Survey: Where do real estate agents plan to spend marketing dollars?

LAWRENCEVILLE, Ga. – Jan. 30, 2009 –The Real Estate Book, a publisher of online and print real estate information, conducted a national survey of top real estate professionals to assess how they are marketing themselves and their listings in the current economy.

One finding shows a migration of marketing dollars from mass media to targeted real estate media, with agents dedicating 75 percent of their marketing to specialty print, personal Web sites and Internet marketing. The study also suggests that agents spread their marketing budget among the three categories evenly. Traditional mass media like newspapers and radio received lower marks.

“Real estate agents understand that it is critical to maintain their visibility in a very confusing and shifting market, and to do that they are using multiple targeted media channels,” says Scott Dixon, president, The Real Estate Book. “Agents are not dumping their money all in one bucket, nor are they simply turning to the Internet for leads.”

Among its findings, The National Real Estate Agents Study finds that:

• More than half of respondents (57 percent) spend more than $500 in a typical month on advertising, marketing, branding and promotion. The median monthly spending on advertising, marketing, branding and promotion is $622.

• Respondents said that in the current economy, the most important goal is “finding more buyers,” followed by “showing current customers you are working for them,” “getting more listings,” and “promoting your name to other agents.”

• Respondents spend about 25 percent of their media spending on each of the following: Specialty print, Internet marketing, and the broker’s own Web site.

• Virtually all respondents use some form of Internet marketing. Over the next six months, the channels respondents expect to spend the most money on are Internet marketing (40 percent) and the respondents’ own personal Web sites (32 percent).

• The median amount spent on Internet marketing is $196 each month. Thirty-eight percent spend more than $250 per month on all forms of Internet marketing.

• Eighty-six percent of respondents had a personal Web site in addition to their broker Web site; 61 percent spent money on search engine marketing to promote themselves; and 25 percent used blogs or social media as a promotional tool.

• Only 5 percent of agents surveyed expect to spend more on newspaper ads.

• Eighty-five percent of respondents measure the effectiveness of the money they spend marketing their services.

• Seventy-eight percent of respondents track the leads they get from various media and other sources.

© 2009 FLORIDA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®

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