To make your business a success, you need leads.
But did you know that there is so much more you can do to generate more leads with just a little effort? Or you probably did but really don’t know where to start.
Let me ask you a question.
How many minutes do you spend a day on Facebook or Twitter?
Okay so you haven’t timed it but if you did, it would be big numbers, right. How many adverts do you see that you then click on? Again probably big numbers.
This is why I want to guide you through all the reasons why social media is and should be your greatest friend. And how you can use social media to generate new homeowner leads. If you are looking for more ways than just social media to generate leads, then check out our list of property lead generation methods article.
If you feel daunted about the idea of delving into social media, there are plenty of social media services out there that you can outsource to.
Don’t let the thought of the unknown prevent you from growing your Estate Agency in this way.
It’s where your next instruction is!
Maybe not so simply, but naturally you want to be where your customers are. And we all know where millennials are hanging out these days. Let’s dive into some of the facts.
- 99% of millennials start their property search online!
- Facebook is most favoured by 23-37 year olds and 60% of 52-71 year olds are active users
- On Instagram 18-34 year olds account for 61% of the user base.
And on video content 60% of people prefer video platforms to live television and a staggering 64% of consumers will make a purchase after watching a social video online
There has never been more ‘in your face’ facts that as an Estate Agent, you’ll want to be promoting your business on social media.
It certainly proves that promoting your business to generate more on social media works.
We are in the numbers game
Which is why I asked you moments ago, how many adverts do you click on.
Just like you, I can’t help but click on something that looks inviting, especially when it is something that I might have been thinking about.
Now new leads from social media aren’t a complete science. But getting your Estate Agency in front of as many people as possible will naturally let more people know about your business and what you have to offer.
Out of those people there will be some that are either interested in buying or selling a property.
Its cheaper (and more effective) than a door drop
Sometimes we always do what we’ve always done without questioning whether times have changed.
I’m surprised that some estate agents are still battling with the old ‘door to door’ leaflet-ing with no insight as to whether this method still works.
There’s just no way of tracking the success of a newspaper advert or a leaflet door drop
Suffice to say ‘door to door’ leafleting is also impossible to measure.
Unless you are going to pin down and interrogate every new enquiry you receive, to find out whether they saw your leaflet.
So we have established that being on social media will get you in front of a huge (and the right) audience but did you know that you don’t have to shelve out a whole heap of money to do it either?
You’ll know from having your own personal profile on any social media channel that the set up is free and super easy.
Posting, comments and re-sharing is all free too.
It is totally up to you if you want to take it up a notch and do paid advertising (such as on FaceBook adverts) but even then the money you will spend is nowhere near the cost of a door drop.
If you do decide to go down the paid advert route you’ll see the impact of your investment.
For example, you’ll know exactly how many people saw your advert and what future customers were looking at before they contacted you.
Reach audiences outside of your town
If 2020 taught people anything, it was about getting their priorities straight.
With that came lots of existential questions and also “do we really want to stay in this poky flat in London?” so the search began for people to look at the countryside and seaside locations.
For obvious reasons people weren’t able to explore what neighbourhoods in other counties were like or able to arrange in-person viewings.
But thanks to the wonderful digital world of marketing, future customers were able to fantasise about that quaint cottage in the Cotswolds.
This was all due to the online activity that estate agents, like you, were or could be putting out there.
So many more people are choosing to ‘up sticks’ and move away for a more balanced and harmonious existence. With no geography restraints, social media has never been more vital to your estate agency world.
Can you think of any other way to generate interest from other parts of the country, or even the world?
Raise your brand and the trust in your service
Every opportunity there is to promote your brand and your service, you’d want to take it right? and social media gives you the stage to do this.
A staggering report by Qualtics in Oct 2020 stated that 91% of 18- 34 years old consumers trust online reviews as much as personal recommendations.
The stat around this is quite alarming, but encouraging don’t you think?
You may have heard the term ‘social -proof’, where reviews from your followers can go a long way in improving your brand’s credibility.
Which would then result in more people contacting you when looking to buy, sell or let a property.
With people willing to give feedback on services, why not ask your customers online what they thought of the way you sold their house in 7 days?
re they likely to leave you a raving review?
You bet!
You can then whizz off a quick post mentioning the speed of sale (with your client’s permission) with them then commenting on your post.
They may even re-share the post, with their network which is going to send your kudos up the roof.
Imagine in the in-person world, how long it would take to get hold of the customer, then pluck up the courage to ask them for that recommendation, for them to say yes.
But then forget as soon as they get off the phone to you.
Even a complaint handled well online can turn into a positive.
Most people accept that mistakes will happen, it’s how we manage them that is what current and future customers want to see.
Being on social media channels will being more traffic to your website
Everything that you do on your social media channels can be linked back to your website and did you know that would in turn improve your google ranking? And who doesn’t want that!
All your social media profiles can be linked back to your website, meaning that it is a super cost effective way of getting more traffic to your property pages.
The more high-quality content that you have on social media, the more people will be bouncing over to your website.
While you may not acquire instructions directly through social media platforms from the word go, it’s a very strong foundation to build your brand and make personal connections.
We don’t know any other channels where you can engage and share content as easily as you can on social media. Do you?
If a potential customer sees your estate agency on lots of social networks, it helps them to remember your brand and see the quality of your services.
They are likely to reach out to your estate agency if not then, but at a time when they or someone else they know needs you.
Because your followers can see what you are posting, commenting and re-sharing, it gives you the perfect opportunity to interact with them in the virtual (and real) life.
Having access to social media so easily, means that they can send you a quick question and equally you can reply - hopefully even quicker.
Which leads to another important point that there should be someone always responsible for managing your social media.
This includes posting and replying on any social channels your estate agency has a presence.
As well as increasing the profile of your brand, social media can do as much damage (quicker than building it) if questions are not answered promptly.
Get ahead of your competition
As mentioned, even though we know that Estate Agents should be using social media, they aren’t and those that are, well, are not always doing it very well.
This is where you can get ahead.
It doesn’t matter if your competition is bigger than you, everyone is on the same playing field if they haven’t spent the time promoting themselves on social media.
You can say exactly what you want, when you want about your service rather than letting your competitors do the talking.
By putting out quality copy and photos you can build yourself up to be a respected ‘voice’ in the property world in a relatively short time compared to the length of time it would take in the physical world.
We see estate agents doing lots of posting about properties they have coming up or trying to generate more leads but the one thing that they neglect is the engagement side of social media.
This is the foundation on which the platforms are established. We need to respect that if we go into that space.
Unsure of who your competitors are? Check out our extensive guide on how to conduct an estate agent competitor analysis.
Think of social media as building a community, rather than another place to ‘push’ your properties out.
This does mean it really shouldn’t all be serious stuff.
It’s important to be able to humanise your content, with fun stuff too.
You could run a competition or ask your followers to vote on a change that you might be making to your offices.
Remember it’s all about starting and having conversations
You want to be saying things that you know your competitors aren’t, starting conversations that your audience can participate in or follow.
Show your personality and the personal touch is always appreciated and you will stand out.
Whether you decide to share the latest local market report, link to any blog posts you have written (btw you are blogging right?) or hosting Q&A sessions with your followers, you will be houses ahead of your rivals.
By using social media, your estate agency can create more personal relationships with your current and future customers whilst increasing the visibility of your brand.
We know how competitive the Estate Agency world is and as such your rivals are looking for ways to interact with your audience too.
Even though more estate agents are creeping into this space, there’s a long way to go in the industry taking advantage of all the opportunities that social media has in store.
I hope that this article has given you food for thought or did you stop half-way through to create a FaceBook page for your estate agency? Hi five if you did!
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