BUYER’S GUIDE: Reader’s Choice
Top 10 products
Mailers lead the list of products you most often asked about. This year’s Top 10 list, based on a tally of 2004 REALTOR® Magazine reader service card responses, proves marketing communications take center stage in how you run your business. Postcards, newsletters, and open house supplies ranked high, as did technology-related products that help you stay connected from home, office, or the field. Our reader service card lets you request free information by mail about any product mentioned in advertisements or in our monthly “Buyer’s Guide.” Here are your picks.
Tools of your trade:
1. Prospect to win. A solid communications plan builds repeat business and wins prospects. Get your name out with postcards, newsletters, business cards, and client follow-up programs—including the new Attack Pack Drip Pack program designed to convert FSBOs into customers. Follow-up programs start at $10. The Personal Marketing Co., Lenexa, Kan.; 800/458-8245; www.tpmco.com.
2. Stellar open houses. Showing and selling a home is easy with the right tools. Brochure displays, name riders, sidewalk frames, and other supplies help you generate traffic and market yourself. A pack of six acrylic holders for standard-sized brochures is $41.70. REMS Inc., Stanton, Calif., 800/777-2622; www.remsinfo.com.
3. Postcards, pronto! Orders are ready in two to three business days when you supply print-ready digital postcard files. Postcard Press prints color postcards on thick stock that stands out from flimsy mailers. A special UV coating protects the postcards from scuffing. Custom sizes, quantities, and mailing services are available. Postcards start at $95 for 500; business cards start at $60 for 1,000. Postcard Press, Torrance, Calif., 800/957-5787; www.postcardpress.com.
4. Timing is everything. Be the timeliest salesperson in your market with seasonal postcards, as well as sports schedules, recipes, and daylight-savings reminders. Postcards $24 for 100; labels $33 for 300. NewHomeSale.com, Franklin, Mass., 888/354-6634; www.newhomesale.com.
VIP Partner
5. Tech edge. REALTORS® can save up to 10 percent on direct purchases of Hewlett Packard products, such as HP and Compaq printers, PCs, notebooks, handhelds, digital cameras, and networking products. HP Real Estate Marketing Assistant software makes it easy to publish your own marketing materials. Hewlett Packard Co., Palo Alto, Calif., 800/888-8177 (mention access code NAR1); www.hp.com/go/nar.
6. Theme selling. Consistent messaging is a snap with a year-long postcard campaign that focuses on a theme—kids, pets, gardening, or tongue twisters. Customize cards with your photo, return address, and logo. Order free samples online. Full-year programs (1,200 cards) start at $395.62. Lentz Design, Chicago, 800/773-0095; www.lentzdesign.com.
7. Remember me. A colorful jumbo postcard will land in past clients’ and prospects’ mailboxes each month for a year, encouraging referrals and keeping your name top of mind. Cards, geared to the month, start at 24 cents each for mailings of 50 to 150 per month, with discounts for larger orders; $59 setup fee for new orders. Stay in Touch Inc., Lynchburg, Va., 800/241-9991, www.stayintouchsystem.com.
VIP Partner
8. Computer connections. Dell offers NAR members discounts, which can be combined with other Dell promotions, on such products as desktop and notebook computers, software, and peripherals. Dell Inc. Small Business Division, Round Rock, Texas, 877/648-3355; http://premier.dell.com, access code NAR, access key NARDELL (case sensitive).
9. Design direction. Customize postcards, brochures, and door hangers online. You can choose from thousands of graphics and store your designs for later use. Create and save your direct-mailing lists or access the company’s national database of more than 100 million residential addresses. Jumbo postcards start at 42 cents for a minimum order of 20 cards, standard postage included. QuantumMail.com, Austin, Texas, 800/637-7373; www.quantummail.com.
10. You know me! Show prospects you understand them with postcards geared to their interests—golf, art, or cooking. Also choose from a wide selection of brochures, postcards, newsletters, and giveaways, such as travel mugs. Newsletters start at 35 cents each for 200 copies. SellSmart, Phoenix, 800/522-0852; www.sellsmart.com.
Prices are the manufacturers’ suggested retail prices and are subject to change. This list isn’t comprehensive; NAR doesn’t evaluate or endorse these products and isn’t responsible for changes in company info.
VIP Partner
REALTOR VIP® Program partners offer special pricing to NAR members. Find out more at REALTOR.org/realtorVIP.
