TAP 185. The Best Social Media Platforms For Real Estate Agents

Top Agents Playbook

Here are the social media platforms and content to focus on right now.

To work out the most popular topics for this podcast, all I need to do is go back into the control platform and see which episodes have the most downloads.

...and if I need any confirmation, I head into the back end of Jigglar, our online design template platform and look at what the most popular downloads are about.

I'm sure you guessed it... social media.

But then I sometimes wonder if social is popular because it works or because it's free. I think it's definitely, a combination of both.

In this mini-episode I want to share what I've learned about social media in the last year and also give you the heads up on which platforms agents are using the most to get results and what type of content they're posting.

There's a massive shift going on right now and we're all part of it. In fact, I believe real estate is one of the industries that has the most gain from this shift.

This shift is not only about how we're reaching out and connecting with future clients, it's about how they are reaching out and connecting with us.

For example, you're listening to this podcast episode right now by choice. You're not listening to a podcast about Latvian rugmaking or instructions on how to train your Portuguese water dog. You're looking for ideas and inspiration on winning more listings and making more sales.

It's the digital age and suddenly, we have choices to consume the type of content we want to consume. Your future clients are doing the same thing.

Right now they're searching Youtube for information. They are just as likely to click on a video that offers the 7 things they must know before they selling in 'your area' or a video that's all about the top 3 ways to create a buyer's bidding war when selling in 'your area'.

In fact, there is so much demand for highly relevant and niched content people can consume, that it's almost impossible to match it with the supply required.

It was the early two thousands when the global media giants started diversifying because they could see the writing on the wall.

If you owned a bunch of newspapers and magazines in the late nineties, your readership was starting to go elsewhere. The monthly circulation of the larger mastheads was falling like a brick as companies like News Corp, one of the biggest in the world, scrambled to understand and then try to capitalize on the new digital world that caught them napping.

I think the best way to look at the changes between the old newspaper and magazine world from last century and the digital world we know today is to compare Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation to the novelty online start-up that nerdy student Mark Zuckerberg founded in his Harvard dorm room in 2004.

Comparison is relatively straightforward as the stock of both companies is publicly traded.

Founded in 1980, News Corp has a market capitalization of $15 billion while Facebook comes in at close to $900 billion or 60 times that of News Corp.

This begs the question: Is a social media ad likely to be 60 times more effective than a newspaper or magazine ad? I'd say a resounding yes. And with good reason.

Look at the specific media changes around this shift to digital.

Radio has been replaced by iTunes, Spotify and Podcasts

Billboards, Magazines and Newspapers have been replaced by Facebook, Instagram Reddit and Twitter to name a few.

TV has been replaced by Youtube and a whole range of streaming services like Netflix and HBO.

Letters in the mail have been replaced by email and a bunch of messaging services.

Outdoor advertising is pointless because it's way harder to engage a potential client and the last time I looked around at other drivers at the lights, everyone had their noses in their phones.

I didn't start out trying to convince you of the obvious marketing shift, I think you already know that because your one of my listeners and your smart.

My mission is to get you to do more of it starting today.

So I want to get into two things, where you need to be, and what you need to say.

Right now, Facebook, Youtube and Instagram are commanding most of the consumer attention in your area. Yes there are other social platforms like TikTok, Twitter, LinkedIn and Pinterest etcetera but can I suggest you master the big three first then start playing with the rest if you have the time and inclination.

...and by the way, if you're winning new relationships from some obscure app, then don't stop. But current research numbers tell us, the lion's share of traffic is going to those three.

Increasingly, Instagram is perfect for agents for a whole number of reasons. It's also said to be 10 times more engaging than everything else. Facebook is the industry favorite right now but not for much longer I'm predicting.

You also have the advantage of multiple broadcasting options inside Instagram like a regular post, Instagram stories and IGTV.

Youtube now ranks as the second biggest search platform and having spent the last 12 months renovating our boathouse on the lake, I can tell you that it's an amazing resource of ideas and instructional videos where someone like me can actually do something and be proud of it.

There's no way I could have done that last century.

So let's talk about content.

If you're a regular listener you will have heard how agents are getting results from social.

Long story short, content ideas are everywhere.

Right now the market is crazy so why don't more agents post about how they handle multiple offers to attract sellers. What about a short video for buyers offering your experience and expertise in the same area?

Youtube is crying out for you to share the 10 things buyers need to know before they buy a home in 'your area'.

Or simple daily posts like 'Here's a list of take-out restaurants in Bondi Beach, what's your favorite?' can get massive engagement.

Content ideas are everywhere.

I see a million video posts of new listing walk-throughs and they're okay but unless I'm buying or selling, I'm not really interested. So why not tell me where you get your coffee and feature your talented Barista doing her thing!

Content ideas are everywhere.

Your challenge is to start and keep going. Too many people quit early. Your Youtube content is not going anywhere, so keep building on it. Your market is global. How do you know that person watching in another country doesn't own property less than a few kilometers from where you're sitting right now?

Right now Youtube is free. Can I suggest you start leveraging that one important fact?

I remember back in the day when you'd run a $1000 magazine or newspaper ad. The sales guy would tell you not to expect calls but the important thing is that you're getting 'exposure' and promoting your brand. I can just hear him saying "It's all about repetition" What a load of rubbish those guys fed us.

I guess that's the difference between now and then. Back then a $1000 ad would last for a day. Today you can upload awesome video content for free that stays there forever.

So let's summarize, Focus on Instagram, Facebook and Youtube and post engaging content about the things you are doing in your day. Oh and don't forget to smile.

Until next episode, dream big and take names