Real Estate  has a problem when it comes to editorial calendars.

We are an industry that often stares at the wall wondering what consumers want to know. It is really not that hard to craft a meaningful story to get pick up in your local newspaper or lead to a local radio or television interview. You just need a roadmap.

This list was created by scouring the headlines from leading journalists to see what they were writing about. The best news (pun intended) lay in the data and that data is only an MLS search away.

 

25 headlines to make your own:

  1. Homes with views
  2. Top commuter communities
  3. Update on the housing recovery
  4. Housing affordability report for
    [month] in [local market]ds
  5. Home sales volume report for [month] in [local market]
  6. Top local housing trends you need to knowWhats your story? letters
  7. Secrets of property search for [local market]
  8. Area real estate value grew/lost $Billion last month
  9. Signs you hired a great real estate agent
  10. Thousands of homeowners see value increase/decrease in homes
  11. See the most expensive homes for sale
  12. Hottest neighborhoods in 2015
  13. [Seller/Buyer name] sells/buys $$$, most expensive home last month
  14. Shopping for a home? What’s open this weekend
  15. Foreclosure activity increases/decreases in [local market]
  16. Median home prices increase/decrease in [local market]
  17. Negotiating a low price on a home: What’s the list-to-sell ratio?
  18. Best bargains in town
  19. Home price appreciation slows/gains
  20. Homes for $ or less, [local market] median price
  21. What does the average home in [local market] look like?
  22. Lowest priced housing in area
  23. Rent vs. buy
  24. Buying an energy efficient home
  25. Flood zone housing

Having a great title is the easiest way to start. Add a number to one of these and give it even more punch: Top 5 local housing trends or Top 4 commuter communities. Take these 25 headlines and you are well on your way to publishing a news release every two weeks.

Keep in mind these 4 tips to a great news release:

  1. Make it local: Local data, local quotes means local pick up.
  2. The length of your story needs ideally is between 300 and 600 words.
  3. Don’t go cheap when hiring a writer. Most professional writers charge between $1 and $2 per word. Good things aren’t cheap and cheap things aren’t good.
  4. Put it on a paid wire: Marketwired, PRNewswire, Globenewswire or PRWeb are worth the investment, so budget a least $500 for a paid wire service.

Bottom line

There is no trick to getting your articles to run in the media. It’s hard work. Today’s editors rarely grab news releases off the wire and write about them. However, they do search the wires, which leads to calls for quotes and is a great method for creating editorial credibility.

The reason to use a PR firm, such as WAV Group Communications, is that we have relationships in the media and we can do the heavy lifting. Pitching stories is old fashioned, but it still works. While we send personal emails or tweets to the writers we know, we also pick up the phone and call them. It’s a full time job that takes hours of professional labor dedicated each story we help tell to drive pick up.

If you need help in communication planning and implementing services as your firm or association is seeking to reach consumer audiences and or real estate business audiences, call the WAV Group and let us create a proposal to support your success in 2015.