The Trust Equation: Earning Referrals in Real Estate

In the real estate profession, success hinges on more than mere transactional interactions or casual conversations with clients. At its core, this business is relationship-based—a "know-you, like-you, trust-you" kind of operation.

Trust is a cornerstone, pivotal to creating an atmosphere where clients and contacts can confidently advocate for your services.

Consider this:  according to the National Association of REALTORS®, over half of buyers and about two-thirds of sellers link with agents via repeat business or referrals. This underscores the critical importance of your relationships and amplifies the powerful role that trust plays in driving your business forward.

Yet, trust doesn't grow on its own—it needs to be tended. When a client refers you, they're effectively betting their reputation. Consequently, your marketing strategy is tasked with providing the assurance clients and contacts require to recommend your services confidently.

Regardless of the method—be it postcards, emails, videos, or something else—your marketing should focus on forging a robust network that knows, likes, and trusts you.

So… Is your marketing strategy building the necessary confidence for your clients to easily vouch for your services?

Choosing the Right Instagram Account: Personal, Business, or Creator?

Navigating Instagram begins with a pivotal choice between personal and professional accounts.

1. PERSONAL ACCOUNTS: Though favored within Facebook’s algorithm, it’s a different story on Instagram. These accounts are primarily beneficial for maintaining privacy. However, they lack the business-oriented features you might find useful for growth.

2. PROFESSIONAL ACCOUNTS: These are your go-to for business perks like insights, advertising, enhanced messaging, and contact buttons. Before you dive in, remember there are two further options to consider:

• BUSINESS ACCOUNTS: Opt for these if you're looking for improved integration with third-party publishing tools. They provide an environment that eases content creation and scheduling.

• CREATOR ACCOUNTS: An ideal match for those seeking a touch of creative freedom, these accounts provide additional music options and allow you to align with categories reflective of your profession, such as "Real Estate Agent" or "Entrepreneur.” Be mindful, however, certain categories could come with music usage restrictions.

So, based on your objectives with Instagram, ask yourself: Which account will serve you best, and why?

Email VS. the World: Why Email Marketing is Still King of Digital Platforms

EMAIL is the undisputed titan of digital platforms. Not what you expected? With a gargantuan 4.37 billion users worldwide, it leaves Facebook, YouTube, and the rest eating its dust.💨

But why does that matter? It’s simple: to maximize your marketing efforts, you need to reach your audience where they’re the liveliest. And the numbers don't lie—99% of email users check their inboxes daily, usually before they even glance at social media.

Don't misunderstand—this isn't a slight against social platforms. The real faux pas is underestimating the importance of email.

Consider that each social post only hits a small fraction of your followers at a time. So don't restrict your reach to social feeds when there are inboxes waiting to be filled.

What’s more, email marketing's strength doesn't just hinge on its epic reach. What sets it apart most is its rock-solid dependability—email offers a hotline to your audience, more direct than any social platform.

Are you ready to learn how to build an effective email strategy and craft compelling messaging to become an email-marketing hero? If so, check out my new course, INBOX HERO: Tapping into the marketing GOAT.

This doesn't mean that email subscribers are necessarily more loyal; after all, email opt-outs are common, just like unfollows on social media. You get what your content attracts and keep what it satisfies.

Bottom line—followers might be flighty, but email endures.

Your Network, Your Net Worth: The Power of Your Network

👉 66% of Americans own homes.

👉 Approx. 8.5% move annually.

👉 More than 91% use an agent to buy/sell.

👉 The average person knows about 150 people.

So the potential of a 500-person database is…

500 (Your database)


x 150 (Dunbar's Number)


x 0.66 (Homeowners)


x 0.085 (Annual movers)


x 0.91 (Those using an agent)

Result:

≈ 3,500 sales per year.

Roughly 1/2 of buyers and 2/3 of sellers find an agent through repeat business or referrals. In real estate, you might say your network equals your net worth! MARKETING IS MATH: your database is an untapped goldmine.

But don't assume you're the only contender. You're either the agent-of-choice or an agent-of-chance — and chance rarely deals the winning hand.

Consider this a thought exercise. These numbers are a theoretical maximum, but they underscore the immense potential that’s within your reach.

Now’s the time to make every connection count!

Understanding Types of Real Estate Leads: Property, Process, and/or Professional Inquiries

Leads are the lifeblood of your business—yet they come with varying degrees of potential and require different handling strategies.

You’ve likely heard your peers complain about “lousy” leads. But it isn’t a matter of quality, it’s a question of intent.

By definition, a lead is simply somebody responding to a marketing offer, saying, "I'm interested!” What it all boils down to is the nature of the offer.

Context is key! If you fail to understand what motivated a lead to accept your offer, you're essentially left in the dark.

In real estate, for example, there are 3 fundamental offers:  property - process - professional.

1. PROPERTY - Offers focused on the real estate itself: e.g. listing inquiries, open house attendees, home-valuation requests, custom home-search subscribers, etc.

2. PROCESS - Offers concerned with the journey of buying or selling: e.g. downloadable PDF guides, webinar or seminar participants, etc.

3. PROFESSIONAL - Offers spotlighting the agent's expertise and/or reputation: e.g. social media solicitations, online review-driven queries, etc.

It's vital to acknowledge that not all leads are equal. While property leads might come in bulk, they often see you as an accessory to the main event, thus demanding a good deal of skill and finesse to transform them into loyal clients.

On the other hand, process and professional leads come to you because, well—you’re YOU! They recognize your skills and reputation; they've seen you in action and they like what they see. Hence, the conversion battle is already halfway won—ultimately, it's all about context.

The Dangers of Undervaluing Your Role: How to Convey Your Value as a Listing Agent

Are you underselling your role as a Listing Agent in your marketing, at the listing appointment, and/or throughout your transactions working with clients?

If so, you're risking potential clients missing out on the full range of your expertise. And if they remain unaware of what you can do for them, you risk being overlooked, undervalued, or potentially passed-over for competitors who more precisely communicate the benefits of their services.

So how certain are you that prospective sellers truly grasp the immense value you bring as a listing agent?

My advice:  don't shortchange your services—highlight the THREE fundamental roles you perform as a ListingAgent:

1. Marketing & Exposure -  You're not just listing a property, you're strategically showcasing it—implementing marketing tactics that cast your listings in the best light to attract the right buyers.

2. Negotiation High-Ground -  You don't simply accept offers—you tactically navigate them. By establishing a strong negotiation foothold, you work to secure the best possible price and terms that favor your clients.

3. Deal “Life-Support” - You're not just an observer—you're the linchpin ensuring a smooth transaction from contract-to-close. As many sales fall apart, your steadfast guidance and process helps hold deals together.

High-Intent Social Media Leads!? Harnessing the Power of Meta Search Ads on Facebook and Instagram

Amidst the world of scrolling thumbs and double-taps, Meta—that is, Facebook and Instagram—has unveiled a new ad format positioned to help businesses and creators break through the noise of an ever-scrolling feed.

When advertising on these platforms, your precious ads generally appear within users' feeds, where their attention is constantly fleeting. It's a “blink-and-you-miss-it” situation.

But take heart because there's a new ad placement in town: SEARCH.

See, when users actively search for something, it signals a higher intent—a clear interest in finding something specific.

With Meta ads—encompassing Facebook and Instagram ads—you, as an advertiser, can now target your ads based on user searches, positioning yourself closer to that decisive moment.

HOW META SEARCH ADS APPEAR:

• For Facebook search results: Your ads are displayed alongside Facebook and Marketplace search results that are relevant to the user's query.

• For Instagram search results: Your ads show up in the search results when users enter a keyword search term in the search bar within the Instagram app.

HOW TO RUN META SEARCH ADS:

1. Open your Meta Ads Manager and create a new campaign.

2. Select an objective that suits your preferences, such as Engagement, Traffic, and so on.

3. Designate Housing as your Special Ad Category.

4. Fill in the necessary details, including target audience(s), budget, start/end dates, geographic area, and other standard parameters.

5. Navigate to the "Placements" section and choose "Manual placements."

Keep in mind that Meta search ads function differently compared to Google ads. While Google requires you to specify the exact words and phrases for triggering your ads, Meta takes a different approach by inferring keywords from your ad copy. This includes caption text, video transcript (if applicable), and the landing page if you're directing traffic off of the platform.

Consequently, it is crucial to use clear and concise language to describe the desired action for users who are likely searching for what you offer.

Additionally, here's an important consideration: since you're targeting high-intent searchers, it might be prudent to exclude potential ad placements other than Facebook and Instagram Search, although it will be required to keep Facebook and Instagram feeds enabled.

Lastly, since this is a newly introduced ad placement, it's crucial to closely monitor whether your ads are actually appearing in search results and how they’re performing with respect to your goals. Simply make adjustments to your ad copy until you find the sweet spot.

Unraveling the Social Media Maze: A Definitive Guide to Content Strategy

As the world becomes more-and-more immersed in social media, an intriguing trend emerges: the volume of content being generated is growing at a rate far outstripping the number of new users.

The feeds are effectively “choking” with content, making it tougher and tougher for your posts to cut through the noise.

So, what do you do? Do you drown your audience in more content or do you get strategic in your approach? Obviously, the latter is your better option.

If you’re in-market to level-up your content strategy, click HERE to watch a concise, 26-min video that’ll walk you through every detail.

The Rise of AI-Generated Content: Fueling Growth or Falling Behind?

Adopting AI-generated content in your digital marketing strategy is less a choice, more a requirement to stay competitive.

Despite some misunderstandings, AI-enhanced content doesn't inherently lower the quality or ranking viability of your content. In fact, Google's policy updates dismiss any theories of AI-generated content being automatically classified as SPAM.

For Google, the spotlight is on quality, not the source of content. Whether human and/or AI-produced, only high-quality content secures a valued spot in Google’s eyes.

Side-note:  while AI is a powerful tool to enrich your content, it's not a replacement.

What’s more, there’s a bigger issue at hand: AI-assisted content creators have significantly ramped up their output—e.g. blogs, social media posts, emails, and more.

Content creators and businesses now face a new reality: adapt to this accelerated pace or risk getting buried in the information avalanche.

Vanity VS. Value: Prioritizing Genuine Engagement over Follower Counts

Would you prefer a massive following of random accounts from faraway places or a more modest audience consisting of locals, past clients, and contacts from your database?

If you're marketing your local business on social media, I'm guessing you'd choose the latter option.

So here's some advice: Stop fretting over vanity metrics like follower count, views, and likes. Yes, I know these measurements do matter algorithmically, but you should think about the bigger picture.

Unless you're trying to become a celebrity, why obsess about ‘em? Instead, focus on what truly matters: reaching and engaging with potential clients who are local to your area.

Last year, for instance, Mark Zuckerberg revealed that AI suggested content already accounted for 15% of what users were seeing in their Facebook and Instagram feeds and would more than double by the end of 2023.

(Sidebar:  AI-suggested content is algorithmically generated recommendations tailored to each user's interests and preferences on social media platforms.)

Frankly, that means fewer-and-fewer of your followers will see your posts as their feeds become more-and-more saturated with AI suggested content.

On the other hand, by creating content that’s tailored to the needs and interests of your target audience, you effectively train the algorithms to prioritize and display your content to the individuals for whom it’s genuinely relevant:  i.e., local, prospective customers!

Here’s how to optimize your posts to, quote-unquote, “train the algorithm” to show your posts to locals:

1. Publish content that caters precisely to the interests of locals, thereby arm-twisting the algorithm to identify and display it to the right audience.

2. Utilize hyperlocal hashtags to attract the attention and interaction of local users who follow or engage with such hashtags.

3. Always tag your location in and around your area when posting content. This signals the algorithm that your content is relevant within that specific geographic area.

4. Consider promoting/boosting your posts within a 15-mile radius of your marketplace for maximum visibility among potential customers in your immediate vicinity.

The Rule of 7: Unlocking the Power of Repetition in Marketing

Ever come across the Rule of 7?

It's an underlying principle in marketing that’s essential to understand; otherwise, your marketing runs the risk of being overlooked or fading into the background, making it easy for your efforts to be forgotten or disregarded.

In a nutshell, the Rule of 7 emphasizes the importance of repeated exposure. Simply put, a potential customer needs to encounter a marketing message at least seven times before taking action.

Relying on a single video, postcard, or email won't cut it; however, a strategic series of touch-points will put you ahead of the competition. That's why it's mission-critical to embrace the power of repetition and strategic exposure.

By ensuring your brand's ubiquitous presence, you establish credibility, capture attention, and position yourself as the preferred choice.

• Frequency: Consistency is key. The more frequently your target audience encounters your brand/business, the stronger your presence becomes in their minds. Stay engaged, share valuable content, and maintain top-of-mind awareness.

• Saturation: Don't settle for slivers of attention; instead, aim to reach your entire target audience and establish market dominance. By saturating your marketplace, you tap into the power of word-of-mouth and generate buzz that stems from being the most recognized presence in your area. 

• Familiarity:  Garner trust through steady and committed marketing efforts. By consistently showing up, delivering on promises, and providing value, you cultivate familiarity. Avoid being on-again, off-again and instead focus on building a “long-term relationship” with your audience. Commitment over time builds a sense of trust.

Flip the Script: 6 Marketing Channels to Get Clients Calling You!

Looking to flip the script and have clients ringing you up 📲 for a change?

Lead generation and conversion usually teeter between a game of “chase” and “attract.” You need a bit of both, in my opinion.

But hey, isn't it tiring when you're always the one doing the chasing, hustling to follow-up and convert?

Why not switch gears a bit by ALSO investing in marketing channels that draw leads in?—where they're the ones contacting you!

If that sounds like a solid idea, here are 6 dynamic marketing channels that’ll help you shift from chasing to attracting and have those leads ringing you up instead.

1. Client/Contact Database 📇 - Take care of your connections! Your repeat clients and their referrals are gold mines. Don't forget, good business grows on the tree of trust.

2. Google Business Profile📍- Get Google on your side! An optimized Google Business Profile is like a magnet for high-quality leads. Time to let them come to you.

3. Search Engine Optimization 🔎 - Show-off online with SEO! Standout in search via services-page on your website (e.g. “buying a home,” “selling a home,” et al.), YouTube videos, blogs, etc. Optimize to get found online.

4. Google Local Services Ads - Appear at the tippy-top of Google! Be the first agent local customers see and let them reach you with just a click. LSAs are easy to setup and only charge you for legit leads.

5. Social Media Marketing 💬 -  Join the social club! Publish value-add content, dive into your DMs, engage in the comments, and connect with your audience.

6. Geographic Farming 🏘 - Build a brand in your backyard! Direct mail, signage, social media marketing, and more—there's a whole community waiting to become loyal clients.

Instagram Influence Map: Geo-Optimize Your Content to Attract Local Customers

Problem: most of your Instagram followers live in random, faraway places, which undermines the effectiveness of your social media marketing in attracting and procuring LOCAL customers📍

To find out exactly where the people you're influencing are geographically located, follow these steps:

• Open your Instagram app and navigate to your Professional Dashboard, the gray-shaded box underneath the bio section of your profile. Please note that the Professional Dashboard is available only for Professional profiles, not Personal profiles.

• Next, tap on "See All" to access your account's insights, where you'll find vital information about your audience.

• Look for the sections labeled "Accounts reached" and "Total followers.” Specifically, take a close look at the "Top cities" data, which will reveal the top locations of your followers as well as the accounts you reached.

Those top cities aren’t just random locations; they represent where the people you're influencing reside.

If you're running a local business, that’s crucial intel because social media is becoming less social and less local. That said, you can turn the tide by implementing the following techniques:

1. Specify your physical whereabouts via the Location tag when you post: e.g. your city or locations in/around it. This’ll help to train the algorithm to recognize that your content is relevant to a specific geographic area.

2. Research and use local hashtags in your posts. By incorporating popular hashtags related to your city or region, you can increase your visibility among local Instagram users.

3. Post hyperlocal content that appeals specifically to locals. Share information, events, or stories that only people from your area would find interesting and relatable; effectively force the algorithm to distribute your content to the right audience!

4. Consider boosting your content to target your town or city. By utilizing Instagram's advertising tools, you can reach a wider local audience and increase your brand's visibility.

If you're leveraging social media for your business, it's essential to ensure that your efforts are finely tuned to attract the right audience in the right locations.

Scroll-Stopping Secrets: 5 Proven Techniques to Increase Viewer Watch-Time

The success of your next video is heavily influenced by the amount of time viewers spend watching it. In the world of social media platforms like Instagram, watch-time plays a crucial role in determining the reach and visibility of your content. The longer viewers engage with your video, the more appealing it becomes to these platforms, leading to wider distribution and exposure to a larger audience.

Understanding the significance of watch-time is essential in developing strategies to increase viewer engagement. By implementing techniques that captivate and retain viewers' attention, you can maximize the watch-time and improve the overall performance of your videos.

Here are 5 tips to increase viewer watch-time:

1. Strong opening hook 🪝 - Grab attention, set the tone, and establish clear expectations to entice viewers to watch through till the end. Start with a question, a promise, or a perspective.

2. Optimize runtime ⏱ - Analyze your average watch-time and create videos that match in length to encourage “ watch completions.” If your recent videos averaged 10-15 seconds of watch time and you're posting 60-second videos, consider making your future videos shorter.

3. Captions & comments 💬 - Compose a quality caption that invites viewers to engage in the comments. The more comments, the more thread for viewers to scroll, thereby increasing your time-spent-on-post.

4. Better audio/visual 🎛 - Enhance viewer experience with relevant graphics, sounds, and subtitles; ensure a reasonable audio and video quality. Use Instagram’s built-in caption tool or apps like CapCut or Splice.

5. Prevent “scroll holes”🕳 - Minimize pauses, gaps, tangents, and irrelevant points that may cause viewers to lose interest and scroll away. Warning: when presenting a list, like "3 ways to ___,” each additional point decreases viewership, as they offer clear chances to exit.

Instagram’s Testing a New AI Chatbot Feature: Double-Down on DMs

Instagram is launching new AI features for chat in DMs, providing what’d I’d describe as “Grammarly-like” recommendations to improve or compose messages.

Meh 😑—it’s a starting point. It puts IG in the AI game, I suppose.

Granted, although I don’t see it as revolutionary, the AI chatbot functionality will probably help you in efficiently managing your messages.

More interestingly, however, there’s been a reported decline in story and feed posts, and at the same time, a rise in DM conversations. That’s a trend worth noting.

My advice:  leverage your DMs strategically. E.g. conversations with followers as well as a forum to network and expand your relationships.

Why Are You Creating Video? Cut through the noise, reset your purposes, and build your brand.

Every video you post either enhances or erodes your brand. No exceptions.

No doubt, you've been bombarded with the importance of leveraging video, and rightfully so. But ask yourself: Are you creating videos aimlessly, or are they a strategic means to achieve specific goals?

For example:

1. Video cultivates an unparalleled sense of know, like, and trust, unmatched by any other communication channel.

2. Video fosters an instant connection, forging affinity and building trust effortlessly with strangers who find you online or look you up on social.

3. Video enjoys preferential treatment in algorithms and social media platforms due to its widespread popularity, granting it broader reach and increasing the likelihood of your content being seen by a larger audience.

In the face of overwhelming demands from platforms to produce more content and create a seemingly endless stream of videos, it's crucial to remember the purpose behind your efforts.

Avoid getting caught in the trap of mindlessly producing content without considering how each video contributes to your goals and objectives.

How to Flatten the “Watch-Time Curve” and Level Up Your Video Performance on Social Media

The success of your next video on social media (or lack thereof) is hinged on a crucial factor: the video's "watch-time curve."

This curve, which is represented by a line chart 📉, reveals the duration viewers spend watching a video and highlights the points where viewership declines. The flatter the curve, the better, as it indicates that the video successfully retains viewers' attention.

Platforms like YouTube and Instagram offer metrics such as average duration watched and average percentage watched, thereby helping creators understand what does (or doesn’t) resonate with viewers. If the viewership rate surpasses 100% in these metrics, it signifies that viewers are re-watching the video – a positive sign.

The more of your video viewers watch, the higher the chances that platforms will distribute and recommend your content to a broader audience. The underlying reason is pretty simple: as viewers spend more time watching your video, it becomes more valuable to the platforms due to its contribution in retaining users for longer durations.

To elevate your video game, focus on:

• Opening hook: Grab attention, set the tone, and establish clear expectations to entice viewers to watch through till the end.

• Optimize runtime: Analyze average watch time and create videos that match in length to encourage "watch completions."

• Enhance audio/Visual: Enhance the viewer experience with relevant graphics, sounds, and subtitles; ensure an audio quality and video resolution of reasonable quality.

• Prevent “scroll holes”: Minimize pauses, gaps, tangents, and irrelevant points that may cause viewers to lose interest and click away.

The saying, "Success isn’t a straight line; it's a journey filled with twists and curves" may hold true for life's endeavors, but when it comes to videos, the opposite applies: hold the line!

Build an SEO Fortress Around Your Local Business: rank higher when customers search for what your business does in the areas it does it

In real estate, the mantra is all about location: LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION! But when it comes to SEO, keywords reign supreme. So… make sure to optimize your website with the right SEO juice.

With that in mind, publish web pages chalked full of keywords that highlight your ability to assist individuals in, at minimum, buying and selling real estate, for instance. Beyond that though, create web pages that talk about relocation, moving, downsizing, new construction sales, custom builds, commercial real estate, residential development, and so on. Why not publish a page for every service you offer!?—especially now, with tools like Chat GPT to do the heavy lifting writing-wise.

What’s more, create community pages on your website that showcase the areas where you operate. Depending on where you do business, maybe consider zip-code specific pages, or neighborhoods, towns, counties, or perhaps designated market area terms, like “tri state” or other comparable titles. The point is, if it’s an area where you work, make it count by creating an optimized page on your website.

Here’s why all this carries weight. The better optimized your website is, the higher Google’s gonna rank your Google Business Profile when customers search for a business that does what yours does in the areas it does it.

Google’s Generative AI Tools Branching into Google Search Results

Google is expanding its generative AI tools into the search results pages (SERPs)! 😲

Up until now, Google’s been a bit reluctant to jump into the AI frenzy too quickly, citing concerns about the possibility of circulating errors or misinformation. Notwithstanding, Microsoft’s partnership with Chat GPT has effectively forced their participation.

So, as part of a new trial program, Google is integrating AI elements into its organic search results and ad placements. To be clear, the AI results will be mixed in with the regular search results, providing additional content and context for searchers.

The big topic of discussion, IMO, is how this generative AI trend will impact the overall state of SEO. What I mean is, if searchers no longer (or rarely) need to click a link, that’s gonna have a profound impact on web traffic.

That said, when compared to Chat GPT, Google still aims to remain a key source of website visitors by highlighting relevant web links, while also embracing advancements in generative AI.

Cutting Through the Noise: Conquering Content Overwhelm in a Crowded Digital Space

We’re in a state of "content overwhelm.” Now… I’m all for content! As I often say, marketing without content is like a bow without arrows—meaning that modern marketing IS content marketing. Unfortunately, many businesses and creators find themselves in a situation where instead of content working for them, they feel like they are being overwhelmed and controlled by it.

Content overwhelm can be attributed to three main factors:

• Profusion of platforms: The constant influx of new apps and social media networks adds to the noise and the sense of starting from starch with each new edition.

• Division of media: With so many different video formats and content types available, it becomes harder to keep up with trends.

• Surplus of content: The amount of content being published exceeds the rate at which new users join platforms, leading to crowded feeds and reduced visibility.

Ultimately, the choice is yours: should you produce more content or take a strategic approach? My advice is to work smarter, not harder.