I’m a little crazy about marketing.

I think about it when I’m driving on the turnpike. I watch marketing tutorials and attend webinars for fun. I’ve even been known to - confession - sleep talk about it.

Why? Because smart marketing has the power to turn goals into accomplishments. It’s the keystone of successful business plans. Not to mention, I find it addictingly exciting.

But you don’t have to be “crazy about marketing” to create an effective strategy. Here are 5 basic steps to creating a DYNAMITE Real Estate Marketing Plan:

Step 1: Determine your WHO

Clearly defining a target market is often the hardest step for many agents. If you narrow your focus to a specific type of client or area, then you’re excluding potential clients. And the more people you include, the more opportunities you’ll have. Right?

Wrong. The more targeted you are with your marketing, the more effective you will be.

Brainstorm the attributes of your ideal client. They might be someone you’d like to work with or a representation of past customers. Your ideal clients will become your Customer Personas and the foundation of your marketing strategy.

How to develop a Customer Persona:

• Research their demographics. Think about their general age, income, current location, and where they’d like to call home. How many people live in their household? Are they a first-time homebuyer or an experienced buyer looking to sell their current home?
• Tell their story. This is the step where you really start to visualize their life. Think about their lifestyle and Real Estate goals. Where do they turn for information? What are their struggles when buying or selling a home? Once you know what they’re looking for, you can determine where and how you can provide the answer.
• Give them life. You want to relate to this person like a character in a book. So, give your Customer Persona a name and a photo. Then, put all of their information on a single sheet of paper and display it as a constant reminder.

We have clearly defined Customer Personas in the Marketing Department at ERA Grizzard that guide us throughout our marketing efforts.

They are invaluable when determining where you are marketing, what message you’re presenting, and how you’ll capture potential leads.

Step 2: Set Your Budget

How much money and time do you want to commit to marketing?

Pick a budget that you’re comfortable spending every month and a realistic amount of time you’ll dedicate. Your marketing is an investment in your business and future income, so be honest with yourself.

What budget makes sense for your personal finances, and how much time will you realistically devote?   

Tip: Set aside a percentage of every closing to use towards marketing. You can use this to pay for your monthly budget or as additional spending.

If you have a more modest budget, be prepared to spend more time to offset the difference. Schedule an appointment with yourself to work on your marketing, and consider an accountability buddy to help you stay on track.  

Step 3: Set Your Goals

Your goals need to be specific and attainable within your budget.

Let’s say your goal is to “sell more lakefront homes.” What does that mean exactly? A clearer goal might be - “list 3 lakefront homes in neighborhoods A and B” or “sell 3 lakefront homes to leads generated from my website.”

Tip: Start with a larger goal for the year, and then break it up into smaller goals to stay on track.

Here’s a quick example - last year you created 100 leads on your website. One of those leads became a customer. To close your goal of 3 online leads, your smaller goals might be to triple the amount of leads to your website or increase your conversion rate to 3%.

Step 4: Create Your Strategy

Now, this is my favorite part! What are you going to DO to accomplish your goals?

Tip: Many agents find themselves starting at this step. Don’t be tempted to start a direct mail campaign, increase your online advertising, or anything else until you’ve completed steps 1 to 3.

Think back to your Customer Persona. How can you connect with this potential customer, within your budget, to achieve your goals?

Let’s put it all together in my "Downtown Delilah" example:

• Customer Persona: Downtown Delilah is a first-time homebuyer in her early thirties. She’s excited to own her own home but unsure of the process. While making a sound financial decision is important to her, lifestyle is a top priority. She wants to live in a downtown neighborhood that’s walkable and features plenty to do. She turns to Google for answers and is searching for homes on her iPhone.
• Budget: I’ll commit $350 a month and 3 hours a week to my marketing.
• Goal: I want to generate leads on my website that will result in me selling 5 homes in the downtown area. 
• Strategy: With a budget of $350, I’m going to focus my efforts online and spend more of my time. First, I’m going to sign-up for Google Adwords at $150 a month. My keywords are going to be similar to “homes for sale in downtown xyz” and direct to a page on my site with those listings. 

Next, I’m going to spend my 12 hours a month creating content on my website tailored to Downtown Delilah. I’ll write a post each week about the neighborhood, featured listings, and the homebuying process on my website’s blog. I’m going to answer the questions that Downtown Delilah is searching for.

Tip: Check out our blog for inspiration.

If I’m creating this content, I’ll need a way to capture the lead. So, I’m going to create a "lead capture". This might be as simple as “subscribe to my blog” or as advanced as using additional offers - think “Download the Ultimate Guide to Downtown XYZ."

I’m going to promote my content through my Facebook Business Page and pay $50 to promote each weekly post. I’m also going to share my posts on LinkedIn and Instagram. 

I’m going to reuse the content I create to help nurture my leads through drip email campaigns for free.

If I lost you anywhere in the strategy portion of that example, don't worry. Your actual strategy might be more or less complex.

What you need to keep in mind is your dedication and ability to execute it. Online marketing might be the most effective way to target Downtown Delilah (and online marketing is no longer the future. It's today!). However, your Customer Persona might respond to traditional advertising such as direct mail or newspaper ads. 

Step 5: Lather, Rinse, Repeat

The most important aspect of your Marketing Plan is your consistency. Whether you’re trying content marketing online or farming a lakefront neighborhood with postcards, you’ll need to give it time to see results.

At the same time, your Marketing Plan shouldn’t be a Ron Popiel “Set it and forget it” Rotisserie. You’ll need to evaluate the return on your marketing and adjust your budget and strategy throughout the year.

Developing a Marketing Plan helps you not only achieve your goals, it also stops you from wasting time and money. You can more effectively monitor your Return on Investment and pinpoint areas that need reevaluating. So, what are waiting for? 

Here’s to creating and executing a dynamite Real Estate Marketing Plan!

Do you have any tips for a successful Marketing Plan? Have you created a Customer Persona? Share them with us in the comments below!