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4 Insane Mistakes Realtors Make With Facebook Ads

By
Services for Real Estate Pros with Best Real Estate Writer, a Layton Media brand

If I had a nickel for every time I saw a real estate agent asking about Facebook ads or complaining about their results I would be a very wealthy woman.

 

Hands-down, the Facebook advertising platform is the most sophisticated and accessible that has ever existed.

 

Millions of dollars can be made by business owners that understand the ins and outs of the platform and know how to leverage it the correct way. However, make no mistake about it; that does not describe most people.

 

Just about every real estate agent or broker has at least dabbled with Facebook Ads at some point, but few take the time to master the art and the science of the platform and as a result wind up pissing their money down the drain.

 

I know that many of you can afford to waste your money with poorly constructed ads but most of you cannot and none of you want to!

 

So today, I am going to break down the most common and costly mistakes I see real estate agents make with Facebook Ads.

 

Keep reading to learn:

  • How to get your targeting on-track

  • Why you should NEVER boost posts

  • How to optimize your results

 

If you are ready to skip over all of that expensive trial and error and get straight to the part where all the leads begin pouring in then this post is for you!

Facebook Advertising Mistake 1: Boosting Ads

You know how Facebook is CONSTANTLY telling you that one of your posts is performing well and then they tell you that you should boost the ad to continue your momentum?

 

DON’T!!!!

 

I know that Facebook does an excellent job of making it sound like this is in your best interest but you need to resist the temptation.

 

The big problem with boosting a post vs. creating an actual ad is that you are unable to select your objective with a boost. When you boost a post, the platform will try to #DoAllTheThings and the results will be shitty.

 

You know that phrase “Jack of all trades; master of none”?

 

Bingo! That is essentially what your boosted posts are attempting to do. Rather than operating with a specific function, they are trying to get likes, follows, comments, and clicks but it hasn’t been designed or optimized for any of those things.

 

For example, let’s say that you post one of your real estate blog articles to Facebook in hopes of driving traffic to that post and then either opt-in for a free download or start searching for properties that you have featured alongside the post.

 

Now let’s assume you decide to boost the post for $5 and you get the following results:

  • 8 people like your page

  • 2 people comment on the boosted post

  • 4 people click-through to go to the actual blog post

  • Only 1 person actually opts-in (this was your original goal)

 

Obviously, these are less than stellar results.

 

Now let’s take that same post and the same goal of driving traffic to the post in hopes of earning opt-ins and create an actual Ad. In this case, you would select “conversions” as your objective for the ad which means that you would only have to pay Facebook when somebody actually reads your blog post and opts-in.

 

This time, you could expect your $5 budget to earn you 2-3 people that opt-in after reading your blog post versus just the one from boosting the post.

Facebook Advertising Mistake 2: Terrible Targeting

The targeting component of the Facebook Ad platform is one of its biggest strengths but also where many people get hung up.

 

I don’t care how mind-blowing the content of your ad is; if your targeting sucks your results will too!

 

You need to be able to apply both common sense and critical thinking to ensure that your ads are being placed in front of the right people and driving the results you’re so eager to earn. As always, the deeper your understanding of your ideal client is, the better your ads will perform.

 

You also need to have a clear understanding of what you are trying to accomplish because that will tell you what type of audience to market to. I have a very helpful worksheet here that you can use to nail down exactly who you are tiring to target and understand what makes them tick.

 

Let's say that you are trying to target millennial bachelors looking to purchase a home in Seattle and you are using a downloadable guide tailored specifically to them as your hook or opt-in to get them into your funnel. When it comes time to select your audience it should be pretty obvious to you that you should not just randomly select people of the age 18 to 65 and include both genders. this would be a huge waste of your money!

 

Take that extra time to carefully think about what it is that you're offering, who you are offering it to, and what's those people share as common interests. Then strategically include all of those details and you're targeting and incorporate careful exclusions to reduce wasted ad spend on the wrong people.

Facebook Advertising Mistake 3: Crappy Content

Obviously, we are all bombarded with Facebook Ads on a daily basis. Unfortunately, as someone that has a higher understanding of how they work, I am pained by the number of real estate ads that I see that have flat-out shitty content and equally shitty results.

 

Equally as important as the targeting in your Facebook ads is the content of the ad themselves. Both the written and visual portions of your ads need to be able to grab and hold the attention of those that you are trying to attract.

 

The Images: Both still pictures and videos have the power to make or break your ads because they are often what first jumps out at someone as they are scrolling through their newsfeed. There are two schools of thought about whether professional images vs. unassuming home shot being the most effective. However, one thing that is for sure is that the immediate first impression needs to be something dramatic enough that it makes the person stop scrolling to learn more.

 

The Copy: The copy portion of your Facebook Ads needs to be engaging enough to get your target interested, clearly communicate what you want them to do (CTA), and make it obvious how they will benefit from taking that action. Don’t forget to tap into the pain points of your targets and incorporate emotional language for the one-two punch. Not confident that you will know how to tug on heartstrings. deploy logic, and write copy that will captivate? I would be happy to write the copy for two versions of your Facebook ad for just $175.

Facebook Advertising Mistake 4: Failure To Follow-Up

This one just plain pisses me off!

 

I can’t believe how many of you invest in building profitable ads and then fail to implement systems to follow-up with the leads that you earn.

 

Seriously?! Are you fucking kidding me?!

 

Listen, I’m not asking you to pick up the phone and call everyone or directly email everyone that opts-in from your ads. All I ask is that you get them into a strategic funnel that gets them segmented and qualified so you know who to follow-up with, when to follow-up with them, and the best way to follow-up with them so you get the conversion.

The Best Way To Follow-Up With Your Facebook Ad Leads

As soon as someone opts-in to one of your lead capture devices they should be placed into an appropriate email drip-campaign to automate the follow-up process for you and start pushing them through your funnel.

 

Depending on the target, the type of content that was used to hook them, and your ultimate goal, you will need anywhere between 3-7 emails in your drip series.

 

Again, the content of the emails in your drip campaign will need to be carefully crafted to:

  • Address the pain points of the targets

  • Incorporate emotional and conversational language

  • Include neurolinguistic programming (NLP)

  • Drive action with strategic calls-to-action (CTAs)

 

I know that this type of writing isn’t necessarily in the wheelhouse of many real estate agents so if you would like assistance putting together a profitable email drip-campaign that automatically follows-up with the leads you just paid for and holds them by the hand to the conversion point then please hit me up!

 

Oh, and check out some other nifty guides:

How to Attract Millennial Homebuyers Using Social Media

Are You Losing Real Estate Clients Due To Your Lame Social Media Presence?

How To Prevent Your Social Media Followers From Tuning You Out

The Secret To Becoming Stalkable On Social Media

How To Convert Your Real Estate Blog Posts Into Videos

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