When it comes to Dubai real estate — where over 220 different nationalities are invested — the world is your stage. “With digital platforms and geo-targeting, your reach goes far beyond the UAE,” concurs Mansi Saxena, director of marketing, Gulf Sotheby’s International Realty, highlighting the impact of digital technology on the industry. Indeed, with online tools, smartphone apps and social networks at your disposal, real estate marketing today is vastly different to what it was a couple of decades back. While Marketing 101 fundamentals may have weathered the digital storm, Marketing 2.0 now calls for the use of newfangled methods and platforms.
We reached out to a few industry veterans for their tips and tricks on navigating the modern real estate marketing landscape.
Firas Almsaddi, CEO, fam Properties
In the past, real estate marketing used to be a one-way communication. But the technological revolution created by apps and social media has enabled marketers to correspond directly with their clients. This has allowed for better relationships to be formed and has helped in the delivery of personalised marketing messages that improve customer experience. In turn, this has helped reduce costs and increase revenue. Now marketers can provide consistent and exceptional experiences to clients through multiple channels.
We have invested heavily in creating online tools and apps based on cutting-edge Oracle technology. Our website itself is an Oracle app, and we have developed several proprietary apps, which have enabled streamlined experiences for real estate agents, tenants and the landlords.
Do
• You must be data driven. Always test, measure, tweak and repeat to get the best and most accurate results.
• Agencies need to define different client personas in order to pitch the ideal product or service, as well as to better map the customer experience journey.
• It is imperative to stay up to date with the latest trends and technologies, and always keep your finger on the pulse in the real estate industry.
• You should always be customer centric and all your activities should revolve around the clients.
• Remember, innovation is a process and it is something we learn as we grow and experiment.
Avoid
• Creating marketing campaigns based on the assumption that clients know the product, the company and the challenges the team goes through.
• Buying advanced technology without making sure that there is a need for it, or not having in-house talent to manage it.
• Using a variety of marketing channels without proper integration tools that collect the results from these platforms and collate the data in one place.
• Hiring people who have the tech know-how but lack a strong marketing background.
• Replicating marketing activities similar to those used by competitors without understanding why they have taken these actions.
Omar Chihane, CEO, Sellanyhome.com
Smartphone apps and social media platforms have drastically transformed real estate marketing. We are a technology-first company and our business model reflects exactly that. We heavily focus our marketing efforts online, where we use proprietary technology to attract buyers and sellers.
We also use the power of social media to not only feature our value proposition to buyers and sellers, but also to promote the sellers’ property. A good example would be a video blog recently posted by one of this region’s most recognisable YouTubers, Mo Vlogs, explaining our process and featuring one of our sellers’ gorgeous villa. So far, it has gotten us over 840,000 views!
Do
• Go where others are not going.
• Try different channels, then decide which one works the best.
• Make sure you have enough data to support your decision.
• Focus on your company’s core message.
• Keep it simple.
Avoid
• Don’t stick to conventional channels.
• Don’t over-complicate your message.
• Don’t be afraid of failure. Failure often offers the best lessons.
Kalpesh Sampat, managing partner, and Mansi Saxena, director of marketing, Gulf Sotheby’s International Realty
Best practises from other industries are being adopted by marketing gurus in real estate. Consumer insight and identification of need-gaps for homebuyers is crucial to designing and marketing a product. Millennials, expats and young families as a target segment have huge potential; the marketing strategy should keeping in mind their preferences, which is mostly digital.
Do
• Social media should be used as a content dissemination tool first and as a sales tool second. The target segment likes to read up and take an informed decision. If your site provides useful information about a host of topics, it becomes a trusted source. Then if there’s a sales-related post — a project launch or community sales — the target audience is more likely to buy from you.
• Follow brand guidelines across artworks; create a calendar and frames for the kind of message you want to disseminate — is it fun or news, about a community or a project? Consistency ensures that your target recognises your brand’s message and the schedule ensures that they expect it on a certain day.
• With modern tools such as virtual reality, 360-degree videos or live stream, homes can be brought to the customer’s device, even in 4K. Use these tools. And if you are using print, integrate it with digital using QR codes.
• Check credentials and the track record of developers before recommending their projects. In the long term, you get far more repeat business from customers who make a lot of money in the investments you recommended, than by doing a one-time deal and exposing the customer to a loss.
• Give customers top service. As Warren Buffer has pointed out, companies need to remember only three words to be successful: delight the customer.
Avoid
• If the look and feel of your online presence is compromised, the artworks are sub-standard or the picture quality is bad, your message will be lost. So if it doesn’t look good, don’t bother putting it on social channels.
• If you don’t maintain your website, revenue loss happens.
• Don’t miss out on simple things such as the use of the right colours, appropriate currency conversions or the language of the region.
• Do not mislead customers. Such tactics are counterproductive in the long run.
• Do not try to sell to the client. Try to understand what they need, then find the most suitable options for them. But never push or be aggressive; it is self-defeating.
• Do not bombard customers with emails, SMS or WhatsApp messages. It is not effective and will probably end with your communication being marked spam.