Few marketing tactics can drum up as many local leads as an open house. The key to making your event a success, though, is attracting the right people. And in order to get your message in front of the right people, it’s important to use a variety of channels. Using an integrated approach that combines email and social channels amplifies the power of both.
While most agents already use email extensively for this purpose, this article will take a look at what you can do to leverage Facebook. When done right, open house Facebook posts can help drive foot traffic to the home, increase interest, and grow your list of leads.
In this article you’ll learn three powerful tips for promoting an open house on Facebook like a pro.
ActivePipe’s email social sharing feature allows you to share open house emails easily to your social network with the click of a button. This means you can expand your reach beyond your contacts that have email addresses, connect with more prospects in your network and ultimately attract more buyers and sellers. If you’d like to learn more about how to use social sharing in ActivePipe click here.
Let’s jump in.
Are Open Houses Still Effective?
With so many people going online to find their next house, many real estate agents wonder if open houses are still effective. The short answer is yes, they are.
Not only do open houses provide a more relaxing way for buyers to tour the home, but they also create a sense of scarcity. And in a broader sense, they’re a great way to attract qualified leads. Later on, you can follow up with those leads and promote other listings.
3 Tips to Promote Your Open House on Facebook
Did you know social media was the second-most popular way real estate agents got new clients in 2020? The same survey showed that 44% of agents got a new client thanks to social platforms.
Driving traffic to your open house is vital to its success, and the best place to attract that traffic is social media.
To expand your reach, it’s a good idea to promote your open house across all your social channels, including Instagram, LinkedIn, and Twitter. But if you had to focus on just one platform, Facebook would be your strongest choice.
Learn how to attract new contacts to your mailing list with social posts here.
After all, with its 2.9 billion users, Facebook is still the most popular social media site in the world. (It’s even larger than YouTube.) And since their median age is 31 years old, many of Facebook’s users are at a stage in life when they’re ready to buy a home.
But promoting your open house on Facebook is more than simply posting an announcement. Follow these three tips to reach as many people as possible.
1. Use Only Stunning Photos of the Home
Facebook, like many other social sites, is an image-driven platform. Adding photos to your post can get you 2.3 times more engagement. The higher your engagement, the more people see your content.
When promoting your open house on Facebook, use only high-quality and high-resolution photos of the home. This will get you more views, likes, and comments. Avoid photos that are dark, blurry, or make the room look small.
Take photos during peak sunlight hours, focus on areas with open space, and showcase the house’s best features. Then edit the photos afterward to give them a light, airy look.
You may also be able to catch more attention by taking a 360-degree photo on your phone and uploading it to Facebook. This is a fun way to let viewers feel like they’re browsing the home without leaving the platform.
2. Create an Open House Facebook Event
Facebook events are another helpful way to promote your open house. Events allow you to personally invite your Facebook followers by sending a direct notification. And when you set the event to “Public,” invitees can also invite other people they think would be interested.
When creating your open house Facebook event, be sure to upload stunning images and videos of the property to generate engagement and interest.
Remember, don’t simply create the event and ignore it. Post on the event wall every few days or so to remind people about the upcoming open house. Here are a few post ideas:
- Upload new photos and talk about attractive features of the house.
- Remind people of the open house’s day, time, and location.
- If there will be refreshments, share what you’ll be serving.
- Remind people to invite friends and neighbours who may be interested.
To increase your reach, consider boosting the event to people in the city and surrounding areas
3. Create Open House Facebook Ads
Over the last several years, organic reach has become increasingly more difficult to get. As frustrating as it may be, you’ll have a hard time reaching people with your posts unless you pay for ads.
The good news is you don’t have to spend thousands of dollars just so people see your open house post. Spending as little as $30 can help you reach several hundred extra people.
For a more robust Facebook ad campaign, though, expect to spend at least a few hundred dollars. This gives you room to test different ads and see which ones perform best.
Before creating your ad, think about your target audience. Facebook lets you target people based on:
- Age
- Gender
- Interests (pages they like and engage with)
- Behaviour (posts they click on)
- Location
The better you define your target audience, the more effective your ads will be.
What to Do After Your Open House
By following these tips to promote your open house on Facebook, you hopefully drew a sizeable crowd to your event. This is where you might be tempted to relax and enjoy your success. But your work isn’t done.
During the open house, don’t forget to collect the names and email addresses of everyone who attends so you can follow up later to request property feedback. You can also send them an email to promote nearby listings. After all, they’ve already shown interest in buying a home.
The more you automate this process, the better. For example, with ActivePipe’s Enterprise package, you can create a landing page form to easily collect prospects’ emails. From there, you can or use pre-built automated campaigns to give attendees more information on nearby listings and even add a link to request feedback.
Brokers can also use this feature to ensure a listing is accurate before an open house by sending it to agents for feedback.
Now that you know how to promote your open house on Facebook with stunning photos, events, and advertising, it’s time to put your plan into action. Decide today how you will grow your list of leads and gather trustworthy feedback at your next open house.
