Festive Strategies: Creative Christmas Real Estate Marketing Ideas to Boost Your Holiday Sales
Last update: 18 December 2024 at 02:20 pm
5.00/5The holidays are here, but as a real estate professional, you need to do more than just sit down and sip hot cocoa to make the most of the season and better prepare for the new year. At Sortlist, we strongly encourage you to use these days to connect with potential clients and thank those who have trusted you throughout the year. To help you figure out how to do this, we give you our Christmas real estate marketing guide. It is filled with some simple yet effective creative real estate marketing ideas that you can implement during the remaining days of the year.
Does the Housing Market Slow Down Around Christmas?
For real estate, the Christmas season usually means fewer buyers looking for a new home and fewer homes looking for a new owner. However, this does not mean that you can take the whole season off.
There are still buyers out there who need and are serious about buying a new home before the New Year. Whether they are motivated by personal issues or simply want to take advantage of financial benefits such as potential tax deductions on mortgage interest and property taxes. The truth is, they are out there waiting to find a realtor who can match them with the perfect home.
It’s your job to get your name in front of them at the perfect time. Read on to learn several Christmas marketing ideas that will help you get there.
Why Create Christmas Real Estate Marketing?
Taking a step back and changing your traditional marketing methods will help during the Christmas season. You can see it as the perfect time to:
- Connect with new people.
- Get your name out there in creative and different ways.
- Thank your customers so they feel appreciated and motivated to recommend you. After all, the best marketing strategy is word of mouth.
Don’t let the need to step away for a few days stop you from taking advantage of the season. Think of it as the ideal way to generate potential leads who may be eager to buy or sell real estate as soon as 2025 arrives.
12 Holiday Marketing Ideas for Real Estate
With that in mind, we have come up with 12 Christmas marketing ideas. You can choose to implement some or all of them, just keep in mind that the season is short and you want to have enough time to plan, implement and measure the results of each one. That way, you can better understand which ones worked best and replicate your efforts next Christmas.
Offer Christmas Treats
Everyone loves a minty candy cane or Christmas milk chocolate, so make sure you have some at every open house you host during the holiday season. This sweet and small detail makes all the difference and puts a smile on everyone’s face.
Send Handwritten Holiday Cards
Who doesn’t love a handwritten Christmas card? Take the time to write one to:
- Each of your clients from this year.
- Those you are helping find their new home.
- And those you are helping sell theirs.
A handwritten note feels like a warm hug, especially in these days of digital everything.
What a Realtor Should Write in a Christmas Card?
In these Christmas cards, you can add a thank you note for trusting you with their business. You can wish them a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. To personalize it even more, make sure you add a little anecdote of your work or relationship with them. Include something funny or heartwarming.
Give Personalized Gifts to Past Customers
For those special past clients or those new ones you are trying to close, you can include a special gift with the Christmas card. Some great ideas include a gift basket, candles, key chains, welcome mats, house portraits or monogrammed towels. Think of something they can enjoy in their new home and remember you forever.
Create a Handy Guide to Christmas Light Displays
As a real estate agent with years of experience, you probably have a huge database. Consider creating a special ebook or guide to help them set up their Christmas lights. You can include step-by-step instructions, some ideas for inspiration, and a few tips on how to master this art. Remember, your holiday marketing should not be about selling, but about keeping your name and business top of mind with potential buyers and existing customers.
Deck the Halls at Your Next Open House
Another great Christmas real estate marketing idea is to go all out and decorate your next open house as if you were entertaining your entire family. Put up the Christmas lights, stockings, tree and decorations. Light Christmas scented candles to set the mood and make everyone feel comfortable and warm as soon as they enter.
You will have the whole neighborhood and your potential buyers talking about the house and getting into the festive spirit.
Host Social Media Contests
You can also turn to social media to celebrate the holidays. Dress them up with festive profile pictures and banners. Share your holiday card and run social media contests where people can win a prize for their home (outdoor light decorations, a welcome mat, kitchen gadgets, grills or tools, or even a home stagging session).
Some contest ideas include:
- Invite people to share pictures of their holiday home light display.
- Have a bake-off contest for the best gingerbread house.
- Share the best Christmas eggnog recipes.
- Ask people to share the funniest picture with Santa.
There are many ideas you can implement to run a contest and create brand awareness. While it can be promoted on social media and email marketing, the contest itself can be held in the real world or online. Whatever you choose, make sure your brand, hashtag, and other creative real estate marketing resources are always present.
Raise Funds for a Local Charity
Again, your holiday marketing efforts are not designed to bring in new customers. They are designed to generate brand awareness and keep your name in the minds of potential buyers. A great way to do this is to use your brand and business to raise money or collect gifts for a local charity.
Ask your happy customers if they can make a donation to the charity of your choice, or if they can give a gift that will be donated to children’s charities. Whatever you feel most comfortable with, just use your reach to get as many people involved as possible in this opportunity to make a difference in the lives of people who are struggling.
Host a Tour of Holiday Decorated Homes
A completely out of the box idea is to organize and host a tour of the most beautifully decorated homes in the area. Set the date, advertise the event, ask people to sign up and take them on the tour. Be sure to provide them with a warm beverage (hot cocoa, tea, or coffee), some holiday snacks, and a drink.
Not only will people get to know you, but you will add new records to your database, and create a sense of community for everyone involved. When the tour is over and everyone is back home, you can give them a step-by-step guide to decorating their own homes with Christmas lights.
Send a Thank-You Newsletter
Handwritten Christmas cards are for those special clients, but for everyone else you’ve worked with or plan to work with in 2025, you can send a Christmas card by e-mail. Take the time to create personalized versions for different segments of your database. That way, you can add a personal touch to those who are business partners, past customers, or former employees.
Reflect on this year’s challenges and what you learned from them. Tell them what you plan to do in 2025. Wish them a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Add personalized video messages and make your holiday digital card stand out from the rest of the real estate agents out there.
Host a 12 Days of Christmas Campaign
You can also run a 12-day holiday marketing campaign. Each day leading up to December 24th, you will offer a free product, host giveaways, or run a contest. This will help get people engaged with your brand and spread the word about what you do and have to offer as a real estate agent.
Host a Holiday Party for your Customers
To go the extra mile, you can host a holiday party and invite your past customers, your prospects, your business partners, and your employees. Give them a chance to enjoy some time off, good food, drinks and great music. All in a warm Christmas atmosphere.
During this event, you can take the microphone to say a few words reflecting on the year that is ending, the lessons learned and your expectations for 2025.
Finally, have some branded party favors people can take home and always remember the great time they had at a real estate business party.
Send an E-mail Newsletter with Seasonal Tips
Finally, we highly recommend that you make the most of your database by sending them different emails with tips and tricks for the holiday season. You can include some ideas on how to keep the house warm, how to make it smell Christmassy, or even the latest trends in Christmas decorations. All of this content can become blog posts that will feed your blog with seasonal posts and social media posts to keep your audience engaged there as well.
As you create the topics and posts, think about the things your target audience will enjoy and use to have a good cheer during this season and prepare their homes for the New Year.
What Is the Best Promotional Strategy for Christmas Season?
As you can see from the list above, there are many different actions you can take to make the most of this season (and the fact that there is less competition) and use it as an opportunity to promote and create an inviting atmosphere around your real estate business.
There is no one-size-fits-all solution, it all depends on who your customers are, their profile, interests and needs. Use the suggested actions that you think will work best for them and resonate the most.
Think of this holiday season as the perfect time to take a break from selling your real estate services and make room to connect with prospects, engage in enriching conversations, and make a difference. Your business will benefit greatly.
Need help making the most of your holiday marketing efforts? Let Sortlist connect you with top real estate marketing agencies to streamline your strategy and drive results.
Whether you’re looking to enhance your digital presence, host festive events, or create innovative campaigns, Sortlist can match you with the right experts—completely free of charge. Find your ideal real estate marketing partner today and make this holiday season your most successful yet!
Conclusion
Whether you are decorating your next open house, launching giveaways, offering holiday treats, launching an email campaign or hosting events, you need to keep one thing in mind: your brand should always be present in a consistent way. This is an opportunity to put your property in front of new people and engage them in different and engaging ways. Later, when the holiday season is over, you can focus on helping them sell or find a new home.
If you need help, you can always contact one of the marketing agencies in our directory. They have the team, the knowledge, and the holiday spirit to help you!
