I recently attended a REINSW Conference in Sydney – and the conversation inevitably turned to  social media.

“We don’t use it – it’s too risky’.

“I don’t understand it – so I avoid it.”

“Isn’t Facebook a teenage thing?”

I would like to start with this statistic from realestateagentu.com in the US – over 84% of US agents are using social media platforms such as Facebook in their day to day marketing.

And more recently Channel Nine’s “Today” show reported on a Nerang based agent selling a property through Facebook.  From my own personal experience Facebook has been integral to the marketing and subsequent sale of at least three of my own listings in the past 6 months.

Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Linkedin are all social media platforms that can not only help broadcast your message, but they can build your profile and even SELL YOUR LISTINGS – all for FREE – or a fraction of your advertising and marketing budget.

With print media and online property listing giants costing increasingly more – social media is cost efficient, easy to use and highly effective when used correctly.

So how do you use it effectively? We are a small independent agency – and innovation has played a large part in growing our business and standing out in the crowd.  Just 12 months ago I launched our Facebook page.  In that time our “Coast Real Estate” page has grown exponentially and is now largest in our region. 

I spend 10 minutes a day – posting new listings (both sales and rentals), local information and events, advice or news articles relevant to real estate – anything that your clients might be interested in.  Keep your page active but don’t bombard your followers – it should be light, entertaining and informative.  The golden rule in social media is 80/20. That is post 80% of your content about lifestyles, client interests, and other updates; post 20% of your content about you and your product. This keeps your social media social, and engaging.

When I advertise property on our Facebook page I can also target specific markets – from retirees in Sydney to first home buyers in Wollongong.  This type of targeted advertising boosts your market presence through increased traffic to your website, provides more  “hits” on your property listings and greater brand recognition for your business.

And it’s not just for sales – we no longer rely solely on big name property listing websites to advertise our new rental listings.  Using local Facebook pages and community boards our rentals attract more enquiries than any other medium.

Yes - you do need to monitor your page, set up alerts and ensure the right safeguards are in place to protect your business and your brand – but these are easy to do and take very little time. So if you have been reluctant to take the leap into social media – think again.  Find a social media savvy and create a page for your business.  You won’t regret it.