As a real estate professional, you know clients are researching agents online and they’re probably not finding you. You’ve known for a while that your website is in need of decent content, but blogging is driving you nuts.
It seems like there’s not enough time to sit and write. Even if you had time, you don’t have the foggiest clue what to say. When you do decide to tackle it, the blank page stares you down and you leave frustrated. Maybe in desperation you have subscribed to a content mill for articles and found out what “run of the mill” really means.
I have good news. It doesn’t have to be this way.
Let’s take all the doubt and frustration and complication out of this thing and get straight to the bottom line. People don’t just read things they’re interested in – they scour the Internet for them every single day. Are you there, helping them with their problems? If you are, they’ll find you.
And it’s not even that difficult to do. I’ll share a sample exercise at the end of this article to demonstrate just how easy it can be.
But before you put fingers to keyboard, you need to know something.
The biggest secret I have learned – and the one most business people miss – is that the post you are about to write is not about you. It’s about your reader. What do THEY Google? What are THEY afraid of that they would love to have some control over? What do THEY think is funny? What do THEY want to know how to do? Talk to them about it. Solve their problem, give them that win, and you’ll win too.
With that secret securely under your belt, writing an awesome real estate related blog post becomes much easier. To start, consider your ideal reader – who are they? What do they need? How can you be the answer to their most pressing problem or question?
Then think of who you are, and how you want to communicate. If you’re the crass, tell-it-like-it-is type who kind of enjoys stepping on people’s toes, you might want to go for the brash shocking headlines and controversial topics. If you’re the soft-hearted counsellor at heart, you might want to address emotions and stresses involved with buyer/seller experiences, or address readers’ fears.
With your brand new readers-first mindset, and the awareness of who you are, give this exercise a go. Chances are you’ll end up with an awesome post people are dying to read.
What is the longest/funniest/weirdest deal you ever did?
Remember, you’re answering this question in a way that offers the reader value. Your reader may want highly researched facts, or prefer amusement. They may crave inspirational stories that make them cry or laugh. You’ll find out what kind of audience you have as you watch them respond to your articles.
This is probably the easiest kind of post to write, because it’s straight-up storytelling. Just by being a weird or funny story, amusement is built in. (And who doesn’t enjoy amusement?) Yet the subtle message the reader receives is that you are experienced, can weather weird or awkward circumstances well, are interesting, and are honest and transparent enough to share it, but respectful enough of your clients to preserve their privacy and dignity.
You’re just that awesome. And they got all that from a story!
Blogging is the new marketing leverage your business needs to be an ever present help in your potential clients’ troubles. They’re online, looking for solutions, seeking professionals to help them. Are you there?
Kim Rempel, investor, writer, and entrepreneur, helps real estate professionals and business owners create content that gets attention. She says, “Leverage what you know to help your business grow. That’s the power of content.” Visit her website, www.RealtorBlogging101.com
