Grab the 80% of Buyers that Won’t Read Your Advertising

The purpose of your real estate advertising is to grab attention and get potential buyers to take action - call, email, view, go to an open home, whatever. But the noise is tremendous.  We get battered by hundreds of advertising messages every day with many other homes competing for the same buyer.  

How do you cut through that?  How do you grab attention?

Advertising legend David Ogilvy is often quoted as stating that 4 out of every 5 people will not look any further than the headline. The headline is so important in his mind that “when you have written your headline, you have spent eighty cents out of your (advertising) dollar”.

Online with Trade Me and www.realestate.co.nz we see this problem clearly.  Standard searches only show a thumbnail (small) picture and the advertisement headline initially. In that cramped space and time you gotta get noticed or miss out.

How do we solve that problem?  

With a "sock it to ‘em" headline.

The purpose of your headline is to get the reader to look further, in this case clicking on the link.  Tell the reader why.  A great headline conveys the key reason the reader should buy the home. The important thing is that it is the readers perspective that matters, not ours. That is why we always ask our owners “what’s the best thing about living in the home” - we can guess, they know!  You've then probably got a pretty good lead on the most important value of the home.

The Three Rules to a Great Headline

We certainly don't always get it right, but an important tip is to write the headline last. When we get there we use three filters or rules to help creating a standout, awesome headline.  

1. It must be short and meaningful to the reader.  Ask yourself the question why should the reader look further?  The headline answers that.
   
2. Be specific. A headline of “Price Slashed $50k”, is way more interesting than “Price Reduced”
   
3. Be compelling. You don’t have to be fancy or clever - in fact it’s probably better not to be.  Give the reader an irresistible urge to look further.

* Space for Africa

* Quiet sanctuary on CBD doorstep

* Fully fenced back yard

* Peace and quiet away from teenagers

Emotive and action based words are best. Words such as sunny, warmth, security, family, or words that convey quality, designer, granite, slate, high end appliances and so forth.

There is no need to be fancy or cute and certainly do not try to be all things to all people - stress the key benefit to the most likely buyer. Focus on the most important reason they would want to buy your home.

Grab the reader by the scruff of the neck with a headline that generates a gut reaction of “ooh, this might be the home for me”.  

They will then take the next step…

Ogilvy picture via jeffbullas.com blog.