Scott Stratten
By Toby Welch
Rob McKichan, a broker and senior agent with Royal LePage Real Estate Services in Oakville, Ont., has been on Twitter for so many years that he can’t remember when he first joined.
“I was invited in real life to a Tweet-up at the coffee shop near my office and I met some great people I still network with today,” says McKichan. “I tweet when I have something to say. I re-tweet when I have a few seconds of ‘gap time’ throughout my day. It’s fun to tweet during shared events like the Olympics. It is also the best and fastest source for instant news during a tragedy like Boston’s marathon. I tweet information I hope people will find valuable, interesting or funny; mortgage rate updates, breaking news, insights and occasionally a hot new listing.”
Marketing yourself on Twitter has numerous advantages:
* The price is right – free!
* It helps you stay in touch with past clients.
* It establishes authority in your area.
* It’s a handy way to get your name known.
* It’s a valuable networking tool.
* It increases your referral network.
* With the 140-character limit, you can do it in time snippets. A Twitter app on your cell phone makes tweeting even handier.
* It can be a powerful promotional tool.
* Many sales reps aren’t on Twitter yet, making it less competitive than other real estate marketing avenues.
Almost a billion people are on Twitter. Of those, 250 million are active tweeters that send over 500 million tweets a day. Most use the website as a communication tool and as a source for news and information.
Many sales reps and brokers avoid Twitter because they don’t know what to tweet in the 140-character space. McKichan nailed a pet peeve of many people who follow real estate professionals on Twitter: “Don’t just tweet listings or open houses.” It’s a safe bet that the people that follow you don’t want to see posts about every new house that hits the market. Carefully consider who your followers are and tweet and re-tweet information that offers value to them.
Rob McKichan
Asked what advice McKichan (@RobMcKichanRLP) offers people considering joining Twitter, he suggested they “just do it. Think of Twitter as a physical location. Think of Facebook as a family reunion or your local pub and LinkedIn as a trade show. Then think of Twitter as an awards gala. You should go, but you can’t spend all day there. You want to build your brand; not just tell everyone about your upcoming open house. You wouldn’t be successful as a person at the pub pushing business cards at people, so don’t do it on Twitter. Follow people you know – other agents, local influencers. Follow people you like.
“I have had real-time conversations with celebrities and my favourite speakers. I went to a book signing and the author smiled saying, ‘I know you,’ and gave me a heartfelt handshake. Local mayors and politicians follow me and re-tweet what I have to say.
“When I attend sales conferences, agents from across the country already know who I am and come and introduce themselves. This can only happen on Twitter! It is a fun way to prepare the stage for when you meet people. Just remember; we are in a contact sport and nothing happens until we get out there and actually talk to people face to face.”
Kashlee Parmiter, a Regina-based agent, has perfected the art of tweeting. @KashleeDoll downplays her real estate world in favour of demonstrating her personality. Coming off as a person and not a real estate robot is vital on Twitter.
Once you’ve made the leap on to Twitter, promote your account. Add your @____ username to your correspondence, emails and website. Add your handle to your business cards. Add Twitter links to your website and blog.
Ryan Topley
Ryan Topley, broker/owner of Creative Realty in Lloydminster, Alta., says he joined Twitter in 2010. “While many platforms are available for us to get our message out, Twitter seemed the best fit. The best thing about Twitter is the ability to show your personality. Clients and potential clients get to see a side of us that we sometimes forget to show – our ‘real’ side. Consumers want someone who’s not fake or putting on a front for the public and has an opinion and a personality. Twitter can accommodate this.”
Topley at @creative_realty continues, “I have had several situations where clients or sales reps have told me they saw me on Twitter. I try to re-tweet good articles or advice I think adds value to people’s lives. That’s a key – sales reps need to realize no one cares that you won another trophy or were in the top x percentile for your office / brokerage. The best advice I ever heard about Twitter is it should be a conversation, not a dictation. Post and re-tweet information of value and you will increase followers, and business.”
Ranked one of the top influencers in the world on Twitter, Scott Stratten is an expert in social media and marketing. Forbes.com named Stratten one of the top five social media influencers in the world and over 165,000 people follow his daily rantings on Twitter. He shared his thoughts on when to get off Twitter: “If you don’t monitor your page regularly, delete it. If you are only able to monitor your pages monthly or even weekly, that is simply not enough. If an account has been created and you don’t use it, that is worse than not having one at all. Social media is very much about connecting and engaging with people. If you don’t like to interact and are not a people person, social media is not for you.”
While Twitter certainly isn’t for everyone, users who embrace the website’s full potential tweet that it is a boon to their real estate business.
