The Top 3 CRE Digital Marketing Tools For 2024

While the last few years have been a difficult journey for commercial real estate owners across North America, they have been especially challenging for office owners and, more recently, industrial developers and owners. 

The U.S. office vacancy rate was 18.3% in December, and the sector continues to struggle as more companies adopt hybrid work-from-home policies. Meanwhile, the industrial market, which was white-hot during the pandemic-driven e-commerce boom, has cooled significantly, and vacancy rates are climbing. 

As owners battle to attract tenants in this tough climate, the role of CRE digital marketing is more important than ever.

“We’re seeing a massive push from our clients for marketing videos, digital advertising and virtual tours,” Walkthruit co-founder Andre Godin said. “In today’s competitive environment, listing teams and landlords must use every tool they can to keep their buildings in the spotlight and ahead of their competition.” 

Godin, a former broker himself, described Walkthruit as a “one-stop shop” for CRE marketing that creates a full suite of digital marketing content for any industrial, office, retail and life sciences project, both existing buildings and new developments. 

He said Walkthruit sees a lot of demand for its approach among clients that include some of the largest landlords, developers and brokerages in North America, such as Prologis, Brookfield, Link Logistics, JLL and Cushman & Wakefield. 

Godin and Walkthruit Head of Media Strategy Andrew Sarrazin spoke with Bisnow and broke down the top three digital marketing tools for 2024.

Digital advertising is a cost-effective way to keep buildings top-of-mind with brokers and tenants throughout the entire leasing process, Godin said. Walkthruit creates hyper-targeted digital ad campaigns and serves them through LinkedIn, Google, Facebook, Instagram and X.

“Let’s say you’ve recently toured tenants through your building,” Godin said. “Our ads platform sends them targeted digital ads to keep your building in the spotlight as tenants make their real estate decisions.” 

Sarrazin was formerly at Meta, which operates Facebook and Instagram, where he managed digital ad campaigns for Fortune 500 companies, including Budweiser, Porsche and Disney. He was responsible for $30M a year in ad spend. Godin said having someone with his experience and track record is a “huge win” for Walkthruit and its clients. 

“We want to create a true partnership with our clients where we can talk strategy and provide recommendations, rather than relying solely on technology and setting the ad campaign and forgetting it,” Sarrazin said.

Marketing videos are quickly becoming the new leasing brochure and the top tool Walkthruit clients use for marketing new developments, Godin said.

People today prefer to watch a two-minute video to understand a project rather than read a standard brochure, he said, adding that Walkthruit’s 3D videos can show exactly what the development is going to look like before construction has even begun.

“Two years ago, you could lease an industrial building before it was even built because the market was so hot,” Godin said. “Today, people want to see the building before making leasing decisions. So if you don’t have a physical building to show them, you need a product like this to move the deal forward.”

Along with engaging marketing videos and wide-reaching digital ads, 3D walkthroughs are a must-have in any 2024 CRE marketing package, Godin said.

The product allows tenants to virtually tour a space before it is built, just like in a first-person video game. This allows them to visualize the true potential of the space and how it will look after construction is complete. 

“Before starting Walkthruit, I was a broker and I saw firsthand how tenants had a very hard time visualizing space before it’s built,” Godin said. “With our 3D Walkthru product, tenants and brokers can tour a future office spec suite six months before it’s actually built, all without leaving their desk.”

No matter what tools CRE teams choose, working with a full-service company with a proven track record can save them time and money while providing assurance that the project is being executed by market leaders, Godin said.

This article was produced in collaboration between Walkthruit and Studio B. Bisnow news staff was not involved in the production of this content.

Studio B is Bisnow’s in-house content and design studio. To learn more about how Studio B can help your team, reach out to [email protected].