firm in Austin, TX (www.rapportre.com, if interested). We are currently doing some direct mail campaigns and local newsletter advertising and getting decent response, but I want to try some different things. What have you tried with your business that worked or that didn't?
 
Local cable channel ads are cheap and very effective. Advertise yourself and feature a house of the week. You will generate tons of listings. ;)

Craig's list for the individual homes, along with Zulu, Trulia, ect. 90% of home buyers look on the internet first. ;)

Forget direct mail and news letters...old school dead. IMHO

Facebook, twitter, social media. Only way to go today. :yes:
 
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I do not. Some of my colleagues spend $10,000+ a month on advertising, and yet I remain busier than any of them. My business is 100% dependent on word of mouth. My first partner taught me something that holds true even in this of instant gratification and the internet. Provide a good service, and your business will build. Provide a crappy service and no amount of advertising is going to save your business.
 
Why not ask your customers how they learn about your company (and other companies that they frequent)?

Word of mouth is best, but knowing where/how to target potential customers is critical to avoid wasting money.
 
Lose the junior high e-mail address. It needs to include your name.

shoop96@gmail.com

Really? :nono:

You have a decent web site, but it needs more stuff. Links to lenders, title companies you work with, loan calculators, ect. Make it a good information source.

Put your phone number under the name.
 
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Successful residential realtors in Dallas seem to work specific neighborhoods very energetically with frequent mailings of listings, sales and general pricing information. They also offer to meet with homeowners to provide assistance with any real-estate related matter and provide comps and other data.

As a result of these efforts they become household names in these neighborhoods and generate business as a result.
 
Low-ballers, retirees doing work for some extra spending money, and guys working for "friends" always seem to stay busy around here in the HVAC field. Few seem to have the money for quality work and equipment. Now the beach vacations, dining out, nice cars and toys, that is another story. I have noted on the computer how every customer found out about me. I have used YP, truck vinyl lettering, magnetic business cards(2/customer) for 13 yrs. In the last three years just my business name and number in the YP(free- well not exactly). I have also used radio and restaurant menus. I believe you need to do various things starting out. My most loyal, trustworthy, polite, anti-cheapskate customers come from word of mouth. These last five years have have been in decline and this year has been the worst. Not just my business or I would have suspected my lack of advertising. This is not the best time to start a new business. Good luck.
 
I'm working on the email address, I just got tired of messing with website stuff.

Thanks for the suggestions, keep them coming.
 
douglas393 said:
I do not. Some of my colleagues spend $10,000+ a month on advertising, and yet I remain busier than any of them. My business is 100% dependent on word of mouth. My first partner taught me something that holds true even in this of instant gratification and the internet. Provide a good service, and your business will build. Provide a crappy service and no amount of advertising is going to save your business.
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This, plus provide a spiff to the existing customers who refer new business to you.

Another avenue to explore is Constant Contact. But don't use it to spam their mailbox. Use it to provide valuable content that leads into putting your name and business back on top of their memory bank. Something like, "Did you know Realators do more than just facility property transactions? We can do xxxxx services that will increase the value of your property." and "Ever wonder how you get more out of what you have? Studies show that...... And if you want to take advantage of this, contact us at ..."
 
wabower said:
Successful residential realtors in Dallas seem to work specific neighborhoods very energetically with frequent mailings of listings, sales and general pricing information. They also offer to meet with homeowners to provide assistance with any real-estate related matter and provide comps and other data.

As a result of these efforts they become household names in these neighborhoods and generate business as a result.
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And likely establish themselves as the "get it done quickly" types versus the realtors that just post to the listing sites and hope someone will call.
 
Geico266 said:
Lose the junior high e-mail address. It needs to include your name.

shoop96@gmail.com

Really? :nono:

You have a decent web site, but it needs more stuff. Links to lenders, title companies you work with, loan calculators, ect. Make it a good information source.

Put your phone number under the name.
Click to expand...

A million times, yes. There's no reason for anyone to run a business with any domain name other than their business domain. Its so easy and inexpensive to do, it just smacks of laziness.

If you need an even more inexpensive way to do it, go with Zoho, which is free and can use your domain name with just a few small steps to configure it. Its like Google Apps, but its still free.
 
Is it possible to data mine public record birth announcements with the size of the home that the family resides in?

If the family in the modest sized 3/2/2 home has a new kid, they might also be thinking just how much smaller the existing home has become and could be your next target for selling existing home and finding new bigger digs.
 
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