Open House! Aside from prancing up and down the street shouting at the to of your lungs, what are some ways that we could increase traffic to an open house? That’s what reader Crystal Tost wanted to know, and in this post we’ll detail some techniques I personally use.
Choose a Home Close to a Major Thoroughfare
Open up Google Maps, and locate the property you’re planning on having open. Now find the closest major street in relation to this home. How many turns will your visitors have to make?
You’re probably better off with a home that has fewer than 5 turns. A home that is close to a major street will require minimal signage to guide the visitor to your open house; leaving you more signage for the next strategy I use that proves very useful in increasing traffic.
Place Bandit Signs Every 20 Feet on Both Sides of the Road
An hour or so before your open house, take a drive to the major street we spoke about in the tip above.
Next, place the small, directional open house signs available nearly everywhere roughly 30 feet from each other on both sides of the road. I liked to place at least 4 on each side, giving us a total of 8 signs to catch a driver’s attention. Seem like too much? That’s the idea. If I can get a visitor to pay attention to our signs, then we have a better chance of increasing traffic to our open house.
Check with your local authorities as there may be laws against bandit sign usage. I’ve had mine snapped up in Houston that enacted that law quite some time ago, but I still see agents doing it anyway.
Consistently using the next few strategies will be very important if you’re stuck in this predicament.
Call Everyone on the Street
It’s important to spread the word about your open house to get those nosy neighbors in to see the home. I know they’re not who you’re looking for, but they provide something very valuable – feedback.
Feedback will help you optimize the home’s appearance for attracting the right buyer. Feedback will help you determine what are the true selling points of the home. Besides – they might have a friend or relative looking to move in to the area.
Use this reverse lookup tool to find every homeowner on the street of your open house. Some may not be listed, but you can call all that you do find with public phone numbers.
Door Knock for Open House Success
Got nerves of steel? Great. This one requires that you get out of your comfort zone and arrive earlier that morning to go door to door to drum up some business.
Door knocking is an age old marketing technique (those pesky kids need to stop trying to sell me new electricity!), but if used effectively, will not only increase your open house traffic but your popularity as well.
By personally door knocking a neighbor, you are potraying quite a few desireable qualities in a real estate agent:
- You’ll do whatever it take to sell a home.
- You’re not afraid to get out and talk to people.
- You focus your attention on their subdivision and are eager to sell homes in it.
- You hold open houses. (Some agents refuse to)
Here is a script I would use when visiting with a neighbor:
Hi there! I’m Steve with XYZ Realty. I just wanted to quickly stop by and let you know I was having an open house for the Jones’s a few houses down, and I wanted to invite you to stop by. Here’s my card – if you know anyone interested in moving into the area, please invite them over!
Oh, and by the way, I’ll have some drinks and cookies for you to enjoy. Thanks! I hope you have a good one.
Sunday Afternoon from 1-5PM is Best
Having an open house during the week isn’t a bad idea; at least you’re still marketing the property. However, to get the most visitors, you probably want to wait until a majority of your possible clientele is off of work. The weekends.
Saturday and Sunday are great days for an open house, but one day has proven time and time again to be more effective than the rest: Sunday. You don’t want to hold it too early due because of church and other religious commitments, but the afternoon has a much higher chance to catching people out on the roads just after lunch.
What are some techniques you currently employ to increase visitor traffic? Feel free to share your thoughts in our real estate forum.
