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A Complete Overview of SMS Real Estate Marketing for Beginners

SMS Marketing11/19/2021

The real estate market is dynamic, and things can change quickly. Realtors and investors need a way to connect with their clients, and secure potential leads at a drop of a dime, and SMS real estate marketing allows them to do so.

SMS is pretty straightforward – You can create custom and engaging messages that reach your customers where their attention is, their phones.

Emails are often left unread for days on end, and calling a dozen prospects throughout the day is, more often than not, a waste of time.

SMS is fast, unobtrusive, convenient, and has an insane open rate of 98% so you’ll know that your clients will see your messages instantly and that they won’t be annoyed or inconvenienced.

Some basic ways to use SMS in real estate

SMS Marketing is really straightforward and time-saving, here are some tips to help you on your next campaign:

SMS Marketing tip #1: Craft a great message that GRABS attention

The key here like any sort of follow-up is to be unique, personal and inviting. Long and “businessy” sounding messages just get ignored. Say the person’s name, maybe reference something unique, be friendly/warm, have a personality.

SMS Marketing tip #2: Be likeable / Be Personal

It’s undeniable that your customers have a million options on where they can choose to do business. The fact is people do business with people they like. What makes you different from the hundreds of other real estate agents/investors out there? When you interact with your client after they write you back, be clear on your intent, but also have some fun and be a human. Nobody wants to do business with a robot

SMS Marketing tip #3: Follow-up

The key is in the FOLLOW-UP. I’m sure you’ve heard that a million times but it’s TRUE. And that’s the reason why you should never give up after the first NO or maybe later. Did you know that the best deals and closes usually come after the 4th, 5th, or even 6th attempt? It’s a LOT easier than you think and once you have a system of follow-up you’ll be golden and will have leads flowing in.

Within Smarter Contact, not only is it a messaging tool, but also a FOLLOW-UP tool and CRM. It allows you to see who you contacted, your history, and all the notes there for you to harvest and close the deal over time.

Unfortunately, not many realtors and investors can get a grip of their hectic schedules and take the time to call up or send a text to every possible lead, and that’s where the real estate texting software comes in.

How well does using text for real estate info actually work?

Having a high open rate is all well and good, but how does this translate into real-world results? Does using real estate texting software help you convert more leads into paying clients?

It turns out that people looking for real estate actually find it more convenient to receive a text for more information real estate agents have acquired on the property than having drawn out phone calls. The info in the text is there for the client to check whenever they want, and they can have several texts with information on different properties that they can compare in a matter of seconds.

This approach guarantees that they will get the info instantly and read it, making it easier for them to make a decision and provide you with some feedback right there on the spot. It does help you capture new leads more efficiently, check up on old ones, and keep pushing enticing deals in front of those who are wavering to convince them to take a chance.

On top of all that, it’s an incredibly cost-effective strategy.

Text marketing for real estate agents 101

Now, since we’ve gone over the basics of why text blasting real estate info is so useful and why you should use it, let’s look at how real estate text marketing works.

Instantly engage with leads from your website or social media accounts

Many potential clients will find you through a simple Google search, which will lead them to your site or your social media account based on their preferences. Many traditional websites will have an email form visitors can fill out if they have any questions and a phone number they can call to set up a meeting.

However, as previously discussed, many people shy away from phone calls, and emails can take days of back-and-forth. A simple button on your Home Page that says “Click to send a text”.

You can also set it up so that a person clicking on your Facebook lead ads and submitting their info is automatically sent a greeting SMS with info on setting up a meeting. You can even automate that part and allow clients to schedule an appointment through text.

It’s a great way to show potential clients that you are incredibly responsive and that working with you is convenient and yields fast results.

Following up on leads to set up a viewing and set automated reminders

Once you’ve met up with a client and maybe had a viewing or two, you’ll want to follow up and keep them focused on the properties you’ve discussed or shown them. A basic follow up message may look something like this:

“Hey [Name],

I’m just checking in to see when you’re available to look at some of the properties you were interested in. Just send me a date and time that’s most convenient for you, and we can schedule a tour.”

Alternatively, you can just update them on the openings in your schedule:

“Hi [Name],

Good news, I’m available Wednesday from 12 PM to 3 PM and Friday from 10:30 AM to 1 PM if you want to go take a look at the properties you called me about this week.“

You can even have a quick automated reminder on the day of the scheduled viewing, just to make sure that everyone is on the same page:

“Hello [Name]

Are we still on for that 2:30 PM viewing of the property down on Elm Street? “

These are quick and simple and won’t take you away from more important things, but your clients will love the timely responses and all the personalized attention they’re getting.

Give old contacts a nudge with new SMS listings!

Clients will often seem very interested at the beginning but then slowly lose interest if they can’t find what they were looking for after a few viewings. It’s a good idea to give these old prospects a nudge after a few weeks or even a couple of months if your business is slow. The best way to do this is by sending a text for info on real estate opportunities that have recently become available.

The text can look something like this:

“Hey [Name],

I have some interesting new listings. Do you want me to send you the info?”

Again, these messages are short and to-the-point, and the client has an easy way of declining and opting out of these automated messages altogether if they want.

Four things to consider when looking for a Real estate SMS Marketing solution.

There are a few essential things to look for in a service offering SMS real estate marketing:

Unlimited keywords – you’ll want to use various keywords for different things, so be wary of services that put a hard restriction on a specific number of keywords.
Multiple conversations – you will be reaching out to a fair number of potential clients, and there will be some back and forth, so make sure that the SMS inbox is large enough and able to manage a higher volume of conversations.
Bulk and 1-on-1 texting capability – Bulk texts are an excellent tool for keeping several clients up-to-date with the latest listings or scheduling an open house. Still, you will need to send texts to individual clients as well, so always look for a service that offers both these options.
Skiptrace – To make sure your contact lists are clean and filtered, Skiptracing is the optimal way to do just that. Once your contacts are uploaded, you get your list back with the most accurate numbers and contact details.

Apart from these main points, you’ll also want to look at the pricing and any available testimonials or online reviews from previous clients. One of the solutions you can look at based on the criterias above is Smarter Contact. This sms marketing tool allows you to connect on a personal level and grow your network substantially. Claim your 7-day risk-free trial and get a feel for the magic of SMS Marketing.

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Writing simple and effective SMS real estate texts

We’ve gone over all the basics, but it’s important to say a few words on writing effective texts and how they play into your SMS marketing strategy. Here are a few basic rules that work amazingly well:

Use client’s first names – a message with a “to whom it may concern” vibe looks spammy and just shows that you didn’t bother to put in the extra effort.
Reference past meetings if possible – in the example messages above, the client is reminded of the “properties you called about this week,” which shows that you remember the conversation and probably all their concerns and needs as well.
Be concise – all the example messages shown in this article are short and sweet, delivering all the needed information without making the client scroll through a wall of text.
Don’t be too pushy or friendly – this isn’t the time to bombard people with CTAs or try and sweet-talk them into scheduling a meeting; use a polite but neutral tone and stay informative.
Ask before sending any additional info – don’t just send random property info to a bunch of your cold leads; be sure to ask if they would like to see some listing or schedule a viewing before sending them more detailed texts.

As long as you follow these simple steps, your texts should be well received, and your clients will appreciate the brevity and professionalism.

As you can see, SMS real estate marketing is a cheap and highly effective way to stay in touch with clients, schedule viewings, send reminders, and start turning those new prospects from your website and social media into proud homeowners.