This past weekend, the National Association of Realtors held a conference in San Diego which focused quite a bit on social media and more specifically, Facebook. Ginger Wilcox form the Social Media Marketing Institute, helped Realtors get a better grasp on social media and how to use Facebook for personal use as well as a way to reach out to clients. Attendees were taught about various techniques for using Facebook as a tool for your business. Here are a few techniques taught in the conference as well as a few of our recommendations:
- Make contact personal- As personal as Facebook can feel at times, often contact can come off as somewhat impersonal. Rather than just sending a cold friend request which basically just says “i know you”, take the time to write a quick note, acknowledge them and make it personal.
- Don’t do mass invites- If you’re twenty years old and trying to get all your buddies to your house for a “kegger” than maybe a mass invite is appropriate, but for special events like an open house, take the extra time to customize an invite to only qualified candidates. If John and Julie are looking for that perfect 2 bedroom condo with an ocean view, don’t keep inviting them to an open house in the desert. You don’t want them thinking of you as a “spammer”. Hold back on the mass invitations unless its really necessary.
- Facebook is no longer just for Gen Y- The fasting growing demographic on Facebook is 35+. Nuff said.
- Be casual- Even though you may have a profile primarily for business, try to keep your profile casual. This is the perfect opportunity for your potential client(s) feel a connection with you by seeing you with your hair down and outside of that suit and tie. However, keep those Vegas conference pictures with your F ME Cufflinks and pimp suit on your hard drive. No need for them to see your alter ego.
- Create a business page- If you’re on there strictly for business, or perhaps would like to make a clear distinction between business and personal, create a Facebook business page. Make sure you engage with your community, listen to their requests and build your brand by establishing trust.
- Keep it brief- Don’t make updates with the first six paragraphs from todays Wall Street Journal. Just leave a brief update/comment/opinion(be careful with this one) and send them to your blog for more information. Now we’re talking!
- Integrate your blog- You can upload your blog through the notes tab. Great way to get populate your profile and show people all that hard work you’ve put into your blog.
“I’ve got a profile” or “yeah, yeah, yeah i get all that” . Great! Music to our ears, check out the next step and learn about advertising on Facebook or learn how to build your own app with the new Facebook software developers kit.
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