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More and more real estate agents are spending significantly more money on maintaining an online presence that goes beyond simply listing properties on the most important real estate portals.

With the world of real estate marketing changing rapidly and the digital marketing landscape evolving, agents had little choice but to change the way they market their homes, one of the UK’s largest providers of website and lead generation technology to agencies .

Starberry saw its real estate agent clients’ digital spending increase 495% year over year in the first quarter of 2021.

Starberry CEO Ben Sellers says the increased digital spending reflects a trend currently seen in the market of agents who are starting to move their spending from portals and their main offices to the expansion of their digital footprint.

He commented, “The Covid-19 pandemic has forced the real estate industry to evolve and rethink how and where they spend their marketing budget. In today’s environment, a company’s digital footprint has become increasingly important, and we’ve seen real estate agents focus more on building their own online presence so they don’t rely as much on the digital lead portals.

“As a new showcase, agents are spending more on their own websites to make sure they are optimizing their lead capture, lead generation, and lead nurturing tools. We are also seeing agents increase their spending on their communication channels and digital marketing campaigns. “

He adds that while the majority of agents have been digitally present in the past, that was definitely not the main focus that matters today.

Sellers continued, “We have been in the digital sector for several decades and have always had to convince agents of the digital transformation we believed was coming. Now, however, we are inundated with agents who recognize the potential of their own websites and know how to generate results from their own digital channels are actually of better quality and cost less than portals.

“Because the agents weren’t focused on their own digital presence, they relied heavily on portals to generate leads. However, agents can achieve phenomenal results that compete seriously with portals from their own websites via digital marketing and connecting their social media channels, email, chat and portal leads to their CRMs Achieve marketing ROI and real lead attribution. ”

According to Sellers, agents must continue to innovate and develop alternative ways to generate business and operate within the “new normal” of a digitally controlled world.

“A digital footprint is no longer an accessory, it’s a necessity,” added Sellers.