With today’s typical buyers using their mobile device to search for properties online, the best place to reach potential clients is often through social media platforms. In fact, these venues can be a goldmine of opportunity to make connections and enhance your real estate business.
However, it’s not quite as simple as setting up your account and watching the business roll in. You’re going to need to work on your online presence in order to get your content out there and to the people for whom it really matters.
Here are some of our best tips to get you going.
Stop Making Excuses
As real estate agent moms, we live hectic lives. And after tending to your long list of priorities, it can be all too easy to fall into the trap of thinking you don’t have time for social media. In reality, what you’re likely worried about, especially if you’re yet to get started with this medium, is falling short of perfect. Overachievers aren’t too keen on that, but we don’t have time for endless rewrites, retakes, and reshoots, either.
So, let’s cut through that right now. Spoiler alert: You probably won’t get it right from the beginning — but who does, anyway? Those first few posts and videos will not be easy. Nothing in real estate is. Think back to your first transactions… But what’s important is that you went out there and got them done, and that’s what you need to do here, too.
Make time for your socials. Get in front of that camera. You won’t believe how important it is in building your brand and your confidence. Consider how you are using your time and get up a little earlier if you have to. Get going with it and eventually, it will start to pay off. It takes time and practice, andlike with anything, it does get easier and you will get faster. But here’s the thing — you’ll never get there if you don’t start. So, you just have to start.
Show Your Authentic Self
It may be counter-intuitive, but if your early social media attempts are not massively professional or overproduced, it will actually work in your favor. Remember, people don’t want to see pristine content that is so perfect it looks like yet just another ad. They want to see real-life, something that they can relate to. Your audience knows they can trust you are showing up as your authentic self.
That’s why, rather than having a specific business Instagram page or hiring a professional to run their social media accounts, many successful realtors simply use their personal accounts. When you let the world in this way, when they know your kids’ names, your dog, where you lie to travel…you open the door to build the kind of relationships that are so vital in this industry.
Don’t Make It All About Sales
If you choose to run a separate business page and want to keep it focused on industry, the biggest mistake you can make is to constantly push content aimed solely on buying and selling. This can really turn people off. If you want to attract a large, loyal following, remember that the majority of your audience will not be looking for content like this all the time. It’s simply not going to keep them interested in your profile or your channel.
Instead, take a look at other content that’s out there — what’s popular with your crowd? Find out what people are asking about within the industry. What do potential clients usually Google about? With answers to these questions, you will know how to create content that will actually attract your audience.
Try making videos in which you give answers to popular, frequently asked questions. Possible questions you can answer include: What’s an appraisal waiver? What are the pros and cons of living in X? What are the best restaurants there? What about schools? Neighborhoods? Content of this type typically gets the largest number of organic views.
Get Help When You Need To – It’s Worth the Investment
Dedicating a couple of minutes of your day to Instagram account is one thing, but this isn’t likely going to work for YouTube. Video content takes a little more work to get right. Not only do you have to create and upload the videos and then tag them, but with such a massive search engine brimming with quality videos, you will also need to write compelling descriptions to bring viewers in.
Don’t try and do it all. A virtual assistant is one hire that everyone should have. While it really needs to be your face in the videos to build up trust, a VA can be a tremendous asset in helping with all the background tasks — especially if they know their stuff regarding search engine optimization (SEO).
Try not to think of such hires as an added expense. Instead, think of them as a necessary investment in your company. After all, if you can create and share quality videos of your properties on the very platform where people are searching for new homes, and your target audience can easily find these videos, you can then essentially sell homes directly from these videos. Surely, that is worth the investment, right?
Don’t Stress, It’s Ok To Keep Things Simple
On the other hand, you don’t need to rush into all of this all at once. A VA is one thing, but if you can’t afford a videographer right now, just get right out there and start making content with your cell phone. The video quality of mobile devices these days is phenomenal, and the sky really is the limit for what you can film on your mobile device — listing videos, town videos, a day in the life videos… anything.
All this goes towards building your personal brand. People can tune into your channel and know that it’s really you and that your content is genuine. This is also vital for building trust with your community. Think about it, we all have virtual friends, the kind we’ve never met in person, but we feel like we really know them because we watch them every day. This is what you should be aiming for with your audience.
It’s Not Going to Happen All At Once
Clients find their realtors through social media often. After all, the social universe is more powerful than you may even realize and it’s actually fairly easy to connect with prospects this way. BUT it all comes down to consistency. If you ask people about their role models, whether they are podcast hosts, a realtor in another state… one thing you can be sure of, they did not become a success overnight. They built their brand up bit by bit.
Everyone wants to make it big right away — get a real estate license and land a hundred million dollar sale the following year. But that’s just not how it works.
Grow your social media presence with consistency. Get your content out there. Proudly present your authentic self. Share your passions with your community. Film at a studio where you can use a teleprompter and knock out a bunch of videos, then sit back, be patient, and trust that all will come when the time is right.
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