This is your FUTURE!  Personally, I get the real estate social media part; where it is really about business to business networking and building a client base for future sales. It really isn’t as much about socializing as many in the industry may think. That is just the ‘fad’ or the ‘perception’ part of social media.

I prefer to talk about the productivity part of it and what it can do for your real estate business. It’s not just about social fun (or addiction in my case)  it is verifiably effective IF you do it right and make the connection!

I view real estate whether it is in a bricks and mortar or a virtual setting as a profession and a career. Although I never acquired my license to sell, I’ve worn many ‘hats’ in the real estate space, i choose to help Realtors with their business.  It is also my livelihood! All efforts Blogging at some point should be a productive exercise and have a purpose, otherwise what is the point? In my opinion, there has to be a purpose to a posting something on Twitter other than “I just walked my dog,” or “I’m at the airport waiting for baggage!” As much as many defend this, I do not see how that enhances a professional career or image. What would be much more appealing to me… as result of my online efforts – that I were viewed as a source of information, or advice. If we can demonstrate our knowledge and real estate experience – that alone should raise the bar on why clients need to seek us out for our superior service. On the other hand, if my online image and presence is so poor, mundane or so colloquial, I’d assume that the reader or viewer will just move on very quickly! “Next”

So YOU need to be found and be someone people like to see and hear about! This is where I have served many;  is the ideal fact that a realtor or real estate company can’t be everything to everyone but connections and authenticity help even when in a virtual world.

 In the real estate industry it has been accepted and factual that even in good times there is an 80% turnover of real estate agents every two years. So here’s my question… “Is real estate social media the new “Gathering around the water cooler crowd at the office?”   The reason that I say this is that most people in the industry will not make it. They have always been time wasters and complainers in the Tuesday morning realtor meetings. This large industry turnover really magnifies the 80/20 rule or the 93/7% rule in this business. What it is really saying is that although many persons are licensed in real estate, but very few actually produce. The sad reality is that a few people in real estate produce while others talk about production, and then they move on. So how does this apply online where the conversations, comments and opinions are now online? Is real estate social media the new office hangout around a virtual coffee pot for senseless conversations, bad jokes, political rants and more?  NOT!

In my opinion, I am social, my business is social, I engage in people and conversations, I utilize the tools of technology and the internet to attract people and THIS is the future of Real Estate Marketing. More and more people are online searching for properties and if your not participating socially by virtually networking you may as well consider yourself a MLS ‘knocker’ and NOT a ROCKER! I’m seeking the MLS rockers in my business of Social Media Marketing and Consulting, ha ha just a plug-in for me:) 

Happy tweeting realtors!

Yes as we all may know, is one of the most widely used social networks in the world. Recently reported to have over 300 million active users, Facebook is quickly becoming THE social destination for online users. With so many existing active users, and new users signing on each day, the amount of opportunity for acquiring new clients, friends and business contacts continues to make Facebook an essential component of an effective  online marketing strategy.

With just about every real estate transaction starting with some type of online search, real estate professionals, home buyers, sellers and investors all rely very heavily on the Internet when it comes to completing a real estate transaction. Now, with the phenomenon of social networking, it is more important than ever that real estate professionals get involved with the most beneficial social communities. Facebook is one of those communities and here are some effective tips to use Facebook to market your real estate business.

Real Estate Marketing with Facebook

Sending virtual pokes, wall to wall comments, emails Facebook is an amazing platform for marketing any business, especially real estate. With over 300 million active users, real estate agents and brokers are sure to be able to find new clients through the vast network of home buyers, sellers and investors that use Facebook.    

Before you can effectively use Facebook to market your real estate business, it is important to embrace the network for what it is and use its features and reach to your benefit. To help you get to this point, we feel the need to get past some of your thoughts or ideas about the platform so you can sidestep any distractions that may be keeping you from using Facebook effectively!

Facebook Myths for Real Estate Marketers

MYTH: Facebook is only for high school and college kids. (And this was my thought for a few years and why I never used it, ugggg)

FACT: The fastest growing demographic on Facebook is that of the ages 35 years and older. 

TIP: It is important to remember as well that everyone knows someone, who may know someone, who is interested in buying, selling or investing in real estate. The more authority, respect and credibility you are able to amass on Facebook (and other networks like LinkedIn, YouTube, Twitter) the more likely someone else is to find you and refer someone they know to you. My thought how much more of an impression are you going to make to a Facebook friend if you acknowledge them socially even if it’s a poke!!!  

MYTH: Prospects and clients can see personal / private information (photos, posts, etc) and may be turned off by what they see.

FACT: This is in part true, but only if you allow them to. One of the best things about Facebook is that you CAN control who sees what and when. Facebook allows its users to select very specific private settings to control which people can and cannot see certain content you provide.

TIP: The easiest way to control who sees what is to start a Facebook Fan Page (in addition to a must your Facebook Profile). Once you have a Fan page you can keep all of your business related contacts here and still allow all of your friends and family to see your personal information on your Facebook Profile.   

MYTH: You have to have thousands of friends for Facebook to be beneficial for marketing.

FACT: While having a large network of friends and fans can most certainly be beneficial it is not required for Facebook to be useful for you. If the demographics of your limited friends and fans make up the exact target demographics you are looking for, or if they are key influencers in their online and offline communities, then fewer of these will be far more valuable than thousands of people you barely know.   hmmm connections!  

TIP: To attract the right type of friends and fans to your Facebook Profile and Fan page(s) you MUST publish interesting, relevant and useful content. The main reason is because you have to get people to engage with your content and if it is not interesting, then you can be sure people will not be interacting with you or sticking around long to see more.  My thought if its business then stick to business comments and hit them emotionally with what you are offering – DO not SELL, give them the dream of the real estate!  We all know it’s a numbers game! 

Some other thoughts and blurbs Why Realtors Should Market on Facebook

Social networking on Facebook is FREE

Interacting with others on Facebook can be fun (and addicting) trust me on that!

There are over 300 million active users

Over 6 billion minutes are spent on Facebook each day

More than 10 million users become fans of Pages each day

An effective Facebook marketing campaign can take less than 5 minutes a day

All of that being said don’t use the excuse that YOU have NO time to be on FACEBOOK!  The fact that we have tools today that allow our hard work to extend beyond what was previously impossible is an amazing opportunity and it can be done quickly!  Focus on the 20% not 80% and I more efforts on Social Networking.

The way to my head & heart is talking Real Estate.  And put  Real Estate & Social Media together well it’s a niche fit for me cuz i got plenty to be social about. 

 My background has been Real Estate ever since i broke out of the ‘parents’ house at an early age a down payment on my first condo sworn to never rent my living space and so it began.  I’ve worn many ‘hats’ in the industry never wanted to become a realtor and still feel the same way but i know enough and learnt from the best.  But having a license, to me would have conflicted & compromised what i really wanted to do and that is Investing.   I bought ugly, i made ‘nice’,  i re-sold, flip flip flip and then the Economy, thanks Mr.Bush took a down-turn and the world changed as we see it today and now I hold hold hold!   As well, my life changed, relationships, Joint Ventures, and my Real Estate business.  So we adjust, we pivot, we regroup and that’s what i did & I am thankful for all the learning, scarcity, & abundance i’ve been given.  ok one moe political tweet:) Good luck Mr.Obama you gotta monumental TASK! 

 With the doom & gloom of a Recession i was forced to re-evaluate, make changes to this present situation, and look towards the future of How we do BUSINESS?!

If you are NOT doing business online you will SINK!  I believe & thank the power of the Internet everyday.   I have now ‘partnered’ with the Internet and put in a lot of time learning my trade with my experience in ‘street’ smarts & doing whatever it takes to acquire a good ROI in Real Estate .  ie Real Estate + Social Media = PERFECT PARTNERS, I want to talk to you about the next 4 strategies that you can utilize in your real estate business to drive more traffic to your real estate website.  These 4 strategies can be very effective & can bring you a lot of business if you take the proper & massive action or you hire someone to do this!

Let’s not waste anymore time and get started on the next 4 strategies.

Strategy #1 – Joint Ventures

This strategy is one of the most overlooked and ignored strategies out there.  Why?  Because a lot of real estate investors view it as “my competition will steal my leads.”  Let me explain how this strategy works:

Let’s say that you invest in Vancouver surrounding areas.  You have a  real estate website where sellers can contact you to use your services.  However, you have found that there is a significant amount of people who contact you that want to sell their homes in other areas lets say Surrey or Alberta.   Since you only invest in Vancouver surrounding areas, you have to turn these people away. 

ha ha who does that? ‘big or small take em all!’  my Dad would say that..

What if you contacted other real estate investors who have websites and invest in those other areas? 

What if you created a joint venture with them? 

What if you told them that you can send them some leads for their areas and for every lead you send them or for every house they buy, you get something in return.  Now, if you get paid for this, make sure you obey any and all laws, as all realtors are aware crossing your T’s and dotting your ‘i’s is crucial….  Protect your Shitte!

All in all, it’s a very simple strategy and you can make extra profits and get extra leads you would never see otherwise.  Why?  Because your JV partner will do the same for you.

Strategy #2 – PPC Marketing   ok read it but i don’t pay for advertising ever! Go Organic ask me how?   Busy realtors will NOT have time to go Organic!  Wikipedia, definition: Web traffic which comes from unpaid listing at search engines or directories is commonly known as “organic” traffic. …

ok read on…

PPC (pay per click) marketing is one of the fastest ways to get traffic and leads coming to your site.  In fact, you can get leads within 15-30 minutes depending on how fast your campaign gets approved.  There are dozens of PPC marketing companies you can use but one of the most popular ones out there is Google’s Adwords.  All you do is get a Free Adwords account, setup your ads, landing pages for those ads, budget per day and you can start driving traffic to your site right away.  Word of caution here:  PPC marketing can cost you a lot of money if you don’t know what you are doing.  Therefore, you’ll need to study it or hire someone who is an expert in PPC marketing.  

Tip #101

Make sure that everything from your ad headline to the ad body, to the destination url, to the landing page is RELEVANT.  For example, if your keyword phrase is: “sell home in Coal Harbour,”  then make sure that the phrase appears in the ad headline, ad body, ad destination url and the headline of the landing page itself.  This one change will help you get better quality score, higher ad positions and lower irrelevant click throughs.

Strategy #3 – Press Releases

Press releases are a quick way to get traffic, recognition and authority for you and/or your company.  Let’s say that you just closed on a deal and you helped a homeowner in distress solve their problem.  They are very grateful to you for helping them and gave you a great testimonial.  Now, you can write a press release about what just happened, how you helped them, what they said, etc.  Or How about NEW Real Estate Development launches!  NO Brainer a Press Release is in ORDER but do it right and make it BIG!  You can create your own Personal Brand and be a Rock Star in your own Market.  The press release is out to the local media channels and via the internet badahhhbing!

When using the internet, you can use press releases sites such as prweb.com, webwire.com and prleap.com.  Not only will you get recognition and authority but hundreds of back links to your site that will help your website get higher rankings.

Strategy #4– Social Media Marketing  (my plug-in!!)

I use social media for my business and my business is Social Media.   Simply put: it rocks!  Why?  Because social media is based on building relationships.  Therefore, by the time you start talking business, the other person has built some kind of a relationship with you & will trust you to help them solve their problem.

There are hundreds of social media websites but I would suggest you start with social media sites such as Twitter, Facebook, & LinkedIn,  to name a few!   One of the most important tips I can give you about using social media is to stop selling right away. Remember that people use social media to get away from commercials and being sold to all the time.

When you start selling to others right away, they won’t pay attention to you and will un-friend you!  

Real Estate & Social Media are a PERFECT match for one another!

Why? 

Real Estate is a very emotional attachment and SO is SOCIAL MEDIA!  

With Social Media Marketing, consistency is key and your followers want to know your HUMAN so be real, don’t slam them with your website links or boring listings.  Your followers want to know you’re not just a Realtor but a friend = RELATIONSHIP = Connection (LEADS)! 

And think about THIS!  How many times does the average person and/or family by a home in a lifetime?  hmmm i’m guessing 2-3 times!

Send them a tweet , give em a  poke; just keep socially and virtually connected and so it with all your present, past, & FUTURE real estate friends!  It cost you nothing but your time. 

Ask me how?  lol another plug-in!