Introduction
Digital marketing for real estate has been gaining traction for the past few years. Gone are the days when people used to depend on newspapers and local agents in quest of real estate properties. Real estate is no longer an offline business. Today, the internet has leveraged people with the power to find the best-suited real estate projects with just a few clicks. Real estate agents dealing with a plot of land and buildings had lost control of their power and are now learning the importance of digital marketing for real estate in India and putting in the necessary marketing efforts to re-establish their dominance in the sector. According to a recent study, 98% of millennials (ages 23 to 38) search online compared to 89% of baby boomers (55 to 73) and 72% of the silent generation (74 to 91).
Thus, the need for a proper marketing strategy for real estate in the digital arena has become the need of the hour. In addition, digital marketing helps boost brand visibility by establishing an online presence. As a result, buyers and real estate agents feel that digital marketing is the best way to generate quality leads.
Challenges in Real Estate Through Traditional Marketing
Competitive Market
The real estate marketing industry is highly competitive and crowded, with numerous players vying for the attention of potential clients. As a result, there is an overwhelming amount of information available, making it difficult for individuals to sift through it all and find what they need. Moreover, if the message is not conveyed effectively, it can easily get lost in the noise.
Lack of Profit
Traditionally, real estate companies have relied heavily on traditional marketing methods to reach out to their target audience. This includes print advertising, billboards, and TV commercials. However, these methods can be quite expensive and may not always yield the desired results. As a result, many real estate companies are turning towards more cost-effective marketing strategies such as digital marketing.
Volatility
The real estate industry is a highly competitive and crowded marketplace, with numerous players vying for the attention of potential clients. As a result, the profit margin and conversion rate can often fluctuate due to the constant changes in market conditions and the level of competition. Factors such as supply and demand, interest rates, and consumer preferences can all have a significant impact on the industry, and real estate companies must be able to adapt to these changes to remain profitable.
Reputation Building
The real estate industry is an incredibly competitive marketplace, with numerous players vying for the attention of potential clients. In such a crowded market, it can be challenging to maintain a loyal customer base and a positive image. Real estate companies must work hard to build trust and establish long-term relationships with their clients, which requires a high level of customer service and communication which is not attainable easily using traditional forms of marketing.
How Can Real Estate Companies Leverage Digital Marketing Services
Google Ads (Formerly known as Google Adwords)
Search Ads
Google search ads are online ads that appear on the search engine result page when users search a particular keyword on Google. These ads can be mainly PPC or pay-per-click ads, in which advertisers pay for each ad click. Google’s PPC search ads are managed by Google’s AdWords advertising platform, allowing advertisers to bid on keywords, craft ad text, and more.
Display Ads
Display advertising is a form of marketing that delivers highly visual and personalised ad experiences based on customer intent signals using text, logos, animations, videos, photographs, or other graphic materials. Display advertisers frequently target users with particular traits to increase the ads’ effect. The Google Display Network is a great way to increase brand awareness among potential customers unaware of the brand.
Video Ads
Google Video Ads are mainly used to improve the reach and engage with a wide range of audiences on YouTube and through Google video partners. With video ads, one can use demographic targeting to reach your audience.
Social Media Use to Increase Engagement
The average time spent on Facebook by an individual is 35 minutes. This allows real estate developers to use Facebook as a medium for marketing their brands. Advertise on Facebook with a choice of placements such as News Feed, Stories, Marketplace, Video Feeds, Right Column, In-Stream Videos, Search, etc.
According to FitSmallBusiness.com, only 14% of realtors are on Instagram. Yet, at the same time, 83% of home buyers wanted pictures of properties online. Thus, realtors can drive awareness, increase customers and share their brand’s story with a highly engaged audience.
Twitter has become quite an excellent micro-blogging site that has proven to be a helpful marketing tool for the real estate market.
LinkedIn is a powerful medium to increase awareness and promote the brand among B2B profiles. Real estate developers can use LinkedIn to connect with architects, interior designers, and other professionals.
SEO
With SEO or Search Engine Optimisation,web pages can be made discoverable, rank on the search engines, increase organic tractions, and help get regular organic leads through proper SEO.
Social Media Marketing
Social networking platforms can be used to advertise and promote real estate brands by creating awareness about the brands and increasing the potential customer base through continuous optimisation of organic posts and ads.
Content Writing
Content writing is vital in digital marketing for real estate in India. Whether it is website development or creating campaigns, clear and crisp communication is the crux of every advertising.
Website Designing & Development
Website designing and development is a crucial aspect of building an online presence for any brand or business. The design of a website should align with the brand’s identity, including its colour palette, typography, tone of communication, and relationship with its customers.
Developing a website involves not only creating a visually appealing layout but also ensuring that it is user-friendly and easy to navigate. The design and development of a website should cater to the needs of the target audience while also meeting the business’s objectives and purpose.
Website Maintenance
Designing and developing a website is only half the battle won. The most critical factor in maintaining an online presence is to ensure that the website is regularly updated with fresh content and relevant information.
Website maintenance involves making sure that all the website’s functionalities are working correctly and that there are no broken links or errors.
Regular website maintenance helps to enhance user experience, increase website traffic, and improve search engine rankings. A well-maintained website ensures that the visitors have a smooth experience and can quickly find the information they are looking for.
Digital Marketing Metrics in Real Estate
Cost Per Conversion
Also known as Cost per Action, it displays how much it costs to get a real customer who will take a successful conversion route.
A conversion might depend on what the company wants from the customers, like making a purchase, signing up, or watching a video. CPC signifies how fruitful an ad is in achieving its goal based on the total cost of that ad.
Traffic and Impressions
Website traffic refers to the number of users visiting a website. It is usually measured in session numbers, purchase percentage, channels, and bounce rates. Impressions refer to the number of times a visitor looks into a specific page element, be it an image, text, video, or content. These are calculated to the amount an advertiser needs to pay to advertise his ad on the website and based on the advertisements.
Qualified Leads Ratio
It is the number of leads who visit a website and convert to customers compared to the total number of visits.
Leads by Source
There are many ways to increase your leads. The principal point is the need to identify the best lead sources. Once you know where the traffic is coming from, the next step is to focus on that area. Your website should be one of the top sources of lead generation.
Lead Generation
Lead generation recognises, entices, and converts people into prospective customers through various marketing channels and lead generators. Common lead generation channels include search, social media platforms, email, landing page, and website.
Advantages of Digital Marketing for Real Estate in India
Digital marketing is an effective mode of marketing for online real estate businesses. Businesses are reaping the fruits of the digital approach, which has allowed them to transcend the physical boundaries and engage with customers through the internet. Let’s take a closer look at all the advantages of digital marketing for real estate in India:
Brand Awareness
In today’s time, everything is a click away. Connectivity is the key to a business’s success. In real estate, buyers no longer prefer to visit property developers’ offices for information. Instead, they can easily filter their needs and wants into a search engine and have a list of properties they are looking for.
Developers can decide their target audience by reaping the benefits of digital marketing in business. The target audience can be defined based on geographical reach, psychographics, and behavioural components.
Narrowing the target audience is an intelligent move to focus only on those who fall into the company’s purview of the product. It builds an effective and sustainable business model and decreases the risk of marketing going in vain.
Identifying a Target Market
Developers can decide their target audience by reaping the benefits of digital marketing in business. The target audience can be defined based on geographical reach, psychographics, and behavioural components.
Narrowing the target audience is an intelligent move to focus only on those who fall into the company’s purview of the product. It builds an effective and sustainable business model and decreases the risk of marketing going in vain.
Cost Efficiency
Digital marketing budgets are low compared to traditional marketing. For example, let’s take conventional outdoor media and a Google ad. The outdoor ad needs to be run in every city separately, while the google ad is run on a single platform that is visible to everyone irrespective of geographical location. As digital marketing campaigns are measurable in real-time, tweaking the message and changing platforms is the scope.
Multilingual Marketing
Readers who consume content in their native language are more likely to engage with it. This increases brand awareness and recall and lends a sense of trust to your customer. A customer buys a property when a friend or relative recommends it. Real estate companies should use a vernacular approach for their content marketing strategy to better communicate with their target customers.
Trends for Digital Marketing for Real Estate in India
Chatbots
Real Estate marketing is a complex process due to its nitty-gritty. Properties are not something people buy at any moment. There is a lot of thinking and research in the process. Thus, lead generation becomes a concern.
Chatbots for real estate projects help in untwining the complexity. With a 24×7 availability of chatbots, it is easier for people to ask the basic queries they have regarding the properties. The more personalised touch the bot has the more chance of conversion of leads. Chatbots can help in lead generation at all levels of the sales funnel. Chatbots can do it all by providing potential buyers with essential information to set up a virtual tour.
Augmented Reality
Augmented Reality (AR) works as a game-changer in the real estate business. It has opened several doors for both sellers and buyers. By using AR, real estate buyers can see the property before putting in the effort to travel there. Advancement AR has opened the door of opportunities by providing customised services along with a unique user experience. With AR, potential clients can also view how their homes look after complete furnishing.
Blockchain Technology
Generally, real estate transactions are conducted offline and in person with various entities. However, blockchain has changed the way businesses do transactions in recent times. With the introduction of smart contracts in blockchain platforms, assets like real estate are tokenised and traded like cryptocurrencies like bitcoin and ether.
Need help with your real estate digital marketing strategy? With 6 years of experience as a real estate digital marketing agency and with the clientele, including top real estate companies in Mumbai, Altois provides industry-leading digital marketing for real estate in india to help you reach your marketing goals.
Altois has been recognised as one of the leading Digital Agencies by DesignRush.
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