Last Updated on April 7, 2017

Would you like to be seen as “the” authority for real estate in your local market? Kathy Toth, a Top Agent from Michigan, figured out a brilliant way to get instant credibility and demonstrate her value to potential clients. She uses a simple Flip video camera to interview local leaders and experts (including herself) in her market of Ann Arbor. Then, she promotes these videos that cleverly position her as a credible expert in real estate and “in the know” about current market conditions. Here’s her video explaining what she does, and below I’ll outline some ways to use these videos to get more business… Couldn’t you use the same strategy to a get massive amount of positive community exposure in your local market? OK, here are…

4 ways to use video interviews to make yourself a “Household Name” in your community…

STRATEGY #1: Interview a few city government officials on the current state of your local real estate market. Publish the video on your blog or website for visitors to see you’re informed about local market conditions.

TIP: Kathy told me she gets visitors to her website from monthly postcard mailings and regular email updates she sends to her contact list.  People also forward along these videos to friends, which is a great viral marketing strategy to reach new prospects.

STRATEGY #2: Have someone interview YOU on how to handle a specific area of the real estate transaction process. You’re the expert. Share some of your knowledge about what buyers or sellers will experience (specifically, how you’ll help them and make their lives easier by communicating what you’ll do for them). Plus, you can make videos about specific subdivisions or areas of your market that you serve. This positions you as the expert in that area and differentiates your services from agents trying to sell to the whole market.

TIP: Kathy says she puts “area-specific” videos on her website. She gets visitors to these videos on her site using paid ads on Google’s pay-per-click (PPC) network, and free traffic from a high search ranking (because she targets specific keyword phrases related to this area of her market).

STRATEGY #3: Interview a handful of great service providers. Put the videos online…or better yet, put multiple videos on a DVD. Mail the DVD to your “Power List” as a special gift. Then tell them that you’ve found some really great people who can help them if they’re in need of specific services.

BIG TIP: Ask each of the service providers to reciprocate the endorsement and mail a DVD of you talking about real estate to their contacts (along with an endorsement letter from the service provider). This is called a “strategic alliance” and you can read more about it in this past article.

STRATEGY #4: Anytime there’s a local event, make a quick video, put it online, and email your contact list about an event happening around town. The people on your list will appreciate the heads up about local event, and you can ask the event organizer to put a link to your website or put a video of you on their site.

TIP: Kathy shares videos with the Chamber of Commerce web site in her area. This is a great way to get qualified, relocation buyers going from a chamber site directly to your real estate site.

Are you starting to see how many ways you can leverage these videos in to huge exposure for yourself?

There are dozens of ways to create and promote these videos to make yourself a stand-out professional in the eyes of your community. Plus, I didn’t even mention an obvious strategy of making video testimonials that give prospects proof of your value.

Why is this video strategy so effective?

Because this strategy does TWO things: 1. It demonstrates your knowledge and expertise. Think about the perspective of a potential client, and ask yourself: Would you work with an agent that says they know how to help? Or, would you rather work with someone who demonstrates they can help you (and shows that they know specific people who can assist you with specific needs for your home)? And here’s the second reason… 2. The trust and credibility from that local leaders and experts is transferred to you because you have a connection with these local superstars. This is very, very powerful. Start making these videos and I know you’ll become a stand out agent, and improve your income.

Click the link below to see more EXAMPLE VIDEOS on Kathy’s website…

[Ed Note: If you want a chance to win a Flip Video Camera for FREE, submit your best marketing idea to our community by clicking here.]