Writing a great advert could be the difference between a quick and easy swap and months spent looking for one. To get other people interested in your property, you’ll need to tell them all the reasons you love being there. There are a lot of things you can do to make your advert as appealing as possible and it’s important to have a think about it from different angles – why would someone else love living there?
Here we give you some real-life examples of great adverts and how to create them. Have a read and see if there’s anything you can do to spruce up your own advert…
The home you have
In the The home you have section on the page listing the features your home has, you can write a detailed description about your home.
The more detail you go into, the more potential swappers can learn from your wall.
On HomeSwapper there are some really great advert descriptions; we’ve picked out some of the best as examples. In these adverts, the details included could really help a potential swapper get to know your property. You can click/touch each image to zoom in more closely to what’s written.
Great Advert Example 1
- We found that the best advertisements take time to describe both the home in detail and the area. The one above splits the description into these two parts to make it really clear for the swapper reading it
- The user described the size of the bedrooms and the storage included, being honest about the size of the smaller room
- They are personal about why they love the property. It’s clear that the garden was where they spent their time. If you describe what’s great about your home, other people will be more attracted to the thought of moving there
- Give practical advice. This advert gives an idea of how much the bills could cost per month and also includes the fact that it might cost a lot to heat the property. Even though we can fall in love with a home, we all need to consider our budgets; even if the rent is right it’s really helpful to give potential swappers insight into the overall costs
- Another way the swapper does this is by saying that they own the white goods (fridge, washing machine, etc.). This would be another cost for a potential swapper to think about, so is important to mention
Great Advert Example 2
- Small details that make the house easy to live in, like having two sinks in the kitchen are really good to include
- This user doesn’t have a pet, but remembered that other swappers might need to know this
- When talking about the local area, think about nearby access to NHS services. For some people being in walking distance of a GP can be a lifesaver
Great Advert Example 3
- When you’re downsizing, it’s good to mention how much you pay in bills, but also remind potential swappers that the property isn’t at full capacity, so their bills might be higher
- This person has gone into a lot of detail about the transport links into the city centre; this includes the different types you can use and how long it takes to get to places. For people who might have been unsure about moving to a different area this could be a real attraction
The examples above are of the home descriptions only, so please remember that photos are absolutely essential for a finished advert! If you’d like some more information about how to take great pictures for your advert, just click here.
The home you want
It’s also important to be clear about the home you want on HomeSwapper. You can enter this as extra information in the The home I want section. We’ve shown some good examples below:
Great Advert Example 1
- This couple have retired and are no longer tied to a location, so they’re open to different types of property. Generally, swappers with fewer demands as to what they need make great links in MultiSwap chains
- Think about how flexible you can be – you could be pleasantly surprised by a property that’s outside of the box!
Great Advert Example 2
- This user has made it clear that location is the single biggest factor that will influence their move. If you’re clear, then you should only get people contacting you who live in that area
- Make sure that you are direct about the features that are ‘need-to-have’ and ‘nice-to-have’
The basics
When signing up, you set your preferences to show how you felt at the time. Here’s a reminder of what choosing certain options will mean to other swappers. If you’ve found your preferences changing, you can easily go back and amend these in the About me section
1.Make sure people know that you are either “serious about swapping” or “Just looking”. If you’re not serious then letting people know will save yourself and others time.
2.If you tick this box the MultiSwap badge will then appear on your wall so those arranging MultiSwaps can get in touch.
If you’d like to know more about MultiSwaps, take a look at our article here.
Writing a good advert on HomeSwapper for the type of home you want means making sure that those who approach you can see whether their property would work as a direct swap or even as part of a MultiSwap chain. It’s much better to be honest up front, so you avoid disappointment later down the line. When describing your home, it should be a careful balance between going into a lot of detail around the practical things that make up the property and sharing what you love about where you live.
Use our guide above to strike the right balance and get writing a great advert!
The HomeSwapper Customer Support team are always on hand to give advice and tips on how to get the most from HomeSwapper. They deal with Swappers every day and have a unique insight and view on the thousands of successful swaps that take place on HomeSwapper.
