Property Collective
11 min read
Achieving social media success as a real estate agent - 10 top tips to take you through 2023
Social media is a beast. And it can be awfully overwhelming if it's not something you enjoy doing and/or learning about. But the reality is, it’s an essential marketing tool for real estate agents.
Investing time (and money) in the appropriate social platforms will allow you to engage with your target audience, reach potential buyers for your listings, and build your brand in the marketplace.
In a couple of earlier blogs where we discussed how to use social media, and steps to creating a strategy - however, in order to achieve success on social media, it’s important that you keep up-to-date with what works - and what doesn’t. So here’s 10 top trends to help you to continue growing your social media presence.
Short videos continue to be the most popular social media content. From stories and reels on Instagram, to the entire TikTok platform - it offers you a way to get your brand across in an interesting and unique way. Check out what other real estate agents are doing in this space to see where there may be opportunities for you and your business.
Augmented reality and virtual reality continue to grow, particularly with the anticipation of an AR device being released later this year by Facebook and Apple. And it’s something we’ve previously had a look at - providing some innovative ideas for how property developers can use VR. Most translate into the real estate world too!
These are major topics that aren’t going away, and an increasing number of people are choosing to only partner with businesses and organisations who embrace sustainable practices. Consider how this movement could align with your purpose, and once you have a strategy of how this could be genuinely integrated into your brand, ensure your social media reflects this.
If the last few years have taught us anything, it’s that life can change in an instant. From the pandemic, to war in Ukraine, political upheavals and more - any business posting on social media has to have the ability to remain sensitive (and responsibly responsive) to what is happening in the world. So flexibility is crucial. Sure, you should still plan campaigns and content ahead of time, but be ready to adapt when the time calls for it.
Personalisation is key. People want to feel directly connected to businesses, and will favour those who make them feel seen and heard. Know their problems and tell them how you will solve them. And never forget to give them the whole experience - you’re not just selling a house with four walls… you’re selling an aspiration.
Organic reach is great, but as algorithms continue to change, it’s only going to get harder to achieve. If you want results from social media, you’re going to need to put some ad spend behind it.
We’ve long seen it as a ‘free’ place to market yourself/businesses, but it’s a medium deserving of some financial investment, and is probably cheaper than an ad in your local paper! Just make sure it’s done right.
More consumers are now expecting to be able to contact businesses through their social media pages, preferring it over phone calls and emailing. So it’s important to be set up for this shift. Do you have ‘chat bots’ on your website to answer typical questions and automated replies on your social media messaging platforms for when you’re not online? You need to make it easy for people to contact you in the way they want to, when they want to.
Social listening is an emerging trend that allows you to get greater insights into what the online community is saying about your brand, including feedback, direct mentions and tracking discussions based on certain keywords. Social listening can even extend to checking out what’s being said about your competitors, and the industry as a whole!
And of course, with the right data collected - it will give you the ability to strategise, identify trends and respond accordingly.
Hiring an experienced freelancer/contractor/agency to take care of your social media could be an ideal way to ensure you get the cut through you need. It’s their job to stay on top of trends, to prioritise your work (not put it to the bottom of the to-do list like you might be tempted to do), and most importantly, it’s their job to help you get results.
Consumers are keen to engage with brands and businesses who put their true selves forward. Never forget to just be yourself, and be aware of what your audience wants to see - then act on it. You could:
The power of social media provides real estate agents a chance to stand out from the crowd, for all the right reasons. Put it to work, always keep one ear to the ground, and continue to learn and evolve from your activity.
Investing time (and money) in the appropriate social platforms will allow you to engage with your target audience, reach potential buyers for your listings, and build your brand in the marketplace.
In a couple of earlier blogs where we discussed how to use social media, and steps to creating a strategy - however, in order to achieve success on social media, it’s important that you keep up-to-date with what works - and what doesn’t. So here’s 10 top trends to help you to continue growing your social media presence.
10 tips social media tips that will take you through this year
1. Short form video (Stories, Reels & TikTok)
Short videos continue to be the most popular social media content. From stories and reels on Instagram, to the entire TikTok platform - it offers you a way to get your brand across in an interesting and unique way. Check out what other real estate agents are doing in this space to see where there may be opportunities for you and your business.
2. AR/VR
Augmented reality and virtual reality continue to grow, particularly with the anticipation of an AR device being released later this year by Facebook and Apple. And it’s something we’ve previously had a look at - providing some innovative ideas for how property developers can use VR. Most translate into the real estate world too!
3. Sustainability and climate change
These are major topics that aren’t going away, and an increasing number of people are choosing to only partner with businesses and organisations who embrace sustainable practices. Consider how this movement could align with your purpose, and once you have a strategy of how this could be genuinely integrated into your brand, ensure your social media reflects this.
4. Remain flexible for campaigns
If the last few years have taught us anything, it’s that life can change in an instant. From the pandemic, to war in Ukraine, political upheavals and more - any business posting on social media has to have the ability to remain sensitive (and responsibly responsive) to what is happening in the world. So flexibility is crucial. Sure, you should still plan campaigns and content ahead of time, but be ready to adapt when the time calls for it.
5. Niche to your audience
Personalisation is key. People want to feel directly connected to businesses, and will favour those who make them feel seen and heard. Know their problems and tell them how you will solve them. And never forget to give them the whole experience - you’re not just selling a house with four walls… you’re selling an aspiration.
6. Invest in paid
Organic reach is great, but as algorithms continue to change, it’s only going to get harder to achieve. If you want results from social media, you’re going to need to put some ad spend behind it.
We’ve long seen it as a ‘free’ place to market yourself/businesses, but it’s a medium deserving of some financial investment, and is probably cheaper than an ad in your local paper! Just make sure it’s done right.
7. Chatbots and automated messaging
More consumers are now expecting to be able to contact businesses through their social media pages, preferring it over phone calls and emailing. So it’s important to be set up for this shift. Do you have ‘chat bots’ on your website to answer typical questions and automated replies on your social media messaging platforms for when you’re not online? You need to make it easy for people to contact you in the way they want to, when they want to.
8. #sociallistening
Social listening is an emerging trend that allows you to get greater insights into what the online community is saying about your brand, including feedback, direct mentions and tracking discussions based on certain keywords. Social listening can even extend to checking out what’s being said about your competitors, and the industry as a whole!
And of course, with the right data collected - it will give you the ability to strategise, identify trends and respond accordingly.
9. Hire a professional
Hiring an experienced freelancer/contractor/agency to take care of your social media could be an ideal way to ensure you get the cut through you need. It’s their job to stay on top of trends, to prioritise your work (not put it to the bottom of the to-do list like you might be tempted to do), and most importantly, it’s their job to help you get results.
10. Be authentic and transparent
Consumers are keen to engage with brands and businesses who put their true selves forward. Never forget to just be yourself, and be aware of what your audience wants to see - then act on it. You could:
- Show people what your day-to-day life is like as a real estate agent.
- Do a live stream of how you prepare for an open home.
- Open up as to why you chose your career and what you enjoy/don’t enjoy about it.
- Share things from your local community, and ‘walk the walk’ of how you get involved.
- Instead of just having a list of values and what makes you different - prove it!
The power of social media provides real estate agents a chance to stand out from the crowd, for all the right reasons. Put it to work, always keep one ear to the ground, and continue to learn and evolve from your activity.
