Social media for real estate is a crucial component in becoming an industry leader in today’s market. People are turning to social media for everything from keeping in touch with friends and family to promoting businesses to deciding where to shop and eat- so why not where to live as well? Real estate social media marketing is a powerful way to spread information about properties. In fact, a recent study from Mashable states that 73% of homeowners say they are more likely to hire an agent to list their home if they are willing to make a video of it. These statistics are only going to rise in the future.

Here is a guide on social media for realtors, for any real estate agent interested in making their presence known in the digital marketplace.

Facebook for Realtors

Facebook for realtors is extremely important, acting as social media for real estate listings and promotions as well as growing your personal business. Create a professional page for you as a realtor as well as for your agency or branch. Here are some ideas on Facebook for realtors:

• Share listings via photos, videos, and written information about your listings. Make sure to have links in every post to direct viewers to your website for more information.
• Create events for your open houses. Invite friends and people who might be interested in the open house. You never know, even uninterested connections may end up inviting someone who is in search of a house and provide you with a lead.
• Interact with others. Facebook is great for commenting, messaging, and sharing content. Be sure to check Facebook daily for private messages, respond to comments, and encouraging sharing your information. An easy way to keep up with multiple pages at once is setting them up to be managed by your personal account, so that you can easily switch back and forth between administrators and never miss a notification.

Pinterest for Realtors

For something fresh and innovative, Pinterest for realtors is a great social media medium to get new leads and increase business. Take a look at these tips:

• Pinterest is all about pictures, so use this as an opportunity to showcase the homes you are selling. Pinning these photos is a chance to showcase small style features of the home, like landscaping, staircases, floors, etc. Make specific boards for specific style houses and elements, like “modern homes” or “beautiful kitchens”.
•  Arrange online tours of real estate through Pinterest’s Places Map feature. Create a map of your listings and popular attractions in the surrounding areas. You can pin photos of events in the neighborhood, show off nearby activities and attractions, and more with Pinterest’s Places Pins.
• As with other forms of social media, Pinterest as a chance to add tips for buyers and sellers about the process and common questions. Another great idea for this site is to make boards that give ideas for interior decorating, to get prospective buyers thinking of new homes and to help other home owners learn how to stage homes they would like to sell.

Twitter for Realtors

Twitter allows real estate agents to engage over the Internet on a local, national, and international level. It also gives you, as the realtor, the benefit of expanding promotions to a wider range of people. Use Twitter with the following tips in mind:

• Dedicate enough time to Twitter to know what is being talked about in your field or community. Make sure to re-tweet and start up conversations through tweets on relevant matters.
• To add, follow other people involved in the industry to create your own niche in real estate twitter. This may lead to other connections, grow your own following, and expose you to more business.
• Add hashtags to your tweets so that people can easily find you when looking for a property. For example, if you are in Chicago, some useful hashtags would be #chicagorealestate, #realestate, #homesforsale, and #chicago.

Youtube for Realtors

With the increased interest in videos to sell products, it is no wonder that people are looking for properties and real estate agents through video mediums like Youtube. Effectively use Youtube like so:

•  Make good quality, in depth video tours of properties for sale. It is best to include video footage of the neighborhood and surrounding parks, schools, and other points of interest. You may wish to work with a professional videographer.
• Tag videos with keywords that are heavily used, so that the videos will show up in search results. Do not forget to share videos with connections through other social media channels.
• Create educational videos addressing real estate tips, common questions, and industry problems to show yourself as an expert in the field and also get viewers interested in your services.

Blogs for realtors

While blogging may not totally be part of social media, it is part of your website and a great way to be interesting on social media. You can integrate blogging into the rest of your social media strategy. Blogging is an opportunity to develop content, educate, and gain a professional reputation while picking up clients along the way. Here is how to make the best use of your blog:

• Use blogs as another way to showcase your listing.
• Make readers feel you are really part of their community by describing the communities you serve and your involvement with them- this may be involvement both in and out of the workplace.
• Use blogging as an educational opportunity to discuss market trends and provide insight on the real estate experience for buyers and sellers.

Real Estate Websites for Realtors

Various real estate sites like Trulia, Zillow, and Realtor.com feature up-to-date listings with great photos and listing information. Use these sites as additional places to put up listings, as well as build your realtor profile with information and links:

• Create a presence with a strong profile of who you are as a realtor. Make sure you have experience listed.
• Keep information current and linked to everywhere else you have a presence online- your company, website, social media profiles, and more.
• Add references from buyers and sellers you have worked with in the past; they can write recommendations and reviews directly on the website, with Realtor.com being the best for this.

Take these tips on real estate social media marketing and gain exposure for your listings and professional standing as a realtor! If you would like to hear more about social media for real estate, contact Design & Promote’s social media strategist for a custom analysis of your social media strategy.