It can be hard to know where to start when it comes to marketing yourself on Facebook – especially if you’re not a social media guru. That’s why we’ve compiled this list of 6 things you can do to really, grow your client base, advertise listings and get the most out of Facebook as a marketing tool.
Post engaging content
We cannot stress this enough. It has become more important than ever to post content that makes it easy for your followers to engage with you. In 2018, Facebook’s Head of News Feed, Adam Mosseri, said this in regards to Facebook’s most recent algorithm update:
“Page posts that generate conversation between people will show higher in News Feed”.
In the past, it made send to post between 2-3 times PER DAY on your Facebook page. Now, many social media experts are saying your reach can be significantly lowered if you are posting non-engaging content in a high frequency.
What does this mean?
It means your posts need COMMENTS – and lots of them!
The more your audience comments and converses on your content the higher up in the newsfeed you will be placed. Likes and shares are still important – but comments are going to have the highest impact on the amount of people you reach.
Our advice for posting engaging content would be to tailor what you write to include a question. Provoke thought in your followers and let them know that it is a safe space to share those thoughts. Some good examples would be,
- In what ways are you currently addressing this industry problem?
- Which option do you like better?
- What do you think about this?
And don’t forget to engage back when the comments come in! If someone is putting themselves out there commenting on your post, they’re going to feel validated when you comment back and spark that conversation. Ultimately it is better right now to post one thoughtful post a day rather than multiple less engaging posts.
Analyze your audience and tailor your content
Another thing you can do to improve how you use Facebook to market your listings online would be to utilize Facebook analytics. If you run a business page you have access to all sorts of insights as to who is viewing and engaging with your posts – and the best part is Facebook provides you with all this information for FREE.
The Insights tab provides all sorts of useful information such as:
- how people are interacting with your page,
- when people are engaging,
- what sort of people are following you – right down to ages and genders,
- and much more!
This is useful information because it allows you to tailor your content and when you post in order to get optimal engagement from your audience, which as we discussed above is crucial with the new algorithm in order to get your posts seen by the best potential buyers.
Don’t be afraid to self-promote through your content
When marketing via Facebook one must remember that the end goal is to get a new lead or client – not a post like. You want to be drawing attention to yourself and your business, not the businesses of others. Too often we see realtors posting links to sites other than their own. While occasionally this may not seem like a big deal, ultimately they are directing potential leads and clients to a competitor who may be more tech savvy. If the content you are sharing leads your clients back to your own website than those are leads that you are getting to keep.
Use Facebook to advertise an event
If you are hosting an event and are unsure of the best way to promote it in today’s digital world, Facebook is about to become your best friend. By creating a Facebook Event, it becomes easy to promote your event in the newsfeed as well as track potential attendees. In addition you can easily provide all the necessary information, links to the event page and easily communicate to attendees important event updates. This is an especially modern way to advertise for an open house and to make sure that as many potential buyers as possible hear about your event. Good promotion turns into maximum attendance, and Facebook Events is a free and easy way to reach a lot of people quickly.
Utilize Facebook Ads
Facebook Ads is a great way to bring attention to a listing. Not only can you highlight one specific home, but you can link directly back to your website to make sure that you are keeping the interested leads.
Additionally, Facebook Ads can be refined by demographics. So if you only want people of a certain age in a certain area to see your ad you have the power to customize the reach. This sets you up to be seen by ideal potential buyers. You even create an ad for your open house’s event!
Create Geo-Targeted ads
By creating a geo-targeted ad on Facebook you can customize what type of people view your ad as well as geo-target them to specific area. This is a great feature because you can be sure that the best potential buyers are the ones that are seeing your ad. It also makes it easy to promote your brand in areas that you would like to grow into.
Utilize Live Video
This may be one of the most underrated tools that Facebook currently offers. Facebook Live makes it easy to draw your audience into your world and into what is happening RIGHT NOW – and there’s so many ways to use it. Go live from conventions, trade shows or events to show how your business is growing and what your team is doing. One of the best and most creative ways to utilize this tool is to host an open house via Facebook Live. You can combine this with Facebook Events by creating an event page for the livestream and inviting potential buyers to virtually attend. This allows buyers to see inside the house before committing to a tour and gives you the opportunity to show off all the most luxurious features to a larger audience at once! What’s more – it allows potential buyers who don’t necessarily live in the area to attend.