Success Stories: Jody Thompson
The Thompson Sells team is located in South Etobicoke in the GTA. With over 30 years of experience, team leader, Jody Thompson is a key figure in Toronto real estate although his current team is only about eight years old. But in that time, Jody and the team have gone from being new faces on the market to one of the top teams in the area, and he credits a lot of that to the work he’s done with his website.
“When we started, we were small and new in the business. I knew we had a templated website that the brokerage recommended for us when we started, but we were getting ZERO value from it,” he says. “As we started to find more success in the market, we realized this website didn’t represent our brand, so we started researching other options.”
Jody and Janet Thompson, who does most of the marketing for the business, searched for agencies that were doing interesting things in the market, and that’s how they came across Artifakt Digital.
Don’t Underestimate the Work
“If I’m being brutally honest, our website was a lot of work, and getting it done was our major expense for the year,” he says. “But the way we look at it, it was just something we needed to do. People underestimate the amount of work it takes.”
When it came to launching the website, Jody and Janet took a unique approach and wrote most of the content themselves with the guidance of the Artifakt team. Taking on this big project, they didn’t realize how much work it would actually be.
“You have to think about what YOU want, and what you want the user experience to be. Think about what your brand is. You have to be in the driver’s seat,” says Jody. “Artifakt was really collaborative, but the entire team has to put in work.”
That being said, the hard work from the Thompson Sells Team and the collaboration between Artifakt paid off in the end.
The Market is Down, But the Thompson Sells Team is Growing
“40 percent of our business came from our website last year,” Jody says. And when you consider that his team specifically targets high-quality leads, that’s an impressive number. “The market was down quite a bit last year, but we were one of the few teams in the area that grew. And it’s got a lot to do with our website.”
Jody and the team say that the website went above and beyond their expectations and that working collaboratively with Artifakt helped them make sure their content looked good.
“The important thing was that the website looked great and it represented our brand. There’s lots of room in the market for people to be different, so we were surprised at how much we were able to combine professionalism and represent ourselves successfully.”
A Beautiful and Functional Website Leads to More Listings
One of the most significant things that The Thompson Sells Team uses its website for is getting more listings. “Driving traffic to the site takes time, but the biggest change we noticed was that it gave us an edge for getting listings,” Jodie explains. “When we would do a listing appointment, we’d notice people coming to the website before and after the appointment; it was like a box they checked to make sure we were the real deal. Our website helped us immediately when it came to getting listings because the site was different. People DO look at the website, so it’s important that the content is good.”
The Key to Their Website Success? Consistent Branding and Quality Content
One of the most significant defining features of The Thompson Sells Team is their local pride and expertise. They were one of the first teams to embrace this type of “micro-market.” In a market that typically favors using terms like “Toronto West” or “Toronto East” to describe niche neighborhoods, Jody Thompson is proudly Etobicoke. “Technically, we are South Etobicoke!” He laughs.
“In marketing, you have to do it all. It sounds weird to say, but you need to drive traffic to your site.” In addition to investing in a great website, Jody and the team post consistently on social media, use blogging, and the Artifakt SEO services to help drive more traffic to the site.
“Everything we produce, whether it’s in print, social media, blogs, it all links back to our website. That’s where our best content is, and that’s where leads are going to get an awesome experience,” he says. And this strategy works.
“When we go out on a listing presentation, people have seen our content and spent time on our website, so they feel like they know us already.”
Essential Advice from Jody Thompson to Make the Most Out of Your Marketing
In eight years of business, Jody Thompson and his team went from being brand-new to being one of the top teams in the area. Forty percent of their business came from their website last year, and that number is only set to rise. Each year in business, they have grown substantially.
He says that one of the most important things to remember is to always remain true to your brand. “I would recommend hiring a professional to do your branding,” he says. “It’s not only for your website, but it’s also going to be on every touch point; flyers, signs, business cards, everything. It has to be consistent.”
“The brand is more than just a logo. It represents who you stand for in the market place.”
Jody also advises agents to be ready to put in the work. “It’s not about the experience of launching a website,” he says. “You have to work on it constantly and work with an organization that you like. Be thoughtful about what company you choose to go with because you aren’t just hiring someone to build a website. You are hiring someone to handle the most important part of your business from a marketing perspective. You need to have a good relationship with them.”
At the End of the Day, It’s Not About How Much You Spend
For Jody and his team, the last four years with his new website have been years of success, growth, and learning. They’ve refined what works for them and what doesn’t. By focusing on attracting good leads, they’re able to use their website efficiently and effectively.
“It’s not about how much money you spend. It’s about having a quality product and quality content,” he says. “You need to revise the website as your business evolves. The website is not a static thing.”
“It’s been a tough year for real estate, but we’re okay, and I believe that in tough markets, people go with a tried and true option. And with a great website, it helps.”
Want to know more about what it’s like to work with the Artifakt Digital team? Download our ROI eBook and see how we’ve positively impacted both the businesses and bottom lines of some of North America’s top-producing real estate agents.
