Let’s Talk Data

Picture THIS! The postcard!

OK, so I’ve been talking lots about data, and most recently about my personal use of services I use for my clients. Since I told you about the postcard that I’ve created, I think it’s only right to show you what I created.

We didn’t want our postcard card to look like regular real estate cards, so we ruled out a picture of the house on the front. I designed my own card and made it a jumbo (double sumo sized! 11 inches wide by 12 inches when opened, talk about IMPACT!)

How do you put yourself in your prospects’s shoes?

I decided to step back and think about what I think when I see a “for sale” sign up at a neighbor’s house. (Hmmm! Why are they moving?? What’s it like in there? How much are they asking??) When there are open houses in the neighborhood, we like to go see, but we don’t want to be labeled as “nosy neighbors”. We thought about it, and concluded that our friends and neighbors are likely just like us. These are people who run many businesses here in the Syracuse metro would be open to poking around when we weren’t here — not only for their own knowledge of the market, but hey, they hire people, they have friends and relatives that move…why not put the cards right on the table for all to see?

So — we are hosting an open house for the neighborhood. And we won’t be there!

Funny thing, many of our neighbors likely don’t even know our house is for sale. We live in a development (Mallard’s Landing, built by Stringer Development) where there are covenants that are applied to only one part of the development, not all — in particular, the regulations of signs.

The result is that residents in the older sections of our neighborhood are free to display “for sale” signs and we can’t — since we’re in a newer section. Yes, we agreed to the covenants when we bought here, but the developer never says in the covenants that they aren’t applied to the entire neighborhood — that they are discriminatory by design.

And of course, they don’t prohibit the developer from putting up his own signs — which I think is absolutely a restraint of trade! They have a good 30 signs up, and they tell me that we can’t have a sign because it will make it look as if the neighborhood is transient. Well, in an area where executive families move in and out — it’s really good to let people know that your house is for sale — research from the Realtor association shows “for sale” signs as one of the top ways people find the house they ultimately buy.

“Home Buyer & Seller Survey Shows Rising Use of Internet, Reliance on Agents
WASHINGTON (January 17, 2006) –

Technology is transforming how Americans buy and sell homes in unexpected ways, including how they work with real estate agents and brokers, according to one of the largest surveys of real estate consumers ever conducted. The study was released today by the National Association of Realtors®.

Nine out of 10 home buyers use a real estate agent in the search process, but use of the Internet to search for a home has risen dramatically over time, increasing from only 2 percent of buyers in 1995 to 77 percent in 2005; it was 74 percent in 2004. The next largest source of information for buyers is a yard sign, mentioned by 71 percent of buyers.When asked where they first learned about the home purchased, 24 percent of buyers identified the Internet, up strongly from 15 percent in 2004 and only 2 percent in 1997. Although most buyers use an agent to complete the transaction, 36 first learn about the home they buy from a real estate agent and 15 percent from yard signs; five other categories were 7 percent or less.”

We’ve been trying to fight this developer, but unless we want to spend tons of money on lawyers’ fees, we can’t do much to defend our right to have a sign. In my humble opinion, its arrogant not to encourage a dialogue with the community — to just make a blanket statement “NO SIGNS” and the way it is presented to new buyers and applied is wrong. All of our neighbors that know of our plight are ticked off at the developer but unless I take up a new cause (while trying to run a business, raise two small children, and oh, move….) what can we do?)

(He can’t control my direct marketing efforts, can he? Hell no!)

Anyway, this card dropped into the mailstream on Thursday and we’ve had lots of great commentary from neighbors who say that it’s a gorgeous place and priced right — we just need a buyer! So, one lesson to keep in mind — is that even if you have the right research or data (in this case, the right audience — 1,000 of my neighbors, execs, Human Resources directors, ect.), and even if your messaging is on target — when selling products and services you must make sure to reach your buyer at a time when he is motivated to make a purchase.

No one can magically produce a buyer….but we can certainly increase our odds of selling our house by making sure the buzz is out there. That’s really the expectation I have….just to create awareness and get people who might be thinking about moving to the Syracuse area to look at our Manlius house.

Funny thing, anyone moving here from a larger city will be thrilled at what they can get for their money. We like this place so much that if I could click my Dorothy shoes, I’d start that twister and move this place right smack dab in Fairfax, VA! (A cool two million I’d bet if I tried to get what I have here, there.)

Ah… but I digress as always.

Marketing 101 — hedge your bets. Use a high quality list, think carefully about your messaging, use a high quality printer, first class postage, too. Then cross your fingers (and toes) and see what happens!

Will keep you in the loop with the 411. Back to my real work — for my clients!

Wendy