How much should you spend on marketing your home?

THE spring selling season is traditionally when we see the greatest number of properties come on to the market.

Michael Matusik

THE spring selling season is traditionally when we see the greatest number of properties come on to the market.

And for those owners who want to sell quickly and for the best possible price, the adage that "you have to spend money to make money'' definitely applies.

Marketing is an additional expenditure in which owners are sometimes reluctant to invest. In fact, most sellers want to commit as little as possible to the marketing cost of their property. It's completely understandable - why would we spend anything if we don't have to?

The standard "bare bones'' marketing package consists of photos, a signboard, internet advertising, and strategic print advertisements.

This is the basic package that is most often proposed by agents at a listing presentation. And depending on variables such as quality and the type of marketing package it can cost up to several thousand dollars.

But the question as to whether a basic, no-frills package really is in their best interests is something that sellers must consider.

Often, those agents who propose an upgraded campaign and a higher spend, have to work harder to win the business of prospective clients. Sellers need to be convinced that additional expenditure will be worthwhile.

Recently, JA Group auctioneers undertook a random sample of 365 auctions and split them into two categories. The first consisted of properties where owners spend less than $5000 in total on their marketing campaign. There were 282 properties in this group; and over a five-week period, they received 13.3 groups of inspections on average.

The second category contained 82 properties, and the marketing spend was greater than $5000. The average number of groups inspecting these properties sky-rocketed to 32.2 over the same period.

So essentially, where the marketing spend was higher, there were almost 2.5 times the average numbers of inspections.

Now, that's not to say that the JA study provides a firm rule of thumb calculation, but it does support a broad equation behind achieving the best possible sales outcome.

Simply, the wider a marketing campaign, the greater the number of potential buyers that are reached. More inspections lead to greater levels of buyer competition and potentially a better sales result.

Also, keep in mind that the quality of a marketing campaign also plays a vital role in the selling process. Good-quality marketing can make thousands of dollars of difference to the price.

The best agents will demonstrate this to sellers with clear evidence and supporting data.

And smart sellers will be able to see that spending more to make more on the sale of what is likely to be their most valuable asset, is a worthwhile investment.

For more go to matusik.com.au