Gone to the Beach
The concept of personal branding has been around for a while but professionals in the Real Estate Industry have been slow to adjust. This is due to the “busy” nature of the business. In the Corporate world, companies hire professionals or experts in a specific field to create and implement solutions but real estate agents are more like the lone gunman of the wild west and try to do it all themselves. The good news today is it has never been easier to do it yourself by utilizing the Internet and social media.
Below I have outlined seven tools or steps that can help you get your brand noticed and help make your message even more pervasive, powerful, and efficient.
1. BE CONSISTANT
As you sign up with Social Media outlets like Twitter, FaceBook, LinkedIn and others, you should do your best to insure that no one else is capitalizing on or damaging your Brand. The easiest way to do this is to go to sites like the ones mentioned in my article Managing Multiple Social Media Profiles. These sites can let you know in seconds whether your username de jour is available. Once you have picked out your name start signing up with as many sites as possible to “lock” your name. If you want to do it fast you can use services like www.knowem.com which offers a service for $65 that will sign you up with most of the major sites.
2. Start with the easiest; LinkedIn
Many real estate professionals ignore LinkedIn, (Connect with me on LinkedIn at http://www.linkedin.com/in/craigsadvice – email social@craigsadvice.com) or have relegated it to a position of low importance on their list of social networking sites. I feel that it should be your first site for several reasons but mostly because it is easy. The belief that the business focus of LinkedIn will not get you a hot home buying or selling prospect isn’t accurate. Everybody works somewhere. Many are self-employed contractors and professionals. In fact, these very professionals are in the higher income strata that will produce higher real estate commissions.
You can quickly connect with current and past employers and co-workers, connect with other agents and real estate associations, your favorite charities and clients. Also consider your professional contacts in other in positions related to real estate.
- Appraisers
- Mortgage brokers
- Bankers
- Home Inspectors
- Attorneys
- Title companies
- Contractors
There are also numerous groups on LinkedIn discussing real estate and real estate investing topics. Investor clients are on LinkedIn asking questions that you can answer, building your credibility and gaining “Expert” points for display on the network. There is a NAR group, as well as several other real estate professional discussion groups. You can learn and discuss in these groups and connect with more people.
3. GOOGLE, ZILLOW, TRULIA – OH MY
You don’t need to build your own website or blog to have a powerful and authentic online brand. But before you start, you must prepare your branded career marketing materials. They include a branded bio that describes you and only you (ensure that you write it in a style that showcases your emotional brand attributes), a decent head shot, and your list of keywords (words that connect to your area or expertise). Follow these links to Google, Zillow and Trulia and set up a free profile. These sites will boost your web presence and are very easy and quick to set up.
Also, you must…
- Buy your domain name (even if you aren’t ready to have your own website). It costs about $9 per year. When you’re ready to build your own place on the World Wide Web, you’ll have the “property” on which to build it. You can buy your domain name at www.godaddy.com. (Search for “godaddy promo code” before purchasing, to get the latest discount offer.)
- Establish a Google Alert for your name to stay on top of what is being said about you on the World Wide Web. This will help you as you continue to post new content and build your brand online.
Even if you are virtually invisible now, you can be on your way to having a stellar online profile just by following these steps. And remember to continue to monitor your online ID—and subscribe to Google Alerts for your name. Google results change more frequently than the weather, so stay on top of what others are learning about you.
Next post I will go over the remaining steps.
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Everyday agents ask me if social media is a fad or should they be focusing their attention on what they have always done and works perfectly fine? Well… the short answer is every so often there is a major technology shift that improves a process, Car, Lightbulb. Phone, Plane, etc. Social Media has the ability to get a message to people faster and more precisely than any media before it.
