Article courtesy of Katie Lance, of Katie Lance Consulting.
Facebook recently made a big announcement about how the Newsfeed would work and it has created quite the stir.
I have had countless people tag me in posts about it on Facebook, message me, email me, etc. and ask me my opinions about it when it comes to real estate agents and brokers and what this means for them for their Facebook plan in 2018 – so I’d like to share my thoughts and recommendations here.
Here’s what we know from this announcement and from Mark Zuckerberg’s post:
“The first changes you’ll see will be in News Feed, where you can expect to see more from your friends, family and groups.” – Mark Zuckerberg
In my opinion – this is a good thing. Don’t we all want to see more from our friends and family and less advertising and less spam? Aren’t we all tired of people spamming us in the Newsfeed? I know I am. Here’s the good news especially for real estate agents. Real estate has always been and will always be a ‘people business.’
It is all about relationships and connections. So, yes, I do think it is still important to have a Business Facebook Page (more about that in a moment,) but I think it is even more important than ever for real estate professionals to be connecting with their clients on a personal level.
At the end of a transaction, are you reaching out to them on Facebook and messaging them to let them know how much you enjoyed working with them and then adding them as a friend? Are you then putting them into a private “Client” list so you can be intentional in terms of connecting with them on a regular basis by commenting on their posts, liking their content or reaching out one-to-one on their birthday or other big life events? If the answer is ‘yes’ – than that is great! You are already on the right track when it comes to how this new Newsfeed will work. If you have not done this yet – the time is now. Real estate is a relationship business and when it comes to social media – relationships are built with small interactions over the course of time. Every like, comment and share adds up.
It has and always will be about others and not you. The best way you can use your personal Facebook account as a real estate professional is to be interested in others; especially be intentional about being interested in your clients. I will take that a step further and say it’s more important than ever to not be a lurker and to not be a drive-by liker. Don’t just pop into Facebook and randomly like 10 things. Actively comment on things that speak to you. Share posts from your clients who are doing great things in their world. Now, more than ever is the time to be a good finder and look for moments to share great things from the world around you.
We also know from Mark’s message above that groups will be getting priority too. We have had a great deal of success with our two public groups (our Social Media Forum and our Social Media Managers group) and our private group (for our #GetSocialSmart Academy.) Although a Facebook Business Page is still important for real estate pros to post your listings, post your original content, post your videos and Facebook Live content (not to mention to run Facebook ads) – a Facebook Group, now more than ever may be a great option for real estate agents and brokers and may give you more visibility.
We see brokerages who have been doing this for years where they have a private group for their agents only to share new to the market listings, information about upcoming training and more. It has become a safe place to share.
For real estate agents, creating a local group about your neighborhood or community can be a really great opportunity to share valuable local information, bring in other thought leaders and business leaders into your group and to create a great local community where you are helping to lead that conversation.
“We’ve seen people interact way more around live videos than regular ones. Some news helps start conversations on important issues. But too often today, watching video, reading news or getting a page update is just a passive experience.” – Mark Zuckerberg
To me, this is a reinforcement of the value of Facebook Live. We have already made the commitment to step up our Facebook Live strategy (you can see me talk about this in the replay below of our recent Facebook Live.)
For real estate agents and brokers, I think it is going to be more critical than ever to think about your Live video strategy for 2018. Live video gets more interaction; more reactions and comments than typically any other type of post and going forward it may be the single best way for an agent or broker to get significant traction on their Facebook Page. According to Livestream, “Live video is more appealing to brand audiences: 80% would rather watch live video from a brand than read a blog, and 82% prefer live video from a brand to social posts.”
They key here – just like any other type of content is that it can’t be a one-way conversation. Where I see a huge opportunity for real estate agents and brokers is in bringing real value; sharing updates about the market, tips about buying and selling homes, highlighting local leaders in the community and much more. If you haven’t already, make sure you download our free cheat-sheet with 30 Facebook Live ideas for real estate. This is a great place as you think about your Facebook Live strategy for 2018.
Who is doing this really well right now? Tons of folks like Jason Frazier, Rory Pitts, Sue “Pinky” Benson, RE/MAX Leading Edge, Katie Clancy, Chelsea Peitz, Sonia Figueroa just to name a few!
So why is everyone in a panic? I love what author and speaker Mark Schaefer said about this today in his post. He said, “… why is everybody in a panic? Zuckerberg is only reinforcing what we have already known for years. If you do a good job with engaging content … you’ll be in the news feed.”
I could not agree more.
Now, more than ever it is time for agents and brokers to dig deep and to create a creative plan and a strategy. And for the broker/owners and franchise owners reading this – now is the time to get your creative plan in place. It is not enough to just have a social media manager running your Facebook Page. Now is the time to invest in the tools, resources and staff to really make this work for you. It’s not enough to just “dial it in” and post a few times a week to Facebook and automate your tweets. It’s not enough for real estate brands to “just be there.” But again – this is not new news. It’s just a reminder that in 2018 you must to do more to stand out from the competition.
If I was a real estate agent reading this, this is what I would do:
If I were a real estate brokerage or franchise owner reading this, this is what I would do:
At the end of the day, in 2018 it’s not about sharing content for the sake of sharing content. It’s not about “set it and forget it.” It’s not about handing off social media to the youngest person in the room. In 2018 it’s going to boil down to two big things to stand out in Facebook’s Newsfeed if you are in real estate: 1. It’s about creating really great content – not just once in a while but on a consistent basis; week in and week out that is going to attract the people you want to work with. 2. It’s about being real, being yourself and investing the time into cultivating those relationships.
Real estate has been and will always be a relationship business. Focus on that – and you will crush it in 2018 and beyond!