5 Important tips for advertising rental properties online

The RPM Evolve blog

5 Important tips for advertising rental properties online

Advertising rental properties online is an essential aspect of finding quality tenants, but it can also be extremely time consuming and stressful. These 5 tips can improve your success rate and help to fill vacancies quickly.

You have a property that you would like to rent out to high-quality, prospective tenants. So, you got to work creating an ad that listed what you feel are the most important aspects of the property – and you listed it online.

What happened? Did you get any response from the ad? Were you bombarded with inquiries from potential renters that do not meet even your most basic requirements?

Here’s the thing – you can’t just throw some words together about the property and expect to get the result you want. There is a method to creating a successful property listing. Those who have been advertising rental properties for years will tell you that doing things right can be highly effective – especially when it comes to online property marketing platforms.

So, what does it mean to do things right in the online marketing world? Let’s take a look at five of the most important tips before you list your next property.

1. Know Who is in Your Target Market

To get a response when advertising rental properties, you have to capture their attention. But, not just any attention. You want to make sure you are capturing the attention of the right people. What would your ideal tenant look like? Someone who would love a home with a high walkability factor? A person who would love the extra office space in the home to work from home? Someone who would benefit from the accessible transportation or close highways? This is your rental property so you know the benefits that will stand out and you know what your future tenants may want to take advantage of in the area. Focus on those things.

If you don’t want to find yourself in hot water with fair housing laws, you should keep in mind not to speak of specific demographic groups or who you feel would make a good fit for the property.

Before you can capture the attention of the right people, you must know who you are marketing to. Take some time to get a better understanding of your target market before you waste time (and money) on advertising.

2. Choose Your Words Carefully

There are a lot of rental properties listed. When someone is scanning through property after property, they are going to catch a few words here and there until something catches their eye. It’s that heading or even the first few words of the first sentence that will either get them enticed for more – or keep scrolling.

Choose words or phrases that will capture this attention. Make sure you aren’t using the same heading that 80% of the other ads are using. For example, think of some phrases that are overused in listings, such as:

  • Close to good schools
  • Nearby dining and shopping
  • Close to downtown
  • Parks and recreation within walking distance

Sure, these are all great things that many people are seeking. But guess what? Many other properties offer the same. Decide what sets your property apart from the rest and go with it. Does it have a pool? Extra space for a home office? Maybe it has solar energy panels? Describe your property with the traits that will stick out and capture attention of high-quality tenants.

3. Photos, Photos, and More Photos

Photos have always been important. People want to be able to see what a property looks like and if it is even worth their time looking into it further. Anyone can post a listing about a beautiful 4-bedroom home near great schools and walking distance to downtown. However, without photos, there is no way to prove it even has indoor plumbing!

Even more so now that we are still dealing with the COVID pandemic, photos allow potential rentals to determine their level of interest in your property – and save time and social contact with everyone involved. If they like what they see, they can reach out to you, if they don’t, they will keep searching. Time is a precious commodity so the more details you can offer, the more appreciative your prospective tenants will be.

Work with a photographer or do some research online to learn about key aspects used by professional property manages for taking good photos of rental property to show off all the goods. In addition, consider using virtual walk-through videos to give an even more in-depth perspective of what the property looks like.

4. Use Social Media

When advertising rental properties online, it’s important to utilize multiple platforms. There are many websites available for you to list your rental property, and some of these may very well lead to a great response. It is definitely important to consider the fact that most people spend their time on a cell phone rather than a computer. And, in doing so, often spend more time on social media than anything else.

So, what would happen if you decided to list your properties on social media? That’s right – if you want to get find the perfect tenant for your rental property, you are going to want to take advantage of social media. You will have to do your due diligence to determine which social media platform – Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, TikTok, etc. is best for your target audience. A professional property manager will also give you the ability to advertise on websites like Zillow and rental.com to boost your exposure.

Keep in mind that the algorithms are always changing so it is best if you stay on top of the latest stats. In more recent times, social media posts with video seem to get more views than those with pictures only. And those with pictures get seen far greater than those with only a post of words. This could change. The more you gain an understanding of the marketing world, the easier it will be to stay on top of things.

5. Consider a Property Manager

Listing your property online is one thing. Advertising rental properties online and making sure it finds its way to the high-quality tenants that will want to sign your lease is another. It takes an in-depth knowledge of the market and an understanding of how to maneuver through all the available tools.

This is where a property management team comes in. Not only do they handle all physical aspects of managing properties, but they take care of the advertising rental properties, too. If you find yourself overwhelmed when listing your property – or don’t like the results you have been getting – then perhaps it is time to ask for help from the best property manager in Phoenix – Real Property Management Evolve.

Final Thought

Remember, it doesn’t matter how beautiful your property is or how many amenities it has – it isn’t going to serve you well if it is vacant. From taking notice of your target market to building a social media presence, try following these important tips for listing your property online – or consider consulting a professional property management team to market the property for you.

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