As of April 2017, Instagram had over 700 million monthly active users. That’s TWICE as many people as live in the United States.
As you might imagine, those kinds of numbers get my attention as a marketer. Instagram is already an incredible platform for Realtors®. It’s visual, beautiful, and full of stories – exactly what real estate marketing should be!
I’ve written before about using Instagram for real estate, but today I want to do a deeper dive into one aspect – how to set up the perfect real estate Instagram profile.
What the Perfect Profile Can Do for You
Why worry about having an amazing Instagram profile?
Doing it right will help you:
- Stand out from a sea of beautiful photos
- Define and build your brand image
- Be attractive to your ideal prospects
- Be found in Instagram searches that will be conducted by prospects and other Realtors®
It’s vital to have the right kind of profile, with the right keywords, if you want the time you put into Instagram to pay off.
Building Your Real Estate Instagram Profile
The first step is to create a business Instagram account. If you have an existing account, you can convert it over. It will help that you have existing content, although you will want to clean it up a bit.
The purpose of having a business Instagram account is the analytics. You’ll be able to discover which posts are doing well, which aren’t, and what times your followers are online. All of these details are vital to posting the right content at the right time.
Add Keywords to Your Profile
Like all social media platforms, Instagram isn’t just about what you share. It’s as much a search engine as it is a gallery. You want your ideal prospects to be able to find you, and keywords are the way to do it.
Choose your keywords based on your location, real estate niche, or specialty. Remember that specific keywords are much better than general. Use a neighborhood instead of a large metro area!
Focus Your Bio on Your Clients
Bios are a great place to share what you do for your clients. Again, specificity wins the day. Rather than “I sell homes in Sacramento, love dogs, and enjoy my spouse and kids,” say, “I help buyers in Land Park, CA find their dream homes and homeowners sell their homes quickly. Thinking of buying or selling? Contact me at 123-456-7890.”
As with all marketing, your primary focus should be on your customer. What’s in it for them? While there’s nothing wrong with sharing that you love dogs, be sure that your focus is on your prospects.
Set Up Your Brand Image
People on social media are looking to connect to other people, so skip the company or brand image. Instead, upload a photo that shows you are friendly, professional, and approachable.
Once you’ve set up your photo, determine colors, fonts, filters, and frames. You want your images to look uniform so that people will recognize your images as they scroll. Choose bold colors and memorable photos. You can even create a specific square frame with Canva and use it over and over.
Clean Up Your Feed
If you’re converting a personal account, you’ll want to go through and remove any posts that are off-brand. As a professional, you probably already don’t share unprofessional or questionable content. But you can go a step further and make sure your feed is completely branded, using your colors, filters, and frames.
Post Incredible Photos & Stories
Of course, this is Instagram. The best marketing you can provide are stunning photos and videos. Whether you create a slideshow to showcase your latest listing or use Instagram Stories to share a series of candid moments, you want everything to be fun and beautiful.
Be sure you’re sharing what’s relevant to your clients. Just like you wouldn’t write a blog post for luxury real estate clients about credit repair, you shouldn’t share information on your Instagram that’s irrelevant to your clients. Traveling to a luxury resort in Barbados but you sell homes to first-time buyers? Unless you can clearly tie it in, skip the sharing on Instagram.
And of course, be sure you geotag everything to show where you’re active and where your listings are located!
What’s Next?
Once your profile is complete and you’re sharing regularly, what’s next?
Believe it or not, you can include Instagram in your farming strategy! Unlike many other social networks, it’s completely normal to follow people you don’t know on Instagram.
Search by location, and a list of folks in that area will appear. Accounts are public, so don’t be shy – like, comment, compliment, and even tag others you think would enjoy the post. Make it a goal to comment on three to five profiles a day.
In addition, geotag everything. Feature and tag local businesses and events as you share photos. From a local 5K to a new restaurant opening, be just as active in your local area on Instagram as you are in person.
Curious exactly what you should be sharing on Instagram for maximum impact? Stay tuned – I’ll be talking about that later this week!
Ready to spruce up your business cards with your new brand colors and fonts? We can help. Contact us today!
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