7 Essentials For Selling Your Properties...

Hi there, Moguls. Cody Sperber here. Most of you are familiar with me from previous lessons and training calls, so you know that I am a total guru when it comes to marketing. Well, today I am going to tell you how to market through Craigslist effectively – something every investor should know.

I’m bringing this topic up because it came about through a question from a student I mentor. It’s such important information that I decided to dedicate this entire lesson to answering it. The clever student asked:

“I always hear that many investors have a lot of success marketing through Craigslist. But, for some reason, I am not getting any response. What’s the secret?!”

Wow, great question, right? Well, it just so happens that I’m phenomenal at getting responses on Craigslist. So, you want to know my secrets? Let’s break them down, then…

Thing #1:

Include the property’s address. I know most of you are thinking, “Duh…” but some people seem to think they might have a better chance of selling themselves if the person contacts them to inquire about the property address. But that’s a mistake.

Here’s why…

The thing is, most real estate investors do their due diligence before they ever conduct an on-site visit to the property. Your inclusion of the property’s street address allows them to look up the property immediately.

NOT including the address actually decreases your odds of response.

Thing #2:

Pictures sell properties, especially if you are marketing to retail buyers. We all know seeing is believing. And even your fellow real estate investors will want to see at least an exterior shot.

A picture can truly be worth a thousand words, especially for potential cash buyers who know exactly what they want. Including at least one good photo will allow investors to glean their most vital insights about your property with a simple glance.

If your ad does not include at least one good photo, some investors will simply skip over your marketing efforts without a second thought – even if your property represents exactly what they’re looking for.

Thing #3:

Stay at the top of the listings. Craigslist allows you to repost an ad every 48 hours, and this alone may be enough to keep you at the top of the list.

Obviously, you want your ad read as much as possible and seen before any of the competition.

Thing #4:

Have a clear “call to action” at the end of your ad. Be sure you instruct the reader on what to do next, using a clear call to action. Prompt your audience to contact you for further deal-related discussions and provide several ways for them to contact you – including your phone number, email address and website (squeeze page).

And remember to double check (and triple check) all of your contact information for typos.

Thing #5:

Favor text over HTML. Ads created with HTML script may look more appealing, but text-only ads work better. So create a paragraph or two of optimized text to describe your property or service.

Don’t clutter the ad with text, but definitely focus your ad around a localized keyword phrase such as: “Searching for Discounted Real Estate in Arizona?”

Also, if you are using a text-only ad, you will still want to avoid using “Realtor” words when you’re dealing with investors. Unlike retail buyers, professional investors don’t care if a house is “charming” or “cozy” – and using the phrase “lots of potential” kind of undermines your credibility as a legit investor.

When marketing to investors online, use a basic text-only approach to describe:

What needs to be fixed.
An approximate estimate of the expected rehab costs.
An approximate estimate of the property’s after-repair value. (The term “lots of potential” does not tell an investor anything he actually needs to know. Besides, everybody thinks their property has lots of potential.)

Thing # 6:

Be sure to include an accurate price. Put your correct asking price in the appropriate “Price” field, and double check to ensure that it’s right. Too many people will put in $120 instead of $120,000.

Homebuyers of all types purchase properties primarily based on price and they tend to conduct their searches within specifically predefined price ranges. You want your property to appear in the proper searches.

Thing #7:

Be sure to include accurate bedroom and bathroom counts. “Number of Bedrooms” is a specific search function within Craigslist (as well as other similar sites) and, again, it helps potential buyers to qualify the house.

And if there’s an easy way to make another bathroom, then include that important information in the text of your ad as well – especially if the house only has one bathroom.

Thing #8:

Make your headline stand out. Yes, a bonus habit! Technology has come a long way from the basic “L@@k” that people used five years ago. Nowadays you can use arrows, sunbursts, and even a variety of icons to catch the eye of curious potential buyers.

And be sure to use the word “Investors” and/or “Wholesale Deal” in the title, if appropriate. You are trying to catch the eye of your target market so use words that they identify with.

Well, that’s a wrap, folks. I hope this will help some of you guys get killer results from Craigslist marketing and add some real cash to your pocket. And, for even more helpful info, be sure to check out Mogul’s 30-Day Quick Start Training Guide.