If your geolocation is in one of the top ranked states for retirees, incorporating a strategy to cater to these individuals would serve most REALTORs®. Does it require a little more work? Of course: any specialization does. But when you account for the number of senior citizens that already exist and the forecast of those numbers is to rise, it’s possible to miss out on these opportunities.

But how can you tap into this demographic to help out the growing population of senior citizens? Here are a few things that you need to know – just to get started.

Getting the SRES Certification might be worth it.

I at first thought like many new agents at the beginning of their journey. Mind you, I am not a REALTOR®, and I don’t plan to be. I leave that game up to you all. But I thought that these certifications might be just a way for NAR to hustle some money out of the hard-working agents out there. But as I studied it more and compared the information that they give you in 2 days’ time, I realized that I could save time by buying their consolidated information. Instead of performing the arduous task of hunting down all the information by myself, which could take weeks, this certification might be just the thing.

Debbie Dunbar, Junior Partner at Realty Partners, states, “Definitely FL and specifically Sarasota area has more seniors (55+) than anywhere. This is a niche which could be very profitable as the population ages and seniors downsize or have to move for medical reasons. Have to add most 55+ buyers and sellers don’t care or want to hear about the SRES, but for those that do – it comforts them in a hard time.” And that’s what people are looking for. “It can be a lengthy transaction but so rewarding!” she adds.

Get connected with people involved in estate sales, reverse mortgages, social security (and everything else associated with it), assisted living facilities, etc.

Network! Get out there! These connections are your way into the community and a way to help out not only your senior clients but also those that need help finding business. Plus, when you have a specialist on your “team” that can answer uncommon questions, time’s not wasted through scrambling for info. Now it’s only a phone call or email away.

Know your stinkin’ SEO

Here is the tech tip. Know the basics of SEO (search engine optimization). There are great places like Moz and Keyword Everywhere to give the basics on how to develop keyword rich content for your personal website. Understand which keywords that others aren’t using so then you can use for paid Google ads AND add to your organic ranking. Here are a few examples I pulled off of my Keywords Everywhere and Moz Chrome extension:

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Think how those Google Ads might actually do something rather than trying to compete with these huge behemoths that have the money to throw at G Ads. This would work for those that have adult children that are caring for them in some capacity. They’re looking for someone to help out their parents that’s trustworthy, and many of them will go looking online first. That’s where you need to be.

Embrace some old-school tactics

This is where some of the more traditional routes might prove promising. Print media (e.g. “Just Listed” and “Just Sold” postcards, door hangers, etc.) tends to be more effective at getting their attention than other media. I cannot stress this enough, but do you know what the best tactic above all is?

ASKING QUESTIONS.

That’s what’s going to get them comfortable with you. If you become that resource and trusted professional with their best interests at heart, then that’s most important more than anything with seniors. They tend to appreciate a face-to-face meeting and personal touches more than digital know-how and the like. Ask important questions, like the ones detailed in this post from the NAR blog in 2012 and the tactics that are detailed here in seniorrealestate.com.

What are some things that you use when marketing to seniors? What’s worked? Let us know!