10 Things To Do During
The Off-Season

1 Revamp Your Website

Having a strong online presence is more important than ever, so use the off-season to breathe new life into your real estate website. Update property listings, improve site speed, and enhance user experience with fresh, captivating photos that ensure your properties look their best. Consider adding video tours of your listings to provide a more immersive experience for potential buyers.

2 Create Fresh Content

Update your blog with fresh, relevant content about buying or selling during the off-season. Consider seasonal topics, such as "Buying a Home in Winter" or "Preparing Your Home for the Holidays." Highlight the unique benefits of the season, such as how less buyer competition can lead to favorable negotiations and potentially lower prices from motivated sellers, or how limited inventory can make properties stand out and sell quicker to serious winter buyers. These topics can be valuable to both sellers and buyers. Consider offering downloadable resources on your website like e-books or guides that double as lead generators.

3 Follow-Up With Clients

Get in touch with your previous clients during the off-season. Offer assistance with property management or share insights on the current real estate market. Consider offering staging services or advice to clients looking to sell during the off-season. Staging a home to create a warm, inviting atmosphere can work wonders during the cold months. Showcase client testimonials prominently on your website and encourage happy clients to leave reviews and share their experiences online. Social proof via positive feedback is essential in real estate. It also makes a great marketing tool.

4 Email Marketing & Social Media Engagement

Stay in touch with your leads and clients through email marketing. Segment your audience based on their interests and send personalized, seasonal content. Share relevant information, market updates, and holiday greetings. Maintain an active social media presence where you can share seasonal photos, tips for winterizing homes, and engage with your audience. Consumers want to know who you are and whether you’re the right person to guide them through what is likely the biggest purchase of their lives and sporadic social media posts, irrelevant blog entries, and poorly targeted email campaigns can undermine that trust.

5 Market Updates & Local Resources

Keep your clients well-informed about market trends. Share relevant statistics, valuable insights, and stay updated with the latest real estate news to establish yourself as a trusted industry expert. Offer information on local schools, amenities, and upcoming events to showcase your in-depth knowledge of the local real estate market.

6 Networking

Participate in local networking events, even during the off-season. These events are a great way to establish valuable connections and foster relationships in your community. Work with local businesses for cross-promotions. For instance, offer a discount with a local moving company. Collaborating with local businesses can lead to referrals from community partners, and professionals in real estate-related fields, such as contractors, mortgage brokers, or interior designers, may refer clients to you based on your presence in the community.

7 Community Involvement

Become an active participant in community events and charities. Your engagement in local initiatives demonstrates your commitment to the area and its residents. It builds trust and a positive reputation, which can attract clients who prefer working with someone deeply rooted in the community. Hosting or sponsoring community events provides opportunities for lead generation since attendees at these events may be interested in your services.

8 Review Your Marketing Plan

Digital marketing is ever-evolving, so the more tools you have in your marketing arsenal, the easier lead generation will be for you when the market heats up again. Start by taking a fresh look at your marketing goals and objectives. Are they still aligned with your overall business objectives, and are they specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART)? Review the marketing channels you are using, such as social media, email, content marketing, PPC advertising, SEO, etc. Examine how each channel is performing and make adjustments where needed.

9 Plan for Spring

Use the off-season to strategize for spring. Prepare marketing materials and campaigns ahead of time. Make sure all of your online profiles feature up-to-date, professional headshots and accurate contact details. Tidy up your client database and start organizing your contacts into specific groups so it’s easier to create specialized campaigns for them.

10 Utilize Email Marketing

Not every prospect who reaches out to you is going to be ready to do business right away. That's why having a system for nurturing leads is crucial to keep them engaged and moving through your sales funnel. Email marketing is a valuable tool for maintaining contact with potential clients in a non-intrusive way while offering them valuable information. In return, you can track the effectiveness of your emails and learn which ones produce the best results. Using engagement metrics like open rates and click-through rates makes it easy to adjust your content based on what performs best with your audience.