Only 4% of estate agents are not on any social media, this means your competition are likely already moving their marketing efforts digital. But with so much content vying for your audience's attention, how can you ensure that your posts stand out?
We’ll take a detailed deep dive into the best practices and strategies for creating powerful social media content that resonates with your audience, drives engagement, and supports your agency’s goals.
Crafting a content strategy
A well-structured content strategy is essential for consistently delivering high-quality, engaging posts that align with your brand and agency objectives.
- Set clear goals: Define what you want to achieve with your social media content. Whether it’s increasing brand awareness, driving traffic to your website, generating leads, or building community engagement, having clear goals will guide your content creation process.
- Content pillars: Establish content pillars that align with your brand’s mission and audience’s interests. These pillars act as themes that organise your content, ensuring a balanced and consistent mix. Common content pillars for estate agents might include:some text
- Property listings: Highlight new, featured, or recently price changed properties.
- Market insights: Share updates on market trends, opportunities and pricing changes.
- Community content: Feature local events, businesses, and neighbourhood spotlights.
- Vendor testimonials: Showcase satisfied vendors and success stories.
- Educational content: Offer tips for buying, selling, or renting properties.
- Content calendar: Develop a content calendar that outlines what you’ll post and when. Planning your content in advance helps ensure consistency, avoids last-minute scrambles, and allows you to tie content to important dates, events, or market trends.
Best practices for visual content
Visual content is the cornerstone of effective social media posts. High-quality images and videos not only capture attention but also convey your message more effectively than text alone.
- High-quality photography: 33% of vendors prefer images as the most effective content format. Consider professional photography to ensure your property images are sharp, well-lit, and visually appealing or use an AI tool to enhance them.
- Video content: Videos are among the most engaging types of content on social media, with 25% of vendors drawn to short-form videos.
Create virtual property tours, behind-the-scenes footage, or vendor testimonials to draw viewers in. Keep videos short and engaging—ideally under 60 seconds for Instagram and Facebook, and 15-30 seconds for Reels or Stories. Video also helps to reach a wider audience than just your followers, with Brightcove finding that social videos are shared 1200% more than text and images combined. - Infographics: Infographics are a powerful way to present complex information in a visually appealing and easily digestible format. HubSpot found “Infographics are liked and shared on social media 3x more than any other type of content.”
Agents can use them to share market statistics, step-by-step buying guides, or comparison charts. Ensure your infographics are branded with your agency’s colours and logo for consistency. - Consistency in branding: Maintain brand consistency across all visual content. This includes using the same colour palette, fonts, and style in your images, videos, and graphics. Consistent branding reinforces your identity and makes your content instantly recognisable.
Writing engaging captions
While visuals grab attention, captions are crucial for conveying your message, adding context, and encouraging interaction.
- Craft compelling hooks: Start your caption with a hook that grabs attention. This draws the reader in and encourages them to read the rest of your post. Consider switching up your ordering or starting with headlines about the property that will best grab vendor attention.
- Tell a story: Use storytelling to make your captions more engaging. Whether you’re sharing the journey of a property from listing to sale, a vendor’s experience, or your own professional insights, storytelling adds depth and relatability to your posts.
- Include a Call to Action (CTA): Always include a CTA to prompt your audience to take the next step. Whether it’s “Learn more by visiting our website,” “Comment below your thoughts,” or “Schedule a viewing,” a CTA drives engagement and guides your audience’s actions.
- Use emojis and hashtags: Although not for everyone and should be used in line with your brand, emojis add personality and break up text, making captions more visually appealing. Hashtags also increase the discoverability of your posts. Use a mix of branded, trending, and niche hashtags to reach a broader audience.
Leveraging interactive content
Interactive content encourages active participation from your audience, making your posts more engaging and memorable.
- Polls and quizzes: Use polls and quizzes in your Instagram Stories or Facebook posts to engage your audience. 79% of marketers say that combining interactive content with other content types improves message retention, helping you stay top of mind for vendors against your competitors.
Ask questions about their preferences, test their knowledge of the property market, or get their opinions on house features or even local amenities. - User-Generated Content (UGC): Social media campaigns with UGC perform 25% better. Encourage your audience to share their own content related to your brand, such as photos of their new homes or experiences working with your agency. Repost UGC on your profile to build community and show appreciation for your vendors.
- Live video: Live video allows for real-time interaction with your audience. An estimated 25% of total traffic is expected to be from live videos by 2025.
Host live virtual tours, Q&A sessions, or market updates to engage viewers directly. Promote your live sessions in advance to build anticipation and maximise participation.
Analysing and optimising your content
Regular analysis of your content performance is essential for understanding what works and what doesn’t. Use this data to continually refine your strategy and improve your results.
- Track key metrics: Focus on metrics that align with your goals, such as engagement rate, reach, follower growth, website clicks, and lead generation. Use platform-specific analytics tools like Instagram Insights and Facebook Analytics to track performance.
- A/B testing: Experiment with different types of content, posting times, captions, and CTAs to see what drives the most engagement. A/B testing helps you identify the most effective strategies for your audience.
- Gather feedback: Don’t hesitate to ask your audience for feedback. Use polls, surveys, or direct messages to gather insights on what they like, what they’d like to see more of, and how you can improve.
- Adapt and evolve: Social media trends and algorithms are constantly changing. Stay up-to-date with the latest developments and be ready to adapt your strategy to maintain relevance and engagement.
The power of compelling content
By understanding your audience, crafting a strategic content plan, and leveraging tools like Auto.Social, you can produce engaging, high-quality posts that build your brand, attract new vendors, and drive business growth.
Ready to take your content creation to the next level? Download our comprehensive guide, The Ultimate Estate Agent Social Media Handbook, for more in-depth strategies and practical tips on mastering social media content.
