Hank, calculate your marketing budget. It's usually better to send a minimum of 300 at a time, and if you can, send to same addresses every 3 months. Test your farming areas. You could try 100 at a time once a month. You can also alternate. if you get a listing, send 300 Just Listed. When it sells send 300 Just Solds.

I still use a Market Update mailer to my farm. Last year I sold two homes from it and the year before I sold 4. Seeing I mail it only 4 times a year, it is a pretty great return. Matter of fact, the last seller pulled out the mailer and showed it to me. They had kept it for months! (I like ExpressCopy)

If mailers and door hanger are appearing at your home, the answer will be "Yes, they do work in your area."  If they did not work, they would not be appearing on your stoop.

Good copy and graphics is the key to success. Be aware, that old yellow pad note, as ugly as it is, has proven to be exceptional graphics and if the copy is relevant, you can expereince success (if you understand how your consumer makes decisons)

I have found door hangers extremely successful when a door knock did not get a response. Door hanger should be printed in 'sharpie' font(blue) so when you enter the name or house number on the hanger it appears as though you personally wrote the whole message...right on the stoop!

Again, understand how your consumer makes decision, help them with the process, and when you have been validated (you can track this) they will contact you.

This is scalable to macro farming environments.

Just sent it to you :)   (LET ME KNOW IF YOU DIDN'T RECEIVE AS I HAD A BOUNCE BACK)

As I mentioned in the email, I send 500 to one neighborhood I farm about every 3 months. It is a Real Estate Market Update where I put 8 homes that have sold in the last 180 days. (Some people put Active, Pending, and Sold...however if it isn't sold then here in our MLS it is considered advertising another agents listing if you do that, so I stick to sold)

I also send another mailer from time to time to a smaller neighborhood with about 90 homes as I sold 4 houses there over the last 2 years and got 99.5% on average to list price. This made for a nice mailer and wasn't that expensive since it was only 90 homes.

I have a list for a high end apartment complex and I MIGHT mail to them if I can get a lender to go in with me as it is A LOT of names.

Good luck!

I use direct mail in my farm areas and for Just Listed/Just Sold cards, but not door hangars.  The post cards absolutely work, but it can't be a one & done approach.  Work a smaller area if you need to, but send out consistently, at least 6 times a year on top of Just Listed/Solds.

No to door hangers. Yes to mailings.

Investigate the postal service "every door delivery"  Very cost effective

I've used mailers for years and have had excellent results. The sad thing is the price of postage has almost made it prohibitive on a regular basis. I had to cut back from mailing every 2 weeks to a "farm area" and focus on my just closed announcements or quarterly market updates.

Regarding door hangers............Great for a cardio workout. Never had any business generated from that.

Just did a mailer an hour ago using Express Copy. You get 20% off your first order. If I email you the link I also get a discount, so let me know if you are game. Fast, easy.

Follow the blogs of Barbara Todaro for great advice on this kind of marketing.

I do direct mail but not door hangers. Door hangers would involve a special delivery service vs using the post office so I'm not ready to investigate that yet.

I received pretty good feedback from my first few mailings and will keep going with that for now.

Hank,

In our opinion, marketing like real estate knowledge is LOCAL.  What works in Napa is billboards at the entrance to Napa and on the wine roads.  That would not work in Santa Barbara where we now live...

Amanda and Jared, can you elaborate on the code that is on the card you send out?  Can you tell me the name of the mailer company that provides this?  I love the concept.

Keep in front of your farm with a little of both.    Remeber to always lead with revenue and as your budget expands, expand your advertising bases.  Use multiple types to get the most coverage.

I think the trick is to do it differently if you're going to do it at all. You have to find a way to stand out from whomever else is doing direct mail to your farm. There is a general look and feel to most of what's sent out. Figure out how to get the attention of your audience. If this is not your area of expertise, hire someone to create your marketing pieces. And I too use Express copy.

We just started doing very targeted mailings to 5 subdivisions.  Each postcard is specific and has a code they can enter into our website to see their home's value.  The beauty of it is that we can see who has logged in and how frequently they're logging in.  Then we hit them with another mailer, phone call, or even visit them.  We'll see how it goes.  

its best to ask for business 10 times from 100 people rather than asking for business 1 time from 1000 people. 

I have seen so many agents waste money on this without a long term plan to build your list of possible suspects into prospects.

You have to send/deliver something of use and value or it is a waste of money.  I can't believe some agents still mail out cookie recipies hoping I would think that implies they are a great Realtor.

I don't like door hangers, and I think most people find them annoying.  Though well though out mailers can be very effective.

We use direct mail for farm area and we always send out just listed and just sold cards.

During sport season we mail out schedules to our past clients and farm area

Hank Dugie never tried! In fact I know direct mail works, I have just used couple of services to do the mailers - never mailed it myself!

No.

I do not use them.

Every few years I will send out a batch of postcards.

Yes and yes

I do use mailers and do get results and hope to improve those results by better targeting.

I think the key is relevance, consistency & selecting a subdivision that is not over saturated with other Agents.

Hank, thanks for starting this thread. I'm always looking for additional ideas or feedback on various marketing techniques.

I'm doing mortgage ones- three different types:

1. I buy holiday cards after holiday or at hallmark stores going under for holidays that are less religious in nature- then have a teenager with good handwriting address them all to my farm and past clients, I intersperse with a spring cleaning flyer, and one with my children at Christmas

2. Walk the paper route and knock on doors with a Realtor buddy. I hand out something of financial news or information while Realtor works from their own perspective. Get great results from combination of leaving something paper and some neighbors have us come in and chat

3. Used to do shotgun mailers from farm lists, even with either slick professional cards or artistic ones mostly get complainer calls. Shotgun doesn't make the phone ring unless you have mailed them each 6 times. At 48 cents per the walking  door to door is better bang for buck

This is an excellent resource of invaluable information on this subject, so it simply depends on what strategy you should use and your budget to make it work. Best of the best to your success.

Direct mail fails often simply because the agent doesn't invest in a the area long enough.  Folks will often save post card mailers until they need an agent.  That may be months or years.

Direct mail works if done correctly.

Talk to Barbara Todero.  She's a very successful direct mail user.

My front door has a sign stating: No Trespassing, No Soliciting, No Flyers.  I still have morons that leave door hangers.  I have a motion sensor security camera in the window that takes a video of the moron. 

Door hangers are a great way to tell burglars which houses are not occupied.  If I am on vacation, and my house is broken into because you left a door hanger, and ignored my sign, you will be held liable.  Send a post card. 

We send out thousands of pieces of mailing every month which we split the cost of with whatever agents are interested in doing so and the leads are then given out in rotation to the participating agents.  We find it one of the best ways to get listing leads.

I've never done door hangers but I do send out mailers.  I chose a community based on the age and turnover rate.  I also send mailers to pre-foreclosure's and expireds.  I've gotten call backs and listings from my mailers.  The key is to be consistent and track your results.

Dear Hank,

Only start, if you can keep it up for the long run. Things usually pay off after some time & consistency.

I've been mailing regularly to a specific community for quite a while (~two years) but haven't had results yet. In another community I'm trying delivering information to doors but haven't had any positive luck with that yet either although that's a new initiative. Sounds like there are some good ideas above.

I've been using Express Copy.