12 Common Instagram Mistakes Real Estate Agents Make
Avoid these 12 mistakes on Instagram to increase your reach and generate leads
Instagram offers great business potential for real estate agents. Younger generations love social media and top real estate agents use Instagram to reach younger prospects. However, using social media platforms like Instagram does not guarantee success for realtors. In fact, there are many naïve Instagram mistakes real estate agents make every day that negate the benefits of the platform. Therefore, in this article, we are going to have a brief review of the common Instagram mistakes realtors make and are not aware of them.
Common Instagram Mistakes Realtors Make
Here are some of the mistakes real estate agents make on Instagram. Avoiding such mistakes can have a great impact on how your efforts to help your business grow.
1. Posting Irregularly
One of the Instagram mistakes realtors make is not posting consistently. When you use Instagram to relax and unwind after a long day’s work, to connect to friends and family and see what they are up to, your connections on Instagram wont mind if you go silent for a while. They will realize you have been busy and have not been able to post. Your followers on your business account are not that patient. Consistency is a must on all social media and Instagram is no exception. If you post irregularly, go silent for a while, or post a lot during a short period of time, your followers will find your account either annoying or useless. Plus your chances of reaching your audience decrease. It is likely you will lose followers.
We know agents are too busy with their already hectic business life and find it hard to set aside time for social media. Do not worry we have your back. There are social media automation services that take care of things for you. Everything from content creation to regular posting across different social media can be done pretty easily.
2. Using Too Many Hashtags
Instagram allows users to use up to 30 hashtags per post. This sounds great as you can cover more keywords and get more exposure. Right? Wrong. Although you have the option to use all those 30 hashtags, we highly recommend that you do not do so. Using too many hashtags is another Instagram mistake realtors make that risks using irrelevant or recurring hashtags which will get your post flagged as spam. Once that happens, your post visibility will decrease dramatically. At least for a while.
The number of hashtags you can use is not set in stone. Just remember that your hashtags should label the post properly. If a hashtag is not related to your post do not use it just because it is a trending one. Additionally, avoid using the same hashtags for all of your posts. Learn how to use hashtags properly and increase exposure to your content.
3. Buying Followers
In the beginning, your friends and family will be your only followers and that might be disappointing. As you continue to post, you might realize that getting new followers is quite challenging and might resort to desperate measures like buying followers. This will not only help your business but also will harm your reputation, because:
- Fake followers are detected by Instagram and are removed every once in a while
- Fake followers will be easily discoverable since they do not like or comment. If you have 200K followers but your posts get 50 likes and 5 comments, something is wrong with your followers.
4. Not Using Instagram Stories
Not using stories, is a huge Instagram mistake for real estate agents to make. Instagram stories are important for many reasons:
- They can be categorized into different groups. You can organize your content so that it is easier for your followers to find what they are looking for.
- Instagram stories disappear after 24 hours so you can use them to post less formal content.
- Instagram stories stay on top of your followers’ feed and are easier to be seen. They are also played automatically one after another.
- Stories encourage audience engagement since Instagram has made it easier to reply and react to stories
- They support hashtags and your stories can be found by other users looking for a certain keyword.
Learn how to use Instagram stories and increase your chances of getting audience engagement.
5. Using Personal Instagram Account For Business
This is a grave mistake. Apart from the fact that your friends and family will not appreciate you posting business content on your personal account, your personal account lacks the business features available on business accounts. You will not have access to the insights on your posts’ performance and will not be able to promote your posts.
6. Posting Too Much Personal Content on Instagram Business Account
2020 is the year of engaging with your audience. You should try to establish a more personal connection to those you reach and create trust. Top agents know the value behind such concepts and post their personal daily life routines on their social media account. But you can go too far and post too much personal content. Your followers on your business account won’t mind getting to know you a little bit more personally, but they are there to see some content related to business.
7. Not Replying To Comments
One way social media is used in business is to connect with your audience. This is where your customers and clients can directly get in touch with you. Do not deprive your audience of such connection. Ignoring user comments sends the message that you do not care. Real estate is all about caring for your audience and clients. Your followers will leave comments, ask questions, send you direct messages, etc. they are all signs that they can be your next client. Additionally, your existing clients might engage with your content. Do not disappoint them by not replying. Invest in a couple of minutes every day to handle comments and direct messages.
8. Not Using Geo-tagging
Real estate is all about location. Some agents forget about such important facts and ignore geotags. Geotags are labels you use for your posts. When you are posting on Instagram and promote your services, make sure you use Instagram geotags to show your audience where you are and where you offer your services. After all, not everybody who sees your posts on the Explore section of the platform knows you. If you are promoting listings geotags become even more important.
9. Trying Too Hard To Sell
You can use Instagram to promote your listings and services once in a while. Some agents go overboard and fill their profiles with content that only tries to sell. People hate being sold to and hate it even more when that is the only thing they see. As a general rule of thumb do not exceed 20% of direct promotions when posting. Leave the other 80% to create value.
10. Not Sharing Valuable Content
Instagram can be used to share different types of content. However, some agents forget about posting valuable content. Why should your followers keep following you? Not everyone needs your services now. Sharing useless content is a big Instagram mistake realtors make. To keep your audience on your page and nurture them for the time they happen to need your services, you need to share valuable Instagram posts. The answers to their questions, to what they are searching for on the internet. Tips and tricks, how-tos, market updates, etc. are a few examples.
11. Posting Poor Videos And Photos
Instagram is a visual platform and people are looking for quality photos. Since you might be posting photos and videos of listings or even educational and informational photos and videos, remember that in order to look professional, avoid posting poor quality, shaky, blurry photos, and videos. For your professional real estate videos and photos, you can ask for professional real estate photography. If you do not want to spend money, make sure you learn how to take decent photos and videos. At the end of the day posting poor photos and videos is a grave Instagram mistake real estate agents make.
12. Not Using Instagram Live
Not using Instagram Live is another Instagram mistake real estate agents make. Instagram Live is a great way to directly engage with your audience. it allows you to broadcast live videos on Instagram about different real estate topics. You can host open houses, run QA sessions, provide tips and tricks, etc. All these can be done through IGTV as well but Instagram live is especially important as it allows your audience to engage with you in the moment and create a more solid relationship. The perfect time to build trust. Unfortunately, many agents do not feel confident enough to use Instagram Live. They are missing out on the benefits.
Instagram Mistakes Realtors Make: Final Words
Instagram offers great potential for real estate agents. However, many agents are not using it properly and there are huge Instagram mistakes realtors make. When they do not get their desired results, they blame the platform. There are many agents who are reaping the benefits of what Instagram has got to offer simply by following a handful of tips and avoiding common mistakes.
