Use Virtual Reality to Create an Immersive Experience
David Gull, CEO & Co-Founder, Outer Realm
Gull recommends using virtual reality to add an entirely new dimension to commercial real estate marketing—and that technology now exists to provide an immersive experience that captures a property’s potential like nothing else. Marketing trends often change, therefore people working in this field would love to hear more detailed information about it. It would be a great topic to discuss over the podcast. Have a spotify account and want more visibility? The easiest way is to buy spotify plays.
“This technology, when worn like a pair of goggles, places a viewer into a life-like virtual simulation of a property. In the case of CRE, this can showcase how an old, tired installation can be improved for a new tenant, or how capital improvements, such as a new lobby or amenity space, will provide value to the entire building and warrant a lease rate increase.”
Gull states that the benefit of using immersive virtual reality is that it offers something beyond simple imagery and “creates a connection,” where people can “feel the property at a deeper, subconscious level… imagine themselves working there, see their corner office, and see their team thrive.”
McCall Robinson – commercial real estate marketing ideas – Tips from the pros
- Partner with a Charity to Show Commitment to Your Community
McCall Robinson, Marketing Strategist, Best Company
Robinson recommends that if you want to be successful in commercial real estate, you have to think about the long game and show involvement in your area of investment.
“This is a great way to gain recognition in your community. You could also go further and pass out items with your logo and name on them, which is great for advertising now and in the future. Try donating items that will last longer and will do a better job at advertising. For example, a T-shirt with your logo on it is going to have a longer shelf life than a pencil or a sticker.”
- Make a Strong First Impression with a Professional Website…
commercial real estate marketing ideas – Tips from the pros
Commercial Real Estate Training Online
When a potential client conducts their research, your website is likely one of the first things they will discover. Be sure that yours represents your company well, and leaves an immediate impression of your professionalism in what you do.
According to John Hyman, broker and author at Commercial Real Estate Online, “Websites and blogs are a good way of building your professional profile. Write regular articles about property and property changes in your location. Publish those articles on a blog that is designed to support your profile in the market. Soon the search engines will see your activity and rank you higher within your specializations.”
If you are interested in creating your own website but aren’t sure where to start, see our article on top real estate website design ideas and tips.
- …and Build Single Property Websites Too
commercial real estate marketing ideas – Tips from the pros
Single property website for commercial property
You can give potential clients all the information in one location with a single property website. Whether it is retail, industrial, or office spaces, you can offer an all-in-one location for information that potential clients would be interested in reviewing. Include things like floor plans, CAP rates, and high-quality images from every angle.
- Share Your Properties on Social Media
commercial real estate marketing ideas – Tips from the pros
Instagram account of CBRE United States Commercial Real Estate Services
One way to be sure to gain commercial real estate exposure is to meet potential clients where they are at, and showcase your properties on social media. From Instagram to LinkedIn, placing your properties in front of potential clients while they are browsing online can show them something compelling that may spur further interest.
For more information getting started on social media postings, check out our article on Facebook for Real Estate Agents.
- Send Targeted Print Campaigns
commercial real estate marketing ideas – Tips from the pros
Commercial real estate flyer
Sending print materials to a targeted audience, such as previous buyers or other business connections in the area, can be an effective strategy for garnering interest. Get creative with your imagery and show the potential client the vision of the space and any images you have that can support the finished product.
To save time in creating your designs, feel free to customize templates to meet your needs. Feel free to even use some templates from residential real estate materials and customize for your own needs.
Here are our top 25 real estate flyers and templates you may be able to pull from.
- Represent Your Brand with High-Quality Business Cards
You represent your business everywhere you go, and investing in your brand and impression starts with the moment you meet. Be sure to invest in high-quality business cards that reflect the caliber of work that you do and make a favorable initial impression.
For high-quality customized business cards, Moo can create whatever design might suit your needs best.
- Use Drone Photography and Videos
commercial real estate marketing ideas – Tips from the pros
Professional commercial drone footage via dronegenuity
There is nothing that showcases the expansiveness of commercial properties like drone video and photography. The best commercial real estate marketing ideas give the potential client a clear image of what they may potentially be invested in, and drone footage is able to do this brilliantly.
Dronegenuity states that drone footage can “track and monitor construction progress and showcase your completed project with stunning aerial imagery. Drone photos and videos are perfect for capturing everything going on at a construction site, from big machinery to indoor facilities to all the hard work that goes on from start to finish.”
If you want to learn more about integrating drones into your marketing efforts, see our real estate drone photography and video guide.
- Host an Event for Brokers…
commercial real estate marketing ideas – Tips from the pros
Brokers open event for commercial real estate
Hosting a brokers open event gives you the ability to expose your property to the network of some of the most prestigious commercial real estate brokers in your area. Treat them well, showcase the property, and allow them to bring potential clients to the table.
Brittany Omansky at Real Massive writes, “Until I began working in commercial real estate, I thought of touring perfectly-staged homes and hoping to find fresh-baked cookies in the kitchens. However, CRE open houses are much more elaborate.”
Omansky highlights that commercial and residential real estate broker opens have differing expectations, so be sure to put your best foot forward and work to impress potential customers.
- …or for Local Businesses and Influencers
commercial real estate marketing ideas – Tips from the pros
Invite local businesses, investors, press, and influencers to an event that showcases your commercial property space. Set up tables in the space, and encourage guests to explore the property and views while you have informational pamphlets and marketing materials that give the details for them to take. If you want people to talk about your commercial property, create an event that gives them a reason to.
For ideas on how to promote your event to those you want present, here are our top 33 event marketing ideas.
- Boost Your Brand Awareness with Media Attention
commercial real estate marketing ideas – Tips from the pros
Local paper featuring your commercial real estate property
Media coverage boosts your brand and allows your property to reach an audience you otherwise would not have access to. When postulating different strategies for commercial real estate marketing ideas, consider putting together a press kit and press releases for wide distribution, and give your commercial property an interesting angle that invites coverage.
If you are new to getting media attention, feel free to check out our article on how to send a press release in five steps.
- Network Face-to-Face at Industry Conferences
commercial real estate marketing ideas – Tips from the pros
Commercial real estate conference
Commercial real estate conferences are great places to hone your skills, build relationships, and get future leads. People prefer to do business with those they know and trust, and by taking the time to nurture the connections you make, you might find that the perfect buyer for your property comes through a newly-found contact.
If you are new to getting media attention, feel free to check out our article on how to send a press release in five steps.
- Network Face-to-Face at Industry Conferences
Commercial real estate conferences are great places to hone your skills, build relationships, and get future leads. People prefer to do business with those they know and trust, and by taking the time to nurture the connections you make, you might find that the perfect buyer for your property comes through a newly-found contact.
If you want to make the most of your time at your next conference, we offer 10 networking tips to get the best ROI from real estate conferences and conventions.
- Stay in Touch with Your Previous Clients
commercial real estate marketing ideas – Tips from the pros
Reaching out to your network
Commercial real estate clients know others who operate in the space, and can be an invaluable resource. When searching for commercial real estate marketing ideas, sometimes the most simple act of reaching out can be the most effective. Whether a casual text or more formal email with attached videos or photographs, sending out your property to those who have done business with you in the past can often prove profitable.
- Always Invest in Professional Photography
commercial real estate marketing ideas – Tips from the pros
Professional photography for commercial real estate marketing
Professional photography for your commercial properties presents them in their best light. While many are tempted to skip this step, particularly if the property is not new construction or in the best shape, this is an important part of helping to sell the property and your company’s brand.
Professional photography can make even aged properties present better than they would otherwise, and is a wise investment for any company. When considering commercial real estate marketing ideas, the step of professional photography should be an essential first step.
While we’ve all seen both outstanding and lackluster photography, here is our article for more information on the top 27 real estate photography tips and mistakes to avoid.
- Define Your Unique Selling Point
commercial real estate marketing ideas – Tips from the pros
Architectural elements
Defining what makes your property unique will help bring your buyer. Differentiation is the key to commercial real estate marketing, especially in areas of high development where competition can be steep. Examine what aspects truly make this property outstanding, such as issues of space, location, views, foot traffic, or other variables that will make the property desirable for sales or leasing.
- Tell a Compelling Story
commercial real estate marketing ideas – Tips from the pros
Lancaster Press Building
The best commercial real estate ideas often come right from the property itself. Highlighting historic or interesting elements of your property makes the property special, and helps the potential client see the property as far more than simply another building to invest in.
If you have a property that has an historic or notable element, be sure to tell that story to potential clients. For example, the property above is an historic building that started as a cigar factory, then a press building, and now houses condos with a French restaurant and lounge below.
- Use Video Email Campaigns for a Higher Open Rate
commercial real estate marketing ideas – Tips from the pros
BombBomb video email
Video email campaigns have higher open rates than traditional email marketing. If you want a potential client on your list to hear what you have to say, and potentially see the property you are putting before them, there is very little that can beat video email marketing to bring eyes to your commercial space.
If you are looking for new commercial real estate marketing ideas and are interested in exploring how video marketing can benefit, we have found BombBomb to offer some of the best video email marketing tools in the business. Schedule a demo.
- Develop a Client Persona
commercial real estate marketing ideas – Tips from the pros
Team brainstorming meeting
Every aspect of marketing commercial real estate should be developed around your target persona for that property. A target persona is the fictional person you visualize will be most likely to buy or lease your property, given the data and your history of experience.
Once you develop your target persona, allow it to then direct how you craft materials, the story you tell about the property, and the angle of your press releases, and then design the sales or leasing experience for that particular person.
It can sometimes be useful to sit down with your team to hash out the persona prior to coming up with commercial real estate marketing ideas. Here is how to create customer profiles with a free template to start you off.
- List in Online Databases
Online databases like LoopNet will give you access to thousands of people actively looking for commercial real estate right now, so be sure that your property is listed and that you include as much specific information, photos, and video for the potential investor as possible. For example, if you are selling a retail space, be sure to not only include property information, but details about foot traffic and parking as well.
- Use High-Quality Signage
commercial real estate marketing ideas – Tips from the pros
Commercial real estate sign by Dee Signs
Having a sign that is bold, clear, and of high quality grabs attention and gives a good first impression. Be sure to display the sign prominently, where it gets the most views and is able to be noticed.
For commercial signage, we love the work of Dee Signs, a family-owned business that is the largest manufacturer of real estate signs in the nation.
- Organize Your Leads in CRM Software
commercial real estate marketing ideas – Tips from the pros
Contactually
Using a quality CRM to organize your contact list will pay off in time and money when marketing your commercial real estate. Giving yourself the ability to nurture leads and keep your contacts engaged over time with your properties and business makes you feel more familiar when a great deal comes their way.
For nurturing leads and organizing contacts, we recommend Contactually. With so many options that help you reach out with the right message at the right time, it’s an easy-to-use tool that can help you sell or lease faster. See how real estate agents use Contactually to close more deals, and how it could be beneficial for your business.
- Choose the Right Agent for You
commercial real estate marketing ideas – Tips from the pros
Commercial real estate agent
Selecting the right agent to represent your commercial property is often important to a quick sale. Look for someone established in the commercial space who likely has access to a large number of previous clients to tap.
- Clean Up and Repair Any Outstanding Property Issues
commercial real estate marketing ideas – Tips from the pros
Repairing commercial property
Basic landscaping, roof repairs, exterior washing, and small interior fixes can go a long way to impressing potential clients. People who buy or lease prefer a commercial property that doesn’t come with existing problems, and repairing or cleaning up the space makes potential clients far more likely to consider doing business with you.
- Have a Comprehensive SEO Strategy
commercial real estate marketing ideas – Tips from the pros
SEO, or search engine optimization, is a strategy for getting your website discovered when someone searches for specific terms. If you want to drive traffic to your single property website, it will largely be through paid ads and SEO. Blogs, along with other content on your site, can be helpful to getting your site noticed by potential clients as they search on Google or other search engines.
- Launch a Digital Newsletter
commercial real estate marketing ideas – Tips from the pros
Old-school mailbox
Create a brief monthly newsletter that offers useful information to your readers. Things like zoning challenges, zoning changes, or new developments in the area are always of interest. Be sure that you give some space in every newsletter to showcase your “property of the month” and talk about it in great detail.
Creating an email newsletter doesn’t have to be complicated or time-consuming. We offer the top 25 email newsletter templates to give your newsletters a professional and polished quality that represents your company well.
The Bottom Line
Marketing commercial real estate should be a multifaceted approach that uses digital and traditional marketing as part of their real estate marketing plan, but also benefits greatly from relationships. Knowing your product, how to network, and then how to leverage the tools at your disposal will give you endless commercial real estate marketing ideas to use with your next big property.