The post below is part 2 of a four-part series that highlights what brokerages can do to help their clients and community during this time.   

Read Part 1: You Have Answers

Part 2: Recognize the “Everyday Influencer” Effect

During this unprecedented time, when people are online and are looking to connect with each other more than ever, all of us can use digital platforms to network, share, and listen, regardless of how active we were online previously. 

Brokers should encourage employees and agents to use social media to share their COVID-19 experiences and talk about the positive work you/they are doing. This does several important things. It helps employees connect more strongly with your mission and the impact your company is having (and they can have) in your community. It facilitates direct one-on-one connections between all employees, not just agents, and the buyers and sellers they help. It provides your clients an authentic sense of your brand through employees’ eyes. And its informality provides clients with opportunities to like, comment, and share, giving you valuable insight into what matters most to them and how you can most help them now and in the future. 

Next Steps

Help agents set-up their social media accounts and/or update their profiles to reflect current branding and important elements like your NAP (name, address, and phone number), key for local SEO. We recommend prioritizing Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube due to their reach and visual nature, with Twitter not as important due to its lack of visual elements and benefit primarily for real-time communication. LinkedIn is a good option instead, due to its audience and reach. There are platforms that help you distribute content created in one place across social media platforms, like Hubspot and Sprout Social, or it can also be done manually.

  • Document social media policies and best practices guidelines for employees and agents.
  • Provide training for employees and agents so they are both empowered to share in your company’s COVID era communication and cognizant of how you want your company represented (so you can mitigate potential risks). 

Shift online ad spend to focus heavily on social and display channels, specifically Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube. If it’s at a reduced level, that’s okay. Focus on impressions and reach. Now is the time to get in front of as many of your past, current, and future clients as possible, and the goal is capturing their attention, not necessarily causing them to take action.

  • Present authentic messaging via display and video ad formats to foster a stronger connection with your audience and maximize your ad budget. 
  • Don’t be afraid to be raw and use emotion – it’ll resonate. 
  • It’s still important to properly segment your audiences, as well as to leverage retargeting and custom audience targeting using email addresses you have for past clients, leads, and others.

Together we can navigate this pandemic and come out stronger on the other side! If you have questions about the strategies outlined above, or any other part of your digital strategy, give us a call at (802) 865-3332 or fill out our contact form to speak to a knowledgable member of our team. 

Read Part 3: Train to Retain