Network Generation is the Next Lead Generation
Many real estate agents join Facebook and Twitter, and realize they have no idea how to build business with social media tools. The main challenge is the fact that their "physical" network, the people they meet and associate it with in daily life, aren't on the social media yet.
It's not the Realtor's duty to get their friends on the social networks, just explaining how to login to a new Facebook account takes too much time. We think "Network Generation" - getting a Realtor's immediate sphere of influence up on social networks - is essential to building a massive communal referral system.
So there's five components to Network Generation to make your social media strategy successful:
It's not the Realtor's duty to get their friends on the social networks, just explaining how to login to a new Facebook account takes too much time. We think "Network Generation" - getting a Realtor's immediate sphere of influence up on social networks - is essential to building a massive communal referral system.
So there's five components to Network Generation to make your social media strategy successful:
- Get all your friends, past clients, affiliates (title, appraisers, etc.) and hubs of your community (councilpeople, businesses, organizations you belong to) up and running on social media
- Make sure they know what they're doing, or their networking will be dormant (you know that happens when you can't figure out how to use a social media application like Twitter)
- Help your contacts to grow their own networks, because when they grow their networks, they will feed VIRALLY and MULTIPLY into your network (it's mathematics).
- Form systems of referrals across your network, you're not limited to one business networking group meeting weekly in a coffee shop any more.
- Make sure you and your contacts understand how to use applications like Facebook, Linkedin and Twitter to best effect.
Hi Pat,
Cory and I were listening this morning..this is awesome..we are trying to find time to do our real estate because social media keeps us really excited!
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Thanks Kathleen! We certainly don't want to distract Realtors from their business... we've realized one of the missions of our company is to take as much of the technical and social media marketing sideshow off the plate of the Realtor so they can focus on the work of real estate. We really like the idea of teaching your immediate network how to Facebook so you and Cory can focus on the social side of developing your business.
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This is excellent Pat - concise, easy to understand, and convincing. I plan to share with some folks who I know will be interested.
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Great work Pat!
You referenced some training on teaching your immediate network. Where is that available?
Thanks
Rajeev
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Thank you Rajeev... our network coaching program is written up on Active Rain http://activerain.com/blogsview/929620/How-to-Make-Twitter-and-Facebook-Relevant-to-your-Business
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Pat: I give you enormous credit for pulling me into the the social networking arena. For so long, I swore I didn't have the time, didn't see the relevance, didn't have the connections to have something like Twitter or Facebook work for me.
These days, I encourage clients and contacts to go to Twitter (huh?) and Facebook and sign up. The fun we are having is more than worth the urging and convincing it took to get them onboard!
Thanks Pat!
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Hey Pat,
Great article! Truth be told, I am just getting the hang Social Networking myself. As a Realtor, I feel I am really late to enter the scene. I can see that it is going to be hard getting everyone up to speed. I am now heavily investing my time into twitter because I feel that is going to be the next big social networking system.
-David Tapper
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Hi Pat,
I have been using Twitter and Facebook as a means to drive traffic to my blog and traffic numbers are quite low.
What are your thoughts on using email blasts to drive traffic to new blog posts.
I was doing email blasts for new listings and I got a few irate emails.
I am thinking of following your example and do an email blast whenever I post a new blog post, but am concerned about annoying people.
What are your thoughts?
Thanks!
Mike
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Hi Mike,
I'm on record for being against email marketing and blasting as intrusive and annoying. Some of your clients will want to get new listings info so let them opt in. It's much better to make your new listings a component of a synergetic social media strategy. If a potential client is interested in what you have to say on Twitter, Facebook, your blog or other social media sources, they will naturally gravitate to your listings data.
Check out our new free webinar series on our new Social Network Referral System that will help you build a massive referral base. I haven't publicized it yet but you can see it at http://www.slideshare.net/pkitano/the-social-network-referral-system. We'll teach you how to use the social media to accomplish your goals of getting your clients interested in what you do without your pushing on them.
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Oops!
Forgot to subscribe!
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