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Using Pinterest for Real Estate

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Real Estate Agent with William Raveis Real Estate RES.0772823

Pinterest Boards Black Rock CT

As you know Pinterest is growing faster than any other social media and has the ability to drive a lot of traffic to your websites.  However, Pinterest and listings are not a match made in heaven.  You can't just put up a Board for each of your listings  on Pinterest and think that people will repin photos from your listings.  The whole point of Pinterest is sharing your interests and passions with others via images.

So what do we do?  One of the best examples for me is Ines Hegedus-Garcia's Pinterest Board, because she shares her passions and focuses on the attractions of the geographic area that she markets her homes in - Miami, FL.  I also admire what the Corcoran Group has done on Pinterest, by grouping images in Spaces such as Dining Rooms, Kitchens, Living Rooms, Bedrooms, Bathrooms, and then Places, such as TriBeCa.

My Pinterest site is somewhere in between the intensely personal passions of Ines' site and the corporate seriousness of the Corcoran site.  I want all of my images to lead back to my Black Rock Connecticut real estate WordPress site in order to drive traffic to the site and get that fabulous Google juice.  However, the images have to be of enough visual interest for others to repin.

Therefore, I created the following Pinterest categories:

  • Favorites - repins from original photos by other ActiveRainers from their Pinterest boards (I have concerns about copyright issues in repinning, so prefer to repin originals from people who have put images on their own boards for repinning by others)
  • Dream Bedrooms - I pinned bedrooms from my luxury listings
  • Dream Homes (Video Tours) - had just figured out how to use Windows Live Movie Maker to create YouTube videos today and created one of my $2 milllion luxury listing with 180 degree water views
  • Dream Gardens - I pinned gardens from my luxury listings
  • Dream Bathrooms - I pinned bathrooms from my luxury listings
  • Ash Creek Tidal Estuary - I pinned photos from a photo gallery of my market area
  • St. Mary's-by-the-Sea - Ditto (see Ash Creek)
  • Black Rock, Connecticut - Ditto (see Ash Creek)
  • Black Rock Homes for Sale - I posted one exterior photo of each of my listings, the price, and a brief description.  My hope is that if Pinterest viewers of my boards become intrigued with my area, they will want to see what is for sale.  I expect this Board will get the least traffic.

Have you created your Pinterest account?  If so, how do you use it for your real estate business?  Inquiring minds want to know.

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Vanessa Saunders
Global Property Systems Real Estate - White Plains, NY
Real Estate | Done Differently

I've found a combination of our listings, mixed with clients comments and pictures, videos and the usual Pinterest stuff such as recipes, bucket lists etc is working well for me. It is important not to be too corporate and self serving. Let your personality shine through. The Handy Household Tips is a winner too!

I was recently asked to Beta test Pinerly which allows me to track my pins and so far I'm amazed! Far more Google Juice than I could ever hope for and the best thing is that everything links back to Facebook. Check it out our page at http://pinterest.com/gpsrealestate

Enjoy and feel free to repin anything!

Jul 09, 2012 07:49 PM
David Perry
Wainwright Real Estate - Portsmouth, VA

Gail, thank you for sharing! Pinterest is a great tool to add to your social media toolbox.

Jul 09, 2012 08:49 PM
Christina Ehli
RE/MAX Platinum - Brighton, Michigan - Brighton, MI
RE/MAX Platinum Brighton MI Real Estate Agent

Gail, an excellent blog post!  I have listened to webinars on Pinterest and that we should be using it for real estate but I only got as far as setting up my account.  Looking at the examples on the webinar they made it look so easy .  . .I am going to bookmark your post for further reference.

Jul 09, 2012 09:02 PM
Lori Cain
Own Tulsa - Tulsa, OK
Midtown Tulsa Real Estate Top Producer

Great suggestions, and I'm off to read Cheryl's board and the Pinterest boards you mention. So far, I've been adding photos of my listings on a an appropriate board - Home Decor, Cool Rooms, Outdoor Living, etc. Would love to know how well those linkbacks are really helping. Another Pinner to follow is Carra Riley. Great post.

Jul 10, 2012 12:25 AM
Wayne Jackson
Lakeshore Realty 208-714-4109 - Hayden, ID
North Idaho Realtor, Serving Coeur dnullAlene and Hayden Lake

Gail,Thanks for the great post. This looks like something I need to learn more about, will join the Pinterest group on AR.

Jul 10, 2012 12:38 AM
Gene Mundt, IL/WI Mortgage Originator - FHA/VA/Conv/Jumbo/Portfolio/Refi
NMLS #216987, IL Lic. 031.0006220, WI Licensed. APMC NMLS #175656 - New Lenox, IL
708.921.6331 - 40+ yrs experience

Gail:  First, thanks for putting the link to yours and other AR member's Pinterest accounts.  LOVE finding another source for info and connecting.  Secondly, I agree that Pinterest can be another tool in your marketing toolbox.  A very enjoyable one too.  After 35+ years in the mortgage business, I'm not sure where my profession starts and ends, it's so much a part of me and my life.  Pinterest has proven to be a great extension for showcasing that.  My wife and I do lots of it together and have fun pinning, on my behalf.   Hope your Pinterest proves the same to you ... profitable and fun ...

  Gene

Jul 10, 2012 02:00 AM
Evelyn Kennedy
Alain Pinel Realtors - Alameda, CA
Alameda, Real Estate, Alameda, CA

Gail:

I started pinterest in February and pinned everything I could to the categories I created.  Then I heard about problems people were having with copy write with other's photos.  I need to go back since I now have many more photos I have taken of my community.

Jul 10, 2012 07:14 AM
Katerina Gasset
The Gasset Group & Get It Done For Me Virtual Services - Provo, UT
Amplify Your Real Estate & Life Dreams!

Gail- You pin the photos that allow pinning. When  a company posts a pin this button on their website they are agreeing to the terms and service of Pinterest. Also, if the photos are from major companies like Lowes, HGTV, any retailers, they all Want their photos repinned. They want you to share their products! I won't do art unless I have  permission. But Food, all the food companies, the recipe companies, etc, they all want you to share their pins. If they have a board and it is their product, you can repin because they want their retail products to go viral, they want to make money at the end of the day. Katerina 

Jul 10, 2012 07:28 AM
Gail Robinson
William Raveis Real Estate - Southport, CT
CRS, GRI, e-PRO Fairfield County, CT

Mike - Figuring out that balance between linking back to our sites and providing fascinating content is the challenge.  Pinterest was designed to be fun!

Bryan - I set up my WordPress site (via a plug in) so that viewers can Pin images from any of my posts.  I also set it up on Facebook so that Fans can Pin the images.

Tiffany - You already have a headstart by being on there ahead of most of us.

Diana - I started uploading my photos from my computer as well and then I read about the incredible SEO power of linking back to your site through your images.  I ended up spending hours loading images onto my WordPress site just so I could link to them on Pinterest.

Pat - That is a great idea!

Vanessa - Thanks I will check it out. 

Jul 10, 2012 10:35 AM
Gail Robinson
William Raveis Real Estate - Southport, CT
CRS, GRI, e-PRO Fairfield County, CT

David - I needed one more social media outlet to take up my time!  LOL

Christina - It's too early for anyone to say definitively, here's how to use Pinterest to further your real estate business, but we can share ideas, and maybe you'll even come up with a better one.

Lori - Thanks, I'll check out Carra Riley's boards.

Wayne - I just joined that group as well.  See you there.

Gene - I'll be interested in seeing how you use Pinterest.

Evelyn - The copyright issues kept me off Pinterest for a long while, but then I figured I could just put up my own photos.

Katerina - I'd like to hear Lenn Harley's take on the copyright issues with Pinterest.  You might think that Lenn wouldn't mind someone repinning her maps on Pinterest, but maybe she would mind it -- a lot.  The problem with Pinterest is that the whole concept is to repin images from your friends' Boards, but you don't know where your friend got that image.  Google went through copyright lawsuits with their Google images and I have no doubt that Pinterest will go through their copyright lawsuits as well.  Until that all shakes out, I'm being cautious.

 

Jul 10, 2012 11:01 AM
Kathy Della-Nebbia
Royal LePage State Realty, Brokerage - Hamilton, ON
SRES

Thanks for that Gail.  I've gone in and followed you, the ones you recommended and I'll be checking out Cheryl's group. 

I'm using it but still have lots to learn.

I link my Real estate or Hamilton related photos to my website but I'm not quite understanding how other photos I've pinned or repinned help me other than to give me a personality and make my overall site of interest.

My daughter has an interest in photography and we've gone out a couple of times around the city and she's taken pictures for me.  I try to be careful with the copyright aspect.

Kathy

Jul 10, 2012 08:41 PM
Gail Robinson
William Raveis Real Estate - Southport, CT
CRS, GRI, e-PRO Fairfield County, CT

Kathy - Repinning recipes, favorite books, etc. are good ways to let others get a feel for your personality.  Repinning an image also delights the owner of the Board, so it builds relationships.  It doesn't directly accomplish anything in the way of SEO for your website.  It may, however, attract people to your Pinterest boards so that they also click on some of the images that ink to your real estate sites. 

Jul 11, 2012 12:27 AM
Kathy Della-Nebbia
Royal LePage State Realty, Brokerage - Hamilton, ON
SRES

Thanks for the response Gail.  I love learning about this stuff and do enjoy it, just have to watch the time commitment.  You can really get drawn in.

I forgot to include my pinterest account,  http://pinterest.com/rlpkathydn/

Kathy 

Jul 11, 2012 08:40 PM
Elyse Berman, PA
LoKation Real Estate - Boca Raton, FL
Boca Raton FL (561) 716-7824

Hi Gail,  I haven't attempted it yet.  Have too much on my plate, but it is on my to-do list.  I've bookmarked this post.

Jul 12, 2012 12:18 PM
Gail Robinson
William Raveis Real Estate - Southport, CT
CRS, GRI, e-PRO Fairfield County, CT

Kathy - Thank you, Im following all ActiveRainers who follow me on Pinterest.

Jul 12, 2012 11:01 PM
Gail Robinson
William Raveis Real Estate - Southport, CT
CRS, GRI, e-PRO Fairfield County, CT

Elyse - It took me a long time to find enough uninterrupted time to do it.  I chose the evening of July 4th when everyone else was enjoying a party and the fireworks.  One thing about AR is that it really keeps social media and the Internet forefront in our minds so that it doesnt get pushed too far back on our To Do lists.

Jul 12, 2012 11:04 PM
Betsy Schuman Dodek
Washington Fine Properties - Washington DC Area Real Estate - Potomac, MD
SearchPotomacHomes.com

Gail,

This was a great overview of how to use Pinterest for us Realtors!!! I need to commit an evening to adding to my pinterest boards and making that connection with my followers and prospective clients!!!

Betsy

Oct 07, 2012 10:13 PM
Paula Bradfield
Bradfield Ramsey Group - Salida, CO
Your Salida Colorado area Realtor Team

Gail, thanks! I really need to spend more time with mine for real estate... here is my account  http://pinterest.com/paulabradfield/

Nov 09, 2012 06:02 AM
Rachell Lara & A List Properties
eXp Realty / 619.316.7445 - San Diego, CA
A List Properties - San Diego Neighborhood Experts

Gail, great post! I love Pinterest too, so much fun and great for SEO.

Nov 13, 2012 09:19 AM
Johnny Davis
Ocala, FL
Where SOLD Happens!

I am still on the fence with Pinterest. I am having a hard time seeing how it will bring business my way. Still doing research though.

Dec 24, 2012 10:48 AM
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