Pros & Cons of Outsourcing Your Social Media
Over the past decade, the world has skewed sharply away from face-to-face interactions toward digital, online communication, and the real estate market is no exception. Consumers report using the internet in their home-buying process at a staggering rate of nearly 95%, with senior citizens lagging just behind at 75%. Furthermore, 54% of home buyers got online as their very first step in their shopping process.
In concrete terms, this means that most modern-day real estate shopping takes place on smart phones and behind laptops, not in a broker’s office or at an open house. Today’s home buyers are likely to view themselves as self-sufficient, having grown accustomed to doing their own research online, making many of the early decisions without the guidance of professionals.
However, you can still place yourself at the foreground of a shopper’s experience by integrating yourself seamlessly into the internet browsing experience. Real estate searches are growing by more than 20% year by year, which means that agents who have mastered SEO and social media are going to be the elite individuals who pop up when shoppers whip out their smart phones and start searching.
Today, we’re discussing the pros and cons of outsourcing your social media and SEO integration. If you aren’t confident in your digital marketing skills or haven’t been receiving the traffic influx you’ve been hoping for, it may be time to reach out to a professional.
Outsourcing Your Social Media - The Pros
1.) You’ll Have More Time to Focus on Your Business.
As a real estate agent, you’re never fully caught up on your work. Every day brings fresh challenges to add to your already heavy workload, so outsourcing your social media and SEO efforts can make a huge difference in your ability to focus on the more lucrative aspects of your career.
Keep in mind that the average home buyer wants a response from their agent within an hour, and only 30% of agents meet this demand. By letting go of your social media efforts, you’ll ultimately make yourself more available to your clients! By reducing your response time, you’ll likely see client satisfaction skyrocket.
Rather than feeling guilty and pressured to find the time to promote yourself online, you can relax, feeling confident that your accounts are chugging along smoothly.
2.) Your Online Presence Will Be Fresh and Consistent.
Social media and SEO success depend on two main factors: consistent uploads, and fresh, engaging content. In order to pull this off successfully on your own, you can expect to spend a significant amount of focused time several days every week curating new ideas, composing well-written content, adding eye-catching visuals, and posting at the best time to catch the maximum number of views. If this sounds daunting, you may prefer to hire outside help.
3.) You’ll Receive Personalized, Integrated Assistance on Every Platform.
Between Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, LinkedIn and Facebook, staying active online is a challenge for the busy real estate agent. Rather than working on your own to remain competitive on each social media platform, you can hire an outside media freelancer or marketing company. Digital marketers are able to master each new platform that arises within a matter of days, all while staying current on algorithm changes that develop on the tried-and-true options.
As a bonus, you’ll have built-in help with each platform! Because digital marketers and content developers understand that their continued employment depends on your success, they will be highly motivated to help you rise to the top.
The Cons
1.) Initial Cost vs. Immediate Benefit
Like any other skilled advertising teams, digital marketers who can deliver results are able to command healthy compensation. As a consequence of this reality, you will have to bite the bullet and pay for good help for a few months before you start to see returns on your investment.
Ultimately, you’ll have to determine whether you want to devote the necessary funds required to hire a social media/content specialist—but remember to factor in the challenge you’ll face to gain market share if you can’t establish your online presence on your own.
2.) Choosing the Right Assistance is Crucial
Do your research and choose a digital marketing team that can prove that their work has delivered success for their other clients. Don’t hesitate to ask potential agencies for evidence of their abilities. Any reputable marketers will be proud to share their work and its efficacy.
Failing to complete this due diligence could result in your paying for services for months before discovering that you’ve been wasting precious time and money.
3.) Establishing Your New Voice Will Take Time
If you have been handling your social media on your own, your faithful few followers may notice a change in voice when professionals take the reins. However, by giving your digital marketing team a bit of feedback over time, you’ll be able to help them adapt their work to include your authentic voice. Ideally, this marriage of tones will capture the best of both worlds, thus engaging a wave of new clients while remaining true to your personality.
The importance of succeeding online is hardly debatable, but it’s up to you to choose whether or not being your own digital marketing guru is the right move. Once you’ve weighed the aforementioned pros and cons, compared your free time to your available funds, and reviewed your own online success—or lack thereof—over the past two years, you’ll be ready to move forward with a solid social media and online marketing plan.