4 Steps to Real Estate Newsletters that Work

Is direct mail a part of your marketing strategy?

It should be.  More specifically, hard copy, good ‘ol fashioned snail mail newsletters should be part of your marketing strategy.  Here’s why:

• Other real estate agents and investors have stopped sending them.  So you have a great opportunity to stand out from the crowd.

• People still like the feel of a piece of paper in their hands.  Studies prove it’s true!

• When people are making a decision to buy or sell a home – one of the biggest financial decisions of most people’s lives – they want to be informed.  And they want to work with an expert.  A newsletter is a great way to position yourself as that expert.

How to craft newsletters that work

If I’ve convinced you that you should be mailing newsletters, here’s how to do it:

Step 1: Get a good list. It’s an old adage in direct marketing that 40% of a mailer’s success (or failure) is due to the quality of the mailing list.  First determine your target audience.  Then decide how you’ll reach them.  For now, at least, snail mail is less restricted than e-mail (no opt-ins required), so you’ll probably have an easier time procuring an address list.  Because of the expense of mail, though, you’ll want to carefully vet your list provider to ensure – before you send – the quality of your list.

Step 2: Offer news your prospects can use. I apologize in advance if I offend anyone, but I think that mailing gardening tips and pie recipes is a waste of your money and your prospects’ time.  If they want to bake a pie, they’ll read Betty Crocker.  Use the opportunity, instead, to convey useful information about real estate ­– and position yourself as the expert.  The newsletter below works so well for precisely that reason: it’s chock-full of interesting information that your prospects will find useful.

Step 3: Take some time to explain why they should hire you. Okay, so a newsletter should be about conveying useful information.  You should do that, like the newsletter below, primarily through relevant, readable articles, tips and tricks, and market snapshots.  But don’t miss the opportunity to explain how you can help your prospect.  Remember, as I said last week, WIIFM (what’s in it for me?).

Step 4: Stand out. While the volume of direct mail has slowed dramatically most of us still sort our mail over the trash can.  Make sure your newsletter grabs your prospects’ attention as something that should go in the “keep and read” pile.  I do that by mailing newsletters tri-folded, without the envelope, so the prospect can immediately see what it is and how it can benefit him.  Bold colors and eye-catching graphics work wonders, too.


Make newsletters a part of your lead conversion strategy (or, if you’re sending to a farm list, your lead generating strategy).  And let me know how it goes!

Onward and upward,

Molly Castelazo

Related posts:

1. 4 Steps to Sold: Making AIDA Work for You in Real Estate Marketing
2. 7 Steps to Postcard Marketing Riches for Real Estate Investors!
3. How to Raise Private Money for Real Estate Deals: 3 Basic Steps
4. Real Estate Marketing Campaigns: Aim Before You Shoot
5. Real Estate Marketing Strategy: It’s All About the ROI

Article Author: Molly Castelazo

Molly has written 14 articles for us.
Visit Molly's Website: http://www.cmrealestatemarketing.com

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Molly is the author of WIIFM: 5 Letters That Can Change Your Life (Or At Least Your Business) and How to Win: Marketing Strategies for Successful – and Aspiring – Real Estate Agents. She’s President of Castelazo Marketing Ltd., a full-service agency dedicated to helping real estate agents stand out from the crowd and has a blog.