How to Set Your Real Estate Business Up for Success After the Coronavirus

The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has upended the lives of people in the U.S. and around the world. The crisis has shaken up our country’s economy, disrupting every type of business and transforming the real estate business overnight.

We’ve seen this at DMD, where we’ve resorted to only photographing vacant properties and expanding our offerings with a new marketing kit for realtors as we try to make the best of a very difficult situation.

But as hard as it may be to believe right now, the coronavirus will pass — though our world will likely never be the same. To ensure your business is set up for success when the crisis subsides, you need to adapt quickly and start preparing now for the post-coronavirus world. 

Your real estate business can survive — if you plan correctly. To set your company up for success once everything reopens after the coronavirus, here are four critical tips:

Stay Positive

With the unending flood of news updates and social media posts, it’s easy to feel like the world is ending. But the coronavirus pandemic won’t last forever. For proof, look at China. Already, the country has lifted lockdowns and travel restrictions, and many employees have gone back to work. 

The United States is around seven weeks behind China in the advancement of the coronavirus. If this trend continues, we will witness a steep drop in coronavirus cases come May.  

All of this translates to what is looking like only a brief hiatus for your real estate business. And when this crisis does past, you don’t want to be beaten by your competitors in the race to recover lost clients and revenue.

Keep your spirits up, and if you can find creative and helpful ways to do so, be that voice of positivity for current and prospective clients as well.

Be Patient with Prospects

As a real estate agent, you may find prospective homebuyers and renters getting cold feet on deals. For many clients, stock market losses and/or fear of recession may make them reluctant to make a purchase. 

Because of this, you need to allow prospects more time to consider their investment, while continuing to encourage them by reminding them of their goals — and the very real benefits to buying right now (i.e. low interest rates, minimal competition, and likely lower prices). 

Connect with Prospective Clients on Social Media 

In times of crisis, we get a chance to see who people — and companies — really are. Now is a time for you to position your brand as a strong, empathetic leader. 

Without being salesy or pushy, you can provide your audience with support, education, empathy, and resources on social media. When wielded correctly, social media platforms can be mighty tools. 

For current clients, email marketing is a great tool right now to do many of the same things we mentioned above.

Strengthen Your Overall Digital Marketing Efforts

If you’ve been a real estate agent for a while, then you lived through a similar economic situation not too long ago. In the recession of 2008, many companies saw a dive in revenue as Americans tightened their budgets and spent less. But some companies managed to survive — and often they did so by ramping up their digital marketing efforts. 

Real estate businesses that regularly produced free content to answer real estate questions were able to establish a strong relationship with audiences during the recession. Once the recession was over, these real estate businesses not only survived but saw a boost in revenue because of the solid relationship they had fostered with future prospects.

How can you strengthen the digital marketing efforts of your real estate company? There are more ways than one, and pictures are (as they say) worth a thousand words. Don’t just tell potential clients what you can do — show them... with the help of DMD Real Estate Photography. 

3 Ways to Show a House Safely During the Coronavirus Pandemic

As the nation struggles to contain the spread of the coronavirus, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention is urging Americans to refrain from going to work, school, or even leaving the house unless you must. 

The new directives are forcing most employees to work from home — including real estate agents. For people who typically depend on face-to-face showings to promote properties and close deals, this can be a major disruption. No longer are you able to host open house showings with refreshments.

But this doesn’t mean realtors can’t be active during the coronavirus crisis. The housing industry may have slowed dramatically, but sales continue to happen. People still need to buy and sell homes, and real estate agents can continue to help them do so... with a bit of creativity. 

Here are three ways to show a house safely during the coronavirus: 

Create a Professional Showing Video

Can’t physically walk potential buyers through the property? No problem. Our experienced photographers and editors can give you the next best thing with a video walkthrough. 

We’ll make sure to capture and highlight specific features you choose and pick the best angles to really show off the space in the best way possible. 

The best part? Instead of scheduling a bunch of individual walkthroughs with people, you can use the one video to potentially reach thousands. And if people have questions, they can still send you messages.

Be Sure to Include a Floorplan

Video walkthroughs are great, but sometimes you need to be able to step back and get the perspective that only a good floorplan can provide you. Even better — our floorplans are interactive!

Perform Live Demonstrations

Using platforms like Facebook Live, agents can get creative with live listings. For example, you could show off a kitchen with a cooking demonstration or highlight a garden with a gardening tutorial.

Watching someone else engage in “real-life” activities can be a great way to imagine yourself in a space.

For a complete digital marketing kit with virtual tours in addition to must-haves like social media flyers and Pinterest photo tours, get in touch with the team at DMD Real Estate Marketing.

How the Coronavirus Will Impact the Housing Market

Shelter is a basic need. 

Buying a home is prompted by a stage-of-life change. 

Things are scary and uncertain right now. It feels like anything could happen, and much of it isn’t good. People, however, are always going to have certain basic needs and wants that must be addressed.

So, two things we can count on in the face of the coronavirus pandemic? 

1. People will still need housing. 

2. Most of us will continue to experience life changes. 

Obviously, that’s not a clear nuts-and-bolts answer about how COVID-19 will impact things, but here’s what we’ve been able to glean from the research about the real estate market as a whole, and more specifically, here in Alaska. 

Two Historical Crises and Their Impact on the Housing Market

Two of the most striking financial crises to hit Alaska in the last 50 years were the recession of the 1980s and the more recent 2008 financial crises. The ‘80s crises hit Alaska hard and lasted nearly a decade, while the economic downturn between 2007 and 2009 was a much shorter period to endure. 

The Recession in the 1980s

Between 1980 and 1982, as the country experienced the residual effects of the late-’70s energy crisis, most of the US actually saw increases in overall housing prices. Unfortunately, that wasn’t true for Alaska. 

With oil being nearly our only source of significant income during that period, by the end of the decade, more than 30,000 foreclosures had been filed, 14,000 of which remained empty, and even more Alaskans moved away from the state altogether. 

Bad, bad, and more bad.

The 2008 Financial Crisis

The housing market across the US mirrored financial market struggles in the 2008 financial crisis, which led to plummeting house prices and marked increases in rental demand, which led to a shift in real estate revenue streams from home sales to rentals. 

Furthermore, nearly as quickly as risky lending was publicly uncovered, regulations were tightened around homebuyer qualifications. Agents began suggesting more prequalification footwork be done up-front, so when clients found the right house, it was more of a sure thing.  

Three Ways We Expect Your Alaska Real Estate Business to Change

Here’s how we see your real estate business changing over the next few months (or years, even):

Technology Becomes Even More Integrated into Your Business

Real estate agents have a greater number of tech tools at their disposal and more connectivity to buyers than ever before via digital methods. Thank goodness, because all the work you’ve (hopefully) done over the last couple of years to incorporate the latest in digital technology is going to come in handy. 

We know our partners already have the best listing galleries available for viewing online because they understand the value of great real estate images. This is good, because in the immediate future (however long that ends up being!), social media, listing portals, and other digital means (think video conferencing) are the things that will keep you connected to your clients.

The bonus for you? Lots of buyers in Alaska come from out of state, and many don’t even set foot in properties before purchasing. So making your digital offerings as robust and engaging as possible isn’t just smart now, when no one is really doing things in person, but also into the future. 

Rental Properties Might Become a More Valuable Revenue Stream

You may wind up expanding your business to encompass rental properties. If you already facilitate rentals, we see this channel widening. 

The good news? We are happy to help develop amazing galleries for your rental properties, too! 

You May End Up Servicing More Out-of-State Clients

We touched on this above, but since long-distance buyers are such a big market here, we imagine a few of our most forward-thinking partners might entertain focusing exclusively on those looking to jump ship in the lower 48 or other market segments, such as people wanting to go off-grid completely.

All in all, the planning our state has done to insulate Alaskans in a more significant way will give real estate agents a wider planning window. (That doesn’t mean you should treat right now like a break, though — use it to transition to more digital and virtual services!)

DMD Has Real Solutions for Your Real Estate Business Adjustments 

Ultimately, this isn’t the first crisis humanity (or Alaska) has faced, and history proves that the housing market doesn’t ever completely disappear. The aspect of real estate likely to be most impacted will be how we do business — starting with how we reach our clients. 

If you need help strategizing for your real estate business in the face of an economic downturn, DMD Real Estate Photography has a number of solutions to support an expansion of your digital presence and services. Reach out!