Content Marketing for Real Estate Agents

Tips for beginners and others who want to diversify their marketing plan

The only thing you might know about content marketing is that it involves, dare we say it . . . writing. And for that reason, you may have avoided it like a vampire avoids sunlight. You certainly wouldn’t be alone in your aversion.

But here’s the thing—content marketing isn’t restricted to writing blogs.

What is content marketing?

Check out this definition from the Content Marketing Institute and you’ll quickly see that, while a written blog is certainly a type of content marketing, it’s far from your only option:

Content marketing is a strategic marketing approach focused on creating and distributing valuable, relevant, and consistent content to attract and retain a clearly defined audience. It ultimately aims to drive profitable customer action.[1]

See? Not one word about writing.

Content marketing works because it creates brand loyalty. When you consistently provide information that is educational, interesting, engaging, relevant—in short, valuable to your audience—they’ll keep coming back. Then, when your audience is ready to buy, they’ll come to you because you’re top-of-mind.

One more point before we move on.

Content marketing and digital marketing are not the same things. People often put them into the same bucket. It’s probably because today’s primary means of distributing content are digital: blogs, videos, websites, podcasts, and the like. But while content and digital marketing often intermingle, they are different animals.

Why you should use content marketing

This week’s Stay Paid guest is Dustin Brohm. As a new real estate agent, Brohm struggled to make it work. It wasn’t until he began to think of himself as a marketer who sold homes that he became obsessed with content marketing and found success. Now he teaches other agents about content marketing and hosts the award-winning Massive Agent Podcast.

Among the reasons why Brohm suggests real estate agents use content marketing is that you aren’t fully occupied chasing the next lead. When your specific audience can find your content, and it provides the value they want, they will come to you.

Producing good content enhances your credibility in the eyes of your audience. As Josh points out, it’s like what happens when you write and publish a book—suddenly, you become the expert.

The second reason is a by-product of the first. When clients come directly to you, you don’t have to compete with other agents for their business.

But content marketing isn’t a game for the “make a quick buck and get out” bunch. It’s a patient person’s game. Brohm was lucky—he got his first bite 90 days after he started using content marketing.

It takes time to produce enough content to become a consistent presence on your platform(s) of choice. Then it takes a while, sometimes a long while, before the algorithms of the various search engines start pushing your content to the top of the SERP. And you need enough momentum to gather a following.

Getting started using content marketing

The old saying is true, practice makes perfect. But don’t wait until you’re perfect to start putting out content.

You don’t have to be a professional actor to make a YouTube video, or an established author to write a blog, or another Terry Gross to host a podcast. You just have to be “decent,” explains Brohm. You’ll get better the more you do it. (Compare Josh today with the Josh in episode 21, and you’ll be fine.) All that matters, he says, is that your content is interesting, valuable, and can grab your audience’s attention.

When developing content, Brohm explains, the most important thing is the topic. Too often agents talk, speak, and write about themselves—what they sold, when they sold it, how fast they sold it, where they sold it, their credentials, yadda, yadda, yadda. What you should do is push aside what we want to say and what we want our audience to know, in favor of what our audience wants and what they care about.

During the interview, Brohm suggests topics that, based on his experience, work very well for real estate agents because they engage the audience. And he makes a distinction about the content you would publish on platforms like Facebook and Twitter and the type of content that should live on your website or on YouTube.

Content marketing for real estate agents in 2021

Brohm maintains the first thing real estate agents need to know about content marketing is, “Ultimately, you need to be seen by as many people as possible, as often as possible, in as many places as possible. And provide something of value.”

How and where you decide to do that should be based on what you enjoy, how comfortable you are with what you’re doing, and where your audience is likely to be. After that, success with content marketing is all about being consistent. Consistency breeds familiarity, which will build your audience’s confidence and trust in you.

Finally, Brohm notes two trends he believes will separate the winners from the losers. The first is video.

It’s imperative, he claims, that in 2021, agents find a way to make a personal connection with the people they’re marketing to. Video courts attention and makes it easier for people to get to know, like, and trust you. It’s the next best thing to shaking hands.

The second trend is the growing gap between those who act and those who make excuses.

Today, with the resources available, there is no reason why you can’t find out what you need to know to improve your game. There’s only a lack of willingness to find out.

In the end, it’s the people who learn, do, move forward, fall, and look to improve who will get more of the pie.

Key Points

• The topic of your content is what matters most. It needs to be about what your audience wants to know and what they care about.
• The goal of content marketing is to create brand loyalty. You do that not by pitching products and services, but by consistently providing content that is valuable to your audience.
• You need to be seen by as many people as possible, in as many places as possible, as often as possible. Strive to be omnipresent.

Action Item

Start producing content for your audience. The easiest way to begin is with your FAQs.

Connect | Resources

Facebook: @massiveagent

Instagram: @massiveagent

Podcast: https://massiveagentpodcast.com/

____________________

[1] “What Is Content Marketing?”, Content Marketing Institute, December 17, 2012, https://contentmarketinginstitute.com/what-is-content-marketing/.