The 50/50 Social Media Strategy for Real Estate Agents and Brokers

In a world of instant gratification, where clients and prospects expect real-time communication and where the roles of agents and brokers are constantly evolving, real estate professionals are constantly looking for ways to accomplish more in less time.

Take social media, for example. There are plenty of ways for agents and brokers to automate their posts — to keep a presence on social media even when they're busy tackling more pressing duties. But there is an important balance between automation and personalization that has to be recognized. Having a "robot-like" social presence is not effective in building client relationships.

This is why a 50/50 strategy between personalization and automation is so important for today's agents and brokers. It solves the need for automation for the ever-busy agent, while also putting some of the focus on personalization — an important part of building relationships. A reliable social media tool for real estate agents should take this into consideration.

When a modern social media solution is used, this is not forgotten. It bridges the gap, allowing agents and brokers to select the articles they want to share, schedule them with personalized comments, and more — all in just a few minutes each week.

Not all social media scheduling platforms are built the same, however.

"Set-it-and-forget-it" Doesn't Work

There are no set-it-and-forget-it tools that are completely successful in creating a personal brand on social media, because there is nothing personal about 100 percent automating your social media posts. The 50/50 strategy can help you maintain the personable aspects of social media, while also making it easy to stay consistent with posting—so you don't fall off the radar when you get busy.

It used to be sufficient enough for agents and brokers just to be on social media. But today, social media requires effort. You have to fight to be seen. You have to provide useful information. You have to reply to inquiries quickly. To stand out in the crowd, you have to be doing something the others aren't.

How Automation Can Miss the Mark

Another issue with only automating social media is that you're missing the point of this marketing tool – which is to interact with your leads and prospects. If you only schedule content, you will miss out on engaging with those who comment on your posts and you may appear disconnected if you don't respond to those reaching out.

Think: local-level market reports, announcements of new store or restaurant openings, pictures from the local dog park, a video interview with a local school principal, sharing congratulations to your happy sellers/buyers, etc. These are all types of content that you will want to share on social media that will help you grow your online presence.

Making 50/50 Work for You

Automation doesn't have to be complicated. In fact, Circlepix's PIXsocial solution makes scheduling content foolproof. PIXsocial allows you to automate relevant content and fresh listings to all of your social media profiles, but also allows you to review the content, select the type of articles you want to share, and more.

You become the thought leader. You build rapport with clients. You stay relevant. And, what's best—you save valuable time. Automation tools take the time-consuming task of social media off your plate, allowing you plenty of time to just focus on the important personal touch in your social media strategy.

Automation tools can give you the steady flow of social media content you need to stay relevant on social media. The right automation tools can also help you keep social media personal. It can help you foster relationships, be a trusted thought-leader, and drive more leads. The 50/50 strategy is used by most top producing real estate agents, and is truly the lucky ticket if you want to be a social media rockstar.

To view the original article, visit the Inside Real Estate blog.