What Do Train Horns And Birdcages Have To Do With Real Estate?

Well, actually if you have to ask yourself that question you may be in more trouble in this economy than you even thought. You see the Internet is a new frontier, that based upon its potential, is still mostly uncharted territory.

We all know the figures…84% of those looking to jump into the real estate game do so by utilizing the Internet. Unfortunately we also know that over 90% of real estate agents really have no clue as to capture their business.

As we began Real Estate Radio USA as an online radio station and then began managing the Fort Lauderdale Real Estate Blog, we began to learn more and more about all that the online world holds for us as an opportunity. We stopped listening to old-school guru’s a long time ago and started applying maverick marketing principles that flew in the face of conventional wisdom.

The result??? How about serious success while others either went out of business or languished in their own personal hell trying to figure out how they were going to survive re-living the glory days. Yep..we’ve heard all the mundane BS. Knock on doors, mail postcards, sphere of influence…yikes, these are the tools of yesterday’s practicioner.

I’m sure there are a handful of agents making their way adhereing to this methodology and I am sure that some are quite successful. Just as there are a few hardware shops that have been able to survive in the Home Depot big box era. In fact there is one in my own neighborhood that does quite well. One!

So go ahead…call my bluff. Slam me and tell me the old school stuff works. Then give me some numbers. How many old schoolers are there who are making it in comparison to the million or so other agents who are not? What’s that percentage? Let me ask you a question.

Do you want to align yourself with a business model wherein less than 10% of those operating in that manner are even profitable…never mind actually killing it. I have heard the rhetoric about this agent closing a 100 sides per year and making a lot of money as evidence that they are still viable. But let’s not talk gross numbers.

Let’s talk in the pocket, out the door, deposits. Funny thing, you never hear that being talked about. Yet when you hear and see the checks of those who are viable in today’s real estate market many discount it and call it unbelievable.

So let me get this right. It’s more believable that someone is knocking on doors and sending out postcards and making a living than someone actually showing you checks and proof of their ability to pull down $100k per month without much effort?

The problem is most just don’t believe it. They won’t allow themselves to believe it. They stand at the water cooler spewing bile saying it’s not possible or it must be illegal for someone making that kind of money in today’s real estate market. It’s easier to say and believe that than to do some serious introspection and come to the conclusion that one is ill-prepared to capitalize on the opportunities in today’s economy.

I have even heard people now chanting the mantra that they are not in business to make money. Talk about absudity!

Instead of realizing that a “Castanza-like change is needed, they think they are being fed a line and so they stay put, existing in their own special closet of Picasso-like reality. They see what they want to see and feel comfortable in never having to look in the mirror and concsiouly examine the fact that the real estate business model as they know it is dead and gone.

Realizing that the alternative is actually stepping out on an island is a decision that is seemingly too scary to even think about. How else do you rationalize the throngs who hang out on ActiveRain who believe that “googlejuice” means they show up number 1 in the serps for” Puxnatwaney Village Condos And Homes For Sale”. (please tell me no one is really optimized for that!)

There are many ways to capture interested buyers and sellers online. Problem is you need to know how. Here’s what has been working really well for us.

We have positioned ourselves as the destination in the area to go for short sales and distressed properties. We teach a short sale course and have been teaching them for over two years both live in person and through an online short sale video course.

On the real estate sales side of things we market for an agent who has positioned herself to take advantage of our relationship and her blog has been seeded very well in Google to the point that she receives inquiries from prospects all over the world and spends less than 10 hours per week operating her Fort Lauderdale real estate business.

This is called working a niche! It’s foolish to try and serve everyone who wants everything. There are very specific tools that help you measure the viability of a niche. Once you learn how to measure a niche and research it’s capacity for profit, then fulfilling the needs of that niche guarantees you profit.

We spoke to Steve Clayton in an interview on Real Estate Radio recently. Steve is the creator of the Niche Blueprint. He designed a course that shows people how to exploit a niche for profit. His course sold out in less than 3 days.

The research he did before he created the Niche Blueprint showed him unbelievably how profitable selling to a niche can be. Would you have thought that someone selling bird cages online would be able to sell their website for $173,00.00! Or that having a website selling train horns would bring in over $15,000.00 per month?

Heck we were so convinced, we took our knowledge of SEO and wordpress and we created our own train horn store and now we are selling train horns online! Thanks Steve!

Diversification and niche exploitation…gotta love the Internet! The best part about all of this is it took us a week to build and market the site, and about 2 hours of maintenance per week and voila! Instant cash flow…serious cash flow!

Now we are set to open 1-2 stores per week selling everything from Samurai Swords to a handheld Nascar Scanner. We’ll have those stores up and running by the end of the week. Automated cashflow. That’s what I am talking about!

Another very…very…profitable niche is selling to those who are desperate! Think there are some DESPERATE homeowners out there? Do you know how to find them? Do you know what it means to be a problem solver? It’s not about sales. The sales part is easy. Child’s play. Why??? Becasue there is no sale.

Solving a real need quickly is what they are looking for…get me out of this mortgage, find me another place to live, I need to move to save my marriage…we have heard it all…getting them to sign a listing agreement or contract is EASY!! Most of these people are walking talking hardship letters.

Anyone can find a desperate seller. Walk out side and start pointing and you’ll find a desperate seller. But can you find a desperate buyer? Someone who HAS to buy a house NOW! Someone who has to close and move -in next week. Someone who means money in your pocket real fast. If you can’t find a desperate buyer it’s because you are not marketing for them.

Desperate buyers are everywhere, but you have to lay out the bait to bring them to your doorstep. Here’s a Google Adwords ad that we ran for 30 days for our Fort Lauderdale Real Estate client…and had to turn off becaause she had TOO MUCH business. We let the prospects know that there are some great deals, at great prices and we walked them to a landing page that had them frothing to get in the game.

We had ZERO compeition and it was taking candy from a baby. We’re launching a new campaign on a landing page we are creating with a theme that entices single female buyers to take action…why becasue data tells us that single female buyers are a strong niche. So we are targeting them with a marketing specific message that hits their hot buttons. What hot buttons?? The ones we found by researching that niche.

Hey ladies, think about it. What are you desperate for and what are your own hot buttons right now? Answer that and you’ll be able to exploit that niche in your area.

Now you see the problem. There is mad money to be had in real estate. But you have to be able to break from conventional wisdom and do what others are not willing to do.

Here’s a quote I read on a blog I frequent. “If you’re willing to do for a year what others won’t you can do for a lifetime what others Can’t”

That’s powerful stuff there. Hey if your feeling like you want to step out and actually DO SOMETHING, we’d love for you to join us in our Short Sale Video Course.

A-B-C-..Always Be Closing !! Live it!

Listen to the interview with Steve Clayton and learn how to exploit a niche.

 Steve Clayton [29:28m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Niche Marketing