Virtual Social Media Marketing is Like...

Virtual Social Media Marketing is Like...

A lot of people and businesses aren’t sure how social media works and why they should use it. Sometimes, it’s hard to understand the concept of social media marketing and blogging, especially if you are doing it for someone you don't know.

To picture it, imagine it like this. . .

Virtual Social Media Marketing is like a networking. Imagine walking into a room where you hardly know anyone. You have to meet people.You wouldn't walk up to someone and just start prattling on about yourself, your job, or business. Out of courtesy, people would listen for a little while, but then walk away feeling disconnected from the "conversation" you just had. But, what if after you both introduced yourselves, if you start talking about something that interests them from their job or life and they join the conversation. You need to strike up a conversation first, to learn about the person and their business and passions. Once you have begun a two-way converation, they may start smiling, or even laughing. Maybe they'll be telling their friends about the interesting conversation they just had with you. That is social media. Consistently posting things about you and your business will only bore your readers. To keep them engaged, talk about things that interest them, their lifestyle and their town. Intersperse with those posts with news about your business, promotions and products and local events and news.

Virtual Social Media Marketing is like baking. Imagine you’re baking sugar cookies to frost. You combine all the ingredients, get the frosting ready, and decide on sprinkles. Now, it's time to bake them. To save time, would you stick this cookie doguh in a microwave? Most certainly not; you'd place it on a cookie sheet and put it in the oven. It may takes more time than the microwave, but you know you'll have great cookies when they are done. After baking, you let them cool down and then ice them delicately. Maybe you decide to put some sprinkles on and place them on a beautiful platter. Now you have some happy kids coming in to keep you company. That is social media. It takes time to build an audience and get your personality and brand name out there. You could cut corners and possibly save time with other methods or means, but the results would be less than helpful and a complete waste of time. You need to do it right and that will take reading and following the directions and then sharing your cookies with your relationships.

Virtual Social Media Marketing is like building a house. First, you need to find a location with a strong foundation.This will depend on the type of soil, bedrock, or sand you’re building on. Think of the location you’re building in: Who lives there? What is the community like? What are the zoning laws like? What types of homes are the people in the area looking for? Don’t forget: When building a home, there’s also the design, room layouts, and utilities. That is social media. It takes pre-planning, knowledge of the specifics to ensure success and good expert advice. You can build a house anywhere, but if you build it on sand, you're still going to sink. Build your network around people who are interested in your house and what you have to say.

Virtual Social Media Marketing is like a having a garden.  Planting seeds and watching the flowers bloom is such a rewarding feeling. You'll need to water, nurture, fertilize, weed, and prune your garden to ensure it stays healthy and beautiful. You have to choose which flowers, vegetables, or fruits you’d like to grow. Will you plant annuals or perennials? What grows best in the soil in your area? What grows best in your climate? If you don’t care for your plants, they will wither and no longer bloom or bear fruit and eventually die. You can’t just plant the seeds and walk away, expecting your garden to flourish. That is social media. It takes effort to cultivate the right relationships and grow followers. You can't just build a page and do nothing with it. It's not a set it and forget it feature. You need to consistently post, listen, respond, comment and introduce others and invite followers to like your post and share it with others for your presence to be successful.

When you take the pieces of social media and put it into a frame of reference, it’s easier to understand why you do what you do and how to do it for the most success. Yes, you could just blog every now and then and post a listing every week, but that's defininitely NOT what Real Estate Social Media Marketing is. 

If you are uncertain, hire someone. You reap the rewards of additional time, you know your Social Marketing is done right and consistently and you will have lots more time to make money, play with the dog or whatever you choose.