With millions of commercial real estate properties listed online, getting yours to stand out to potential investors or tenants can be a challenge.
Whether your target is conducting due diligence, looking for a new space, or simply wanting to understand the potential of a property, there are steps brokers can take—and avoid—to drum up interest and close deals faster.
Here are three best practices.
Tip #1: Use Data
Data is the easiest way to make a strong, convincing case for your property. But there are many types of data to consider including.
Some, like information about the property itself, should be in the listing. This includes factors like pricing and square footage. Consider adding aerial shots of the building to give interested parties a view of what’s in the area, such as rooftops, cotenants, points of access, and more.
There are other types of data—like demographic and behavioral data—that should also be in the listing, but these insights are more extensive. Because of this, you may have to pick and choose the pieces that tell your property’s story best. Insights like trade areas sizes, the surrounding community’s population trends, what retail category would best fit the property, the types of consumers who live in the area and where else they shop, and more can be uncovered and easily uploaded to LoopNet or Crexi with the share features in Buxton’s Match and Mobilytics applications.
Tip #2: Don’t Forget About Aesthetics
As you upload images and descriptions, pay attention to the visual aspects of the post. If you prefer to use a specific font or color scheme with all your listings, make sure it’s consistent, easily readable, and doesn’t clash with any other text, charts, or graphics. Color is good, but too much color is overwhelming and can detract from listing’s content.
Double check that all the photos you upload have the same orientation—either all vertical or all horizontal. Doing this helps create a clean, consistent look, which in turn, gives your listing a clean and consistent look.
Tip #3: Balance Your Text
Finally, be smart with the amount of information you include—find the Goldilocks spot. Don’t include too much but remember to include enough. People tend to skim over big blocks of text, or worse, they just won’t read them. Keep your sentences short, sweet, and under 20 words. Another option is using bullet points to highlight key pieces of information instead of full sentences.
On the other hand, you don’t want to be so concise that you leave out important details. For example, don’t request that interested investors or tenants call for pricing information. Your audience will expect to see the price, and to make this as easy and painless as possible, it should be included on the listing.
The Bottom Line
Think of your property listing like an advertisement.
It needs to have enough information to be intriguing without being overwhelming. It needs to grab someone’s attention without being distracting. It should promote your brand without that being the main focus.
It takes balance and practice. And don’t forget to proofread!
To learn more about how data can help you fill vacancies faster, check out our blog, “A New Way of Approaching Retail Leasing.”