3 Tips for Using Social Media

Social media opens up avenues for marketing to whole new areas for marketing real estate. unfortunately with the massive scope of social media it is very easy to lose site of your end goals of your marketing strategy. Below are 3 basic tips to help your marketing strategies work on social media websites like Facebook, LinkIn, Twitter, and YouTube.

Tip 1: Be Active Socially

Sales and marketing isn't just about the product you are selling. It is about the interaction with your current clients and prospective clients. Socialize with them all. Gary Vaynerchuk (winelibrary.com) once said the reason he was able to grow his business was that he "spent 15 hours a day answering every single persons emails and Twitter's @ replies." That doesn't mean you need to be active every waking moment online. Hiring a professional company to manage your online reputation and social media content works wonders especially for real estate entrepreneurs.

The average real estate business page has only 138 likes and even less followers. This caused by professionals pushing listings and services relying on friends and relatives to increase the likes and spread their posts. Real Estate Social Media Rock stars have a following of several thousand followers and interacts with their followers regularly; not just posting their listings.

Tip 2: Social Media is Not About You

Really, even though the topic we are all experts in is ourselves. You may want to build your name recognition by selling what you can do, but in reality what are you giving the potential client? A sales pitch? Give something small and expect nothing in return. Give a tidbit on how to spot a bad foundation or windows that are not energy efficient during your home search without paying for a home inspector, for example.  Create a video and point out the tidbit (or lack of) on a house you have listed and pin it to the top of your business page so everyone can see it. Shoot a video tour of the area around your property, especially since people are moving from state to state more frequently than ever before. 

Think about some of the other things that you would want to see about a home, neighborhood, or city before you would consider buying or renting a home. Then add it to your social media content. Remember the most favorite four letter word in the dictionary is "free." Use the word to your advantage by providing free value to your prospective clients.

Tip 3: Provide Real Content

I have seen hundreds of real estate professionals use stock photos. Once people realize that you have over promised and under delivered, you have lost their trust and business FOREVER. 

Let that sink in.

Use real current images of the property. I had one agent said he used the same images from the previous listing of the home from 4 years previous. Little did he realize was that the seller had pulled all the carpet from the bedrooms for hardwood floors and the tile in the bathroom was redone. It wasn't until another realtor mentioned that the listing needed to be updated to address recent changes in the property. What I don't understand, is why didn't the sellers ask when their agent was coming out to take photos and how to prep their home for showing?

There is a simple philosophy to Social Media Content; be genuine, honest, and giving. In return you will obtain a better quality and quantity of leads. It's that simple.