Blogging for Realtors®

If you’re looking to interact with consumers even further than your website and social media, have you considered starting a blog?

Your blog is your chance to have a voice, and blogging can help you save time, said Heather Elias, who co-writes the real estate blog, LoCo Musings, with her husband, Michael.

Elias pointed out that Realtors® talk to clients frequently, and often receive many of the same questions over and over again. Elias suggested writing blog posts about your most-asked questions, giving thorough answers and advice. To save time, Elias recommended sending links of your posts to clients pre-meeting, so they have an understanding of the process.

“You know how to answer the questions,” she said. “Now transition to written word.”

“Your voice has to come out,” she added. If you’re more comfortable with videos, you can post those as well, she said.

Not sure where to start? Elias said WordPress is great for beginners, as it’s very basic.  Once you set up your site, make sure you “always have your contact information available on a tab,” she said. Elias also said to leave the comments turned on so that you can interact with readers.

Now that you’re all set up, what to write about? Here are five suggestions for posts from Elias.

• Process post: Answer questions to save time, such as what happens during a home inspection.
• Real estate post: An eye candy post that gives readers a taste of what the local market looks like.
• Community post: What are the things happening in your community that you can highlight?
• Leverage social post- Make relationships with other local businesses, and they will most likely refer you. Do posts highlighting local restaurants, etc. Chances are they will most likely share the posts, especially if you tag them on social media.
• Outside source posts: Ask a mortgage company or title company or someone with specific knowledge to share information on your blog. It’s a new voice and information for readers.

“Including conversation points in your blog is fine, but don’t make them all real estate posts,” said Elias. “Be proactive about getting blog posts out by using all social media channels. Tease the content. Find a way to share without giving it all, so they’ll click.”