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Chris Brogan’s Social Media Ideas for Realtors (That Also Apply to Property Managers)

Posted on 29. Dec, 2009 by Aimee Miller in Marketing

I love Chris Brogan’s articles and have been reading them for quite some time now. Chris is a renowned social media expert with a history of helping businesses create online relationships with their audience. So it was with great pleasure that I read his most recent post, “If I were a Realtor.”

I see many ‘tweets’ and Facebook posts from both Realtors and Property Managers that focus too much on the available properties for sale or for rent. When Property managers get started with social networking it seems like a great idea to just continually update their status with vacancy postings. The problem is that it isn’t super interesting to read about available properties if you aren’t yet looking for something to buy or rent!

One of the best parts about social networking applications like Twitter and Facebook is the opportunity to start and continue a conversation with people who aren’t ready to be your customers today, but may very well be ready tomorrow…this means you have to work at being relevant and interesting. So I wanted to share this post from Chris because I think that many of these ideas are very appropriate for property managers and will help you be even more interesting to your future customers.

Here are two that are really good for property managers and are activities you can get started on right away (along with my comments, too):

Write a blog about the neighborhood / location where you have properties.
This is a chance to show how knowledgeable you are about the area and build loyalty with your current residents (tell them about a fun community event, great new restaurant, trends in the area) and also show owners how well you know the area. Let’s say a prospective resident was searching about schools in a specific neighborhood, he might just find your blog.

Post tons of pictures and walking tour videos on the blog.
Well first of all, I got a Flip camera for Christmas and they truly are fantastic – super easy, great quality videos and fun to use! So you could hire me to take your videos for you! But it really makes this type of “quick’ video accessible to anyone. Pictures and videos make your site so much more alive and human – plus they are super fun and interesting for your readers and give them a feel for the neighborhood and your properties. Choosing where you live is an emotional decision – help your future customers feel more emotionally connected to the property by showing vs. telling.

Read the full post from Chris Brogan, here. What other ideas do you have?

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Uh-Oh. My Facebook Fan Page is Filled with Vacancy Postings
Horizon Realty’s Twitter Debacle: It Can Help You With Your Property Management Social Media Plan
Property Managers: Know Your Audience When Marketing Online
How Property Managers Use Social Networking to Grow Their Business (Apr. 22 Webinar Recap)

Tags: facebook, internet marketing, social media