When you have a house for sale, whether you are a real estate agent or you are trying to sell your home yourself, you must accept that some marketing methods are more popular than others. This article takes a look at a few marketing strategies, both old and new, in order of their apparent popularity.
The Classified Listing is Still King
If the countless advertisements in the classified section of every daily newspaper in the country are anything to go by, then the classified listing is still considered a viable marketing method for real estate in this country. Many agents list their properties for sale and rent in two out of three of the newspapers to make sure they capture both sets of loyal readers. Many Trinis are also fairly cognizant of the fact that The Guardian newspaper has a more extensive list of homes for sale, while if you are looking for a place to rent you might have better luck looking through the pages of the Trinidad Express. The Newsday’s classified section leaves a lot to be desired so although some agents pay for a listing there it is not as popular as the other two daily newspapers when it comes to classified advertizing. This method comes first because despite the rise of internet use, it seems like it still can’t beat the time worn tradition of pouring over the Sunday newspaper with a cup of coffee and circling listings that catch your eye.
Online Advertizing for Real Estate is Popular
Trinbagonians are also advertizing properties for sale online. There are a few sites that are dedicated solely to this purpose and list properties for sale and rent by different agents alongside each other, but many real estate agents also have a listings section on their company website. A considerable portion of the home-buyer and home-seller market already consider the internet a part of their daily lives so reaching out to them online seems like the logical and smart thing to do. Online listings have the added benefit of offering the house hunter the ability to view pictures of both the outside and inside the home. Local agents like the convenience of referring an interested buyer to a website for a first look instead of driving from one end of the country to the next when the chances are great that the buyer will not be interested. Online access to pictures and information helps both the home buyer and the agent because less time is wasted viewing homes that do not fit the buyer’s taste preference.
Local Real Estate on Facebook
TriniRealty spoke to Ryan Joseph, the owner and administrator of the popular Facebook group The Property Vault. The group has well over 2,000 members and counting so it has every right to tout itself as “the largest Facebook real estate group in Trinidad”. When asked to share approximately how much of The Property Vault’s business comes from FaceBook advertizing Ryan expressed that “It might be a bit challenging to put a statistic to the business we generate from FB, but I would estimate it accounts for 35% of our rentals and 30% of our sales.” Ryan also indicated that his company does not rely solely on Facebook advertizing but used other more traditional methods as well. He believes his success in real estate is because he has come up with a great mix of using the traditional and the cutting-edge to market his services.
Yard Sign Stigma
Although standard real estate marketing theory states that a yard sign is integral to the marketing success of the home, many local real estate agents express frustration that Trini home-sellers are often against putting up yard signs. They say that they have heard reasons ranging from “they don’t want the neighbours to know they are selling yet” to “they don’t want to attract curious buyers to stop without the agent present”. While some home sellers do agree to a yard sign their general consensus seems to be that there must be a better way.
If you are thinking of putting your home on the market, TriniRealty hopes that this snapshot of popular current marketing strategies gave you some ideas on how your agent can attract buyers to your doors.