Don’t worry. You’ve already done the hard work. Your research has been conducted, your home has been cleaned and prepared and you have all the vital information necessary to offer prospective buyers. Now you need to get the word out!
Get a Sign
You are going to need a professional looking sign to post in front of your home. Although you will be finding prospective buyers from other avenues, you can’t forget the valuable ‘drive-by’. This also allows you to benefit from the buyers visiting other homes for sale in your area.
This is not the time to post a handmade sign (unless of course you are very talented in the field). Home buyers are not yard-sale shopping. Put some money into it and have a clean, professional sign to represent your offer. Find a sign shop in the phone book or by recommendation and order or rent a ‘For Sale by Owner’ sign.
You will need to post your phone number on the sign and it would be a good idea to have a contact name as well to make callers more comfortable. Details about the house are not a necessity as prospects have seen the home and can ask you about any other details on the phone, but do include a key feature if it doesn’t clutter up the sign.
Some realtors leave printed information that can be taken home by passers-by including the price and a list of features. This is not required, but a nice touch if you wish to provide it.
Make an Ad
You will need to place an ad in the newspaper or a magazine for home buyers. However, some of the magazines are ‘trade-only’ and will only accept listings by realtors.
You don’t need to create or pay for a full page ad in the local paper to get results. Small ads can be equally effective since home buyers will read all the relevant listings in order to find the ‘perfect’ home. On the other hand, a badly worded ad can be a waste of space and a waste of time no matter how big it is or how much it costs. Where do you start?
Collect several local papers and read the ads placed there. Try to determine which ones catch your attention and which ones loose your interest. You will likely find that rambling, lengthy and detailed ads not only bore you but offer so much information you no longer need to see the home or talk to the owners. This is a critical mistake. You want to give the buyer some reason to see your home.
If a certain feature is being promoted by a large amount of advertisers, don’t use it as the focal point of your ad or it will get lost.
Professional marketer’s use a concept called USP – Unique Sales Proposition. Determine what you have that can be featured that is not being commonly addressed in other ads. This will make you stand out from the crowd.
If you see several ads that state in the headline ‘GREAT LOCATION’ you might want to stay away from basing your ad on that particular feature. Choose something else like ‘NEWLY RENOVATED’ or “SAVE M ONEY - PRIVATE SALE’ to stand out from the crowd.
Start by writing down two or three features of your home. Select one to highlight and list the others for increased interest. Do not list every possible feature or buyers will not be inclined to call. Give them something to contact you about.
Some ideas for features you might advertise are:
- Large Yard
- Renovated Kitchen
- Grade Entry Basement
- Bright Rooms
- Quiet Street
- Close to Schools (shopping, transit etc.)
- Heritage style
- New home
- Starter home
- Landscaped
- Pool
- and so on.
If you are selling a condo or other home with common property, include features such as: low fees (meaning the strata fees), pool, exercise room, landscaped grounds, pet-friendly etc.
For example, imagine you are selling a three bedroom home with an unfinished basement, large yard that is close to schools.
Your finished ad might look like this:
SAVE MONEY! – Motivated private seller, no commissions!
Three bedroom bungalow w/ large yard and basement – great for family.
$250,000. Call Brad for viewing xxx-xxxx.
The same ad could also say:
FAMILY HOME – 10 minutes from town, near schools. 3 bedrooms w/ basement (could be family room). Only $250,000. Sale by Owner. Call Brad xxx-xxxx.
As you can see, the main feature may attract either a younger couple looking to save money on a starter home or a family looking for room for their growing family with attention to schools and expandable space. You may choose a different feature. Try several ads in different papers. Ask callers where they saw your ad to determine which one is working harder for you.
On the other hand, don’t be TOO vague. If you don’t give an idea of the cost, location or size of the home you may be fielding calls from individuals that would not really be in your market. This will only disappoint you as your home is turned down again and again by buyers not looking for your home.
Place the Ad
Place the ad on the day of the week with the most listings in your paper. This will attract the most viewers. Some papers may have large sections on real estate on Saturdays, others might be Sundays. Place your ad in both papers on their respective good ad days for the most attention.
Also consider placing your ad online in a For Sale by Owner website listing. This will be especially helpful for individuals who do not live in your town or city but are looking to move into the area. Look up ‘sale by owner homes’ or ‘FSBO’ for websites that provide this service for a fee.
Don’t Forget…
Whatever you do, don’t forget to TELL people you are selling your home. You never know who’s looking - or who knows someone who’s looking - for a home like yours.
Bring it up. When the clerk or dentist asks how you are tell them you are actually looking for a new place and have your own home on the market. Do they know anyone looking for a home in your area? Networking is a key element for many sales people, and right now YOU are your sales team, so use it!
You will also be attracting the attention of realtors. Be prepared for their calls and visits attempting to persuade you that you cannot do this without them. They are wrong.