Looking to Leverage Your Social Media Presence? Shift Your Viewpoint

Whether you've been on social media for a few months or a few years, understanding how to leverage your presence on various platforms can make all the difference when it comes to generating and converting leads. And having a well thought-out and up-to-date strategy in place is paramount to your future success as consumers continue to flock to popular sites such as Facebook for all their real estate needs.

This was the focus of "Harnessing Social Media: What Worked Two Years Ago Doesn’t Work Today," the latest webinar in RISMedia's ACE Webinar Series. Sponsored by Homes.com and TORCHx and moderated by Verl Workman—founder and CEO of Workman Success Systems—attendees learned what it takes to catapult their social media presence to the next level.

"Two years ago, it was all about posting positive attitude quotes—or a quote with a cool pic," said Tom Collins, CEO and owner of C5 Consulting, LLC. "Today, it needs to be you in the picture with the quote, telling a story."

With a passion for helping companies incorporate social marketing and campaign management into their strategy in order to generate massive results, Collins noted that the end goal is to develop raving fans. "No matter what you're selling, there are subtle things you can do to change who is chasing whom," said Collins, who likened social media to being at a BBQ.

"Don’t be the guy/gal who goes to the BBQ and hands out flyers. If you're acting cool and hanging out—and know how to tease what you do correctly—people will ask for more information. And that's when the chase begins," said Collins.

While social media has changed the way real estate professionals conduct business on a day-to-day basis, doing the opposite of what everyone else is doing is a key piece of the puzzle for Alfonso Parodi, leader of Team Parodi, Realty Associates.

“As real estate professionals, we focus a lot on the outcome of any given transaction, forgetting to document everything that happens from the first call all the way to the closing,” said Parodi, who has begun documenting and celebrating everything from pre-approvals, executed contracts and showings.

With 39 unique audiences that can be targeted at any given time with any given message, Parodi’s strategy is paying off. In fact, his posts are reaching nearly 40 - 60,000 people a week, and his videos generate around 10,000 views per month. “It’s all about sharing the whole experience. I’m documenting everything and sharing it with the world,” said Parodi, who underscored the importance of truly understanding who your audience is.

"If someone comes to you and opts into your email, you can upload that email list to Facebook as a custom audience and run ads specifically to those people. If you can leverage this technology, you can move people through a systematized process where they're starting to see pre-set videos and ads from you," elaborated Collins.

In the end, it's all about bringing an incredible personal touch to the table that goes beyond the transaction. No matter what your strategy entails, this begins with real relationships, which can only be built through sharing experiences.

View the webinar in full below: