It’s been a couple of weeks since your latest listing hit the market. The initial buzz has faded, and the showing activity isn’t where you or your seller hoped it would be. Before jumping straight to a price reduction, the question becomes:
What else can you do to put more buyers in front of the home?
During a recent BAMx Listing Marketing Mastermind, Krys Benyamein shared four low-cost, grassroots strategies his team uses to generate more exposure before making bigger changes. Some leverage tools are already sitting inside your MLS. Others are surprisingly simple, including one social media tactic that’s outperforming polished listing videos.
Here are the four strategies, plus the seller communication framework Krys uses to decide when it’s time to pivot.
Check the Benchmark Before You Panic
Before making any changes to a listing, take a moment to confirm whether the numbers indicate a real problem. Start by looking at both median and average days on market for the specific price point (not the market as a whole).
Median can run well below average. A 45-day median with a 75-day average means outliers are skewing the top end.
When you’re looking at the buyer demand numbers for your client’s listing, factor in showings-to-date, not just days on market. According to the national benchmark, it takes about eight showings for a listing to go under contract.
Four showings in 36 days means less than one showing a week. It’s lighter than average, but, as Krys pointed out, it’s not necessarily cause for panic.
Krys has a benchmarking habit tied to an approach he picked up from Sharran Srivatsaa:
“So before Byron and Sharran had sort of instilled the 10-10-0 approach, I was always saying to my client, ‘I’m looking to average about two showings a week.’”
Two showings a week gives you a simple weekly checkpoint. When a listing falls short of it, that’s the signal to look at the tactics below.
#1: Run Reverse Prospecting Through the MLS
Most MLS systems include a reverse prospecting feature many agents underuse. It lets you search for buyers already working with agents whose saved criteria match your listing, then put the listing directly in front of them.
Krys described reverse prospecting as one of the first plays worth running when a listing needs more traffic.
“The MLS may give you a reverse prospecting approach… mine allows me to reverse prospect to where buyers [are] looking at similar homes.”
He also mentioned RealScout as one tool he’s using to see where those buyers are already shopping.
Instead of waiting for the right buyer to stumble onto your client’s listing, you go find them and put the listing in front of them.
#2: Call the Agents on Nearby Pending Listings
The next tactic costs nothing but time. Call the agents behind nearby comparable listings that recently went pending.
Krys explained why:
“Another thing that is grassroots is calling the agents who have those listings nearby that have been under contract… Ask for their feedback as to timing, whatever was going on with their (listing), just like glean some knowledge. And then also put it back on their radar.”
These calls do double duty. They surface real feedback on pricing and timing, and they put your client’s listing in front of agents who may have buyers who didn’t end up choosing the other property.
#3: Test Facebook Marketplace as a Secondary Channel
This one’s not glamorous, but Krys pointed to Facebook Marketplace as one more place to list a stalled property, even without guaranteed results.
“One thing we did without any success, but it’s like trying to turn over every stone for my client, is Facebook Marketplace. Facebook Marketplace is another place that you can put it.”
Folks scrolling through Facebook Marketplace might be thinking about a move, or they could know someone who is. It may not get nearly the reach of MLS syndication and social media posts, but it doesn’t hurt.
It goes without saying this should not be a primary strategy. Treat this one as a low-effort test. If it doesn’t surface even one potential buyer, the cost is minimal.
#4: Don’t Skip the Plain Listing Photos
The most counterintuitive finding from this session focused on the content itself. Plain listing photos are outperforming polished listing videos on social right now.
Krys described watching a recent carousel of plain, unedited listing photos rack up shares within days of posting on Instagram, with no video and no extra production behind it.
As he put it:
“Have you guys seen the performance of your listing photos when you post them on socials these days? Just the pictures? You guys would be really surprised.”
High share counts on plain photos are a signal. The people sharing them tend to be further along in their home search. Folks just casually scrolling are less likely to share these posts. So, either they’re actively looking or they know someone who is.
Takeaway #1: especially for agents without a luxury budget, post the photos before assuming they need to be dressed up.
Takeaway #2: post organically first, then put a small ad budget behind whichever piece is already earning engagement, rather than guessing upfront.
What to Say to the Seller While You Run These
These four tactics work best paired with a clear conversation with the seller. Krys’s own approach breaks down into a few clear moves:
#1: Call it an adjustment, not a reduction. Sellers tend to respond better to that word, even once the list price has been reframed as an invitation rather than a reflection of their homeowner’s identity.
#2: Set the benchmark early. Krys’s two-showings-a-week benchmark, or Sharran’s 10-10-0 rule, gives sellers a clear target. If that number isn’t being hit, a price adjustment becomes a reasonable next step rather than a surprise.
#3: Explain why comps lag real time. A price that made sense two months ago may not make sense today, since buyer sentiment can change faster than the data catches up.
#4: Keep them updated on what’s actually happening. Krys calls this the habit that outweighs any single tactic:
In Krys’s words:
“What I think is really important is to be continually letting them know what’s happening, so that they’re not looking to you as the reason why they have not sold the house yet.”
#5: Share the timing data early. Listings that go under contract faster than the local median tend to sell at or above list price. Listings that sit longer than the median tend to sell below it.
When it comes to the actual conversations, a good scripting framework goes a long way.
Krys hosts a Listing Marketing Mastermind every month in BAMx. These are live sessions where members can ask questions and get clear, detailed feedback tailored to their listings. Members can also watch the replays and download print marketing and other agent assets.
Sign up for a 7-day free trial to get access.
