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If you’re a real estate agent, you’ve probably heard before: “A social media presence is critical to success in today’s real estate industry.”
This was echoed by speakers at a panel called “Social Media 2025: New Rules of Engagement” held at Inman Connect New York on Wednesday. But these social media-savvy agents also shared best practices and how to get started for those who haven’t yet used social in their business.
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About authenticity
Andrew Jevin of Compass in Los Angeles told panel moderator Holly Mayer Lucas, also of Compass, that agents should focus on their personal and professional pages rather than trying to juggle their personal and professional pages at the same time. He said he believes there should be only one focused social media page.
andrew jevin
“I could never get a friend to follow my real estate page,” Jevin said of the days when he tried to have two separate accounts.
“I think people care about us as individuals and what we’re interested in,” he added.
Since social media is often a more casual space in nature, Mayer Lucas also noted that panelist Courtney Pulitzer of Sotheby’s International Realty in Palm Beach I wondered how he balances this with his own content on social media.
Pulitzer said that once he decided to do social media, he was determined to go all in. But her personality is a little more sophisticated in nature, which fits perfectly with the Sotheby’s International Realty brand and is reflected in her social media content.
“So I’m going to be honest. That’s who I am,” Pulitzer said. “That’s my encouragement: to be yourself.”
“Our clients hire us to promote their properties, and in today’s day and age, I don’t think they can ignore social media,” she added. “No step can be skipped. This is a very important step in today’s market.”
Compass Jupiter Group panelist Lindsey Tronolone recently started a team and is using social media to let the community know about it.
“My biggest advice is to keep it simple,” Tronolon said. “I want to focus on who you are, where you are, and the value you provide.”
Tronolon lives and works in Jupiter, Florida, and is married to a yacht captain, so she said her content tends to focus on what life is like in water-centered communities. .
“Don’t overthink it,” Tronolon says. “If you have the urge to grow on social media, go out and document it.”
Focused branding
Lindsey Tronolon
Tronolone also leverages partnerships with local businesses in Jupiter to collaborate on social media.
“For me, it’s about tapping into local markets that I might not have had access to,” she said.
Tronoron offered to join the business and collaborate by filming content together on site and posting it on social media. This ultimately helped us grow our local following.
Over the last year, Jevin has pivoted his personal branding to social media. When he first started his social media accounts, he used the handle “The Snapping Realtor” regarding his use of Snapchat. But after a while, he got tired of people misinterpreting the name.
“It started because when I saw people at events, people would come up to me and start biting at me,” Jevin said.
“We’ve come a very long way in terms of embracing social media,” he added. “But I got tired of people not knowing my name and just knowing me as a nosy real estate agent.”
Jevin also coaches agents and said one of his tips when asked about social media handles is to include your name in the handle rather than something generic about “home.”
“I think my name best fits my business,” he said. “Think about what you’re going to do with the handle.”
tell your story
Courtney Pulitzer
In keeping with his “button-up” brand, Pulitzer has a videographer come to his home once a month for an hour or two to pre-curate and curate content he thinks will add value to his customers and business. I am having the photo taken. From those long filming sessions, she creates short videos that she then publishes on social media for a month or so.
Pulitzer said that despite his efforts to produce more sophisticated content, he quickly realized that the content that garnered the most attention was the “behind the scenes” clips he produced.
“I realized that the behind-the-scenes videos were really driving the whole page,” she said. So now she’s using these clips to show people who she is and what her days are like.
Tronolon added that featuring such off-the-cuff content, rather than just focusing on strict real estate topics, is one way to build trust with consumers.
One of the mottos she shared with her audience was “The facts speak, the facts speak.” Stories sell. ”
“I can keep talking about the facts of my property,” Tronolon said. “But the story section, about me and real estate, that’s what people want to know. That’s why we love reality TV because we want to know what’s going on behind the scenes.”
Meyer Lucas said anyone looking to boost their social media accounts by attending Inman Connect New York should film some content during the event and share with their followers that they are investing in their careers. He recommended that it should be shown.
don’t be afraid
Holly Meyer Lucas
And even though many people feel like they have to do something new or innovative to stand out on social media, Jevin says there’s no shame in following trends.
“We all copy things on social media, so it’s okay to copy,” he said. “Set a trend. If you see a bunch of agents doing it, do your own version.”
Although social media has helped Jevin get noticed professionally, he no longer really does it for the metrics, but because he can influence others. He says he is doing it.
“I know I’m doing well when I go out to dinner with friends and they start talking about my content,” he says, adding that Jevin has been openly gay on social media. She also talked about a time when a friend told her that she had helped her son. His own coming out journey.
Stories like that helped Jevin understand that “I can change the world by being me.”
Pulitzer also touched on the controversial subject of buying followers on social media, saying people shouldn’t be ashamed to take this step (like she did) if it helps them build a business. said.
“The problem is, none of us are writing the rules for social media. None of us are. They’re being written as we go along,” Pulitzer said. Ultimately, she said, buying followers hurt her engagement on her page, so once she realized that, she decided to delete those followers.
“That’s a big part of the problem: People are afraid to start. They’re afraid to break the rules,” Pulitzer said. “There’s so much fear. Just do it.”
Tronolon said agents who are just getting serious about social should not even look at metrics and should focus on building any kind of following as long as they’re engaged.
“Having 200 followers who are very invested in your business is much better than 2,000 followers,” she said.
Pulitzer said agents who feel social media isn’t right for their business should think again and give it a try.
“Some people say, ‘That’s great for your business, but it won’t work for my business,’ and I feel like we’re in the same business,” Pulitzer said with a laugh. “We’re in the same office.”
Email Lillian Dickerson
