Avoiding Image Theft In Your Marketing

Where do you get images for your marketing? It matters more than you think.

It may be easy, you may think everyone does it and you probably think no one will waste their time tracking you down. But you’d be wrong. Just because you found an image online, does not mean that it’s yours to take.


It’s Only One Image…


Copyright infringement with images, unfortunately, can be a very challenging situation and is taken quite seriously by image providers. Those who violate image copyright laws can be liable for thousands of dollars in statutory damages for each infringement and may also be liable for the image owner’s attorney fees and court costs.

Any original work, such as graphics or photographs, produced after 1978 is protected by copyright law, and it is considered to be the property of the person who produced it for their lifetime plus 70 years.


No One Will Ever Know…


Google’s reverse image search, TinEye and many others reverse image search engines are fighting back against online image theft. They are becoming increasingly adept at tracking down stolen images and videos.

If you didn’t pay for an image or graphic that you found online, and it’s not listed as a free resource, then (simply put) you are stealing the image. It’s easier than ever to track down image theft.


Why Does It Matter?


If you are a teacher or a news reporter presenting images to the public in order to inform or educate, then you are protected from copyright infringement under Fair Use. However, if you’re like many of our clients, you are marketing your services and products. This implies that you may profit from the image or graphic used in your marketing or communications. If the image you’re using for your marketing is not your original work, or if it is not listed on a free image website, then you could be fined for copyright violations. Plus, you’re robbing the person who produced that image of their legal right to collect fees for its use.


How to Avoid Copyright Infringement and Properly Use Images in Your Marketing


Purchase your images from a stock image provider or directly from a photographer or graphic designer. If you’d rather not shell out the money to purchase the right to use an image through a stock image site or artist, there are plenty of free image sources that simply require you to voluntarily attribute the image to the photographer or graphic designer. Check out our post, 4 Freebie Websites with Stellar Stock Images, for a quick list of free image options. There are thousands of free and affordable image options available that will help you avoid incurring legal action for image theft.

Photo by Radek Grzybowski on Unsplash.

Tips For More Referral Business in the New Year

The real key to success with clients and prospects in the new year is staying “top of mind.” Your goal is to be the first person a client thinks about when making a referral. It sounds simple, but when you are working with current clients and managing your everyday business activities, it’s far more challenging to keep in touch (and stay in touch) with your ever-growing database.

 

Here are a few tips to consider when you are working to keep your company top of mind to gain referral business in the new year:


1. Give the Gift They Actually Want


When you’re competing in a sea of emails, it’s important to avoid being quickly deleted or ignored. Email smart. Include content that interests your target markets, and make sure your subject line is powerful. For newsletters, consider simply copying the title of your lead article into your subject line field. Some newsletter platforms, like ours, have an automated feature to help you easily set the first article title as your subject line by default. Clients are far more likely to open information that is targeted and relevant to them versus a generic mass email. This extra step will not only prove that you add value but will highlight that you are paying attention to both their needs and interests.


2. Keep Testimonials, Online Reviews and Case Studies in the Forefront


If you haven’t started sharing client testimonials, reviews and case studies in your email marketing, on your blog, and on social media, maybe it’s time to start. Begin interviewing clients who have had positive before and after experiences with your company. Turn these real life situations into stories that can be shared as content. Testimonials are a powerful reminder that your business is the go-to company for new prospects or referral opportunities.


3. Maximize Social Media


Use content from your email newsletters, blog posts and other online resources to share social media updates on a regular basis to gain referrals. Consistent posting will help you engage your social followers, and it is one of the best ways to keep your company fresh in the news feeds of your followers. Various social media management tools offer free or affordable options to help you schedule out posts days in advance to help you easily manage multiple social channels.


4. Take a Multi-channel Approach To Getting Referrals


When it comes to staying top of mind, content is king. Remember that your email newsletters, blog posts, social media reviews, client case studies and testimonials all offer content that can be shared via email and on social media. Maximize your content resources by posting them to all your relevant online avenues and you’ll always be the first thought when referral opportunities pop up.

>> CLICK HERE to Check Out Some More of HomeActions Lead Generation Tools

Give The Gift Of Strategic Email Marketing

Email marketing reigns supreme as the best option for viable lead generation, yielding the highest return on investment of virtually any marketing strategy.

Businesses that are serious about implementing strategic email marketing initiatives are far more likely to maintain consistent growth than those with a passive approach.

Four tips for implementing a strategic digital marketing plan:


1. Use Smart Email Marketing Content


Stay focused on the needs of your target audience when you create your email marketing content. Know what is relevant to your clients right now and use that as inspiration to craft meaningful content that generates new opportunities.

While you’re nurturing your clients, don’t forget to periodically remind them about your add-on services and offerings. Harness opportunities to increase the value of your existing client engagements.

For prospects, create content that has a direct tie-in to your services, and close each article with a call to action and obvious next steps for contacting your business.


2. Automate Consistent Email Delivery


Warm up your prospects and remind your clients you’re there. A consistent content marketing strategy will yield measurable results, and email is the perfect vehicle for delivering trackable content to all your contacts on a regular basis. Hit your readers’ inboxes on a consistent schedule, and you’ll always be positioned as an expert in your field.

Most digital marketing platforms allow you to set and schedule email content far in advance. Some platforms will even do the hard work for you by automatically setting professionally written content into a regular distribution schedule. Resources like these save your professional staff the time and effort associated with writing marketing articles. They also help you stay on track with a consistent messaging strategy.


3. Implement Strategic Email Lead Follow-through


Turn your digital marketing platform into a lead generation powerhouse by leveraging it to deliver new opportunities right into the hands of your rainmakers. Use digital marketing tools that allow you to set lead notification alerts on key content and define alert recipients. Be sure to copy relevant marketing team members to help track your opportunities. Instant or daily lead alerts give your rainmakers the ability to connect with warm opportunities generated by your digital marketing while your business is still fresh in the minds of your prospects.

Make sure you have weave a system of accountability into your strategies, and get buy-in from management team members overseeing your email marketing efforts so that leads don’t fall through the cracks.


4. Track & Monitor Email Marketing Campaign Results


If you’re looking to keep clients and prospects coming to you instead of your competition, you need to keep a close eye on your marketing metrics and reporting. Watch your marketing stats in order to keep your finger on the pulse of opportunities, such as prospects who show a sudden increase in click-through activity on key content. Your metrics and reporting tools are your crystal ball into the minds of your readers, so use them accordingly.

Email marketing technology can take your email content strategies from status quo to swelling growth. Use these four tips to accelerate your digital marketing efforts and make your business a front-runner.

Use Email Marketing to Show Clients You’re Thankful

How can you use email marketing to show your clients that you appreciate them? Here are three ways to send a big “thank you” to the heartbeat of your business.

1. Start with a Personable Greeting in Your Subject Line

The subject line of your message is the first thing your clients see. Why not make it a bit fun? While a subject line may seem like a small element of your email, it is one of the very first impressions you can make.

Interesting email subject lines will compel your readers to open your message. They can also create a warm impression on your clients.

Here are some ideas for next month’s subject lines:

  • Good Gravy, We’re So Thankful for You!
  • November Updates With a Cranberry on Top
  • Our Clients Are What Makes Us Thankful This Thanksgiving Season
  • November Tips So Good, You’ll Want Second Helpings
  • Before You Enter Into a Food-Coma, Check Our November News
  • Happy Turkey Day! Gobble Up These Updates from Us
  • We’re Thankful to Be Delivering You Your November Updates
  • 5 Delicious November Articles For You to Feast Upon
  • Cooking Up Some Tasty November Updates from Us to You

2. Create Personal Connections With Email Marketing

Thanksgiving is a good time to highlight philanthropic activities, office events or even your staff’s favorite family recipes.

A simple “thank you” to your clients for doing business with you is nice, but why not give a little extra as well? Tap into your newsletter marketing to highlight your office’s Thanksgiving staff festivities. Feature your office’s Thanksgiving party highlights in your next newsletter.

Show how much you care about your community by featuring local food pantry drives, turkey dinner giveaways, or other charitable involvement. You could even partner with key clients who are in the charitable spirit by offering to match their donations in an effort to become “charity partners.”

If your staff members are willing, you could also share your team’s favorite family secret Thanksgiving recipes as a fun way to connect with your readers and give them a little something extra in your November communications.

3. Offer Black Friday Specials To Show How Thankful You Are

Nothing makes a client feel more appreciated than a “clients only” exclusive discount or offer. Consider putting a thankful spin on Black Friday deals for clients accessing ancillary service offerings. Your existing clients will feel special if you thank them for their business and offer them a discount on additional services during the holiday season. Remember to create a sense of urgency in your offers by including an expiration date.

November is the perfect time to tap into the Thanksgiving spirit and boost the appeal of your communications by letting your clients know how grateful you are for them. Incorporate a bit of festive charm into your messages this month to show clients how much you care.

>> CLICK HERE to Check Out Some More of HomeActions Lead Generation Tools

Trick-or-Treat Yourself to Better Lead Generation

While it’s certainly true that some of your leads will be generated by word of mouth and referral source connections, that doesn’t mean your lead generation strategies should only be a skeletal effort.

As a professional, you understand that investing a bit of effort behind a worthwhile initiative can help it gain momentum. The same can be said for lead generation.

There are three basic strategies you can use to scare up more lead generation:


1. Feed Your Beasties


Your website, blog, email campaigns and social media marketing all work together to feed lead-generating content to your clients, prospects and referral sources. These access points help interested onlookers find your business and give “tire-kickers” an idea of the benefits they’ll get when they connect with your business.

Take the following steps to move prospects from cold to qualified:

  • Provide relevant and engaging content that connects with your target markets
  • Amplify your content through multiple access points, such as your blog, website, email messaging, social media and other online channels
  • Include calls to action in your messaging
  • Maintain consistent communications to create repetitive touch-points
  • Experiment with a fresh approach as needed – be willing to try something new

The key to successful nurturing is to consistently position your content in front of your onlookers.


    2. Feast Your Eyes On Your Metrics


    Without the reporting and metrics tools behind your efforts, you’ll never know who is responding to your marketing. You’ll also miss out on determining which content is garnering the most interest. Metrics and reporting pull double-duty by helping you connect with nurtured clients and prospects while also giving you a feel for what’s resonating with your audience.


    3. Pursue Your Lead


    Frame out a system for maintaining consistent communications, and include clear calls to action in your messages. Your efforts truly begin building momentum when you tap into the results generated by your marketing and proactively follow up on your warm leads.

    Identify your rainmakers, offer incentives based on achievement and build a system of lead follow-up accountability into your strategies.

    Using the example of an email campaign, your marketing and lead generation workflow could resemble a plan following these basic steps:

    • Gather contact information for your clients, prospects and referral sources and create a marketing list
    • Create email messages with informative, timely information that will be of use to your target markets
    • Launch your message and monitor readers clicking on content that has a direct tie-in to your service offerings
    • If possible, set alerts on such content to inform your rainmakers as new leads come in
    • Follow up via phone or email to contact your warm leads and begin a conversation that may segue into a new opportunity for your firm

    Granted, these are simplified tips, and there is some work involved in launching and maintaining strategies that consistently generate warm leads. However, today’s professional marketing options are endless. It is often possible to outsource a number of the steps along your prospect’s journey.

    Consider which steps your firm would like to maintain in-house, and which would be more efficiently handled by a third-party resource. With a little push behind your marketing and lead generation initiatives, you’ll be scaring up more new opportunities in no time.

    >> CLICK HERE to Check Out Some More of HomeActions Lead Generation Tools

    3 Things To Help Generate More New Opportunities

    If you’d like your real estate email marketing to start bringing in more new opportunities, you’ll need to turn your messages into attention-getting emails full of click-worthy content.

    Here are three quick tips to help you dazzle new prospects and keep existing clients enthralled.


    1. Improve Your Subject Line


    Before you can generate a lead, you’ll need to get readers to open your emails. The email subject line is your opportunity to make a good first impression in the inbox. Leverage it properly, and you’ll entice more readers to act on your messages.

    Your email subject line should clearly address the needs of your readers in concise language. It should also convey the importance of your message.

    Here are some subject line tips to encourage readership:

    • Explain the actual contents of your email newsletter (don’t pull a bait and switch with deceptive teasers)
    • Create a sense of urgency using deadlines, dates and actionable words
    • Use a personalization field to include your readers’ first names
    • Pull the title of a timely article or important update in your email newsletter and duplicate it as your email subject line
    • Ask questions and let readers know your newsletter provides the answer
    • Appeal to your valued readers by including phrasing that makes them feel exclusive, important, or as if they are part of a VIP inner-circle
    • Mention a numbered series of items that will be covered in your email, such as “5 Quick Tips” or “3 Ways to Improve”
    • On occasion, use seasonal themes and other fun subject lines to avoid a sense of stale repetition

    Your subject line should always clearly represent what readers can actually expect to find in your email newsletter. Don’t be afraid to experiment with different subject line formats and tones. Watch your open rates to see which approaches are working the best for your messaging.


    2. Send Click-worthy Content


    Everything you include in your email marketing should have a subtle tie-in to your services. If you want your email marketing to resonate with your target audience, you’ll also need to offer content tailored to their needs and interests.

    It can be challenging to strike a balance between communicating your value as a real estate agent while also offering insights to your readers. To accomplish this, consider your client success stories. Why did a recent client need your services? How did your services solve their problem? Were there any note-worthy takeaways from the experience? Answer these questions in an email article, and you’ll have the kind of click-worthy content that converts into new opportunities.


    3. Don’t Let New Opportunities Go Cold


    Once you have your prospects clicking on content, be sure to reach out to those who have shown interest in your articles. There are a few simple ways you can connect with warm prospects generated through your email marketing:

    1. Send a one-on-one follow-up email
    2. Review prospect click activity to gain insight into probable needs, and then give them a call to determine their level of interest in utilizing relevant services
    3. Enter the reader into a targeted email nurturing campaign that mirrors the topic of the article they initially clicked

    When you reach out to any warm prospect, be sure to thank them for their interest in your email newsletter. This conversation-opener will help your prospects make a connection between the follow-up activity and the article they read.

    One-on-one follow up emails can be used to set up a short meeting. You can leverage these meetings to explore the prospect’s level of interest in buying or selling a home.

    You can also send a message to seek out fresh information from the prospect. Ask them if they read the article in order to achieve a particular goal and if you might be able to help them reach that goal.

    Nurturing campaigns can also be used to continue nurturing prospects who seem to be “tire-kicking.” Make sure your follow-up communications are as professional as your email newsletter. These messages will continue to build a positive impression of your brand. They will be seen as the digital voice of your company. Even if your prospect doesn’t convert to a new client today, they may choose you at some point in the future.

    Continue testing new subject lines and fresh content to keep readers interested in your communications. Follow-through is essential to the success of your marketing. Make sure you implement strategies to track, respond and manage engagement generated by your email newsletter.

    CLICK HERE to learn more about lead generation with HomeActions™.

    3 Ways to Become the GO TO Agent in Your Neighborhood without Leaving Your House!

    HomeActions™ President, Albert Clark, co-hosted a “Coffee Chat” with RETechnology to discuss strategies that will benefit agents as the business of real estate process becomes increasingly virtual.


    As originally posted on RETechnologyCLICK HERE for the original article.


    We’re all trying to figure out what our next normal looks like. The truth is that there are solid business disciplines that have always worked and may even work BETTER as the real estate sales process becomes more virtual.

    Albert Clark of HomeActions joined me on a Coffee Chat last week to teach us how to support your clients with insightful and unique homeownership information and market data to become THE go-to agent in your neighborhood.

    Here are three key takeaways for you:

    1. A clean database is the basis for effective marketing

    Without a consolidated, up-to-date and, ideally, even segmented database, it is really difficult to succeed at online marketing. Now is the time to look at all of the places you have customer and prospect information and consolidate it into one list on an Excel spreadsheet as a start. Then it can be uploaded into your client relationship management system and into direct marketing and social media solutions.

    2. The days of ME, ME, ME advertising are OVER

    If your advertising campaigns focus on all the ways that you are amazing and nothing about how you can help your clients, you’re wasting your money. Instead, share your insights about how the market is doing, political issues regarding homeownership, mortgage news, and the best ways to maximize the value of your home. You are not relevant. Period.

    3. Consistency is key

    You can be the best agent in the world and deliver amazing service during a transaction—but if you don’t stay top of mind, you are not likely to get the referral or the next listing. You need to find disciplined and, ideally, automated ways to contact your sphere at least every two weeks with information that MATTERS to them.

    Watch the recording below to learn more:

    If you would like to learn more about HomeActions, you can contact Albert Clark at aclark@HomesActions.net.


    HomeActions is also working to help agents thrive as the real estate process becomes more virtual. Catch our next webinar session to learn more about the benefits of HomeActions. 


    We’re Helping You Stay Connected During the COVID-19 Pandemic

    In the wake of shelter-in-place measures to stop the coronavirus, our team is here to help our clients leverage informative content and timely digital communications.


    Here is what some of our clients had to say about us…


    “Thank you and your team for all you do to help us and our clients especially with pertinent communications during the COVID-19 pandemic!”

    Michele E.


    “Thank you for your reminders about the available coronavirus-related content and all of your ongoing help. I’ve been very pleased with my decision to move over to your company.”

    A Client


    “Thank you for the reminder and all of your ongoing help. I’ve been very pleased with my decision to move over to your company. Stay healthy and safe!”

    Del R.


     

    “I just wanted to reach out to you and let you know what a great support team you have. With current events happening, we have issued two OnTarget [single message] launches in the past week, and we expect to launch more in the coming weeks. [Your support team] did a wonderful job allowing us to quickly get important information out to our clients. The OnTarget feature is amazing, and we will definitely be utilizing it more often as things develop regarding the changes in business practices due to COVID-19. It gives me great peace of mind knowing your support team is there to help out with these emergency short notice launches. You have a great team!”

    Cheri G.


    “Thank you so much for suggesting your service to us. Seriously, if we were using Checkpoint I would be going insane today. The best decision we have made as a firm. I appreciate you being persistent with me and showing me the way. No one sees value in the newsletter until they have to use it in times like this. I’m very thankful for your honesty and a truly great product. We have recently sent seven targeted emails and the people that we have reached are about four times more than the clients we sent it to as they share it. Our phones have been off the hook for the last two weeks, partly because of the content. Truly if we didn’t have the IN service we would have never been able to reach out to them in the first place.”

    Alba H.


     

    Want to hear more from our satisfied clients?

    CLICK HERE to see what other HomeActions clients had to say about our service.

    Your Guide To A Cleaner Marketing Database

    Marketing database maintenance can be a chore, but taking the time to tidy up is vital.

    Deliverability is determined by algorithms using a wide variety of signals to determine if an email list gets through. When your subscribers open your emails, click through on email content or have some other positive responses to your messages, this helps your deliverability.

    If readers simply delete your emails without opening them or mark them as spam, they are sending negative signals that can hurt your deliverability.

    Here is your guide to help you keep a squeaky-clean marketing database and improve your deliverability.


    Suppress Or Fix Bad Email Addresses In Your Marketing Database


    A bad email is marked as such by ISPs because it has one of the following errors:

    Bad Format – A format error could indicate that an email address is missing a period, contains a misspelling, or has other incorrect or duplicated characters in the email address. This type of error could simply be a typo that needs to be fixed. When the format error is obvious, like a double period, this can be corrected by making a small adjustment to the email address in your subscriber record.

    Bad Domain – Sometimes domain names are changed, merged with other companies or simply deleted. When this happens, it renders the domain portion of your email (or everything after the @ sign) ineffective. Watch out for company name changes, mergers, email service provider domain name changes and other domain name issues in order to avoid bad domain issues in your database.

    Bad Account – When an employee leaves a company, their email often becomes invalid after a certain period of time. For example jsmith@abccompany.net may have retired. In the case of professional office environments, staff emails might be forwarded to a third party for a period of time before they are rendered invalid. When this occurs, there are often autoresponder emails sent out asking you to delete or update a former employee’s contact information. Pay attention to these autoresponder messages and take action to update information in order to avoid bad account issues.

    On occasion, it will be impossible to tell why an email was marked as bad. If you have attempted to remedy format, domain and account issues, and the email is still being marked as a bad email, it is time to suppress the contact record to ensure that future messages are not launched to the bad email address. Some platforms will automatically suppress bad emails for you.


    Remove Generic Email Addresses 


    When an email address is publicly available, it is able to be harvested by unethical list sellers. Because of this, generic email addresses are often heavily policed for spam. Unless you absolutely know that the person or people behind a generic email address expressly consent to receiving your messages, you should remove any of the following generic emails from your account:

    • accounts@
    • admin@
    • billing@
    • billings@
    • contact@
    • help@
    • info@
    • inquiries@
    • manager@
    • sales@
    • subscribe@
    • support@
    • webmaster@
    • welcome@

    Additionally, generic emails often have low open rates and low engagement, which also negatively impacts your deliverability.


    Remove Inactive Subscribers


    To keep up to date with email deliverability best practices, we consult with some of the top delivery and anti-spam engineers from major mailbox providers, as well as senders that are like our company, in order to coordinate better ways to get wanted emails to the readers.

    One of the most important email marketing best practice trends we identified is to track user engagement and remove inactive subscribers. Engagement means that your readers have opened, read and/or clicked a link in your email. The major mailbox providers such as Gmail, AOL, Hotmail and Yahoo all track how long a message is open and whether the links within it were clicked. They take note if a message was deleted without opening it. They also detect when messages are sent to accounts that no longer check email at all.

    Clean Up Dead Weight

    A common suggestion for cleaning an email list is to remove all disengaged or inactive subscribers. What this means is that you will be determining all the people who have not opened or clicked on one of your emails in a given period of time and simply removing them from your list.

    Why Does This Help?

    You may feel like it stings a bit to remove members from a list that you’ve worked hard to grow, but if they are sitting in your marketing database in an inactive or disengaged status, they are actually hurting your sending reputation. A bad sending reputation means you’ll be less likely to be successfully delivered to those who really want to hear from you.

    Improve Your Reach

    If there is no engagement for a large portion of your list, then it is more likely that your marketing emails will not reach a majority of your audience. To increase the chances of reaching inboxes and not getting filtered out, take steps to remove all list members who are not engaged.

    Take a Tiered Approach

    You can begin removing people in waves. First, remove those who have not clicked or opened in the past year. Then change your email strategies to see whether you can boost engagement among your existing members. When you see open and click rates improving, take some time to do a second purge of all those who have still not engaged within the past six months. You may also repeat this process as a last step, and look at all those who have not engaged within a three-month period as your final purge.

    Purging long-term inactive subscribers also means you’re much less likely to end up in a spam trap. An extremely inactive list with long-term disengaged members can be “gravestoned” by ISPs. This means that ISPs will flag your messages as irrelevant or meaningless to your subscribers, thus negatively impacting your deliverability.

    “Healing” Your Deliverability

    Even though this process will cause the number of active list members in your database to go down, you will receive the benefit of better delivery rates among those recipients who enjoy your messages. When you view your metrics and reporting, you may notice that the number of opens and clicks will remain steady, but since fewer inactive email addresses are on your list, the open and click rate percentages will gradually increase as mailbox providers begin to recognize your improved sending reputation.

    Over time, this process will result in more emails getting into the inboxes of your recipients, producing higher traction and engagement with fewer complaints and filtering issues. When the mailbox providers detect the higher percentage of recipients reading and clicking on links, they will tend to give those messages more favorable treatment by keeping them out of the spam folder. The absolute numbers of clicks and opens will likely go up as well, based on experience from testing this strategy with our existing customers.

     


     

    Do you need help organizing your marketing database? We’ve got you covered.

    CLICK HERE for more info about how HomeActions can help build your marketing database.