Social media is essential for most real estate agents’ marketing strategies these days. Agents who implement a strong strategy on social media get more leads and close more business than agents who don’t. Yet many agents still struggle to keep up their social media efforts.
In this article I’ve included my top Facebook & Instagram Social Media Tips for real estate agents
Top Social Media Tips for Real Estate Agents
Here are my top social media tips for real estate agents:
1. You Don’t Need a Business Account on Social Media (But It Has Its Advantages)
Sara and Sophia acknowledge that many agents already have a personal account on Facebook and Instagram. However, if you want to run ads on Facebook, you must have a business account. Also, you can’t get a Facebook business account unless you first have a personal account.
On Instagram (IG), that’s not the case. You can choose whether you want a personal or business account. Sophia recommends a business account on IG so you can take advantage of the insights on Instagram to see what posts are working and which ones aren’t.
One thing they both agree on is when you have two accounts (personal and business), make sure you post on each platform separately. Don’t just share a post from one account onto the other. For example, if you make a post on your personal Facebook page, don’t just share it to your business page. Make a separate post, even if it’s exactly the same. This way, your post will get seen by more people.
2. Choose 3 Topics to Post Around (& Stick to Them)
Sarah and Sophia highly recommend that you choose and stick to three topics that you post about on social media. Obviously one of your topics will be real estate. But no one wants to see just real estate posts. That’s boring and will cause audience burnout. By picking two additional topics that you can post about on the regular, your posts will also get seen by more people thanks to hashtags. (More on this later.)
When deciding on what topics to post about, you should choose topics that showcase who you are and your stunning personality. For example, if you love dogs and wine, as I do, then you can choose those two topics to post around in addition to real estate.
Your posts should make you relatable and personable. Show your audience who you are and the purpose behind what you do. You do real estate. Now show them why you do it and why you’re so damn great at it.
I love looking at posts from Maggi Chassie BHCommonwealthRE. She frequently posts videos of her sweet “big guy” autistic son. She also posts pics and videos of her two dogs and cat, and, of course, her real estate business. There are so many ways someone in her community can relate to Maggi. She uses hashtags like #autismmom and #autismlife to connect with people in those communities, too. Well done, Maggi.
Only posting about three topics keeps things simple and creates an expectation with your audience. When you consistently post about your chosen topics, people will come to expect and look forward to seeing those posts from you.
Choose topics that are fun and really show off your personality.
This is a great way to connect with like-minded people who would love to work with you. The best part is you’ll be attracting the people that YOU will want to work with too. And posting about things you love will make it a lot easier to be consistent in your marketing efforts.
Remember, the best strategy is something that’s authentic to you. Be yourself. If you’re the kind of person who likes humor, then being funny might be a strategy for you. But if that’s not who you are, then it won’t work. Don’t try to be something you’re not.
3. Build a Brand Aesthetic People Will Love & Remember
No matter what social network you use, build your brand around aesthetics. The visual element of your posting strategy should be front and center.
Just check out the brandmaster Ryan Serhant’s Instagram account to see a powerful brand at work. He uses a lot of videos with himself in the starring role. His brand is definitely luxury, which you can tell from his IG grid. (By the way, your “IG grid” is how all your posts look together when people visit your profile.)
When you create your brand, choose colors that convey the message you want. Check out the color explorer at Canva by clicking on a color to reveal its underlying meaning.
Use your chosen colors consistently throughout your marketing. Do the same for the fonts you’ll use throughout your posts. Believe it or not, these small details make a big visual difference.
Consistency is another important element in creating a brand for your business.
Elyssia Mariè | REALTOR uses high-resolution photos of beautiful homes alongside pics of herself dressed in gorgeous outfits inside the homes. She also uses a personalized logo on all of her story highlights, giving her grid a beautifully sleek look.
Serenity Marie | REALTOR stands out with all the pink (with pops of lavender) in her posts. She sticks with the same fonts in her story highlights and her posts. (I especially love the one with her in a pink bikini on a pink bike. 😍)
Another idea is to use colored blocks for your text posts, like Ali + Josh | All Things Personal Finance do in their posts. The blocks of text framed in gray really stand out when you check out their grid.
If you run a team or brokerage, use your brand colors the way Carl E. Christian does to create frames for your posts. The signature blue really stands out when you check out their page.
You can’t miss the stunning visual effects when you go to any of these grids on Instagram. The next time you’re scrolling through Instagram posts and see one you like, check out that person’s grid to get some additional inspiration.
You can also do this with a partner or your team. So, don’t feel like you have to do all the heavy lifting yourself. Grab some friends or coworkers and create posts and Reels (Instagram’s popular video format) together.
4. Farm Your Area With Hashtags
Hashtags help your posts get discovered. If you don’t know hashtags are, you’ve probably still seen them in social media posts. They typically appear after the caption (e.g., #realestateagent). Hahstags help your posts get discovered. Because of this, many agents get hung up on hashtags. But Sophia and Sara have a simple strategy you can follow that will simplify your hashtag approach.
- On Instagram, use between 20 and 30 hashtags. Instagram won’t acknowledge any additional hashtags past 30. And while hashtags aren’t as popular on Facebook, you can use them. We recommend you use just one to ten.
- Use hashtags that people in your area are already familiar with on the platforms so that you can get discovered, e.g., #lowereastsidenyc. Also include a couple of unique hashtags that are specific to you and your branding or brokerage to further brand yourself.
- Use your farming locations in your hashtags to get discovered, e.g., #yourcityrealtor, #yourcityrealestate, #yourcityhomesforsale, #iloveyourcity, #bestofyourcity, #yourareacode, etc.
- Create some hashtags that are unique that represent you, e.g., #brokerage/teamname, #yournameyourcityrealtor, #yourcatchphrase, and so on.
- Save yourself time by keeping a document with all the potential hashtags that you can use for posts. However, don’t just copy and paste the same hashtags every time. Mix them up to keep the algorithm from thinking you’re a bot.
- Do hashtag research by looking at how many posts a hashtag already has. When choosing hashtags, look for hashtags with between 10,000 and 1 million posts. The trick is to use already trending hashtags, but you don’t want to be lost in a sea of millions of posts either.
5. Consistency (Not Frequency) Matters Most
Most social media training for real estate agents recommend posting at least once a day on Facebook and maybe a few times per day on Instagram. (If you come across Michele | Boca Raton Realtor, you might feel overwhelmed. She’s a social media master and posts so often it feels like you’re besties.)
But there is a built-in flaw with this advice—if you can’t stick with it, it won’t work.
That’s why Sophia and Sara recommend consistency over inflexibility. The truth is if you post sporadically, the platform’s algorithm is going to be confused and not prioritize your content. All your efforts will end up buried.
But if you post every week on the same day, the algorithm prefers that. When you are predictable, the algorithm likes you.
So, rather than stress over how often to post, commit to a schedule that you can stick to and stay consistent. And don’t forget to use your brand colors and hashtags (think #motivationmonday or #turnituptuesday).
When you first start to build your social media presence, start with one platform and get that schedule down. After you have mastered that platform and the posting schedule, you can branch out into other platforms. But remember that the same rules apply—set a schedule that you can follow and stick to it.
Building your social media following doesn’t happen overnight. It will take some time, but stick with it. You’ll start to see the dividends pay off after a while. Once the algorithm on whichever platform you’ve chosen gets to know you, it will push your content to the top of the page and you will begin to see some results.
