I’ve been in Title sales since 2005. Back then the phrase “get discovered online” or “build an online presence” wasn’t used very much. It was all about how many postcards can I blast out to a certain marketing area, or even buying a ton of ad space in real estate magazines. How times have changed…oh wait…for many Realtors, the times have not really changed that much…for them. They are still stuck marketing their business almost the exact same way, though consumer behavior has changed in a big way. People continually reach out to me saying they were “Googling something” or “found me on YouTube” Realtors still think that’s quite cute when I tell them of my success. In the meantime, they keep plugging along wondering why they are wasting marketing dollars. They struggle because their real estate online presence stinks. Our job, as Title salespeople, is to lift them up and show them how to be successful in the areas where they are lacking. Here are the three ways to know if as a Realtor, your real estate online presence stinks.
Google Your Name—Can’t Find You
This is an obvious one, but if you Google your name, then your name + “realtor,” you should come up right away. If you don’t that is a major issue. It’s like saying–I went to the phone book to find your number, and you are unlisted. That’s not good if you are looking to build a successful business. The reasons you aren’t coming up could be because you don’t have a LinkedIn account that has major Google juice. Perhaps you work for a smaller real estate company and they don’t provide you a website. Another reason is–you don’t have a YouTube channel or been featured on another website that mentions you. Now is not the time to be a secret agent. Even if your entire business model is “work by referral,” you still have to send them somewhere to learn more about you and your business. If you can’t, it makes it a lot harder to convert those referrals to clients.
Take the time to at minimum, get a Facebook business page set up, beef up your LinkedIn account, and get some video content going. These very cheap and easy ways will start to get your online profile going.
No Videos of you Exist…Anywhere.
Real estate video isn’t the future, it’s the present. Easily over half of all the people who have reached out to me over the last eight years, have discovered me through my YouTube videos. Video is the best way to convey a message to your target audience and allows people to meet you before you ever meet them. Also, it provides a lot of credibility to your potential clients if they can see and hear you discuss a topic with some level of mastery. YouTube is a great place to house your videos, because it is owned by Google, and you can backlink your videos to your real estate website and vice versa. This gets your potential clients hopping back and forth, which not only is great for SEO but keeping these people where they should be…with you.
Don’t like being on video? To be blunt…Get over it. If you don’t take this step, others will and they will have the eyeballs.
You Don’t “DO” Social Media
I hear this sometimes when speaking to agents. They ask me how they can connect and stay relevant online. I ask them about their social media profiles and how they use them, then I hear…“Wade, I just don’t DO social media.” Ok. Do you know who does DO social media? EVERYONE ELSE YOU ARE MARKETING TO FOR REAL ESTATE. Realize you aren’t marketing to yourself. Put yourself in the position of the people to whom you are marketing. Where do they put their eyeballs? Where do they spend their time online? It’s mostly Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn. Does this mean you have to be on these platforms all the time? No. It does mean you need to “understand” the true purposes of these platforms and use them to connect, learn, and interact with others who know, like, and trust you.
These platforms are also used to help market your properties, share great things you have done for clients, create social proof, and much more. If you barely leverage your social media accounts, create a plan between now and the end of the year of posting more great content your connections would find valuable. Remember…stay away from the politics!
The Fix…
It is never too late if your real estate online presence stinks; I was seven years into my Title sales job until I created this website and started shooting YouTube videos. The question I get most from Realtors is…“What would you recommend I do first?” I tell them to start with the platforms that are the easiest and free first, then expand.
- Reach out to your SOI and “Friend” them on Facebook. Follow them on Instagram and connect on LinkedIn. Ask them to “follow” you back.
- Start posting great real estate content on these platforms. Relevant articles, testimonials from past clients, current listings, etc.
- Post 60% business, and 40% personal. You need people to know and like you besides just business.
- YouTube–set up a channel. It’s FREE. Pick 10 video topics your SOI would find most interesting and shoot 2-3 minute videos talking about it. Post your listing videos, and even ask your “A” clients to do a 60-second testimonial video as to why they used you for real estate. You have to start building your catalog of content as it will be there for anyone to “discover” 24/7. Need help setting up your channel? Ask your favorite Title Rep to help you. If they don’t know how to help…fire them because they should know.
- Lastly, get rid of your company given real estate website, and pay a website development company to build your own site, branded to you. This is where the money comes into play, but a great investment to your business.
Don’t want to do any of it? Hire someone to do it for you, but it’s a slippery slope to outsource your real estate content.
Stewart Title Can Help!
If you are thinking…my Title Company has never talked to me about this before, it’s because they don’t know how to. Not their fault…just not their business model. At Stewart Title, we invest in your clients and do our best to pull them up. The more success our clients have, the more business we have. It’s really simple. If your real estate online presence stinks, fill out the form below and tell me how I can help you! Not in the DC area? Fill out the form, and I can still help you then connect you to a top Stewart Title rep in your area.
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Work With Wade
Interested in growing your real estate business with Pruitt Title? Please fill out the form below and I will contact you shortly. Thanks, Wade "DCTitleGuy"
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