Three Tips for Running a Successful Social Media Channel

In 2020, there were just under 4 billion people using social media worldwide. By 2025, that number is expected to increase to about 4.5 billion (enter big eyes emoji). That number alone should be enough to convince you the importance for brokers and agents to have a social media presence. 

With the plethora of social media channels available, you and your brokerage have the opportunity to offer real estate expertise and connect to huge numbers of people. Previously, we had to expel a vast amount of energy to reach potential clients. Direct mail campaigns, advertising, conferences — you name it. That was the only opportunity to reach this mass size of people before the days of social media. Now, all it takes is a simple posting. But the keyword is simple, right? Social media is challenging. From not knowing what is the best real estate content for social media, not to mention those who don’t even know how to use it, many brokers and agents haven’t tapped into everything social media has to offer. 

There are key changes that can get you the leads and audience that you’ve been missing. And you don’t need to be on every channel there is! Narrow in on the best social media platforms for real estate — maybe Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn to begin. Below, our team provides three tips for brokers to run a successful social media channel. Follow these guidelines to finally take advantage of the power of social. 

Use social media as a lead generation tool

According to NAR research group, brokers cited social media as providing the highest quality leads followed by the MLS site and the brokerage’s website. Even if the social media realm is outside your comfort zone, it’s the technology tool that will give you the highest quality leads. What else are you waiting for? 

The first step is to secure a call-to-action in every post. Before you have scheduled a post, consider what you want the viewer to do. Comment, like, call, send a PM? Whatever lead generation strategy you have in place, extend that through your social media posts. Your page’s inbox is a great place to organically gather the contact information of new leads. Keep in mind that your organic content will only gain traction if it’s interesting and engaging. 

Paid social media marketing is an entirely different story. You can put a couple bucks into a Facebook Lead Generation campaign to generate new leads for your business. And get this — instead of hoping the right people will see your new post organically, a paid campaign can be very narrowly targeted. Select demographics from age to gender, interests, and political affiliation and more. Add click-to-call options, integrate with your CRM and more. Why not put your resources somewhere that has provided high-quality results? 

High quality photos and videos are key

Real estate has become an extremely visual industry — you can thank professional photographers and drone footage. The quality of your images can make or break a listing, and the same goes for social media. Share new listings and recently-closed properties to pique interest and showcase your business.

If there’s one thing that you need to know about video, it’s that social media users love video. Invest in videography, whether you need to start with your agents’ iPhones, or hire a videographer or digital agency. Here are a few tips for the best video strategy for each platform.

• Instagram — Focus on the first few seconds of any Instagram stories to grab attention. For feed videos (not a reel or IGTV), aim for under 60 seconds. On the other hand, an IGTV length is best between 2 and 5 minutes.  
• Facebook — Vary your video lengths for your Facebook page. Viewers will more likely watch an entire video if it’s 15 seconds long. But, a 2-to-5-minute video racks up the most engagement. 
• YouTube  — YouTube is extremely popular and is the site with the most video viewers. Since the platform offers extremely long videos up to 12 hours, 10 minute-long videos have best results.
• Twitter — A tweet’s engagement skyrockets when video is used. For Twitter, a video 15 seconds or less racks up the best results. 
• LinkedIn — LinkedIn is obviously more business-oriented, so video lengths here can vary. Results have shown that a 30-second video is ideal for brand awareness, but longer lengths are effective in driving immediate action.

Platforms have expanded their video capabilities due to its wide success. We now have videos for the feed/page, stories, live, reels and more. One thing to keep in mind is the potential power of Instagram and Facebook Live. These “lives” give you the opportunity to host an open house entirely online. Take questions and engage with interested buyers all through a live video. What an incredible helpful technology tool in a global pandemic?

Produce real estate content for social media that has authority and is trustworthy 

Have you considered what value your social media page offers its followers? (Hint: this should be your content strategy from the get-go!) Are you an authority in the real estate industry? Offer information that is helpful to potential buyers and clients? Well, it absolutely should. 

Share blog posts, trends, market updates, and other information that can make you a go-to resource for information. You want to come across as reliable and trustworthy, so that even if they’re not currently looking, you can flip a follower into a client down the road. The goal is to become that account where users frequent for industry information. There are several formats to offer this resourceful content in:

• Short videos and video updates
• Infographics and helpful guides (great for targeting first-time home buyers) 
• Graphics with market insights 
• Images
• Graphics utilizing words, quotes or statistics
• Geographically-relevant information like regional home values or community events 
  

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