YouTube has over a billion users, which is almost one-third of all people on the internet, and every day people watch hundreds of millions of hours on YouTube.
And YouTube is the top video research destination for homebuyers. These are huge numbers, but YouTube isn’t the only player in the video space anymore.
On April 6, Facebook launched its Facebook Life platform to all users on Facebook. Facebook Live is a new way to “Create, share and discover live video on Facebook.” Using your phone (iOS or Android) you can share a live moment instantly with your Facebook audience.
With video conquering just about every platform, you can use Facebook Live to help market your services and engage with more of your Facebook audience with a different type of media. In fact, 73 percent of homeowners say they are more likely to list with a realtor who uses video, and because Facebook Live is integrated directly with your Facebook account, it’s easy to use.
Here’s how you can use Facebook Live for your real estate business:
1. Open houses
Open houses present the perfect opportunity to use Facebook Live in tandem with your listings. This gives you the chance to show the houses you are showing to a wider audience and allows for real-time comments and questions.
If you are an agent in a metropolitan area, this open house on Facebook Live might give people who are moving to the area but can’t visit the open house an opportunity to look at the property.
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After the recording is done, it will then live on your Facebook page. You can use this as added promotion to give your listings more visibility. Individuals who visit your Facebook page will then be able to view these at any point.
One idea is to hold the Facebook Live open house before your scheduled time for the open house. It gives individuals a sneak peak before they visit in person. Marketing this as an exclusive look to your Facebook fans could also guarantee viewers on your live broadcast.
2. Host a Q&A
Many of your clients or even potential clients might be confused about where to start when it comes to buying or selling a house. Hosting a Q-and-A session on Facebook Live is a great chance to get to know prospective clients and offer your expertise in an open way.
Think about hosting the Q-and-A on a specific topic such as when to sell your home or when to buy your first property. Sticking to a topic will help target your audience, qualify potential leads and help your overall preparation for the broadcast.
Get your sphere of influence involved, and tell them when you are holding your broadcast. Seeing some familiar faces on the video will help eliminate any jitters you might have over a live recording and could help identify some questions your clients might not have asked you already.
3. Partnership presentation
This can be similar to a Q-and-A, but think outside of your own network. Tap into your Facebook fans, a partnership with someone else and their Facebook fans. Come up with a topic where you both could lend your expertise to your audience.
Reach out to mortgage brokers in your office to talk about the current mortgage rates or what first-time buyers should look for. Or, get in touch with a home inspector to lend advice on things to look out for if an individual is purchasing a fixer-upper.
Encourage people to like and comment during the live broadcast. You’ll be able to see who engaged with your content to follow-up afterward. You’ll be able to share these names with the partnership you have and determine the ROI results as well.
Video is not going away, and with Facebook’s over 1 billion users, Facebook Live probably won’t be fading out of the spotlight anytime soon either. Start with the three ideas above to expand your presence on Facebook and generate more leads for your business.
Sabel Harris is the director of content marketing at Contactually. Follow her on Twitter and LinkedIn.