Social media can be a fantastic way to build awareness and generate leads for your business. But it also comes with a long list of dos and don’ts that can make or break your social media success.
When it comes to social media for estate agents, there are certain types of posts and strategies that, over time, can work wonders for your business. But there are others that can stall your progress and leave you wondering if social media is worth your time.
The good news is, you don’t need to figure these out yourself. Here is our list of the top 10 mistakes for estate agents to avoid on social media.
Mistake 1: Only posting property listings
It may seem counterintuitive, but social media is not the place to be sharing all your new instructions, and here’s why.
Though people are exposed to ads on social media, they don’t intentionally go to Facebook or Instagram to be sold to.
A good comparison is when you sit down in the evening to watch your favourite TV program. There are ad breaks, of course, but how much do you really pay attention to them? If you’re anything like us, chances are you’ll sit and scroll on your phone until your programme comes back on.
The reason? You haven’t sat down on the sofa to be sold to. You’ve done it to be entertained.
The vast majority of your social media followers won’t be in the market to purchase a home at any given time. So only posting property listings will soon lose their attention.
While some marketing gurus suggest not posting your listings at all, if you do still want to share them we would recommend doing so for only 20% of your posts.
Mistake 2: Only posting about your company
This is a mistake that many companies make when it comes to social media, not just in the property sector.
While it’s great to post company achievements, events and reviews, you also need to give some value back to your audience. As with content marketing, you need to keep your ideal client in mind when you are posting on social media.
Ask yourself, if you were to follow an estate agent on social media, what kind of information might you be looking for? Maybe you would want tips and advice about selling your home, or some insight into the local area?
Mistake 3: Not scheduling your posts
One of the main reasons estate agents give for neglecting their social media strategy is that they don’t have time to post. But there are dozens of services out there that you can use to schedule your social media posts ahead of time.
This means that you can batch your posts, setting aside a couple of days a month (or a few hours a week, whatever you’d prefer) to create your content. You can then schedule them using your preferred service, and essentially ‘set it and forget it’.
Using a scheduling tool is also a great way to stay consistent with your posting. It’s all too easy to get out of the habit of posting by yourself, especially when you’ve got a lot going on in the office.
Mistake 4: Not making the most of it
Social media may have made the estate agent’s role slightly more complicated, but the truth is it has never been easier to reach your potential clients.
When done right, social media has the power to introduce people to your business who might not have found it otherwise, foster loyalty and encourage engagement, and even convert followers to loyal clients. Plus, unless you choose to advertise, it’s all absolutely free.
It’s a common misconception that social media is only used by teenagers or the tech-savvy. A huge 67% of the population in the UK are active on social media (that’s a total of 45 million users). And while many won’t be your ideal client, just think of the potential numbers who are.
Many estate agents shy away from social media, simply because they are not sure where to start. And while it takes some time and effort to master, the results can really push the needle for your business.
Mistake 5: Focusing on vanity metrics
When it comes to social media, it’s all too easy to become preoccupied with numbers. Whether it’s how many followers you have, or how many more your competitor has, the truth is that your follower count isn’t all that important.
A competitor may well have 20k followers, but how many do you think are actually clients? Big numbers look impressive at first glance, but they won’t necessarily lead to more sales or enquiries.
Rather than focusing on building followers, you should instead focus on providing value to the ones you’ve already got.
Mistake 6: Being too formal
You may be a company, but that doesn’t mean that your social media needs to be all work and no play.
Selling homes is a personal business, and people like to feel like they can trust their estate agent. By revealing a little of your personality through your social media channels, you can gain the trust of your audience and connect with them on a more personal level.
And that doesn’t mean you can’t relate the posts back to your business. Why not try a ‘day in the life’ style post, or a sneak peak into a new instruction?
If you are an independent agent, this advice is particularly important. The reason sellers are drawn to smaller agents is normally to get that personal touch, so why hide it away on social media?
Mistake 7: Using generic content
It might be tempting to go the ‘easy’ route and buy a load of done-for-you social media posts that you can schedule to your feed.
But these days, people can see right through bulk-bought, pre-packaged posts. And if there’s one thing for sure, they won’t inspire them to stick around.
You may think that posting something is better than posting nothing, but in all honesty it’s better to have no social media presence than one filled with generic content.
That’s not to say that you need to do it all yourself. Outsourcing your social media can be a great choice, as long as you choose to work with someone who really understands how it works and is willing to put in the time and effort to get to know your brand.
To read more about this topic, take a look at our blog post ‘Should Estate Agents Outsource Their Social Media?’
Mistake 8: Not using video
We’ve covered the value of video in several previous blog posts, and when it comes to social media video content is king. Research has shown that video has a far higher rate of engagement than text or image alone, and at a time where most people spend hours on their phones, video has the power to stop the scroll.
In fact, according to HubSpot, social media posts with videos get up to 48% more views. So if you’re not using video in your feed, there’s no better time to start.
If you’re not sure what kind of video to use, check out our post with 7 lead generating video ideas.
Mistake 9: Not engaging with your audience
For many companies, their social media feeds are just a place for them to post rather than engage with their audience. But if you don’t, you’re making a big mistake – after all, it’s called ‘social’ media for a reason!
Replying to comments on your social media posts not only shows that you are paying attention to your audience, but also that you care what they have to say. This might not seem that significant. But when someone is looking for an estate agent, these are normally two key values that they want to see.
Plus, the more you engage with your audience, the more inclined new followers will be to engage too.
Mistake 10: Not having a social media strategy
Many businesses, including estate agents, simply don’t value social media enough to put a proper strategy in place. But these also tend to be the businesses who claim that social media doesn’t work for them. Because without one, you’ll find it hard to cut through the noise.
To really get the most out of your social media efforts, you need to have a plan and clearly defined goals. This not only includes how often you post, down to the days and times, but the type of content, and your reasons for posting it.
The more specific your strategy is, the more effective your execution can be. It also means that every post will serve a purpose, so you’ll never feel like you’re wasting your time.
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