17.1 Developing & Executing a Residential Marketing Plan

Build the plan with the seller

Ask about timing, possession, preferred contact, household needs for showings, budget and the outcome the seller values. Explain comparable sales, current competing inventory and how market changes may affect the plan. Use a comparative market analysis (CMA) to estimate a defensible price range. Distinguish recent transaction evidence from asking prices. Discuss property features buyers can verify, such as accessible entry, parking or usable room layout, and avoid screening audiences by protected characteristics.

Make the launch workable

A listing service can provide searchable exposure to cooperating professionals. A property page can explain layout and verified features in more depth. A social post can show the route through the home, while a feature sheet or open house can support an in-person viewing. Check the brokerage’s platform permissions and lead-handling policy before launch. For REALTORS® subject to CREA’s Cooperation Policy, public marketing generally triggers MLS® placement within the board or association’s timeframe, unless an exemption applies. A seller considering limited exposure needs an explanation of the trade-off, current policy and choices before authorizing any public promotion.

For a seller who wants to limit exposure while preparing to move, discuss which private communications may be allowed and how limiting access could reduce the pool of buyers. A public teaser may trigger the cooperation policy even if the listing is called exclusive. Record the seller’s authorized choice.

Start with the service agreement and the seller’s written authorization for advertising. Confirm the owner or lawful representative’s authority, showing hours, lockbox instructions and what may be photographed or promoted. Arrange and review vendor work, and identify which services the brokerage covers and which expenses the seller agrees to pay. Obtain any separate permission needed to collect or disclose personal information. Use the brokerage’s approved follow-up process and comply with the applicable consent rules for calls, email and texts. Keep source dates and definitions with comparables, copies of the listing assets and approvals, and records of the contact’s actual request and permitted follow-up. Limit access to personal information to the people who need it.

Before an open house, plan safe entry, exit and check-ins, and keep access instructions private. Handle visitor information according to its purpose. Give the Consumer Relationships Guide when required. Apply Rule 55 before eliciting confidential information or as soon as possible if it is volunteered, and use best efforts to obtain written acknowledgment. Explain the relationship and any authorized sharing with the seller. Before sharing a visitor’s private information, check the purpose, consent or other legal authority, and any earlier client relationship.

Approve the assets and keep them current

The brokerage’s name should be clear when a consumer sees an ad, and an associate must use their licensed name. Check photographs against the property, verify any copy produced by a vendor or AI and label staging where needed for an accurate impression. Use the applicable RMS area and label any separate measurement with its basis. Never disclose transaction confidences just to make a post more attractive.

When a sale depends on an open material condition, check the contract, the applicable listing-service status and the seller’s written permission before changing a public description. A conditional status can be communicated accurately where allowed. Update connected materials when the status or authorized price changes.

Distinguish a brokerage incentive campaign from a particular transaction’s inducement. For the latter, the brokerage provides it, the broker approves in writing, and the required signed statement is delivered when the offer is made. A seller’s direct allowance in the purchase contract is a separate contractual item. Discuss the proposed terms with the appropriate parties before publicizing or offering a benefit.

Apply the plan to a Lethbridge bungalow

The seller wants a six-week closing window and can allow weekday evening showings with notice. Comparable evidence supports a range, with stronger support near the middle because the kitchen has not been updated. The associate verifies the RMS figures and proposes a listing page, a walkthrough highlighting main-floor laundry and private showings. The seller authorizes the channels and an evening launch after the photos are approved. An image vendor proposes covering a ceiling stain. The associate rejects that edit, shows the seller the original, and verifies what can accurately be said about the property. The seller chooses a walkthrough and a feature sheet, with a progress call after seven days and a second review one week later.

On the first review, the brokerage reports reach, inquiries and completed showings separately. The seller can compare those results with the launch goal and ask whether prospective buyers understand the layout or availability. If the evidence suggests a change, document what the seller authorizes. A change to a written service agreement term requires a written amendment signed by the relevant parties.

RECA Rules · RECA advertising · RECA RMS · CREA Cooperation Policy