As real estate agents, we don’t want to lose a lead to another real estate agent who eventually sells them a house.  When using real estate leads to grow your business, you take on the responsibility of nurturing, educating, and engaging them. But what if the information you send isn't engaging your leads, or they don’t respond after you reach out? 

"I called the lead, left a voicemail, introduced myself in an email, and never heard back from them. I put the lead in an email campaign to receive the latest home market information."  Is this enough?

No more lead-nurturing excuses! You can do better. Your leads deserve better. Set aside your Wordle puzzle because I'm going to give you the lowdown on how to connect with more of your real estate leads using social media.

Let's start by looking at Jessica, a lead who was tired of looking for a house to buy and felt neglected by a local real estate agent.

Jessica visited a local real estate agent's website in the early stages of house hunting and signed up to receive home-buying information. The initial email included a thank you, the agent's qualifications, and a link to a list of houses for sale in her area. Unfortunately, that was all she would ever receive, two emails a week about new listings. The relationship felt impersonal, and Jessica decided to do her own home-buying research while missing out on houses that other people were buying.

Jessica figured she might have to sign another 1-year lease agreement for the apartment she desperately wanted to leave behind. Then, one day everything changed. Jessica commented on an agent's Facebook post about choosing paint colors, and the agent personally reached out to share an ebook, "What to Expect When Buying a House". Suddenly she felt like she had a connection with a real estate professional who was sincerely interested in helping her find a home to buy.

Jessica and the agent started texting and eventually sat down to create a home-buying plan. She recently got qualified for a mortgage and made an offer on a house!

Your leads need you to be there for them through their home buying or selling journey. Social media is a great way to provide leads with engaging information and visuals that will help them make an informed decision about buying or selling a house.  

Invitations

Start inviting your real estate leads to follow you on social media. You can share links to your social media sites or personally send an invitation to follow you. On LinkedIn, for example, you can invite a lead to follow you by finding the lead's profile, clicking the "connect" button, "add a note," and including a personalized message. Social media sites provide great opportunities to engage with real estate leads, especially when you reach out to them first.

Invite your real estate leads to follow you on social media to boost engagement and lead conversions.

Mirror Lead Habits

Next, mirror the habits of home buyers who are searching national-home-listing websites. On social media, share striking photos of home listings and ask questions to get engagement from your leads. Don't forget to tag any lead you think would be interested in buying the home. If a lead comments and isn't pre-qualified for a mortgage, use it as an opportunity to DM them and start a discussion about connecting with a local lender. Engage leads by using home photos on social media to encourage engagement.

Compliment what leads are already doing, searching for a home to buy on national-home-listing websites, by sharing striking photos of listings on social media. Then, ask questions to get more engagement.

Example Facebook post:

Look at this beautiful home for sale in southern Florida! Did you know this home will require a mortgage that will cost you approximately $2,400/month, depending on the size of your down payment? Property taxes will cost you nearly $8,000/year. Let's find a house that matches your budget. Share a link to a listing you're interested in, and I'll break down what you'll be paying to buy the house of your dreams.

Social media posts with links to homes for sale serve many purposes:

• Initiate mortgage lender meeting
• Prompt leads to share links to favorite homes for sale
• Fun and reward way to interact with leads and followers

Follow Your Leads on Social Media

Find your real estate leads on social media and follow them.  Like and comment on their posts and act like a friend, not a salesperson.  For example, when they post a funny video of their dog, make a connection with your comment.  "That's hilarious!  I had a corgi that used to do something similar.  Wish I had captured it on video.  Does your dog XYZ?" You can take it a step further with future posts by sharing dog-friendly homes and tagging the lead.

TIP:  When you open Facebook, click on the Messenger icon, look for any active leads (green dot), and send them a message.  A great way to interact in real-time.

If you want more information about nurturing your real estate leads, our newest ebook and blog articles will help you convert more leads into clients.

Conclusion

Unlock conversations and connect with more real estate leads by posting engaging content on social media.  Ask questions in your posts, tag your leads when relevant, invite them to follow you, and follow them on social media.  As you create more value for your leads, you will improve the leads' interest in your real estate services and promote long-term success.