Date Online: 2019-01-16
In 2017, there were 19 million Canadians on Facebook.
The numbers do not lie: You cannot succeed as a real estate broker with no active presence on the largest social network in the world.
Are you harvesting the full potential of this essential marketing tool? Read on to understand why you should open a business page and how to manage it successfully.
Who uses Facebook?
Everybody! Despite the growing popularity of other platforms such as Instagram, Snapchat or Whatsapp, especially among young people aged 18 to 24, Facebook is the crowned champion of the social media battle. 84% of Canadians have an account, and 54% of these users log in at least once a day. With such popularity, Facebook is now a formidable marketing weapon. In fact, in 2018 alone, advertising revenues of over 590 million USD are expected! With 83% of Canadians aged 15 and 34 admitting to having purchased a product after hearing good things about it on social media, it’s no surprise that so many companies are active on Facebook!
You’ve probably heard about inbound marketing, a strategy that seeks to bring the customer to you instead of fighting for his attention. This strategy requires you to be part of your prospects’ lives by providing them with interesting and relevant content. By animating your Facebook page the right way, you can strengthen your brand image and create a relationship with your customers.
Reference: https://sproutsocial.com/insights/facebook-stats-for-marketers/
Social Media 101: Eleven Rules for Real Estate Brokers on Facebook
Open a professional page
Regardless of one’s occupation, it is fundamental to keep a distance between private and professional life. For this reason, you should not use your personal Facebook profile to promote your services. After all, do you really want to share your family photos with the entire world? In addition to being very easy to create and manage, a Facebook page puts several practical tools at your fingertips, such as the ability to create contests or view statistics.
Add your contact information and link your page to your other social media
Add as much information as possible to the “About” section of your new page, and do not forget to enter your contact information. In addition to your phone number, add a link to your blog, or, if you do not have one, your page on the website of your affiliated real estate agency. It is also possible to link your Facebook page to your Instagram account. This is useful if you have a professional Instagram account. It would be unwise to link your page to your private Instagram, where you probably share photos of brunch or vacation—nothing really useful for your customers! You can also link your Facebook to your Pinterest.
Change your cover photo regularly
While it’s best to use the same profile photo as the one you’re already using on your website, signs and business card, you still have the freedom to change your cover photo regularly. Use this space to your advantage with promotional banners, open house announcements, photos of properties for sale, and more.
Do not post at any time
Sharing important information on a Friday afternoon? Don’t! Even if nothing is certain, there is evidence that certain periods greatly maximize your chances of getting more “likes” and/or “shares”; You can also check your page statistics to determine the best schedule for you.
The 80/20 rule
Your main interest is selling houses, but that’s not necessarily what your followers want to see. To keep their attention, feed your page with this equation: 80% of lifestyle content (decoration, renovation, community life, real estate news, financing solutions…) and 20% of self-promotion. And most importantly, share videos and photos—that’s what people prefer!
Talk about the neighbourhood where you are active
Show your love and knowledge of the neighbourhood! Stay informed about projects and events in your city. If you go to a public event, like a festival, share pictures and invite your followers to join you. Remember to paint the most exciting picture of your neighbourhood possible. A new summer camp has just opened? The city has just announced its intention to expand the municipal library? Write about it!
Exchange with your customers
Show that they are important to you. With their permission, share photos of new buyers in front of their future home, or proudly holding their new key. Invite your clients to socialize with you by asking questions or answering theirs… and get ready for negative feedback, too.
Avoid censorship
Angry clients might want to let off steam on your social media. Don’t let it get to you: Instead, see how this situation can be beneficial to you. Facebook is a platform that allows you to respond publicly to disappointed or angry customers, and thus prove your professionalism to all those who witness the conversation: Be polite and patient. Invite the client to contact you by phone, email or private message (Messenger) to talk it through.
Unless you are dealing with insulting messages or a troll (an individual who harasses you and your followers to create conflict), do not remove offensive comments. Such censorship may encourage angry customers to strike back or give the impression that you have something to hide. That said, did you know that you could hide a comment to make it invisible to everyone except the person who wrote it? Convenient!
Reference: https://depositphotos.com
Invite people who like your posts to like your page
Since they have already shown interest in you, they are likely to comply! It’s easy: From your page, not your personal account, click on the “reactions” section of one of your publications to display the identity of the people who have reacted. If they do not already like your page, you will be able to invite them. This procedure is described in detail here.
Organize contests
Who does not like contests? You can offer all kinds of prizes related or not to your profession, be it a discount for a restaurant or a consultation with a home-staging expert. To participate, you can invite people to like your page, ask them a question (What do you prefer about your neighbourhood?) or invite them to comment with a photo (Which renovation project are you most proud of?).
Master the promotional tools
You can promote your page or a publication to gain more popularity. Facebook allows you to select your target audience in very specific ways, for example according to its age, sex, interests, location… Try different strategies to see what works best!
How can Urbanimmersive help you?
Urbanimmersive can help you in many ways. First, our professional editors can write content that you can publish on your real estate blog and share on your Facebook page. There is nothing more popular than fresh and exclusive content. Remember the title of the essay published by Bill Gates in 1996: “Content is king.”
Urbanimmersive can also take care of your Facebook advertising campaigns. With our one-click solution, you can kill two birds with one stone and let us manage your Google AdWords campaign too. Your marketing strategy will tremendously benefit from a battle on two fronts!
