Avoid This Major Luxury Real Estate Marketing Mistake

Are you still putting your picture on your marketing materials? If so, you may be losing business without  even realizing it. Here are the surprising findings from several recent studies.

1.  In a study of 1,173 real estate website visitiors, 54% said that the agent's picture on the front page of a website interfered with their ability to find what they wanted. Put your picture on the "about us" part of your web page. BTW, unless you market specifically to pet owners, leave the pictures of your animals off of your site. Virtually everyone surveyed thought that they were unprofessional.

2.  New research from Steve Kantor of www.BestAgentBusiness.com that examined over 1,000 people who received mailers from agents showed that virtually every single recipient thought that the agent's pictures were useless. In fact, one person summed it up like this--"Who do they think they are--movie stars?"

3.  Shamus McDonald of www.ValueMyHouse.com has reseach that demonstrates that when agents use their website address in their marketing materials, they get a good rate of return. When they add their picture, however, their leads drop to ZERO.

4.  Web visitors want to remain anonymous. Your picture is personal and as such, works against the visitor's desire to keep it impersonal. Gary Elwood of Proquest Technologies recommends an 800 Call Capture system or "free information hotline" as a way to boost your calls. Since many folks don't want to speak with you anyway, this is a good way to get their phone number. (Click on the link above to read Elwood's article about how this system works.)

Your picture gives people a reason to NOT do business with you. They make snap judgments about you based solely upon how you look--are you too young, too old, or too much like that ex wife or husband? Don't get ruled out the moment people come to your site. Instead, let your web visitors focus on your message rather than deciding on how well they like the messenger.

Posted by Bernice Ross, www.RealEstateCoach.com

Photo by newandrew

Comments

[Chuck Marunde]

I practiced real estate law for 20 years and now as a Realtor I see Realtors making mistakes all the time with their marketing and their photos--to the detriment of their clients. Thanks for your great post on the use of photos. Excellent insight.

Dear Chuck,

Thanks for sharing your wisdom. We need to focus on our clients--not us, when marketing.

Bernice