Tame The Social Media Beast

Are you in complete overwhelm with all the different sites that people tell you to join?  On this post I’m going to focus on Social Networking sites and how to use them, but first you need to know what Social Media means.  Social Media is a category of sites that is based on user participation and user-generated content. Social media includes Social Networking sites which according to Wikipedia are online communities of people who share interests and activities, or who are interested in exploring the interests and activities of others.  I’ve also heard it explained as the practice of expanding the number of one’s business and/or social contacts by making connections through individuals.

Social Networking could soon replace most conventional lead generation and prospecting.  With so many consumers searching the internet before contacting a Realtor, it is imperative that we find a different way to reach these potential clients. According to an Inman News article, “…Web 2.0 is very much akin to the general store from 100 years ago. People came there to discuss politics, hear the latest gossip, and most importantly, find and maintain personal connection. The way that you participated was simply by being there. …places such as Facebook, MySpace, LinkedIn and YouTube serve the same function today as the general store did 100 years ago.”  Where do you begin?  Which sites do you sign up with and how do you use them to generate leads?

I agree with NikNik, author of “My Tech Opinion” blog who wrote a great post called “Focus Your Social Media Marketing.”  NikNik listed six steps for focusing your social media marketing (read more…).

So, how do you use these Social Networking sites to generate leads?  You can use these sites to network with fellow Realtors all over the country and world to build a referral base.  Have you noticed how many buyers from other countries like Canada have started investing in real estate here in the US?  Well, you can find fellow Realtors in other countries by doing a search on sites like LinkedIn and Facebook and connect with them.  You can also find them by joining  various professional groups on these sites.  Let them know that you are the local expert.  Ask your past clients you are now connected to to recommend you on sites like LinkedIn.  Answer consumer questions on sites like LinkedIn, Trulia Voices and Zillow.  Now that you’re connected with all these people you’ll be able to follow what’s going on in their lives and react.  For example I had one of my past clients post photos of their new baby.  I know knew that they were having a baby and sent them a baby gift.  They were so surprised because they didn’t even know that I knew.  I told them that I was following the progress of Facebook.  You can also post a link to your new listing or new blog posts.  Joel Burslem, author of “Future of Real Estate Marketing” blog wrote a great post called “Marketing Real Estate on Facebook” you should check out.  These are just some of the ways to use these sites to generate leads.

Just don’t be afraid of it.  It’s really not impersonal.  You can easily build lasting relationship online by using this type of networking.  I will say that face-to-face networking is still a valuable source of lead generation and a way to continue to foster those past relationships, however you can also use Social Networking.

If you have any other creative ideas for marketing yourself or property listings using Social Media, I’d love to hear from you.

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