Social Media has revolutionized real estate marketing, decreasing cost per lead and increasing lead-to-close rates. A 2012 study found that social media marketing has nearly double the lead-to-close rate than outbound marketing initiatives (phone calls, emails, direct mail, etc.). In this way, social media is the golden goose for many companies. However, without a clear strategy and trackable metrics, you may be wasting your time.
Here are 9 best practices to make sure you are getting the most out of your social media efforts:
1. Know who you’re trying to reach
Every social media platform has a different user base. Know the demographics of your network, who you’re connected to and what type of people are in the forums and groups that you belong to. Make sure to target your message to your ideal audience. You don’t need everyone to like you. Focus on the 20% of clients that make up 80% of your business! By focusing your energy in this way, you’ll likely end up with even higher returns.
2. Understand your ultimate goal
Every brokerage will use social media in a different way, but the successful ones have a clear goal of increasing visits, leads, relationships, customers, and/or sales. Fine-tuning your goal will give shape to your posting strategy and allow you to begin tracking metrics to know whether your strategy is working.
3. Drive traffic to your website
Social media is just one of many spokes in your marketing hub. I’m a firm believer that your website should be your central hub and that all marketing actions should drive traffic to the website. Be clear with the actions you’d like your followers and readers to take – tell them to visit your website. Consumers follow the path of least resistance. Make sure you’re clearly guiding them on what actions you’d like them to take and where you’d like them to end up.
4. Always be polite and positive
There’s always room for disagreement, but what takes only seconds to post can take years to forget. A positive-only posting strategy reflects well on your brokerage, your agents and your brand. Post what you care about, and keep the posts positive!
5. Balance personal, community and professional
People want to know about your agents, staff, awards, successes, and community involvement more than they want to know about a new listing that just came on the market. It’s critical to balance your posts and give a well-rounded image of your brokerage.
6. Always respond to comments
Social media is about engagement. If someone comments on your post then make sure to respond. Social media is not a one-sided communication vehicle. It’s about the dialogue.
7. Don’t take on every network
Social media can eat up a lot of time, especially if it’s used effectively. Choose no more than 2 or 3 networks where you can give adequate time to post, respond and interact. You want your followers to feel like you’re an engaged member of the online community.
8. Keep your posts visual
Anything visual in a social media post will statistically increase the engagement by 188%. Whether it’s a picture, video or infographic, make sure that you’re using visuals to catch your network’s attention.
9. Don’t hire someone to manage your social media marketing just because they’re young
There’s some truth to the fact that younger generations are more adept at the ins and outs of social platforms. However, industry knowledge cannot be neglected. Make sure that your brokerage is in good hands with someone who knows the platforms and has a solid grasp of how they should be representing your company. Experience is important and should not be overlooked.
A successful social media strategy can put your brokerage and agents front and center with today’s digital consumer. These 9 tips will help take your brokerage to the next level.
