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7 reasons why your estate / letting agency marketing might not be working


We all know how unfocused and pre-occupied our potential landlords and vendors can be and how infinite their choices of agents are … 

So, when it comes to our marketing message, most of marketing is ‘spray and pray’ or ‘throw enough $hit at the wall and some of it will stick’. You don’t know what does or doesn’t work. We as agents habitually miscalculate our skills to get through to people with our marketing message and when it doesn’t work straight away – we think its a  failure – so often give up or try something else 

I want to stop for a second

Next time you are at Costa or Starbucks, spend ten minutes observing someone scrolling through their social media feed on their iPhone. Watch how the people reading a magazine or newspaper dodges most of the words on the page to get to the sections that important and relevant to them. Only then will the true reality you are confronting sink in.

So, instead of seeing this as a problem…  see it as a chance – an opportunity. 

Great modernisers, committed estate and letting agency owners can flourish by developing a strategy to involve, engage and absorb more intensely and profoundly with their potential landlords and housesellers over time. 

The hope of agents in 21st century, with its mass email e-shots and social media reach to thousands of people, was that it would be quicker, easier and a lot less money to reach more people with your message…. But that hope didn’t guarantee profounder and deeper trust, devotion, engagement, loyalty and more sales for your agency

Now, more than ever, whilst even in this ever changing 24-7-365 economy, the ‘I want it now’ 21st century internet world we live in,  people haven’t changed. 

Why do you expect your £10,000 marketing budget blown on some Facebook ads over a couple of months or full page newspaper ads or 50,000 leaflets dropped in one week, with your name and some bullet points on what makes your agency so brilliant?



People don’t like to sold to – you don’t – but that is what you are doing with your marketing .. people are skipping it. Brand awareness marketing doesn’t work anyone. I know every bank on my High Street in Grantham –but still I wont swap banks. Every landlord in town knows of your agency – but they still aren’t going to swap to you 

There is no such thing as an overnight success – its hard work and patience. You cant get away from that. Its life. You cant beat the system. The only overnight success is winning the lottery – for everyone else – hardwork and patience – play the long game – play for legacy.

How do you do that? 

How do you get potential clients (landlords and vendors) to stop and read your stuff in newspapers/magazines and social media. Easy .. talk about stuff that is of interest to THEM, relevant to THEM, educational to THEM, intriguing to THEM. You will ask, what is that?

People only care about seven things in life … which is

1. Themselves
2. Their Family 
3. Their Friends
4. Their Work
5. Their Hobbies,
6. Their Interests 
7. Their Passions

…and notice at no time did I mention you, your agency, how many offices you have, how many awards you have won, how qualified you are, your knowledge of landlord and tenant law, how many houses you have sold or let, how long you have been operating– they don’t give a $hit about your agency – just like you don’t give a $hit about any Solicitors or Accountancy practice in your town .. but that’s what agents are doing with their marketing

Look at us, we are a brilliant agent, open 8 days a week, we started in 2BC, landlords wanted, we have won this and that awards …

The British are obsessed with property, in particular THEIR own property, what THEIR property is worth, what is going to happen to property values – but in particular – THEIR PROPERTY

Stop talking about yourself, your firm or services and start talking about the local property market like these 25 agents – 25 PDF examples from around the UK on the Google Drive link  https://goo.gl/1jqchr