Social media is a window into the lives of the people in your sphere and your business development area. Beyond being a platform for socializing, it offers insights into what your audience values most. This article provides practical strategies for navigating these insights and leveraging your social media activity into a potent tool for research, client engagement, network development, and brand positioning and enhancement.

Engage. Engage, Engage

Keep an eye on life events happening within your network. Social media gives you insight into the personal lives of your contacts, allowing you to connect on a deeper level. Congratulate them on milestones, offer support during tough times, and show that you’re invested in their well-being beyond the business relationship.

Use social media to maintain contact with past and current customers. A simple comment on their post can go a long way in keeping your relationships warm and encouraging referrals. This ongoing engagement helps nurture long-term relationships that are key to building a referral-based business.

Build Brand Authority Through Social Media

Establishing yourself as a trusted resource in real estate requires consistency and value in your content. Regularly post insightful content that establishes you as an authority in real estate: share market analyses, tips for buyers and sellers, and updates on local real estate trends. The goal is to become your network’s go-to source for real estate knowledge while staying current with their pain points and desires.

Enhance Community Engagement and Networking

Participate in local online forums and social media groups related to real estate or community events. Share relevant information, answer questions, and be a helpful presence. This will increase your visibility and position you as a community leader.

Showcase Property Listings

Leveraging social media to showcase property listings can attract potential buyers. Use engaging visuals, virtual tours, and interactive content to make your listings stand out. This approach not only highlights the properties but also your innovative marketing capabilities.

Provide Market Insights To Your Network

Sharing market trends, statistics, and analysis reinforces your role as a knowledgeable advisor. Keep your followers informed about the latest market trends and insights, which will help them make informed real estate decisions.

Social Media Best Practices

I have worked with agents for more than 20 years.  This means that I worked with extremely successful agents agents at a time when social media did not figure in their personal promotion plans at all. To ease their way into social media, I developed some simple best pratices that will help you use social media without it taking over your mind, your bsuiness and your life –which, of course, is the danger. To keep it simple, follow these guidelines.

1. Your engagement with social media should never be about you. It should always be about them. So make sure you’ve friended and followed everyone in your base: Add the people in your farm as their social media information becomes available or through geo-targeted outreach campaigns.

2. Include social media time in your schedule. The best time might be the evening while your household enjoys TV or other end-of-day activities. Do not engage with social media during your productive time, i.e., from wake-up to after dinner, unless you have a lull in the later afternoon.

3. Engage by “liking,” “loving,” or leaving a quick comment. Note significant life events such as weddings, births, and deaths and send handwritten notecards the following day.

4. Periodically add a personal post so everyone can relate to the human within you. 🙂

5. Populate your social media channels with content that resonates with your audience. This includes listings, market insights, and helpful tips that prospective buyers and sellers will find valuable.

6. For posting, use the 3 P rules: 3 posts a week, one personal, one professional, and one profound such a a quote you love, a book you recommend, or the revelation of an ahah moment. Your posts may be a mix of posts, reels and stories, depending upon your level of comfort with the camera.

7. Don’t forget that all your content can be repurposed. For example, a reel that is well received could be used in an email, or your recorded market report can be posted to your website and transcribed to a monthly postcard.

Implementing a Social Media Strategy

Plan Your Work and Work Your Plan

Plan your social media content in a content calendar to ensure a consistent posting schedule. This will help keep your audience engaged and improve your social media management.

Target Your Audience Precisely

I am not an advocate of pursuing cold leads through social media. In my experience, the ROI does not justify the cost and effort. However, you may want to craft outreach campaigns into your baseor specific listing marketing to get more eyeballs on one or more of your listings. If you do so, craft targeted advertising messages to utilize the vast user base of platforms like Facebook and Instagram. These platforms allow you to segment your audience based on location, interests, and behavior, ensuring your content reaches those most likely to engage.

Measure and Adjust 

Track the performance of your social media activities through metrics such as engagement rates, click-through rates, reel view count, etc… Use this data to refine your strategies and improve your results.

Social media offers a unique opportunity to connect with clients, customers, prospects, and referral sources on a personal level. Used judiciously, it can strengthen relationships and establish a strong brand presence. Adapt the principles and strategies in this article to make social media an effective tool in your development toolbox.

Happy selling∞