At RealtyAds, we occasionally hear clients say: “I just wish it drove more leads.”
We get it. In many industries, digital ads are measured by how many people fill out a form. But commercial real estate (CRE) is different. Deals worth tens of millions of dollars, spanning 5–10 years, don’t start or end with a form fill. In fact, even after a prospect tours, more than 84% of deals still fail to close. Since most transactions don’t begin with a form fill — and most don’t close right after a tour — it’s clear that form fills are a poor metric for CRE marketing success. What really moves the needle is sustained influence with the right decision-makers and their brokers.
1. Avoiding the Low-Quality Lead Trap
Other vendors attempt to demonstrate value through a high volume of leads. The result? Frustrated leasing teams chasing unrealistic prospects. A low-quality lead isn’t a gift; it’s a distraction. The best way to improve closed deals is not through more leads, but through nurturing the right prospects consistently.
2. Committees make CRE Decisions
Let’s assume a prospect completes a lead form. There’s still a problem; leasing decisions aren’t made by individuals. It’s a group decision, often involving finance, operations, HR, and legal. A form filled by one contact represents only a sliver of the committee’s influence, so its impact on the transaction outcome is negligible.
3. The Infrastructure Gap
Many CRE websites lack a functional and prominent “Contact Us” form, so there’s no way for a website visitor to even complete a form. Even when they exist, attribution is lost because prospects call their broker or landlord rep directly. This creates a last-touch attribution problem that misallocates leasing and marketing budgets — over-crediting final actions instead of the sustained influence that built conviction along the way.
4. The Broker Dynamic
More than 90% of CRE leases are broker-represented, and for larger tenants, it’s virtually 100% (CBRE, 2023). When a decision maker sees your ad, they are far more likely to call their broker — who earns substantial commission to answer their questions — than fill out a form on your site. Instead of investing limited resources to chase unverified prospects, RealtyAds AI suggests investing those resources in dramatically improving broker outreach.
5. Small Tenants vs. Big Tenants
Yes, form fills have their place — especially with small tenants (e.g., sole proprietors seeking 1,000 sq. ft.). This is how WeWork built their business. But for larger, more lucrative tenants, sustained outreach to the entire decision-making committee and their representation drives far superior results. RealtyAds clients see a 20% improvement in closed deals when shifting focus from lead volume to sustained, committee-wide influence.
What Actually Drives Deals: Leverage AI to Find, Advance, & Close
At RealtyAds, our clients implement strategies that improve upon the simplistic marketing approach of, “the more leads, the better.” That approach is proven to be detrimental to close rates for all the reasons listed above.
Instead, the nation’s top ownership groups are shifting their focus to using tactics that produce the desired outcome, closed deals. Here are the three ways RealtyAds AI is impacting the prospects journey and is being used in this effort:
- Find Deals– Reach the right decision-makers and brokers known to be in-market to create interest
- Advance Deals – Stay top-of-mind throughout long, committee-driven deal cycles to maintain interest
- Close Deals– Leverage sustained outreach to increase the prospect’s conviction to sign
Optimizing for audience quality and consistent influence — not chasing vanity form fills — is the fastest path to more closed deals.
The Bottom Line
We understand why clients ask for more leads. Attribution feels tangible. But in CRE, chasing form fills is a distraction from what really drives leasing success. RealtyAds’ AI helps you allocate resources toward sustained influence with the decision-makers and brokers who matter most.
After all, if 84% of deals fail to close even after a tour, CRE teams need more than form fills. They need AI-powered engagement that helps them find, advance, and close more deals across the portfolio.
👉 Want to dive deeper? Read our blog: The Attribution Trap: Why Only Measuring Last Touch Fails CRE
References
Industry Research
- CBRE, Global Occupier Survey (2023): Over 90% of CRE leases are broker-represented.
- Deloitte, Commercial Real Estate Outlook (2023): CRE leasing decisions are committee-driven.
- CBRE, Occupier Outlook (2023): Leasing decisions often take 12–24 months.
- Forrester, B2B Marketing Benchmark (2023): Less than 10% of B2B buyers engage via lead forms; influence comes from impressions and networks.
- Gartner, B2B Buyer Journey (2022): Most buyers prefer broker or peer engagement over direct lead forms.
RealtyAds Data
- RealtyAds’ AI processes 5M+ daily data calls (RealtyAds internal data, 2025).
- National Broker Engagement achieves ~60% monthly engagement with top producers (RealtyAds internal proposal deck, 2025).
- CRM-integrated clients see measurable lifts in inquiries, tours, and closed deals (RealtyAds platform reporting, 2025).
