In today’s digital landscape, prioritizing customer relationships is the key to success. For the 385th episode of Mail Right Show, Robert Newman and Jonathan Denwood explore different strategies to supercharge email marketing and lead generation in 2023. There are a lot of general fallacies and misinformation about digital marketing in the real estate industry. But one of the areas that cause a lot of confusion is email marketing and how to do it effectively. This episode discusses effective strategies to increase your email open rates and strengthen your online visibility as a realtor, making it easier for people to find you.
Email marketing is one of the most effective ways to market yourself, generally and in real estate. However, you must be aware that your email should not be in the promotional folder. The promotional folder of Gmail or your Google Workspace differs from a junk folder, but it’s the section where your email will never be read. There’s no point in sending out email campaigns if they end up in people’s junk mail or promotional folder.
Here are the strategies you can utilize to avoid that and supercharge your email marketing and lead generation.
1. Don’t use your normal email address/domain
Use something other than your regular email address and domain for bulk email campaigns. You can do a micro email campaign where you are not sending out to a large list but rather a micro list, which could be between 200 and 500 emails. Do not also get your domain to send emails to people and have reasonable confidence that it will end up in their inbox. Furthermore, when sending emails, ensure they are high-value emails, like connecting to a high-value blog post with a minimal intro, and don’t sell anything via email. There’s also bulk mass email marketing that can be anything over 500 but might be costly. You can also go with a bulk email provider and send out emails because many times if you send out a million emails, chances are you get about 17 to 20,000 people genuinely interested in what you say.
Utilizing your Gmail address for sending micro messages is also not advisable, as it is an inappropriate service that prohibits such usage. However, a gray area exists where a particular volume of emails can be sent daily. It is recommended to refrain from utilizing your Gmail account for this purpose. It is more suitable to reserve your regular email address for general communication, while Gmail is for one-on-one correspondence.
2. Subject lines
It is worth noting that using specific words in your subject lines and emails can trigger spam filters and cause your messages to be classified as junk mail. Gmail and other similar services know what standard phrasing spammers utilize in their email, and if it sees patterns of wording in your subject line, the service will flag it up and probably get it in the junk folder and not in the inbox of your targets. Write a subject line that will leave an impression that you have something valuable to give. Don’t do a tricky subject line that will get people to click on the email, do a very direct and plain one, like, this is what’s in the email.
3. Email warm-up tools
Say you have a Pacific campaign specifically targeting a Pacific Niche market or a specific geographical area in the Pacific region. Your chosen advertising platforms are Google and Facebook, leading users to a dedicated landing page. Upon entering the landing page, potential customers may come across on property for sale, prompting them to provide their name and email address in exchange for more information.
Alternatively, you may offer a different lead magnet to entice prospects to share their information. With this valuable list, your next objective is to market to these individuals effectively, but you must warm up this list. This is where services like Milkshake Warm-up Inbox come into play. Milkshake Warm-up Inbox set up a network of Gmail campaigns designed for list imports. For instance, if you import a list of approximately 250 to 500 email addresses, this service will ensure that each email is sent out individually, like a one-to-one communication. By doing so, Google will treat your emails as genuine personal emails. You are also assured that those emails will go to people’s inboxes and give you analytics. So basically, it’s a micro-focus email campaign aimed at a niche that should result from your campaign getting people to a specific landing page. And you do this to ensure that it goes into people’s inboxes after they give their details to get the information you’re offering.
4. Positioning your brand and nurturing relationships
Identifying your niche early on plays a pivotal role in streamlining your communication and maximizing the impact of your marketing endeavors. As you grow in experience in real estate, the quicker you find a niche and market to it, the better. That niche can involve targeting a specific age group, a particular type of home, a specific GEO farming strategy, or other specialized areas. Finding your niche faster can enhance your email marketing efforts and deliver excellent value. It becomes easier to consistently provide value as you tailor your content to cater to your niche through emails, newsletters, and outreach.
One helpful way to leverage cold email today is with a multi-touch marketing plan, where you take 3000 homes in a targeted area. Get these individuals’ names, email addresses, and physical addresses, and initiate contact by sending them a postcard and a magnet. Additionally, if you acquire their email addresses, you can send them emails too. After three to four subsequent touchpoints, make a phone call. Have a representative connect with each recipient to provide valuable information during the conversation and schedule a comprehensive campaign.
5. Increasing sales and conversions
Have a comprehensive list where you send your news monthly newsletter or micro-campaigns linked to landing pages. You can utilize tools like BombBomb, particularly useful when dealing with a smaller list. Using this tool allows you to personalize your email marketing by sending one or two Bomb Bomb videos per day. This approach truly exemplifies customized email marketing. Another strategy is micro-list marketing, while individuals who show no interest are directed toward a nurturing newsletter. In this newsletter, they receive a monthly publication that offers high-value content.
6. Email scraping tools combined with paid social media retargeting campaigns
Scraping email addresses off websites or blogs, which you attract through organic traffic, is another helpful strategy for lead generation. One helpful tool is an email-capturing tool that enables you to collect contact information from anyone who visits your website. Although it may not gather data from every visitor, it can often identify the IP address and, in some cases, even reveal the person’s identity. Consequently, a significant number of website visitors can be identified, regardless of whether they engage with a lead magnet or not.
For instance, you have obtained approximately 40,000 to 50,000 names, numbers, and contact details via cold outreach, and an additional 19,000 names gathered from various social media platforms. Diligently, you researched and retrieved their relevant information, ultimately downloading it for your use. The scraper-generated data is one of the most effective methods in terms of engagement, as it successfully yields responsive email addresses. Furthermore, once you have compiled a list of these individuals, you can utilize it for various purposes. You can upload the list to your social media platforms and invest a small amount of money in retargeting them through targeted advertisements, ensuring your presence is again in front of this audience. This effective strategy allows you to reconnect with potential customers through retargeting and maximize your visibility on social media.
