Master Your Message: How to Create a PR Campaign for Your Real Estate Business

To effectively grow your business, it’s crucial to not only present your brand well but also cultivate a positive public perception of your credibility and expertise. Implementing a public relations campaign can significantly expand your reach and enhance your brand’s visibility.

I’ve learned plenty of lessons about what works and the secrets to success through my own real estate-focused PR service, Lion & Orb. I’m here to walk you through crafting your own PR campaign and give you the tools to harness the power of earned media.

What is a PR campaign?

A PR campaign is a coordinated series of activities designed to achieve specific goals related to building and maintaining a positive public image for a person, brand, or product (which in this case would be real estate properties). These goals can include raising awareness, improving reputation, increasing engagement, or promoting specific initiatives or events.

Why craft a PR campaign?

Creating a PR campaign offers numerous benefits for real estate agents aiming to enhance their professional presence.

• A well-executed PR campaign can significantly increase your market visibility, making your services more noticeable to potential clients. This increased exposure is crucial in a competitive industry like real estate, helping you stand out and attract more business opportunities.
• Positive media coverage builds credibility and trust with your target audience, enhancing your reputation far more effectively than paid advertisements. This credibility not only attracts new clients but also instills confidence in your current clients, fostering loyalty and referrals.
• A PR campaign raises brand awareness, ensuring that more people know about you,  your services, and even your listings, which is vital for attracting new clients and expanding your reach.
• Engaging directly with your audience through PR activities, for example planning events, strengthens relationships, making clients feel valued and heard. This engagement can drive more traffic to your listings and website, generating leads and potentially boosting sales.
• PR campaigns are more cost-effective than traditional advertising, offering real value and longer-lasting impact. They also provide valuable networking opportunities by connecting you with journalists, influencers, and industry leaders.

Overall, a strategic PR campaign can be pivotal in growing your real estate business and solidifying your market presence.

How to build your PR campaign strategy

From building realtor.com News & Insights from the ground up to launching my own real estate-focused PR service, I’ve crafted many PR campaigns across a wide variety of topics. Follow these steps and you’ll be well on your way to mastering media coverage with your own PR campaign.

1. Pick a newsworthy story

The keyword in news is “new”—new listings, new sales, new career milestones, new market data, and new industry trends are all newsworthy options.

When it comes to marketing listings, there’s a misconception that it has to be the price point. That’s a very niche market. I’m here to tell you that it doesn’t have to be a celebrity listing, it doesn’t have to be this crazy, record-breaking list price. What it has to have is a unique narrative — it has to have a story.

2. Craft a compelling pitch

PR is all about the narrative—take what’s newsworthy and make it your own story. Here are some aspects to keep in mind:

• Find a unique angle: What makes you or this listing stand out in the marketplace? How is your story different?
• Tie your story to current news and trends: Capitalize on what people are already talking about or paying attention to in the news.
• Find and stick to your niche: Tie your narrative back to your specific area of real estate. Reporters respect sources who can demonstrate that they’re the go-to expert.
• Use targeted language: Before launching a campaign, clearly define your key messages and create a list of keywords or phrases associated with them.
• Make an emotional connection: Remember to keep your narrative rooted in human connection and interest. What’s going to grab their attention?
• Remember that the media has an obsession with superlatives: The first time on the market, the most unique whatever in this particular neighborhood: These are the things that are going to create an emotional reaction to the story.

Take, for example, this 26-acre property within the Paso Robles wine region owned by a former Super Bowl champ and his wife, where they spent 20 years housing the award-winning vineyard, TH Estate Wines.

Listed by Jenny Heinzen of Vineyard Professional Real Estate, this listing attracted reporter attention based on the region, the name and story behind the couple selling their home. As a result, the property has been featured in 13 outlets, including Robb Report. Here’s some of the data to come out of that particular PR campaign:

3. Build a media kit

Once you land the perfect compelling pitch, start collecting assets to share with reporters. For example, if you’re promoting a new listing, put together the following:

• High-resolution photos
• Listing copy (including the history of the home and seller details)
• Link to the listing (when live on the MLS)
• Press release (if needed)
• Whether the seller is available for press (in case the news outlet wants an interview or quote)
• Agent availability for interviews

4. Determine your target publications

New media, broadcast, digital, and print are all possible mediums for PR. If you’re working with a PR agency or service, they’ll identify which media outlets are most suitable for your goals.

But, if you’re handling it yourself, here’s a helpful breakdown of where to begin:

1. Start with keyword research. Use the “news” tab to search for the terms that you want your story to rank for, such as, “Los Angeles record sale.”
2. See what publications are in the top-ranking search results and then click on the top-ranking articles.
3. Note the writers of those pieces and gather their contact information if possible.
4. Research other work by your target journalists and publications to build a broader picture of the types of stories they typically cover.
5. Compile a dream list based on the publications and reporters who routinely cover stories similar to your pitch.

5. Start pitching

If you’re working with a PR agency or membership service like Lion & Orb, they will handle this step for you. Typically, this means multiple rounds of outreach, offering exclusives to the people and publications on your dream list, and coordinating interviews with interested reporters.

If you’re pitching on your own, here’s how to get your name out there:

Personalized pitches

Use the media dream list you created to pitch reporters ideas that are similar to their usual coverage. For example, send a brief note that says something like, “Hi {name}, I enjoyed your article about {topic}. If you’re interested in chatting, I have a similar story.”

The important part of pitching is to keep it personalized and make it known that you’re familiar with the writer and their work. Most people just blindly send out pitches to journalists, but that’s the fastest way to get ignored. You need to take the time to read what the reporter is writing. How can you expect them to care about what you have to say if you didn’t even take the time to look at what topics they cover?

Take this realtor.com article for example.

We have experience working with this reporter and know she regularly writes these listicle articles of the most expensive homes listed each week. So, we took a property listed by Ben Bacal of Revel Real Estate and made sure the price point fit in her article and it came in at number eight that week!

Be a source

Reporters always need sources, so why not lend them your expertise? Sign up to be a subject matter expert on HARO and Qwoted to offer your expert insights to a writer on a tight deadline.

Aside from the exposure, offering quotes is a great way to get a pulse on the topics and trends journalists are covering. You can also use these insights for new content on your own blogs and social accounts as well as video marketing.

Check out this HousingWire Power House podcast episode for an example of how one of our clients leveraged this idea.

We introduced Chad Roffers, CEO of Concierge Auctions, to the host. His expertise aligned with what they were looking for in a guest so we booked him on the very first episode of that new podcast!

Build relationships

Journalists likely won’t have time to grab a coffee with you, but there’s nothing wrong with asking—especially since it’s a great way to start a positive rapport.

Another great way to get a busy reporter’s attention is to point to a recent article they’ve written. See what value you can add for a possible follow-up story or as a future expert without being too self-serving.

For example, reach out to a reporter from a local business journal and let them know you saw their recent article on the housing market and would be happy to lend some trend insights. They might think of you the next time they need a source.

6. Share your successful campaign results

Let’s say you were quoted in an article or a journalist covered your recent community involvement. Here are ways to maximize that exposure and share the coverage:

• Add the article to the press section on your website.
• Share it on your social media channels—your followers might share it too.
• Email it to your contacts and let them know you’re newsworthy.
• Create an ad campaign promoting the article.

For example, we helped one of our members, a real estate agent with Compass named DJ Soucy, get featured in Tampa Bay Real Producers’ February issue this year.  You can learn more about the piece in the thankful post he shared on Instagram.

How to measure your PR campaign’s success

Now that you’ve officially launched your own PR campaign, it’s time to judge the success. Here are some factors to consider when analyzing the metrics of your campaign.

Quantitative metrics

These are the numbers and tangible data you can pull from social media, website analytics, and your CRM. Keep an eye on the following:

Website traffic

Did more people come to your website after publication?

How to measure: On Google Analytics, pay attention to the source of the traffic, which will indicate where they found your link or mention. If there’s a surge from a particular website or platform post-campaign, it indicates your PR efforts were more effective there.

You can also set up goals in Google Analytics to monitor specific actions visitors take on your website related to your campaign efforts, like filling out a contact form or viewing specific property listings.

Social shares and engagement

Did the article and posts get likes, comments, and shares?

How to measure: Monitor the number of likes, comments, shares, and mentions related to your campaign on platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, and any other platform relevant to your audience. Tools like Hootsuite, Buffer, and Sprout Social can help consolidate and track this information.

Lead generation

Did the article generate more inquiries and clients?

How to measure: Monitor your CRM closely after the campaign. Track the number of new inquiries you get, where they heard about you, and how many convert into actual clients. Set up specific tracking codes or campaign tags in your CRM to easily identify leads generated from PR efforts.

Combine lead data with website and social media metrics for a holistic view of the campaign’s success. For example, a lead might first see your article shared on social media, then visit your website, and finally reach out through a contact form. Check out this data from CoverageBook demonstrating the reach of our work with DJ Soucy for an idea of what this might look like:

Qualitative metrics

These are non-numerical metrics that are a bit more abstract and intangible, but they’re just as important as your hard data. Consider the following when determining if your campaign was successful while still aligning with your brand:

Brand sentiment

Did people generally praise the piece or find your contribution valuable?

How to measure: Use sentiment analysis tools or social listening platforms like Brandwatch or Mention to scan online conversations for positive, negative, or neutral tones about your brand. Address any negative sentiments proactively. Responding professionally and promptly can transform a potentially harmful situation into a brand-building opportunity.

Quality of media coverage

How well did the publication capture your story? Did the writer use a great quote that really showed your expertise?

How to measure: Review the articles, blogs, and mentions related to your campaign and note how your expertise was portrayed and whether the coverage strengthens your position in the real estate industry. After several PR campaigns, you can create a media coverage report that categorizes articles by outlet type, tone, and content focus. This will help you identify which media relationships are most beneficial and which need nurturing or adjustment.

Key message uptake

How well are your key messages being received and echoed by the media and the public?

How to measure: As you review your press coverage, identify any recurring themes or phrases that align with your intended messaging. Make note of messages that were particularly resonant and ones that were misunderstood or missed. You can now refer back to the key messages you defined in step two to better understand how your message spread.

Your PR campaign + Luxury Presence

A well-crafted PR campaign can be the secret weapon to amplifying your brand and staying relevant in 2024 and beyond. Take the time to create a PR strategy that works for you and watch your business flourish in the competitive real estate landscape.