Creating and implementing a consistent social media strategy is vital for REALTORS to cultivate online leads while maintaining current relationships. Social media has reshaped the way business is conducted, both nationally and globally, across all industries. For real estate agents wanting to reach every type of buyer possible, social media is a resource you can’t go without, or else money will be left on the table, and market share will surely decrease.
For agents merely tolerating social media or for newbies wanting to dip their toe into the pool, Facebook is probably still the number one place to start. But if you want to target a younger, savvy audience, one with an itchy trigger finger, Instagram should be your new best friend. Instagram can help you connect with the millennials and first-time buyers that your business may be lacking. Though trite, the old’ saying still rings true: “A picture is worth 1,000 words.” With Instagram’s photo and video sharing capabilities, you can easily share the unique amenities your listings have to offer while also displaying snapshots of your own life to help buyers and sellers get to know you, building trust.
Keep in mind that out of its 500 million users, 70 percent check Instagram at least once a day, with half of those checking multiple times per day. Get in front of these prospective leads with these tips:
Sure, we cringe when people use hashtags in spoken dialogue (#worst, right?), but don’t let the informal culture of hashtags turn you off from their intended purpose: organize, draw attention and promote. According to research from Buddy Media, using hashtags on your Instagram posts will help your target audience find you and may even double your click-through rates. Use hashtags on every Instagram post, if possible, such as #luxury, #kitchenremodel, #losangeles (insert your market here), #realestate, and #openhouse to help pinpoint your message and connect your post with other similar posts and the users browsing that topic. If you don’t use hashtags on Instagram, you might as well not use it at all (but spoiler alert: you should!).
Get in the grid
Using your phone’s grid feature will help you take much more attractive photos. Go into your smartphone’s camera settings and turn on the Grid feature. This splits your camera view into nine blocks (aka, into thirds). You can now abide by photography’s Rule of Thirds by aligning the subject of your photo with the four guidelines and their intersection points. These intersecting points are the areas where the eye is naturally drawn to. The grid will help you get the perfect off-center shot of that waterfall feature tucked away in your new listing’s backyard. You may not be a professional photographer, but you can still post heaps of quality photos that will really wow your followers.
Edit before filtering
Ideally, you want to be aware of natural light when taking photos of homes. With the right natural lighting, a photo will need minimal editing and filtering, hence, the #nofilter hashtag (go ahead and brag a little!) Also, be aware of how different artificial lights affect a photo. Some may give off a yellow glow.
