The Ultimate Guide To Commercial Real Estate Lead Generation

From Facebook ads to client referral programs, there are tons of ways that real estate agents can generate leads and get people interested in utilizing their services. With so many choices, though, it can be difficult to know which approaches to use.

Are you having a hard time figuring out the best lead generation strategy for commercial real estate clients? Are you unsure of why you need to make lead generation a priority? If so, you’re in the right place. Read on for the ultimate guide on commercial real estate lead generation.

What Is Real Estate Lead Generation?

Lead generation (in real estate as well as other industries) is a form of marketing. It’s all about getting people interested in your product or service with the intent of developing a sales pipeline.

A lead, in its more basic form, is someone who shows an interest in your real estate business in some way. Real estate leads can come from several different channels, including social media, direct mail, traditional advertising, and referrals. The primary goal of real estate lead generation is to turn leads into prospects, then leads into clients, and clients into closed clients.

Why Is it Important?

Lead generation is essential to real estate agents. Not only is it a key component of the entire buying and selling process, but it also plays a crucial role in setting up a real estate business for long-term success.

Real estate lead generation helps you to ensure you have a steady stream of potential clients to keep your business afloat. Without regular infusions of new leads, prospects, clients, and close clients, you’ll have a much harder time building a successful commercial real estate business (and making sure it continues to thrive for years to come).

The following are some other reasons why lead generation is so important to real estate agents:

Be Proactive

First of all, a good lead generation strategy allows you to be a proactive commercial agent. Instead of waiting around hoping that people contact you about buying a property, lead generation empowers you and helps you to play an active role in keeping your business afloat.

Target Ideal Clients

Good lead generation techniques make it easier for you to target your ideal clients, too. You know better than anyone what kind of person to whom you’re hoping to sell commercial properties. Why not tailor your lead generation strategy so that you’re guaranteed to attract that type of person to your business?

Increase Brand Awareness

Remember, lead generation is a marketing tactic. With the right approach, you can increase your company’s brand awareness and help more people who are searching for commercial properties to find you. This allows you to continue growing your company and reaching a wider range of prospective clients.

Increase Profits

Don’t we all want to see increases in our company’s profits? When you start making commercial real estate lead generation a priority, you’ll likely see an increase in the number of clients who hire you to help them buy or sell properties. This can lead to more sales and more money in the bank for your business.

Save Money

At the same time that lead generation can help you bring in more money, it can also help you save money at the same time.

Lead generation is more cost-effective than a lot of other marketing tactics, and, when it’s done well, it can yield incredible returns for your company. Even if you’re working with a limited budget right now, you can still find plenty of ways to generate leads without breaking the bank.

Free Real Estate Lead Generation Ideas

Speaking of limited budgets and avoiding breaking the bank, one of the best things about real estate lead generation is that there are lots of steps you can take to generate interest in your business without spending any money at all. Here are some of the most effective and free commercial real estate lead generation ideas you might want to try today:

Referrals

Almost any real estate agent, whether they’re a commercial agent or a residential agent, will tell you that referrals are one of the most powerful and most reliable sources of new leads.

Many buyers are more willing to use an agent who was referred to them by a friend, colleague, or relative. The majority of sellers also find their agent through a referral.

As an added bonus, referrals can also be totally free. This is especially true if you do a good job of staying in touch with past clients.

Reach out to those with whom you’ve worked before and ask them if they’d be willing to refer any of their friends or colleagues to you. Ask them to leave reviews online, too, so that more people can find out about your services.

Local SEO

Local SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is one of the best strategies you can use to generate more commercial real estate leads.

If you want to increase the likelihood of people finding your website online, be sure to take advantage of local directories like Google my business, Yelp, and Yellow Page. Ensure you are listing your services, with hyperlocal keywords in your descriptions. For example, including the name of the city in which you’re selling properties can help your website to show up on people’s search engine results pages.

Consider using keywords like “commercial real estate in [insert city here]” or “commercial property in [insert state here]”. Be sure not to overdo it, though. This is known as keyword stuffing, and it can cause your website to be penalized by search engines.

Open Houses

Open houses are great for getting your name out there and networking with potential clients. Hosting an open house allows you to meet more people in the area in which you’re trying to do business.

When hosting an open house, be sure to have a system for collecting names and contact information. Even if the specific property doesn’t sell right away, you’re still sparking people’s interest and taking down names of people who could become closed clients later on.

Community Resource Pages

Including a community resource page on your website will help you to get more people interested in buying properties in your area.

List information about the city in which your property is located, as well as the amenities in the area that might be appealing to commercial property buyers. Maybe there’s lots of parking available for their clients or a good public transportation system so their employees don’t have to worry about commuting, for example.

Blogging

Blogging is a powerful lead generation tool for all kinds of professionals, including commercial real estate agents. Strategic blogging helps to increase the number of views your website gets, and it creates more opportunities for you to optimize your site with specific keywords.

Blogging gives you an opportunity to provide value to potential clients, too. Sharing information about searching for commercial properties or how to choose the right property for a particular business will help you establish credibility and shows potential clients that you are an authority in your industry.

Facebook & Instagram Page Optimization

Don’t forget about optimizing your professional Facebook page, either. These days, lots of real estate agents get leads from Facebook (as well as other social media platforms).

Some specific ways that you can optimize your Facebook and Instagram pages include:

• Featuring up-to-date contact information
• Sharing links to blog posts and other online content
• Responding to questions and comments in a prompt manner
• Featuring positive reviews

Don’t underestimate the power of using high-quality images for your profile and cover photos. Facebook is a visual platform, after all.

Paid Real Estate Lead Generation Ideas

There are lots of free steps that you can take to generate more commercial real estate leads. At the same time, though, there are also plenty of effective paid options for those who are willing to be more aggressive and invest a bit more money upfront.

Here are some of the best paid ways to improve your lead generation efforts:

Facebook Advertising

Beyond optimizing your professional Facebook page, there are other ways to use the social media platform to grow your list of commercial real estate leads. For example, you can use Facebook advertising.

When using Facebook advertising, it’s important to utilize the granular targeting options the platform has to offer. Targeting, selecting a clear objective, and choosing the right ad type will help you ensure you reach your target audience. This, in turn, will translate to more quality leads for your business.

LinkedIn Advertising

LinkedIn advertising is another good option, especially when you’re focused on selling commercial properties to other professionals.

LinkedIn advertising is a bit more expensive than Facebook advertising, but it also does a great job of helping you to get in front of the people who are most likely to take an interest in your services. LinkedIn’s Sales Navigator tool is also beneficial for real estate agents looking to engage with brokers, tenants, and investors.

Google Ads

Google Ads is one of the best paid advertising platforms you can use to grow your audience and increase your reach online. You can use Google Ads to target specific keywords that people are most likely to use when searching for commercial real estate agents like you. The platform also allows you to retarget customers and even bid on competitor names and brand keywords.

Conference and Trade Show Exhibits

In addition to online marketing tactics, you can also generate leads through more traditional methods. For example, advertising at conferences and trade shows is a good way to get your name out there and connect with people in-person. Talking to people face-to-face allows you to increase the likelihood that they’ll remember you, even if they don’t have any plans right now to buy commercial real estate. 

Host Networking Events

Networking events are another good way to meet people in-person. When you host your own, you can tailor the guest list to be most beneficial to you and your business. You can use these events to get to know other professionals in the area, people who might be willing to refer other potential clients to you in the future.

Video Marketing

These days, the most successful commercial real estate agents are all using video marketing to show off their properties and get people interested in them.

Video marketing is more interactive than regular photos and it helps you highlight the most unique features of a specific listing. More people are willing to watch videos than flip through a series of photos, too, so you’ll have an easier time capturing people’s attention and converting them into clients when you make video marketing a priority.

Breakdown of the Top Real Estate Lead Generation Companies

Working with a professional is one of the most effective ways to improve your commercial real estate lead generation efforts. The following are some of the best lead generation companies you might want to consider hiring if you’re ready to see a major increase in commercial real estate leads for your business:

• Offrs: Offrs provides tons of exclusivity and yields significant returns; one agent even reported earning $8 for every $1 spent with Offrs
• Zurple: Zurple features a handy automated response and follow-up system, as well as free consultations to help you decide if it’s the right platform for you
• Bold Leads: Bold Leads also offers exclusivity to its users and helps you create lead magnets that are designed just for you
• Market Leader: With Market Leader, you pay a flat fee in exchange for a specific minimum number of leads per month, guaranteed; this gives you a great leg up and simplifies the process of lead nurturing and converting
• REDX: REDX is one of the best platforms for prospecting leads; it uses advanced data aggregation techniques to deliver leads from a variety of sources to one centralized dashboard for easier management

Level Up Your Lead Generation Today

As you can see, there are lots of different ways (both paid and free) that you can use to generate commercial real estate leads. Now that you know more about your lead generation options, it’s time to get to work. Put these ideas outlined above to the test today.

Don’t forget to check out the top real estate lead generation companies listed above, too. They’ll help you take all the guesswork out of the equation and generate more leads for your real estate business.