As a real estate agent, you know that it takes much more than just a website to establish a worthwhile web presence for your business. Maintaining a web presence on social networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and others is extremely valuable in terms of connecting with prospects and clients, sharing content and generating leads.
But unlike your own website, it is not always easy to customize your social networking pages to your liking. You are forced to work within the set parameters and design limitations given to you, which can make it difficult to achieve a unique presence that sets you a part from your competitors.
But nothing is impossible, right? Your real estate virtual assistants will give you the tips and guidelines you need to make your social networking efforts more worth it than ever. Here are several things you can do to uniquely brand and customize 
your Facebook Business Page.
1. Claim Your URL - Make sure your Facebook page is as shareable and easy to find as possible. You can achieve this by creating a more recognizable vanity URL. For example: http://www.facebook.com/username (insert company name here). Straight and to the point is all it takes for effective results. This will also make your page more professional, more identifiable and will make it easier to share with others. Keep in mind: you need at least 25 fans on your Facebook page before you can create a custom URL. Think of it as an incentive to really invest in growing your social media presence!
2. Generate a Custom Welcome Page - A welcome page can be used to welcome new visitors to your page and will encourage them to ‘Like’ you. By having a welcome page, visitors will not be able to view your page without liking it first. (Remember, your posts will not show up in newsfeeds unless you are ‘liked’) Set this page as your ‘Default Landing Tab’ so it’s the first page people will land on when visiting your page. There are several free services that you can use to create a landing page. You can also have website providers such as RealPro create a landing tab for your page that will match the branding of your website. Another option is to have your real estate virtual assistants create a custom landing tab for you.
3. Make Your Picture Stand Out - Your Facebook Profile Picture doesn’t always need to be your company logo. Be creative! Do you have an amazing new property that you would like to make known? Did one of your team members win an award? Honor them by making them your picture for a day or two. If you’re feeling spontaneous, you may want to experiment with different colors, themes and designs to get heads turning.
4. Create Custom Tabs - You can create custom tabs on your Facebook page to feature whatever or whoever you want. A few ideas of what to use could be: client testimonials, featured listings, product information, and publicizing your social media presence on other networks.
5. Generate Tabs Showcasing Other Content - In addition to your custom tabs, you can add a tab to your Facebook page to showcase work you’ve published to other websites or social networking channels. Maybe you have a slideshow presentation that you would like to make public. To get this content on you Facebook Page, all you need to do is create a SlideShare account and add the SlideShare app to your page. You can also do this with your other accounts such as Flickr and YouTube.
6 .Run a Contest or Promotion - Running a contest or a promotion is a great way to generate conversation and feedback to your page. It will also help to attract new fans and make your presence more unique. If you are having a hard time thinking up contests, look at it in terms of month by month. For example, for the month of October you could host a Halloween Costume Contest by encouraging fans to post pictures of their costumes. The contests/promotions could have prizes, or simply be for fun and engagement.
Establishing an online presence for any business is tough. It takes time, dedication and motivation, which are all things driven real estate agents know a lot about. If you ever have any questions regarding developing your web presence, don't hesitate to contact your real estate virtual assistant.
Have a Great Day!
Lauren Wille
Marketing Coordinator
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