Welcome to the new and improved Online Marketing System for Real Estate Listings! I was thankfully notified by a Scottsdale Real Estate Agent that the old system was encouraging you to use some websites for commercial purposes even though their TOS say they don’t want you to do that. Time to adjust my recommendations.
The part about systemizing your business doesn’t change. Find what works, repeat. When you have systems behind the scenes, you’re eager to answer sellers that ask things like, “What are you going to do to market my house other than adding it to the MLS?“ If you already have a listing marketing system in place GREAT! If not, you are more than welcome to use this one for personal or commercial use! 
Marketing Real Estate Listings Online
Think about all the websites out there that allow you to post and share different types of content. You can use Picasa to share photos, Youtube to share videos, Twitter to share short updates, Slideshare to share slideshows, and Facebook to share, well, everything.
So if you are trying to:
- Impress a Seller with your online marketing system, or
- Get as much exposure for real estate listings as possible;
You have to look at your listings as malleable content. The basis of our Online Marketing System is getting your content in the appropriate formats for the appropriate websites.
The Evolving 6 Step Online Marketing System
Step 1: Add to ARMLS. (Not to be taken lightly.) This is not only the base of everything else we’re going to do, it’s also the most visible (see Step 2). I recommend 20-25 good pictures when the size of the house permits.
Step 2: Once your listing is in the MLS, John Hall & Associates’s IDX agreements take over automagically. The photos and content you enter into ARMLS are pushed to several thousand websites, of which we can list 200. Use this PDF to help your sellers visualize all the different websites their listing will be displayed.
Step 3: Share your listing photos online. A $FREE.99 Picasa account doesn’t restrict commercial content (policies). Upload your 20-25 pictures. Keep your listing photos organized by grouping them in albums titled with the address of the property. BUT, before you upload your images, re-title them. Your camera usually sets default titles that are something like IMG_049658. Change them to be more descriptive!! Better examples for image titles include:
- Paradise Valley Listing – Kitchen
- Luxury Real Estate Backyard
- Phoenix Single Family Home
- Patio Shot – Surprise Arizona
Add a caption to each photo that complements the title. If your image is titled, Glendale Home for Sale your caption should include that phrase as well. End the caption with a shortened link to more information about your listing!
Step 4: Create a powerpoint presentation. Slideshare is cool with commercial content (Guidelines) and they accept powerpoint files. Add your images with some text boxes to a powerpoint presentation, then upload it. Again, let’s title the posting with search engines in mind. I’m a fan of using the address, but broader key phrases similar to your image titles are also appropriate. Use the description field like you use the caption field in Picasa. Include the phrase you use for the title in the description and include a link to more information.
Step 5: Video file time! I highly recommend Animoto to convert your images into a video file. It’ll cost you $249/yr ($5 off with affiliate link) for commercial use, but when you consider the amount of your time it would take to produce a similar product – it’s probably worth it.
If you’re looking for a $FREE.99 tool to turn images into a video file, Windows MovieMaker or Apple iMovie both work great. As far as a music source, I’ve read good things about Jamendo (link is to their search for tracks that are okay for commercial use).
The ultimate destination of this video is going to be ARMLS – so make sure it’s unbranded. Now that you have a video, post it to the second most used search engine on the web – YouTube! They’re cool with commercial content too (guidelines). Pay attention to the title and description. If you use music from Jamendo be sure to pay attribution (aka add a link) in the description to the original source.
Step 6: Add your video to your listing. In the flexmls edit listing screen you’ll see an option that says Video. This is where you can paste your MLS compliant video embed code. Now whenever someone views your listing in flexmls they have 20-25 great photos AND an awesome video to watch!
The whole point of this system is to bring together several online tools we’ve talked about in the past. The goal is to get as much online exposure for your listing as possible. After you complete this Online Marketing System once or twice, implementing it becomes a lot faster. If you’ve never completed some of these individual steps, approach it armed with patience. For questions or more explanation, be sure to attended the John Hall & Associates’s broker meetings. This is a piece of the fun stuff we talk about! 
Here is a PDF you can use in your listing presentations.
This is a really nicely done post with excellent information. I couldn’t agree more about creating systems that work and follow them religiously. This looks like a good system.
Thanks for sharing.