iRealty has been helping real estate professionals for nearly 2 decades. From agents just starting out to offices of 50+ personnel, we have had the pleasure of working with all types of real estate specialists. With our 18 years of experience comes a level of refinement that allows both our software and services to complement and streamline contemporary real estate practices. By providing an industry leading marketing software and access to marketing professionals, our clients are achieving some of the best results in the industry. 

Whilst, working with thousands of agents, property managers and administrators over the years has made our business what it is today, we believe in solving the challenges that real estate professionals currently face. Here are 5 of the most common challenges in real estate and how iRealty overcomes them. 

Low Stock:

Number one on the list should not come as a surprise. Almost all agents at some point in their career have experienced the dread of low stock. At the end of the day being a real estate agent is about selling properties and you won’t make money if you don’t have properties to sell.

When a client comes to us with this challenge we start with these 3 tips:

1. Stay in contact with your whole database to ensure a steady flow of interest. Around 5% of your database will actually buy or sell in the next 12 months. Research suggests you are more likely to be the agent they choose if they can recall your name and have an easy way to get in contact with you. By implementing a soft content approach with your whole database, you will start identifying trends and leads when contacts return to market.  
2. Leading on from the point above, iRealty leads can be sent when a contact reengages with your marketing after a period of time. This lead will notify you immediately, adding interactions to the subscribers profile (potentially categorising them as a buyer or seller) so you are the first agent they speak with when they begin researching the market. 
3. Have lead forms available for people to request your services. Both iRealty email templates and social media strategies involve lead forms and banners to offer services and listing information. Using forms, your subscribers can easily request appraisals, rental valuations and more from your marketing material. 

Expensive lead generation: 

On average you get $38 back for every dollar you spend on email marketing. Unlike other industry software solutions who assist in lead generation, iRealty does not charge you extra for leads coming from your own database. However, we do instantly notify you of – appraisal requests, return to market interest, subscribers who are highly engaged and other customised leads you want to receive. We deliver them straight to your phone so you can contact them within minutes. 

Say you have a database of 500 people, your investment on iRealty marketing would be under $50 per month. Let’s say 3 people request an appraisal after you send your first email and you list and sell 1 of them. If the property was worth the QLD average of $411K your gross commission is just over $11k. Your investment has paid for itself over 220 times! 

 Then if you add in the brand awareness you gain and buyer interest, you are increasing your ROI even further.  

Growing and maintaining a database: 

Challenge three is particularly important for newcomers. Collecting the name and contact details of people who are in the market at any one time is detrimental to your success. In the example above we outlined that around 5% of your database will make a move in the market in the next year. As an agent your database is your biggest asset, with each contact potentially worth $500. 

Here is how we help our clients build and maintain their biggest asset: 

1. Social media strategies involving opt-in CTAs promoting exclusive newsletter content. This helps to incentivize people to sign up.
2. Manage bounced email addresses and automatically cleanse old data
3. Profile subscribers to ensure they receive relevant content at an appropriate frequency (we hate spam)!

Competition from listing portals

I recently read an article that stated  one of the only places buyers could find listings was on large portals like realestate.com. However, what if there was a way for you to promote your listings to interested buyers without them being able to easily navigate away to competing agents listings? 

iRealty’s smart filters allow you to send listings to those who are actively engaged in the property market. By sending relevant content you are not waiting for buyers to come to you to enquire. You are also improving their buyer experience by ensuring they only receive listings they are interested in. 

By accomaning relevant content and sending frequency with the iRealty ‘property page’ you will create  a way for all interested buyers to receive listings that fit their criteria. As well, a place they can view all of your listings without navigating to other agents properties. 

 Managing Vendor Expectations 

53% of agents say their biggest concern is managing their vendors expectations. Gaining the highest price in a timely manner is make or break for the relationship you have with a vendor and their subsequent referral business. Luckily, building and maintaining relationships with your vendors is something we take seriously. 

41% of people will choose an agent based on a friend of family members feedback. While 90% of people say they would use an agent again. 

Our tips for building and maintaining relationships with your vendors, during the sales process and beyond: 

1. Make your first impressions count – Have immediate buyer interest and showcase their property seamlessly 
2. Use digital marketing like social media and email marketing to increase buyer interest and sell for the right price
3. Communicate regularly with the utmost transparency

Key Takeaways: We work with thousands of real estate professionals to overcome typical challenges within the industry. From low stock to building a database we are determined to achieve the best results for our clients.