A great marketing campaign can be the difference between your property sale becoming a success or falling short of the mark. Imagine spending years looking after a property and building up its value, only to have a lower sale price. For many Aussie investors, this has become a reality. Maybe it’s poor timing? Or bad luck? In a lot of cases, the poor performance of a property sale can be traced back to a failed marketing campaign.
If you’re selling in a highly competitive market you need a good marketing campaign to help your property stand out. A common strategy that successful real estate agents employ is casting a wide net for marketing campaigns. This is done to advertise to and lure in as many potential buyers for your property. The more people are interested in your property, the more competition it will generate. Competition is one of the biggest drivers for high property prices at auctions.
A good real estate agent should be experienced with the area your property is in along with being familiar with the type of property you’re selling. There can be a big difference between selling a family home and a studio apartment Even when they are in the same area. At the beginning of your property campaign, your real estate agent should be able to draw up a strategy and explain the timeframe for implementing it.
From the very beginning of a property marketing campaign, your agent should be able to give you a breakdown of costs for the campaign. At the same time, you should be able to have the confidence to ask. Marketing costs can vary depending on where your house is and even the state of the market when you choose to sell. Each real estate agency has its own way of making deals, connecting with suppliers and pools of talent they rely on such as photographers and copywriters.
Starting your marketing and advertising campaign
Before starting an advertising campaign with your real estate agent it’s best to confirm what advertising is already included with their sales commission. At this point, it’s also best to ask what their payment policy is when a house doesn’t sell. In some cases, advertising fees can be negotiated with the agent. These fees are not always set in stone.
Depending on who you go with, payments for advertising and marketing fees can be flexible. Some real estate agents allow you to pay marketing costs as they come while others prefer you pay for everything upfront. Some real estate agents allow you to include marketing and advertising fees with their agent’s fees. This last option enables you to pay for the marketing and advertising fees when the property is sold.
So as you’re choosing a real estate agent it’s always a good idea to take their marketing and advertising fees into consideration. These marketing and advertising costs should be part of your overall costs for selling a house. Some agents will offer wildly different pricing when it comes to marketing and advertising. This difference in price has a lot to do with the different marketing channels they use. Expect to pay between 0.5% to 1% of your property’s selling price to calculate your marketing and advertising costs.
What you’re really paying for
When comparing the marketing and advertising costs of different real estate agents it’s best to identify exactly what you’re paying for. Some agents are only cheaper because they don’t do as much. You’ll find some agents that advertise on as many platforms as they can to generate as much interest as possible.
So let’s dive into what your marketing and advertising costs will actually include. Depending on the condition of your house, it may need a lot of cosmetic improvements made. A range of cleaning, decluttering, gardening, and renovating may be required. Also, consider the cost of styling. When a house is styled by professionals you’re essentially paying for professionals to come to your property, bring in new furniture and style the house with it. Styling can drastically improve the look and livability of your house to potential buyers.
When your house is up to scratch it’s time to get professional photos done. After a professional photographer comes in to take photos, you’ll have plenty of images that can be used for online and print advertising. Your agent may even make a walkthrough video of your property to further highlight all of its features. Another big aspect of your advertising campaign is also the For Sale signboard that sits in front of your property.
At the end of your advertising and marketing campaign, you may also have to pay for the auction itself unless you’ve opted for a private sale. An auctioneer who essentially calls the auction will need to be booked in advance for your property. The cost of booking an auctioneer could be an additional cost or one that’s included in your real estate agent’s overall fees.
Here’s a brief breakdown of what you could be paying for your marketing and advertising costs:
| Expense | Estimated cost |
| Photography & video shoot | $300-1,500 |
| Drafting a floor plan | $370 |
| Property listing description | $180 |
| Real estate sign | $70-$300 |
| House inspection brochures | $200 |
| Auctioneer | $1000 |
| Online property listing | $600-$900 |
| Printed property listing | $1000+ |
Making the most of online advertising
Investing in an online marketing campaign is one of the most effective ways to drive up interest in your property. It’s so effective today that it’s often a non-negotiable feature when it comes to overall property marketing and advertising plans offered by real estate agents. Today online property advertising is predominantly done through two of the Australian industry’s biggest websites; Domain and realestate.com.au.
Advertising online enables you to reach millions of people. Realestate.com.au boasts Australia’s largest property audience. An average of 4.3 million unique visitors are on the website each month while Domain sits at around 3.1 million. With your property listed on these two platforms, you are reaching everyone browsing these websites along with people on social media channels too.
It’s also relevant to mention here what else you can do with these websites aside from advertising. Both platforms enable potential property buyers to ask the agent questions about the property and book inspections. In the long run, this can save your real estate agent a lot of precious time and resources.
The latest numbers show that you could be paying upwards of $660 for advertising your property on Domain.com for an eight-week campaign. Keep in mind that prices can also vary depending on the suburb your property is in and the advertising subscription your real estate agent has with the website. At the larger end of the scale, it’s been reported that some online advertising campaigns on these websites can add up to $2,000 for all the premium inclusions.
Now’s the time to weigh up all your options
With a clearer idea of what you need to pay for a property marketing campaign, you can start to weigh up all your options and decide what’s really important. Now’s also an important time to see how your marketing budget will fit into the rest of the expenses required for selling your house. You may have a bunch of other things you wanted to do from minor renovations like painting the walls or putting in new plants.
Now with a clearer idea of what your advertising and marketing budget will be, it’s time to make some decisions about what’s really important when it comes to selling your house. Now’s also a good time to compare the rates of other real estate agents in your area. You may find that what they quote and what they offer for advertising and marketing are wildly different. Just make sure you ask for accurate breakdowns so you can compare their prices and what’s on offer for you in their version of a marketing and advertising campaign.
Get help choosing the right real estate agent for your property sale. Speak to the real estate experts from Vendor Advocate Melb today.
