As a self-employed realtor or mortgage broker, you KNOW the competition is stiff. There are literally thousands of other agents in a given geographic area, doing exactly what you’re doing. You don’t need us to tell you that this is a highly competitive industry!
So when it comes to the social media presence for your business, you need to stand out, and by that we mean, what makes you different? What makes you, YOU?
We’ve worked with several clients over the years in the real estate and mortgage finance industries, and the Number One thing we tell them is, “Don’t be afraid to let your personality shine through.”
Based on that guiding principle, here are our Top 5 social media tips for realtors and mortgage brokers:
1) Share what makes you unique and different.
What are your hobbies? Your passions? What organizations do you support or are you passionate about? Don’t be afraid to share these things with your clients and potential clients, through social media. One real estate agent we worked with was an avid mountain biker. She and her husband travel all over North America to ride famous trails with different mountain biking groups. This is a huge part of her personality and something we encouraged her to share regularly on her page. Doing so gave her clients a glimpse inside her life away from work, helping them feel like they really know her and upping the chances that they’ll call her the next time they need an agent. Even if your social followers aren’t mountain bike enthusiasts (for example), people like to know who they’re doing business with, beyond the picture on your business card. Don’t be afraid to share that with them.
2) If you have a target market … go after them!
There’s nothing wrong with “casting a wide net” in the world of social media —especially in the real estate industry when literally anyone you come across, either on the street or through your online presence, is a potential client. That being said, if you have a target market, go after them!
Another realtor we worked with was crazy-passionate (like nothing we’ve ever seen!) about modern architecture. His passion was also his vision for his business, so we helped him go after that market. The bulk of what we posted to his social platforms revolved around architecture of some kind, most often modern. We also encouraged him to connect (both online and off) with local home builders and architects who specialize in this type of construction. If you want it, go after it! And use your social media presence to make the connections.
3) Add some personality to your relevant content.
Your personality can shine through even if you are utilizing content you found elsewhere on the internet. Did you find a great article from Better Homes & Gardens about container gardening that you think your followers might like? Great! Share it! But don’t just hit “share” and be done with it. Write an engaging headline and tell your followers WHY you thought they might be interested in this. They will appreciate the personalization, and will be more likely to click through to the article. You’re also building trust by showing clients that you know what might be helpful or interesting to them.
4) Make them smile! Share your sense of humour.
There’s nothing wrong with looking at the lighter side of things, and social media is no exception. Should your business page be filled with jokes and cat memes? Of course not! But a lighthearted post every once in a while to show your sense of humour can do wonders for the traffic on your business page. Here’s a great example from another client of ours who is a mortgage broker. Having managed his social media pages for more than two years now, we’ve learned that his followers love anything to do with coffee or Star Wars. If we can find something that encompasses both, we have a home run on our hands! Those posts generate healthy engagement, and bring people back to his page week after week. About 90 percent of the time we are educating and informing his followers about mortgages and personal finance, but with that other 10 percent we’re simply entertaining them, and that will make this particular mortgage broker memorable to both his clients and potential clients.
5) Personality is allowed on ALL social platforms.
Let’s be honest, we all know that Facebook is the casual, coffee shop business platform, and LinkedIn is the suit and tie, boardroom platform. But we don’t believe there’s a rule that says you’re not allowed to have a personality in the boardroom!
Are the Star Wars and coffee posts appropriate for LinkedIn? In our opinion, no. But that doesn’t mean that you can’t make your LinkedIn audience smile every once in a while. Why are all the smiles only allowed on Facebook? Utilize Tip #3 on LinkedIn as well, and let your personality shine through!
In this competitive world of real estate and mortgage finance, the best social media advice we can give is to sell YOU and what makes you different!
Good luck, and remember we are always here to help. From social media consultations and workshops, to full social media management, we’ve got you covered!
Stay social!
