After 23 years in sales and marketing for a major corporation, my father began a career in real estate. In his almost 20 years of listing and selling homes and property, there have been dramatic changes in the marketing of homes, particularly in the past 5 years. In the early years of selling homes, real estate agents all seemed to use similar marketing techniques. Place a sign in the front yard, enter the listing into the Multiple Listing Service, advertise the home in the local newspaper (on a rotating basis with other office listings), host a Realtor® tour, and sit at an open house (catching up on paperwork or reading.) Since agents were doing the same things, it really didn't matter if your aunt Lucy, your brother-in-law, or the neighbor who just got her license had your listing. About the only variable in the marketing plan might be the frequency of print advertising.

Some agents started getting more aggressive in their marketing with the advent of the color copier. Producing colorful brochures of homes for sale became more affordable for agents and made them look very pro-active in the eyes of their sellers! As simple as it may sound, this began to separate the passive marketer from the more active, aggressive, result-oriented one.

Then times changed dramatically as the visionary Realtor® recognized the power of technology...the Internet! The Internet has changed the way the world does business and has had a huge effect on the real estate industry, providing a global showcase for every home or piece of property for sale.

The advances in technology have changed the way real estate agents do (or do not do) business. Those who have embraced this technology are far ahead of the pack. The advantage to the seller is it is much easier to evaluate which Realtor® to use by surfing the web and checking out different agent's sites. The seller gets a good picture of the agent's professionalism, statistics about an agent's sales volume, a snapshot of how the agent presents homes for sale, and more. Today's real estate marketing plan should include the use of technology and other more active techniques, such as those shown below. What about newspaper advertising, you ask? While statistics indicate print ads are responsible for less than one percent of real estate sales, we DO continue to advertise in the newspapers. Internet marketing and advertising far surpasses newspaper advertising with outstanding results. If you are listing your house today, you need a Realtor® with a proven track record in marketing not only by today's standards, but looking into the future, as well. If your Realtor's® total marketing plan is an open house, Realtor tours and newspaper ads, you are dealing with a yesterday Realtor®.

There is a definite difference in Realtors® today. Do your research. Select the Realtor® with the experience, the knowledge and the vision it takes to sell a home in today's market.

About the Author

Kris Kombrink has been working in his family-owned real estate business since 1995. Specializing in Geneva, St Charles and Batavia Illinois residential real estate his team stays on top of the latest trends while maintaining superior customer. Learn more about his team at http://www.kombrink.com or email kris@kombrink.com

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