Social media is an essential tool for real estate agents. It’s how you market yourself, showcase your listings and most important, connect with clients. By now, you’ve probably read every article you can find listing social media tips for real estate agents. But have any of them made a difference in the way you build relationships with your clients?
Social media is an ever changing digital landscape. One day you’re beating the algorithm and the next day you can’t seem to reach anyone and it feels like you’re shouting into the void. For a busy real estate agent, it might feel like too much work to try and stay ahead of the curve on social media.
So how do you win? We compiled the 10 best social media tips for real estate agents to help you cut through the clutter, stand out in a crowded digital landscape and provide value to your audience so you can stand out and stay top of mind.
10 Social Media Tips for Real Estate Agents That Will Change Your Business
1. Engage, engage, engage.
This seems like a no-brainer but it’s too easy for many of us to disengage. Do you ever find yourself scrolling through your newsfeed without interacting with any of the content? If you struggle to engage, either because you’re not sure what would be meaningful or you just don’t have the time, we have a solution.
We recommend using time blocking so you can dedicate effort each week to your social media. Block off one hour of your schedule three times a week solely for social media engagement. During that time, you can post on your pages, respond to comments and messages and contribute to the digital conversation on other people’s posts.
Takeaway: Engagement will help you build relationships with your network. The more you engage with your followers, the more they will start to engage with you.
2. Don’t be afraid to take it offline.
Social media is useful for keeping you up-to-date on the big events in your followers’ lives. Your clients’ birthdays, anniversaries, births of their children, new jobs – all of that is posted publicly for you to see. So how can you create a meaningful touch point with your network? Don’t be afraid to connect offline!
Once you find out about a momentous occasion on social media, send a handwritten note or pick up the phone and call to congratulate them. It’s easy to do and your followers will appreciate genuine interest.
Takeaway: Use social media to curate information but connect in a personal way offline.
3. Post more than just listings.
There’s no doubt that listing marketing is helpful to your business and it can be tempting to overload your feed with your listings and buyer needs. Take a look at your page right now and scroll back through the last two weeks. How much of your content is purely transactional?
Your followers will get tired of just seeing ‘For Sale” in their news feeds every day. It’s important to market your business, but you can do so in a way that doesn’t make your followers feel like you’re always trying to sell them something.
Think about how you can vary your content to tell more of your personal story. What else would your followers find valuable? It could be topics such as:
- Client testimonials
- Practical buying and selling tips
- Local information and updates
- Behind-the-scenes looks at what you do
If you’re using social media to share your transactions without taking the time to really tell your story, position yourself as a person who provides value or make the effort to engage with your audience then you’re wasting your time and effort.
Takeaway: Followers want to think of you as a person with a story they can engage with – not just as a real estate agent with something to sell.
4. Don’t overthink it, just do it.
Some agents may find themselves hesitant to post because they don’t like the way they look or sound in photos and videos. It’s more common than you think and prevents a lot of good agents from otherwise engaging with their followers. Guess what? Your followers know what you look and sound like! Chances are good you’ve either met them in person already or they’ve seen your headshot.
Don’t let “analysis paralysis” sideline you from posting and engaging on social media. Don’t overthink your posts, captions or analytics. Otherwise, you won’t post anything because nothing will seem good enough. It’s better to post and get minimal engagement than to post nothing at all for long periods of time.
Takeaway: Consistently post and share your story. You’ll be amazed at how quickly you’ll lose your fear of being seen online.
5. Provide value.
The flipside of don’t overthink your social media is to make sure you’re providing value. You may be tempted to just share or post something every day for the sake of being consistent. Don’t do this unless your content is providing value to your followers in some way.
What kind of posts provide value for your followers? These are some ideas:
- Talk about why you decided to become an agent
- Share interesting client stories
- Provide timely market updates
- Share real estate articles and offer your take on them
- Ask for input on home design
- Share your successes and struggles and talk about lessons learned from them
- Post updates about the local community
- Shout out other small business in the area
Takeaway: Keep your content varied and valuable so your followers aren’t overloaded with the same fluff every day.
6. Experiment with new tools.
Sometimes it seems like there’s a new app or social site out every week! It can be hard to keep up with what’s new and trendy but don’t let that deter you from trying something new. Experiment with new tools and apps, jump on trends if they make sense for your brand and don’t be afraid to have a little fun. At worst you’ll have a silly post that no one engages with- no big deal! But you might just discover something new that really resonates with your followers and grows your engagement.
Takeaway: Try out new apps and tools to improve your social strategy. It may feel overwhelming to keep jumping to a new trend, but you never know what could take your social media to the next level. If you discover it’s not for you, then move on!
P.S. We included a list of our favorite apps and social media tools at the end of this list if you need help starting.
7. Use Stories to share behind-the-scenes content.
The numbers prove that Stories help engagement and can really make a difference in growing your audience. Not familiar with Stories? They’re available on Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat and TikTok and are short little photo or video posts that only stay up on your profile for 24 hours and are immediately visible at the top of the newsfeed. They’re the perfect tool for sharing behind-the-scenes content in quick snippets throughout the day or week.
Almost everyone loves behind-the-scenes content. It makes you more relatable when you share the simple struggles and successes of your day. Behind-the-scenes content also sheds light on your job as a real estate agent. They can give your followers a more realistic idea of what you do and just how hard you work for clients each and every day. It can be as simple as taking a quick video at a showing to highlight a home or answering some FAQs you receive.
Takeaway: Use Stories to relate to your audience and share the ups and downs you experience as an agent.
8. Use your analytics to improve your posts.
“In God we trust. All others bring data.” – W Edward Deming
All of your social media platforms provide free analytics tools with business accounts so you can measure how many people see your posts (reach), how many people engage with them and what times of the day (or days of the week) most of your audience is active. Don’t let yourself get bogged down in the minutiae but take advantage of these free tools.
You can fine-tune your social media strategy using these numbers and tweak your content to appeal to your audience. Did your reach double when you posted a TikTok video? Keep making and sharing them! Did you get more engagement on a post with multiple photos versus a post with just one? Keep that in mind next time you’re taking photos.
Takeaway: Take advantage of your social platforms’ free analytics tools. You’ll gain a general understanding of your audience so you can shape your content to perform better.
9. Be the local expert.
Real estate agents know everything there is to know about their communities! People love to stay updated on local happenings: new restaurants, community festivals, school events, developments from local government and of course, updates on the local real estate market. Be the local expert who provides all of this information.
A great way to stay plugged in is to join local community groups on Facebook and be active in them. Remember, you don’t have to actively sell to the people in these groups. Just engage in real conversation and make connections.
Positioning yourself as a local expert will make you especially appealing to any clients or potential referrals moving in from out of town. You’re providing valuable local information they need to learn more about the cities they’re going to live in.
Takeaway: You know a lot about your community so share it with your network by providing updates and information about local events, happenings and news.
10. Be authentic.
This is something we can’t stress enough and it’s what any seasoned social media expert will tell you too. Be authentic and stay authentic. We’re all constantly bombarded with information on social media and so many people only present the best versions of themselves. But your followers crave authenticity and will relate better to someone who isn’t afraid to show themselves as less than perfect.
We mentioned above that you should share your struggles and successes- this plays into the idea of authenticity. Don’t be afraid to share the story of a tough negotiation and what you learned during it (even if it fell through).
Takeaway: Your followers are more likely to trust someone who isn’t afraid to be themselves. Share your authentic self!
Bonus: Check out our seven favorite apps for creating social content
Wondering where to start when it comes to creating new content for your social media? We compiled a short list of easy-to-use apps you can use to create fresh, well-designed content for your social media platforms. Here are our six favorite apps:
1. TikTok
TikTok is not just for Gen Z! Everyone should be on TikTok using it’s one-of-a-kind video editor and style to create funny, short and easy-to-consume videos. Don’t think of TikTok as just another platform for teenagers. It’s actually a great tool for creating videos in a way that everyone enjoys watching. You can download the videos you create there and post them to other sites, like Facebook and Instagram. Still not convinced it’s appealing for your clients? It might surprise you to learn that 30% of the users on TikTok are 21-29 years old and 25% are 30-49 years old. Your clients are there!
Wondering how to get started? Check out our guide to the 5 easy TikTok videos every real estate agent should make.
2. Canva
Canva is a free and user-friendly design platform that you can use on your computer or smartphone. You can create your own designs from scratch or use the 8,000+ premade templates and free stock photos that can be formatted for any blog or social platform. For $9.95 a month, you can upgrade to the Pro plan for access to more than 60,000 templates, a larger stock photo library and the ability to create a brand kit and create and save your own custom templates.
3. Capcut
Capcut is the ultimate video editing tool for vertical video. Available for iPhone and Android users, this free app makes it easy to create videos that can be used on TikTok and Reels. You can edit clips, add transitions, select music, and insert special effects then save to your phone. This makes editing and distributing videos to multiple apps a cinch!
4. Over
Over is also a free design platform that allows you to customize premade templates and layouts. Your account grants you limited access to free stock photos and fonts. The mobile app is a bit easier to use than Canva if you find yourself designing on the go. You can also upgrade to the Pro plan for $69.99 a year for unlimited access to templates, layouts and photos and you can upload your own logos, fonts and colors for personal branding.
5. Layout
The Layout app is made by Instagram and gives you the ability to quickly filter and edit your pictures. You can easily put your edited pictures into premade layouts and collages that you can save to your phone’s camera roll or drop into another app for posting. Layout is free to use and does not require you to make an account. However, it is only available for iPhones.
6. Splice
Splice is a video editing app you can use to quickly trim and edit videos, splice clips together and set your videos to free stock music. You can also add special effects, text, transitions and more. Splice is free to download and you can receive a free trial after which you will be asked to select a weekly, monthly or annual subscription plan.
7. Videolicious
The Videolicious app is a great tool for real estate agents because you can film yourself while also showing pictures on your phone’s camera roll. So you could shoot a video showcasing a listing and intersperse video of you and photos of the home, all in one app. The Personal plan is free but does limit the length of your videos and how many shots you can feature. You can pay to upgrade to the Enterprise plan for extended video times, unlimited shots and more video editing features. Videolicious can be used on either an iPhone or an Android.
In a digital world where we’re all connected more than ever, you really can’t afford not to have a winning social strategy. Use these social media tips for real estate agents to craft a social media plan that helps you expand your network, build better relationships and meaningfully engage with your followers.
