Essential Social Media Groups for Real Estate Agents (with 12 Examples)

Real estate marketing is all about finding people who want (and can) sell or buy a house. Finding these people is a challenging but essential step in your marketing efforts. This is why you should not only take advantage of social media but take advantage of the Group feature in platforms. Real estate social media groups are a place for people with common interests to share and learn from each other. This is important for realtors as they so rely on resources that help them find a network of buyers and sellers.

As a realtor you may produce worthwhile and valuable content and post it on a blog but if nobody reads it you won’t achieve much . You need to promote your content to attract prospects. Groups are a great place to do just that. After joining groups realtors can contribute to the group by sharing content and nurturing real estate connections. In a group you can gain a reputation as a trustworthy agent. This is a key part of gaining references.

In order to maximize your chances and increase your reach, you need to make use of both Facebook and LinkedIn. Facebook provides better audience reach, whereas LinkedIn offers more serious and professional investors and leads.

If you need to know more about Facebook for real estate and LinkedIn for real estate read our blog.

Types of Real Estate Social Media Groups

Social networking platforms like Facebook and LinkedIn offer users the opportunity to create and join groups of people online. Here are some of the qualities used to create and join groups on the two platforms: 

• Background: Family groups, ethnic heritage, former classmates.
• Qualifications: Job function or title, alumni status.
• Interests or Hobbies: Sports, causes, hobbies, pets, political affiliation, religion, work related topics.

These groups are divided into the same main types in each platform, with Facebook being a little more detailed. Here is how:

Facebook Groups

In general, there are three types of groups on Facebook: 

• Public

Public groups are the most obvious and easily found groups on Facebook. Everyone can join them and they are freely accessible. They may not be the best option however as some of the members may not be as serious or professional as you need them to be.

• Closed

Closed groups provide a better filter for the members who join. In order to be a member you need to send a request and the group’s moderator or owner and they will have to decide to let you in or not. Such groups contain a better network of prospects as the criteria for letting people in filters out users who are not as professional. 

• Secret

Secret groups cannot be found by searching for one. They won’t show up in the search results even if you search for the exact name. This means the group chooses its own members and you cannot request to enter. You need to be invited by members. Like closed groups, secret groups provide a higher quality in terms of prospects and target audience to market your services, but just like any other niche, you need to prove yourself as valuable first by sharing and offering help with worthwhile content. You won’t be trying to sell directly. 

LinkedIn Groups:

You can create two types of groups on LinkedIn:

• Listed Groups: 

Listed groups are groups that show up in search results on LinkedIn. If you’re part of a Listed group, your group membership will be visible to other members on your LinkedIn profile.

• Unlisted Groups: 

Unlisted groups are groups that do not appear in search results for non-group members and are not visible to others on members’ profiles. However, you can access an Unlisted Group through a direct link, or when invited by the group admin.

Real Estate Facebook Groups

Facebook houses many types of groups where people can join and contribute and use the content provided by others. Real estate Facebook groups can be categorized into the following  types :

1. Buy Sell And Swap Groups:

You can promote sales in these groups on behalf of your client and show how committed you are as an agent. This will please your client and impress other members.

2. Class of /Grew up Around/Remember When/Then and Now/Memories and Histories

These groups attract people from specific communities like schools and colleges and as a result are great to target people with shared interests.

3. Mothers and Fathers’ Groups

Mothers and fathers have children. A family with children means a need for more space. They might be thinking of moving to a bigger place. It’s worth joining such groups if you are a parent and providing beneficial and helpful content.

4. Humans of/Living in

These groups are like the second listed but on a broader scale. They attract people from the same demographics,regions, and cities. They are a great place to target prospects in a certain area. 

5. Property to Buy Rent of Sell

Given the  name of these groups there is a high probability that they are created by other real estate agents. That’s okay though, they can be a great network of FSBO (For Sale By Owner) properties. Furthermore, you can share your valuable content in these groups and create awareness for your brand and ultimately drive traffic to your own website.

Real Estate LinkedIn Groups

LinkedIn is professional by nature and people who use it are there for business. Real estate LinkedIn groups follow the same principle and the content you share should meet this standard as well, as non-professional content and engagement is frowned upon on LinkedIn. There are 3 types of groups on LinkedIn you can target and join:

1. Chamber of Commerce/Business Networks

Such groups are joined by many business owners and can be used to expand your referral network. 

2. Property Developer or Asset Manager Groups

Real estate professionals will find such groups ideal as they contain many prospects. 

3. Property Investor /Self-Managed Super Fund Groups

These groups members include those who intend to invest in the property and are a great candidate to be targeted in your marketing efforts. 

Here are some other real estate LinkedIn groups which exclusively discuss buying and selling. 

Read More: LinkedIn for Real Estate Agents: The Ultimate Guide for REALTORS® in 2020

roomvu Content Factory and Social Media Calendar

Creating quality vides for real estate takes +10 hours and requires lots of skills and equipment. This might not seem like a big deal for more tech-savvy agents but other agents need to invest a lot in the process. We at roomvu have provided agents with an easy solution. roomvu Content Factory creates high-quality videos using up to date and accurate data that can be shared easily across real estate social media platforms. If you do not have the time for social media, don’t worry, we have got your back. Our fully automated calendar allows you to schedule and publish your content regularly and consistently for an affordable price.

The Takeaway

The groups on social networking platforms (Facebook and LinkedIn in particular) present a great opportunity to find and connect to prospects in the real estate business. To maximize the effect of real estate social media groups you need to be an active member who contributes to the group and adds value. This is how you gain the trust of homeowners and home buyers. 

You will not be trying to make direct sales; instead you should provide the group with valuable and compelling content constantly to present yourself as an expert who could be called upon when there is a need.