Facebook is by no means a traditional form of marketing for real estate agents, but neither were websites 10 years ago. Just because tools are new doesn’t mean they’re not powerful! I polled about twenty salespeople that work with real estate agents and asked about the push-backs they encounter most frequently when it comes to discussions about Facebook marketing. Here are some of the biggest misconceptions we encounter concerning Facebook marketing for real estate professionals and why they’re not quite right:
No one goes to Facebook to buy/sell a house!
This is absolutely true, but that’s not the point! People also don’t sit on benches in the interest of buying or selling a home, but many of you advertise there. The goal of Facebook marketing is to establish your brand and to stay top-of-mind. Can you think of a better place to do this than Facebook, where the average user spends about an hour of their day? We can’t.
In addition to branding, the depth and accuracy of Facebook advertising should be reason enough to dedicate resources to Facebook when looking for buyers and sellers in a given area. Run an ad campaign and get some Page Likes from your area so that when Facebook users in that area decide it might be time for a move, there you are, front and center in their News Feed displaying your expertise, knowledge, and inventory.
Silly Rabbit, Facebook is for kids!
Another major thing we hear is that the age demographics of Facebook are made up of mostly kids who are too young to buy or sell real estate. Are there a lot people under 20 years old on Facebook? Definitely, no doubt about it. But there are a lot of people of every age on Facebook! Here’s some quick stats from a recent study by the Pew Research Center:
In 2014:
- 73% of internet users ages 30-49 were using Facebook.
- 63% of internet users ages 50-64 were using Facebook.
- 56% of people above the age of 65 who use the internet were on Facebook. Plus, the 65+ group, rose 11% from 2013 to 2014.
For all of you who just fell asleep during the last section due to a math overdose, you can tune back in now. All you need to know is that Facebook has so many users in every age group, in every city, your perfect buyer or next listing is almost assuredly just one Facebook click away.
“I Work Strictly with a Personal Referral Base.”
When we hear this, we have a few questions: How are you keeping your extremely important referral base engaged? How do you know they haven’t forgotten about you? (No offense!)
Your former clients were thrilled with your performance and you worked hard to make it that way. They’d love their friends and family to you, but when the time comes, you’ve got to be easily accessible! They’re only going to do so much digging for your business card and/or searching Google for your website. If they’ve seen posts from you on Facebook steadily over the last few months, they’ll know how they can easily find your Facebook business page and, from there, can easily show it to your new potential clients. Until they’re ready to refer you, the easiest way to remain top-of-mind with your biggest fans (your satisfied clientele) is with a Facebook business page.
In summary, we understand that not everyone knows the inner workings of Facebook and how it can be utilized, but we’re more than happy to educate you on its advantages and how you can absolutely get business from it. Plus, we have a number of tools that will make your Facebook experience a breeze!
Having a presence where your future clients are spending a huge amount of their time is always an advantage, and Facebook is that place.