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.