Mainebiz

W W W. M A I N E B I Z . B I Z 17 A P R I L 1 5 , 2 0 2 4 F O C U S R E A L E S TAT E / C O N S T R U C T I O N / E N G I N E E R I N G having people DM me or leading them to my website. Instead of cold-calling or knocking on doors, people will literally reach out to me and ask for my help." Pate, who leads a 35-strong team of residential and commercial brokers, spends about an hour a week on social media, where she posts stylized photos and videos showing a glimpse into her personal life and the properties she is showcasing — always playing a starring role so that viewers remember the name when they're ready to do business. "I want to be the first person they think of without shoving real estate down their throat," says Pate. For oth- ers in the industry keen to do the same, she created an online pre-recorded course last year called "Social Media for Agents," which costs $397 for 25 lessons, or two installments of $210 each for those that prefer. To camera-shy social media new- bies who don't like the way they look or sound, Pate offers the reassurance that "people are following your page because they like you and want to get to know you more." She also says the effort is worth it, although it may take around six months to start closing deals that come out of social media connections. "You're not going to get results right away," she underscores. "But don't give up." Elsewhere in the residential world, Rachel Davey of Vitalius Real Estate Group says that while she finds social media useful for her business, she doesn't see it as a requirement for everyone, say- ing, "I don't think it's a must, I think it's a tool in our toolbox." Samantha Marinko, a commercial real estate associate broker at Boulos, uses the tool — mainly Instagram — to stay engaged with clients by publicizing their events or reposting their content. "I try to follow all of my clients on social," she says. "It's a great way to stay in touch." Social media landscape & caveats Social media's value to the real estate world is reflected in a report published in January by the National Association of Realtors, based on survey responses from 2,632 of its members. Among technology tools that have generated the highest number of quality leads for respondents in the last 12 months, social media was No. 1 (54%), followed by customer relationship management software (36%) and the local multiple listing service (24%). C O N T I N U E D O N F O L L OW I N G PA G E » S O U R C E : National Asssociation of Realtors, 2023 Technology Survey TECH TOOLS THAT HAVE GENERATED THE MOST QUALITY LEADS MAIN REASON FOR SOCIAL MEDIA USE IN REAL ETATE BUSINESS It helps build/maintain relationships with existing clients It's expected to have a presence on social media Use it to generate leads It helps network with other real estate pros It helps stay current on real estate news and business trends Enjoy it Other Use it to promote listings 68% 67% 53% 52% 45% 38% 28% 5% Customer Relationship Management (CRM) Local MLS Email marketing tool Digital ad campaign Personal blog or business website/Brokerage's website Listing aggregator site Social media 54% 36% 24% 21% 19% 16% 14%

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