Seller Always Want Print Ads and When I Say They Don't Work, They Always Ask Me How a Buyer Finds the Property Purchased

Invariably, Sellers want to have the maximum exposure for selling their homes, and it is something I always provide. One major difficultly which often arises is justifying my marketing plan, especially when I am competing with other agents for a listing. I do have a marketing budget for every property I go on a listing presentation for, and yes there is a little flexibility. Generally the range is 8-12% of my net commissions and does not include the ongoing monthly marketing I do as a normal course in doing business as a Realtor.

What was once one of the biggest differences between what I was willing to do and what a seller wanted, was the amount of print advertising . But thanks to the National Association of Realtors (NAR), I have the ammunition to prove to a seller “How Does a Buyer Find The Home They Purchase”. Granted this survey has been being taken by NAR for several years, but I always find it informative especially comparing it to past years to see the changes.

As a Realtor who wants to continue being successful, we most evolve and adopt the new changes of Social Media, Web 2.0, Facebook, Twitter, etc. And as our sellers evolve, we must keep them informed of these changes and how the marketing of their property has been transformed. The graph below is a great help when I defend my marketing, now that almost all of mine is internet based. The only print ads I will do for many of my listing is for open homes and flyers at the property.

To obtain the data below, NAR mailed an 8 page questionaire in August 2008 to a national sample of 133,000 home buyers and sellers who purchased their homes between July 2007 and June 2008. It generated 10,053 responses.