5 Social Selling Tactics for Realtors to Attract Customers Organically in 2020

Social selling might be the most underrated term in all of 2020. Is social selling the same as social media marketing? No. Is it social advertising? No. Okay, so what is it?

 

What is social selling?

 

Social selling is the ability to leverage your brand through social networks in order to add value to your market, be discovered by your target audience, build relationships with potential customers, develop authority in your space or niche, and ultimately achieve consistent sales through authentic nurturing of leads and prospects. I know, that seems like a lot of awesomeness – it almost sounds too good to be true, but it isn’t.

 

Anyone that has a brand or wants to establish one can begin implementing social selling tactics in order to begin experiencing the benefits from this powerful way of selling in our always-connected world.

 

5 Social Selling Tactics for Realtors:

 

     1. Be Consistent

     2. Don’t be BORING

     3. Show yourself. Get in front of the camera

     4. Choose an area of expertise

     5. Take testimonials seriously

 

1. Be Consistent

 

Many real estate agents only have one social media account. Usually, it’s their personal account that’s now become part of their new business account (a hybrid). Sure, this simplifies things by only having one account to post on, however, it limits the benefits you can utilize from social platforms. There’s a reason why social media platforms have business accounts – there are exclusive added features that’ll help you generate business.

Platforms want you to receive more business, they want you to serve more of their customers, they want to help you – it keeps people and businesses like yours happy with their platforms.

Another benefit of having separate accounts is the ability to develop consistent messaging with your audience. People know that your @johnsmithrealtor(example) account is probably going to be sharing information about real estate. Your audience knows what to expect and you know to share your business messages there. That doesn’t mean things can’t be re-shared on your personal, by all means – it just helps keep things separate and allows you to build a nice audience that you’ll be able to grow over time with real platform benefits like, geotagging, SEO, social advertising, linked accounts, etc.

Another point to mention regarding consistency is that you should be posting at least once a day. Choose ONE platform (I recommend Instagram) and post daily. You can use Instagram and connect your Facebook Page so that content can be reshared automatically. We’ll get into the specifics about what type of content you should be sharing but posting consistently helps keep you top of mind with your audience. People notice over time. You will become the top realtor in their network.

 

2. Don’t Be BORING.

 

Being boring is the #1 marketing sin.

When it comes to content creation you should be delivering 80% entertainment and 20% education. This might sound shocking to you, you might be saying to yourself, “I’m not an entertainer”, but believe it or not, you already do a lot of things that are entertaining for people. Some of those things include sharing new areas in town (parks, shopping centers, schools), new buildings, new developments, neighborhoods that are experiencing growth, new restaurants, new bars, upcoming events that they might not be aware of.

The fact that you do things they also do like spend time with family, exercise, and enjoy what your community offers is what makes you relatable. It makes people know, like, and trust you. In addition, to all of these relatable experiences comes the educational content.

This is where you spend 20% of the time showcasing your work day-to-day. It might be highlight a closing, sharing a customer video testimonial, sharing behind the scenes footage of a client renovation going on. A few other examples that can be powerful are when you highlight specifics about a new condo building with the latest amenities or an off the market property you got invited to see. You can also share insights into what neighborhoods are experiencing the fastest growth around town which might signal an area investor or buyer might want to target to secure appreciation. These small educational tips go a long way with your audience.

 

3. Show yourself. Get in front of the camera. 

 

How many times have you heard the term “People don’t buy your products or services, they buy into you?” In today’s market people want authenticity, they want to know you, how you think, how you do your work, the results you can deliver, who you’ve helped, what you like, why you do what you do, and they want to know if you’re focused and serious about your real estate profession. Are you worth trusting with their business? Or are you just one of the thousands of realtors that are licensed but don’t really put in the work?

I’ve seen many real estate agents post pictures of homes, fancy videos of houses, open house e-flyers, you get the idea, but there is always something missing – themselves!

A picture of a house doesn’t excite anyone, maybe a few years ago a fancy video was capturing attention, and those videos might get views, but not produce leads, or better yet buyers. If the content you share isn’t converting then you should change the type of content you share.

You want to position yourself as someone that is confident in what they do because you work hard and enjoy it. You’re not afraid to be in a video tour of the neighborhood, highlighting the schools in the area, or jumping in front of a camera and sharing with your audience why the house is special. Videos, images, with you in it sharing a story that is relevant to your audience is what gets people to trust you, think of you as an authority, empowers them to show up, reach out, and ultimately give you their business.   

 

4. Choose an area of expertise.

 

Selecting an area of expertise can be a game changer for your business. When you specialize it allows you to stand out amongst the rest. You can quickly become the big fish in the small pond.

Some are skeptical about specializing because they believe that means turning down other business opportunities outside of their specialization which is NOT what I’m saying.

A specializing activity could be you highlighting a new condo building that just went up in the downtown area. You can share pictures, take your audience on a video tour of the amenities, spend an afternoon there or maybe grab a drink at the restaurant in the building. These strategic activities over time resonate with your audience and position you as an expert in the condo and the downtown area.

This was just an example, but let’s say you live in a small town with a single-family neighborhood that is experiencing a lot of transactions, you can take your audience on tours of the types of homes that are being sold, you can share the comps, and even attend some open houses.

Whether you choose to focus on condos or single-family homes you’ll still be open to other real estate deals that might come your way. You don’t want to turn down business unless it really doesn’t make sense for you. Plus, it could lead to a great transaction and a lifetime customer that will you a positive review and send you more business.

 

5. Take testimonials seriously.

 

A video testimonial can generate you new leads and deals forever. Over time, testimonials automatically sell you and the results you’re able to provide for a customer. It’s the ultimate form of credibility. Video testimonials allow your future customers to visualize what working with you might look and feel like.

Where should testimonials go?

The should go on platforms like Zillow, Google Business Reviews, Bing Business Reviews, Yelp, and your website and social channels. (I know it seems like a lot, but it shouldn’t take more than 5-10 minutes if you’re prepared)

It’s important to be prepared when asking for reviews. You need to have your camera ready (phone cameras work), make sure there is good lighting, and make sure you’ve given your clients a heads up. You want to ask for a video and text testimonial. 30 seconds to a 1-minute testimonial is great. Simply ask them to share what their experience was like working with you.  It should only take 5 – 10 minutes to capture the video and have them copy and paste the text testimonial into the channels you need them for (Zillow, Google, Bing, and Yelp).

If your client just successfully bought or sold a home and you helped them along the way they’re going to want to thank you and providing you with a testimonial on the spot will be easier to acquire right then and there since they have the time, are in front of you, and you’re prepared with all the web pages ready to capture their review.  

This is one of the most underrated tasks realtors overlook, don’t fall for this. Once you begin accumulating reviews you will see the referrals and new leads start pouring in, just be patient and disciplined when it comes to getting a review, make it part of your closing process.

We’ve covered plenty of tactics you can implement immediately and I hope you experience amazing results in your market. If you have any questions or need further assistance feel free to leave a comment or reach out.