Strategic Marketing for the Slow Season: Retargeting Potential Customers

Photo by Ricardo Arce via UnSplash

During the fall, the weather starts cooling down and so does the real estate market. There are fewer people selling their homes and fewer buyers purchasing. This impacts both the quantity of leads available to movers and the time it takes to convert leads into jobs. 

With some simple tweaks in your lead selection (increasing your mile radius, adding zip codes, or expanding the price range), you can proactively reach enough leads to bring in a steady stream of interested homeowners. Like we mentioned in our previous blog post, The Power of the Postcard, homeowners hang onto postcards and will call a mover when they are ready to hire. 

But… how well do direct mail postcards hold up when homeowners face extended periods on the market?

We’ve had plenty of movers report that homeowners hang onto their postcards for months before they call—that’s proof that postcards continue to work over these longer periods. We’d like to suggest an additional tactic that movers can institute to improve their chances of winning profitable jobs in slower market periods.

Retargeting

Retargeting is when you connect with a potential lead that you have previously interacted with. This type of marketing is seen in almost every marketing channel. For example; you are online, drooling over a new sound system at Best Buy. A few hours later, while checking out game times for your team, an ad pops up with the exact stereo that you were looking at early. That’s digital remarketing. But retargeting is not always digital.

With direct mail, retargeting with follow up mailings is a successful tactic to stay “top of mind” with potential customers. Plus, retargeting postcards can be vital for winning business with homeowners that are slow to make a decision on hiring a mover. 

When is the perfect time for a follow-up mailing?

We’ve studied movers who experimented with the timing of follow-up mailings. We found inconsistent results when movers sent follow-ups at two, four and six weeks after listing since the speed at which homes sell throughout the year varies greatly. In the summer, even after 2 weeks, it might be too late to do a follow-up mailing because homes are selling that quickly. In the fall or winter, that same home might take months to sell. That’s why we recommend timing your second mailing around pending status and homes that have been on the market for 90-days. 

 

Pending Status

A follow up mailing at pending status is a perfect time to check in with homeowners. At this point, homeowners are now almost certainly ready to hire a mover. The clock is ticking towards the imminent moving date and a second postcard keeps the mover top of mind. 

PRO TIP: To hit the nail on the head even harder, MovingLeads.com leads plus fulfillment customers can send unique postcard designs - one version to New listings and one to pending status. With this option, homeowners get a personalized postcard that speaks directly to their situation. 

What happens when a homeowner still has an active listing after months on the market. Are they still a potential customer? 

Yes! 

As part of our services at MovingLeads.com, we are constantly monitoring active listings. We collect status changes, but we also want our customers to have an accurate “snapshot” of all potential leads available at any given time. This means that after 90 days, if a listing is still active, we reevaluate and re-verify the listing. Is it really still active and is there still a homeowner receiving mail at the property? If the answer is yes, then the lead is automatically reintroduced to your list. 

Why Movers Should Retarget Homeowners After 90 Days?

Only a small percentage of homes remain on the market after 90 days. There is usually a reason why these listings are taking longer to sell. Perhaps the market has slowed down, the home is overpriced, or more likely, this is a multi-million dollar listing. Homes in higher price ranges always take longer to sell. In any of these scenarios, the homeowner should stay on your radar because these are still valuable potential customers. Automatically retargeting these homeowners with a second mailing will result in responses and booked jobs.  

CUSTOMER TIP: As a customer of MovingLeads.com, rest assured that leads at pending status and the 90-day market are always reverified to be homeowner owned and occupied. With our rigorous verification process, movers avoid sending postcards to empty homes. 

Timed, Targeted Mailings Win Business: Retarget for the Bullseye

A well planned direct mail campaign to potential leads with retargeting gives movers the best chance at closing a deal—especially in the slower season. Start your outreach by targeting a new listing, retarget at pending status, and/or send a retargeted postcard to all potential customers still on the market at the 90-day mark. With this plan, you’ll reach leads at all of the critical times when homeowners are most likely to hire. 

So let’s get you mailing! Kick-off your direct mail campaign today and sign up now!

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