The best hundred bucks a real estate agent can spend

You could write your own property listings … OR, you could invest around 0.65% of your commission to have them written by a professional marketing copywriter. It’s chicken feed when you think about it but that powerful, enticing listing needn’t take you hours to write.

What is the job of a real estate agent?

I’ve asked agents this question myself and they variously tell me:

• “To connect buyers with vendors.”
• “To sell property.”
• “To make a sale.”

Then I ask them what their strengths have to be in order to do those things. They tell me:

• “I am good at meeting and talking to people and building relationships.”
• “I excel at solving problems for clients (both vendors and buyers).”
• “I have great instincts and a genuine affinity for real estate.”

Not one of them says their strengths are writing, making coffee, driving, taking photos, doing letterbox drops, managing paperwork or hammering signs into the ground yet they do all these things in the course of their job. Some might pay a local teenager ten bucks an hour to deliver their letterbox leaflets. Most will have the office admin assistant make the coffee. Even more will attempt to write their own listings and photograph properties. And all of that takes time; time that could be better – and for sure, more profitably – spent nurturing relationships by:

• Making calls to follow up with locals who have expressed interest in selling their property.
• Making calls to follow up with potential buyers who still haven’t found what they’re looking for.
• Organising coffee meetings to discuss selling or buying goals.
• Networking to meet new people and increase visibility.
• Attending local events such as sports matches, fetes, street parties, garage sales, markets, school musicals, car washes or store openings.

Outsourcing the copywriting to a real estate listing writer

The real estate agents for whom I write property listings know and appreciate the value of:

1. Not having to write them themselves: “I don’t have time to sit in front of a blank screen and try to come up with enticing wording for my listings.”
2. Keeping time free to call or meet with people: “The more I’m out and about, the bigger my contacts list becomes and I always have that resource to turn to when a new property comes across my desk.”
3. Well written marketing copy that motivates the reader to act:“Never underestimate the value of well-written property listings.”

What’s really wrong with poorly written copy?

You’ve seen them; the listings that are riddled with typos, grammatical and spelling errors. But just as awful are the listings that don’t say much about the property beyond “close to schools and public transport, great family home, 4 bed/3 bath, motivated vendor”.

A good copywriter can turn a property listing into an enticing story without it sounding like a romantic novel. A good copywriter will skilfully extract the lifestyle appeal of a property and articulate them so that the reader will picture themselves living there. Once that’s achieved, the would-be buyer will feel compelled to make contact with the agent.

Return on investment

So what about the fees? Marketing copy is an investment. You are investing in enhancing your opportunity to sell a product.

One of the most important things to remember when engaging a professional copywriter to write your real estate property listings is the end return on investment. It is a tax-deductible marketing expense, yes, but it’s a mistake to consider the copywriter’s fee as a ‘cost’, or as a percentage of those expenses. Think instead of what portion it makes up of your ultimate commission and then you’ll see that it’s the proverbial ‘chicken feed’.

“You either do all you can to sell a property, or you don’t. It’s that simple.”

Wiser words were never spoken. It’s just not good enough to apply a half-hearted effort to the marketing of a property. Poor quality photography and poorly written listings are akin to driving your would-be buyers around in a rusty, early model station wagon with dog hairs all over the seats and junk food wrappers on the floor. You simply wouldn’t do it, would you?

Copywriting fees as low as $100* per listing

Yes, that low, to be assured of rapid turnaround (usually within hours), excellent copy and a hassle-free process.

Consider this: On a sell price of $500,000, the investment you will commit to copywriting equates to less than one per cent of your commission.

Call me on 0404 879 100 to discuss writing your property listings professionally.

What other real estate-related copywriting services can I help you with?

Ad hoc content

• Your professional bio
• LinkedIn articles
• Industry magazine articles

Regular content

• Blog posts
• e-newsletters

Proof of cred content

• Have me interview your clients to extract detailed testimonials.
• Case studies.