Having a solid and effective marketing strategy that maximises exposure of your property is one of the most important ingredients for success when it comes to selling your home.
But for most of us, funds are not infinite and we will need to stick to some sort of budget, so how do we determine where our marketing dollars are best spent when selling a home?
MARQ Communications Director Lauren McGregor said MARQ agents were expert in working with sellers to devise a comprehensive marketing plan that considered a vendor’s goals and how to attract as many interested buyers as possible.
“Although there are a range of resources you can take advantage of when marketing a property, there isn’t really a ‘one-size-fits-all’ way to go about it,” Lauren said.
“Marketing any home for sale should be a tailored approach, with the ultimate goal to get as many eyes on your home as possible.”
Lauren said vendors should expect to pay between 0.5% and 1% of the estimated sale price of the home on marketing.
Here are some options to consider when it comes to developing a serious marketing strategy.
Staging
Most vendors will likely have their sights set on achieving the best sale price and in order to realise that goal, a home should be presented in the best possible light.
And that may involve engaging a professional to stage your home before it hits the market.
“Professionally staging your home has been shown to improve the stakes of a great sales price,” Lauren said. “At MARQ, we have had numerous cases where well-presented, staged homes have attracted offers well beyond expectation.
“Staging can also give prospective buyers an idea of how they can style the property themselves if they were to become the owner, and it certainly helps showcase the space with less clutter than might usually be present.
“If you’re not in the market to fully stage a property, there are services available to part-stage a home. For example, we took a property to market recently that had all of the furniture, but needed some soft furnishings and flourishes like cushions, plants and little touches to add warmth and a welcoming feeling.”
Photography
As the old adage goes ‘a picture speaks a thousand words’ so investing in photography and video that compliments your home will help it to shine in marketing and advertising.
Professional photos and video are vital to your marketing campaign and will make the best impression through real estate portals, print media and online.
“Investing in quality photography and video is a non-negotiable,” Lauren said.
“There’s a big difference between having a professional manage the marketing imagery for your home than having an amateur shoot a video on their iPhone.
“At MARQ, we recommend investing in professionals to produce quality photos and videos. A detailed floor plan is also crucial to conveying the functionality and appeal of the home.
“Video, in particular, is also a really worthwhile medium across social media because it gets excellent engagement, interaction and views – far more superior than still images.”
Advertising and promotion
Smart and well-considered digital marketing will help earn your property attention.
Digital marketing is one of the most powerful tools to attract buyers to your home and can be customised to a specific area or buyer type using sophisticated algorithms and targeting. This will help your property reach the greatest number of potential buyers, fuel the most competitive sale and hopefully achieve the highest price.
Promotion of your home should be done using a range of avenues including online advertising, property portals and social media channels.
“In the ACT, we are fortunate to have three different online property portals with three different price points – realestate.com.au, All Homes and Zango,” said Lauren.
“It’s worth chatting with your agent because they will have an opinion on where to best spend those marketing dollars and understand in detail which portal best targets buyers for your home.
“Of course, MARQ will also list your home on our website, complement paid advertising with social media exposure and spruik your home to our vast contact base to ensure maximum exposure.”
MARQ Concierge
The MARQ team prides itself on assisting in the sale process wherever possible – and this includes organising tradespeople and services to ensure the home is in prime position for a successful sale.
MARQ has partnered with external, third-party provider, VPA Pay, to offer our tailored MARQ Concierge service. This offers a streamlined and stress-free approach to selling and can help with styling, marketing, maintenance, landscaping, painting, building and pest reports, solicitors fees and moving costs.
Essentially a project management option or an ‘after pay’ for campaign costs for listing your property, MARQ Concierge allows vendors to borrow up to a certain percentage of the likely sale price of the property to pay for additional expenses like marketing bills, painting the house or recarpeting.
These borrowings are then deducted from settlement, along with a fee for the service.