Open House Strategies
for More Traffic & Leads
Holding an open house is still
one of the best ways to lure
potential buyers into the home
buying process. It’s a no pressure
way for home seekers to stroll
through a property and image
living there.
While real estate agents receive
a lot of tips on holding open
houses, many of them fall flat. I
have learned some nontraditional
techniques can really step up
the impact of these valuable
marketing events.
Get Online
Most modern house hunters
search for open houses using the
Internet or their smart phone. It
means that tech savvy real estate
agents have an edge over those
still using old school methods.
Listing your open houses on as
many local websites as possible
can help gain the maximum
14
exposure. Some sites include
the event on phone apps so you
get wider exposure, especially to
young, first-time home buyers.
Choose an Off Time
Most open houses are held on
Sundays on Saturdays. They
also typically run from early to
mid-afternoon. If you carefully
research open houses in your
farming area and discover that
your competitors are holding
their open houses at identical
times then consider choosing
a time that is slightly longer or
offset. For instance, if you find
most open houses on a given
day are scheduled to end at 4:00
p.m. then extend your event until
5 or 6:00 p.m.
Signs, Signs and More Signs
In order to get a large turnout,
people have to know about
it. Many real estate agents
underestimate the number of
signs that they need, placing
only one or two at the end of the
street. Instead, consider placing
seven to eight signs around the
neighborhood and strategically
locate them at major roadways.
Tying balloons onto the sign
makes it stand out from the
others and lets potential buyers
know that it’s new.
Another technique is add signage
in the yard a week before the
planned event. It can be as
simple as adding a rider to the
sale sign or placing a separate
sign next to the sale sign. If
posted a week in advance it gives
passersby traffic plenty of time
to notice it. Then on the day of
the open house attach more
balloons to the yard sign to help
drivers identify it easily.