As social media has become ubiquitous in our culture, it has become increasingly essential to leverage it for your North Carolina real estate business. Of course, that can seem daunting. There are so many different social media channels out there, and maintaining all of them can seem like a chore. If you’re thinking about social media for real estate pros and how to maximize your networks, our quick list of sites can give you a good overview of where to start focusing your efforts.
Growing your social media following is a form of list-building. When you have a list of people—an active and listening audience—you have customers to whom you can begin to sell. You might develop your list via email, Facebook, Instagram, or a number of other channels. Read on to find out which social media channels are the best for you.
Most real estate professionals find that their Facebook efforts are best maximized when they create a business page. From this page, you should be proactive in setting up events for any open houses you might be hosting, sharing community news, and promoting your successes. Tell the stories of your customers whenever possible.
To make sure you’re posting strategically, it’s best to set up an editorial calendar. This can be done using a program like Hootsuite, which allows you to schedule out multiple posts. Pro tip: You can also schedule posts directly from a business page.
The last thing you need to remember about Facebook (and almost any other social network) is that if you want traffic to your page, you need to pay for ads. It’s great to set up a Facebook business account and update it as a placeholder, but if you’re using it as a major part of your marketing strategy, you need to budget to advertise your page on Facebook, or it’s unlikely your target audience will see it.
Every social media channel offers something slightly different to users. Twitter is perfect for breaking news, and many small businesses also use it for sharing news—even blog posts—about their products. It’s also a great way for you as a professional to stay in the loop within your industry and to network with other real estate professionals.
Here are some Twitter accounts focused on real estate that you may want to follow to get started:
Like any social platform, Twitter works best if you post authentically and consistently. Follow people within your community; they’ll probably follow you back, which is how you can start to build your following.
If you’re in business, you need to be on LinkedIn. You can create a personal profile as well as a profile for your company.
LinkedIn isn’t just an online version of your resume. Take advantage of all that LinkedIn has to offer by joining relevant industry groups and connecting with people you’ve met. This includes customers, colleagues, and prospects.
You can also help build your online reputation through LinkedIn. It’s a good way to get recommendations from colleagues and clients. But it’s also an easy way to establish yourself as an expert by responding to discussions within LinkedIn about your industry and by publishing blog posts straight to LinkedIn.
Not sure what to start writing about? Think of how-to articles that address questions or needs your clients often have, such as moving tips or homeowner tips. You can either make a list and start publishing these to see which ones gain some momentum, or you can set up a Facebook or Twitter poll to get buy-in from your audience there before typing up a full post for LinkedIn.
Because people are visually driven, Instagram is a great fit for North Carolina real estate pros. You can post photos, memes, infographics, and videos. Below are some innovative ways real estate professionals across the U.S. have used Instagram.
Advertise open houses:
Share pictures or videos of listings:
A post shared by Dusty Baker (@dustyjbaker) on
Give information and inspiration about the neighborhood:
A post shared by Your NYC Real Estate Resource (@nikkibeauchamp) on
Pro tip: Be sure to add multiple relevant #hashtags to each post. You can add up to 30 on Instagram!
Don’t just stop at photos when it comes to Instagram. With Instagram stories, you can give your audience video tours (even live tours) of your listings or use the video features to provide an idea of what life is like in each neighborhood. Make sure when you do this that you tag each location. This has two benefits:
- People who are considering a move to that neighborhood will come to rely on you because you know all the hot spots.
- Instagram aggregates top-performing stories into a larger neighborhood story viewable by all users. So if you tag your location, you have a chance of your videos being seen more widely to potential new clients.
Once you’ve mastered social media for real estate pros, don’t stop there. Browse our Career Hub for more tips and tricks to grow your North Carolina real estate business.
