What It Takes To Sell A Home With Social Media

Real estate sales are dependent on broad publicity, so both buyers and sellers have become savvy on learning how to take advantage of the Internet, especially local sites such as Kijiji where you are able to post detailed information and photos. In order to truly take advantage of the ever growing Internet phenomenon, many tech savvy buyers and sellers are utilizing their social networking websites to create a bigger web of contacts than they might achieve by using local advertising. It is not simply that most popular social network sites quick to use and relatively simple to develop, they can be launched and supported with little to no expense - except for time, dedication and patience. The most valuable skill is determining a strategic keyword plan that will optimize your search engine ranking, making it possible for your listing to potentially get to the top of the most popular search engines.


Websites such as Word Press and Typepad offer you free pre-formatted pages where users are able to simply post details, add photos and link to various relevant sites, positioning blogs an ideal avenue to list and search for homes online. Once you create your blog post, it may become your main destination for all of your social media links. If you launch the right way, any time you add to your blog you will automatically alert your subscribers and other interested parties. Coming up with popular keywords is essential, and not only must they be added to the keyword tag box, they should be incorporated into the headline, the first and last paragraph and especially the introduction. If you're not getting the kind of exposure you expect, try a different combination of keywords. These tactics often work particularly well with popular condominium buildings such as Queen West condos as it resonates with those kinds of purchasers.

Because of the increasing use of Facebook, it has become a natural venue for marketing real estate sales because it offers an gathering area that embraces the free flowing swapping of ideas. Not only realtors but private sellers have discovered that by distributing listings with their Facebook pals, they are able to set up a personal network that soon has their property details in the hands of many perspective purchasers. It is crucial to add correct contact details so anyone interested in your property can reach you without delay. Of course, it is very important to stay on top of the correspondence that you receive, otherwise you might build a reputation as a flake who is simply collecting information and rapidly lose credibility.

Micro-blogging using the Twitter service may generate a ton of inquiries on your home, especially when it is updated regularly. You may develop a routine of sending short, attention grabbing news flashes, descriptive snapshots and fun stories through your Twitter service. Put Twitter posts to good use every time you update your property listing site, that will also automatically update your Facebook wall. Be imaginative and link your Twitter terms for your listing with local buzzwords, trending terms and trendy topics.



Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/5264347

Top 20 Social Media Marketing Tips To Sell A Home

Recently, a smart, savvy man named Kurt, a social media expert, decided he was going to sell his house. Not really knowing that it was going to go way above reserve, but using Youtube, Twitter and other media to connect with people who may just be in his target market. It was a brilliant strategy, and probably took a lot of time and a bit of investment on his part, but it certainly paid off with an extra $135,000 over the reserve price, what a great result.


If you are trying to sell a property or car using a social media marketing strategy, here are 20 tips on how to get started:

1. create a name that will suit all social media accounts (ie. brisbane4brhouse) maximum 20 characters
2. check if the name is available as a domain first, if it is check other media is also available
3. register your domain name fast when you find a fit
4. create a WordPress blog and a theme that suits your property
5. setup a YouTube account (channel) that shows video footage (for a prestige property pay someone to make it look really professional, other amateur is good as long as your lighting is right)
6. setup a Facebook account (if you already have one use it instead if you feel comfortable with that)
7. setup a Twitter account for tweets about features, open times, location benefits, and more
8. setup a Google+ account for top quality links to your posts and agent's site
9. setup a Picasa account for top quality photos
10. the blog is used to advertise features of the home, create posts, and compare other properties in the area
11. always provide a link to the page where your agent is advertising the property details
12. use descriptions to put in extra contact relevant to the property - such as 4 bedroom house for sale [location] and link to your blog
13. setup social media integration into the blog for automatic feeds into all social media accounts to share your posts
14. create a video of the property (either photos blended or an actual video) maximum 10 minutes long, or several to highlight different features in the home
15. link that video channel to your Facebook and Twitter account, and other social media where possible
16. find followers, groups, and friends
17. send out regular tweets
18. update Facebook with status updates
19. submit all your sites to search engines
20. ask your friends and family to share the links with their friends and family
There you have it, top 20 social media marketing tips for selling your home.

Another word of advice: SEO is extremely important. If your potential buyer is looking for a 4br house in Brisbane, they will come across all the big real estate sites, so you need to stand out, use keywords that people are searching for in your account names, descriptions, titles, and blog posts.

Just a quick suggestion: If you are doing all this yourself you might want to negotiate with your agent; as you are doing a lot of the work to get extra attention, he/she should reduce the commission. After all you are effectively doing what they are being paid to do, right!

This strategy is great if you are thinking of starting a business. It can be used as a good business idea to get up and running to compliment homes you have for sale. If you would like to setup your business using this concept and need advise please contact me. With a small startup investment for the package above and $500 each month until the property is sold. If you would like help setting up this social media strategy to sell your own property, I can help you with that as well.





Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6912501

Daily progress...

A dear friend of mine has asked me to help him sell his property in France. Along with listing it with agents in France I am beginning to create a presence for it on Social Media. I have now started a simple blog as though the property itself is speaking. I have also built a simple website which you can visit via the blog www.theoldgallery.blogspot.com I have also started a Twitter account, again as though the house has created it, which is @the_oldgallery I have also created a Picassa account and started to add all the photographs and videos I can of the house. It is a beautiful house as you can see www.theoldgallery.bravesites.com and as it doubles up as a holiday let so it is very attractive to a new owner that would like an investment as well. There is a slight difference to me advertising and opening up this house on social media than perhaps yourselves, as you are living in the house. My friend who is selling this property in France has now moved back to the UK. Whilst I have visited the house many times I can't give a running commentary of actually being in the house and at the moment I can't a build a regular picture of the surrounding area. So in this instance I may look to consider further options as well as the social media route. I would like to affirm again that it is sensible to adopt the usual avenues when selling a house as well as bringing the property to life on Twitter, You Tube and Facebook. By usual routes I am referring to an estate agent, finding a cash buyer on the internet or even auction. It all depends on your situation and how motivated you are to sell. However the most important thing to remember is the more you open your home and it's life, the more information there is for people to make an informed decision about buying. Whether that is through an agent or a cash buyer or a friend of a friend who finds you on Facebook. So the idea with my friends house in France is that I will open up as much of it as I can. To aim to do something each day is the goal. A tweet as often as you can, a blog post from the house maybe once a day if you can or at the very least a couple of times a week. To keep the flow in Facebook you will need to post there most days as well. Remember though you do not want to over do it on your own Facebook account. Your own friends may become a little tired if you are only ever taking about your house. This is why I recommend talking from the perspective of the house itself. That way you can make it funny if the house keeps talking. You can create a dialogue with the house yourself. Facebook is also about creating new networks as well. By joining groups and exploring you will find people outside of your own circles that will be looking for a house like yours. I will also be exploring the routes of finding out what our homes can offer a developer. This is important to beware of. There is no need to fear the property developer! In fact the property world is filled with very contentious people. The reason for that in my opinion is because property is a people's business. To get on with people you need to be nice and in my experience property development on a single unit scale is dominated by friendly individuals who would like to create a win for you as well as well as a win for themselves. But hey, we are all living in the real world and we know there are sharks in any business. There are also multi billionaires in the property world who can be a little other wordly and who control many people underneath them who also appear to be impossible to connect with. But they tend not to deal with single units such as one house. Unless your 15 acre garden is a prime development site, which is why it is important to know all aspects of what your property means to all people. So when you are assessing all aspects of your house it is important to research what opportunities there may be to a developer. This will of course open the market for you to a new audience and may well increase what you can ask for your property. But that is for a later post. For now I would like you to have a look at the progress I am making with the Old Gallery in France. You will notice the website I am using is free. It is hosted with bravesites.com which means you are using the domain name at no cost to you and the website is hosted for free so it has the name bravesites in the domain. The main reason in my mind to own a domain name is for a business that will be running for some time. In this instance you will need some security that the website will not disappear if the host goes down. When selling a house the website will only be relevant and needed until the house is sold. So it is less important to have a permanent domain name and hosting. So have a play. Start your blog on Blogger.com It is so easy to build one. The website is also very self explanatory to build. Why Blogger over Wordpress? Wordpress is great if you would like to build a complex site with gadgets and plug ins. A simple Blog is all that is needed and Blogger is very easy to understand and follow. I would love to know how you are doing. If you have any questions at all please let me know. To your sale and success.

Company enhances real estate marketing with high-definition videos and social media.

I really like the following article because it emphasises the importance of using video to sell a home. David explains how a video is like watching a movie trailer, to me this is the opportunity to turn our homes into little movies which make it all the more interesting for a potential buyer. Have a read and let me know your thoughts... In the dark days of house-hunting, only about 20 years ago, people would rely on real estate agents to photocopy or fax property listings, which usually offered short descriptions and a single photograph. Today, the resources available for homebuyers are vast and growing. Online in-depth listings, property tax and sale records, aerial and street-view photographs, and websites that estimate property values are all available to those looking to buy a home. Yates Dew has built a company around consumers’ growing demand for online real estate information. His Keen Eye Marketing offers agents high-definition videos, social media campaigns and “for sale” signs that allow people with smartphones to scan a code that directs them to online information. “I’ve been a commercial agent since 2003, and this company grew out of something that I saw a need for,” said Dew, 41, of James Island. “I just realized there was a better way to present the properties I was looking at. “I have, over time, turned this into a full-time job,” he said, noting that the company has four employees. Consumers have come to expect multiple photographs online when they look at properties, and video is the next step, as powerful computers and high-speed Internet connections have made it possible to stream high-definition video. “A video is like watching a movie trailer,” Dew said. “We try to keep it to two or three minutes, and create an emotional connection.” After producing a video to showcase a home, Keen Eye Marketing uses social media to drive viewers to the production, and ultimately to real estate agents’ websites, “We want agents to understand the importance of social media and viral marketing,” he said. “This is the new way to sell real estate.” “Every time we get a new video, we tweet about it, and put it on our Facebook page, LinkedIn and Google Plus,” Dew said. The videos also are distributed to agents, but the next big thing for Keen Eye Marketing is using QR codes to direct home shoppers from yard signs to online information. A QR code, it’s short for quick response, is a small black-and-white symbol, about one inch square, that can be read by smartphones and links to online resources such as websites and videos. Instead of typing in a website address, someone with a smartphone or tablet computer, with correct applications, can just point it at the code. Dew said QR codes present a great opportunity in real estate marketing. “Take, for example, a house on Sullivan’s Island,” he said. “You have a family visiting from Charlotte, and they’re thinking of relocating, and they drive by and see this sign with a QR code, and that gives them access to the house (information) and hopefully leads to them calling an agent.” The potential home buyer doesn’t have to write down a phone number or look for sale fliers. Just point at the sign and the information is on his phone or tablet. “It’s not a super-new technology, but we’re sort of waiting for clients to embrace it,” Dew said. “If they buy a branded video from us, we will put a sign in the yard with a QR code.” The properties that Keen Eye Marketing produces videos for are often high-end homes, which tend to take longer to sell. Dew said the company also has filmed homes selling for under $200,000. Prices for his company’s services start at $300. Dew hasn’t always been in real estate, and he took an eclectic career path to get there after majoring in music at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. First, he worked in computer software sales in Atlanta. Then, at age 27, he joined a group of friends who were looking for an investment, and in 1998 bought the Music Farm, a music club in downtown Charleston. “I had actually played at the Music Farm,” said Dew, a singer-songwriter who records under his own name. “It was a great time, a great business and we learned a lot about managing people and running a business,” he said. Dew and his partners sold the Music Farm in 2001. He briefly left Charleston for business school, and he got his real estate license in 2003. While selling commercial real estate, he and a friend bought a West Ashley bar and music venue in 2005, called Bait & Tackle. It closed in 2007 and Dew still owns the building, which is home to The Tin Roof. Dew made Keen Eye Marketing his full-time job about two years ago. “I’ve been having a lot of fun with it,” he said. “We enjoy what we do.” By David Slade

Using social media to sell a house

Home Owners Are Using Social Media to Sell Their Property in Abbotsford, Melbourne, Australia. Abbotsford, Australia, June 02, 2012 --(PR.com)-- Home owners Kevin Moloney and Janetta Stones have bucked traditional advertising trends with the sale of their luxury Melbourne home. As they prepare to move to rural Victoria, the couple decided to sell their Abbotsford home on the banks of the Yarra River but have employed a more contemporary approach to its marketing. “We’ve engaged an agent who suggested that we might consider marketing the property on facebook, Twitter and other forms of social media. Advertising in the major papers’ real estate section is very expensive and more people are turning to the internet when they’re searching for a home,” Moloney said from his beautiful terrace overlooking the river and Studley Park. Expert in social media marketing, Catherine Chenery from Gihon Media, was consulted and drew up an internet-based marketing plan for the sale of the house. Working with the vendor and agent, Chenery created a unique website www.yarrabankcourtabbotsford.com.au She also created a Twitter account, blog and facebook page and has linked all together employing clever search engine optimization techniques. “Within 24 hours we already had over 250 followers on twitter,” she said. Moloney tweets short reports from the home on a regular basis and lets his followers know all the best places around the inner suburbs. “Someone who isn’t all that familiar with the area wouldn’t know all its secrets. I’m happy to let them know. I’m a writer so I also write the blogs which go on the site,” he said. Real Estate agent Philip Middlemiss from Melbourne’s Stockdale and Lego office is delighted with the early results. “We’ve had a great response so far using the social media strategy and we’ve already had qualified inspections of the home by people from Kew and Hawthorn and even from a buyer in England. Providing potential buyers with all the information they need makes the task of selling a home more efficient and because this home is unique, we’re expecting a quick sale. That’s the world-wide power of the internet,” Middlemiss commented. For further enquiries go to: www.yarrabankcourtabbotsford.com.au

Are You Doing Everything You Can?

So you have your property on the market, it isn't selling and you feel powerless. The agent is assuring you he is doing everything he can to get the word out and he promised you he had lots of people on his list waiting for a property just like yours. Waiting to sell your home can put your life on hold and it can sometimes feel like a no mans land with the uncertainty you may suddenly get a call to say people are coming round to view it. So is there another way? There is a new movement on the internet at the moment that is giving homeowners some control again. It is giving their own home a voice using the wonderful medium of social media. This is a great idea and it's working! Homeowners are getting a frenzy of interest for their homes. They are getting people fighting with each other to get make an offer. In my opinion this is how homes should be sold. This is putting some warmth back into the process of buying and selling a home. I'm sure you have a Facebook account and a Twitter account. Let me suggest your home has as much to say about itself as you do about yourself. Give it a voice! Build a Facebook page for your home and begin to tweet about it. Make some videos and post them on You Tube. Start a blog for your house and write about what's going on in your home! Talk about life there, if you were going to buy it what would you like to know? There is no reason to doubt your estate agent cannot sell your home but if you feel you would like to contribute to something so important, you and your family are the perfect people to help sell it. It will also be a lot of fun... You can give the video camera to the kids for the day and ask them to show it all their best hiding places, what they love about the house and where they like to play the best. Why not go with them to the skate park and video them there with their friends? How about going into your local town or village and interviewing your favourite butcher or even your mechanic! Sound crazy? Well if they know you are moving they are going to want the business from the new owner of your house, aren't they? Moreover the potential new owner watching the video will be very grateful which will only increase the chances of them wanting your home. Your house is a living, breathing mixture of lots of different things. These are what a new owner wants to see, not just a picture in a window on a high street or a listing on Right Move. Go for it! Make a story for your home and spread the word on Facebook and Twitter. Each time you write a new post on the house blog or make a new video, tweet about it and post it on Facebook. You never know who knows someone that will be very interested to see the true life of your home and will be willing to pay well to have it. If you would like help selling your home please contact me, I would love to meet you. I have helped thousands of people all over the UK sell their properties without using an estate agent. You are not in breach of your contract if you find a buyer yourself. Speak to your agent if you are unsure. To your success :-)

Henderson home: Up for sale on Twitter and Facebook.

Selling a house usually means an ad in a estate agent’s window or a listing on a property website.
But one family has taken a more social media savvy approach to finding a buyer for their property.
Ed and Rose Henderson have turned to Twitter and Facebook to sell their four-bedroom detached house in Prestonpans. The property is going for £189,995 – a £10,000 reduction.
Mr Henderson, a 36-year-old web developer, is moving with his family to California in October and after a year of relying on estate agents, he decided to take a more proactive approach.
He blogged about the property, adopting a humorous first-person perspective from the house’s point of view. He posted the pitch on Facebook and Twitter – and whipped up a storm of interest on social media.
Mr Henderson told STV News: “I have no complaints with my estate agents but they can only do so much and about three weeks ago I decided to try something different. We’re moving to California in October so we’d like to have it sold before we go. Short of handing out leaflets on the street, there wasn’t much more I could do but then I thought: I have skills in social media, why don’t I write a blog about this?”
The “house’s blog”, posted on edhenderson.com, reads: ”I am sad, my family are moving away and while I would love to go with them, they can’t take me as its very far and I am too big to go on the plane. I am looking for a new family to live here with me and enjoy my quiet street, huge back garden, generous bedrooms and lots of storage space.
“What will it cost? The Hendersons would be looking for a very competitive price, £189,995, in return, I would love you as much as I love them. Plus Ed will leave a case of beer in the garden shed.
“I am a new build, in Prestonpans, East Lothian (very close to Port Seton & Cockenzie). I am only 5 years old and Ed, Rose, Jack, Toby & Noah (The Hendersons) are the only owners I have ever had, so everything is snagged and nicely setup for a brilliant new family to come and live here.”
Mr Henderson explained: “It’s ironic but I thought writing the blog from the house’s perspective sounded more human. It became fun to update it and add more jokes. I shared it on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn with everyone I could. I think it was liked and retweeted for two reasons: it’s a house for sale and that always gets people interested and because it was a novelty having the house talk for itself.”
So far, more than 3,000 people have viewed the blog post and Mr Henderson hopes it will help move the process along.
“We move to California in October. We hope this will help us sell the house but if not we’ll have to get ready to let it out,” he added.
Mr Henderson’s oldest son Jack is a social media star in his own right. The seven-year-old attracted acclaim with his website jackdrawsanything.com, where he displayed his drawings of everything from action heroes to footballers to raise money for the Sick Kids Hospital in Edinburgh, where his three-year-old brother Noah has received treatment for bronchitis.

By Stephen Daisley