Lead Generation in the Future

Margaret GrayMarch 19, 20217 mins read

How to Find High-Quality Leads as the Real Estate Industry Further Digitizes

In the past twenty years, the real estate profession has transformed. Major media conglomerates have forever changed the way homes are bought and sold. Now, people can browse online and in one click, purchase a property. With digital real estate companies now becoming the competition, it’s essential to understand how to generate leads in this new digital age.

Much of the real estate industry has become digitized, with homes now being sold entirely online. Because of this, real estate professionals have the most state-of-the-art technology available at their fingertips. Customer relationship management programs (CRMs) and social media have made it easier to connect with clients – both past and future. But if everyone is already using this technology, how do you stand out and generate more listings in the digital age?

Here at Listing3D, we’re sharing three types of digital leads to utilize. These are the three types of digital leads we’ll be talking about in article:

1. Paid Leads

2. Earned Leads

3. Network Leads

Type 1: Paid Leads

We’ll talk about the most controversial type of digital lead generation first: paid leads. Many believe that those who utilize paid leads do so because they can’t generate their own leads. It’s an industry stereotype that paid leads come from major media corporations like Zillow or Redfin.

Zillow has recently begun selling houses themselves, becoming the competition to the realtors it also provides leads for. Many professionals caution using these platforms, since it’s unclear what all the data they collect is used for.

Most of these beliefs about paid leads are not entirely true. There are extremely successful, intelligent agents who utilize paid leads as a supplement to the leads they generate for themselves through other means. If you have the ability to, why wouldn’t you give yourself access to more leads?

Quality of leads is a concern for those hesitant to pay for leads, and rightfully so. If you’re paying for a service, there’s an expectation you’ll get your money’s worth. Many hesitate to trust a computer algorithm to find quality leads. Sometimes it can be difficult to navigate all the data that paid lead programs provide and find the best leads.

This is why paid leads are recommended for those who are more established in their career. Digital paid lead programs are usually on the expensive side. They can also be difficult to navigate, especially for those who are less seasoned in the industry.

Agents who have been working for years can tell a good lead from a bad one. But keep in mind, paying for leads does not guarantee you’ll have a successful business. The competition for paid leads is fierce, since thousands of agents will see the same leads you do.

If you’re interested in pursuing paid leads for your company, check out HomeLight, Yelp, or NextDoor. There are also other ways to pay for digital marketing services without necessarily purchasing leads.

There are platforms where you can pay for excellent marketing campaigns, advertising your services to a wide audience. If this is something you’d be interested in, look into LionDesk, BoomTown, or TopProducer.

Type 2: Earned Leads

This is the type of lead generation that real estate professionals are often more familiar – and comfortable – with. Earning leads means you found the lead on your own. Usually this is through marketing tactics. There’s often the misconception that earned leads are free. Your advertising, which you’ve funded, generates your leads. While earned leads are organic, they still cost you money to produce.

There are many different marketing tactics, with digital marketing being one of the most essential for real estate professionals. Digital earned leads occur when you have a consistent brand identity and build an engaged audience. There are many different ways to achieve this: blogging, social media, networking, and email marketing are just a few different digital marketing techniques to build a brand and community.

Maintaining a website is one of the best ways to earn leads online. Websites demonstrate your professionalism, provide valuable resources to prospective clients, and makes it easy for you to be contacted.

This is the hub of your business for those interested in your professional services. Having your own domain with high-quality content (including backlinks from other sources) will make you more likely to appear in search engines and thus generate earned leads.

If you’re not familiar with search engine optimization (SEO) you should learn how to utilize this tool to more effectively share your digital content. Find the key words and phrases that are being searched the most and integrate that information into your website. SEO is another simple but effective tool that can generate more traffic on your website, and thus earn you more leads.

Having a digital presence, like social media platforms and a website, is a long-term way to grow your business. You attract new clients with your pre-existing content, while establishing your brand.

By placing the ads in the right places and creating a digital community, you’ll have a professional network to rely on for lead generation. Recommended digital marketing techniques include, but aren’t limited to, maintaining social media pages, email marketing, having a personal website with unique listing pages, photography, videography, and even virtual reality (more about that at the end).

Type 3: Network Leads

Similar to earned leads, network leads are found and established by the real estate professional, instead of a third party. Network leads are generated through, as the name suggests, the agent’s professional connections. This includes previous clients, colleagues in different states, and fellow business owners. Remember, there is a professional opportunity in every connection, so don’t underestimate who to include in your network.

The key to effectively utilizing your network is to constantly share information on your business, and more importantly, the success of your business. Email newsletters, social media posts, and other messaging consistently remind your large sphere of influence about what you do. When they are having a conversation with a friend who happens to want to move to the area and is looking for an agent, you’ll be the first name that comes to mind.

Testimonials are a great way to tap into your personal network. Reach out to former clients and ask them to talk a bit about their experience with your business.

You can publish these testimonials in an ad or on your personal website. Testimonials are one of the most effective marketing tactics. People are more likely to trust a business that is recommended by someone else, especially if it’s someone they already know.

Networking can also be mutually beneficial. Collaborating with another business and helping one another can be an excellent way to generate leads. There are lots of services that prospective homebuyers need when purchasing a new house.

You can recommend contractors, mortgage financiers, or accountants to your clients. When those business owners are later approached by someone looking to buy a house in the area, you’ll receive that business in return for your referral.

Even if you rely primarily on your network to generate leads, it is recommended that you still maintain a digital presence. If you’re recommended to someone by a friend, the first thing they’ll do is search for your website to better understand your services. Having a business website and a few well-run social media platforms makes you even more credible to referred leads.

Overwhelmed by digital marketing and looking for some help? Listing3D has got you covered. With our exclusive marketing packages, we use the most up-to-date technology to advertise your work to the biggest and best audience.

Our packages include immersive virtual tours (created using 3D cameras), video teasers of the property, a 3D Flyer with a scannable QR code, and a landing webpage with all of your contact information, helping future clients easily contact you. With your talent and our technology, we’ll advertise your listings far and wide to help you sell your properties faster and more efficiently.