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| A Monthly Publication of the Raleigh Regional Association of REALTORS® |
March 2008 Issue
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| About
Us November Dates to Remember
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Lifestyles
and business magazines – Can they help sell homes? When it comes to selling real estate, REALTORS® have a dizzying variety of marketing options available. One is advertising in print mediums. It may sound simple, but it’s not. ‘Print’ can mean newspapers, magazines, yellow pages, outdoor and indoor (restaurant walls) billboards, flyers, direct mail pieces, signs and even those weekly shoppers’ guides in racks outside grocery stores. So, which of these publications are best for you? Let’s focus on lifestyle and business magazines. The biggest difference between a lifestyle and business publication is who reads it. Lifestyle publications include information about people, places and events and are usually distributed through racks. Business publications deal with business issues and concerns and have subscribers. Two of the best ways to let readers of both types of magazines know what you’re selling is through editorial content and ads. Pitch that story “It all boils down to the relationships you or your public relations firm create with the different publications and the quality of the information you are releasing,” Reeves says. “Working your story and working your contacts will surely improve the chances of getting better coverage.” To get a story printed, either call the editor and pitch the idea to him or her, or send the editor a press release. An effective press release is one that is used by a publication; an ineffective release is circular-filed. To create an effective release, include only facts and keep your information simple and concise. Also, make sure your press release answers these vital questions: who, what, when, where, why and how much. Who is involved in the news you’re trying to get printed, who is the information aimed at and who should someone contact for more information? What is the purpose of your news, what is going on and what makes it different or important? When and where is this taking place and when appropriate, how much does something cost? Always include e-mail and Web site addresses in your release. An editor may either print all of your press release or parts of it, or someone from the publication may follow up with you to write his or her own article based on the release. And then again, an editor may decide the news isn’t appropriate for his or her publication and disregard the release. “The best coverage we've received is when we have taken the time to personally and enthusiastically pitch stories for editorial coverage,” Reeves adds. Target those ads “Advertising in a business publication can be a very cost-effective way for REALTORS® to reach potential customers en masse,” says Vera Simms, publisher of Business Leader magazine. “It’s important that REALTORS® understand their audience, create an ad that spurs them to certain behavior, place that ad in the right publications, advertise in the issues where their ad will likely make the largest impact and advertise consistently enough to create a positive association.” Business Leader Media publishes several distinct publications each with a unique content focus and distribution specifically tailored for a particular target. They publish Business Leader, The Park Guide, Triangle Real Estate, Women in the Triangle, Corporate Relocation Guide, Park Newcomers Guide, Triangle Newcomers Guide, BIZlife, and Business Leader. “Our goal at Business Leader Media is to effectively leverage our distribution and editorial/geographical focus to help advertisers effectively reach their target markets,” says Simms, who has been with Business Leader since 1989. “One of the great benefits of advertising in a business magazine is that you have some idea of who will see your advertisement,” Simms says. “Most business magazines have methods of distribution that provide a predictable reader demographic.” The key to choosing between using a lifestyle and business publications is to simply know your audience. The goal is to find a perfect fit between who your potential customers are and who the publication’s readers are, says Katie Reeves, vice president of sales and marketing for Metro Magazine in Raleigh (and no relation to Josie). Reeves suggests you also research a publication’s editorial depth and quality because both give it credibility with readers and therefore will give you and your property credibility. Marketing in lifestyle magazines such as Metro, whose readers are Baby Boomers with disposable incomes, is “image” advertising, Reeves says. This type of advertising sells a lifestyle and helps create a brand or name recognition in the minds of the readers. “Someone may not want to buy today, but they might next month or know of someone who would,” she adds. Metro is a city/regional, content-driven magazine, which features articles that range from interviews with Nobel Prize winners and entrepreneurial leaders to tips on travel, fine dining and wine collecting. Its publisher, Bernie Reeves, has published magazines throughout the Triangle since 1978. According to Josie Reeves, advertise in both business and lifestyle magazines, but use different ads. As an example, Kane Residential advertised the tree-lined streets, traditional architecture and neighborhood feel of Ramblewood in a lifestyle magazine and they received dozens of calls. In contrast, a business publication ad listed market statistics that illustrated why Raleigh remains a real estate market in which to invest and it produced similar results. “I think lifestyle and business magazines are both great outlets, but be sure that your ad jives with the publication style and its readers,” Reeves says. “Choose quality over quantity. A few finely designed, well-placed, strategically timed ads always beat a plethora of lesser ads.” What works for you?
(Loflin is a free-lance writer living in N.C. ) |
