4 Types of Content Agents Need for Lead Generation

Christy Murdock Edgar

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You may think that influencers are only celebrities, Instagram models, and big-time bloggers, but every niche and every market has its own influencers. When you create content that is helpful, relevant, and value-added, you create a community of fans and followers who look to you for advice and inspiration. Over time, you’ll be top of mind when members of your audience or online community need help with buying or selling a home.

In addition, unlike cold calling and door knocking, content generates warm leads for your real estate services. Because it increases your authority and presells you to the recipient, leads that come to you through your content are already predisposed to like and trust you.

What follows are the types of content that you’ll need along with the roles they’ll play in your overall content strategy. Remember, content planning involves an integrated system of content generation and distribution to ensure that you’re making as much impact as possible right where it counts.

person working at laptopCore Content

You’ll need a home for most of your content, and that will probably be a well-designed website. Here you’ll include information about yourself and your services, along with contact information. You may include IDX capabilities or a form where interested visitors can request a CMA. This will also be the home of any ongoing content you produce, like a blog.

Ongoing Content

Creating content is about more than just writing. If you love the camera, you can make the bulk of your content video-based. If you love chatting with colleagues or local business owners, a podcast may be for you. If you do love to write, however, you may be producing blog content on a regular basis.

Whichever format you choose, you’ll want to include a variety of topics attractively presented. For written copy, you will create some blog posts that are 750–1000 words, with longer pillar posts of 2000–3000 words to build your expertise and enhance your site’s search engine optimization (SEO).

Evergreen

Whether written or spoken, you’ll want some content that is always relevant and generally unchanging. This could include a guide for buying and selling, general information about the mortgage or closing processes, home inspection guidelines. If you’re not a writer or simply want to save time, you can also curate this content from a third-party. ReminderMedia has a library of resources, including Printables and Lead Magnets you can use to generate interest and leads for your business.

Time-sensitive

Time-sensitive content would be focused on more changeable topics like market conditions, economic factors that are affecting home sales, design trends, or local events. This would also be the place to talk about new businesses opening in the area or the top ten restaurants or shops in your market.

Social Media Content

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“If you build it, they will come” does not apply to content. You’ll need to let people know about your gorgeous website, informative blog, fascinating podcast, or most recent video. Use social media to share your content while also branding yourself and building your audience. Interact and communicate, answer questions, respond to comments, and get to know your followers to build rapport and relationships.

Direct Communication

For current leads, past clients, and family and friends in your sphere of influence, you’ll want to create some content that is personalized and directed to an audience that already knows you. Here you’ll keep folks informed of the latest happenings in your market and stay on their radar. This also gives you an opportunity to follow-up with a phone call or text message after the initial communication.

close up of mailbox

Direct Mail

Direct mail can be anything from a letter or postcard sent to your geographic farm to a branded magazine sent to your SOI. (If you’re not already using ReminderMedia’s suite of direct mail products, click here to learn more.) It should include value-added information, be beautiful to look at, and include a call to action to encourage the recipient to reach out and connect with you.

Email

An email blast can be sent from your CRM or through another service. Here you can include news, information, current listings, just solds, and links to your blog posts, podcast episodes, or videos. You could also opt to send a bi-weekly newsletter or community-based content. ReminderMedia’s Branded Posts and Local Events email products, for example, automate this process while allowing you to personalize each email with your branding and contact information.

Personal Correspondence

Never underestimate the power of a handwritten note. You may want to reach out and thank someone for their help with a recent transaction. You may want to update a friend on the status of a recent referral. You may just want to drop a line to say hello. You’ll be surprised at how much people value a kind word and the thought that goes into a personal note.

Pop-bys

Small gifts can be a great way to let people know you are thinking of them. Whether you provide a treat around the holidays, a gift card for a local coffee shop, or a small plant or bouquet of flowers to brighten their day, you’ll find that popping by and dropping off a gift with a note can make a big impression on the most valued members of your sphere. Use the pop-by as an opportunity to reconnect with someone you haven’t seen for a while or to thank someone who is your biggest cheerleader and referral source. You can even give them a call ahead of time to let them know you are leaving the gift on their porch or by their front door to abide by social distancing guidelines. We’ve got a library full of free pop-by tags, cards, and other items you can download here.

phone with recycling symbolRepurposing Content

You don’t have to continually reinvent the wheel to have an effective content marketing strategy. Repurpose your content in a variety of ways to keep it fresh and make it easier on you. For example, a guide to the home sale process could live as a blog post which then serves as the basis for a video. Take a few quotes from it and turn them into graphic cards for social media. Share the post in an email blast and transform it into a letter for a direct mail campaign.

By repurposing content in this way, you’ll reach a variety of audience segments while saving yourself both time and effort. In addition, you’ll ensure that your content is widely available and shareable, so that your audience can spread the word on your behalf.

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Written by Christy Murdock Edgar

Christy Murdock Edgar is a seasoned real estate writer and frequent columnist for Inman. Her expertise in the realm of real estate has helped agents all over the world improve their content marketing strategies.