When it comes to digital marketing, there are so many do’s and don’ts online that it can feel overwhelming and like you’re never going to get it right. The good thing is, nearly everything is changeable and you can always go back through your already posted content and revise how you do it. There are a few fundamentals it’s good to be aware of though, so we’ve put together a list of 5 things that will haunt your digital marketing if you’re not careful…
Aiming at the wrong audience
First and foremost, you want to make sure you aren’t marketing to the wrong people. It sounds simple, but not knowing their audience is one of the biggest mistakes people can make when it comes to digital marketing. Although it’s tempting to say you’re trying to appeal to everyone, the key is to not try to please everyone with every post. This can make your posts wishy-washy and lose value. If you narrow it down, you’re going to appeal to a far better group of people more likely to get a positive outcome than if you market to everyone and their cat.
You can find your audience by many methods, but a good place to start is deciding who your audience isn’t. If you have a two bedroom house great for first time buyers, you aren’t going to market them towards a family of eight.
Make sure each blog post you write, and each social media post you have has a clear end-reader in mind, and it’ll help you focus your content and reach the right people.
Not keeping an eye on the competition
Ignoring the competition can mean missing out on so much. Although you don’t want to just copy someone else’s work, occasionally have a look and think what are your competitors up to? Are they taking part in trends that are viral? Have they started marketing in a different way? You can use what your competitors are doing to steer you towards (or away if they are getting it wrong!) a certain thing.
Putting this into context, there are a lot of Estate Agents who started using virtual tours as a way of conducting viewings. This has been really helpful over the course of the pandemic, in allowing people to view the inside of properties they might be interested in without taking time to visit, but rather than continue even though it’s been successful some agents have stopped doing this. The ones that haven’t are able to show more houses to more people without much more work. Seeing how others react to certain changes can help you learn too.
Lacking creativity
Next up, don’t discount creativity. Following trends and patterns can be great but can sometimes lead to being no different to your competition. If you aren’t being different, then you aren’t standing out. If you aren’t standing out (for the right reasons) then you are lowering your chance of a person choosing you over someone else, and the decision for the client becomes more about ease than anything else.
To combat this, find what makes you different. Can you use a trend, but with a twist therefore being different but still relevant. Do you have a fun attribute to your company that you can use for a monthly story, something that’s different and entertaining? Be bold, and don’t be afraid to be different!
When Pokemon Go first came on to the scene, we launched a campaign for Northfields Estates, where people who caught a pokemon near certain properties would be entered into a draw to win a prize. It generated a buzz, and was even featured in industry publications as an example of forward-thinking marketing.
Duplicated blog articles
The penultimate no-no is duplicated content. Do not pay for written content that is being used by other agents too (even if they’re in a different postcode). This, although giving you something to post as blog articles, may do more harm than good. Google prefers fresh original content and won’t post the same article multiple times (because how boring would that be?) and if you set your articles as ‘no follow’ to stop Google indexing them, then you’re wasting money because they’re doing nothing for you!
For best results, make sure you’ve got fresh, bespoke content that really adds value to your customers. From how-to guides to legislation updates – write them (or have them written) in your own unique voice, and delight your website visitors!
Related: 42 blog post ideas for Estate Agents >>
Ensure your details are up-to-date
Lastly, make sure you don’t have any inconsistencies across the web with important details. You want to make sure all your addresses, email addresses and phone numbers appear the same everywhere on the internet. (This is called your NAP, and you can learn more about that here). Social media, your website, review sites, and business listings. Not only does this give you a more professional appearance and avoid people calling the wrong place, or not being able to get hold of you, search engines will penalise you for things such as inconsistent spacing in an address – they want information to be clear and obvious for their customers.
Katie Gillingham
Katie is a Freelance Copywriter living in rural Dorset with her daft old Labrador. She first started writing content for the property industry back in 2015, and loves nothing more than bringing brand voices to life!
