As we stated in our blog article “3 Steps to Integrate Technology Into Your Traditional Real Estate Business”, research from Inman has found that traditional real estate brokers may be avoiding the use of technology that is beneficial to their business. They are doing this because they are struggling to find the value in using such technology, because traditionally, real estate has always been about a face to face connection.
 
Realtors are struggling to make that switch from phone calls and in person events, to texting and social media. The standard has been to use long term approaches and lead nurturing. What not every realtor may know is this is the basis of online marketing as well. Using the rules of attraction marketing, you can nurture your leads online just as well using the same principles, but just using new technological tools.
 
In addition to the slow adoption of online marketing tools, realtors face another issue: overhead costs. There are many realtors do not have big corporate firm budgets and are left holding the bag for their marketing budget.
 
This is where IMU comes in; In today’s article we will highlight 5 Real Estate Tools for the Modern Broker, that will not only not break the bank, but will help you get your business started on its journey to the 21st century:
 
1. Social Media Presence
 

 
The first and possibly most obviously step you should take when “going online” is to set up and optimize your social media profiles. The “big three” we recommend for real estate would be Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn . And, this may come as a surprise to most agents, but your social media profiles are part of your digital database. Learn how to communicate on social media. If used incorrectly, it can backfire on you.
 
Of course Facebook is the default social network for anyone in business. Why? EVERYONE is on Facebook, and with that fact, Facebook knows EVERYTHING about your potential clients, should you decide to invest in Facebook ads.
 
A close and quickly gaining second, is Instagram. At IMU, we are holding a FREE webinar to teach the exact Instagram for Real Estate Business techniques we’ve taught to operate a successful (and free) online marketing stream.
 
o How to cultivate audiences that are excited for your real estate services (using time tested methods)
o Advanced strategies for getting traffic. People who are looking to buy or sell NOW.
o How to promote your real estate business online without alienating friends.
o How to set up Instagram Business pages that can work for you.

2. Lead Capture Pages
 
When you take your real estate business online, after setting up and optimizing your social media profiles, the most important and next step you should take is to implement a way to gather leads. When someone visits your social media profile, they are capturing a glimpse of what you can offer.
 
Additionally, Facebook or Instagram is not your home on the internet. Facebook and Instagram own your content and it could go away at any time. You should always be working to take prospects OFF of social media to a quiet place where you can talk to them personally. Your marketing list. LeadPages helps agents capture their leads by using targeted landing pages, pop-ups, and an array of lead capturing tactics. In essence, brokers can build little websites that can promote individual listings within their own website domain. You can integrate LeadPages directly into your email marketing software (or corporate CRM link if you have one) that automates the whole process smoothly.
 
3. Email Marketing Software
 

 
As a broker, using an email marketing software, like AWeber, gives you a great way to connect with your clients. We like AWeber at IMU because they are easy to use, feature-rich (including tagging) for a relatively inexpensive price of just $19 a month for your first 500 subscribers. This product is easy to use and it makes sending emails to your list of clients a snap. You can create different templates to suit your email needs. Some ways you can use AWeber to connect with your clients are: event promotion (such as listings, local social events or group trainings), property information and monthly newsletters.
 
4. Email Organization and Collaboration
 

 
Many real estate agents work on a small team. To cut costs, you may be using Gmail as your email provider. (isn’t everyone??) In addition to that, they do not have the budget for a collaboration tool like Basecamp or Slack to manage tasks that need to be assigned and tracked. Enter Hiver; Hiver lets you share Gmail labels with other users to streamline collaboration. This solves the problem of where many emails contain tasks that need to be delegated, and inevitably get lost in the shuffle of your inbox. Using Hiver, the user can share emails with other people even if they weren’t an original recipient by adding a shared Gmail label to the email. Labels can be used to assign tasks, delegate emails and track their status. The best part? There is a free version, and if you need advanced features as your team grows, the paid plans range from an affordable $6-18 per user per month.
 
5. Video App or Software
 

 
Last, but definitely not least, every modern realtor should be using video in their marketing strategy. The quickest growing trend in real estate marketing is video. There are many new apps that you can download (for free) and instantly use them to market your real estate listings and news-worthy events. These new tools allow you to use unique filters, quick editing and many other features that make it easy to record production quality video.
 
The big players, which are also free to use, are of course Instagram and Facebook. Instagram added video to it’s function a few years ago and it is a very widely used feature on the social networking app today. Use Instagram’s video feature to highlight the main attributes of your listings and include them on your social media profile, but also your real estate website. Be unique in what you are sharing, instead of recording a dining room and explaining its specs, record the large picture window the dining room boasts and show off the intricate crown molding above the doorway. In our Instagram for Real Estate webinar, we highlight more of these tricks so be sure to sign up:
 

In addition to Instagram, you can apply these same ideas to Facebook Live. Share your listings this way on your personal profile and Business Page. When using your personal profile, however, be sure to understand that your friends and family may not be your targeted customer. Also, Business Pages can be promoted through Facebook ads.
Other video editing apps include, but are not limited to; Camera Plus, Magisto, and Spark Camera.
 
So how do you use technology in your real estate business? For the next 5 days (through 10/8/16) we are offering a world-class Instagram for Realtors Master Class Giveaway!
 
All you have to do is click the link, or share the link with any realtors you know, and on Saturday the 8th we are drawing 2 lucky winners for the absolutely free Instagram for Realtors Master Class. Giving you 4 full courses on how to optimize your Instagram accounts to laser target your ideal buyer / seller and just out perform your competition period!