Instagram Videos Demystified for Real Estate Agents

This article was originally published on the Home Value Leads blog.

Many real estate agents are taking full advantage of the benefits that Instagram offers. The popular photo-sharing social platform can beautifully showcase your latest listings, give your followers a behind-the-scenes look into your day and celebrate your successes. However, many agents are still steering clear of posting videos on Instagram. We're here to say, "Go for it!"

Instagram Videos: A Quick Review

Instagram is a more personable photo- and video-sharing tool, so it's not important to make overproduced videos. In fact, you might find that you'll get more engagement with natural, off-the-cuff videos than ones that you plan to a T. You only have 60 seconds for your videos on Instagram, so finding a topic or focus that you can talk about within that time is important. You might think that one minute is not enough to get in everything you want to say, but you absolutely can! The key is to whittle it down to the basics. For now, Instagram does not allow you to schedule posts, but you can create several videos then post them later. Now that you know the basics, let's dig into some tips!

Tip 1: Set a Specific Goals

Before you even start shooting, lay down some goals. Do you want to have more engaging posts and therefore including video? What does the engagement entail (informing, sharing your day-to-day, letting your followers know more about you)? Or maybe you'd like to have more followers? Write them down first, and it will help you with our second tip.

Tip 2: Plan and Stick to a Schedule

Now that you know why you are putting together your videos, it's time to take a look at what you will put out there. For example, if you want more engaging posts, what do you think would help? You could put together a list of your favorite features of different listings, a "tip of the week" list or pose questions once in a while asking your followers to vote on a potential update for a listing. We're all about pre-planning to make the job easier, so once you have your list, create a schedule that will help you have timely and relevant videos to shoot and post. You can use a simple spreadsheet or your online project management system.

Tip 3: Make Your Video Great

The fun part comes when you are ready to start filming. Some simple guidelines:

• Shoot with natural light, and block out light that is blots out your face or background. You can experiment with a practice shot and adjust position and curtains, for example, to make the shot just right.
• Don't feel the need to memorize nor read what you are going to say. This not only helps you keep your presence organic but also helps you practice sticking to the main points. Also, don't be afraid if it's not perfect.
• Show, don't tell. If you have something to feature, feature it. You might have to move your phone around if you are shooting yourself, but at least you are changing up the scene and providing more interesting angles (not that you alone aren't one!).

Tip 4: Break It Up, Space It Out

If you happen to be shoot longer than one minute, don't worry. One of the best things about smartphones these days is their ability to allow you to edit videos. Review your longer video and cut out what you don't need. Make sure to save your abridged videos separately so you don't lose your original video. You could use the longer version on your website or Facebook, but keeping them separate on these media will provide you more content to talk around and to post.

Tip 5: Post It the Right Way

Time to post! Posting a video on Instagram should not just include the video and a few hashtags. Tell a story. Again, as a platform that has a more personal bent to it, explain in a few short sentences or less why you are shooting and an extra thought or reflection on it. Choose up to five hashtags (no more than this is overkill!) to include after your copy that will help people search for it better. If, for example, you are shooting a video inside a mid-century modern home in Los Angeles that has an incredible renovation done to it, your hashtags could be #midcenturymodern #LosAngeles #realestate #renovation. Finally, if you are linking to a specific blog post, unfortunately, the link won't be clickable. However, you can direct your followers to your Instagram profile info where you should have a link to your website. Then just tell them where to find it on your site!