Real Estate Farming: Sowing, Growing and Expanding Your Business

Of the myriad lead generation strategies available to real estate agents, one of the most consistently successful is real estate farming. This type of strategy offers focus on a geographic area and the prospects therein. According to The Close, agents who use the farming strategy can capture at least 30% of all sales in a target area and turn leads into long-term clients.

It seems like a solid marketing model, but is farming for real estate the right strategy for you? Even if you're happy with your current marketing plans, having a more profound understanding of farming methods and concepts can prove beneficial in any real estate market.

How to create a real estate farming strategy

The first step in any farming strategy is to choose your target area. You'll want to choose somewhere with high demand and a high turnover rate to focus your real estate farming idea.

The next step is to plan the kind of marketing efforts you'll use on your target audience. Some popular examples include sending real estate farming postcards via direct mail, offering market updates via email and creating neighborhood websites. Think of this stage as sowing the seeds in your garden.

Tracking your progress necessitates a customer relationship manager, or CRM. With a real estate-specific CRM, you'll have all the tools to create records of correspondence and the growth of your influence in your farm area.

Once you have everything in place, focus on publishing or delivering your high-value content into your geographic farm area. Experts suggest using a mixture of long-term automated communication, like email newsletters, and personal follow-ups.

What does it cost to start real estate farming?

The most successful farming techniques do come with an upfront cost, but the more you invest in your farm, the better your returns will be. Real estate farming will likely require an annual budget of several thousand dollars. However, don't forget that commission from a single home sale will recoup your investment — and then some.

While it might take some time to get established, even one home sold in your local real estate market means your farm is alive and growing.

Real estate farming through social media

Social media is an important tool for any real estate agent, but an essential one for successful geographic farming. With your potential clients spending so much time online, it's crucial to focus some of your real estate farming techniques in those particular spheres.

One example of how to farm on social media is creating a community Pinterest board featuring community members, local business owners and other topics to add value.

Host community events for your real estate farm area

Don't forget to include face-to-face marketing among your real estate farming ideas. Organizing neighborhood or community activities can be an enormous source of both new leads and strengthened client relationships. If you're not sure where to begin, start with major holidays, school fundraising events and engaging local businesses.

Real estate farming and relationship marketing

Relationship marketing is the lifeblood of a successful real estate business. Whether primarily through word of mouth or online communication, it's relationships that form the basis for future transactions.

Real estate farms make the process of creating and cultivating relationships even easier. As your prospects and relationships grow and blossom, they will spread to plant new seeds. All you need are the right real estate farming tools and a real estate farming area — your fertile soil.

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