Sell That House, Rain or Shine!

Rain is a reality in the spring, particularly in the Ozarks. Where else would we get all the beautiful greenery we’re famous for? Unfortunately, it can really feel like rain on your parade when bad weather comes to town and you have an open house or a home showing scheduled—but it doesn’t have to be. Here are some ways to respond when the rain comes knocking on your door:

1. Fix all water drainage issues and clean your gutters. Naturally this is something you would already be doing in preparation for selling your home, but when rain is on the way it’s even more crucial. Buyers who see bad drainage or overflowing gutters are going to be distracted from the highlights of your home. If you don’t have the time or inclination to hire someone to come take care of your gutters, you can easily do it yourself, up to and including many of the basic repairs they’re most likely to need.

2. On rainy days, your entryway needs even more attention. After all, first impressions are everything. Consider adding an umbrella stand for your guests to use, as well as either a place to remove shoes or a cute basket of shoe covers to prevent mud from entering your home—your attention to these details will make it clear to potential buyers how well you care for your home. Make sure to integrate these items into the organization of your entryway for best possible results!

3. Bring in the light! Rainy days are gloomy and gloomy is not the word you want people associating with your home, so brighten your home as much as you can. This doesn’t necessarily have to mean adding more lights or lamps; try some candles for a softer feel, or replace your current light bulbs with daylight light bulbs for a sunshine feel. If neither of those work for you, here are some more great tips to brighten up those rooms.

4. Damp weather doesn’t just highlight your gutters; it can also bring out unpleasant smells in your home. Smoke? Pet smells? Old spills? Yup, they can all make a comeback with the rain. Dealing with smells in your home can be frustrating, but it’s well worth your time to find the correct method to remove and lingering scents. Once you’ve done that, feel free to add back in some light, pleasant scents such as citrus or lavender to make your home even more welcoming.

5. If all else fails and no one comes, try to view the experience as feedback. People who are serious about your home will come out, even in the rain, because they don’t want to miss it. If you don’t get any bites, consider potential issues with your listing. Discuss your price with your realtor or consider getting professional real estate photography done— something we can help with!

In the end, preparing for a rainy day showing is worth your time because it means you’ll be that much more prepared when the sun does shine. And remember, the best way to get people to come to your home, rain or shine, is with truly exceptional real estate photography. Creative Endeavors can meet your needs with our variety of packages and pricing, so contact us today!

Real Estate Photography Portfolio for Spring 2020

7 Tips for your Online Footprint

We all know that your business’s online presence has become increasingly crucial since the mid-90s. Currently, it’s becoming more critical by the day as the pandemic continues to limit the ways in which your customer base can interact with your company. So what does all that mean? That you need a great online footprint -- your impression on the web needs to bring as much to the table as you can squeeze out of it. Doing that can be overwhelming, but here are seven tips to help you get started:

1. Be Factual

The internet is a treasure trove of content you can use to enlarge your online footprint, but not all of that content is created equally. Particularly during a time when large social media platforms like Twitter and Facebook are starting to crack down on misinformation, you can’t afford to spread content that’s less than factual, even on accident. Track down sources, know where your information came from, and be sure to credit original content makers.

For more information on fact-checking your content, plus a handy graphic to share around the office, check here.

2. Use Micro-Influencers

We’ve all heard of social media influencers and their gigantic followings. Getting one of them to speak up for your brand or business can get you some real traction within their target demographic, but if you’re a small business you likely don’t have access to these individuals. So instead, check out social media more local to you and seek out a “micro-influencer,” an individual with a following of a few thousand instead of a few million. These influencers are less likely to have brand deals with large corporations, and may even have a larger slice of their audience in close physical proximity to where you do business. Aside from those benefits, they may have a more personal relationship with their audience that better fits your branding.

To learn more about the importance of connection over quantity and working with micro-influencers, read this great article from SocialMediaToday.

3. Optimize for Voice Search

Voice search using Alexa or Siri continues to become more prominent in the consumer landscape, which means so should the optimization of your online presence for voice search. Similar to SEO optimization, this means using the correct keywords, utilizing Google Trends, and making sure your web content is relevant and accurate on a daily basis. Digital marketing guru Marie Ennis-O’Conner breaks down how to do this here.

4. Know the Pandemic Social Media Trends

As we mentioned before, the pandemic is pushing online footprint into more prominence than ever before. However, people’s behavior is not changing just in relation to how much time they’re spending at home and online; the social media platforms they sign up for and use regularly have changed as well. According to a study on the impacts of the pandemic on social media by TrustInsights, sites like Instagram, Twitch, and YouTube have gained and kept significant numbers in audience totals while Facebook has actually lost ground. Further, TustInsights found trends in “gaming, YouTube video, and home-based niches” to be the biggest of the pandemic, with both audience and staying power (p. 2).

To see the data for yourself, including recommendations on how to make use of the data and tool your marketing to respond to these changes, check out TrustInsight’s full report.

5. Learn Your Facebook Audience

Facebook has become a staple for many businesses over the last couple of decades. However, as mentioned in the last tip, Facebook seems to be losing some ground, particularly with the younger generations. While that doesn’t mean everyone should abandon ship, it does mean it’s important for your business to know not only what your target audience is, but where it is, and whether that “where” includes Facebook. To better understand who’s on Facebook, why, and where other people may be going, check out this article from TechCrunch.

6. Check Your Google Business Listing

The first place people go for information is a Google search. First, you’re going to want to make sure your Google Business listing has been optimized so you come up as a top option. When your business comes up, consumers will make a judgment call based on how your listing looks and what information it contains. Is the contact up to date? Are the services you offer clear? Do you have an adequate number of positive reviews? It can all be pretty overwhelming, but this article offers a place to start. If you really want to optimize your Google Business listing and improve your general SEO, reach out to us! Our services will take care of all of this for you.

7. Be Aware of What Experts are Predicting for Social Media

Social media trends are a beast to tackle and understand, particularly when it’s not what your business does to make money. That being the case, make sure to pick the brains of top social media experts to see what they’re predicting for trends.

All of this may seem like a lot, and that’s because it is -- but that doesn’t mean it’s not crucial to growing and succeeding in your business. If you need help with your social media, whether that be starting it, managing it, optimizing it, or even web design and live streams, reach out to us. Creative Endeavors strives to provide detail-oriented solutions for businesses that need to be able to put their focus elsewhere, and that includes polishing and perfecting your online footprint.