YouTube Marketing Tips For The Real Estate Industry
YouTube marketing and video marketing in general is still an underused and misused tactic by the real estate community. YouTube really does open up entirely new ways of reaching out to your target audience both organically and using paid methods. That fact that Google owns YouTube only makes it that more important to take advantage of the world’s second largest search engine.
We spoke with numerous video marketing experts such as HSC.TV to get their feedback on what works best when promoting your videos on YouTube. The 12 experts below dropped some knowledge bombs on what works best today whether you’re looking to attract organic video views or spend some money on YouTube ads.
1. Keep A Longer Sales Cycle In Mind
“Youtube advertising offers undeniable appeal for real estate professionals, given the growing sophistication of the platform’s targeting options and large audience base. Those considering advertising on the platform should focus on procuring short, high-quality content that contains your most important information in the first 5 seconds. For example, a well-filmed 30 second video tour of a home with the neighborhood, address and price immediately visible could work well for a residential property. Real estate pros should keep in mind, though, that youtube advertisements typically don’t meet the consumer at the point where they are actively considering a purchase, and thus might be more appropriate for markets with a longer sales cycle.”
By Dan Rocklin of Hanapin Marketing
2. Take Time To Understand How YouTube SEO Works
“There are numerous advantages of using videos when marketing real estate businesses. Some of them include increased brand awareness, higher ranking in search engine results, and lead generation. As a matter of fact, YouTube is owned by Google, which makes it the second largest search engine. And even though certain websites such as Zillow, Realtor, etc take all the spots in the first page of Google results, making it really hard to compete with them, your videos still have a chance to appear on the first page if Google considers them highly relevant to a person’s search. Thus, the #1 YouTube marketing tip that one should definitely consider is to dedicate some time in understanding how SEO works on this platform. Always keep in mind that when producing a video that ranks high in the real estate niche, focus on finding the right keywords. You should find keywords that have YouTube video results on the first page of Google so that your videos also have an opportunity to rank high for the relevant search terms. Another tip is to embed videos directly on your blog posts. This way, linked articles will provide your audience with more value.”
By Oksana Chyketa of Albacross
3. Try TrueView In-Strem or Discovery Ad Types
“When building and implementing your paid YouTube ads strategies, it’s important to spend your YouTube ad budget smartly to gain attention from people who can become your potential clients. It would be best if you chose your YouTube ad format wisely, taking into account your campaign goals. Keep in mind that YouTube advertising can be mostly used to build or reinforce brand awareness, so it makes more sense to run a TrueView in-stream or discovery ad. Consider making your TrueView ad longer because you pay for it if the viewer watches it for at least 30 seconds.”
By Illia Termeno of Extrabrains
4. Time Block Your Video Creation Time
“When it comes to YouTube and video marketing for real estate professionals, YouTube is still very much a blue ocean. My biggest tip for any real estate pro who wants to get into the space is to TIME BLOCK your video creation time and do not let ANYTHING interrupt it!
Video content works, and it can draw in new leads for years to come. However, it is also very time consuming to plan, film, edit, publish and share … especially on a consistent basis. When you have a scheduled time to do your video marketing, but you also have 4 deals heading towards closing and another buyer who wants to go see a half a million dollar house, what do you do? It is so easy to become the “whack-a-mole” agent who goes after every single new lead or client issue that pops up that day.
If you want to win in the video marketing space, you have to be consistent. Time block the space and protect it with all of your might!”
By Eric Sztanyo of We Buy NKY Houses
5. Mix Up Your Video Types
“YouTube marketing is somewhat similar to content marketing through your website in the sense that you have to produce and publish good content on regular basis. You should not limit yourself to one type of videos but work on producing videos on a wide range of topics. Some must-have categories include:
- How-to Videos: In these you can tell your future clients all they need to know about the process of selling or buying a home including budgeting, financing, choosing the best property type for their needs, selecting a location, making an offer, closing a deal, etc. Moreover, you can give them tips on how to choose the agent to work with.
- Listing Videos: As soon as you get a new listing, shoot a video with high-quality, professional-looking images and videos of it and all important information which buyers would like to know. Upload the video on your YouTube channel immediately.
- Market Updates: Show future leads that you are the best agent in the area by sharing your knowledge of the local market and any important developments.
- Real Estate News: You should show you are knowledgeable of real estate in general by keeping your future clients up to date with trends and news in the regional, national, and even international housing market.
- Interviews: These can include videos in which you interview other real estate experts or videos with interviews which you have had.
- Neighborhood Overviews and Walkthroughs: Shoot some videos with the highlights of your neighborhood showing why it is the best place to own a home.”
By Daniela Andreevska of Mashvisor
6. Ad Fatigue Is A Real Problem
“One of the more common mistakes we see at Promo.com is that most advertisers (professionals or not) fail to understand that you need to be constantly trying new video ads, because no matter how great they are, eventually you get ad fatigue.
Ad fatigue is when your ad frequency it’s too high, causing your audience to see the same ad over and over again, therefore become less responsive to them. A video ad campaign cannot be left running alone, you do need to be constantly monitoring, otherwise, your ROI starts to go down.”
By Andre Guelmann of Promo.com
7. Inexpensive Editing Software Is A Huge Help
“Using a low cost editing software like Camtasia can make a world of difference in getting watchers engaged in the video. You can use the same software to create a custom thumbnail that will stand out in YouTube search results, and to further help with visibility consider using a talk to type program to create your own long form description of the video and property.”
By John Hayter of Ranch Marketing Associates
8. YouTube Influencer Collaboration
“One method our firm uses for our clients is YouTube SEO application powered by YouTube influencers. We collaborate with influential YouTubers relevant to your target demographic for their star power and optimize the YouTube video to match for keywords with the highest commercial intent. I would recommend you nurture and develop your own channel but lacking that you can collaborate with influencers.”
By Lee Namoo of TK101 Global
“In this day and age using YouTube for marketing real estate is a must, I always use keyword hashtags in the description of my YouTube videos because it helps to drive traffic to the video for that description. Also placing links to your business website in the description area of your videos will help drive organic traffic to your website. There are also search engine optimization firms that someone can hire to help get there YouTube videos ranking on google for even more exposure to a larger audience. Brand your YouTube channel and post the name of your YouTube channel all over social media for everyone to see and try to post new content every week if possible.”
By Chris Waits of WeBuyFtWorth
10. Don’t Forget Your Contact Information
“YouTube is a great source to reach potential clients. Start off by providing value to people looking for a home. Provide tips on things to look for when purchasing and videos on what to expect during the home hunting process. Optimize your title and search criteria to your local area. Always leave your email and phone number for anyone with questions to reach out. Once you make a sale, take a picture with the new homeowner to put at the end of future videos. This provides credibility and authenticity.”
By Jeffrey Forbes of Elite Ethics
11. Quality Equipment Adds A Professional Touch
“You don’t have to spend a lot of money to make your videos look professional. You can buy a cell phone gimbal for roughly $100 that will make your walking shots look smooth and professional. If you want to do your own aerial shots you can find inexpensive but still high-quality drones for $300-400. Using your own equipment instead of hiring a professional will easily save you hundreds of dollars every time you make a new YouTube property video.”
By Matt Casady of STOR-N-LOCK Self Storage
12. Done Is Always Better Than Perfect
“Real estate pros goes beyond agents, it includes home inspectors! Home inspectors are marketing to the same client in the same transaction as the agent! The simple secret to marketing on YouTube is that done is better than perfect. The more videos that you get done the faster they will approach perfect. And perfect is not the expectation of the customer. The customer is seeking to be entertained and informed. Too often in the quest for perfection, nothing gets done and boredom is the kiss of digital death! Knowing that your customer would rather lean from you in 60 second snippets, get the camera rolling and post away. Your videos might truly get any better, but you’ll get comfortable and your customer will be entertained!”
By Wally Conway of HomePro Inspections
