There is more than one real estate marketing agency today that will promise you to “increase your sales and grow your business.”
But here’s the truth:
Most of them are selling you vanity metrics, numbers that look impressive but don’t close your deals. And in real estate, that’s a double loss, because the two most valuable assets you have are time and money.
Time & Money: The Two Things You’re Really Investing
In 2025, how you spend your time and money will determine whether you scale or stall.
ROI isn’t just about money coming in. It’s also about opportunity cost. Every hour you waste on a real estate marketing strategy that doesn’t perform is an hour you’re not showing homes, nurturing relationships, or closing deals.
That’s why we’ve put together a checklist of what to look for when hiring a real estate marketing agency this year.
5 Steps to Choosing the Right Real Estate Marketing Agency
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Ask For Case Studies
The good news about choosing the right marketing real estate agency? You don’t have to just “trust the process.”
Any marketing agency for real estate agents that is worth your time and money delivers clear, measurable results and backs them up with strong real estate marketing case studies that show exactly the results they can get you.
These are not just nice-to-haves. It’s proof that the promises are real and achievable.
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Avoid These 3 Common Tactics That Fail Agents
Not all real estate marketing is created equal. And unfortunately, most agents who come to us are already frustrated by one (or all) of these three common approaches:
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The “Luxury Real Estate Website”: Beautiful, But Empty.
This is the classic high-end website: gorgeous images, sleek layouts, luxury vibes. It looks impressive… but that’s all it does.
The problem? There’s nothing behind the beauty to actually capture, nurture, or convert visitors—no optimized lead forms, no calls-to-action, no follow-up system.
Just glossy images and elegant layouts that make your brand look good, but do nothing to fill your pipeline.
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The “Cookie-Cutter”: Generic sites, cold leads.
At first, you’re excited. The site is live, leads are coming in… and then? Crickets. Those “leads” aren’t interested in your services at all.
Why? Because many platforms give everyone the same template.
Your logo is there, but the site doesn’t showcase your expertise, your unique style, or the types of properties you sell.
Result: you blend in with every other agent, your brand becomes forgettable, and the leads you get are cold and hard to convert.
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The “Buy Leads from Big Portals”: You Pay, They Grow.
These are the big listing platforms where you pay a hefty cut of your commission (sometimes 40%) just for visibility.
Your listings look like this:
As you can see, your brand disappears into their logo, so you’re growing their visibility, not yours. And those leads? Usually shared, and often unqualified.
Plus, any exposure disappears the second you stop paying.
So yes, you might close a deal now and then. But you’re not building equity in your brand. You’re strengthening theirs. Instead of owning your visibility, you’re renting it, trapped in a cycle that makes long-term growth nearly impossible.
As Tom Ferry, America’s #1 real estate coach, puts it: “Building your real estate brand is an essential practice in making sure you have long-term success.”
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Check If Your Marketing Is Paying Off (With This Simple Formula)
Marketing can drain your budget fast if you’re not tracking the right numbers.
The good news?
There’s a simple formula we use with our clients to see whether their efforts are truly paying off. This test looks at your investments over the course of a year, and it shows you, in black and white, if your marketing is working or just draining resources.
Our goal: at least 2X your investment.
Step 1: Add up your marketing costs
Include ads, software, and any marketing help.
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Example: $35,000
Step 2: Set your minimum ROI
For real estate, a safe target is 2X. Every $1 you spend should bring in at least $2 in commissions.
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Minimum ROI: 2 × $35,000 = $70,000
Step 3: Figure out the sales volume you need
Divide your target commission by your commission rate (3% = 0.03) to see how much property you need to sell.
- Required sales: $70,000 ÷ 0.03
Required sales: $2.33M in property sales.
So, if you invest $35,000, you need to close $2.33M in property sales to meet that minimum.
If your marketing isn’t helping you hit numbers like this, it’s not giving you enough return. A strong marketing agency will track every lead and conversion so you know exactly where your money is going, and help you exceed that minimum target. So, if you invest $35,000 in a year, you need to close $2.33M in property sales to meet that minimum.
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Get Your Time Back: Marketing That Lets You Sell More Homes
Your marketing system shouldn’t feel like another full-time job. The right real estate marketing agency will give you back hours in your week, not take them away.
That means:
- Automating the busywork so you’re not chasing cold leads or manually tracking every click.
- Streamlining lead generation so qualified buyers and sellers are coming to you, not the other way around.
- Keeping your pipeline warm with consistent follow-up that doesn’t depend on you remembering to send that email or post that update.
- Or even making the whole real estate marketing job for you. Just like we do at TREMGroup, we manage your leads from start to finish, so all you need to do is focus on closing the deal.
The goal is simple: more time in front of clients, less time behind a screen.
Because the real money in real estate is made when you’re showing properties, negotiating offers, and signing contracts, not fiddling with marketing dashboards.
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Trust Experience: What Other Agents & Brokerages Really Say
Don’t just take the agency’s word for it. Look for testimonials from real estate marketing professionals.
A good agency will have real estate–specific success stories, not generic marketing praise. That means feedback from agents, brokers, and teams who can tell you exactly how the agency impacted their lead quality, sales volume, and brand growth.
Pay attention to:
- Specific results (“We doubled our closings in six months”) vs. vague praise (“They’re great to work with”).
- Consistency across clients. If everyone’s results are all over the place, that’s a red flag.
- Longevity of relationships. Agencies that keep clients for years usually deliver steady, measurable ROI.
If the agency can’t show you authentic, detailed feedback from real estate professionals, you have to wonder why.
Stop Losing Deals Get a Website That Works for You
Your website should be your strongest asset, not your weakest link. Let’s build a high-performing site that turns visitors into clients.
Get a powerful website today
Final Word: Make Every Dollar & Hour Work Harder
In 2025, the right real estate marketing agency isn’t just a service provider. It’s a growth partner. The wrong one will drain your budget and steal your time. The right one will multiply both.
When you choose an agency that delivers proven results, avoids cookie-cutter tactics, protects your time, and tracks ROI down to the dollar, you’re not just buying marketing, you’re investing in predictable growth and a stronger personal brand.
Your time should be spent doing the work only you can do: building relationships, guiding clients, and closing deals. Everything else? That’s what your real estate marketing agency is for. Choose wisely, and you won’t just grow this year, you’ll set yourself up for consistent success in the years ahead.
Stop Losing Deals Get a Website That Works for You
Your website should be your strongest asset, not your weakest link. Let’s build a high-performing site that turns visitors into clients.
Get a powerful website today
