With the world still reeling from the effects of the Coronavirus pandemic, many businesses have either suspended operations and worse, others have permanently closed shop due to the slowdown of economic activity.
Marketing campaigns and promotions were on a standstill and placed on hold as everyone was trying to make sense of what’s happening.
Every industry has been affected by the developments of the pandemic and disrupted everything, even the real estate industry.
Safety measures and restrictions became everyone’s priority, with real estate activities – which were mostly social – suspended until further notice.
Fortunately, the crisis has since been abated with the rising recovery and lowering number of positive cases around the world. There’s also light at the end of the tunnel as pharmaceutical companies have revealed the positive results of clinical trials for vaccines that may be out soon enough.
How was the real estate industry able to pull through?
As the saying goes, necessity is the mother of invention and while a lot of what’s been happening with the real estate industry has been practised by many, the situation compelled the industry to embrace such practices to adapt to the new normal.
This was how the industry was able to survive and thrive during the height of the global economic slowdown.
Give and take
Admittedly, a lot of the traditional marketing practices that worked for the industry was no longer applicable, getting down to the basics of marketing was something that was seriously considered and prompted industry stakeholders to do what’s best to keep the industry afloat.
Print collaterals, site inspections, open houses and on-site auctions have been affected making most of the industry’s marketing campaigns becoming quiet.
But the situation did open a lot of realities for the industry despite the crisis- internet technology.
Why online technology became a critical need
The need to stay updated and connected has never been more so in demand and sought-after by everyone. The internet became everyone’s window in the coronavirus-plagued physical and outdoor environment.
Awareness, knowledge, and skills became important needs and the most effective medium to link all these is content.
Content is still and will be king
Pandemic or not content marketing seems to never go out of style. Just imagine your real estate website without content? It will never get the traffic and traction that you expect out of it.
In real estate, the first stage of an effective content marketing strategy is “top of mind awareness” at a sustained level. This is necessary to make your listings more visible to everyone and for as long as you see fit to have it seen online until the homeowner or client is ready to sell or a buyer deciding to purchase.
This is followed by the “frame of mind awareness”, where this strategy is based on touching base with potential clients who are on the buying or selling mode. Getting in front of these homeowners at this stage is by engaging them in your compelling content that offers them the best solution and why they should choose your listing.
The third stage is the “friend of mine awareness” level, where content needs to be worthy enough to merit sharing and conveying to family, acquaintances, and professional networks.
In conclusion, it is important to know what elements are critical to the success of your real estate business- pandemic or not- which is why content marketing will always be your best friend when everything else does not seem to work in a remote and virtual environment.