Vendor paid advertising is a term used to describe advertising paid for by vendors. In real estate, the vendor is typically the home seller or a lender. This means the costs to market a property, such as a signboard or paid listings online, are funded directly by the property’s owner.
What is vendor paid advertising?
Effective property marketing can be expensive. From the basics of property signage and professional photography, to more advanced digital marketing, each element has a cost. Whereas with vendor paid advertising, or VPA, that cost is covered by the owner of the property.
Alternatively the agent would have to provide funding for marketing up front and that carries risk if the property is withdrawn by the vendor.
Some owners have enough liquidity (cash) available to pay for these costs up front. On the other hand, most vendors need to use some of the proceeds from selling their home to cover marketing costs. In these instances, there are solutions to provide up front payment, such as pay later services like CampaignAgent.
Is vendor paid advertising a good investment?
When marketing a property, a comprehensive campaign will generate interest and secure a better result for the owner. Simple VPA items like professional photography have huge returns on modest investment.
For the agent, VPA is an avenue for driving market awareness of their services, paid for by their clients. This is a significant driver of leads and reputation.
Therefore, vendor paid advertising benefits both the owner and the agent, and should be embraced for the best results.
Who should use VPA?
Any owner seeking the best possible price for their property should engage in VPA. If they’re constrained by the marketing budget of their agent, they may fail to drive enough engagement and excitement around the property.
Even if the owner doesn’t have access to sufficient funds, the availability of alternative funding options makes it nearly mandatory when selling.