If you are an estate agent, you don’t need a big brand or budget to be on top of your game. You are the brand.
The future of real estate belongs to the data-enabled estate agent who knows that content creation is everything. If anything, start investing in your personal brand. Slowly build evergreen content about your local neighbourhood and become the local go-to expert. You are a data expert because you know exactly what is one the market, what is sold, and what is overpriced.
When I say create content, I don’t mean creating mindless SEO optimised outsourced content that has no value for consumers. Show how street-smart you are and give insights on your area. There are two areas you need to focus on:
- Evergreen: that’s the stuff that never gets old, like the home buying and selling experience, but closer to your neighbourhood, stuff like attractions, schools, restaurants, access to public transport and more. This is great for adding to your real estate website as standalone pages or FAQ sections.
- Current: do a weekly roundup of the new homes that came on the market and the ones that were sold and for what price. Is it a buyers or sellers market at the moment? What other real estate related news is there in your area. Be seen as the local expert. I would reserve my website news section for this and focus on social media as it would usually be short form content.
Marketing is the act of helping someone solve their problem. Remember this every time you post something.
What channels do I post to and should I outsource it?
I’ve always guarded against estate agents outsourcing their social media posts….it usually becomes run-of-the-mill boring and impersonal where there is also no real interaction with consumers. This usually happens because estate agents or business owners fail to see the incredible value social media offers in establishing personal brands. In my conversations through the years with estate agents I would hear things like I don’t have time or social media doesn’t work for me. You need to do a reset and understand that you won’t get instant success, you need to practice and be consistent.
It’s about authenticity
To create truly unique content and showcase yourself as neighbourhood expert you will need to dig deep and showcase your authenticity. People want to know who you are and what your expertise is. Just like I am writing here, you can….on your website or your social media channels or dedicated blog.
I’ve been writing on Medium and LinkedIn but there are loads of other platforms like Substack and WordPress. You need to see what works well and where you can meet your audience best. Why not use Facebook and Instagram to prelist new mandates before they hit those expensive property portals and generate interest?
Use the time in between meetings to post something to social using your mobile phone. Remember that more people will start their property search and search for estate agent reviews via their mobile phone. Our stats show the typical real estate website generates 70% of their traffic from mobile. There is a golden opportunity for you to connect with people at random times and not necessarily through your website.
Successful estate agents have a principal who supports them and this is irrespective of brand name as I’ve written here).
Be patient, it works like compound interest
We live in a world where people want instant success, but the best businesses and estate agents know that life is about compound interest. You need to start somewhere, take the risk, and try something new. The world is full of average estate agents, set your heart out to become a specialist in your field and go deep.
Start today.
The world is changing too fast. Without the spark of initiative, you have no choice but to simply react to the world. Without the ability to instigate and experiment, you are stuck, adrift, waiting to be shoved ~ Seth Godin (Poke the Box)
