If you’re setting yourself up for success in real estate this year, we’re sure a social media plan is on top of your to-do list. An essential part of reaching out to your target audiences and establishing your personal brand, understanding social media can take your career places – and all agents want that.
For a refresher on social media for realtors, check out our in-depth guide on the topic. We also have an interactive session on social media at Bayut Academy, our in-house workshop series.
Let’s now explore the social media trends that could make capturing your audience’s attention in 2022!
Post Short Videos
With attention spans getting shorter (at 8.25 seconds, lower than that of a goldfish), creating short videos on Instagram (or Reels) and TikTok videos about your latest listings or your skills can help boost your popularity quite a bit.
In September 2021, TikTok was reported to have one billion users – making it the platform to use if you’re looking to increase your exposure online.
To create a TikTok video, all you need to do is:
- Download the TikTok app from the App Store or Google Play Store
- Open the app and click on the + button in the centre, then opt to upload a few small video clips
- Select the audio you’d like to use. You can either use the audios available on TikTok or use the audio that is already on your videos.
Tiktok automatically ‘stitches’, or syncs the videos with your chosen audio to create shareable videos.
Upload your TikTok and add hashtags like #ForYou and #Dubai with the caption. These hashtags can help your video feature on the “FOR YOU” page of TikTok.
You can then save this video to your phone and upload it onto Instagram Reels. Instagram allows users to upload 15, 30 and 60-second videos, so go ahead and get creative.
Create short videos about your latest property listings, or share information about the UAE property market. You could also create informative videos on buying properties for first-time buyers in the country.
Use Multiple Channels
A rookie mistake is focusing on one social media platform and ignoring the rest. We recommend an “omnichannel” approach; where you stay active on multiple platforms. This gives you an opportunity to figure out which platforms help connect with your customer better.
For example, in the UAE, you can find families and first-time homebuyers on Facebook and Instagram. LinkedIn is a great tool to connect with professionals and international investors, while Saudi investors are known to be active on Snapchat. This always depends on how well you understand your target audiences.
Analyse Your Performance
Following our earlier point, experimenting with different channels and finding out which ones work involves analysing the ones that work. You can do this using the insights tools available on each platform.
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For example, Facebook and Instagram show you impressions, reach and saves per post (again, this feature is available exclusively on Business accounts).
You can find out which posts perform better (and which ones don’t) using these insights.
Twitter, TikTok and LinkedIn have similar tools that let you see the views per post.
- On Twitter, you can click on “View Tweet Activity” under your tweet to see how many people have seen it and the number of profile visits from your tweet
- TikTok shows you the number of views on your videos right on your profile. On visiting your own profile, you can see the performance of each TikTok
- Available on LinkedIn business accounts, you can see how well your post has performed using statistics such as impressions, views, clicks and more.
Try auditing your accounts monthly to understand your social media performance better. You can also commit to a quarterly audit to see the long term growth of your content.
Create Interactive Content
Create content that makes your audiences want to engage with your content. Apart from writing captions with questions and asking for opinions, you can use tools like polls and quizzes on Instagram stories to have your audiences interact with your content, making your account memorable.
Here are a few ways you can take a step closer to your audiences:
Quizzes
Instagram Stories offer a ‘quiz’ sticker, where you can post questions and viewers can fill in their answers. Post enticing questions that can give you the answers you need, such as:
What do you know about mortgages?
Where is your dream home’s location in Dubai?
What do you look for when a home in Dubai?
Another post idea is having a side-by-side picture of two properties and a poll sticker asking viewers which one they would choose. Although it seems like a simple poll, it can help boost your profile’s engagement.
User-Generated Content
Do you have a nice agent review on Bayut you’d like to show off? Or a 5-star review on Facebook? Why not post about it on social media? This type of content is generated from your users, and it is a great way to highlight your skills.
Other ideas include reposting content your account is tagged in. Acknowledging other people goes a long way.
Social media is ever-changing, which is why being on top of the latest trends can boost your account’s popularity. For an easier start on creating content, you can check out our social media templates for realtors, to access a series of templates that can help your streamline your work.
Stay tuned to our Content Corner to stay updated on ways you can take your real estate career forward. You can also join us for our in-depth workshops at Bayut Academy to take your skills to the next level!