How Are You Using Facebook Pages As Part of Your Real Estate Business?

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1. Justin Britt on March 22, 2010 3:06 pm

   It's not working for me. I'm not saying that it won't work…so please, somebody share your success story!

2. matthewswanson on March 23, 2010 8:30 am

   Drew, excellent question for the industry. I'm really curious to see what folks are experiencing as well. My gut tells me that most folks are in Justin's boat, but I might be completely wrong… anyone else having success?

3. heatherelias on March 23, 2010 11:25 am

   It works wonderfully for me. I have it set up for me as an individual business owner, but the content I share is about my local area (much like my blog). My “fans” (I hate that word) know they will get links to local area news and events as well as links to real estate content I (or other industry folks) have written. My facebook page drives a ton of traffic to my page, and I have grown my follower base over the course of the last 9 months to a year.

   As with anything, the key is to providing relevant, timely content to your audience, and being consistent.

   Cheers,
   Heather
   (my facebook page, if you are interested, is at http://www.facebook.com/LoCoMusings )

4. DaleChumbley on March 23, 2010 11:43 am

   Drew, that is a lot of questions and I'll attack it a little here in the comments and also link to Mike Mueller's “the M files” that gives a 30 minute interview about “365 Things To Do In Vancouver, WA”.

   The thing I have been most impressed with and happy about has been the amount of engagement and conversation happening on “365 Things” by my local community. Every single post and photo I add is getting a ton of interaction. The community is really rallying around this page since it is for them. The content of the page is simply this… One new thing to do each day. These are things I do as I journey around Vancouver, WA in my day to day business. They are the things I take my kids to do. They are the new places I explore and discover. They are the events I go to, the things I enjoy. I figure if I enjoy it and can share a little about why I enjoy it, others might also enjoy it. I really want to get the people who live in (and are coming to) Vancouver, WA to get out, explore and enjoy our community. Support local businesses. Support local theater groups. Enjoy our beautiful parks and trails.

   Any audience here would have been wonderful. Remember that. Anyone who joins is someone who matters. Don't get hung up on the numbers. Don't think something is not successful if it doesn't grow through the roof. Be consistent. Be caring. Be interactive. Provide regular, clear content. Engage. Engage. Engage. If people say something on your Facebook page, REPLY! Create conversation. Be creative. Be yourself! What I'm doing is me and is working for me. Everyone isn't me. It doesn't have to be “365…” It could be anything. Search yourself. Do what makes sense for you. Have fun! If you can't have fun, don't do it. Life's too short to do things just for the sake of doing things.

   Sorry for rambling. I hope some of this makes sense. Give the interview a listen.

   For my episode of the M files: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/jckc/2010/03/15/th...

5. mikemueller on March 23, 2010 12:12 pm

   I'll toss in a few more pages with results…
   Sandra at http://www.facebook.com/FernleyNevada
   Nick at http://www.facebook.com/RailLife
   Linda at http://www.facebook.com/LedyardCT
   Greg at http://www.facebook.com/GregFlyRealty
   all of which have had success with their FB Page.

   I was going to point out Heather's – but she beat me to it.
   The common factor? It's not the applications, the cool tools, or even the custom tabs (if they have). It's that they've managed to engage others in meaningful ways.

6. drewmeyers on March 23, 2010 1:20 pm

   Awesome thoughts Dale – I'm really impressed with what you've done. We spoke a few weeks ago and it looks like you've gained about 6000 fans since then. Well done.

7. Mike Price on March 23, 2010 10:40 pm

   Sounds like a great platform for one your first posts Mike I would love to hear more detail of what the successes entailed from your links

8. Brad Coy on March 23, 2010 11:03 pm

   It's a great place for me to use in tandem with my profile. I'm not one to talk shop with other RE pros in front of my friends and family.

   That was the aim from the get go. I created a logo with a link just below my friends list on my profile and asked people to visit me their to talk about Real Estate. From their I've just been trying to add content in different ways – short videos are easy and fun.

   About a year ago my wife started referring to her MacBook as a Facebook machine. I knew from then on things were changing for this platform. She's right in my target demo for homebuyers in the city. The numbers are off the charts for traffic, right? So I think a good question would be is why not have a presence there?

   With all that said, I find the utility to be a bit aggravating to work with and their constant privacy and UI changes worrisome. We should all be very mindful when building on top of something that belongs to a third party such as Facebook.

9. kalindholm on March 24, 2010 9:48 am

   Works for me! Have met great customers & cohorts. a lot of Beach Property lovers, too. Yay!

10. Mark Menconi Jr. on March 25, 2010 8:41 am

    How much time would you allocate to Facebook, if you're wanting to make it worth while?

11. Cris on March 29, 2010 12:00 pm

    Facebook is a really big deal. So is twitter! I have made some invaluable connections over Twitter.

12. kmbrewer2 on March 29, 2010 6:28 pm

    While I do have a Facebook Business page, the real engine there has been the ads Ive been running.Not cheap but Facebook has become the #2 source of traffic to my blog.

13. kmbrewer2 on March 29, 2010 6:29 pm

    I have successfully been running ads on Facebook.It has become the #2 source of traffic to my blog,www.thegoldcoaststandard.com.The business page has been a woeful attempt with just a few followers.

14. kmbrewer2 on March 29, 2010 6:31 pm

    I neglected to say that I have reconnected with people with whom I worked over 15 years ago and they should generate over $2million in listings. This just from reconnecting with them and enagaging in conversation…really!

15. Randy Vanderpool on March 31, 2010 7:48 am

    Facebook has been good for me. I have found many followers, but that has not necessarily amounted to a ton more clients. I have picked up a few via Facebook, but I hope to improve those numbers. Reading posts on how to utilize Facebook better, is eye opening and beneficial.

16. Patricia on April 1, 2010 11:29 am

    I think this is an excellent way to generate leads and connect with customers, all while promoting properties to your targeted audience.

17. Rob Dalton on April 2, 2010 10:11 am

    I have heard of a few people that have had some success with this. They say the success comes in most the fact that they interact with their existing clientele more and they feel that ads value. I have not really talked to anyone that has had much luck building new clientele from their facebook page.

    I would like to see a poll to see who sets up their business as an individual or as a page and which seems to be working better.
    Facebook seems to make it apparent that they want it set up as a business page, but then your information goes to your fans newsfeed rather than their wall and some of your fans may not even check their newsfeed.

18. Rick Loveall on April 6, 2010 10:19 am

    its fantastic !

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21. Julie on May 10, 2010 5:02 pm

    I wonder how the new Like buttons will change how people do things on the Internet in the long run. For instance, will they challenge Google's prominence in the area of general interest or will they simply be another Facebook feature?

22. Jill Abercrombie on May 18, 2010 6:54 pm

    I just learned that Roost invested a serious amount of money in a facebook real estate app. I thought nobody would spend even 5 minutes a day fertilising crops, plating virtual olive trees or running any multi player java based game. Turned out I was wrong, and facebook games are very popular today. I think Roost placed a clever bet on their sell house quick facebook application. They'll get their money's worth in advertising and retail value.

23. Jill Abercrombie on May 19, 2010 1:54 am

    I just learned that Roost invested a serious amount of money in a facebook real estate app. I thought nobody would spend even 5 minutes a day fertilising crops, plating virtual olive trees or running any multi player java based game. Turned out I was wrong, and facebook games are very popular today. I think Roost placed a clever bet on their sell house quick facebook application. They'll get their money's worth in advertising and retail value.