Logic says that when you spend time crafting the perfect email, it should fly through the cosmos and land straight into a subscriber’s inbox. The recipient will read the email, digest its carefully thought out call-to-action and jump on the phone to inquire about the fabulous listings advertised within.
In reality, it’s a lot more complicated than that.
Did you know that 21% of emails never land in a recipient’s mailbox? That’s one-fifth of the world’s communications that never see the light of day.
This is because email providers have decided to spare consumers from unwanted communications by scanning inbound emails and rejecting those they deem 'spam'.
As a real estate agent who relies on emails for lead generation, I know this sounds off-putting, but don’t let it scare you.
Email marketing is one of the most cost efficient and effective ways to reach your contacts, as long as you follow these simple rules and/or implement a marketing automation platform that will deliver spam-proof emails on your behalf.
Stay Legitimate
Don’t fall into the trap of buying pre-filled subscriber lists because you think it’s an easy way to reach the masses. These are full of dead email addresses which will flag you as an untrustworthy sender. Don't run the risk of jeopardising communications with your valued contacts because you wanted to fill your list with cheap imitations.
Track your engagement
When deciding which emails deserve to land in an inbox, mail providers look at subscriber engagement. This means that if no-one is opening your emails, they’re less likely to be delivered in the future. The best way to overcome this hurdle is to keep your listings relevant. Checking your open and click rates will give you a good indication of how you're going and if you need to make any adjustments. Strong subject lines will help immensely.
Keep your subject lines relevant
We’ve all looked at an email’s subject line, instantly recognised it as spam and deleted it before giving it a chance. People judge CAPITAL LETTERS and EXCLAMATION MARKS!!!!!! as obvious characteristics, so avoid them at all costs. It’s a miracle these emails have made it past filters in the first place so do yourself a favour and keep your subject lines short, relevant and grammatically correct.
Choose your words wisely
Phrases such as “limited time”, “special offer” and “today only” sound great in theory but are a red flag for spam filters.
Even words like “free”, “cheap” and “guaranteed” can be discriminated against. Instead of going for a hard-sell, concentrate on writing subject lines that show the value of what’s inside and entice the reader, without overselling.
Keep your lists clean
Readers don’t like being trapped into receiving content and have every right to complain if they feel their privacy is breached.
It might sound counterintuitive but unsubscribes can actually be beneficial for you. They clean your list which increases your engagement, ensuring you maintain high open rates. Your deliverability rates will be greatly improved and your emails will actually end up in front of more eyes than if you had a big list, filled with useless contacts.
Segment your lists
Not all your recipients have the same real estate interests, so why on earth would you send them the same generic listings? Categorise your contacts into groups, so you can target them with tailored content that they are more likely to open. ActivePipe does this for you with incredible precision. It targets individuals and audiences within your database with properties that match their exact needs. Best of all, it automates the process, so you don't have to lift a finger.
What can we learn from all of this?
When it comes to real estate marketing, email remains the undisputed king, so you simply can't afford to be the agent sitting in the junk pile. You'll be on the right track if you keep your lists clean, segmented and your content relevant.
