Will we one day see digital “For Sale” signs? All indicators point to yes. Real estate sales is one of the most competitive markets out there because it soaks up epic amounts of money, drawing it from the economy so that government figures in the US can keep printing more. The real estate agencies that are updating their business practices and marketing approach are the ones doing “Okay.” Companies that are sticking to the old-fashioned way of selling are falling out of existence.

Real estate sales is one of those industries where it has been okay to operate a certain way. Like butchers, it was and has been okay to operate in a certain way for generations. However, just like butcher’s shops, you need to update massively or get left behind. People are not looking for paper signs in windows, they are not checking the paper for classified ads, and they are certainly not clicking on website ads.

People expect targeted marketing. They expect their options to be laid out in minutes over the internet, they expect virtual tours, they expect more photos and video footage than a Hollywood studio, and they expect the fastest and most efficient service possible. Will we ever see “For Sale” signs as digital signs?

More and More Digital Signs in Windows

Estate agencies are very slow to adopt fully digital signs in windows. This is often because their inventory doesn't change often enough to justify posting all their listings on digital signs. Nevertheless, companies are using them for branding purposes, add-on services, and for drip-marketing purposes.

Are There Any Direct Benefits?

Many online articles are going to try to win you over with some sort of blurb answer to this question. With notes on how digital signs attract attention, give more information, offer branding opportunities, and drive up engagement. However, as the digital signage software company KitCast claims, the benefit you derive is based solely on how you use the product. Digital signs are a tool, and tools are there to help you do the work, they do not do the work for you. Below are a few examples.

Answering Questions

Some estate agencies use digital signs as a way of answering questions. Their market research may show that potential customers have several questions whenever they look through the window. Perhaps related to timelines, financing, etc. The signs answer those questions, which helps to remove the first barrier to a sale before it manifests as an objection.

Asking Questions

A fairly common marketing method is to ask questions in the hopes of stimulating a thought response in the passerby. The most common example is along the lines of “Imagine if you lived here…” and showing off a house.

Drumming Up Business

Some real estate agents drum up businesses via more subtle methods. For example, some call out for people to sell their houses. This tells the people passing by that the company is so good at selling houses that they are calling out for people to sell their houses.

Creating Desire

This is another classic marketing method used by real estate agents, and it is easily transferable over to digital sign marketing. Showing the large size of a garden in an area with few gardens, or the size of a car parking space in an area where parking is a problem. Creating desire in this manner can also be tied with brand building, drip marketing, and even with impulsive buying (putting the idea in people's heads that perhaps they should move).

Offering Up a Selling Point

Digital signs can push a big selling point in a stronger and flashier way. Even if you have only a single digital sign in your windows, and all the rest are posters, you can push your biggest selling point. Perhaps a very well-priced property has just come on the market, or perhaps you are selling a property with a pool during a heat wave, or perhaps you are having an auction and there are only a few days left. A digital sign makes these points far more impactfully than regular posters and online ads.