Are you creating social media content but only getting back crickets?
Don’t worry. You’re not alone.
When it comes to real estate marketing, there’s so much bad information floating around out there.
Especially when it comes to social media.
You may feel like you’re doing everything right, but the algorithm seems to be punishing you.
Your posts are barely getting any reach, and the only comments you get are from your Mom.
If you can relate, your social media strategy probably needs a refresh.
It’s time to ditch the outdated tactics that leave you frustrated and build a strategy based on profitable content.
So, today, let’s get into the social media mistakes you’re making that are stopping you from seeing the results you’re looking for.
I’m going to walk you through common social media mistakes that I’ve seen real estate agents make. Plus, I’ll give you tips on what you can do instead to stop feeling like you’re just shouting into the void – and start attracting your dream clients on social.
Why You Need to Prioritize Converting Content on Social Media
As a real estate agent, you need an online presence.
You need a place to gain visibility and get in front of the right people.
To do that, you need to prioritize social media.
Social media gives you an outlet to build your authority within your niche. It allows you to interact and have conversations directly with your audience and build personal relationships.
You’re not going to get that from a website alone.
Real estate agents are service providers.
Trying to sell services through your website alone won’t give you the conversions you’re looking for. You need the personal relationship piece, which is built through social media.
Why You’re Not Seeing Results with Your Current Social Media Efforts
It can be extremely frustrating to pour your heart and soul into creating content for social media only for it to underperform.
I’ve seen so many real estate agents struggle with this exact thing.
If you’re not seeing the results you expected in your social media marketing efforts, there are usually two major pitfalls to blame:
1. Copying Other Agents
Let’s be real…most agents don’t actually know what they’re doing on social media.
So when agents copy other agents because they don’t know what else to do – the cycle of generic content continues.
For example, we had an agent go through our program, but they didn’t do the work to follow the modules and create their own strategy.
Instead, they copied posts from a different real estate business that they thought were successful. However, this business’ revenue was almost entirely generated through repeat and referral clients. In reality, their social media wasn’t getting them any business.
Blind emulation only leads to wasted time, money, and effort.
2. Treating Social Media Like a Billboard
There’s an old-school idea in real estate marketing that more eyeballs equals more business.
The old-school way of doing this was handing out fliers, cold calling, knocking on doors, etc.
The idea was, that the more people who saw and were aware of your service, the more leads and clients you’re going to get.
This is not the case anymore.
For one, the market is too saturated with real estate agents for this to actually work.
But what it really comes down to is people simply don’t make decisions on sight alone anymore.
You know you’re using your social media like a billboard when the majority of your posts contain generic content. What value are you really providing your audience with posts like property tours or key handovers?
One of the main reasons people online choose to work with a specific agent is because they see those agents as good marketers.
Don’t be afraid to use your marketing skills on yourself. Your audience will recognize your marketing superpowers.
And when the time comes for them to finally need you, they’ll be more likely to work with you over anyone else.
4 Biggest Social Media Mistakes
Now, let’s get into 4 of the biggest mistakes real estate agents make on social media:
1. Posting Generic Content
This almost goes without saying, but when your social media is lackluster and mediocre, it does more harm than good.
Posting generic content like:
- Just listed/Just sold posts
- Property tours
- Key handovers
These don’t do anything to showcase your services or expertise.
All you’re doing is showing you have business in hopes of getting more business.
These posts don’t create a connection or prove what you can actually offer your audience.
Social media is meant to be social. Generic posts miss the mark – your ideal clients register them as noise and you blend in with every other agent posting the same thing.
READ MORE: ‘Just Sold’ Social Media Posts Are Overrated: Here’s What To Do Instead
2. Only Posting Sales Content
On average, people buy a home every eight and a half years.
If you’re only posting sales content, you are only relevant to the people in your audience looking to buy NOW.
That’s less than 2% of your audience.
And everyone else gets ignored.
You need to give your audience a reason to follow you for LIFE, whether they’re looking for a property to buy right now or not.
Your audience needs to trust you and feel emotionally connected to you.
This way, when they’re ready to buy (even if it’s years down the line) you’ll be top of mind.
AND your online community will become loyal brand ambassadors, referring you to their friends and connections.
3. Only Posting Aesthetic Home Content
Stop acting like you’re Architectural Digest!
I don’t know about you, but if I want to see a beautiful home, I’ll go on Pinterest or flip through home magazines.
I’m not going to be searching through a local agent’s social media.
Social media is a social networking platform. We’re meant to be using it to network and interact with our community and ideal clients.
Without that key ingredient, we end up treating our social media like a billboard, which doesn’t give us the results we’re craving.
Instead, think about how you can connect with your audience. How are you networking? How are you connecting with them? How are you drawing them in?
4. Posting Humble Brag Content
While it may seem impressive to be posting awards and client thank you’s, pause and think again.
Who are you really posting them for?
Chances are your ideal client doesn’t care that you received an award from your office. Other real estate agents might, but they’re not the audience you want to serve with your content.
Posting awards and extravagant purchases you’ve made because of your sales comes across as self-serving. It makes you seem detached from your audience’s needs.
Your audience wants to know how you can help them. So, move away from cringy humble brags. Instead, focus on engaging with your community, giving them value, and deepening your connection.
What to Do Instead
If these social media mistakes sound familiar to you, don’t worry. Here are 5 things you can do instead that will help you post more genuine and authentic content so you can get better results from social media.
1. Treat social media like a SOCIAL network
It’s so important to view social media as more than just a broadcasting platform.
You cannot forget the human aspect behind your marketing goals.
Social media is always human to human.
Every time you create content, approach it as if you’re having a one-to-one conversation with your audience. Remember, your ideal clients have taken time out of their day to focus on you – so make sure you show them that you’re focused on them, too.
By having authentic conversations within your community, you’ll engage your ideal clients on an emotional level. You’ll grow an audience based on deep connections and trust.
2. Focus on the RIGHT Followers
I regularly go through and remove followers from my social media accounts.
I only want people in real estate. If they’re spam accounts or if it seems like my content isn’t relevant to them, I remove them. Without hesitation.
Because my number of followers doesn’t matter.
What matters is making sure my content is getting in front of the right people.
Social media does a great job of convincing us that numbers matter. We attach our ego to a large number when in reality many of them are bots and spam.
Having a large follower count is simply a vanity metric.
I’d rather know who I’m talking to than hang on to a large follower count just for the image.
3. Run Your Content Through a Filter
Ask yourself these two questions before creating ANY social media content:
- Who am I making this content for?
- Am I providing REAL value or just treating my social media like a billboard?
By asking who you’re creating content for, you force yourself to examine your content more closely.
Is that piece of content speaking to your ideal client? Or is it speaking to other real estate agents?
If you create content based solely on your own interests, chances are you’re not speaking to your ideal client. What interests you will probably only resonate with other real estate agents.
But other agents aren’t your ideal client.
Rather than building an audience of potential leads, you’ll have an audience filled with other agents and mortgage brokers. Which isn’t exactly a recipe for profits.
Next, ask yourself if the content you’ve created is just treating social media like a billboard. Is it opening up a conversation, or is it simply promoting your business?
If you’re copying the trends from other agents, you’ll get lost in the endless mediocre real estate content.
Don’t be satisfied with simply blending in. The agents who succeed on social media are the ones who obsess over being relevant and valuable to their ideal clients.
They focus on creating real relationships – not just blasting their business.
4. Adjust Your Idea of Success
Often when I talk to agents who are already posting on social media, they THINK they’re successful because they get 1-3 deals off social media.
But that’s not what real success with social media marketing looks like.
Sure, generic real estate posts might generate a few deals per year.
But I want you to think BIGGER. Imagine what you could do with a proven real estate social media strategy.
It’s time to adjust your idea of what success on social media looks like.
Agents who have gone through The Listings Lab program have gotten 1-3 deals per month MINIMUM. Some agents have done more.
That’s a 10x increase compared to what they were getting when they lacked a true social media marketing strategy.
Shift your mindset and adjust your expectations.
5. Elevate Your Marketing and Ditch the Desperate and Generic Content
I’ve had agents tell me their just listed/just sold content brought them three deals in the past year from social media.
The reality is that’s the bare minimum of what social media marketing can achieve.
Generic posts not only make you indistinguishable from the masses, but they also fail to successfully convey authority.
Posting generic content or reusing old and worn-out taglines like “I’m here for all your real estate needs” makes you seem desperate.
While that might not be your intention, it gives the impression of “I’ll take what I can get.”
This subtle desperate undertone doesn’t do you any favors. It only undermines any authority you’ve created in your business.
Instead, be clear on your offers. Strengthen your messaging to show exactly who you serve and how you serve them. Then, rework your marketing to showcase that messaging front and center.
By elevating your marketing, you’ll attract clients who value your expertise – the kinds who choose you based on your unique value, not your commission rate.
Finding success in social media as a real estate agent requires a shift in both mindset and approach. By learning to recognize these common social media mistakes, you can make the changes needed to fix them. Then, you can create a social media strategy that creates authentic connections and drives real results.
For more tips on creating a successful social media strategy, be sure to check out the posts below:
