If this past year has taught us anything, it’s that things can change instantly. The COVID-19 pandemic forced real estate agents to drastically change the way they do business. 

With leadership changes, plans to execute the largest mass-vaccination effort ever, and an aim to stabilize the economy with new normals, it’s difficult to predict exactly what’s in store for real estate and the housing market in 2021. One thing is for certain, however —  you need to have a growing and connected client base. 

A great way to set yourself up for success for the New Year is taking some time to plan out marketing activities for the upcoming year that will keep your existing clients connected and referring you, and attract new clients.

We know it can be tough to look ahead when you’re busy with your day-to-day, so to help make reaching your goals a little easier, we’ve put together a full year’s worth of marketing ideas for real estate that will help you have a growing and connected client base all year long. 

Key marketing tactics for real estate

We recommend using the following tactics to execute the marketing ideas listed in our monthly calendar below:

• Email newsletters & greetings: Nurture existing contacts for additional business and/or referrals 
• Social posting: Nurture existing contacts for additional business and/or referrals & gain visibility and credibility with potential leads
• Email review requests: Request reviews from current and past clients to boost credibility with potential leads
• Social ads: Increase your reach to get more leads and traffic to your listings
• Lead generation: Get more leads using a custom landing page
• Lead nurture emails: Nurture your leads until they are ready to become clients
• Google My Business: Make sure prospective clients can find you when they search for Real Estate agents in your area with Google My Business.

Monthly marketing calendar for real estate with ideas for each month

Use the Real Estate marketing ideas and tools below to help you plan your 2021 marketing and accomplish your goals. 

January

• Prepare your connections for what’s likely to come in the New Year. Changes in leadership and a COVID-19 vaccine are likely to result in changes for the Real Estate industry, so be sure to share important industry news like market recovery trends and interest rate changes using sources like NAR. 
  • Email marketing
  • Social posting
• Share winter maintenance/design tips or tips to create a budget/financial plan in the New Year.
  • Email newsletter
  • Social posting
• Request reviews from past clients via email to boost credibility for the year.
  • Email review request
• Jan.10th is Houseplant appreciation day! Share an idea for using houseplants in staging or for better health.
  • Social posting

February

• Make sure prospective clients can find you when they search for Real Estate agents in your area.
  • Google My Business
• Share helpful resources for homeowners like winter home maintenance tips. 
  • Email newsletter
  • Social posting
  • Social ads

• Share what to expect with the Spring market and Spring real estate market prep resources. Offer a free home evaluation, a checklist for getting pre-approved, or host a first-time homebuyers webinar.
  • Lead nurture email
  • Social posting
  • Social ads
• Feb. 14th is Valentine’s Day! Share backyard/at home date ideas or your favorite date night ideas in your community.
  • Social posting

March

• Share helpful tips for buyers or sellers in the Spring market, like current market trends and curb appeal tips. 
  • Email newsletter
  • Social posting
• Share Spring Real Estate market prep resources like a checklist for selling a home.
  • Social posting
  • Social ads
• March 29th is National Mom & Pop Business Owners Day! Share your favorite local businesses in your community.
  • Social posting

April

• Share your property listings and upcoming open houses. Include pictures, videos, details of your latest listings, updates like price drops, and your contact information. 
  • Email marketing
  • Social posting
  • Social ads
• April 15th is Tax Day. Host a live Q&A session with a local accountant, share free tax resources, and share a basic reminder about tax day.
  • Email newsletter
  • Social posting

May

• Share helpful resources for buyers and sellers as they navigate through the busy Spring market, for example, Spring home maintenance & gardening tips, tips for selling your home faster in a competitive market, open house do’s & don’ts, how to boost curb appeal, or recommended moving companies.
  • Email newsletter
  • Social posting
  • Social ads

June

• Follow up with warmer leads, for example, a past client who has been regularly clicking on listings in your emails, or a lead that has been engaging with your content focused on selling a home. 
  • Email marketing
• Provide educational information specific to the current market conditions and time of year, for example, current market trends and interest rates, benefits of selling your home early on in the Summer season, tips on how to separate yourself from other buyers in a competitive market, Summer gardening tips, ways to refresh your home decor this Summer.
  • Email newsletter
  • Social posting

July

• Host a client appreciation event to connect with your network and nurture your current and past clients.
  • Event management
  • Email newsletter
  • Social posting
• July 4th is Independence Day! Share a guide to Backyard BBQs or a guide to local fireworks displays.
  • Social posting

August

• Share end of season maintenance ideas.
  • Email newsletter
  • Social posting
• Provide educational resources like negotiating skills for buyers.
  • Lead nurture email
  • Social posting
  • Social ads

September

• Target first-time home buyers and empty nesters who aren’t slowed down by the start of the school year by hosting a first-time homebuyers webinar or a resource with tips on knowing when to downsize. Share reasons why the Fall is a great time to buy.
  • Email newsletter
  • Social posting
  • Social ads
• September 12th is Grandparents Day! Share multi family listings in your area, or a guide to knowing when to downsize.
  • Social posting

October

• Set up automated emails and email drip campaigns that trigger based on a contacts behavior, for example, a contact is clicking on certain listings or content in your emails; or a contact registered for a first-time homebuyer webinar. Set up targeted, relevant emails to automatically send based on their interactions. 
  • Automated emails
  • Email drip campaigns

November

• Share educational resources like tips for buying or selling a home during the holidays, and tips for Holiday home staging ideas.
  • Email newsletter
  • Social posting
  • Social ads
• Show appreciation by sending a Happy Thanksgiving email. Say thanks, offer a free Thanksgiving pie to clients, or share your favorite recipes. 
  • Email greeting
• November 27th is Small Business Saturday! Share your favorite small businesses in your community.
• November 30th is Giving Tuesday! Share local charities to consider donating to this Giving Tuesday or your favorite nonprofit organization.
  • Social posting

December

• Send a holiday greeting to your connections. Include ideas for giving back to the community, or provide your favorite holiday recipe. 
  • Email newsletter
  • Email greeting
  • Social posting
• See who is engaging with your emails and social posts, and what they are engaging with the most. Use these findings to help inform and adjust your strategy for the coming year.
  • Reporting 

Year-round marketing tactics

• Send an email newsletter to nurture your existing contacts for additional business or referrals.
• For each closed client send a thank you email that requests reviews to strengthen your credibility.
• Send automated emails out to consistently nurture your relationship with past clients:
  • A congratulations email on the anniversary of the purchase or sale of a home.
  • Happy Birthday greetings to past clients.

Need more content ideas?

No need to create it all yourself. Check out our real estate marketing advice blogs or these resources you can link to for great content to share with your connections. 

• Market trends/industry news
  • National Association of Realtors (NAR)
  • RIS Media
  • Inman
• Design/maintenance tips
  • Houzz 
  • HomeAdvisor 
  • DIY Network
  • HGTV
  • HowStuffWorks

It’s time to step up your real estate marketing

Ready to implement the ideas above? Log in to Constant Contact or start a free trial today and see how our digital marketing platform can help you have a growing and connected client base.

Looking for more ways to plan your online marketing for 2021? Check out our full online marketing calendar with a free template and full list of marketing holidays.

The post 2021 Marketing Calendar for Real Estate (with Ideas) appeared first on Constant Contact.