What Is Meta Verified in the US and How Will It Affect Facebook and Instagram Users?

Meta Verified, the new verification process for Facebook and Instagram, has officially launched in the US. This follows Twitter's subscription service, where users can effectively purchase a blue check verification for a monthly fee.

Although anyone can now obtain the blue check on Twitter, for instance, the company is reportedly generating about 2.4 million in revenue per month from the service. Meta's verification process will work in a similar fashion, with users paying separately for the blue check on each respective platform.

However, there are concerns that Meta might prioritize the posts of their subscribers over everyday users, as Twitter has announced its intentions for doing so. So far… Meta has said that they will not do this, at least not initially—but only time will tell. The verification program is not available for all Meta products, only for Facebook and Instagram. Additionally, it gives verified users a more direct line of communication with the platform in the event they are dealing with impersonators or other account-related issues. (That’s the perk that’s the most appealing, IMO.)

Overall, the new Meta verification process aims to increase security on the platform and prevent fake accounts and other forms of online fraud. While it remains to be seen how the service will be received by users, it is clear that Meta is following in the footsteps of other social media platforms by introducing a paid verification service.

Rank Higher on Google: Tips for Selecting and Optimizing Categories on Your Business Profile

When it comes to optimizing your Google Business Profile, choosing the right Category is crucial. In fact, it’s effectively “pass-or-fail” from Google’s POV – regardless of how many other profile optimizations you may integrate. If you choose the wrong Category, the chances are remarkably high that Google will overlook (or demote) your profile in relevant customer searches.

To select the right Category for your business, first conduct a variety of Google searches that prospective clients may use, such as "Best Realtor in Richmond.” When you examine the search results, pay close attention to the businesses listed in the Map Pack, which appears at the top of Google's search results page and displays a map and a list of businesses relevant to the search query. To determine the primary Category of each business in the Map Pack, simply look for the Category listed directly below the business name. Some examples of categories you may see include "Real Estate Agency," "Real Estate Agent," and "Real Estate Consultant."

For example, if all the top-ranking profiles in the Map Pack list "Real Estate Agency" as their Category, choosing any other Category as your “Primary Category” is unlikely to result in Google ranking your profile in the Map Pack. So, as you search for the phrases you wanna rank on, just include the two or three categories that appear most frequently in your profile.

After that—once you have specified your Category (or Categories)—you’ll need to optimize for them. Here’s how:

• Integrate keywords on your website's home page, bio page, services pages (e.g. buying, selling, etc.), and neighborhood/community pages to reinforce your chosen categories.

• Add "Services" to your Google Business Profile and ensure that the description text effectively describes your categories without going overboard.

• Avoid overloading your Google Business Profile with too many Services, as Google may consider it "keyword-stuffing."

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Are you looking to attract more business through your Google Business Profile? If so, I have an exciting solution for you! Check out my course, "GOOGLE BUSINESS BOSS" 😎, and learn how to fully-optimize your profile for more "come-list-me" calls.

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Your potential local customers are actively searching for businesses like yours. Your mission is to ensure that they can find you!

Mastering Real Estate Marketing: The Ultimate Acid Test

Let’s say you’re on the phone with a sphere-of-influence contact or you casually cross-paths one day—who brings up real estate? Is it you or them? If you ask me, that’s the ultimate acid-test 🧫 of your marketing and brand-building efforts. If done correctly, your marketing and branding should keep your contacts “warm” so that they think of you first for all-matters real estate.

What’s more, it can be challenging to steer your 1:1 conversations towards real estate. “Oh, before I let you go Bob, are you or is anyone you know planning a real estate move any time soon?” Bob’s internal voice is like, “Oh, now I see the real reason why you called.” 😑

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying there’s never a time to be direct or ask for the business. However, effective sales is about earning the right to make a recommendation, as Phil M. Jones puts it. So, how do you earn that right? Well, what if that became the strategic goal of all your marketing efforts: to earn (and exercise) the right!

Picture this: every post, every email, every video—packed with value and delivered with expertise. You're no longer just another agent, you're the trusted advisor. And the best part? When the time comes, they'll bring it up themselves, without needing a push or prod from you. It’s what Jay Abraham describes as the potent power of preeminence!

Video Production Hacks: 3 Quick and Easy Ways to Create More Content with Less Effort

Social media platforms like Instagram and others constantly demand new content, especially in the form of video. But creating a large volume of video content can be overwhelming and lead to burnout. If you want to keep up and avoid getting left behind, you need to level up your video process and find ways to create more content with less effort. That being said, here are three quick-and-easy ideas to help you do just that.

1. BATCHING: Filming one video at a time is inefficient. My advice:  record in bulk! -- it’ll help you stay in the flow of content creation, ultimately leading to higher-quality videos. Some creators prep scripts and read the teleprompter whereas others simply tap record and riff to various topics. It all gets cleaned up in post-production. So whatever’s your MO, get in the zone and let the process guide you.

2. CHOPPING: Don’t let your long-form videos go to waste. Repurpose podcast and/or webinar content, for instance, into bite-sized, vertical clips and post ‘em as Reels, TikToks, and Youtube Shorts. Use the “chops” to drive top-of-funnel viewership to your full episodes. Lots of creators hire freelance editors to (low-cost) slice-and-dice all-the-day long. You’ve probably got A LOT more content than you think!

3. SAMPLING: Coming up with new ideas for content can be draining. But it’s like Picasso said:  “Good artists borrow…” That being said -- consider making use of green-screen background effects in your vertical videos (i.e., Reels, TikToks, and YouTube Shorts) to “REACT” to relevant news articles or even remix/duet other creators’ videos. Take existing content and add your own unique spin! (Obviously, go about this collaboratively—as intended by the platforms—not unethically.)

To get the biggest return from your social media and content marketing efforts, it’s important to streamline your video creation process—that is, to make more videos in less time without sacrificing quality. Batching allows you to get into a flow state and produce higher-quality videos by recording multiple videos at once. Chopping enables you to repurpose your long-form content into bite-sized clips, which can drive traffic to your full episodes. Reacting lets you take existing content and add your own unique spin to it, creating something new and engaging.

Apple Business Connect vs. Google and Facebook: The Battle for Local Business Profiles

Apple recently introduced its new Maps product, dubbed, Apple Business Connect—which is poised to shake up the local-business profile game (currently dominated by Google and Facebook) and give small business owners a new way to connect with potential customers.

Local business owners can update/manage their profile info via the Apple Business Connect web portal:  businessconnect.apple.com. This includes important details such as hours-of-operation, location(s) and physical address(es), uploading photos and logos, special offers, and more.

Apple has no immediate plans to remove its integration with Yelp—so customers will still be able to see Yelp photos and reviews in the business place cards. That said, business owners will be able to enhance their listings with their own details, resulting in more up-to-date and richer listings. And, as a result of that, I’m guessing higher ranking in the results.

How to Use Video Marketing to Influence Prospective Real Estate Clients

You know I’m a major proponent of video marketing. However, it's crucial not to let it distract you from your core business objectives:  i.e., listing and selling homes. That’s the work!

Nevertheless, as social media and other digital platforms continue to evolve rapidly, you may feel overwhelmed and pressured to keep up—and, as a result of that—possibly lose sight of the big picture and get stuck in the details.

At the end of the day, video is a tool in your marketing toolbox, not the whole shed — and, when used properly, it’s a real game-changer. Video is a powerful way to begin influencing prospective clients (before they’re even clients!), so that when you make a call or conduct an appointment, the hard work of "earning the business" is already done.

Real estate is a know, like, and trust type of business. And, IMO, video marketing is the ultimate medium to help elicit those types of feelings. It's like a Trojan horse that sneaks into the social feeds of your prospective customers and begins to build your brand and influence them so that when you’re face-to-face or over-the-phone, they’re already a “YES.” Simply put:  your video marketing is about getting you more yeses!

A Cautionary Tale: How You Can Avoid Losing Your Most Important Social Media Accounts (YouTube, Google Business, etc.)

Heads-up real estate agent friends! It's important to use your most reliable/permanent email address when setting up logins for any of your online profiles:  e.g. Google Business, YouTube, et al… Ideally an email that’s attached to your own domain:  e.g. username @ yourdomain . com.

If you use an email address that you might lose access to, you could get locked out of your profiles and pages or those accounts could be altogether deleted. Like if you switched brokerages, for instance, and had been using your company-provided email address.

All the hard work you've put into building your profiles - your posts, your followers, your reviews - could disappear in an instant.

To avoid this scenario, make sure to use a permanent email address as your primary login. This is an email address that you own and control, and that you're unlikely to lose access to in the future.

But what if it's already too late? Don't worry - there are steps you can take to regain access to your profiles:

• Contact the support team for the platform in question.

• Provide proof that you own the profiles in question.

• Work with the support team to establish a new login using a permanent email address.

• Update your login information for any other profiles to avoid this problem in the future.

Your online presence is crucial to your success in real estate, so it's important to protect it by using a reliable email address for your logins. And if you've already encountered this issue, don't panic - just take action to regain control of your profiles.

The Rise of AI-Generated Content on Social Media: What It Means for Content Creators

BIG NEWS → Major social networks are turning to AI-generated content to keep users engaged. LinkedIn, for example, is beginning to use AI-powered “conversation starters” to provoke discussion among its users, while Snap has launched its own chatbot, and Meta is working on AI personas. LinkedIn calls its new feature, “AI-powered conversation starters.”

This move could herald the start of a wider revolution for the web, with companies increasingly using generative AI to create endless spools of content. As social media sites have all the user data they need to train these systems, the potential for AI-generated content is vast.

This could be the start of semiautomated social networks. Up until now, social platforms have relied on user-generated content to fill the feeds.

As a content creator, how do you feel about this new development? Are you ready for a new era of AI-generated content on social media possibly undercutting your efforts to reach YOUR prospective customers on major platforms?

Real Estate Marketing on YouTube: How Skippable In-Stream Ads Can Help You Stand Out and Generate Leads

In the real estate space, you know that building relationships is flat-out essential to your business. What’s more, you wanna be top-of-mind for potential clients and have them view you as the definitive trusted local expert. That's where YouTube’s Skippable In-Stream ads—i.e., the commercials that play before, during, or after YouTube videos—come in as an insanely powerful tool to scale-up your brand. Lemme explain…

Create Top-of-Mind Awareness:

Skippable In-Stream ads allow you to showcase your brand (i.e., Y-O-U!) to your target audience. In terms of targeting an audience, Google Ads has powerful audience segmentation functionality whereby you can target, for instance, homeowners in your town, in-market buyers, folks planning a move, etc. It’s mind-boggling!

By using these ads, you can get “stage time” in front of potential buyers and sellers on repeat! When they're ready to make a move, they'll be more likely to think of you because they've seen your ads repeatedly and feel like they know you. That’s the power of video!

Drive Frequency of Views:

Frequency of views is another significant benefit of Skippable In-Stream ads. As potential clients keep seeing your ads repeatedly, they'll begin to feel more familiar with your brand, and your name will start to stick. In human psychology, that’s known as the Mere-Exposure Effect, a phenomenon whereby customers begin to favor the familiar, so to speak.

Real estate is a know/like/trust, relationship business. The more they see you, the more they'll like you and trust you as an expert in the field. It's an effective way to keep your name in front of potential clients and position yourself as a knowledgeable professional.

Showcase Your Knowledge/Competence:

End of day, customers are ultimately hiring you for your knowledge and skills. Skippable In-Stream ads provide an opportunity to showcase your expertise and build trust with potential clients. So, for instance, create insightful market update videos and then run them as In-Stream ads targeting local homeowners. It’s a way to generate listing appointments over time. Video content like that helps to position you as a knowledgeable professional and thus, creates consideration for your agent-brand.

Monthly market updates, neighborhood tours, and/or advice on buying and selling a home are just a few ideas to get started. When clients see that you know what you're talking about, they'll be more likely to trust you with their real estate needs. Showcase your expertise, stay top-of-mind, and grow your business.

Target Your Instagram Audience Like a Pro with Meta's Latest Ad Innovation

Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, has launched a new feature that’ll prove quite handy for advertisers like you. Now you can target your ads and promotions to specific users who follow your Instagram account(s). While you’ve been able to target Facebook followers directly, targeting Instagram followers wasn’t possible. Previously, Meta Ads could only target users who had interacted or engaged with your Instagram account. That was too broad of an audience, consisting of anyone who might’ve stumbled across your profile whether they were one of your followers or not.

The obvious and immediate benefit here is the ability to target exclusive content and special offers directly to followers. Additionally, you’re now able to create Lookalike Audiences and/or Special Ad Audiences based on your Instagram followers, thereby enabling you to reach new prospective customers on the basis of your existing followers. This is sort of a game-changer for marketers in the business of building brands!

As a business owner, this new feature is significant as it allows you to create personalized ad campaigns that’ll better resonate with your followers, thus cultivating a deeper connection with your audience.

Here's a simple guide to creating a custom audience for your Meta Ads campaign that targets your Instagram followers:

1. Log in to your Meta Business Manager (business.facebook.com).

2. Go to the "Audiences" section.

3. Click the "Create Audience" button and select "Custom Audience."

4. Select “Instagram Account” as your source.

5. From the Events drop-down menu, select “Accounts Center accounts who started following this professional account.”

6. Name your custom audience and click "Create Audience."

7. Your custom audience is now ready to be used in your Meta Ad campaign.

By following these steps, you can create a custom audience based on your Instagram followers and use it to target your ads and promotions to this specific group of users. This can help you create more personalized and effective ad campaigns that resonate with your followers and potentially lead to increased sales. What’s more, you can use this custom audience to create Lookalike and/or Special Ad Audiences based on your existing followers.

The Ultimate Guide to Instagram Posting: When and How to Reach Your Followers

If you’re looking to improve the performance of your content on Instagram, then timing your posts is a critical factor to consider.

Put simply, Instagram's algorithm analyzes the performance of your respective posts to determine which ones to show to more people. It’ll start with showing your post to a small(ish) group of users to see how they react to the content:  hearts, comments, saves, shares, swipes, time-spent, etc. Then, based on that test, it’ll conduct larger tests and so on. Thus, the opening minutes and hour(s) of a given post are of extreme importance because, within that time-period, Instagram’s algorithm will effectively render judgment as to how far it will go to distribute your post through its feeds.

And since your followers are likely more inclined to engage with your content (i.e., hearts, comments, and so on), it’s important to post when they’re active on the platform.

Here’s how to determine when your followers are most active on Instagram and how to use that information to increase the reach and engagement of your posts.

Step 1: Access your Professional Dashboard

To begin, you'll need to access the Professional Dashboard on your Instagram profile. To do this, you need to have a Creator or Business profile. If you have a personal profile, you'll need to switch to a Creator or Business profile. If you're currently using a Personal Profile on Instagram or aren't sure which type of profile you have, here are the steps to switch to a Professional Profile:

1. Go to your profile and tap on the three horizontal lines in the top right corner.

2. Tap on "Settings" at the bottom of the menu.

3. Tap on "Account."

4. Tap on "Switch to Professional Account."

5. Choose your account type (Creator or Business) and select a category that best describes your account. For instance, you may choose "Real Estate Agent," but keep in mind that different categories may come with varying access to features like licensed music and sounds. For example, "Entrepreneur" may have more access than "Real Estate Agent."

Once you've done that, tap on your profile picture and then tap on the three lines in the top right corner. Select “Professional Dashboard” from the menu.

Step 2: Select Your Timeframe

Once you're in the Professional Dashboard, tap on the “Select All” button or just tap anywhere on the bar chart to view your audience insights. Next, select your desired timeframe from the drop-down menu, and then tap on “Total Followers.”

Step 3: View Your Audience Insights

Now scroll to the bottom of the screen to view your followers’ most active times on the platform. You'll see a graph that shows the days of the week and the hours of the day when your followers are most active on the platform. Take note that all times are published in the Pacific Standard time zone.

As you review the graph 📊 of your followers' peak active times, observe the rise and fall of the curve. To maximize engagement, aim to post when the curve is on the rapid upward slope, so you can ride the wave of interaction and engagement for as long as possible.

Furthermore, to improve your chances of ranking at the top of the feed during user session times, consider posting your content at "off times," such as 10:07 AM instead of 10:00 AM. According to a report by SimilarWeb, the average visit duration on Instagram in the United States is around 6.75 minutes. With users spending only a few minutes at a time on the platform, posting at an unconventional time could mean less competition in the feed and potentially increase your reach and engagement. This is because most posts are scheduled on the hour or half-hour marks, making "off times" a strategic option for gaining visibility.

Timing your posts on Instagram is a simple and effective way to increase your reach and engagement on the platform and to improve the performance of your Instagram content and grow your presence on the platform.

How YouTube's Algorithm Works: Understanding Click-Through Rate, Watch Time, and Retention

As a content creator on YouTube, it's essential to understand how the platform's algorithm works. YouTube's algorithm takes into account several factors to determine which videos to recommend to users or rank in its search results. The three big factors that the algorithm evaluates: click-through rate, watch time, and retention.

Click-Through Rate

The first factor that YouTube's algorithm evaluates is click-through rate (CTR), which is the percentage of viewers who click on your video after seeing somewhere on the platform:  recommendations, a feed, the search results, or elsewhere. A higher CTR simply means that more people are interested in your video and are willing to watch it—thus, YouTube is more inclined to rank and recommend it.

To improve your CTR, you should focus on creating compelling titles, “clickable” thumbnails, and video descriptions that accurately represent your video's content. It's essential to grab the viewer's attention quickly and give ‘em a good reason to watch.

Watch-Time

Watch-time is the second factor that YouTube's algorithm considers. It is what it sounds like:  watch-time simply refers to how long viewers watch your video. The longer a viewer watches your video, the better your video is gonna perform.

If a viewer clicks to watch your video and “bounces” within mere seconds, for instance, YouTube’s able to figure that the content must not have lived up to the expectation. However, if the viewer watches for an extended duration, then it’s evidently what they wanted.

To evaluate whether there are any problematic exit-points where viewers tend to click off your video, head over to your YouTube Studio. Simply go to studio.youtube.com, and you can review your video's analytics.

Retention

Retention is the third variable that YouTube's algorithm evaluates. In a nutshell, Retention measures the total amount of time viewers spend on ALL of your videos cumulatively. So the more videos on your channel, the better—so long as they aren’t all-over-the-place topic-wise. It’s important to publish content that’s intended for your designated target audience.

Retention on YouTube is like a seniority clause, whereby established YouTubers tend to outperform new channels due to the collective viewership earned over time. Unlike other video channels like Reels or TikTok, YouTube doesn't let new channels outrank established ones easily.

Retention provides a quasi-permanent benefit to your channel since it measures the total amount of time viewers spend on all your videos combined. So… By consistently producing high-quality content and retaining viewers, your channel becomes more valuable to YouTube, helping reinforce your ranking across the board. Heck yeah! This means that the more you invest in building up your channel's Retention, the more it'll pay off over time, as you'll continue to earn more viewers and grow your channel's reputation on the platform.

Understanding how YouTube's algorithm works is critical for any content creator looking to grow their channel. By focusing on improving your click-through rate, watch-time, and retention, you’ll improve your videos' ranking and reach more viewers. Keep creating high-quality and engaging videos consistently, and you'll be on your way to success on YouTube.

P.S. If you wanna watch Jason’s FULL YouTube training video, head over to Tom Ferry’s site:  https://www.tomferry.com/marketing/ep-54-6-tips-for-youtube-views/

Don't Be a Half-Marketer: Why building a strong brand is crucial for generating and converting leads

I've always believed that the purpose of marketing boils down to two key objectives: building brand awareness and generating leads.

The former is all about getting your brand in front of as many eyeballs as possible, whether that means attracting attention, generating consideration, or any number of similar outcomes. The latter is about turning that attention into concrete actions:  form-fills, inquiries, sign-ups, and so on.

The question is, is there any set order to it?—that is, are you supposed to build a brand that attracts leads OR run campaigns to lead generate and then brand to nurture?

The obvious answer is:  YES! Now, I’m being a slightly tongue-in-cheek… But the point is, It’s not the order of objectives that matters; it’s the fulfillment of both. Too many businesses are only “half marketing," leaving opportunity on the table. Don't let your business fall into that trap.

Building a brand without a plan to generate leads and drive actions is like growing grapes only to let them wither away on the vine. Don't let your hard work go to waste. Conversely, focusing solely on lead generation without investing in building a strong brand can be like plucking grapes off the vine before they've ripened. To those leads, you're just another unknown entity vying for their attention. It’s far more difficult to convert unripened leads, if you catch my meaning.

What I’m getting at is… brand-building and lead-generation are like interlocking gears … one spins the other and so on. Are you effectively doing both or are you only “half marketing?”

(Photos by the extraordinarily talented Idris Erba during the 2023 Tom Ferry Elite+ Retreat.)

From Expertise to Exposure: How Video Amplifies Your Real Estate Brand

Have you ever wondered why buyers and sellers choose to hire you? Ultimately, it boils down to the trust they have in you -- but WHY do they trust you? It’s a simple answer, really—It’s because your COMPETENCE cultivates CONFIDENCE.

End of day, your expertise is the reason people elect to hire you. So, from a marketing standpoint, where and how do you go about demonstrating your expertise?—i.e., your “worthiness” for hire. Ummm… VIDEO—it’s the microphone of your message, so to speak.

In the relationship-based business of real estate, the know, like, and trust trifecta is paramount. So when it comes to establishing and promoting your agent-brand, video stands head and shoulders above all other marketing mediums in its ability to convey the essential elements of know, like, and trust.

What’s more, your content is your contribution—it’s what sets you apart from your competitors!

You know better than anyone how competitive the industry can be. With so many agents vying for the attention and business of buyers and sellers, it can be challenging to stand out from the crowd. That's where video comes in. By showcasing your expertise and personality in video over-and-again, you’ll work to distinguish yourself as the “agent-of-choice.”

The Consistency Coefficient: The Key to Your Marketing Success

When it comes to marketing, consistency is key. So, with that in mind, what’s the ONE activity that you're truly committed to, come hell or high-water? In other words, what’s the marketing you’ll become “known for”?

Answers will vary from person-to-person but it's mission-critical to identify what works for you, and then, to do the hardest part of all:  stick with it. I’ve said it over-and-again:  THE RESULTS ARE IN THE REPETITION!

Marketing Consistency: The Key to Long-Term Success

Ask the question like this:  What’s the marketing activity that’s the most responsible for producing opportunities in your business? What “cranks the flywheel,” so to speak? Is it, for example:

• Publishing content on social media

• Mailing postcards

• Blogging and SEO

• Getting customer reviews

• Cold-calling (or warm-calling)

• Door-knocking (or door-dropping)

• Big-time ads:  TV, radio, billboards, etc.

• Email marketing

• Events and loving-on your SOI

The important point is to get selective and super consistent with whatever marketing activity you pick. Think of it like the penny that doubles in value daily for 30 days straight. On any given day, the activity may not seem overly important—like just a penny—but over time, the value will accumulate and multiply to the point where you’d be downright foolish to stop. Call it the “consistency coefficient.”

So… what's the marketing activity you're committed to, come hell or high-water? Whether it's content creation or another strategy, be consistent and watch as your efforts pay off in the long run. Remember, a little effort every day goes a long way.

YouTube for Real Estate: Unleashing the power of YouTube to reach high-intent customers

YouTube is more than just a social media platform; it's a search engine that can help businesses reach high-intent customers.

Unlike social media platforms like Facebook or Instagram, where users browse feeds somewhat aimlessly, YouTube users are purpose-driven. Generally speaking, folks go to YouTube with a specific search query in mind—which means they are actively seeking solutions to their problems. 

By creating informative and engaging video content that aligns with what potential buyers and sellers are actively searching for on YouTube, you have the opportunity to capture the attention of those who are already in a high-intent state, and thus, primed to take action.

To make the most of YouTube for your business, consider the following tips:

1. Create engaging video content that adds value to your target audience—that addresses their problems, goals, and so on. Make sure that your videos are informative, relevant, and visually appealing.

2. Optimize your video content for search engines. Use relevant keywords in your video titles, descriptions, and tags to ensure that your content is discoverable by your target audience.

3. Consistency is key. Post videos regularly to keep your audience engaged and interested in your business’s content.

If you’re ready to (massively) level-up your YouTube strategies in 2023, make sure to watch the full video here:  https://www.tomferry.com/marketing/ep-54-6-tips-for-youtube-views/

The full training goes in-depth about YouTube’s algorithm, breaks down a couple case-studies of real estate agents and teams crushing-it on YouTube, and shares 6 optimization secrets to dial-in your videos to rank higher in YouTube search.

YouTube’s got a lot to offer in the way of marketing your business… so don’t miss out on the opportunity.

Revolutionizing the Web: The New Bing Search Engine Powered by OpenAI’s ChatGPT

Something HUGE is about to impact your business—in fact, it’s already underway! What is it? AI.

Conversational and creative AI tools (like ChatGPT, for instance) have been topics of considerable interest here recently… and it’s all about to get a lot more interesting.

Over the past several years Microsoft has invested upwards of $3-billion in OpenAI, the company responsible for ChatGPT. And now, they’ve just unveiled the new Bing search engine—get this—powered by the ChatGPT chatbot. This is big news and has the potential to revolutionize, well, the way we use the web.

Bing’s new AI can respond in real-time to search requests, carry out full chat dialogues, and even compose content on-demand (just like ChatGPT)—text for blogs, emails, social media posts, and more.

It’s also worth mentioning that Google has released their AI bot, dubbed, Bard, into beta testing. However, Microsoft's Bing AI may prove a formidable competitor to Google's search engine supremacy, with key execs promising that it will do way more than just list static search results. For example, Bing AI can annotate search results with links, citations, and context on the right side of the search page.

The new Bing’s been designed to improve the search experience by providing (per Microsoft) better search results, more detailed/augmented responses, a human-like chat experience, and the ability to output content. Executives have stated that the updated version will be released to the public after a limited preview period, with future updates to come. There’s currently a waitlist if you wanna get early access to the new Bing search.

Principles Real Estate Agents can apply from how airlines improve customer experiences

Real estate experiences can be a bit tricky to get right. When it comes to the home buying and selling process, clients often feel overwhelmed and stressed.

That said, it doesn't have to be this way. Looking at other industries, for example, you can see that certain types of “experiences” are delightful in and of themselves:  e.g. massages, dining, vacations, et al. In other cases, however, a good experience is more about “not experiencing” something, so to speak.

Consider the airline ✈️ industry, for instance. All airlines are in the same business: flying passengers from place-to-place. They all fly the same planes, at the same altitudes, the same speeds, and to the same destinations.

What differentiates one airline from the next, however, are the little things they do to enhance the customer's experience. Things like extra legroom, free checked bags, in-flight services or amenities, and stuff like that.

Interestingly, none of those perks have anything to do with flying, yet they make a significant difference in the customer's overall experience. (Especially with longer flights!) I’d argue the same kind of thinking can be applied to the real estate industry.

CHALLENGE:  what are some ways you could level-up your customer experience? Especially these days, as homes have been sitting on the market for longer periods of time—sort of like being on a longer flight, if you catch my meaning. Or buyers are struggling to find homes that meet their needs and wants in light of inventory shortages.

I’m not necessarily referring to enhancements like a better listing marketing plan or obtaining an impressive negotiation designation, per se. That’s all good stuff, of course—but what I’m talking about are small gestures, perks, and micro moments of delight that ease the journey. How could you give your clients a bit of extra leg room?

Gauging the Impact of Your Real Estate Marketing Beyond Metrics

“It's easy to focus in on quantitative measures to gauge the effectiveness of your marketing. But in relationship-based businesses like #realestate, there's more to it than that. What are the qualitative signals that demonstrate what you're doing is working?”

Don’t get overly caught up in the numbers when it comes to gauging the effectiveness of your marketing. Sure, it’s important to pay attention to things like website traffic, engagement ratios, and follower-count… However, in relationship-based businesses like real estate, there's more to marketing success than just numbers.

Qualitative signals are, I’d wager, equally as important, if not more so, in demonstrating the effectiveness of your marketing. With that in mind, here are some subtle indicators to suggest you’re doing something right!

1. Your database is engaged: If you’re in contact with past-clients and sphere-of-influence contacts who ask you about the market or your business, this is a telling sign that they’re engaged with your brand and bought-in to your message.

2. You have a high level of name recognition: If people frequently mention that they, quote-unquote, “see you everywhere," this is a definite sign that your brand is becoming well-known in your market.

3. Your marketing materials are getting shared: If folks are sharing your social media content, emails, or even postcards with others, it signifies that your audience is onboard with your brand and confident sharing your content with their network.

4. You receive positive feedback from your audience: If you regularly receive positive feedback from your audience, like comments on your social media posts or positive reviews on your Google Business Profile, it’s a clear indication that your marketing and brand-building efforts are resonating with your target audience.

5. You are being referred by your customers: Word-of-mouth referrals are one of the most valuable forms of marketing for any business. If you are receiving referrals from your customers, this is a sign that they trust you and are confident in recommending you to their friends and family.

6. Customers make references to your content during appointments: If prospective clients mention your latest blog post or video during a meeting, it's a sign that they are actively engaging with your content and find it valuable.

7. Peers are extra curious about what you're up to: If you notice that your peers in the industry seem to be taking a keen interest in your marketing efforts, it's a good sign that they see you as a thought-leader in your field.

8. Long-lost contacts w/ whom you've lost touch suddenly resurface: If old contacts suddenly start engaging with your social media posts, it could indicate that they’ve been following your journey and are invested in your brand.

9. Increased website traffic and engagement: Though this is on the “quantitative” side of measurement, the insight of it is more qualitative in nature—so bear with me. If you're seeing activity like longer page views on your website, prolonged watch-times on your videos, or even an increased number of conversions, it's a sign that your marketing efforts are attracting and retaining the attention of your target audience. 

Point is… By focusing on both quantitative and qualitative metrics, you'll be able to get a more complete picture of the success of your marketing efforts. When you put extra focus on earning trust, improving customer satisfaction, and building brand awareness, you can gain a well-rounded understanding of the impact of your marketing strategies and make informed decisions about how to improve your efforts in the future.

Attract More Listings: Key Strategies for a High-Ranking Google Business Profile for REALTORS®

Want to become the go-to REALTOR® in your area? Then you oughta optimize your Google Business Profile!

FACTS:  Google is (by a mile!) the top-used search engine, receiving approximately 8.5-billion searches daily. What’s crazy, though, is that roughly 46% of all those Google searches are conducted with local intent.

What I’m getting at is that potential clients are actively searching for businesses like yours in their area. What’s more, buyers tend to search Google for homes whereas sellers will more readily search for agents. So, if you want more “come-list-me” calls and listing opportunities, it’s crucial to have a strong online presence—especially on Google.

Here are some steps to help with optimizing your Google Business Profile:

• Focus on client reviews: Invite your past (and current) clients (especially sellers!) to leave reviews on your Google Business Profile. Doing so will improve your profile’s ranking and visibility and will also give potential clients the confidence they need to contact you as their REALTOR®.

• Keyword optimization: Make sure to include keywords throughout your profile (its Description, Services section, and elsewhere) that are relevant to the services you offer, such as "listing agent,” “REALTOR,” and where you do business. This will help your profile show up in relevant search results. It’s also important to dial-in keywords across your website, which is presumably linked to your Google Business Profile.

• Consistent media updates: Posting media like photos, videos, and updates on your Google Business Profile will not only keep your profile fresh and engaging, but it will also help to improve its visibility. If you’re willing to do a bit of extra work, try geo-tagging your photos to further cement your profile’s relevance in your local area.

Remember, when it comes to attracting listings, it's all about positioning your business in the best light possible. By optimizing your Google Business Profile, you'll be on your way to attracting more clients and becoming the go-to REALTOR® in your area.