Inman

72 hours to sell a home

It must be something in the water. Or maybe it’s just the fact they’re working in one of the most competitive real estate markets in North America.

Whatever it is, it seems like Vancouver-based Realtors are really pushing the envelope when it comes to new media marketing (see Video isn’t just about listings).

Kye Grace is one of those Realtors. He recently completed a marathon open house: three days nonstop, embedding himself in a downtown luxury condo he was trying to sell.

But what makes this open house story different was he conducted it entirely online.

Grace live-streamed the entire 72 hours over the Internet on his Web site, 72houropenhouse.com. He used the video-streaming service Ustream.tv to connect with potential buyers through the embedded chat window and fielded questions through other social media tools like Twitter.

It’s just this sort of creative thinking around marketing that’s going to get you and your listings noticed these days.

Certainly, there’s no doubt Grace also benefited himself from the healthy media attention his endeavor attracted — the local television channels and newspaper all picked up his story.

He even turned the idea into a revenue opportunity, offering up sponsorship opportunities to local vendors to come in and talk about their products and services, too.

The idea that you can adopt all the means and methods the mainstream media has had at its disposal to accomplish your own marketing goals is one of the most powerful and defining paradigm shifts brought about by the use of social media in real estate.

Originally posted on the Future of Real Estate Marketing blog. Joel Burslem is vice president of content at Inman News.

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