Instagram Reels to Generate Repeat & Referral Business (for REALTORS®)

Pop-quiz:  What do you sell!?

You might respond that you sell “yourself.” Honestly though – what does that even mean? Alternatively, you may reason that you sell houses. Hmm… kind-of, sort-of. Technically speaking, you provide brokerage services to people who are doing the buying and/or selling. There’s a difference.

Fundamentally, the reason folks hire you boils down to your expertise (and how you impart it). That’s what you sell‼️And, bear in mind, EXPERTISE is a distinctive term. It’s not one-size-fits all. Like I’ve said before:  “Nobody does YOU better than Y-O-U.”

Real estate is a know-you, like-you, trust-you business—that’s the winning combination with consumers. Question is, when prospective clients look you up on social, for instance, does your page adequately showcase your expertise?

Take Jeffrey Sabel, for instance. Just over a year ago he started posting Reels almost every day in which he deftly demonstrated his competence. No surprise, his page started to gain new followers quickly. Why? Because folks follow accounts that confer value.

What’s more, his Instagram efforts kindled a frenzy of REPEAT and REFERRAL business from his sphere-of-influence contacts—most of whom were already following him. That’s the secret sauce, right there!

Lots of conflicting messages about the state (and future state) of the marketplace are competing to win consumers’ confidence. If headlines say X and you say Y, for instance, who are buyers and sellers in your market gonna trust?

That, my friends, depends on the strength of your agent-brand.

3 "Easy to Produce" Vertical Videos (for Real Estate Agents)

VIDEO is VERTICAL – that’s the trend to embrace:  Instagram + Facebook Reels, TikToks, and YouTube Shorts.

Trouble is, making and sharing videos is a significant undertaking. Top social platforms like Instagram and TikTok, for instance, have practically insatiable appetites for more and more content—video content, in particular.

You’ve gotta work smarter 🤨 when it comes to video-marketing nowadays.

Bearing that in mind… here’s a list and instructions for three “easy to produce” video shows to step-up your vertical ↕️ video game now and into next year:

3 (Easy-to-Make) Vertical Video for Realtors

1. Talking Heads 🗣 - (Not the band 🤣) Close-up, camera-facing videos in which you provide real estate market commentary, share tips and advice, or explain nuances/intricacies about real estate.

I’d recommend batch-filming to record videos in bulk. You may opt to shoot in the field or at a set location, with your smartphone🤳 or perhaps a DSLR/mirrorless camera 🎥. That bit’s up to you.

Be sure to prep your points in advance, maybe bring a few changes of clothes, and I’d definitely advise outsourcing the editing.

• Here’s an example: Sarah Roy - Farr Group NW

2. Gimbal Tours🏡 - We all know people like watching home-tours. (Ever heard of HGTV⁉️) Nonetheless, some myths that might be holding you back from making more of these videos:

MYTH 1:  The subject property has to be your listing.

That’s not the case so long as you obtain proper consent. In fact, the properties don’t even have to be, quote-unquote, “for sale,” just as long as you don’t misrepresent/mislead otherwise.

MYTH 2:  You can only produce polished videos or it’ll present the home improperly.

Before I get into this, let me be clear: I have no qualms with pro-quality listing videos. (Far from it, actually.) However, because social algorithms are burning through content so rapidly, the odds of ALL the right people seeing any one post is mathematically improbable.

If you’re bottlenecking your output of content because each video, for instance, is overly time- and labor-intensive, a pivot to your approach may be in order.

TRY THIS:  get a gimbal (i.e., a handheld mechanical stabilizer to help you shoot smoother video) for your iPhone (e.g. DJI Osmo) and shoot a selfie-styled video that begins with you introducing the property. For example:

“Wanna see what $500,000 can get you in South Nashville…”

Then, with your gimbal, rotate the camera to forward-facing and begin touring the property. Step to the corner of each room and pan from left to right to give viewers a full view of its interior spaces. Film in 4K, 60 frames-per-second (fps), and at the 0.5 magnification setting to get that wide-angle lens look.

When you’re done, load your video into an editing app like Splice. Pop-in a few transitions, speed-up or slow-down the footage to your liking (that’s called “speed ramping”), and edit your video in like two minutes flat—done and dusted!

• Here’s an example: Ray Ellen - Pixel Properties

3. Selfie Spotlights🤳 - Using similar filming techniques as the selfie-gimbal video aforementioned, hit the town to document its hotspots and amenities. Try using the voiceover (VO) functionality that’s built into Reels, for instance. That way, you can just film to your phone’s camera roll while you’re out-and-about the town and then add your footage into a Reel/TikTok/Short after-the-fact.

• Here’s an example: The One Team

If you plan to conduct interviews with locals, for instance—and wanna record quality-sounding audio—consider investing in a LAV or condenser/cardioid microphone.

• RODE Wireless GO ii

• Deity Pocket Wireless Mobile Kit

• Deity V-Mic D4 Duo Microphone

• Rode VideoMic GO Lightweight On-Camera Microphone

The simple fact is, social algorithms are greedy — they want more content than ever (especially, vertical videos). If your videos are overly difficult to produce in bulk, then you oughta explore new methods/concepts to streamline your process.

5 Subtle Indicators Your Marketing is Working

We all know real estate is a relationship business—a know + like + trust form of business. What’s more, as the market normalizes/decelerates, the typical customer lifecycle is returning to its normal time-frame—which can be up-to a two-year process (for some).

Marketing—just for the record—won’t produce any sense of immediate gratification. It’s a long-game‼️—to which you’re either interested or committed.

So what are you doing to position your business at the forefront of consumers’ minds so that when the time indeed comes to BUY, SELL, INVEST, or REFER—it’s you and no one else! That’s marketing:  mindshare wins marketshare. 

• fast markets, slow markets

• up markets, down markets

• strong markets, weak markets

… No matter the circumstances, remember:  NEVER STOP MARKETING! 👊

SEO is Social Media Afterlife 😇: How to repurpose your social posts as blogs

Social media algorithms (like Instagram) tend to favor your most recent post when distributing content through the feeds:  e.g the Home Feed, the Explore Page, the Reels Feed, and so on.

And it isn’t just Instagram. Facebook, TikTok, LinkedIn, and other social sites function similarly.

So here’s the dilemma. They (the gurus) say you’re “supposed” to post daily (or even twice-a-day) in order to reach the widest-possible audience. However, by doing so, each new post is essentially burying its predecessor post alive 🧟‍♂️ – one after the next.

Essentially, the more frequently you post, the less time each respective post has in the feeds to garner engagement from followers and viewers (e.g. hearts, comments, etc.). Notwithstanding, if you only post infrequently, your content just won’t go very far. The struggle is real.

Fret not, friends… SEO is here to save the day!

SOCIAL NETWORKS VS. SEARCH ENGINES

On social platforms, users discover content mostly by means of scrolling through feeds. Thus, once an account posts something new, it takes its shift in the feeds until the next post. It’s the whole “buried alive” concept aforementioned.

On search platforms, though, users discover content predominately by way of search—meaning, a blog posted long ago retains its eligibility to rank in Google search results, for instance, so long as it’s relevant to the search query. This same idea also applies to YouTube videos because search is a considerable source of video views on that platform.

SEO IS SOCIAL MEDIA AFTERLIFE

So why not publish each of your social posts as blogs on your site?

1. Simply embed your video (or upload an image if that’s your post’s associated media) into your blog.

Embedded videos are actually posted/hosted on sites like YouTube, or Instagram, or Facebook, or wherever. However, they appear as if they’re within your blog—thus, viewers can click to watch the video without leaving your site.

Either your blog platform auto-converts the URL of the subject video for embedding purposes or—with Youtube, for example—you can simply press the Share button and copy/paste its embed code.

I generally embed the YouTube videos because it’s an easy process and, since Google owns YouTube, I figure it can’t hurt. 

2. The next step is to simply repurpose the caption of your social post for the blog copy. 

If you’re concerned the caption text lacks a sufficient word count to constitute blog copy, look into an AI copywriting tool like Jasper.ai. Literally, you can copy/paste your caption text and Jasper, for instance, has copywriting tools that’ll instantly lengthen your word count. Even if your subject matter is technical, Jasper’s a quick study.

The average post on social media lives a relatively short life – days, at most. Even so—though your posts may perish quickly—their blogs will endure in the SEO afterlife, ranking forevermore (kind of, sort of 🤣).

13 Real Estate Listing Marketing Ideas (That’ll Attract MORE Listings)

Now’s the time to listing launch “your face off,” friends 😅

As the real estate market continues to adjust and decelerate, far too many agents are slashing their marketing budgets, essentially cost-cutting their way into “feeling safe.”

Listing agents are reducing their property marketing efforts to “save money” – super bad timing, if you ask me. For them!—it’s GREAT for you. Why? Because when homeowners see what you’re prepared and able to do versus your competitors, chances are good you’ll have it in the bag at your next listing appointment. It’s a simple matter of VALUE.

What’s more, with mortgage interest rates more than DOUBLING in the past year, the pool of prospective buyers is extremely transitory—as in, here to day, gone tomorrow. That is, unless your seller is willing to drop the price to keep downward pace with them!

It’s simple math: when rates increase, budgets shrink. Thus—if you over-price or under-present—the listing is gonna sit. Tick-tock, says the clock ⏳

So, whatcha gonna do to promote that property? Here are some ideas.

13 Real Estate Listing Marketing Ideas (that’ll attract MORE listings)

1. Publish vertical videos galore! For example, hyperlapse walkthroughs, selfie-gimbal tours, “What $###,#### get’s you in {CITY}”-styled videos, and more.

2. Target the neighbors/area with skippable YouTube Commercials. Pro tip:  make sure your opening line addresses the subject audience. For instance, “Hey South Nashville homeowners…” That’ll capture their attention. (Click HERE to review a YouTube ads tutorial.)

3. Try out TikTok ads. These ads are super affordable and TikTok has less restrictive geo-targeting limitations than other ad platforms.

4. Facebook/Instagram ads still work. In fact, try running multiple ads! Target your database, your marketplace, Boost your post(s), utilize new placements, like Reels and/or Story ads, and more. There’s a lot of potential with FB/IG ads.

5. Run Google Display ads — i.e., the banner ads you see as you peruse the web. Your ads should feature images of the property with your FACE and NAME superimposed. It’s strategically critical for the neighbors to see YOU outworking your competitors. (Click HERE to review a Google Display Network ads tutorial.)

6. Bring back the MEGA Open House!Run this Google search🔎:  “Tom Ferry MEGA Open House”—you’ll find endless content and resources.

7. Step-up your signage:   yard-signs, directional signs, QR code signs, et al. Figure out what is/isn’t allowed in your marketplace and get to work 👊

8. Send postcards to the neighbors. You also oughta consider sending them to your database contacts — it’ll help to position you as an established listing agent. Maybe even consider handwritten-note announcements using a tool like Audience.co.

9. Email blasts.  If you’re sending a weekly newsletter, for instance, try featuring your listings within its contents. When the time comes to list, your subscribers will wanna see their listing in that email. Don’t SPAM people (obviously).

10. Try to get your listings featured in notable publications or popular social accounts that feature select listings.

11. Post your listings on buy/sell forums like Craigslist and Facebook Marketplace. Btw, these sites are good spots to generate leads/inquiries.

12. Utilize profile links::  e.g. your link-in-bio (like Liinks.co or LinkTree, for instance), the Products section of your Google Business Profile, and so on.

13. Doubtlessly, your listing will be distributed/syndicated from your MLS to all the real estate feeds. On your own website, however, make sure to showcase your listing using an optimized landing page. Make sure it’s properly indexed with Google for search-ranking purposes, integrate geo-tagged images, embedded videos, keyword-rich text, and more.

As a listing agent, it’s on you to expose a property to the LARGEST pool or ready, willing, and able buyers... So get the word out 📢

Use Google Search Console to Monitor Your Website’s Ranking Performance in Google Search Results

Have you connected Google Search Console to your website? If not, you oughta! 

At some point you’ve probably installed Google Analytics on your website—which shows you WHAT visitors on your site are doing while perusing its pages. Google Analytics provides data points like:  the average amount of time site visitors spend on any given page, the destinations they navigate to-and-from, buttons they click, and so on. Put simply, Google Analytics shows you WHAT visitors do while on your website.

What it doesn’t do is show you HOW visitors got to your website in the first place. However, Google Search Console, does exactly that—it shows you how website visitors navigate their way onto your website.

For example, it’ll show you the top Google search queries that rank your pages, how often those pages rank versus how often they’re actually clicked, and all sorts of other valuable insights.

In addition, Google Search Console is also a powerful tool to keep optics on which of your site’s pages are or are not properly indexed by Google. However, that’s not the focus of this video.

Point is—if you haven’t already done so—you should install Google Search Console so you can monitor your site’s performance in Google search results. Here’s how:

• Navigate to:  search.google.com/search-console/about and press the “Get Started” button.

• Enter your site’s URL in the Domain “property type” box and continue.

• Finally, you’ll need to verify that you own your website, which may require your site developer’s assistance. Follow the on-screen steps to copy/paste the unique TXT record into the DNS configuration, which can be located by logging into your website hosting service account. For example, GoDaddy, Dreamhost, etc. If you don’t have access to the DNS, simply send that TXT record to your developer with the same instructions.

Once you’re logged in, you’ll be able to see data on your top-performing web pages, Google search queries in which your site/pages rank, and a bunch more advanced SEO tools, like sitemaps, page indexing, and so on.

TikTok Adds Instagram-Like Features: photos, longer-captions, etc.

TikTok’s given Instagram a “taste of its own medicine,” so to speak.

Instagram has been copycatting TikTok’s features, one after the next:  video formats, algorithmic adjustments, and more. Well, recently TikTok’s returned the favor with a couple of its own, notable updates.

1. TikTok Post Caption/Description Character Count: the platform has raised the limited number of characters from 300 to 2,200 – which, coincidentally, is the same as rival, Instagram. Go figure.

2. TikTok Photo-Mode: upload still images/photos (instead of strictly video media) and post. Thees are NOT TikTok Stories. That’s a different feature. You’re able to overdub background music and you can even upload multiple photos whereby viewers can swipe through comparable to Instagram carousel/gallery posts.

How to Generate Home Seller Real Estate Leads (Organically) with Your Google Business Profile

Here’s how to attract seller-clients on Google. After all, everybody knows you’ve gotta LIST to LAST!

Start by asking yourself—if you were in the market to purchase a home, for instance—what would YOU be Googling? The answer is… that buyers search for homes. For example:

• “Homes for sale in ____.”

• “Homes for sale near me.”

So what about sellers?—what do they search for? Many in our industry presume they search phrases like, “What’s my home worth?”

But have you ever gotten one of those “home valuation” types of leads? They have barely any intent to sell whatsoever. They’re leads, of course—just leads with characteristically very, very low intent.

So… what do sellers actually Google? In a word:  YOU.

Sellers search for you, the agent.

• “Best REALTOR in ____.”

• “Top listing agent near me.”

The question is… do they find you or your competitors? That depends on a couple particulars of tremendous SEO importance:

1. Your Google Business Profile

2. Your website/domain.

As far as the former is concerned, it needs to be a top priority to procure seller reviews on your profile. The keywords in those reviews are pure money. As for your domain—in blogs, throughout its pages, and all over your site—feed Google the keywords that sellers are searching and it’ll help you rank.

What You Do in Repetition Shapes Who You are in Reputation

Calls made, texts and emails sent, videos posted, reviews published, and/or postcards delivered ALWAYS add up.

Trust the process. Your ongoing sales/marketing activities are developing into something BIG... like a penny that doubles in value daily for thirty straight days, ultimately tallying up to millions! So stay the course.

Lots of agents reason:  “I’ve got more important stuff to do today than posting another video, asking a client (yet again) for an online review, or arbitrarily ‘checking-in’ with a past client to see how they’re doing.”

The day-in and day-out minutia of sales and marketing activities can often seem trivial—like a few measly pennies, if you will.

But you can’t look at it like that—as if it’s just one-and-done. Over time—bit-by-bit and day-by-day—the pennies multiply into a fortune.

Point is, that next video, that postcard, and/or that email, for instance, probably isn’t gonna get you your next sale; but, in due course, those videos, those postcards, and/or those emails will snowball into a perpetual source of sales.

Do it again and again and don’t stop — because that’s when the value piles on. Dabblers never bring in the harvest.

4 Tips to Prevent Your Instagram Account Getting Hacked

It seems, lately, that Instagram has been under attack with accounts getting hacked, impersonators springing up all over, and scams galore.

Don’t get me wrong, these issues are prevalent on pretty much all mainstream social platforms. Nonetheless, it’s estimated 30,000 Instagram accounts get hacked daily. Yikes 😱

The good news is, there are measures you can put in place to help mitigate your exposure.

Granted, there’s no perfect defense or 100%-effective safeguard -- however, the tactics herein are certainly smart ideas.

1. Third-Party Logins: Lots of sites/apps allow you to link your Instagram account: e.g. social publishing tools or reporting platforms. The risk is—in the event one of those platforms’ user-data becomes comprised—so does your IG login. To check and see which apps/sites are “connected,” tap the menu button (☰), hit Settings, press Security, and then tap Apps and websites. The fewer, the better.

2. Two-Factor Authentication:  On Instagram (or anywhere you’re logged in) it’s vital to have two-factor authentication enabled whereby you're sent a one-time code to authenticate any attempted login. Instagram, for instance, allows you to authenticate via text-message, WhatsApp, or by means of a third-party authenticator app. The third-party app is generally the most secure option. 

3. Email/DM Malicious URLs: Cybercriminals notoriously make use of malicious URLs to loot your login info. That means they’ll DM or email you a link that doesn’t do what you think it does. This is an especially common tactic used by impersonators or hackers peddling exclusive perks—like Blue-Checks offers, for instance. Scroll through the next few cards to review common deceptions.

   • Phony “Copyright” Infringement Scams: Watch out for phony “copyright infringement” messages. Instagram won’t DM you—they’ll either display an in-app notification or email you. However, hackers could also email you, imitating an official-looking correspondence. If you get an email you’re not sure is safe, you can check in the Insta app. Tap the menu button (☰), then Settings, hit Security, and finally, select “Emails from Instagram.”

   • Fake “Suspicious Activity” Alerts: Fake suspicious/unusual activity warnings are go-to hacker tactics. Slow down and think before you click the link! Remember, you can double-check any Instagram email in the app to certify its authenticity. What’s more, Insta only emails from its @mail.instagram.com address. And don’t forget… Instagram won’t DM you these sort of notices.

   • “Lookalike” Impersonator DMs:  Hackers create bogus accounts with (almost-matching) usernames, scrape an creators’ content (e.g. posts, profile name, bio, etc.) to make you think it’s them, buy followers to appear credible, block the actual creator to tie their hands, so to speak, and then message that creator's followers as if it's really them—only, it’ll eventually turn into a crypto pitch. If you ever get a DM like this, double-check that you actually follow the account. When you open the message, beneath their (stolen) profile pic, it’ll specify if you follow them. That said, perhaps you followed them unknowingly. If that's the case, be sure to look closely at the username to see whether or not it’s genuine. And if they try to sell you crypto—well, that’s a pretty good clue too.

4. Data-Leaked Passwords: Passwords are a pain to manage. Nonetheless, be wary of using the same password across the web. If there’s a data leak, for instance, your password could be getting "passed around" the dark web. Hackers may retrieve portions of your IG login credentials and obtain leaked PW datasets to try and break into your account. Also make sure your two-factor authentication is turned on! 

Your Community is a “Cash-Cow!” (for Repeat and Referral Real Estate Opportunities)

Your community is a CASH🤠COW. Per to the Nat’l Association of REALTORS®:

• 68% of sellers selected an agent-for-hire via repeat/referral business

• 60% of buyers selected an agent-for-hire via repeat/referral business

So roughly 2/3rds of your total business (statistically speaking) could/should flow from your database of past-clients and/or sphere-of-influence (PC/SOI) contacts.  The fact is, you simply can’t afford to overlook them! Now—don’t mishear me—I’m NOT saying you shouldn’t diversify your lead generation. Far from it.

My point is… real estate has been, is, and will remain a know-you, like-you, trust-you form of business.

So… If you’re not adequately nurturing your database, then—based on the numbers ⏫—somebody else is earning that business.

Notwithstanding, loads of agents are, for instance, apprehensive to ask outright for the referral. If that describes you, I wonder, is it perhaps due to a sense you’re not offering enough ongoing value?—that once the deal closed, for all intents and purposes, the job was done?

Author Jay Baer describes marketing as being… “so useful, people would pay you for it.”

Is your database marketing useful like that? If not, an opportunity tallying-up to more than 60% of your total business is perhaps awaiting your attention. Consider the following:

• Coordinate annual equity reviews whereby you meet with clientele to review the current market valuation of their home(s) once-a-year – strictly as a courtesy

• Publish social media posts/videos that supply valuable insight to keep your PC/SOI informed as to what’s going on in your local marketplace 

• Send out reoccurring email campaigns that give lean heavy on SHARING, not SELLING

• Run a (private) Facebook Group that’s there to foster community and keep you connected with your people

• Host special events just for your folks

My point is… Invest in your community and it’ll flourish!

How to Use Contextual Keywords to Improve your Google Business Profile Ranking Position

If you run a Google search 🔎 like, “Best REALTOR near me,” you’ll trigger what’s known as the Map-Pack (aka, the “Local Pack”)—a section of Google’s search results page that displays the top three local businesses respective to your search.

The money 🤑—in terms of getting discovered by prospective customers—is in the Map-Pack!

Trouble is, Google only ranks the top three business profiles (formerly, Google My Business) out of however many local competitors are in your marketplace.

So the question is:  What can you do to get yours to rank?

There are loads of tactics to get your Google Business Profile to rank higher. In fact, here’s a bunch of blogs I’ve written on the topic:

• https://www.jasonpantana.com/blog/tag/Google+Business+Profile

• https://www.jasonpantana.com/blog/tag/Google+My+Business

The technique described herein, however, is one that’s often overlooked.

Perhaps you’ve noticed underneath the three profiles listed in a Map Pack, Google often displays excerpts from reviews OR phrases like, “website also mentions…” that relate to the search query.

These snippets are called Local Justifications.

In essence, they’re Google’s defense as to why it chose to rank a given profile over its competitors—as if it was calling a super-tight race or something. Google will even bold and emphasize the keywords that match verbatim with the subject search—like “best realtor,” for example.

Words like BEST, TOP, LISTING AGENT, and so on are called contextual keywords and they’re displayed often in Local Justifications.

So here’s the idea:  incorporate those types of words and phrase throughout your website and, when you ask for reviews, try to prime clients (indirectly) to integrate some of that language.

Warning, though—Google’s adept to infer if a review was influenced by a business owner and, if suspected, it’ll quickly filter-out that review.

In terms of the keywords to prioritize, break ‘em into three buckets:  nouns, verbs, and modifiers.

• NOUNS:  your business name, your category of business (e.g. real estate agent, etc.), and where you conduct business (e.g. Nashville, TN)

• VERBS:  terms that describe the services you perform, such as “buy,” “purchase,” “sell,” “list,” “lease,” “invest,” et al.

MODIFIERS: terms that describe (e.g. adjectives/adverbs), like “best,” “top,” “number 1,” and so on.

How to be the “Knowledge Broker” (for REALTORS); the Housing Market is Volatile

“How’s the market?" I’d wager that’s the question you (i.e., REALTORS®) hear most often. Probably multiple times a day. Thus, it’s super important to equip yourself to answer satisfactorily.

And, in order to do that, you’ve gotta prioritize market research and study every day. You can hardly assume the title, “knowledge broker,” without knowledge.

MY ADVICE:

• Read/watch everything @keepingcurrentmatters publishes

• Utilize your MLS to analyze market-localized stats and analysis.

• Setup a Google Alert for the term, “Real Estate.”

Program it to send you a daily digest of the top-trending news articles related to the term, “real estate,” so you’re always in touch with what may be on the minds of buyers and sellers in your area. Simply visit alerts.google.com, type “real estate” into the search bar, tap, “Show options,” then, under Sources, select “News,” and finally, specify any other preferences. Once it’s configured, just watch your inbox for updates on the daily.

The real estate market is volatile. News headlines “doom-monger” about its future conditions—speculating of corrections, collapses, crashes, and so on.

Consequently, buyers and sellers in your marketplace will look/listen to the knowledge broker – and I’d sure like for that to be you. So seek to answer that question—“How’s the market?”—in your videos, your emails, and more. Be your community’s agent-authority.

Instagram Story Videos Now Up-to 60 Seconds Long and Useable as Instagram Reels

Instagram Stories update:  you might’ve heard the news that IG Story videos under 60-second runtimes will no longer be auto-divided into 15-second segments, as has been the case.

The significance is that Instagram is—step-by-step—merging its various video formats into, effectively, one configuration:  VERTICAL ↕️

What’s more, Instagram has been prompting its users recently to “make a Reel” when posting a string of Stories. Instagram launched Templates for Reels a while back, and so it’s programmed to detect which of your Story-sequences match-up with an available Template. If you follow the prompt to “make a Reel,” for instance, it’ll even load your Stories into the designated Template frames automatically. 🤯

The point is… all video is vertical and it seems as if IG is working toward a convergence of some form… whereby all videos—Story-posts or Feed-posts—populate in its main feed. Just making some predictions here. :D

The Driving-Factor of a Top-Producer’s Success

Stating the obvious here: nothing gets FINISHED that hasn’t been STARTED.

Last month I interviewed mega-agent and team-leader Phil Gerdes during a conference, and we got to talking about the driving factors behind his success in the real estate business.

He said, ultimately, it’s been the product of his unremitting consistency – in essence, “Do the thing and have the power.”

Notwithstanding—we continued our discussion—people are wildly “consistent” all the time at completing nonproductive tasks or deeds – or at avoiding productive ones. In fact, at the risk of sounding somewhat disparaging, it’s kind of predictable human behavior—the path of least resistance, if you will.

The word, “consistency”—all by itself—is an insufficient term to explain someone’s success. That was our conclusion.

In order to be truly consistent, we reasoned—there’s got to be a commitment; there has to be something compelling you to do the thing that produces the power, so to speak.

It’s what Tom Ferry has said over-and-again:  “You’re either interested or committed.”

There was a study I came across once that investigated what happens to a person who becomes lost in a forest, desert, or some other type of wilderness when they have no map, compass, or stars to guide them.

It turns out that when lost, people will instinctively begin wandering in circles... UNLESS they have a clear point-of-reference, like a faraway mountaintop. If you’re able to lock eyes onto a fixed destination, for instance, then—whatever the cost—you’ll commit your way toward it unswervingly.

It’s true—technically speaking—that things only ever get done after they get started… and 2023 is around the corner, friends – so watcha gonna get started?

4 Email Marketing Optimizations for Mobile Devices

Most of the folks are opening your email campaigns on a smartphone 📲. Case in point, HubSpot reports 41% of all email views 👀 come from mobile devices. Here’s the full breakdown:

‒ Mobile ➟ 41%

‒ Desktop ➟ 39%

‒ Tablet ➟ 19%

‒ Other ➟ 1%

On that account, here are FOUR mobile-first email marketing optimizations:

1. Keep the subject-line short and to the point. Campaign Monitor recommends a max of 41 characters. Why? Simple… It’s because your phone’s screen isn’t very wide ↔️. If your subject line exceeds the character limit, for instance, the inbox is just gonna show a generic, “•••” for whatever text doesn’t fit.

2. Make any buttons 🔘 in the content of your email easily tappable. If it’s just hyperlinked text, for instance, it could be easy for a viewer to overlook or mis-click a link. Point is, make sure any important links are easy targets for the press of a viewer’s thumb 👍

3. Use LARGE-SIZED TEXT. If you’ve got excessive line spacing or if the email is just hard to read because your font is too tiny, it’s gonna drive down the overall performance of your campaign.

4. Avoid using email templates with side-bars, columns, or any special layouts other than a single-column ↕️. Thanks to social media, we’re all used to scrolling through feeds. My thought is… Your email should function the same. If the user has to pinch-and-zoom to read your email, then—frankly—your email’s broken.

How to Let Your CONTENT Sell for You

Canned posts 🥫 published for the purpose of checking a box won’t move the needle forward marketing-wise. Content for its own sake is, for all intents and purposes, meaningless.

On the other hand, when you’re willing to share your best professional advice by way of videos, blogs, emails, and more—you’re giving your audience genuine value. Nowadays especially, resolve to be the knowledge-broker.

I like how Jim Rohn put it: “Only by giving are you able to receive more than you already have.”

You’ve heard me say it before… When your content is contribution—every time you post to social, send an email, or publish a video that confers VALUE, in effect, you’re selling your services—only, nobody’s gonna call you salesy. Instead, they’ll just 📲 call you!

FB Business Pages Can No Longer Post Real Estate Listings to Facebook Marketplace (Effective January, 2023)

You might’ve received an email from Meta today informing you that your Facebook Business Page would be restricted from posting real estate listings to the Facebook Marketplace, effective January, 2023.

For reference, the Facebook Marketplace is the buy/sell classified ad section of Facebook. It’s essentially Facebook’s version of Craigslist—within which, for instance, users can list properties for rent and/or sale.

When launched in 2016 only Personal Facebook Profiles were eligible to use it. However, they eventually rolled it out for the use of Facebook Business Pages. But now, regrettably, Meta is rescinding Facebook Business Pages from posting real estate listings (or vehicles, not that this matters to us) to the Marketplace. Bummer. 😢

Notwithstanding, you can still post real estate listings to the Marketplace through your Personal Profile. The major drawback, of course, is that—when posted via a Business Page—Meta collected data whereby you could create ads to retarget anyone who viewed or engaged with your Marketplace listing.

Granted, I don’t believe I’ve ever met an agent who utilized that particular feature. 🤔 In fact, I even made a video about it like two years ago… watch it here if you want:  https://bit.ly/3fwLP63.

Bottom line, though… you CAN still post real estate listings to your Facebook Business Page, boost those posts, run ads, and so on. None of that has changed. The only new restriction here is in respect to posting real estate listings in the Facebook Marketplace.

Hope this is helpful for everyone! :D

Realtors are Cost-Cutting Marketing as the Real Estate Market Adjusts (And It’s an Opportunity)

As the real estate market continues to adjust and decelerate, my opinion is that change creates chances (meaning, it presents new opportunities).

Fear and uncertainty has led far too many agents to slash their marketing budgets, essentially cost-cutting their way into “feeling safe.”

And because of decisions like that, the overall cost-per-lead on advertising platforms like Google and Facebook, for instance, has been on the decline. So… like I said:  change creates chances!

In a world where things are getting all-the-more expensive – marketing, apparently, has gone on sale (at least in some sense).

Once claimed territories and zip codes offered by third-party home search portals (like Zillow or Realtor.com) have suddenly become available.

What’s more, listing agents are pulling back on their property marketing efforts (super bad timing, if you ask me!) because, with days-on-market on the rise in some areas, they’re nervous to tie up too much cash while waiting to recoup at closing.

The point is… Lots of agents are giving up their “seats” 🪑 at the proverbial “table.” So, my thinking is, you oughta go and sit yourself down.

I’ve said it before… Fast markets, slow markets; up markets, down markets; strong markets, weak markets—no matter the market circumstances, remember—NEVER STOP MARKETING! 👊

5 Database Marketing and Nurturing Tactics (for REALTORS)

Your database of past clients and center-of-influence contacts is, in all likelihood, your BEST source of business. Question is, are you“working it” sufficiently?

Per the Nat’l Association of REALTORS®, 68% of sellers and 60% of buyers identify an agent for hire via REPEAT/REFERRAL. 🤯

Fact is, if you’re not fully-leveraging your database—no doubt—it’s costing you. 💸

Here’s a quick list of marketing ideas to more effectively nurture your database:

1. Weekly Email Round-Up.  Email marketing is WAY underrated—and I know why. It’s because far too many agents are sending out canned, pre-written emails that  don’t work. My advice: start to view email as a channel for distributing your content. As you publish blogs, videos, and more, assemble and send out a weekly email digest. It’ll improve your performance metrics and, more importantly, it’ll nurture your database.

2. Google Display Network Ads.  Position your brand across the web via the Google Display Network—i.e., the banner ads you see scattered across sites and apps in side-bars, pop-ups, footer-bars, and elsewhere. They'll help keep you top-of-mind with your database. Head over to Ads.Google.com to setup a new ad campaign and upload your database contacts for retargeting. Type in this URL to watch my tutorial:  bit.ly.JP-GDN

3. Handwritten Notes/Cards.  Let’s face it:  some marketing channels give off a phony vibe. Like, I don’t feel warm and fuzzy when I get a mass text message that reads:  “Reply STOP to unsubscribe." But handwritten notes, I've gotta confess, are pretty-darn touching. Trouble is, they’re high-effort!—or, at least, they were. Look at bulk-sending plat-forms like Audience.co or AddressableMail to nurture your database with personalized, handwritten notes and cards.

4. Educational Webinars.  I'm not talking about your run-of-the-mill "first-time homebuyer" or basic "seller" seminars/webinars. I'm talking about offering webinars on much more nuanced, relevant topics. Imagine inviting your database contacts  to monthly webinars in which you tackled the most relevant topics of the day—especially now, as the market is highly volatile. My advice:  be the knowledge broker!

Home Equity Updates. Homes value is STILL a topic of tremendous interest amongst homeowners. So what’s your process to keep your database contacts in the know? Perhaps try sending out quarterly “Equity Updates” to them. After all, they’re your database contacts and so it’s on you to keep them informed of market conditions. Use an automated tool or run your own comps—either way, it's about sharing the data.