In an industry that’s as competitive as real estate, having a strong social media presence is essential to finding new homebuyers. After all, real estate is about relationships. A strong social network helps establish brand identity and makes potential customers feel that the agent takes their job seriously. Real estate social media marketing just works.
According to the National Association of Realtors (NAR) 70 percent of agents use Facebook to build relationships and network, while 64 percent use it for visibility, exposure and marketing.
Here are some real estate social media marketing tips that will help you sell your services online.
7 pro tips for real estate social media marketing
Social networks are all about connections, a valuable commodity for any real estate agent. Follow these tips to excel at social media marketing.
- Make a plan.
- Decide which platform to use.
- Measure your efforts.
- Use hashtags.
- Include high-resolution photos.
- Engage with your audience.
- Follow the 80/20 rule.
Seems everyone uses social media for personal exchanges. But the rules around business use of social media are completely different. An endless stream of posts about how many houses you sold last month will only annoy people. Read these tips to do it right.
1. Make a plan
Real estate industry website RIS Media suggests you plan out the content you’ll post in order to stay focused on your goals. You want to establish yourself as a trusted, educated and well-respected professional in the real estate industry, so active and consistent posting is a must.
2. Decide which platform to use
Every social media site has a different purpose and serves a different demographic. There’s no reason to spend time posting on a network that won’t put you in touch with prospective buyers and sellers. Start with one network and focus on developing an active presence on it.
3. Measure your efforts
Using multiple networks to promote your services? Social media management apps such as HootSuite make it easier to manage all of your social media accounts in one place and measure how successful or unsuccessful your posts are. HootSuite also shows insights such as demographics, reach, likes, follows and page views.
4. Use hashtags
Using effective hashtags will attract even more potential customers to your social media page and gain more views. Examples of hashtags could be of the city, residential neighborhood, your business name or slogan. Check out Zillow’s list of 30 Twitter hashtags every real estate agent should know.
5. Include high-resolution photos
The sharper and more colorful the image, the better it will attract the eye. Make sure the image also has a business watermark so it shows you rightfully photographed and own the photo. If not, credit the source. Refer to this handy cheatsheet to resize images for various networks. Looking for high-quality photos you don’t have to pay for? Find them here.
6. Engage with your audience
Do not just use a thumbs up on Facebook or a heart on Instagram or Twitter to show someone you like their post or appreciate their feedback. Instead, take the time to engage with them by writing back in the reply sections. Spark a conversation!
7. Follow the 80/20 rule
According to HouseLens, the 80/20 rule for social media marketing says that 80 percent of your posts should be informative, entertaining or useful while the remaining 20 percent should be used to promote your business. This is the golden rule of real estate social media marketing.
Real estate social media marketing post ideas
What you post on social networks should provide value to buyers and sellers — this is the best way to attract their interest. RIS Media recommends posting the following content on social media pages:
Videos
If you really want to engage people, video is the way to go. Create videos to highlight featured homes or neighborhoods. You can also make a video with industry updates or interviews with leaders to discuss current housing or lending trends. Why not broadcast from an open house or home show using Facebook Live?
Neighborhood listings
This is the No. 1 thing house shoppers look for online. Posting listings allows the prospective customers to see what is available in the area they are searching and what houses are current hot sellers (and how they’re priced).
Local events/landmarks/classes
This will show prospective buyers all of the activities in neighborhoods they’re considering so they’ll want to live there.
Highlight new homeowners
Congratulating a buyer on a new home purchase not only shows a level of interest, but also shows that you're a connected real estate agent.
Start a blog
Starting a blog is another innovative idea. It’s a great way to reel in homebuyers while generating social media posts at the same time. Blogs don’t necessarily have to be just written content — they can (and should) also include photos with captions underneath them. You can check out real estate website Placester for 101 tips on engaging blog topics.
Start a real estate blog the hassle-free way: with GoDaddy’s Managed WordPress.
Moving/buying/selling tips
Think about what prospective buyers and sellers are interested in reading — probably things related to buying and selling, right? These types of posts will motivate potential buyers to step up their house search or sale (and call you).
Share something interesting about you
Do you participate in a sport in the community? Volunteer? Attend annual events? Show connections something unique about you so they can get to know you on a personal level. This will increase trust.
Social networks: the lowdown
Given the number of social networks, you’ll need to be selective about which ones you spend time on. Here’s an overview of the top six networks for real estate social media marketing:
According to NAR, 77 percent of realtors use Facebook as their main social media outlet for promoting their businesses. Remember, only one out of every five Facebook posts (or ads) should directly promote your business — the rest should be helpful or interesting posts. Read “Five ways to make Facebook work for your real estate business” for more information.
Pinterest is a very visual network, which makes it perfect for real estate agents with houses to sell. Once again, just 20 percent of your Pinterest content should focus on your business, whether that be listings, awards or team photos. The rest should feature local home renovations, interior design tips or neighborhood information. Before you pin, make sure the description is understandable and that the link from the image matches the appropriately named board.
YouTube
According to NAR, 51 percent of homebuyers use YouTube as the most popular video medium when researching listings. Placester suggests including your business website in the page content, along with a brief description. Also, don’t forget to include your YouTube link on your Facebook and Twitter profile pages.
Twitter is considered the most engaging social media platform, with NAR advising real estate agents to post up to 10 times a day with:
- Industry-related articles
- Pictures/videos of listing
- Personal comments about real estate
- Links to your blog posts
- Retweeted real estate content
- Replies to tweets on your page
In addition to posting informative and fun content (again, using the 80/20 rule), REALTOR Magazine recommends the following activities:
- Liking photos
- Commenting on other user’s pictures
- Using hashtags
- Following users who follow you
Instagram is also an appropriate place to highlight your personal interests.
A professional network, LinkedIn is a great place to join real estate groups and connect with other agents, mortgage brokers, home appraisers, clients and others for networking opportunities. Always keep your company profile page complete and up-to-date.
Start small and keep at it
Like personal relationships, a strong online presence takes effort and time to grow. With the right real estate social media marketing strategy — and your content, passion and enthusiasm — your business will be brimming with prospective buyers and sellers in no time.
Want more lead-generation tips? View our free checklist: 5 ways to get more clients
