By: Gabriel Gervelis, Director of Sales and Marketing, Evocalize, @evocalize
I cannot believe it has been seven months since we launched the EXIT Ad Center in October 2019! Following, I would like to share some amazing results that the EXIT Nation has been generating using the platform. I also want to share some broader insights into the Facebook advertising space. Our team of marketing geeks has been keeping a close eye on how COVID-19 has impacted real estate advertising on Facebook, and I would like to share some of the key data points from the analysis.
EXIT Ad Center Results
- Over 1,200 agents and brokers have placed orders
- 325,000 ad impressions have been served
- 18,000 leads have been generated from listing ads
- 386 leads have been generated from recruiting ads
Below I have included an example of Rob Dipiero, Sales Representative with EXIT Realty Specialists in Saint John, NB who generated an impressive number of leads in May.
- 162 leads generated
- 52,976 impressions
- $1.25 CPL
- 88% CVR
- $0.05 CPC
- 87% CTR
COVID-19 Impact on Facebook Advertising
Since March, the team at Evocalize has completed several month-over-month analyses that show COVID-19’s impact on real estate ads. Using data from February to May, we have analyzed over 350,000,000 ad impressions within the real estate industry. The chart shows the month over month change in the performance metric.
| CPM | CPC | CTR | CPL | CRV | |
| February-March comparison | -29% | 0% | -25% | +15% | -18% |
| March-April comparison | 0% | +10% | -9% | -25% | +47% |
| April-May comparison | +11% | -4% | +15% | -22% | +24% |
CPM: Cost per 1000 ad impressions, CPC: Cost per click, CTR: Click-through-rate, CPL: Cost per lead. CVR: Lead conversion rate.
In the February-March comparison, media rates (CPM) reduced by 29%. by a 25% decline in CTR (an engagement metric), a cost per lead (CPL) increase of 15%, and a click to conversion rate (CVR) decrease of 18%. This shows a drop in buyer engagement and intent, but also shows historically low media rates.
In the March-April comparison, buyer intent came back in a strong way and media rates remained at an historic low. This is showcased by a substantial 47% increase in CVR, and CPL reduction of 25%. However, CTR continued to fall by 9%. Simply put, fewer people clicked on ads, but the people who did had more intent to convert.
In the April-May comparison, CTR started to bounce back with a 15% increase. This boost in ad engagement made conversion rates skyrocket another 24%. In addition, media rates are starting to return to normality by showing an 11% increase. As advertiser demand from other industries starts to return to Facebook, the time Agents and Brokers have to capitalize on this opportunity is shortening.
We found another interesting data point that’s not included in the above chart. In May of this year, media costs on Facebook were 50% lower than they were in 2019.
You can read the full COVID-19 Impact on Real Estate Adverting report here.
Karrie Lee, Sales Representative with EXIT Realty 1st in Jackson, MI ran a program which generated 89 leads at an astonishingly low $0.55 cost per lead. Honestly, it is hard for the marketer in me to contain my excitement when I see this. This is a testament to the above COVID-19 results and how EXIT agents are capitalizing on the opportunity. Another noteworthy metric is that the CTR is 15% which exceeds the real estate industry standard by more than 800%! Following are Karrie’s program stats:
- 89 leads generated
- 8,522 impressions
- $0.55 CPL
- 96% CVR
- $0.04 CPC
- 15% CTR
EXIT Realty Associates can follow this link to activate a Single Listing Ad in EXIT Ad Center live in minutes.
RISmedia reports a “New Agent Gold Rush” created from the tsunami of unemployment
The EXIT Ad Center Recruiting Blueprint is well-positioned to capitalize on this unique opportunity. The Blueprint contains a custom audience that’s built from every non-EXIT agent in the USA. It also houses EXIT-approved videos, images, and messaging to make activating a program quick and easy.
EXIT Real Estate Gallery in Florida ran this high-performing recruiting ad in May:
- 3 leads generated
- 3,414 impressions
- $51.14 CPL
- 67% CVR
- $8.52 CPC
- 53% CTR
You can read RISmedia’s full article here. In the article, Sherri Johnson, CEO and founder of Sherri Johnson Coaching & Consulting, writes, “As people across the country experience changes in their employment and financial situations, a surge in new real estate license applications is occurring. This makes perfect sense as the recent tsunami of unemployment has resulted in idled workers with time on their hands to study, a need to secure a new income stream and the hope that a self-directed career like real estate will be the vehicle for their future success.”
EXIT Realty Associates can follow this link to activate a Recruiting Ad in EXIT Ad Center in minutes.
Conclusion
Despite the unprecedented pandemic environment, amazing opportunities are present. Members of the EXIT Nation are equipped with best-in-class Facebook advertising tools that generate real business outcomes.
