This document summarizes a presentation about using social media for real estate agents. It discusses defining personal brands and buyer personas, setting goals for social media use, establishing profiles on key networks, listening to learn industry trends, creating valuable content, and measuring results. Case studies show how other agents have integrated social media into their businesses. The presentation aims to help agents overcome fears about social media and provide steps to get started engaging audiences and building their careers.

1. Social Media for Real Estate Agents
Presented by Paul Roetzer, PR 20/20
October 27, 2010
A Continuing Education course sponsored by
First Federal of Lakewood

2. Don’t Be Afraid . . .
• Unknown marketing tactics
• Personal vs. professional use
• Loss of privacy
• Doing it wrong
• Time commitment
• Measuring effectiveness
• Disclosing too much information to competitors

3. Agenda
1) What is Social Media?
2) Why Does it Matter?
3) What Can You Do To Get Started?

4. About PR 20/20
• Brand marketing
• Website development
• Search marketing
• Social media
• Content marketing
• Public relations
Inbound marketing agency & PR firm

5. What is Social Media?

6. What is Social Media?
• Consumer-generated content. We are all the media, the
publishers.
• People trusting the opinions of their peers and
collaborating online to help and support each other.
• Consumers choosing when and where to interact with
brands. Tuning out of traditional, outbound marketing.

7. What is Social Media?
• Listening, learning and building relationships.
• Building authentic and personal connections.
• Creating value.

8. What Social Media is NOT?
SELLING

9. What is Social Media?

10. Social Media by the Numbers
16+ billion core searches conducted in
August 2010
Source: comScore, Inc

11. Social Media by the Numbers
1.9 billion online videos are streamed each month on
Google Sites (mostly YouTube)
Source: comScore, Inc

12. Social Media by the Numbers
There are more than 75 million Twitter users

13. Social Media by the Numbers
LinkedIn has more than 75 million members in 200+
countries and territories around the world
Source: LinkedIn

14. Social Media by the Numbers
More than 30 billion pieces of content (web links,
news stories, blog posts, notes, photo albums, etc.)
shared each month on Facebook
Source: Facebook.com

15. Social Media by the Numbers
• More than 500 million members on Facebook.
• The average user is connected to 80 community pages,
groups and events.
• People spend more than 700 billion minutes per month
on Facebook.
• 50% of active users log on to Facebook at least once
each day.
Source: Facebook.com

16. Social Media by the Numbers
• Social networking use among internet users ages 50 and
older nearly doubled—from 22% in April 2009 to 42% in
May 2010.
• Between April 2009 and May 2010, social networking use
among internet users ages 50-64 grew by 88%—from 25%
to 47%.
• During the same period, use among those ages 65 and
older grew 100%—from 13% to 26%.
Source: Pew Internet & American Life Project

17. Social Media by the Numbers
• 194,000+ real estate professionals are on ActiveRain, the
world’s largest real estate online network.
• 1,575+ LinkedIn Groups relating to “Realtors.”
• Among respondents to the National Association of Realtors’
2009 REALTOR® Technology Survey, the majority have
an account with Facebook (78%) and/or with LinkedIn
(58%).
• 84% of the realtors who took the NAR survey indicated they
use social media to some extent.
Sources: ActiveRain, LinkedIn, National Association of Realtors

18. Social Media by the Numbers
Source: NAR Center for REALTOR Technology

19. Social Media by the Numbers
Source: NAR Center for REALTOR Technology

20. Social Media by the Numbers
Source: NAR Center for REALTOR Technology

21. Social Media by the Numbers
Source: NAR Center for REALTOR Technology

22. Section Summary
• Social media is about creating value and building
relationships, not selling.
• Millions of people are using Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn,
YouTube and search engines to create content,
communicate, collaborate, gather information and
share.
• Real estate professionals are becoming increasingly active
in social media to build their careers and grow their
businesses.

23. Why Does Social Media Matter?

24. Social Media Goals
Generate Leads &
Build Loyalty

25. “I skate to where the puck is going, not
to where it has been.” — Wayne Gretzky

26. The Facts
Social media should be an essential component of every
organization’s integrated marketing strategy, and every
professional’s career and business development plans.

27. The Facts
It’s irrelevant if you personally use or believe in the
value. It’s what matters to your current and future clients,
prospects, peers, colleagues and partners.

28. The Facts

29. The Facts
Social media presents an opportunity for real estate pros to
differentiate themselves and build strong personal brands
that directly impact their success.

30. So what’s the ROI?

31. More important question:
What is the cost of doing nothing?

32. How Do You Measure Success?
It is NOT a direct ROI.

33. How Do You Measure Success?
But it is measurable

34. • Reach (followers, friends, fans)
• Referrals
• New clients
• Repeat purchases (i.e. loyalty)
• Engagement
• Website traffic
How Do You Measure Success?

35. • Social media gives professionals the ability to generate
leads and build loyalty.
• Social media is essential to connect with audiences and
build personal brands.
• It’s not about the ROI, but it is measurable.
Section Summary

36. 7 Steps to Get Started
1. Define and differentiate your brand.
2. Profile your buyer personas.
3. Know your goals (and theirs).
4. Establish or enhance your presence.
5. Listen and learn.
6. Create value.
7. Measure and evolve.

37. Define and Differentiate Your Brand

38. What is a brand?
Brand = experiences + perceptions

39. Defining your personal brand
• What’s important to you.
• What do you value.
• Where are you going.
• What are you doing.
• Whom are you with.
• What do you buy.
• What do you think.
• What are you passionate about.

40. Profile your buyer personas.

41. Defining your buyer personas
• What are their goals and aspirations?
• What motivates and inspires them?
• What are their problems/pains/obstacles?
• How do they consume information (online and offline)?
• What/whom influences their buying decisions?
• What's important to them?

42. Other buyer-persona criteria
• Geography
• Demographics
• Career
• Preferred communications
• Buying cycle
• Home style and features
• Budget
• DIYer
• Lifestage
• Technographics (social media activity)

44. How do you research personas?
• Draw on your experience.
• Analyze customer database.
• Monitor/participate in social networks.
• Ask them.

45. • Budget: $175,000
• Age: 25-30
• Current Status: Renter
• Property Type: Single, townhome
• Current Community: Lakewood, Rocky
River, Westlake
• Interests: Golf, nightlife, parks/rec
• DIYer: No
• Desired Location: West side
• Timing: Next 3 months
• Influencers: Parents, girlfriend, friends (not
in that order)
• Technographics: Creator
“Single Steve ”

46. “Newly Wed Wendy”
• Budget: $300,000
• Age: 28-35
• Current Status: Owner
• Property Type: Single
• Current Community: Medina, Strongsville,
Brunswick
• Interests: Schools, shopping, dining,
community center, parks, safety
• DIYer: Yes
• Desired Location: Southern suburbs
• Timing: Now
• Influencers: Spouse, friends, family
• Technographics: Critic, Conversationalist

47. Know Your Goals (and Theirs).

48. Your goals
• Create connections and build stronger relationships.
• Build your personal brand and profile within the industry.
• Stay on top of industry news and trends.
• Learn from your peers.
• Nurture referral sources.
• Expand your business development network.
• Monitor and engage with industry influentials/thought leaders.

49. Their goals
• Knowledge
• Confidence
• Peace of mind
• Trust

50. Establish or Enhance Your Presence.

51. Building powerful profiles
• Secure your name on major networks.
• Build your profiles to be found.
• Consider your personal brand and your buyer personas.
• Include photos.
• Pick your applications for monitoring and participation.

52. What NOT to do
• Pay for followers.
• Send auto-DMs on Twitter.
• Be too self-promotional (you want to balance between
networking, self-promotional and property promotion).
• Be too general (you want to stick to your local market and
niche audience).

53. Resources
• Twitter Strategy: The Incomplete Guide for Beginners —
Paul Roetzer, PR 20/20
• 6-Step Corporate LinkedIn Strategy — Tracy DiMarino,
PR 20/20
• Foursquare, and the Mobilization of Social Media — Todd
Carpenter, National Association of Realtors
• 3 Tips for Building Your Facebook Network — Laurel
Miltner, PR 20/20
• Facebook for Business Marketing Hub — HubSpot
• Twitter Marketing Hub — HubSpot

54. Listen and Learn.

55. Monitor connections and communities
• Set up Google Alerts.
• Subscribe to top blogs via emails and RSS feeds.
• Install phone and desktop applications.
• Join groups, “Like” pages and create “lists”.
• Follow influentials.

56. Create Value.

57. Participate and publish
• Share articles and ideas.
• Post updates.
• Provide tips and insight.
• Support communities and local businesses.
• Feature peers and competitors.
• Engage with audiences.
• Leave comments.
• Answer questions.

58. Measure and Evolve.

59. RECAP: 7 Steps to Get Started
1. Define and differentiate your brand.
2. Profile your buyer personas.
3. Know your goals (and theirs).
4. Establish or enhance your presence.
5. Listen and learn.
6. Create value.
7. Measure and evolve.

60. Case Studies: Pros Integrating Social
Media Into Their Businesses

61. Case Study #1: Carole Cohen
Source: http://www.clevelandrealestatenews.com/

62. Case Study #2: Jay Thompson
Source: http://www.phoenixrealestateguy.com/

63. Case Study #3: Teresa Boardman
Source: http://www.stpaulrealestateblog.com/

64. Resources
• National Association of Realtors - The NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF
REALTORS®, “The Voice for Real Estate”.
• REALTOR Magazine – the official magazine of the National Association of
Realtors that offers real estate agent tips, trends, data and more.
• Speaking of Real Estate – Realtor Magazine’s blog that offers timely
insights and observations from the editors of REALTOR Magazine.
• American Trust Escrow Blog – Technology Tip Tuesday – Tips for
Realtors on technology, social media and internet marketing.
• RIS Media – The Leader in Real Estate Information Systems that is home
to real estate publications, current news, preferred providers, events and
RealTown’s social networking platform.
• Cyberhomeblog.com – Blog that covers real estate technology, ideas and
professional insight.
• PR 20/20 Inbound Marketing Blog – The PR 20/20 public relations and
marketing blog features trends, news, resources and technologies for
underdogs and innovators.

65. • Put their needs and goals ahead of yours.
• Be patient. Don’t give up!
• Be yourself.
• Build relationships and goodwill.
• Create value and elevate the industry.
• Have a plan.
Closing Thoughts

66. • What are your concerns and fears?
• How do you think social media will impact your careers?
• What else do you need to know to get started?
Questions & Open Discussion

67. Thank You!
Paul Roetzer, PR 20/20
www.PR2020.com
paul@PR2020.com
(216) 333-1242
Twitter: @paulroetzer