Platinum Marketing Plan for Real Estate Agents by Curt Warner

Platinum Marketing Plan The following marketing plan was designed to help you get the most from your Platinum Pro Membership and the Platinum Sales System. The first step is to compile and gather the information, links, photos and documents you wish to include on the Platinum Homesite. You don’t need to have everything ready before beginning to build your site. You can always add details as you have time or as they become available. The most important elements are the Photos and the Description. Buyers love photos and there is no limit to how many you can include on your Platinum Homesites so go wild! Remember, your goal is to help the Buyer buy. By providing an abundance of photos and a detailed, compelling description of the property along with every other bit of information the Buyer needs to make a decision; they will make a faster decision and will pay more money. So, let’s get started! Have professional photographs taken of the property. Use a photographer that specializes in shooting residential interiors and exteriors. Be sure to get exclusive rights in writing to the use of the photographs so that the photographer cannot use the photographs or sell them to anyone else at a later date. Select the photographs that you want to appear in your Homesite. Your Homesite will automatically resize and crop the photographs when you upload them. You may add as many as you want to display. These photos will appear in the Photo Gallery and can be viewed as a Slide Show. Order a Virtual Tour. A Virtual Tour can easily be linked to your Platinum Homesite if you choose to add one. Record a Media Clip. A media clip is an ideal way for the seller to communicate the features of the home that make the property special. It is likely that the features that drew the seller to the property will also be important to a buyer. This media clip should be professionally produced and can easily be linked to your Homesite. Write copy for the marketing areas in your Platinum Homesite. You will have a text box for text that will appear on the front page of your Homesite to describe the unique features of your listing. The Platinum Ad Writer includes a list of Words and Phrases that will assist you in the composition of the copy.

Gather the items to showcase in your Platinum Homesite. Consult with the Seller to gather the items that you want to display. Items can include: Floor Plans Room Dimensions Builder Information Survey Plat Map Deed Restrictions Utility Records Homeowner’s Association Documents Title Commitment Upgrades and Additions Insurance Binder Historical Notes Articles and Publicity Unique Features Architectural Details Property Flyer Seller Disclosure Inspections Elevation Certificate Tax Certificate Tax Record Resale Certificate Appraisal Financing Information Estimated Closing Costs Building Materials and Specifications Building Allowances Approved Vendors Buyer Incentives Agent Incentives References Purchase Contracts Be creative. These items will give your Homesite depth and stimulate Buyer interest. Note: Be sure to get the Seller’s permission for the items that you choose. Always comply with federal, state and local laws and the Terms of License Agreement.

Make a list of the links that you want to use in your Platinum Homesite. Decide what links to add to your Homesite. Links can include: Neighborhood or Community Website Neighborhood Newsletter Public Schools Private Schools School Ratings Preschool and Daycare Area Golf Area Country Clubs Area Equestrian Area Lakes Area Beach Area Parks Entertainment Restaurants Local Weather Shopping Spas and Resorts Music and Film Museums Hospitals Senior Care Tennis Camping Skiing Movies and Theaters City Landmarks Mapping Your website Your company website Note: Once you have chosen the links, they can be added to a “bank” in your Homesite Control Panel so that they can be “selected” for more than one Homesite. This will save you time so that you don’t have to add the same link over and over each time you create a new Platinum Homesite. Buyers will be able to view each of these links in a separate window without leaving your Platinum Homesite.

Build your Homesite. Once you begin building your Platinum Homesite, you can add items as they become available or edit the items that you are displaying at any time. Announce your new listing by emailing “You’re the First to Know” to the Top Agents in your market. Send the announcement prior to putting the home in MLS so that these agents have the first look at your Platinum Homesite and the first opportunity to show and sell your listing. The Top Agents are agents who have either sold or listed a home in the area in the price point that matches your listing. Send a letter to your database of potential buyers, corporate executives, relocation coordinators and those who have purchased homes from you in the appropriate price range announcing the listing with the URL of your Platinum Homesite. Enclose a Virtual Open House Invitation stating… “You’re Invited to a Virtual Open House” Do this before you place the property actively on the market. Let them know that they have received the information before the home is being offered to the public. Send a press release to your local newspaper with the URL for the Homesite. Contact the various editors to do a story on your listing. Create a buzz for your new listing by sharing this unique marketing strategy with the various editors of your local and neighborhood newspapers. Business editors will be interested in the marketing strategy, while Lifestyle editors might cover the story if the house has some unique interest or is the site of a special event. If you choose to market the home through a Multiple Listing Service, add the URL to your listing in the place that you would add a virtual tour or web address. If your MLS rules will not allow this, perhaps you can add it in the body of the comments section for real estate agents. Enhance your listing at REALTOR.com by adding the URL to the listing. Add the URL in the place where you would add a virtual tour. By enhancing your listing in REALTOR.com, you are increasing the rate that your listing is viewed. Adding the URL for your Platinum Homesite will give maximum enhancement to your listing. Contact REALTOR.com for details on enhancing your listings with them. Post the Homesite in your agent website and your company website. This is a wonderful way to give Buyers the information they want when viewing your personal website or that of your company. Rather than viewing a tiny, thumb nail photo, Buyers can see all of the information that is usually reserved for “Featured Listings”. Be sure that the URL for your Homesite is prominently displayed.

Put the URL for your Homesite on all printed material and in all print advertising. Drive Buyers to your Platinum Homesite by putting the URL address on everything. It will save you space and money and create a special interest in your advertising. If you use a For Sale sign, have the URL of your Homesite put on sign riders. Any sign shop can make sign riders for your signs in just a few days. Use them on “For Sale” signs and any “Directional” signs. The neighbors are watching! Announce your new listing by tagging it onto your e-mail signature. “Visit my newest luxury home listing at www.123ParkPlace.com” or “You’re Invited to a Virtual Open House at my new luxury home listing at www.123ParkPlace.com” Add the same new listing announcement to your voice mail message. Canvass your database for matching prospects. Send a Virtual Open House invitation by e-mail to your database. “You’re Invited to a Virtual Open House”. Schedule an event at the property in coordination with an art dealer, a local charity, special holiday celebration, home tour, musical performance, lecture series or neighborhood event. Share in the cost and cross market the event. Be sure to get press for your event. Host a special event specifically for the top agents in your market and their clients to introduce them to the property. Build a database of these top agents so that they get special attention. Networking with this group will pay great dividends in cooperative sales. Prepare and place print advertising in your brokerage firm’s magazine, luxury home magazine, local newspaper or magazines. Include the URL address on everything. Many magazines and newspapers have Internet sites. Make sure that your ad, with the URL of your Homesite, appears as an on-line listing in addition to the print ad. Check to see if the neighborhood or community has a neighborhood website. Ask to post your listing in the website in exchange for writing an article about neighborhood sales and statistics. You may want to consider sponsoring your own neighborhood website, especially if you have a track record of sales in the neighborhood. Host a VIP Home Tour or Parade of Homes with some of your special listings. You can also invite luxury home agents in other offices to participate by hosting homes on the tour. Each home is hosted for 30-45 minutes as participants caravan between homes on the Home Tour. You may want to get a sponsor to provide a bus. This can © Platinum Sales Systems, LP. All Rights Reserved.

also be done in the morning as a progressive brunch or at twilight with hors dâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;oeuvres. Invite potential purchasers, past clients, community leaders, human resource executives and other luxury home agents and their clients. Write thank you notes to all who visit your Homesite, an event staged at the property or those who view or show it. Make a database of these contacts for future marketing opportunities. Contact agents who have posted matching buyer profiles for the property. E-mail them the link to your Homesite. Add them to your list of the Top Agents. Send the Seller written marketing reports of your progress. Use the traffic report feature in your Homesite to counsel the Seller, give staging feedback or obtain a price adjustment that will reposition the property in the marketplace.

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