The land investing industry has grown massively in the past decade. While entrepreneurs have the potential to generate a lot of revenue, it is also a very competitive space. In order to stand out, you need a marketing strategy that delivers. Not every marketing channel will deliver you the results you need, so I’m here to give you advice based on my own experience and the experiences of other marketers too! Keep reading for more…

Land investing offers a great way to grow wealth while maintaining a flexible work schedule. No wonder the industry has grown massively in recent years!

And there’s still room to grow.

There are approximately 8 million acres for sale in the US right now. The majority of this available land is privately owned.

That gives land investors a tremendous opportunity to take advantage of the land buying and selling game.

However, competition is fierce. Landowners receiving offers are inundated with offers to buy their properties day after day.

What will make them choose you?

A strong land investment marketing campaign can help give you an edge over competitors. And one of the most effective ways to reach landowners directly is land investor direct mail.

Here’s why:

But direct mail is fairly common among land investors, so you need to execute it correctly to ensure you aren’t throwing money away.

I’ve worked with 2,201 land investors on their campaigns, and here are the things I’ve noticed make the difference between success and failure.

Direct Mail Delivers Better Targeting Ability, and 52% of Marketers Agree

One of the biggest benefits of a land investor direct mail campaign is the mailing list.

You can purchase vacant land owner mailing lists and put your offer directly into the hands of property owners, regardless of where they live. That makes direct mail especially useful for vacant land marketing, because you can target owners based on the characteristics of the property and the owner—not simply where the owner happens to live.

And, 52% of marketers agree that direct mail is the perfect channel to target the right audience.

That targeting ability is one reason direct mail is such an important part of direct mail strategies for land investors.

Some targeting options for potential prospects include:

  • Vacant land owners
  • Tax delinquent or code violating land owners who may be motivated to sell
  • Land owners in specific states and/or zip codes
  • Previous land owners who did not accept your first offer

The right list can make a huge difference in your land investor lead generation efforts.

How to Create a Landowner Mailing List

If you’re wondering how to create a landowner mailing list, start by identifying exactly what your ideal property looks like.

Think about:

  • Location
  • Lot size
  • Property type
  • Zoning
  • Tax status
  • Ownership history
  • Whether the owner lives near the property
  • How long the owner has held the property

You can also work with a land investor mailing service that can help you identify and mail to prospects based on your criteria.

The goal isn’t simply to mail more people.

It’s to mail the right people consistently.

After selecting your mailing list criteria for your direct mail campaign, decide on the frequency and timing of your mailings.

One caveat:

You might not be the only land investor mailing to them weekly.

BUT, you can still stand out with the quality of your mailer and the quality of your offer.

Direct Mail Increases Response Rates 25-30% with Eye-catching Details

land investor envelope examples

So how do you stand out in the mail stack?

It’s a lot easier than you may think.

First, place additional messaging on the front of the envelope. To stand out from your competitors, add additional text such as:

“Cash Offer!”

or

“Open Immediately!”

Big, bold and bright letters grab the recipient’s attention and let them know right away there is an important message inside they should look into.

Some other elements that instantly attract attention are:

  • Text in a handwritten font
  • QR codes
  • Photos of real people / places / things
  • Important text in bold font

These elements add a unique touch to the mailer while helping build trust.

And don’t overlook the actual offer.

For example, if you’re researching a land purchase offer letter sample, pay attention to how clearly the letter explains what you’re offering, why you’re interested in the property and what the landowner should do next.

A letter to property owner to buy property doesn’t need to be complicated. It needs to be easy to understand.

The same applies if you’re searching for a sample offer letter to purchase land. Keep the message focused on the property owner’s needs and make it simple for them to contact you.

If you’re buying commercial property, you may also need a commercial real estate offer letter template as a starting point. For vacant property specifically, a vacant land offer letter template can help you organize the essential information while leaving room to personalize the message.

One of the best ways to measure the success of your mail is to test one version against another.

You might test:

  • Different headlines
  • Different offers
  • Different postcard designs
  • Different calls to action
  • Different list segments
  • Different mailing frequencies

This is where land investor postcard examples can help spark ideas. Look at what other successful campaigns are doing, but don’t simply copy them.

Your audience, offer and market are unique.

Test what works for you.

And track your results.

That’s why tracking is such an important part of land investor marketing.

Lift response rates 20-30% with direct mail automation and online advertising.

Studies show that about 60% of consumers say they are very likely to respond to an advertising promotion when they see it across multiple channels.

Our current integration marketing campaigns have a tailored approach.

  • First, the target receives a letter from you.
  • Then they go to your website via a QR code or by typing in your URL.
  • After going to your website, they can accept or reject cookies.
  • If they accept cookies, they will start seeing your digital ads on Google, Instagram, and Facebook.

land investing marketing sequence

As your prospects start seeing your advertising in multiple places, they remember who you are.

That’s crucial when it comes to overcoming your competition.

The more prospects remember your business, the more likely they are to consider you when they’re ready to sell their land.

And now, you can even mail letters to website visitors, too.

Rocket Print & Mail’s Website to Mailbox service captures the location of a website visitor and mails them a card or letter within a few days of their online session.

Some of the automated triggers you can implement include:

  • Mail to website visitors who click on specific pages
  • Mail to people who spend a minute or longer on your website
  • Mail to those who fill out an online form on your website

Once they receive your mailer, they will likely call you or come back to the website. Any communication from your business will help prospects continue to consider you for the sale of their land.

How to Find Land for Sale by Owner

Of course, before you can make an offer, you need to find properties and owners worth contacting.

Land investors can look for properties based on ownership information, property characteristics, location, tax status and other criteria.

Listing websites show you the land that is actively being marketed. This is public data you have access to online.

Some of the websites you can visit to find these listings are:

For all commercial and general land

  • LoopNet
  • CREXi
  • Catylist
  • CIMLS (Commercial and Industrial MLS)
  • Brevitas

For rural, agricultural, and recreational land

  • Land And Farm
  • LandWatch
  • Lands of America
  • LANDFLIP
  • LandLeader

For broad land search across categories

  • LandSearch
  • Leavitt Digital

Once you have found the lists of land for sale, you can use those addresses and names to launch a direct mail marketing campaign. Send us your list and we can print, address, and mail all your letters or postcards so that you can increase the number of deals you make a month!

How to Find Off-Market Landowners

Once you’ve identified properties that fit your buying criteria, the next question is how to find off-market landowners. Some parcels in the U.S. never make it onto a land listing platform at all because of long-tenured owners, family estates, or LLCs.

Off-market land searching works in the reverse. First you identify pieces of land you would like to purchase and then check records for ownership. If the person would have a reason to sell due to late payments or debt, then you could reach out to them directly and ask them if they are interested in selling the land.

Look for websites that have access to land ownership records. These sites allow you to filter by acreage, asset type, location, and ownership status. The longer an owner has had the land and not sold it, the higher chance they would consider an offer to sell it.

Most pieces of land in this category are parts of trusts, LLCs, or holding companies – not individuals. Public records can show the name of the company or name that is part of the trust but not exactly the right person to contact, so this is where it gets tricky.

Make sure you find the actual person you need to contact to make the offer.

Once you have the right contact information, you can launch your land investment mail campaign.

How to Generate Land Seller Leads

If you’re wondering how to generate land seller leads, start with the same fundamentals that apply to almost every successful direct marketing campaign:

  • Target the right people.
  • Make a compelling offer.
  • Mail consistently.
  • Track your results.
  • Improve what works.

That’s the foundation of effective land investor lead generation.

You don’t need to guess which audience to target. Start with the property characteristics that make a parcel valuable to your particular investment strategy.

Then build your mailing list around those characteristics.

From there, create a campaign designed to get attention and make responding easy.

That could mean a postcard, letter, self-mailer or another format depending on your campaign.

The best mailers for land investors aren’t necessarily the flashiest ones.

They’re the ones that get noticed, communicate the offer clearly, and give the landowner an obvious next step.

What Is a Good Land Investor Direct Mail Response Rate?

A common question I hear is about land investor direct mail response rate.

But be careful about obsessing over one number.

Response rates vary based on list quality, offer, market, creative, frequency and many other factors.

More importantly, a response isn’t the end goal.

Profit is.

You need to know how many qualified leads your campaign produces, how many deals result from those leads and what those deals are worth.

That’s why I always encourage business owners to track their marketing from the first touch all the way through the sale.

If you know your numbers, you can make smarter decisions about your marketing strategies for land investors instead of simply mailing more and hoping for the best.

Successful Land Investment Case Studies

This integrated marketing strategy has worked for many of my land investors. Simply take a look at these successful marketing case studies below!

This Irvine, California Land Investor Generated $545,000 in Profit!

Scott Vu started his own land investment business, Nexus Keystone, in the Irvine, CA area. He launched a direct mail marketing campaign with Rocket Print & Mail, mailing about 15,000 letters a month.

His letter included:

  • A Convenient Form:The letter included an easy to fill out form that the recipient could return quickly for fast cash.
  • Clear Call To Action:Mention that they would pay for any costs associated with completing the transaction with a strong call to action.
  • A Compelling Offer:A callout stating the company’s interest in purchasing vacant land

He decided to target property owners who were most likely to sell their land because they were not located near the property and also tax delinquent owners.

His campaign was successful because he bought 21 properties, sold 9 of them and generated $545,000 in profit!

This Clearwater, Florida Land Investor Generated $296,000 in Profit!

Nicole and Charlotte started their own land investment business, Freedom Land Network, in Clearwater, FL.

  • They launched a direct mail marketing campaign with Rocket Print & Mail and mailed 3,000 postcards a week.
  • For 6 months, they mailed a total of 53,000 postcards and completed 10 land buying deals. Then, during the summer around July, they noticed a drop in leads. In response, they increased their postcards count 14% and their profit increased from $4,700 to $15,000. That’s a 200% increase in profit!

After mailing 172,711 letters and postcards, they have generated $296,900 in profit!

We have dozens more land investor marketing case studies, so make sure you check them out.

We have marketing consultants ready to assist you with planning the perfect direct mail marketing campaign. Call us today and we’ll get you started.

Best,

Joy