Rule 5- Let your potential buyers find you
Once you have identified your target market, you can now plan your marketing activities which focus on reaching out to your target segment.
There are 3 things you need to do at this stage:
- Set your marketing budget (refer to below table) if you are DIY seller, or leave this to your agent if you are hiring one.
Marketing Media |
Cost |
Frequency |
DIY Website |
$500-3,000 |
One Time |
Virtual Tour/Videos |
$300-2,000 |
One Time |
Newspaper Ads |
$400-800 |
Per Month |
Flyers to nearby Estate |
$1,000 |
Per 2,000 batch |
Telemarketing to nearby estates |
$500-1,000 |
Per 1000 calls |
Facebook Sponsor ads to nearby estates |
$500-1,000 |
Per 5000 reach |
SMS Blast to nearby estates |
$500-1,000 |
per 5000 reach |
Google Adwords to nearby estates |
$500-1,000 |
Per 5000 reach |
Majority of buyers today are searching property through internet, hence you need to get your listing noticed on various online property portals – Property Guru captures bulk of the on-line searchers (maybe 60-70%) along with other popular sites, including SRX, ST Property, 99.co, the edge properties, etc.. (around 30%-40%).
Take some nice photos of your house, engage professional photographers for Virtual Tour or Videos will make your listing stand out from your competitors.
If your target market is retirees, however, you may want allocate more marketing budget to newspaper advertising as these groups still prefer papers.
- Craft marketing message that attract your potential buyers and highlight as many USP (unique selling points) of your units as possible.
There is no perfect unit. Flaws will always exist and buyers will try to find certain faults. A good real estate agents are able to highlight all the good points that outweigh the flaws. With defined target segment, they can bring buyers attention to what values the most to them. For example, for couple looking for a good school, their top priority is always the 1km radius property near the school.
Rule 6 - Ready for the Show
If you have done all the above 5 steps right, you should start receiving phone calls to ask for viewings.
When there’s an open house, take your family out. If you’re the direct seller, you can stay but the other members need to vacate the premises for that period of time. It’s difficult for the potential buyers to imagine himself living there when the whole family hanging around in the space.
It’s advisable to turn on all the lights, the fans, the air cons or even some background music to set the atmosphere right. You want the buyers to feel comfortable and relax. The longer your buyers stay inside your house, the higher chance they will make an offer to you.
Detach yourself from the memories that you had over the years with your house. Understand if the buyer wants to demolish the feature walls you love so much in your living room, you can not overly influence his decision. Similarly, don’t get offended if the buyer quotes you a low-ball figure. When we are buyer, we will do the same to get the best deal if possible. Counter with your offer and take it from there.
I hope this article will benefit to all potential sellers. If you are having difficulty to sell on your own or facing challenges with your current real estate agents, feel free to call me for a 2nd opinion.
My goal is to help you sell your house at the right time at the right price so that you can start the new chapter of your life! |