Property insights for digital marketing, Jan 2025

Despite the broader market headwinds, we’re observing distinct patterns in buyer behaviour.

• First-home buyer projects and affordable developments are showing particularly strong momentum.
• Premium developments are still moving, albeit with longer conversion cycles.

We have witnessed that there are very much two camps of buyers;

1. Ready to buy now
2. Ready to buy but not right now

We’re working on strategies to help identify which leads fall into these buckets.
A good way to do this is to ask a simple but transparent question in your forms.

What buyer best describes you?

• Financed and ready to buy
• In research phase

We’re seeing different lead-to-sale times and our data suggests the average being for those “Financed and ready to buy”;

• For projects with a value between $500K – $1M – 1 – 2 Months
• For projects with a value between $1M – $2M – 3 – 4 Months
• For projects with a value between $3M – $5M – 3 – 6 Months

However, if you are in the red-hot state of WA, properties are moving with much more speed;

• 21 – 35 days for a $500,000 to $1M
• 28 – 60 days for above $1M – $3M

Interestingly, over the past few months, LinkedIn has emerged as a surprisingly effective channel for property development leads. Our focus has been on high-end (luxury) projects, with LinkedIn allowing us to target job titles and locations. Whilst we’re not seeing a large number of leads, we are seeing some quality leads roll through.

So, are LinkedIn ads worth testing for your campaign?
If it’s a high-end campaign, I would suggest so.

The never-ending discussion about lead quality deserves a data-driven perspective.
Recently, we analysed a campaign that generated 283 leads at a sub-$10 cost per lead over three months.

Despite strong qualification measures, including buyer journey indicators, the conversion of those leads to bookings didn’t meet sales agent expectations.

• The campaign was a Meta Instant Form campaign
• The lead form quiz had the following questions
  • What best describes you
    • Investor
    • Owner/Occupier
    • Downsizer
  • How soon are you ready to buy
    • Ready now
    • Ready in 6 months
    • Ready in 12 months
    • I’m just looking
  • Which residence are you interested in
    • 2 bedroom + price
    • 3 bedroom + price
  • Have you got 10% deposit ready
    • Yes, we’re ready to go
    • Still in the research phase
• The results were;
  • Leads: 450
  • Cost Per Lead: $10
    • People ready to buy: 48%
    • People in the research phase: 52%

This raises important questions about the interplay between lead generation and sales processes.
Are we seeing a disconnect between digital engagement and sales conversion? How can we bridge this gap?

The general thoughts are, that your agency should be doing what it can to drive quality leads, and the reality is, there are only a few levers agencies can pull here.

The agency’s role is to start a conversation (generate a lead), and the sales agent to get the sale.

On average, and there’s no surprise here but mobile is leading the way with both clicks and leads.
I wanted to highlight this as the mobile experience is still being neglected, especially when it comes to website builds.

• Mobile clicks 95% vs Desktop clicks 1%
• Mobile leads 98% vs Desktop leads 0.2%

We have been testing this for over 6 years and whilst new ad formats are fun and worth running, the best ad from 5 years ago is still leading today; The classic static image ad.

Why you ask; Well this is because we’re time-poor and an image ad forces us to get all the right information in one simple ad. 
Let users go to your mobile-optimised website to view your videos, testimonials, brochures etc.
The aim of the ad is to drive interest (click or a lead).

• Image: Average monthly leads 85% at CPL $45
• Carousel: Average monthly leads 12% at CPL $65

I’d welcome your thoughts on these insights. If you’d like to dive deeper into any of these areas for your specific projects, let’s schedule a call.

Our conversion-focused websites are transforming digital engagement in property. The results?

• Website engagement jumped from 1.58% to 5%
• Conversion rates soared from 0.32% to 2%

Your all-in-one solution, design, development and paid ads are handled by Sod.

• Website only: 
  • On-page website: $10K
  • Multi-page website: $15K
  • Both prices include a splash page
• Complete digital solution: Website (one of the above) + 3-month paid ad campaign
  • All-inclusive package: $25K (including 3-months media spend)
• Quick turnaround: Live in just 4 weeks

Check out our recent work:

• Full Website: Wembly Hill
• Splash Page: 25 Mary St