As a real estate agent, you understand the importance of generating leads for your business. Without these leads, your company would suffer and your business would not grow. And while there are many marketing tactics and things you can do to quickly and easily generate leads, one tool that is often overlooked is using Craigslist and Kijiji. Let’s take a closer look at what these platforms are and how they can help you generate quality real estate leads.
What are Craigslist and Kijiji?
Both Craigslist and Kijiji are online classified advertising services. While Craigslist is extremely popular in the United States, Kijiji is the top online classified marketplace in Canada. In fact, according to Alexa, Kijiji is ranked as the #15 website in Canada and 90% of its traffic comes from Canada. Craigslist, on the other hand, has more than 423 million visits and 96% of its traffic comes from the United States.
How Can I Use these Platforms to Generate Leads?
While your location will determine whether you use Kijiji or Craigslist, no matter which you choose, if you utilize these platforms wisely, you can see much success and generate a fair amount of leads. Here are a few tips for using these platforms within your real estate business.
1. Create Your Own Account
One of the first things you must do when using these classified advertising services is to create an account. This will take little time and even better, it is free. You want to create an account that links back to your business email address and that helps prove your credibility as a real estate agent.
2. Upload Your Listings
One of the benefits of using these platforms is their simple and straightforward interface. To upload and publish a listing, it takes very little time and no learning curve. However, many other real estate agents are using these same platforms so it is essential that you focus on your copy and write listings that attract. There are many things you can do to help your listings stand out. These include:
Write a Catchy Headline: Your headline is like the curb appeal of a home. If it isn’t incredible and instantly catches the eye of buyers, they won’t be interested to see the rest of the home (or the article). Your headline should be one of the most important things that you write and shouldn’t be an afterthought. One of the best things you can do is to generate six or seven headlines for the same listing and then narrow down your options to the best one — never settle on your first headline.
Focus on the Specific Listing: Don’t link to multiple listings or bounce your leads around. Keep all the information pertinent to the original listing.
Include Multiple Images: You know that images help sell a home. According to the National Association of Realtors Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers, approximately 51% of homebuyers found the home they purchased via the internet. This means that photos are critical if you want to make an immediate impression.
Post Frequently: Because so many listings are posted each day, your posts can easily get pushed down and hidden. This means you want to post often. However, by posting the same ad too frequently, you can be penalized and listed as a spammer. To prevent this, you want to monitor all of your listings and repost accordingly. Also, aim to post during the morning hours as this time of day tends to see the most consistent traffic.
A Few Things to Avoid
While there are many ways you can generate great leads, there are also several things you need to avoid. These include:
- Do not include any personal photographs and personal information (rather than your business information) in your listings.
- There should be no links to other properties, websites, etc. Stick to the property mentioned.
- Never include a list of why they should hire you as a real estate agent or other how-to material. This isn’t why these individuals are on the website and it can quickly turn potential clients away.
- Not enough content. Tell the buyers why they need this property, why it is different than the hundreds of others online, and more.
Have you used Craigslist or Kijiji to generate real estate leads? Have you had any success?
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