Key Takeaways
- Email allows real estate agents to maintain direct communication with their sphere of influence, offering a more reliable and cost-effective way to stay connected than social media.
- Tailoring email content by segmenting your list based on buyer, seller, or lead status ensures more relevant messaging, which increases engagement and open rates.
- A phased approach with warm-up emails, valuable content, and referral requests ensures long-term engagement and helps build trust within your SOI. See the example below.
As a modern real estate agent, your success hinges on two core activities: lead generation and lead nurturing. Although many agents see these tasks as separate, they often overlap—especially when leveraging your sphere of influence to generate referrals.
Most agents know the importance of staying top-of-mind with their SOI, but few have a system in place to maximize this powerful source of leads. This is where email marketing shines. It’s a cost-effective tool to nurture your relationships and keep your SOI engaged over time.
If you’re not regularly staying in touch with your SOI, you’re missing out on valuable referral opportunities. Email marketing can change that.
Did you know? According to the National Association of Realtors:
** 90% of buyers would use their agent again or recommend them to others.
** 87% of sellers said they would definitely, or probably, recommend their agent for future services.
Why Email Marketing is Perfect for Real Estate SOI
When it comes to real estate, maintaining and nurturing your sphere of influence is crucial to long-term success. Unlike social media, where algorithms dictate visibility, email marketing puts you in control of who sees your message.
Here are some key reasons email marketing is an essential tool for growing your SOI:
- Declining Social Media Reach: Organic reach on platforms like Facebook continues to decrease, forcing agents to pay for visibility. In contrast, email gives you direct access to your audience’s inbox.
- High ROI: Email marketing has an average return on investment (ROI) of $36 for every $1 spent, making it the most cost-effective way to engage with your SOI.
- Longevity: Real estate is a long-term game, and email allows you to stay top of mind with your SOI for years—long after your first interaction.
- Personalization: Emails can be segmented and personalized based on where your leads are in their real estate journey, delivering highly relevant content that resonates.
Best Practices for Email Marketing in Real Estate
- Segment Your Email List: Segmenting your email list based on client type–buyer or seller–lead source, or where they are in the decision-making process is crucial for delivering tailored messages. Not everyone in your SOI will be at the same point in their real estate journey, so personalization ensures that your emails remain relevant and valuable. Segmented emails can achieve open rates that are 14% higher than non-segmented campaigns.
- Create Consistent Touchpoints: Building relationships requires regular interaction. Develop a consistent email schedule to keep your SOI engaged. Consider sending out weekly newsletters, market updates, or property listings. Remember, generic content doesn’t work. You need to offer value to your audience. Whether it’s a neighborhood spotlight, local market trends, or tips for buyers and sellers, the content should reflect your expertise.
- Start With a Warm-Up Series: If you’re new to email marketing, or if it’s been a while since you reached out to your SOI, start with a warm-up series. Reintroduce yourself and provide updates on the local real estate market. Follow up with educational content that showcases your knowledge, such as home-buying or selling tips.
- Ask for Referrals: Once you’ve built a rapport, don’t shy away from asking for referrals. Email provides a non-intrusive way to make these requests, especially with your warm audience. For instance, after offering valuable information over several emails, send a message thanking them for their support and gently ask for referrals.
- Monitor Your Metrics: Tracking the success of your email marketing efforts is essential to refining your strategy. Key metrics to watch include:
- Open Rate: A good open rate for real estate emails is 30% or higher. This indicates that your subject lines are resonating with your audience.
- Click-through, or click, Rate: A CTR of 1-3% shows that your content is compelling enough to drive action.
- Number of Referral Received: Of course, the ultimate goal is to receive lead referrals, so track this metric too.
- Make sure your emails are mobile-friendly, meaning they can be read easily on a smart phone.
Example 12-month Email Strategy for Nurturing Your SOI
You need to remind your SOI of your services more frequently than you might think to stay top of mind, without appearing overly salesy. Email marketing is a great way to accomplish this. If you’re new to email marketing, the below plan is an example to kick off your campaign. Focus on building rapport and trust before asking for referrals.
- Months 1-2: Warm-up phase. Reconnect with your SOI by sharing what’s happening in the local real estate market and introducing yourself, or reintroducing, if needed.
- Months 3-6: Engagement phase. Share valuable insights, such as “5 Tips to Increase Your Home’s Value” or “Is Now a Good Time to Sell?”
- Months 7-8: Referral request. Politely ask for referrals with a message like, “Your Referrals Mean the World to Me.”
- Months 9-12: Continue engagement with market trends, success stories, or case studies from past clients.
This strategy ensures you maintain a healthy relationship with your SOI, keeping you top of mind when they or someone they know needs a real estate agent.
Real Estate Email Marketing for Long-Term Success
In real estate, your sphere of influence is your most valuable asset. By regularly nurturing your SOI with personalized, valuable content through email marketing, you’ll cultivate stronger relationships, increase referrals, and grow your business over time.
Email marketing’s longevity and ability to deliver relevant content directly to your audience make it a key tool in every agent’s marketing strategy. By focusing on consistent, personalized communication and strategically asking for referrals, you can turn your SOI into a reliable source of leads that will grow year after year.
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