Though residential real estate firms have been savvy about the importance of social media — and poured considerable resources into it — for at least the past decade, the competency and effectiveness of each firm’s and broker’s tweets, snapchats, instagrams and Facebook posts can vary widely. Some, like Douglas Elliman’s [TRDataCustom] Fredrik Eklund, have taken to it like a duck to water, while others seem not to grasp the difference between Twitter and a traditional advertising platform, logging on only grudgingly to promote their listings. But with the U.S. president now using his Twitter account as a personal soapbox — much to the dismay of many in his own White House — the need to master social suddenly feels more urgent. After all, news is not only being disseminated on social media but also broken there. And it has increasingly come to feel like the best place to burnish a brand, find clients and promote listings. The only problem, of course, is that it’s easy to squander time and other resources — outside consultants can cost brokerages up to $5,000 a month — on social posts without any clear understanding of their effectiveness. Shares, likes and even social “stories” that go viral don’t, after all, always translate into sales. But even if they don’t, maintaining an interesting, engaging and near-constant social media presence may now be the cost of staying relevant.
117,668
The jump in Facebook followers that 14 residential firms ranked by TRD in July 2015 saw as of last month. The brokerages were included on the 2015 ranking because they had the fastest-growing Facebook presence at the time.
104,255
The number of views that the first episode of “Bajillion Dollar Propertie$” — a parody of “Million Dollar Listing” on the streaming service Seeso — received after debuting about a year ago. The spoof was picked up for another season in December.
$299.95
The amount it costs to buy 50,000 Instagram followers in bulk on the popular service InstaBoostGram. Those looking to spend less can pay $55.99 for 10,000 followers. The service is used by some businesses and entrepreneurs — including brokerages and brokers — to inflate their follower count.
14.7M
The number of Twitter followers that Donald Trump had as of last month on the official @POTUS account. That’s up more than 3 million from the time it was passed off by President Obama. Trump’s personal Twitter account @realDonaldTrump — has 23.4 million.
$100
The cost of “boosting” a post on Facebook to people in the NYC metro area for three days. A sponsored post at this price range can reach between 7,600 and 20,000 people outside someone’s actual follower base. Not surprisingly, it’s another popular tool for brokers promoting NYC properties.
$6M
BHS broker Ian Gardiner, one of several millennial hosts on Snaplistings
The most valuable home listed to date on Snaplistings, the first Snapchat account devoted to marketing NYC real estate. Major firms — including the Corcoran Group, Douglas Elliman and Keller Williams NYC — have already used the platform to promote their listings.
57,128
The number of Facebook followers Corcoran added between July 2015 and last month — more than any of its rivals. Compass added the second most (40,419), and Citi Habitats reeled in the third most (31,623).