A real estate purchase (or sale) is usually a big investment for any individual. Something that entails extensive research, multiple site visits, advice from trusted professionals and a large chunk of money sunk into a single decision. All the reasons why real estate professionals have excelled in face-to-face dealings with their clients and depended on traditional forms of marketing to succeed in their business.
However, the real estate buyer is slowly changing. According to the Source: Taylor Morrison on Facebook
But while you get going on showcasing your listings on social media, keep in mind that you don’t overdo it. No one likes to be sold to constantly. Besides posting key listings, have a healthy mix of content on your social media platforms that keeps users informed, engaged and most importantly, not bored!
Embrace the Power of Video
We all know that YouTube is the second largest search engine on the planet, after Google. Why not harness the power of YouTube and post content that does a brilliant job of promoting your products? Video walk-throughs of properties are not a new discovery. What is new though is the way real estate agents are using them.
The Corcoran Group uses professionally shot videos of their listed properties to showcase the best features of the property and tempting potential buyers to make an actual visit. The videos are narrated by their own agents, thus adding a human touch to the video and putting a face to the brand name.
A typical listing video: Watch Video
As a company that specializes in properties in New York City, Corcoran goes one step further and creates dedicated Chinese, Spanish, Italian language videos to target the diverse ethnic, well-to-do buyers of NYC.
Targeting ethnic buyers: Watch Video
Become a Source for Real Estate Industry News
A potential seller or buyer of real estate typically stays up to date on industry information to get cues on when to buy or sell, what type of properties are in demand, what would make a good investment and so on.
Becoming a credible source of industry information, makes a real estate agent a familiar authority figure in the minds of potential buyers or sellers. This increases the likelihood that they will turn to you when they need to buy or sell property – a great way to build your brand and attract potential clients at the same time.
Try Tips & Tricks
This is nearly universal across all industries on social media. Users don’t become your fans or followers because they love your brand so much (there are some of those, but they’re usually a handful). You need to offer something of value that the user can’t find anywhere else and you can be assured of an audience.
Source: Coldwell Banker Blue Matter
Just the way users value the latest news about the industry, they also value the professional tips offered by an agent to improve the worth of their property and make it more saleable. A potential buyer would appreciate tips on important things to look out for in a property they are considering buying and so on.
Never Lose that Local Focus
The real estate industry is by nature one that focuses on local markets than national ones. Your potential customers will characteristically belong to a restricted geographic area and they will have a definite interest in local events, organizations and activities that affect their lives on a day to day basis. Think little league games, the local YMCA, your neighborhood farmer’s market and the like.
Source: Apts and Lofts Brooklyn on Facebook
Keep users informed of these local places and sights to stay relevant to them.
Profile Your Users, Create Posts around Users’ Interests
Know thy customer is the first rule of marketing. This applies more than ever to social media. Understand the type of customer that you are seeking out – their demographic profiles, what their interests are, what is their disposable income, what kind of leisure activities they indulge in.
Use these insights to build posts around things that will interest your users, but may have little or nothing to do with your brand. As mentioned in the beginning of this post, it’s important to not come across as too self-promotional. Spicing up your content with a good mélange of product related posts and user-interest posts in a 40-60 ratio will keep users hooked and yet deliver results.
Become a Source of Inspiration
As a real estate professional, you are already looked at as someone who knows his thing about houses, architecture, home décor, furnishings – the works. If you don’t already know a little bit of each of these, now is the time to brush your skills up!
Source: Douglas Elliman on Pinterest
Use your position as a subject matter expert and offer ideas and inspirations to users for decorating their present or future homes. The idea is to move beyond being just a transactional entity, to being a friend and guide to your users.
Closing Thoughts
These were just a few of the variety of things that work well for real estate brands on social media. Resources like an active, well written blog or a socially optimized website that attracts the right traffic are huge assets in your social media program. The true extent of what can be done on social media is still being discovered by pioneering real estate brands that are reaping the rewards of their first mover advantage.
What are your secrets on social media? Share your wisdom and grow your business!
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