I am just looking for some opinions as to what you beieve is the most important marketing tool to have?

Basically which of your marketing tools has brought you the best results. It's your go to strategy that you invest the most energy into?

Such as...

Personal Website
Cold Calls
Mailers
Farming
Fliers

and so on. I am starting my business and am wanting to invest my budget smartly. I want to invest in something that will be most beneficial as far as results go until I'm off and rolling and then branch out into some of the more low volume strategies as my budget allows. Thanks in advance!

I think having a web presence is very important and it's a good way to capture leads. You've got to make sales calls too.

It depends on your personality and sales skill-set. I'm not great on the phone, but I know I have to use it. I hate knocking on doors.

Not good at doing flyers and such, and I don't have a big budget for mailers.

I use the web to cast a wide net and get people to find ME first, then contact me instead of the opposite way of looking actively for clients and sales.

My website is a blog and I do a lot to maintain it and make sure it gets highly ranked for keywords and search terms relevant to my business.

I rarely make sales calls. I had a great year last year. This year I'm going to call expireds, but that's it. I do not personally believe in cold calls, hate them, won't do them. Expireds are not really cold calls...they're warm. They've already indicated their desire to sell.

You don't HAVE to make calls if you don't want to. The two top agents in my office, and in the top 10 selling members of our MLS do not make ANY cold calls, nor do they call expireds.

People are free to disagree and I won't tell them they should be out of the business or they HAVE to adopt my way of doing business to survive/thrive.

Let's just say there is enough room for different personality types in this market. The key is to know your market well, know your stuff, and do your job with assiduous attention to the needs of your clients. Whether you generate your business through your SOI, your web presence, cold calling, or door knocking (not allowed in 99% of the communities in my market...private HOA's have strict rules against solicitation; they won't even allow you to put up door hangers!)

Welcome to the crazy world of Real Estate, GREALTOR! Running your own business is really a blessing... and a curse.
Here is a simple way to put together a plan for the next few months. Start with:

1. What are you really good at?
Computers? Or writing? Running a blog? Technology?

2. What do you really enjoy doing every day?
Talking to people, asking them questions, and offering advice?
Previewing homes, checking out sales, doing evaluations?

Yes, you WILL have to do all of that, but start building on your strengths first. Then, chose a marketing strategy that fits.

3. What is already working?
No point of re-inventing the wheel. Look for other successful agents. In your office, in your area, even here on the forums. Then copy what they do (and how they THINK).

4. Which marketing will produce results the fastest?
There are only TWO ways to make money in real estate:
1. You pay for it
2. You work for it

If you have the budget, then spending it wisely - WISELY - on effective marketing is a good idea. Direct mail, a nice website, a big billboard by the highway... all good. BUT expensive.

Most of us started working for it. Looking for people who want to buy or sell. And you will hear this a lot: The easiest and fastest way to find them is to look where the business already is - FSBOs, expireds, open houses, etc.

If you have the tenacity for it, then door knocking still works - and it doesn't cost more than a few pennies for fliers (and a pair of shoes every few months

Remember - whichever methods you chose, go first with what produces immediate results - NOW business. So you can stay in the business. HINT: Farming is NOT it.

As the listings and commissions start rolling in, you can pull back on the "work" side and reinvest some of the money back in the business so you don't have to work that hard and/or do things you don't like doing.

Makes sense?