Dominate Your Farm with Paid Ads

In this episode of Curb Appeal, host Rachel Gombosch speaks with Julianne Martin, Partner and CMO at Above the Fold, a digital marketing company focusing on paid ads, including programmatic ads. 

If you’re looking for ways to up your real estate marketing strategy, generate more leads, and dominate your farm, Julianne can help. You can listen to the episode in full below and keep reading to learn more about programmatic ads in real estate! 

What are programmatic ads?

Programmatic ads or advertising is a type of paid ad and marketing form that many use in the real estate industry. 

As Julianne explains, “Programmatic advertising is the automated buying and selling of ads in media in real time; you’re able to serve ads across the web: apps, audio or podcast ads, like streaming audio, and also connected TV. So it’s all automated, in real-time, and it’s really easy to do.”

Essentially, programmatic ads allow you to target a specific audience automatically. Once you identify who you’re looking to target—whether that’s your farm or even a niche audience—programmatic ads do the rest of the work across multiple platforms. 

How do you buy programmatic ads?

Like most paid ads, programmatic ads are purchased at a cost per thousand impressions (CPM). So, for every thousand impressions—a thousand people matching your target audience who see the ad—you’ll pay a specific amount. 

For example, the average CPM on Facebook is between $10 and $20. However, it is based on your target audience, what you’re looking for, and your overall goals. If you’re looking to buy programmatic ads, Julianne recommends working with a consultant or marketing tactic expert to help determine what’ll be best for you and your audience. 

While paid ads can be expensive, resist the urge to cut your digital and traditional marketing methods altogether. Instead, consider focusing on only one or two strategies, including paid and programmatic ads. 

Why use programmatic ads in a real estate marketing strategy?

As you probably know, advertising is one of the most important things a real estate agent can do. Real estate is based on personal and digital connections. If you can’t market yourself to your target audience with a solid strategy, you likely won’t be very successful, especially in a competitive market. 

To help generate more leads and distinguish yourself from the competition, Julianne recommends trying to stand out earlier in the marketing funnel, saying, “Always look for ways to differentiate yourselves and your listings, and find people earlier in the process…If you can be there earlier in that process and start building that relationship with them, they start seeing you—and maybe different types of ads and messages—by the time they get down to that really competitive space.” 

If you can build a relationship with your leads before they reach the bottom of the funnel, you’re more likely to convert and retain them as clients. 

How effective are programmatic ads in real estate?

Programmatic ads are effective in real estate as they help determine who you want to connect with, giving you additional insight that traditional marketing can’t offer. Having a goal to generate more leads is great, but your efforts won’t benefit your business if you aren’t generating the right leads. 

When you’re paying for advertising, map out your strategy. Think about:

• Your customer persona
• Market statistics
• Your goals as an agent

That said, everyone you market to won’t be a lead immediately. Someone who meets the requirements of your customer persona may see your ad but aren’t interested in buying or selling their home right now. Even so, you’ve created an impression and established a connection. Programmatic ads allow you to dive deep into your target audience in ways traditional marketing can’t. 

Especially going into a slower season, consider building your brand awareness through a three-step process.

First, begin with content creation, like a market breakdown or tips for homebuyers. Then, use social media to post and promote your content. Finally, continue advertising and promoting your content since competitors will likely slow down spending on social media and advertising during slower periods. 

If your market continues to see your paid and programmatic ads, they’re more likely to remember you when it’s time to begin the buying or selling process.  

How to use programmatic ads in real estate 

While plenty of marketing strategies surround programmatic ads, knowing your target audience is the most effective way to use them in real estate. If you can identify who that is, what they’re looking for, and what they need, you can reach them directly, generating the type of leads that’ll convert. 

For example, if you’re a real estate agent in a growing city, your target audience is likely Millennials and young homebuyers. So, if you focus directly on that audience, you’ll have more reach within that group—who are more likely to be interested in the home buying process. 

But, even if you think you know who your target audience is, be open to testing and experimenting with your advertising. Since so many factors impact how effective your advertising is, you may need to adjust your strategy to generate the right type of leads. You may even learn there’s a new type of client to target!  

Continue dominating your market with Virtuance

While paid and programmatic ads can generate leads, imagery is a key part of advertising. If you don’t have consistent real estate pictures throughout your brand, you could be leaving leads on the table. 

With Virtuance’s professional real estate photography, we offer HDReal® packages to showcase your listings and target your ideal audience. Every package comes with a single listing website and access to our Marketing Suite, giving you more tools to reach your market, generate more leads, and close more deals.