In this day and age, online marketing is more important than ever for real estate professionals to stand apart from the pack. Even when the market is thriving, how do you stake your claim in the action? It’s easy to become overwhelmed by the countless, complex digital marketing tools out there, but a great place to begin is with this Retargeting 101 guide for real estate professionals.

The Basics of Retargeting for Real Estate Marketing

Let’s start simple: what is retargeting? Retargeting is about meaningfully reconnecting with a potential client who once visited your site, but kept surfing around without committing or sharing their contact info. Consider this: it’s not uncommon to deliberate on a purchase, but ultimately walk away and decide to think about it a little longer. Retargeting finds that potential customer and puts your message in front of them again, inching them closer to closing the gap and choosing you as their real estate representation.

When it comes to potential homebuyers or sellers, studies indicate that their window of web exploration usually lies between two weeks to four months. In that time, it’s highly likely that a lead has explored your site but failed to connect with you personally. Retargeting that lead through subtly placed ads can retrigger their interest and complete the sales funnel. When that web visitor goes browsing around the web, your retargeting efforts will stay close at hand, acting as a steady yet unobtrusive reminder of your services.

How Does Retargeting Work?

Retargeting campaigns use a small piece of code called a pixel. Each time a visitor peruses your site, this pixel creates and inserts an anonymous “cookie”—or a piece of stored data—that stays with that visitor as they continue their web browsing. Pixels are invisible and don’t affect your site’s functionality or interrupt a visitor’s experience. When that potential client visits any site where ads are present, the advertising kicks into gear and serves up your ad, retargeting that visitor and keeping your services at the top of his or her mind. It’s important to note that pixels don’t traffic in confidential user data, so there’s no need to fear that you’re invading your website visitors’ privacy. Retargeting efforts are anonymous, only blindly keeping tabs on visitors to your site.

Is Retargeting Effective?

The beauty of retargeting is that it reinforces the facts. A potential client was in need of services that you happen to provide and visited your site to learn more. Retargeting through sites such as Facebook & AdRoll is simply a way to continue the conversation. You can also easily create a custom audience on Facebook by uploading a CSV file with all your friends, family, past clients, and leads! This will allow you to boost posts and target ads specifically to people whom you’ve already been in contact with and are more likely to engage with you.

Today, house hunters and potential home sellers almost always begin their research process online. By incorporating retargeting marketing efforts, you stay front and center where you know a need exists. Real estate agents, brokers, and business owners can’t be everywhere at once, and you can’t follow up on a website lead if no contact information is given. Retargeting fills this gap and creates new opportunities for business without eating up your time or badgering potential clients with cold-calls, spam e-mails, and the like. Retargeting is a simple, clean, and pointed way to make yourself available to clients already in search for help.

Brandon Doyle is a Realtor at Doyle Real Estate Team — Re/Max Results in Minneapolis and co-author of Mindset, Methods & Metrics – Winning as a Modern Real Estate Agent. He continues to be recognized as one of the industries leading tech gurus. In 2014 he was nominated for Inaman Innovative Realtor of the Year and has been acknowledged for his use of aerial photography and videos tours, along with conducting the world's first virtual broker open house using VR goggles. Brandon has a Bachelor’s of Science in Real Estate from St. Cloud State University and is pursuing his Masters of Science in Real Estate at the University of St. Thomas.