10 ways to attract more buyers!
If your property hasn’t sold here are 10 ways to generate more interest
1. New professional photos
Would you ask an estate agent to take photos of your wedding? Probably not, so don’t let your estate agent take photos of your property, invest in professional photography. McDonalds spend a fortune on photography to sell a 99p burger, so your property deserves to have great photography. This will attract more buyers and achieve a higher sale price.
2. Home staging and styling
If you were selling your car, you would get it cleaned or valeted, so do the same for your property. As a minimum get all the odd jobs done, declutter, de-personalise and use neutral colours if painting is required. Also make sure the property has kerb appeal, as first impressions count. Take a tip from new home builders who invest in making their show homes look amazing. Invest in home staging or styling to make your property look like a show home. A well presented and staged home will sell quicker for a higher price.
3. Video, drone and 3D virtual tour Buyers spend more time looking at a property online if there is a video. By using an estate agent to present the video, they can point out all the important features. Drone footage can show the garden and surrounding area. The 3D tour can give potential buyers a virtual walk through the property. This means, no more viewings from unsuitable buyers and you know any buyers that do arrange a viewing are serious and have been prequalified by watching the video tour.
4. Sell the lifestyle and the area Buyers are not just buying the ‘bricks and mortar’, they are buying a home and a lifestyle for their family. They buy with emotion so it is essential your agent sells the lifestyle and what it would be like living in the property, in the online description, brochure and video. For example local parks, facilities, amenities as well as useful information about the area. Remember the saying Location, Location. Location. Is your agent selling the location?
5. Social media targeted adverts
An essential part of marketing any product or service is social media marketing to a targeted ‘ideal buyer’ demographic on all social media platforms. As well as ‘paid for’ adverts, posts must be shared to local community groups. This is a specialist skill so make sure your agent is qualified and an expert in social media marketing. PS sticking a post on Facebook is not social media marketing.
6. A 24 page property brochure
If you were looking to buy a £30,000 car, the dealer would provide a glossy brochure selling the features and benefits of the model. Yet some estate agents are selling a property 10 or 20 times the value with an A4, two page leaflet, that has a few photos, a brief description and some room measurements. To do justice to a property it will often require a 24 or 32 page brochure. This will provide space for a full description, a lifestyle interview with the seller, plenty of professional photos, large floor plan, editorial about the location, local amenities and much more.
“A well presented and staged home will sell quicker for a higher price”.
7. Pricing strategy
Ask your estate agent to explain the three main pricing strategies and the for’s and against of each one so you can make an informed choice about the right pricing strategy for you and for your property. On the subject of price, always make sure the asking price is inline with the price search brackets on Rightmove, so you attract buyers looking above that price bracket and below that price bracket.
8. Open house
Many buyers don’t want to make an appointment to view a property and waste the owner’s time, just in case the property is not suitable, even though the property may be just what they are looking for. They also don’t want an estate agent following them around the property, looking over their shoulder and pestering them with follow up phone calls. However, if there is an open house, there is less commitment and the buyer is more likely to come and view the property. The benefit to the seller is all the viewings take place on one day so
they only have to prepare the property once. This also results in multiple competing buyers which forces the price up and gives the seller a choice of buyers.
9. Open house invitations
There are two main target audiences to invite to the open house. 1) The ‘active’ buyers. These are people who currently have their property for sale locally, as most of them will be buying another property locally. If you are selling a 4 bedroom property, ask your agent to invite anyone selling a 2 or 3 bedroom property within a 5 mile radius of your property. You can check on Rightmove to see how many properties there are for sale. One of those sellers may be interested in buying your property so make sure they get an invitation in the post. 2) The ‘dormant’ buyers. These are people who live locally, they are not actively looking to move, but if the right property came on the market they would move. Most people like the area they already live in, so will move locally. Ask your
agent to send an invitation to everyone in your area, as some nearby homeowners will be considering a move. Homeowners who are not considering a move, may know someone who would like to move to the area.
10. Proactive agent
If your estate agent has put a few photos and a brief description on Rightmove and is waiting for buyers to call them, you should consider changing to a proactive estate agent. An agent who is going to do all the things mentioned above and much more. An agent who is an expert in marketing, to ensure your property looks its best and is exposed to the widest possible audience of buyers. An agent who is also trained in negotiation and will negotiate hard on your behalf with offers from buyers, to achieve the highest possible sale price for your property. An agent who is available 7 days a week, evening and weekends and is your one point of contact throughout the whole process.
We hope you found the above information useful so you can discuss these strategies with your existing estate agent.
If however your existing agent is not giving you the service you deserve or getting the results you expect, and would like to instruct a Property Expert please visit www.thepropertyexperts.co.uk to find your local agent. Or Scan the QR Code below
