10 Top Tips to Beat the Competition in Commercial Real Estate

Commercial real estate is a dynamic marketplace that never ceases to surprise us. The competition is relentless, and the customer is often spoilt for choice. Industry trends in the past two years have taught us the importance of building a customer-centric business model. The key is to craft a marketing plan that presents you as the best solution for your prospective client's commercial real estate needs. 

Remember – your prospects have options, and they will choose wisely, weighing in all aspects of each property they vet. 

The COVID-19 pandemic continues to influence all aspects of our lives, and the commercial real estate industry is no exception. Starting with 2021, commercial real estate is expected to begin a slow recovery. Some impactful anticipated changes are –

• An increase in sales of commercial property in the hotel and retail industry.
• The corporate tenancy will reduce, owing to work from home policies.
• Sectors such as industrial, data center, and life science will continue to increase in value.
• Lower short-term interest rates can be experienced throughout 2021.

Even though the commercial real estate industry is recovering, it remains weaker than pre-COVID conditions. Here's a look at the most prominent trends –

1. Acquisitions for large commercial real estate portfolios fell 28% YoY in Q1 of 2021.
2. Hotel acquisitions have not declined. Investors are acquiring hotels to build multi-family homes.
3. Increase in sale of land and industrial properties, but a decline in other commercial real estates. 
4. 70% of corporations are opting to lease or move into small square footage offices.

As the new normal sets in, by the end of 2021, competition in the real estate industry will rise. Here are a few tips to help your beat your competitors.

1. Define Your Objective & Target Audience

Before marketing a commercial property, take a moment to define your marketing objective and target audience. Use the following questions to define your audience – 

• Where does your audience spend the maximum time online?
• What are the best ways to reach them?
• What is your competition doing to reach the target audience?
• How can your listing stand out?

2. Speed Up the Research Process & Minimize Visits

It may not be possible to organize conventional property visits, open houses, and individual site visits during the pandemic. Get rid of these time-consuming methods and work with real estate technology services that can create 360-degree virtual tours for your prospective buyers. 

3. Stand Out Among Competitors

Spend some time researching and analyzing the online property listings of your competitors. Create a listing that is more attractive, engaging, and eye-catching, providing better information compared to your competitors. Use commercial virtual staging, 3D floor plans, and 360-degree virtual tours to create an exceptional customer experience.

4. Show Multiple Properties at Once

The most significant advantage of virtual property visits is that you can show more than one property option in one meeting! Please don't limit your discussion with your prospective buyers to one property. Instead, offer immersive 360-degree virtual tours of multiple commercial properties and let them know that you are a one-stop solution for their property needs.

5. Build Coverage & Competing Listings

It is essential for real estate agents to know all they can about the other units in a commercial building, ongoing transactions, and competing listings. These factors play an essential role in the negotiations you have with your prospective buyers. Make sure you do your homework, so you are well prepared. 

Related Article: Commercial Real Estate Photography: Tips To Photograph Commercial Properties

6. Develop an Effective Marketing Plan

Commercial real estate agents should continuously track sales, rent patterns, transactions, and buyers interested in your local area. Market knowledge can lead to better prospects and help you build an effective marketing plan that is a balanced mixture of earned, paid, and owned media. Distribute your marketing budget across different channels for low risk and maximum reach.

Level up Your Marketing Game Plan by Using Styldod’s Free Real Estate Flyer Templates!

7. Create Feature-Rich Property Websites

To beat the competition in commercial real estate, you must build a robust online presence. This starts with an impressive website that is feature-rich, user-friendly, and engaging. An essential aspect of a good real estate website is high-quality real estate images. Ensure your property listings are well represented by virtually staged and enhanced images to help convert your website, visitors, to buyers. 

8. Add Your Listing to Commercial Real Estate Portals

Make the most of commercial real estate portals that are popular among buyers in your area. This will help you advertise your commercial property listings efficiently for lease or sale. Make an informative and attractive listing for your property and offer links to your own website and social media pages. 

9. Attend Industry Events & Conferences

Track commercial real estate events, workshops, and meets. Evaluate the ones that you can benefit from most. Industry events and conferences are the best opportunities to network, build relationships & generate leads. You can even check out these best real estate books to read to expand knowledge about the industry. Create an event marketing strategy to make the most of these marketing channels.

In these trying times, commercial real estate agents need to be on the lookout for new avenues and leverage technology to sell properties by beating their competition. It's not that you need to do anything drastically different compared to what you did before. Still, you must put all your energies and resources into building an incredible plan to get ahead in the current situation. 

To recap – make sure you study your market in detail, create a marketing plan and budget that will help you get ahead, and finally take action and go strong – make use of businesses, technologies, and services to help you project your listing in the best manner possible. 

For all your marketing needs, Styldod has a team of experts ready to provide you with stunning property assets like virtually staged and enhanced commercial real estate images, virtual tours, floor plans – everything you need. We understand what real estate agents need, and so, our services are prompt with quick turnaround times, and we also offer unlimited revisions.