The National Associate of Realtors (NAR) recently reported that 97% of all homebuyers used the internet in their home search.1 This may be done through a simple Google search for key terms such as ‘three-car garage homes in Phoenix, Arizona’ or maybe visiting a well-known builder’s website. While starting the home shopping process online is very common, there is still an entire market of interested buyers that don’t realize how to find you or don’t know your builder exists. As professional new home salespeople, marketing is essential. And what better way to market to those ‘lost’ buyers than to do so digitally? Social media marketing lets you grab their attention right through their newsfeeds.
Not only is it an effective way to bridge the gap with your home builder marketing efforts, but social media marketing is one of the most affordable forms of digital advertising. Many builders have a social media presence, and many sales associates create specific accounts for marketing their product, community, incentives, etc. In fact, the top three tech tools that provide Realtors with quality leads are social media (52%), Customer Relationship Management (31%), and MLS sites (28%).1
Social media marketing allows us to tailor our marketing from an incredibly broad bank of viewers to a uniquely specific demographic. For example, if your Target Consumer Profile (TCP) is interested in recreational activities and is targeting a price range of 300k-500k in a certain zip code, you can market a campaign based solely on that group. Not only can this aid in the success of an already popular community, but it can also completely transform the amount of traffic seen in a community struggling to gain leads organically.
Every platform offers different features to utilize. It’s been noted by the NAR that 90% of Realtors use Facebook, followed by 52% on Instagram, and 48% on LinkedIn.1 It could be beneficial to target specific platforms based on your TCP and use data to drive decisions. These social media demographics can offer insight into developing your strategy, and these homebuying and mortgage statistics for 2022 offer more in-depth details on current happenings in the industry.
Social media marketing is powerful — everyone loves a good story, and by doing this consistently, you can ensure that a community’s story can be told. Many people will follow a tv series through ten seasons of a show just because they don’t want the story to end. The same is in a good brand. What better story to tell than the start and growth of a new community? From daily photos and videos of earth-moving equipment to foundation pours framing to the announcement that yet another happy customer will be a part of the neighborhood, social media marketing allows us to proudly display our story, gain new viewership, call prospective home buyers to action, and grow our business. Ask yourself, “Are we telling the story of our community effectively?” Regardless of your answer, a strong social media presence will solidify that answer affirmatively or enhance your current strategy.
1Real Estate in a Digital Age
