2022 Real Estate Listing Attraction Marketing Strategies for Realtors

Inventory is pretty darn thin these days—feels a lot like it did at the start of 2021. Listings few and far between, buyers competing to win contracts. (Not trying to be negative… just making an observation )

Last year I published a handful of trainings designed to generate listings and win multiple offers. I think they’re worth revisiting.

I’ve linked ‘em up in my LINK-IN-BIO. Go to my profile, tap the link in my bio, and press the “Listing Leads & Multiple Offers” button.

Go get some listings and win some contracts!

The trainings listed include:

  1. “NAME YOUR PRICE” database email

  2. “At what price are you CRAZY not to sell?” Facebook/Instagram ad

  3. The “Off-Market Match-Maker”

  4. “How to Win Multi Offers” top-producer panel

  5. “How to Buy-&-Sell at the SAME Time!” Facebook Ad Campaign

What else is working to source listings and/or win offers? Would love your input in a comment, please.

How to Improve Google Local Services Ads to Get More Leads (for Realtors)

Google Local Services Ads (GLSAs) are freakin’ incredible. If you’re not running them, here’s why you should:

  • Ad-Placement:  GLSAs are positioned at the tippy-top of the Google’s search results page!—primo placement for prospective customers to discover you. Plus, there’s no keyword-planning involved. You simply declare your industry (e.g. real estate agent) and Google handles all the targeting.

  • Service-Types:  You control the types of leads you do/don’t want to receive. For instance, if you don’t want First-Time-Home-Buyers or Renters, it’s easy to say so. 

  • Cost-Per-Lead:  You only pay for legitimate leads. Lots of services will spend your budget and, at the end of the billing cycle, whatever you get (in terms of leads generated) is what you get. But GLSAs only charges you for valid leads. What’s more, you get to set a budget in terms of what you’re willing to pay. So it’s NOT like you would set a $1,000/month budget, end up w/ only one lead, and then Google would be like, “Welp, your cost per lead came out to $1,000. Sorry 😅.” That’d be ridiculous!

  • Seller Leads:  Finally, consumers who search for agents online is (generally) characteristic of seller-intent. If you’re looking to generate some seller leads, GLSAs may be a good fit for it.

Now… all the happy & fuzzy feelings about Google aside—Local Services Ads aren’t w/o blemish.

  • 🚫 For starters, GLSAs still aren’t available in some regions—most parts of Canada, for instance. Boo 😒!!!

  • ⬇️ Second—though search volume is gaining more-and-more ground, there’s just not an overwhelming-ton of looking for a REALTOR types of Google searches happening on a consistent basis. As a result, GLSAs won’t show nearly as often as, say, “Homes for sale near me” Google Search ads.

  • 🥵 The competition is fierce! When GLSAs first became available for real estate agents, it was like come-list-me calls on the daily! Well, word spread and other agents joined in on the fun 🤩!

Which brings us to present day…

5 ways to Improve Your Google Local Services Ads to Get More Leads!

  1. Local-Services Biz Profile:  Fill out your GLSA profile in its entirety! Set your hours-and-availability, insert your business's bio, specify your services areas/zip-codes, declare the services you offer (e.g. “new construction,” “first-time-homebuyers,” et al.), and so forth. Bear in mind, Google measures how often your ad converts—i.e., how often a viewer calls or messages you. The more info you provide, the more there is for a lead to gain confidence in contacting you.

  2. Customer Reviews:  Sync your Google Business Profile (GBP) to front-load customer reviews. Keep in mind, the quantity and average star-rating of your reviews impacts how your ad ranks. For customers who find/use your business via Google Local Services Ads, request that they review you on GLSA directly vs. on your GBP. That way, Google will mark the review as verified, which'll reinforce rankings. The downside, though, is that the review won’t sync over to your GBP. Can’t win ‘em all 🤷🏻‍♂️.

  3. Answer. The. Phone. The simple truth is: Google knows when leads call or message your business. So, if you fail to answer those calls or if you don’t reply the messages quickly, Google will demote the ranking of your ad. So… If your profile is set as open 24 hours/day, for instance—unless someone's monitoring for incoming leads overnight—you may reconsider your settings.

  4. Log-&-Notate Your Leads: GLSA offers advertisers a basic lead-management dashboard/platform. My advice: USE IT! Mark-up every lead's record with detailed notes as well as update the statuses of your leads (e.g. active, inactive, or otherwise). Remember, by showing your ad, Google is indirectly giving its approval of your business. So provide them reassurance that your leads are being properly serviced.

  5. Tweak/Adjust Your Bidding:  If you're lead-flow has declined, you may think about altering your bid-settings. The default bid strategy is set to "Maximize Leads"—meaning, Google will seek to generate as many leads as it can w/in your specified daily, weekly, or monthly budget. First off, try increasing your spend. If that doesn’t do it, consider switching to a “Max-Cost-Per-Lead” bid strategy. Using the latter, you're essentially offering top-dollar for any-and-all leads in your market area—that is, depending on the amount you tender per lead.

In the Business of Branding: CONTENT is CURRENCY 💸 (How to use social media to build your agent brand)

What do you sell? 🚨Spoiler Alert🚨— it isn’t homes! What I mean is, that’s not what consumers, quote-unquote, “buy from you” or WHY they hire you. Fundamentally, they hire you for your expertise and the means by which you impart that expertise. The question is, what’s your expertise and how is it being conveyed?

In today’s day-and-age, the odds of a customer suddenly reaching out to book an appointment or, better yet, to up and hire you w/o having done some significant online research first is, basically, zero!

Candidly, your brand, for all intents and purposes, is whatever Google says it is. (Mine too!) And I’m talking about a lot more than just your online reviews; I’m talking about what’s on your blog, links to your social platforms, and more.

Ultimately, Google’s just the messenger; you’re the message!—or, at least, you could be. How? By making more content:  blogs, videos, social posts, and more!

IMO:  Content is Currency 💴. Metaphorically speaking, the more money you have, the more you can do w/ it (and the more it can do for you). Likewise, the more content you have, the more you can do w/ it (and the more it can do for you).

So… Correction:  your brand is whatever 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙩𝙚𝙣𝙩 says it is!

POV: You Don't Have to Dance on Social to Build Your Business

POV: You Don't Have to Dance on Social to Build Your Business

Stop overthinking social media‼️ In my opinion, we get way too caught up in hacks, trends, and fads—when, at the end of day, it’s ALL about the quality/value of your content.

FILL IN THE BLANK(S): “For _______ {e.g. IG, FB, YT, LI, TT, etc.}: I am insanely-obsessed with _______.”

What, for instance, makes your page worth following, your videos worth watching, or your posts worth reading? Whatever it is, that’s the 𝚊𝚐𝚎𝚗𝚝-𝚋𝚛𝚊𝚗𝚍 you’re building. Don’t forget… Content is Contribution.

Get Your Google Business Profile Discovered More Frequently with Paid Google Ads!

Wanna run ads to promote your Google Business Profile? You better say “YES!”

I’ve said it before:  pretty much EVERY product or platform, feature or function Google offers for business-promo purposes:  DO IT! Operation, “Game-on, Google!”

Did you know there are about 3.5-billion searches run on Google each and every day—of which, 46% are of local intent. And so, consequently, Google has been doing a lot to advance its relevance in terms of supporting location-sensitive search behaviors. Point is:  if you’re running a local business, Google is literally your best bud.

Now, I’ve posted a fair bit of content in the past (CLICK HERE) with regard to optimizing/leveraging your Google Business Profile (formerly called, “Google My Business”). In today’s training, we’ll go one step further by running Google Business Profile ads (a.k.a. “Google Local-Search Ads”).

Want would-be customers to call you directly? Then watch this training, setup the ads, and turn your ringer on 📲

Google Business Profile Optimizations for Realtors: How to Rank in Local-Intent Google Searches!

Nearly HALF of all Google searches are looking for something LOCAL:  your business, possibly

If you want to increase the discoverability of your #GoogleBusinessProfile (GBP)—which, naturally, YOU DO!—swipe through the images above and follow the recommendations.

Here’s a quick rundown of the points:

  1. Select the most “trending” business categories to help rank your GBP in the top-three section of Google’s Local Pack.

  2. Tweak your profile name to rank on “Best realtor near me” types of search queries.

  3. Collect keyword-optimized reviews from customers to boost your SEO.

  4. Upload photos, videos (max file-size of 75M and up-to 30 seconds long), and posts on-the-regular. Profiles w/ 100+ photos, for instance, garner 520% more inbound calls from prospective customers.

My advice:  PLAY THE GOOGLE GAME!

The Secret of Better Lead Conversion (for Realtors)

Wanna improve your lead conversion⁉️IMO… It’s all about context!

For instance, if you’re aware of exactly HOW you generated a given lead—and, by extension, what can inferred about the 𝙞𝙣𝙩𝙚𝙣𝙩 of that lead based on the manner in which they were attained—then you have some useful context. W/o that knowledge, however, you’re operating in the dark.

Every lead enters your sales funnel with varying needs, circumstances, desires, preferences, goals, and timeframes — and knowing is ½ the battle.

Too many agents’ approach to, quote-unquote, 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘴, is to call, text, and email like crazy for about two weeks and then, if that doesn’t do the trick, donezo! — the leads get “archived” or maybe parked inside some type of generic drip sequence.

Leads aren’t random—they’re generated in repeated patterns: e.g. form-fills on your website, DMs on social, inbound calls off of Google, property inquiries, etc. If you take time to understand the steps a lead has taken to get to you, you’re in a better spot to help them take their next step. Every lead has a story!

Invest in Marketing that "Appreciates" in Value/Results Over Time

Reality is that some marketing activities produce only short-lived results: ads, emails, social posts, mailers, and more. Gotta keep at it over-and-again or the results will start to subside. That doesn’t mean it isn’t all worth doing -- not at all‼️ My point is—after awhile—you may begin to feel like you’re treading water or running on a hamster wheel.

But to the contrary, some marketing activities provide more enduring returns. For example:

  • Reviews: The more online reviews you get, the more they all become worth—each one reinforcing the record.

  • Google Business: Every photo and/or video uploaded to your #GoogleBusinessProfile (formerly titled, #GoogleMyBusiness) subsequently stocks-up Google’s inventory of what it can show viewers in its local search results or in Google Maps, thereby increasing your opportunities to earn views.

  • YouTube: You’ve heard me say it before: YouTube is a search engine. So the more videos you feed it, the greater the probability of your videos ranking in key searches or being recommended after other videos. What’s more, the more videos on your channel, the more there is for new viewers “watch next.”

  • TikTok-&-Reels: When someone watches one of your TikTok videos, it triggers the algorithm show them your other videos. The more “other videos” you have, the better. And, btw, it works the same with Instagram Reels.

  • Blogging/SEO: Every time you post content on social, you should also post it as a blog on your website. Over time, your blogs will start to rank on searches, thus increasing traffic to your site, and, consequently, increasing your site’s domain authority—which will then help you to rank even more. It’s called SEO.

Marketing a big ole numbers game; it’s math!

Posting Videos on Google Business Profiles that Aren’t Yours!

Did you know you could post photos and videos on Google Business Profiles THAT AREN’T YOURS 🤯

(Disclaimer:  don’t go posting on the Google Business Profiles (GBP) of peers or competitors in your marketplace. That’ll make for a BIG mess.)

Try running some local Google searches for neighborhoods, subdivisions, or even condo-complexes in your area. Chance are, you’ll find that a bunch already have existing Google Business Profiles set up. That’s what South-African agent, Amore Van Der Ende, does!

Amore uploads 30-second, “branded” (as in, her name, logo, and contact info, on-screen and visible) video tours on the respective GBPs of key buildings and/or communities in her marketplace. She’ll showcase the grounds, amenities, common areas, and, if it’s her listing, the interior of a property.

And you know what? Her videos get TONS of views and, what’s more, they help to position her as the agent-of-choice with would-be buyers and sellers conducting research online.

Think about it… you’re accustomed to seeing “customer uploaded” photos and videos in Google Maps and Google Search for hotels and restaurants. Welp, it’s the same thing here.

To get started, you’ll need to enroll in the Google Local Guides program. Simply visit maps.google.com/localguides to get started. Here are a couple of quick tips to consider:

  1. Make sure you’re logged into the Google Account that’s tied to your Google Business Page.

  2. You may (possibly) consider modifying your Google Account name from, say, “Jason Pantana” to, for instance, “Jason Pantana, Nashville, Realtor,” just to reinforce what you do as people view your contributions. You’d make this change at myaccount.google.com.

Crush it with Google, y’all. If you’re going to do this, please comment “🔥🔥🔥” below to let me know!

6 YouTube SEO Tools for Realtors

#YouTube is more of a ꜱᴇᴀʀᴄʜ-ᴇɴɢɪɴᴇ than a ꜱᴏᴄɪᴀʟ-ɴᴇᴛᴡᴏʀᴋ—meaning, viewers are prone to discover your content in YouTube's search results versus scrolling through feeds, like w/ other social sites.

In a way, it’s as if viewers are literally seeking out your videos:  they’ll watch for longer and tend to demonstrate higher levels of intent/interest concerning your video’s subject-matter (e.g. “real estate in ____”).

On the flip side, though, it’s a lot more competitive to get discovered on YouTube—which is why you need an SEO tool to optimize your uploads for maximum reach and performance.

Swipe through the images to review a short list of services to dial-in your YouTube SEO strategy. (Personally, I use @tubebuddy—there’s a link to it in my bio.)

Who’s putting energy/effort into growing on YouTube in 2022? Comment below ⤵️

How to Guarantee More Video Views (in the First Three Seconds of Your Video)

Roughly 99% of videos ruin their chances of generating crazy-high views 📈 in the first 3 seconds. The mistake (IMO):  it’s because those videos lead with opening pleasantries:

  • “Hi, I’m Jason Pantana—blah, blah, blah.”

  • “Welcome to another episode of ‘nobody cares!’”

In the time it takes to say the words, your viewers will have scrolled past. Theme-song intro clips, bumpers, and logo-stings -- it’s all extraneous to your video’s subject. My point is:  get to the point straightaway! 

Facebook recently conducted a cross-platform study in which they learned that half of viewers who committed to watching the first three seconds of a video, statistically speaking, would’ve gone on to have watched for 30 seconds or longer. So, in theory, it’s a battle over capturing that first three seconds of attention. (Hence, Yoda 😂)

It’s not that you can’t or shouldn’t include intro bumpers or say who you are—just don’t do it at the very beginning when it’s make-or-break in terms of winning the viewers attention.

Pretty much every algorithm in existence (Facebook, TikTok, Instagram, Google, YouTube, et al.) is predicated on holding viewers/users attention.

  • If a web-surfer clicks a link on Google and immediately bounces before the page loads, Google infers that link should be demoted in the future search rankings. 

  • If viewers watch only a few seconds of a YouTube video and then quickly move on to someone else’s video predictably, YouTube concludes something about that video isn’t relevant and therefore holds back its reach in its search rankings, explore pages, and its various other feeds. 

If a video is able to sustain viewership, then naturally, a platform is incentivized to push that video out far and wide. It’ll rank better in searches, distribute through explore/discovery feeds, and get pushed to more of your followers, period.

So if you wanna improve how your next video performs, hook viewers with an opening “Lean-in Line”—i.e., an attention-grabbing statement, question, or stat. Something that’ll draw viewers into what you have to say.

And remember:  the success or failure of your next video is determined in its first three seconds!

In your opinion, what are the best ways to start a video? I’d love to hear your thoughts/experiences in a comment below ⤵️

The Market Belongs to Those Who MARKET!

Jason Pantana, before a keynote speech in Las Vegas -- discussing how to build a real estate agent marketing plan

Now and always: the MARKET belongs to those who MARKET.

So don’t ⛔️ be a DABBLER!—don’t try 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 then 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵, never sticking w/ anything for long enough to test, measure, and improve.

Videos, ads, billboards, postcards, emails, events, gifting, or something else -- whatever makes up your marketing mix in 2022, execute on it relentlessly!‼️

I’m curious… What marketing efforts/activities are you planning to delve into next year? I’d love to hear what you’re thinking about in a comment 💬 below.

5 Ways to Market/Advertise Your Local Business on Google

5 Ways to Market/Advertise Your Local Business on Google

Google get’s more than 3.5B searches every day — and nearly ½ are looking for something local. You think Google cares much about its ability to serve-up relevant local results?—because I sure do! My advice:  if Google offers it—whether its a platform or a product, organic or paid—do it.

  1. Wanna learn how to optimize your Google Business Profile (A.K.A. “Google My Business” listing) for local-intent searches? Here are ALL my blogs and videos on the topic (in one place):  bit.ly/JP-GBP

  2. If you’re not running YouTube Commercials (A.K.A. “Skippable In-Stream Ads”) you’re MASSIVELY missing out! Here’s a link to ALL my trainings on how, what, where, when, and why to run YouTube ads: bit.ly/JP-YTads

  3. Google Local Services Ads are a total no-brainer 🧠 They’re sometimes called “Google Screened” or “Google Guaranteed” and rank at the tippy-top of Google’s search-results page. These are a definite must! Here’s a link to get more details/info:  bit.ly/JP-GLSA

  4. Have you setup/run Google Local Search Ads? If not, do it! I’m in the process of developing some how-to videos, so standby for links. To make things simple (for the time being), go to Business.Google.com and tap the  “Create an Ad” button. Just follow the prompts.

  5. Wanna run Google Display Network Ads (i.e., the image-, text-, and/or video-based “banner ads” that crop up all over the Internet:  website side-columns, pop-up banners and bars, or located along the footers of mobile apps, for instance) so customers see you literally EVERYWHERE across the web? Here’s a step-by-step video training for you:  bit.ly/JP-GDN

If you’re not taking full advantage of Google’s products and platforms, start now!

Rank Your Google Business Profile Higher with this Trick

I’m just going to say it:  there’s no online profile of greater importance than your Google Business Page (GBP) — that is, if you can get it to show up in front of prospective customers.

Because that’s the trick, isn’t it?—optimizing your GBP to rank on key Google Searches and/or in Google Maps:  e.g. your name, your competitors’ names, your profession, and/or the area(s) you serve.

The good news is, it isn’t too difficult. For instance, start posting videos in the “Photos” section of your Google Business Page (formerly known as “Google My Business”). Aim for once-a-week (at minimum).

Of course, keep in mind that it’ll take more than just posting videos to realize the full potential your GBP. So if you’re ready go all-in, be sure to check out these resources:

Your Google Business Page videos should adhere to the following specs:

  • Up to 30-seconds ⏱

  • At least 720p resolution 👾

  • 75MB max file size 📁

As far as video dimensions are concerned, that part’s a bit tricky since some viewers will access your content on mobile devices and others will do so on desktop computers. What’s more, some viewers will find your profile on Google Maps whereas others will locate it via Google Search. So cover your bases by publishing some vertical videos AND some horizontal videos.

Fact is, prospective customers spend extensive time looking up and assessing their available options when it comes to hiring or selecting businesses. So give ‘em more to go off of!

Just look at #TomFerry coaching member, Sean Ryan, for example:  he’s posting a handful of videos every week and is generating roughly 50,000 views a month, thereby dominating his (local) competition across Google. The results don’t lie!

And your videos don’t have to be “for Google only.” Try repurposing your social media videos, for instance:  listing video teasers, market update clips, tips and advice, behind-the-scenes content, and more.

It goes w/o saying:  the future (and present moment) of marketing is VIDEO—so get after it!

How to Run Google Display Network Ads in 2022 (for REALTORS): Step-by-Step Video Training

🚨Don’t do JUST Google Display Network ads!🚨

As far as online advertising goes, Google Display Network ads certainly aren’t the “be-all, end-all” — but they’re the perfect “in-between.”

What I mean is, if your entire online advertising strategy were to consist of nothing but Display Network ads, chances are, you’d be disappointed with the results. On the other hand, if you utilized Display Network to reinforce ALL your other marketing efforts—e.g. videos, social media, SEO, signage, postage, and so on—they’d work like magic!

  • Display ads as your ONLY marketing? Don’t bother.

  • Display ads as PART of your marketing? It’s like pouring gasoline⛽️ on fire🔥

The Google Display Network (GDN) is a group of over 2-million (more like 3-million) websites, videos, and apps where your “Display” ads can appear. Display ads (sometimes called “Banner ads”) are image-, text-, and/or video-based ads that crop up all over the Internet:  website side-columns, pop-up banners and bars, or located along the footers of mobile apps, for instance. And they come in myriad shapes and sizes:  square-shaped, tall-and-skinny, or wide-and-skinny, for example.

Today’s training video demonstrates how to create and run Google Display Network ads from start-to-finish! That said, the content focuses primarily on “how” to run the ads, not on “what” ads to run, necessarily. Good news is that part is simple! SHOW ME YOUR FACE 😇

End of day, GDN ads are about building brand awareness/consideration.

  • Your voice 🗣

  • Your mind 🧠

  • Your heart ❤️

  • Your face 😙

Sure, you could feature images/videos of properties. Unfortunately, though, most viewers won’t be paying close enough attention to consciously realize it’s your ad—so why even bother!? Logos and branded colors will absolutely go a long way—but there’s nothing as effective as images (or videos) of YOU!

(P.S. There’s a lot of psychology and neuroscience behind this: learn more HERE.)

“Oh, you’re that agent—I see you everywhere!” I promise, you’ll hear it again-and-again.

A Video's Success (or Failure) Boils-Down to the First 3 Seconds!

Want more video views⁉️ Ditch the intro.

Fact is, there’s simply no time for opening pleasantries! “Hi, I’m Jason Pantana — blah, blah blah.” In the time it’d take to even say the words,  would-be viewers will have scrolled away.

Statistically speaking, the success (or failure) of your next video boils down to its opening three seconds.

  • Two-thirds of viewers who watch three seconds of a video will watch for at least 10 seconds

  • Nearly half will watch for 30 seconds

Logo stings, intro graphics, and video bumpers are ALL break-points for viewers to bounce. While can they certainly help to promote your brand, they don’t belong at the beginning of a video before the viewer has committed to the content.

What’s more, just about every social 𝘢𝘭𝘨𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘩𝘮 out there—YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, etc.—is predicated on 𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯. If a video is able to sustain viewership, then naturally, a platform is incentivized to push that video out far and wide. It’ll rank better in searches, distribute through explore/discovery feeds, and get pushed to more of your followers.

Video-marketing is math 🧮

Google Ads Opens Up Customer List Retargeting to All Advertisers

🚨Google News: you can upload your database into your Google Ads account and retarget your database with your Google Ads — as in, Google Search ads, Display Network ads, YouTube In-Stream ads, and more!

Historically, only Google advertisers who’d spent more than $50K USD were even eligible for the feature. However, due to new and emerging Internet Privacy rules/regs—and the subsequent significance of “first-party data” (i.e., email address, phone number, mailing address, etc.)—Google’s opened up the feature to ALL advertisers. Watch 👀 the video for a quick demo.

3 Ways to Repurpose Your Social Media Content

Fact is, making content is a HIGH-EFFORT activity:  researching topics, recording videos, writing captions, optimizing and distributing from platform-to-platform. There ain’t nothing easy about it -- but, on the other hand, there ain’t nothing like it either!

Today’s video is simple:  3 (easy) ideas for recycling/repurposing your content to extend the lifetime of every post, video, or graphic you publish!

  • ♻️ Repost your Reels (occasionally).

  • ➗ Edit down long-form video into snippets.

  • 😎 Make ❝quote-cards❞ or graphics out of cool things you say.

The algorithms governing social media feeds burn 🔥 through content in mere hours (days at best), and then—poof—it’s over. What’s more, your followers don’t read every caption word-for-word or watch every second of every video you put out. In addition, a sizable chunk of your followers probably weren’t your followers six months or a year ago—and I’m willing to bet most didn’t go back and forage through your old posts when they subscribed. My point is:  your content bears repeating!

Go look through my feed at past posts, for instance. You might notice that there’s somewhat of overlap under way.

  • Most of my “Tweet screenshot” posts, for instance, started out as part of some other post’s caption

  • I published a Reel last week that got more likes/engagement its second go-around than it did when I first uploaded three months ago 🤷🏻‍♂️

Truth is, none of us are publishing enough content—not even close! But that doesn’t mean you’re not actually producing enough 😉. See the difference⁇ Slice, dice, and start repurposing your posts, friends :D

The Future of Instagram (and Social Media Altogether) is VIDEO!

The Future of Instagram (and Social Media Altogether) is Video Jason Pantana

By now you’ve probably heard the message:  “INSTAGRAM IS NO LONGER (JUST) A SQUARE PHOTO-SHARING 📸 APP.” Algorithmic priority has adjusted (and will continue) to favor:

  • Creators (i.e., producers of engaging content; influencers)

  • Video Content (i.e., short or long runtimes, horizontal and/or vertical aspect ratios)

Put ‘em together and it reads like this:  𝙲𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚝𝚘𝚛𝚜 𝚞𝚜𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚟𝚒𝚍𝚎𝚘 𝚠𝚒𝚕𝚕 𝚋𝚎 𝚊𝚕𝚐𝚘𝚛𝚒𝚝𝚑𝚖𝚒𝚌𝚊𝚕𝚕𝚢 𝚙𝚛𝚒𝚘𝚛𝚒𝚝𝚒𝚣𝚎𝚍.

And it isn’t just Instagram! Case in point, the very reason for Instagram to have made this pronouncement was due to the competitive pressures it felt from TikTok and YouTube — both of which, obviously, run on nothing but video.

My point is:  everything that can be video, will be video!

For example, just look at the impact of video on other popular marketing channels, such as email and blogging/SEO:

  • 📧 Video can increase open rates by 19% and click rates by 65% while reducing unsubscribe rates by 26%. (Campaign Monitor)

  • 🔎 Video is 50x more likely to get organic ranking than plain text results. (ImpactPlus)

  • 🎥 Video is the #1 form of media used in content strategy, overtaking blogs and infographics. (HubSpot)

  • 🔗 Posts with videos earn more backlinks and see a 157% boost in search traffic (Search Engine People)

Pure and simple—if video isn’t the centerpiece of ALL your marketing activities—candidly, your marketing is out of focus.

How to Stop Over-Thinking Your Social Media Content (for Realtors and Entrepreneurs)

I love ❤️ this quote:

You wouldn’t worry so much about what others think of you if you realized how seldom they do. (Eleanor Roosevelt)

I’ll bet there’s a good chance you’re overthinking your social media content—worried over what others might think of you based on what you post (or don’t post). But the thing is, no one (aside from Internet trolls) is paying that close of attention, friends!

  • “I can’t make videos like that!—who do I think I am?”

  • “What if this post falls flat and doesn’t get any engagement?” 

  • “Will this make me look too ‘silly’ or too ‘salesy’?”

My advice:  STOP RIGHT NOW! It’s far better to over-index on content than to over-think it.

I’m not saying to behave like a robot 🤖 or act disingenuously on social, but, the fact is, you’re life isn’t lived on the inside an app. It doesn’t deserve that much mental space (IMO). Social media may be a representation of the “real you,” but it surely isn’t the genuine article.

Question:  if you weren’t overthinking your content, what would you post (or, perhaps, repost)⁉️ It’s go time, friends👊