If you want success in real estate investing / wholesaling, you need to know how to reach your intended audiences - that goes for cash buyers and sellers alike. It all comes down to marketing and knowing which strategies work to get you more qualified leads and better deals.
In practice, a lot of investors and wholesalers do not know how to market themselves. There are so many tactics and methods to choose from, that most become confused and frustrated. Many real estate investors are not sure how to promote their REI business or make their properties for sale public. So we’ve compiled a list of marketing strategies, based on the type of investing you do:
- Wholesaling
- Fix-and-Flip
- Buy-and-Hold
Marketing Strategies for Wholesalers
If you’re a wholesaler, in addition to looking for motivated seller leads, you search for investor buyers. You need well crafted marketing for both your seller leads and cash buyers, so having disposition marketing, with follow-ups and reminders, is very important.
Here are the best marketing strategies for wholesalers:
Build a “We Buy Houses” Website
Seriously, you do not have a business, if you do not have a website. No, a Facebook page does not replace a website. Seller leads will expect to see a website, which has content and reviews. Your credibility depends on it, so you need to invest in a brand, messaging, and getting reviews.
If You Are Not on Social Media, You Do Not Exist
Alongside a website, social media is a great means of promoting your services. But rather than post exclusively on your personal Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram, you should have a company page and also turn to third-party sites to market to seller leads and share your properties with buyer investors. You do want to keep them separate.
Use Lead Generation Tools to Find Sellers
How do you currently find motivated sellers? Rather than drive-for-dollars or purchase lists that've been shared with a thousand other wholesalers, consider instead employing lead generation tools that allow you to build a list of motivated seller leads.
At GoForClose, we have an entire team of Data specialists looking for special, hard-to-get data, and our NextData proprietary software takes care of the rest, elevating it to excellence via a point system, list stacking, and multi-tiered skip tracing. Another option is inbound marketing: you may get a few leads, but they are potentially more motivated to sell, especially if they come from Google Search Ads.
Launch Automated Campaigns
The best way to reach seller leads is through a cross-channel marketing campaign, in which you employ cold calling, SMS, RVM, and email, and that is what we (GoForClose) do. To ensure no lead gets left behind and is answered in a speedy manner, it is also essential to have VAs who are trained in real estate investing and sales, who can speak with homesellers, otherwise the deal may die before it gets to you.
Even inbound leads need to be placed in automated campaigns that immediately provide you with feedback via a submission form, and leads must be contacted ASAP.
You may also want automated campaigns for disposition which alert buyers of a new property and automate follow-ups every so often with email or SMS. A grand portion of your business depends on having a good relationship with your buyers.
Strategies to Find Buyers for Wholesaling Real Estate
Do you network? That is, do you shake a lot of hands and make connections with fellow investors in your market and industry?
Networking is very important as a wholesaler. Often you can find investor buyers at a convention, or you can strike up a conversation with them in social media group pages or by subscribing to industry pages. There are so many ways and tactics that we wrote an entire article on how to find buyers for wholesaling real estate.
Marketing Strategies for Fix-and-Flip Investors
If you’re a fix-and-flip investor, you’re looking for motivated sellers with distressed properties, so you can elevate the house at or above the market value. At the same time, you want to sell it as quickly as possible, since the longer you own it, the more it will cost you. Here are the best marketing strategies for fix-and-flip investors:
Partner with a Real Estate Agent
To avoid added work, find an agent that works with “difficult” or “in need of TLC” properties. These agents often provide access to such properties before they are even listed, because they know that the typical home buyer will not want them. Of course, they also hope (and expect) to be the listing agent when the house has been fixed up and it’s ready to be flipped or placed on the market.
The strategy here is to look at listings, or have one of your VAs do it, to identify potential agents that have properties that fit what you are looking for and reach out to them. Relationship building is key, so expect to do follow-ups and regular check-ins via phone call, sms, and email to stay top of mind.
Find a Trustworthy Wholesaler
Finding motivated sellers who will sell at a discount and houses that match your requirements can be a job all of its own. If you don’t have a team to support your efforts, sometimes the best option is to outsource. Wholesalers are a valuable resource, as they do the work of finding, qualifying, and getting contracts ready for you to sign, so you can focus on fixing and flipping.
They are as eager to work with you as you are with them, so your marketing effort is minimal. You can simply post on REI social network groups, and oftentimes, the wholesalers are already looking for you.
The key to success is to ensure that your list of wholesalers understands your property requirements, both in-house attributes and budget.
Avoid the “Middleman”
Avoiding the middleman means you do the marketing, lead generation, qualification, follow-ups, offers, and sales process. What you save in commissions, you spend in effort and investing capital.
You should have (1) marketing automation, (2) trained VAs that know how to call, speak, and qualify leads, and (3) a close salesperson, which can be you, and legal standing by, ready to close the deal.
If you are hoping to buy more properties a month, consider outsourcing your marketing department. At GoForClose, we’ll find you motivated seller leads who meet your needs and requirements. We’ll even build you an exclusive list and skip trace names, addresses, and numbers. Then, we’ll reach out to leads through a cross-channel marketing campaign, in which we employ cold calling, SMS, RVM, and email. We can also draw in new leads via inbound marketing - that is, PPC ads and social media advertising.
Marketing Strategies for Buy-and-Hold Property Investors
If you’re a buy-and-hold investor, then you probably fit in the shoes of a landlord. Usually, there are two types of buy-and-hold investors:
- One wants to buy a property at discount that needs minor touches to be ready to rent
- The other wants a property in good condition, and they only need to find good tenants
Here are the best marketing strategies for buy-and-hold investors:
Ready to Rent - Get a Buyer’s Agent
The seller will pay the commission, so you avoid that fee. As a buyer, you can set the budget and requirements, and let your real estate agent take care of finding the property and negotiations.
So what is the strategy? Essentially, it’s doing your homework, finding a good real estate agent, and thinking long-term. The agent should be someone who can potentially help you increase your portfolio without overpaying. You should maintain a relationship with this person, using tactics such as the occasional phone call and texting (SMS).
Find a Dedicated Wholesaler or Wholetailer
Wholesalers like buy-and-hold investors because, usually, you’re not looking to spend too much time and money into renovating a property. You’re looking to do small repairs to make it attractive to potential tenants.
Finding wholesalers isn’t too hard. They often find you, if you post on real estate investing group pages. The goal is to find a dedicated wholesaler who will remember you when they find a property that meets your requirements.
It is all about networking and keeping relationships. If you want to follow this route, you should do regular check-ins and follow-ups. Connect with wholesalers (and wholetailers) via social media or real estate investing events.
An Alternative: Outsource your Marketing Strategy and Hire GoForClose
We can be the team behind your success! GoForClose empowers you to focus on sales and closing deals by providing a specialized team and marketing platform at an affordable rate.
First, we’ll find you motivated seller leads who meet your needs and requirements. We’ll even build you an exclusive list and skip trace names, addresses, and numbers. Then, we’ll reach out to leads through a cross-channel marketing campaign, in which we employ cold calling, SMS, RVM, and email. We can also draw in new leads via inbound marketing - that is, PPC ads and social media advertising.
A quick response is important, so one of our Inside Sales Associates (ISA) will stand by to live answer all lead responses, and even nurture those who are “Not Ready to Sell”. Any lead who requests an offer, the ISA prequalifies and provides a warm transfer to you or your sales team.
If you have questions or are curious to know more, request a free consultation below.
