Why pre-market and off-market campaigns are reshaping listing strategy

Across Australia, pre-market and off-market campaigns are becoming a mainstream part of residential sales strategy - not as a replacement for the open market, but as a structured first phase of it.

For agents, the shift isn’t just tactical. It reflects changing vendor psychology, marketing economics and buyer behaviour.

The rise of controlled exposure

In recent years, more vendors have questioned the traditional “go big from day one” model particularly when upfront marketing can run into many thousands of dollars. Portal upgrades, creative assets, styling, signboards and digital spend can quickly escalate before a property has even met the market.

At the same time, buyers are more informed, digitally active and increasingly comfortable engaging with properties before they reach major portals. That behavioural shift has made controlled exposure more viable than it was a decade ago.

This combination - cost sensitivity on the vendor side and stronger buyer connectivity on the agent side has driven the growth of pre-market campaigns.

Access to high-intent audiences

Historically, off-market success depended heavily on the strength of an agent’s personal database. While that remains critical, today’s agents have access to a far broader ecosystem of qualified buyers.

Beyond their own CRM, agents can now tap into high-intent audiences through specialised platforms such as Aussie and Listing Loop - platforms built specifically to connect motivated buyers with properties in the pre-market and off-market stages, requiring buyers to register protecting property data from search engines such as Google.

In addition, many agents actively engage buyers’ agents during the pre-market phase, leveraging their networks of finance-ready clients who are seeking early or discreet opportunities.

These audiences often consist of:

• Buyers actively searching and finance-ready
• Investors tracking specific price points or suburbs
• Homeowners looking to transact before listing their own property
• Buyers who prefer discreet or early-access opportunities
• Clients represented by buyers’ agents seeking priority access before public release

The availability of these networks strengthens the pre-market proposition. It means agents are no longer relying solely on internal databases, they’re leveraging extended pools of engaged, transaction-ready buyers.

As Rhett Dallwitz, General Manager of Aussie for Agents explains:

“Pre-market campaigns are far more powerful today because agents aren’t limited to their immediate database. They can access broader high-intent buyer audiences while still maintaining control over exposure.”

What pre-market actually provides

At its core, a pre-market phase is about information.

It allows agents and vendors to gather real-world feedback before committing to a full public launch. That feedback can include:

• Depth of enquiry
• Buyer quality and readiness
• Price resistance or alignment
• Competing stock sentiment

Rather than relying solely on comparable sales and market theory, agents gain current, property-specific data.

“A pre-market campaign isn’t about limiting exposure - it’s about gathering intelligence,” says Dallwitz. “It gives agents and vendors evidence before making larger marketing commitments.”

This intelligence can influence pricing strategy, launch timing and negotiation positioning.

Reducing perceived vendor risk

One of the most consistent vendor concerns in listing presentations is marketing cost risk.

Even when agents clearly explain the return on investment of portal exposure, vendors can hesitate at the idea of spending significant funds upfront without certainty of outcome.

A structured pre-market phase can lower that perceived risk by:

• Creating an initial pathway that requires less immediate spend
• Demonstrating buyer demand early
• Allowing vendors to see engagement before escalating investment
• Providing optionality without “days on market” exposure

Importantly, this doesn’t eliminate the option of a full on-market campaign. Instead, it reframes marketing as a staged investment rather than a single upfront commitment.

That distinction often changes the tone of listing conversations.

Bailey White, Associate Director from Marshall White Mornington Peninsula, says pre-market is now embedded into their standard listing framework.

“We’ve made pre-market a structured first phase of most campaigns. It allows us to generate genuine buyer interest including clear price feedback by leveraging our database before committing to a full portal launch. In many cases, that early momentum leads to a sale prior to going on-market, which can save our vendors thousands in upfront marketing costs while still achieving a strong result.”

Strategic flexibility in different markets

Pre-market and off-market strategies perform differently depending on conditions.

In tightly supplied markets, controlled releases can generate urgency among qualified buyers. In more balanced or softer markets, a pre-market phase can serve as a pricing calibration tool before a broader launch.

Either way, flexibility matters.

“The advantage isn’t that a property must sell off-market,” Dallwitz says. “The advantage is optionality. Vendors retain the ability to accept a strong early offer or move confidently to a full public campaign.”
This optionality protects both price outcomes and campaign momentum.

Supporting stronger negotiation

Another educational point often overlooked is how pre-market engagement can strengthen later negotiation.

If early buyer feedback clusters around a specific range, agents can adjust expectations before a public launch. If strong written offers are received early, that can anchor vendor confidence heading into auction or expressions of interest.

Rather than weakening competition, structured pre-market phases can sometimes sharpen it - particularly when buyers understand the property may not proceed to full portal release.

The key is transparency and professional communication. Buyers must understand where they stand, and vendors must understand the trade-offs between immediate acceptance and broader exposure.

A shift in campaign architecture

Ultimately, the growth of pre-market campaigns reflects a broader industry shift: moving from a one-size-fits-all launch model to a staged, evidence-based approach.

That doesn’t mean every property should sell off-market. Broad exposure remains critical for many assets.

What it does mean is that agents now have more sophisticated tools available — stronger databases, specialised high-intent platforms, and better data — to manage vendor risk, collect pricing insight and structure campaigns strategically.

As Dallwitz notes:

“When agents can show vendors real engagement before asking them to commit significant marketing budgets, it builds trust. And trust is often what wins — and keeps — the listing.”

In a competitive listing environment, education and strategy increasingly matter as much as exposure itself.

Pre-market campaigns, when used thoughtfully, are becoming part of that strategic evolution — not as a trend, but as a considered approach to modern selling.

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