For the past year, I've been acting shamelessly. I've been carrying on like a giddy little school girl with a crush. I've been flaunting my affair around my local market area and talking about it to anyone that listens. But, I'm through feeling guilty for spending more time with one and ignoring other. I'm just going to come out with it. I've been cheating on my email with text messaging and it feels so good.
At first email marketing campaigns were great they had a 20% open rate or higher. As a Realtor when I wanted to get information out about an open house or a sweet deal on a foreclosure, I’d go to my laptop. I’d instantly whip up a flyer and click send. Automatically, I knew at least twenty out of every 100 people would receive the email and open it within the next 24 hours. Therefore on a contact list of 3,000 the probability of reaching a minimum of 600 people or more in a day is not too shabby. Like I said, in the beginning; email and I were great together.
Then, something changed. Somehow email and I began to grow apart. I would spend time creating eye catching email campaigns only for spam filters to block them from the intended recipients. I watched my response rate dwindle down slowly to an average percentage that was laughable. I even solicited the advice of a marketing consultant who explained to me that lately an email campaign is considered successful if it reaches a minimum of 10% open rate. My heart was broken into millions of pieces. Using email campaigns to communicate with my sphere of influence or generate referral business is slowly becoming more ineffective as technology evolves. I simply had to tell my email account, “It’s not you, it’s me.” I need more than what you can offer.
So, just like any other hot blooded motivated Realtor. I began to search for something to fill the void in my marketing plan. I flirted with the idea of going back to print. I blogged on and off. However, the key component is generating traffic to the blog and that in itself is another job. It works but it takes a lot of time and attention to grow. Blogging is effective but high maintenance. I had almost given up hope in finding anything that would satisfy me until one day, while at lunch; a friend decided to introduce me to text message short codes. It was casual at first and nothing too serious. But, as I learned more about how text message short codes work and how they could be applied to real estate, I began to fall in love. There was an instant connection. The capabilities of mobile marketing seduced me. Email who?
Text message marketing changed the game for me. It just made sense. It’s a medium of communication that is designed to reach mass amounts of people with a 97% average open rate. (Text Marketing Statistical Overview) From past and present clients, to current and future prospects; everyone has a cell phone and everyone reads their text messages. I’m able to send important links of videos, blogs, and facebook fan pages directly to people’s cell phones. Even more magnificent my audience is clicking on those links from their cell phone and responding instantly to my call to action. Plus, some recipients would go as far as to forward my text messages and links to their friends and family. This exchange of information takes place in a matter of seconds or minutes. With email, it took a day or so. Now my sphere of influence can be reached in 60 seconds or less and I can generate a response in 120 seconds from up to 50% of the people I send the text out to.
I love text message marketing and more and more consumers are going mobile every day. I want to be ahead of the revolution and depending on email marketing campaigns was just holding my business back from its limitless potential. Email still holds a place in my heart and in my business but the flame doesn’t burn as bright. I don’t spend as much money on it. Let’s face it people have long left the “you’ve got mail” enthusiasm and no longer look to email to get pertinent information. The only email people are concerned with reading are the ones from close friends, families, businesses they frequent, or a source that has something to do with the information they need at that very moment. If you don’t make the cut, then you find yourself going in the spam box. I’m plenty of things but, I am nobody’s spam.
I imagine when more Realtors have had enough of email campaigns that don’t initiate the response they’re looking for; they’ll dump their email and go out in search of something more too. Guess what? Text message marketing will be there waiting with open arms. (Flyer for Mobile Marketing MCE Course Wed. 11/9/2011)
(Realtors in Greater Houston or surrounding areas: TEXT SMARTREALTOR to 90210 to receive great real estate marketing tips, information on MCE courses from the best instructors, latest local industry news, best available BTSA's and chances to win freebies)
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