Hi, I'm wondering if anyone has any experience using ads on Trulia or Zillow. They allow buyers to directly contact an agent using email or phone. Does anyone know much these ads cost, and how many leads you get from them? And do these tend to be high quality leads, from people ready to buy?

Thanks!

It all depends on your market area and how much traffic Zillow and Trulia get in your area. I know they have different plans you can pay for. I talked to one agent who did it and he said he only got 1 to 2 leads a month for $50 a month in his market. Leads don't mean you make money it just means you get a lead.

I am considering paying for Zillow as well. One of the top agents on our team swears by Zillow and gets tons of leads from it.

A wise caveman once said "Zillow Good...Trulia Bad"

I bought two Zillow zips last November (I really needed to spend some biz funds before year was out) Out of the two zips - which this is kind of a rural area- I've gotten about 130 or so buyer leads so far. I refer all those out. Gotten one $1000 ref fee so far, and another 3-4 are under contract. I've also gotten 3 listings from Zillow so far since Novemember. However Im not really sold that they're from buying the zips - I think theyre from the great client reviews I have on Zillow- but I have no way to be sure. I paid $2500 for the zips. I figure if I can trace back $25k of sales to Zillow this year ( including listings and buyer referral fees) I will keep the zips and maybe add more. Less than 25k - not a good enough return and I will pass.

@minna - if those stats are correct I'd say you are being treated very nicely lol.

In response to the main question and the quality of leads it is always hit or miss - especially with online leads but that's the business...some good, some bad, and some in the middle...have heard mixed results about the overall services though and have not used them myself.

I would say that if the goal is to stay competitive, an internet presence is a must! But I'm curious if established sites like zillow or trulia are the way to go or if I should invest in something like the red x?

If you dont have a web presents yourself then I would say zillow and trulia are better then nothing.