It’s no secret that social media can be a very powerful tool for a real estate sales associates when used in the right way. However, with every social network comes a new set of rules and best practices. To help navigate each one more easily, we’ve created the following list of quick tips specifically for real estate.
Network: Facebook
Overview: Facebook is your best resource for reaching the most clients. On it you can share various types of content and reach a more localized audience with the network’s extensive geotargeting capabilities.
Quick Tips:
- Post Your Listings: Tell fans about the home, highlight its major selling points, and post pictures. When sharing a listing on Facebook, it’s important to give it some personality and to make sure you’re not overdoing it. While many people who follow you will enjoy seeing listings, they don’t want their News Feed inundated with them. Your posts can also serve as a place for fans to ask questions about the listing so make sure you are ready to respond.
- Use Photos: Images on Facebook are much more engaging than text-based posts. The more likes, comments, and shares your posts get, the more they will appear in your Facebook fans’ News Feeds.
- Share Neighborhood Events: Show off your city. Post about local events in your town. If you’re going to or know about a neighborhood event, tell your fans and invite them to participate.
- Take Advantage of Geotargeting: Facebook lets you target your ads very specifically. You can use Facebook Ads to give your most important posts some added exposure among users in a desired area. To learn more about Facebook Advertising and geotargeting, check out this blog post.
Network: Twitter
Overview: Twitter is the best place to share news and updates. Users are looking for quick and digestible information so try your best to keep things concise and to the point—if you can’t say it in 140 characters or less, maybe you shouldn’t say it on Twitter.
Quick Tips:
- Tweet Tips for Buying, Selling, and Moving: Offer advice to your followers by sharing helpful tips about the buying, selling, and moving processes. These tips can include everything from good articles and videos to short and simple ideas.
- Use Hashtags: On Twitter, using hashtags gets your tweets seen by an audience beyond your followers. Use relevant hashtags to be discovered by those looking for a particular subject matter. For example, use specific hashtags that pertain to your location and more general hashtags that pertain to the industry (e.g. #movingtips).
- Share Local News: Twitter tends to be a great place for news. If there is something exciting happening in the neighborhood you serve, tweet about it. It will be attractive to potential buyers and keep you up-to-date on local happenings.
- Use @Mentions to Keep in Touch: Twitter lets you send tweets to specific people. Instead of using the direct message feature, send out a Tweet to congratulate a new homeowner, to thank a local merchant for assisting you, etc.
Network: Instagram
Overview: Instagram users are drawn to beauty and inspiration. Use this network to show off striking home photography. You can add a few lines in your caption, but try not to say too much and let the images speak for themselves.
Quick Tips:
- Post and Geotag Listings: When posting listings on Instagram, make sure the pictures are appealing and sized accordingly. You can also geotag the location of each listing to make it easier for clients to check out the area on a map.
- Show Off Your Favorite Homes: Post pictures of some of your favorite homes you’ve sold to give clients an idea of the type of homes you work with—whether that’s a variety or a very specific type.
- Highlight the Neighborhood: Sharing pictures and information about the neighborhood you work in markets the area to prospective residents and also shows your passion and knowledge of where you are selling homes.
- Encourage Engagement: Include questions and other calls-to-action in your photo captions to encourage followers to comment. Be prepared to respond and have conversations there.
Network: LinkedIn
Overview: Aside from being a social network, LinkedIn is a valuable professional networking tool. Save the listings and promotional content for the other networks and focus on marketing your own personal brand to other professionals.
Quick Tips:
- Join and Participate in Local Groups: LinkedIn Groups allow you to use the platform to communicate with other professionals who share interests, work in specific areas, or have other similarities. Use them to communicate and be sure to provide value—remember, this is a network for selling yourself, not your listings.
- Ask for Referrals: Ask clients and colleagues to give you a referral on LinkedIn. Similar to a traditional referral, this will help potential clients make an easy choice when they’re looking for an agent.
- Share a Detailed Description of Your Experience: Again, this is the place to sell yourself as a professional. When filling out your profile, be sure to use the Summary section to include relevant education and experience as well as a few facts that will add a personal touch.
- Network: LinkedIn is a great place to network with other people in the industry. Take some time to see what others are saying and don’t be afraid to share your valuable insight with your network.
No matter which social networks you choose to focus on, social media is a great way for you to connect with both clients and peers. What works for some may not work for others, so don’t be afraid to test the waters and see what works for you!
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