As agents, you’re expected to know the latest real estate industry trends. But staying on top of social media trends is a different story. Social media is undoubtedly a valuable tool to help grow your business. But to reap the benefits, it’s important to know what and how you should post because things are changing fast for 2023. And with so many platforms around, it’s a challenge to keep abreast of all the changes that are critical to your social media success. On a recent episode of The Walkthrough, Chelsea Peitz, a real estate agent-turned-social-media-expert and best-selling author of “What to Post,” offered six changes to make your social media posts more effective in reaching the right audience. Peitz, also a coach and speaker, shared step-by-step instructions on precisely what you should be posting and how you need to show up differently in 2023. It’s important to connect with people and be authentically you. That also means not outsourcing your videos to someone else. Peitz says we need to be aware of what she calls “the digital vs. the physical.” “This lens of thinking that we are separate and a non-human on technology, or that we can’t use technology to show up as a human…it can be as simple as a Zoom call,” says Peitz. “All of us had to do Zoom, almost exclusively, for two years. And I would say to people, ‘Wait a minute. You have no camera on. You wouldn’t come to a meeting at Starbucks or at an office and turn your chair around or dive under the table and hide, right?’ So, what are [we doing to] ourselves – keeping us from being that amazing, incredible human being that people wanna trust and connect with? It just happens to be in a digital environment.” Many thought TikTok would never be a successful platform from which real estate agents could benefit, but it’s quite the opposite. Short-form videos began on TikTok, but now they’re everywhere. “Short-form, vertical video is on every platform. It is here to stay. A lot of people thought it was just a trend. ‘Oh, I’m not gonna do TikTok. I don’t dance. I don’t lip sync. Not for me. Never gonna sell a luxury home on it.’ And we know that that’s not necessarily the case. And it is a type of format that is short. It’s vertical video. It usually has a person in it. And usually, generally, with an asterisk I’m gonna put in there, it tends to be a little bit more edited.” Getting started is the first step, but trying to post on many platforms at once is not recommended. Peitz suggests focusing on one platform at a time and building from there. “Maybe you’re more familiar with Facebook. Maybe you love LinkedIn. Maybe you have been saying, ‘Gosh, I’m not gonna get into Instagram. I’ve been in Facebook world for 15 years,’ and you feel great and comfortable on Facebook, and now you’re ready to take on or try another platform. I don’t recommend trying all the things at once. It gets overwhelming, it’s a recipe for burnout, it’s not sustainable long-term, and it can start to feel really discouraging and ‘drudgerous’ – if that’s even a word.” The best way to get your audience to stop scrolling and watch your video is by creating a great “hook.” This is something that pulls your audience in to want to watch more. Peitz says that a great hook usually contains a question and the word “you” in the first sentence. “It could sound something like this. ‘Do you want to learn the secret to the Instagram algorithm?’ ‘Do you want to know how much $1 million can buy you in blah, blah, blah?’ ‘Do you?’ ‘How you?’ ‘Have you?’ Very, very, very simple way to elevate the interest and curiosity of that first sentence of your video. So just getting right into it is so important, and especially using a hook to grab that attention, because they’re not gonna watch seconds five through 30 if they don’t watch zero through three.” You may be wondering why your engagement is lower than normal. Or, perhaps you’re receiving fewer comments or likes. The good news is that it may have nothing to do with your content, so you’ll want to hold off on doing a creative content overhaul. Instead, use this opportunity to connect with your audience so they can get to know you. “What’s gonna happen is you’re gonna be posting, and you’re like, ‘Wait a minute. Where’s my comments? I thought comments were, like, you know, the one thing we were looking for.’ It’s important to note that engagement is different, and it may not be down like you think it is. You just may not have the type of metric that you are used to measuring, such as a comment or a like. You will still be able to see if someone shares or saves your short-form videos, which is a great metric to look at.” In addition to algorithm changes, there are also changes in metrics analysis, which are now based on watch time and views. Peitz says that since certain platforms like Instagram are not tracking that yet, be patient. “Ask yourself, is your engagement down, or is it just different,” says Peitz. Your primary focus should not be how many views you get, Peitz says, because views don’t equal value. “They don’t equate to relationships and transactions,” says Peitz. “Make up your own metrics, so that you can track things that matter and that you can control, like tracking how many people you talk to in a DM, or how many one-to-one videos you sent.” Regardless of your topic of expertise, by keeping these six suggestions in mind when creating a social media post, you’ll be off to a good start. However, like real estate, consistency is the key to your long-term success. Listen to this episode of The Walkthrough below:1. Show up on video the same way you do in person
2. Create short-form videos
3. Start with one platform at a time
4. Use a hook
5. Understand your audience
6. Don’t focus on the number of views
