Real estate has always been, and will continue to be, an industry centered on relationships. As such, real estate professionals are poised to exploit social media to further build relationships and their engagement of sphere of influence. However, many agents use Facebook, Google+, Twitter, Instagram, and the other social media sites merely as platforms of ‘marketing’ – and by that it’s merely spouting listings without any real value to the audience.

Here are a few tips based on observations of social media successes and failures:

1. Be REAL. Don’t just talk about your latest and greatest listings – that’s a surefire way to get your audience to tune you out. Show your personality, relate to people, and be genuine. Be the real you, for better or for worse (hopefully for the better), and customers will respond accordingly.

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by Louis Cammarosano

Based on responses from over 500 real estate agents and brokers nationwide, referrals ranked as the number one marketing preference among real estate professionals for acquiring new clients, with an overall score of 8.95 (out of 10) for effectiveness. Referrals also ranked number one in the 2011 and 2010 surveys.

Leads from brokers (scored a 5.6) and Events (5.26) ranked second and third, respectively, as most effective marketing strategies, which remained unchanged from 2011.
Online lead generation services (5.19) ranked fourth, jumping four positions from the 2011 survey. Email Campaigns (4.92) and Featured Listings (4.91) swapped positions from the 2011 survey and came in fifth and sixth, respectively.

Postcards and Mailers (4.9) were bumped down from sixth in the 2011 survey to seventh. However, it scored half a point higher in 2012. Craigslist (4.3) and Youtube (4.1) ranked eighth and ninth, respectively. Youtube scored 0.6 points higher than in 2011, helping it jump three spots.

In the 2011 survey, Social Media sites like Facebook and Twitter were grouped into one category. In 2012, each site stood on its own. Overall in 2011, Social Media scored a 3.8. In 2012, Facebook (4.0) ranked 10th, Google+ (3.7) ranked 12th, LinkedIn (3.61) ranked 14th and Twitter (3.43) ranked 19th. The average of these scores is 3.69.

Blogging (3.91) ranked 11th in 2012. This represents a 0.62 increase and a jump of two spots from 2011.

“Despite the hype of social media as an effective marketing outlet, real estate professionals once again voted referrals as the most effective and most preferred form of marketing,” said Louis Cammarosano, General Manager of HomeGain. “Also coming in ahead of social media were in person events, like open houses, mailing of post cards and online lead generation services.”

Top Effective Marketing Strategies for Real Estate Professionals in 2012:

(Cumulative Averages, 1=least likely to use/10=most likely to use)

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I was reading a recent HomeGain article about the relationship between social networking and SEO, and it made me think about the anxiety many real estate brokers must feel as they work hard to position their company and agents for success in this rapidly evolving online world.

Even though agents have been told that they should be blogging, understanding all of the tools, tricks and systems required for implementing an effective Social Media strategy is an overwhelming challenge that most busy real estate agents simply don’t have enough time for.

However, for a real estate company, building a strong web presence must be a priority if they want to help their agents gain a competitive advantage in the local marketplace.

While there are several DIY trail-blazers that are willing to openly share the process of how they failed their way to success on the web, brokerage owners don’t necessarily have the luxury of being able to test a few Internet Marketing strategies until they get it right.

Agents, support staff, listing clients, landlords…. are all counting on their real estate firm to execute an online agenda that provides measurable results.

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Who Moved The Ends?

It’s a popular line when giving directions. “You go to the end of the block and turn left.” And it’s hard to go wrong. After all, the end is…the end. When you get there you know what to do. Because it’s the end.

Except when they move the ends.

It’s like the proverbial “pot-o-gold” at the end of the rainbow. If you’ve ever tried to find it (and I did as a kid!), then you discover a very disturbing fact. The end of the rainbow keeps moving. The closer you get, the more it moves away. It’s kind of like the current real estate market.

Someone keeps moving the ends.

I just read an interesting post entitled “How do you get back to the basics when the basics have changed?” Great question! And I can totally relate. In our office meeting just yesterday we got into a lively discussion between the techies and the tech-nots. The argument was based around the idea that technology is critical to the markets of the future. The techies were advocating websites, email blitzes, SEO, Facebook, Twitter, internet leads and so on. The tech-nots were out there pounding on doors, holding open houses, networking at local events and advocating face-to-face contact. I sat in the back corner and listened with interest – both sides were advocating their side at the exclusion of the other. Guess what? Continue reading this post

Social media relationships are all about comfort level… after all you haven’t even met yet.

The new world of social media allows people to connect initially online, and then hopefully in real life at a conference, event or an arranged meeting. Simply put, the face to face meeting cements the relationship on a tangible emotional level. The operative word is emotion. The social media conversation that leads to a business relationship is conducted primarily through chat, email and a perusal through blogs, Facebook profiles and Tweets. Since there may be no tangible face to face feedback, the emotional criteria for gauging a virtual relationship based on a batch of text-based interchanges is not “what are they saying, what is the content?”, but “how do I feel about this virtual relationship?”. It’s about comfort level.

The art behind social media relationships is to make people feel happy.

If you’re providing valuable content, your readers thank you. If you’re a great joker, your readers laugh. It’s all about good will, and your online presence should mirror this message.

Most people on the social media don’t give a second thought about how they present themselves to the world, living by the “this is how I am, so take or leave it” credo. That’s ok. Just be considerate of the fact that comfort levels can deflate if you’re lauding Glenn Beck in San Francisco, or supporting socially liberal causes in Utah. Labeling is easy to do on the social media because it’s a text-based media; everybody has seen examples of rants that devolve into labeling and context twisting.

If you’re in the business to work with as many people as possible, it’s not hard to make good will a social media objective. Unless of course, you are inclined to work with people who also share your life philosophies… I have heard many stories by folks who have built businesses by being ardent and outspoken in their beliefs, and it seems to work for them.

Pat Kitano will be speaking at HomeGain Nation on Monday, March 1, 2010, about social networking trends and advice for real estate professionals.

This is it! Last video from HomeGain Nation 2009 Live Real Estate Forum in San Francisco. And it’s a really good one, too!

This video features some of the best in the business for online marketing and social media experts –

• Jay Thompson, Thompson’s Realty, PhoenixRealEstateGuy.com
• Robert Hahn Robert Hahn, 7DS Associates, Notorious R.O.B.
• Patrick Kitano, Domus Consulting, Transparent Real Estate
• Joseph Ferrara, Sellsius Real Estate Blog

Louis Cammarosano, the General Manager at HomeGain, moderates this power group, who discuss marketing trends in the real estate industry.

What challenges are REALTORS are facing in today’s Internet space? Advertising trends through social media? Value of networking via micro-blogging tools? Of course they give insight and best practices for Facebook and Twitter and how to enhance the quality (or quantity) of your social media followers.

Watch the “Trends in Real Estate Marketing” Video

Watch more HomeGain Nation session videos

Also see more HomeGain Nation real estate videos on the HomeGain YouTube channel, on the HomeGain Nation Blog. and in the HomeGain Media Center.