I would like to share 6 points with you on why I think social media is a smart move for real estate. It is not because it’s the new hot thing, but because it truly provides a great opportunity to reach potential real estate buyers and renters. I like social media because it teaches us to market the right way, with the consumer in mind every step of the way.

1. It Encourages Your Audience To Participate

Social platforms can give potential buyers a chance to participate and add to advertising messages. This strengthens the message. Let’s say you wanted to advertise the lifestyle aspect of your residential community. A good way to really inform potential buyers of the lifestyle is to let them see it. If you can get current residents to participate, their words will far outweigh yours. By involving current residents in the discussion of say a Pumpkin Festival, you are getting first hand accounts of the community lifestyle.

2. It’s A Two-Way Communication Channel

Social media opens up a two-way communication channel. Print ads merely send a one-way message. Social media messages should encourage a response. Hasn’t this always been the goal? We have always wanted our ads to provoke a response whether is be a phone call or an e-mail. Social media takes it this idea to the next level. Our messages become communication channels in themselves.

3. It Helps Define Who You Are

Social media forces you take a good look at yourself. Writing a blog is a good way to figure out exactly who you are or what your project has to offer. I think this helps in defining your target audience.

4. It Adds A Personal Touch To Your Message

Social media adds a personal touch to your advertising. I find this especially relevant in real estate. Purchasing or renting a home is one of the most important decisions a person can make as a consumer. The social channels can give you a chance to address personal concerns. Consumers want to do business with personable people.

5. It Provides You With Options

Social media allows you to incorporate different media platforms into one message. A blog for example can have a video, audio clip, photo slide show and power point all in one post. Including all of these in one blog might be a little too much, but if it was necessary, you could do it.

6. It Allows You To Adapt Your Message

Maybe the most important aspect of social media is that it allows you to adapt your message. If you have a floor plan or a unit that prospects seem to like, you can mold your content around those units. In order to do this, you must listen to what others are saying. Listening can expose both the good and the bad, but both should be embraced. Listening helps you take advantage of the positives and address the negatives quickly. It allows you to adapt your message.

Remember To Focus On Your Message

Everyone wants to understand social media, and implement it as fast as possible. We tend to focus more on the tools such as Facebook and blogs before we truly understand the messages we are trying to send. We need to first understand the strategy behind social media advertising before we start focusing on the tools.

As new social media tools are unveiled everyday, it is important not to feel overwhelmed. As long as you remember the strategy behind the tools, nothing will change. This is only a quick look at some of the benefits of using social media in real estate. If you have any questions about social media and how it relates to real estate, please shoot me an e-mail. I would love to help.

Tags: Advertising, Blog, Communication, Facebook, Real estate

This entry was posted on Wednesday, October 28th, 2009 at 10:51 am and is filed under Real Estate Sales, Real Estate Trends. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.