If you are in the US, odds are that one of the last six minutes you’ve spent online was spent on social media. And you might have been hard at work! Best-in-class property owners and managers use social media as an essential component to managing their online brand, building tenant loyalty, and attracting new clients.
Social media is more than a means of oversharing the minutiae of your life and stalking people. It has become a powerful tool for professionals in the real estate industry. Here’s how property managers and building owners are using two popular social platforms to reinforce their brand and stand out amongst the competition:
Blogging
Blogging is used for marketing purposes by almost 40% of US companies. Whether you use WordPress, Tumblr, Squarespace, Posterous, Blogger, or any other blogging platform, blogging is a great way to create a steady stream of content and increase traffic to your website.
How to use:
Establish yourself as a perceived expert. The more you write, the more knowledgeable you will become about the issues and status of your industry. You should aim to post blog entries a few times a week or a few times month, depending on your resources.
Struggling to come up with content? You should think about some of the kinds of issues that tenants run into and the topics that your peers are concerned with. Browsing discussions and questions on LinkedIn can give you a good idea. You also can reformulate other content you have, be it from the transcript of a podcast or your take on an article. Honest to Blog, just have fun and get the creative juices flowing.
LinkedIn is the most popular place for professionals to network on the internet. The majority of individuals use Linkedin as a way to find jobs, post jobs, maintain professional contacts, and discuss professional issues. Property owners and managers can use it for more.
How to use:
First off, here’s how not to use it: don’t connect with anyone and everyone just to increase “contacts,” this will only cloud your LinkedIn experience.
Linkedin can be an effective prospecting tool. Change the people search to company search, and find the companies you want to get behind. You will be able to see how you’re connected to a company, whether you have a first-degree connection to that company (meaning you are connected to somebody in that company), or whether you have a second-degree connection. Reach out to these connections via LinkedIn message, e-mail, or phone and request an introduction.
Additionally, set up groups within LinkedIn. This may be a group for your tenants to talk with each other and see what’s going on within the building. Make announcements within that group to send an e-mail to its members. Open up forums of discussion, and give a voice to your tenants. Join commercial real estate representation groups and interact with your peers.
Bloging and LinkedIn are two of the most prominent social platforms used by CRE professionals. In an industry as competitive as Real Estate, social media can help reinforce your brand and give you a competitive edge.
Learn more about how to harness the power of social media in Property Management in our upcoming Webinar, Casting a Wider Network. Tuesday, September 7th at 12pm, Patrick Braswell will discuss using social media to strenthen your online brand, reinforce tenant relationships, and reach prospects!
