It’s hard to track social media leads. So, is it worth it as an advertising medium? Yes, and it’s worth so much more.
No offense to those who may make a living off of social media, but for those in the real estate space, this advertising medium is an unknown commodity. Whether you are a broker or an agent, social media is just another advertising medium, comparable to a billboard or radio ad. Very few brokers or agents can attribute any form of return on investment (ROI) from the countless hours they spend growing their social influence and audience. Unless you are diligently tracking conversions and content types, you are left to wonder whether it is even worth it, right? Well, social media is here to stay.
In 2013, we published the REAL Trends Online Performance Study and focused on the top eight social media categories for real estate. These were statistically relevant as we looked at 8 million social media posts and gave examples of the top posts as well.
Note that seven of the eight categories that are effective for real estate professionals have nothing to do with real estate. In fact, they are fun, inspirational, tip-oriented and, most importantly, do not highlight new real estate listings. This brings up a dilemma. How can you effectively use social media to produce any return if the content that works isn’t real estate related? However, remember, nothing reduces the number of Facebook followers you have than when you start blasting listings. As commonly preached by industry leaders, the practice of sharing listings is not advised unless done in a unique social nature.
Let’s take a look at a few of the future practices for social media.
Present Features and Applications
REAL Trends recently launched its first foray into social media monitoring and predictive analytics. In partnership with Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate, we launched the #realestatepulse.
The #realestatepulse uses a new technology that allows us to monitor social conversations on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and a few social media outlets to display social conversations in a more visual fashion. In this particular example, we will pull in and display information from anyone who uses the hashtag #realestate. You can check it out on our website at http://www.realtrends.com/technology/real-estate-pulse.
We can monitor up to 1,000 Tweets or Facebook posts from people on these social networks, whether we are friends with them or not. The #realestatepulse allows us to visualize data from social media in numerous fashions. Here are a few applications:
1. Compare top brands by social media presence and interaction with their consumers.
In this example, we will stack up all major real estate franchises and analyze social media activity historically, currently and peaks. This will allow us to see who is talking about which franchise and when. A graph overlapping all franchises can be found on www.realtrends.com
2. Top listing portals and activity.
In this example, we will stack up the listing portals against one another to monitor social conversations and activity around their brands. A similar visual representation can also be used to compare listing portals.
3. Live heat maps for social activity.
In this example, we can visually display on a map where individual social conversations are taking place. In our first iteration, we will publish social media conversations for those talking about real estate. The map will light up and allow you to focus in on your state or area.
4. Top trending stories in real estate.
In this example, we will visually represent the top stories being shared across social networks. It’s similar to a Yahoo! trending story section. Visit frequently to stay up to date with the hottest stories in real estate.
What’s Next
Does this sound like a lot of fun and games? Sure, it’s useful to monitor activity but what’s the payoff? Let’s look at the big picture. REAL Trends can now monitor social media activity from anywhere about any topic. What if we applied this tool to the real estate space on the consumer level? If we can leverage this tool to capture and monitor conversations that might be focused on people buying or selling homes, then that would be a huge step in the right direction. Someone who mentions the term “thinking about buying a home” or “going to look for a new home” would be a step in the right direction. Of course, it might be too late to capture this potential consumer as he or she is too far in the buying process; however there are other phrases you can search.
Enter Social Predictive Analytics
We are currently developing an algorithm based on the top 15 reasons people buy, sell, upgrade and move. For example, someone who mentions the phrase, “moving to Denver” would be a good prospect to reach if you’re a Denver-based real estate broker or agent. However, think of all the variations of this phrase. For example, “moving to Colorado,” “excited to move to Denver,” “Denver bound,” “Denver here we come.” The list goes on and on. We could also monitor when people get new jobs in Denver. So, we at REAL Trends are modeling these now for a near future launch.
While this may continue to evolve, it’s a step in the right direction for real estate professionals to truly leverage social media. We are rolling this out with select REAL Trends Technology Consulting clients over the next six months. Here’s how it works:
We monitor social media activity over a period and pull in social media handles and usernames of those indicating they are likely to move. We then download this activity into a format usable for marketing to these folks. We then set up conversion tactics and drive the leads to a page on an agent or broker’s site.
This article appeared in REAL Trends Newsletter and is being reprinted with permission of REAL Trends, Copyright 2015