Social Media Marketing – How to Rock It

Social Media Marketing – How to Rock will help you take your social media marketing to the next level. With almost 2 million active real estate agents in the United States, it is crucial to have both a personable and consistent social media marketing strategy. While reviews and referrals play a huge part in gaining business, forgetting about a social media presence is a huge mistake.

How can you leverage the power of social media and find potential clients? Here is your four-step checklist to do just that.

Understand the power of social media
Choose the right platforms
Optimize your content
Stay consistent

We are going to break down the four items with tips on how to implement them.

Understand the power of social media marketing

To best utilize social media, the first step is to understand the power of the tools in front of you. You want to know what you can and cannot accomplish with this type of marketing plan.

For realtors who are interested in using social media, it can:

Promote you and your brand to a wider group of prospects.
Showcase your past sales and prove you’re trustworthy.
Engage and connect with your previous clients.
Set up a strong referral program.

Social media is not:

A place to make direct sales.
A megaphone to blast messaging across multiple platforms.
A simple investment.
Or a throw-away place to be for the sake of “having a presence”.

Once you have solidified your understanding of social media, you will then figure out what platform works best for your approach.

Choosing the right platforms

While it may seem like there are tons of social media platforms popping up, certain target audiences all congregate on a select few for their real estate needs. For example, if your customer base is mainly younger couples and singles looking for available homes, Facebook is probably not the best place to host your primary social media account. You may want to try Instagram. On the other hand, if you are aiming towards families of four or more who are very concerned about school districts, Facebook may be the perfect social media platform for you!

Here are some examples of people and what types of social media they generally use. This is crucial to understand in order to choose the right platform for your intended audience.

For realtors who specialize in finding family homes

Families with school-age and/or small children are typically pressed for time and may have to move in a hurry. They have a very specific set of parameters they want their new home to have, and are probably very concerned about the neighborhood that they will move to.

Parents and decision-makers in these families or more than likely on Facebook. They may be on Twitter as well. In general, they are looking for reviews, testimonials, and third-party proof that you are who you say you are and that you can get the job done. They want to be convinced but are careful about the types of proof that they accept.

For realtors who cater to single people

Single people are often looking for new places to live. It could be that they are moving into their first home, they are switching jobs, or trying to invest in property. Typically single people have a stronger desire to move and are more flexible with their wants in their home.

Because this group of people is the most diverse section of home buyers, they are on the greatest amount of platforms. Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest are the top three social media platforms that appeal to this demographic, with Twitter as a close second.

For realtors who primarily work with and assist older people

Senior individuals, particularly those who are downsizing are a unique demographic for realtors. They present unique requests from time to time and pose a challenge to most realtors.

Social media strategies for this particular grouping of people aren’t necessarily the most effective. Most of the time, they aren’t even there. However, if you cater to seniors and another group, such as families, Facebook is the best place to set up shop.

For realtors who work in specific areas or types of housing

Finally, there are realtors who work in specific areas with specific types of housing. The social media platforms used in these cases depends on the area in question. For example, if it’s an extremely artsy area, Instagram and Pinterest will be well worth the investment. On the other hand, if it’s a highly residential area with great schools and excellent public transportation, Facebook it’s probably the better choice.

Since regions can vary highly, the best general advice is to examine the local scene and treads, then choose social media platforms according to local taste.

Once you have narrowed down your platforms based on the sphere of influence you have, it is time to consider the content you are going to put out.

Create and optimize your content

After you’ve selected the platforms that you’re going to use, it’s time to create specific content for these platforms. In order to keep things interesting, focus on specific social media content. Since statistics indicate that 77% of realtors use social media, you must stand out among the crowd. Some simple ways of doing this are:

Write separate postings for each social media channel, if possible. Sometimes you can repeat work, but make sure that you are offering unique content to your followers.
Invest a specific portion of time into your social media. Many times, social media is an afterthought. If it’s made a priority, you will see better results.
Consider some help from the professionals. Social media isn’t the easiest to break into, especially on a time frame or on a budget. If you find yourself in need of a little extra boost, don’t be afraid to hire a partner to help you out.

After it’s created, don’t forget to optimize your content for social media. Some great ways of optimizing your content include:

Always include pictures. Highly striking visual content is essential on almost all major social media platforms. Given the nature of your target audience, it’s especially important as a realtor to provide high-quality images to your social media audience.
Use different posting methods on different platforms. Social media is an investment and should be treated as such. A little bit of extra time on your postings can mean the difference between a steadily growing following and stagnant pages.
Shake things up! Just because you’re in the business of selling homes, doesn’t mean that all of your content should revolve around what you’re selling. In fact, it’s best to provide a variety of content that engages your audience and makes them stick around.

Finally, remember that you can always change up your message if it doesn’t work. Play around. Test things out. And don’t be afraid to pivot if need be.

Stay consistent

According to Sprout Social, “47% of real estate businesses note that social media results in the highest quality leads versus other sources.” The real trick now, after setting up your social media strategy, is to keep it going.

Now is the time to get the process started all over again. Social media by its nature must be consistent in order to collect more and more views and eventually, following.

Find an approach that works for you and continue to enhance it. The world of social media is always changing and you want to stay up to date with the current trends.

At ZipperAgent we offer packages that benefit your social media presence. Interested in starting for free?

Start For Free Watch Demo

Post Tags:

Lead Gen leads Marketing Online Lead Gen Online Marketing Real estate leads