The real estate industry is a field in which image and reputation are crucial. These should be cultivated just like the landlord who updates his landscaping to get a better price for his house. As a real estate professional, you can get more clients by maintaining a stellar online image. So, It is important to monitor your online reputation for this reason alone.
What is Online Reputation Management?
Online reputation management is when you actively monitor what others say about your brand on websites and social media. In so doing you address any negative or false comments and actively engage with your clients. The primary goal is to portray one’s entity in the best possible light, online.
Tip 1: Respond Promptly and With Empathy
Always respond to customers as soon as possible. When customers ask questions, be it by messaging you directly or posting on social media, respond right away.
Let’s say, for example; a complaint is sent in by private message and you don’t respond. This may lead the frustrated client to post negative feedback, turning the once “private message” into a negative public statement.
Quick empathetic responses show the customer you place a high value on helping them. When you make a mistake in business, it’s best if you just admit it. Apologize and move on.
It always helps to apologize. It shows integrity. Tackling a situation head-on transparently gives you an opportunity to increase customer trust. As a real estate agent, your primary goal is to not just sell homes but to do so in a favorable manner.
Answering with empathy calms emotions and helps customers actually want to engage rather than just complain. This way, the likelihood of retaining customers is high.
Tip 2: Build Your Online Presence
Recent studies have proved that roughly 90% of buyers research real estate agents online. More than half of home buyers now find the home they want to buy on the internet.
More people are trusting the internet to find agents and homes. The competition is fierce. You need proficient online and offline marketing skills to set yourself apart from the pack.
So it’s imperative to adopt several techniques to increase the visibility of your real estate agency or individual business.
- Make use of public records sources – Potential clients value factual information. It is imperative that you provide data on real estate properties that you have listed before or currently are. These can be made available through documents available at your local municipality or city hall.
- Set up several business profiles – Provide information about your business and background on various industry related review sites. This can include information on your office, testimonials from previous customers, and statistics on the properties you have sold. Examples of sites you could use include Google my business, Facebook, Realtor.com, and Yelp.
- Ensure you are easily reachable on your contact number – You gain trustworthiness when your business is easily reachable in person.
- Make use of Search engine optimization on your real estate site – Most marketers think of SEO as just a way to keep their brand visible. But it’s also an important tool for minimizing the visibility of negative press and content associated with your brand.
Tip 3: Track What Information Is Available About You
It is important to monitor your online reputation so you know what people see when they look up your real estate agency. You can do so by doing a search of your own business online to see what comes up in the search results.
You can also research public records sources. Is there enough information to verify that you are a legitimate business, including your business undertakings? As a business owner, if you are involved in a criminal lawsuit, this information may also be available in public records sources.
The best way to deal with this is to hire a criminal defense lawyer to prove your innocence. Criminal convictions are obviously very bad for your real estate’s reputation.
Tracking what information is available about you is the first step to controlling it. Pay attention to your consumers. Engage with online reviews, social media, forum posts, and comments on your site.
Show appreciation for positive comments. Negative comments should equally be received with a gracious response. Additionally, carry out surveys to former customers. This will give you an overview of how different people view your business.
Tip 4: Circulate Press Releases
Distribute a carefully worded press release if there’s anything newsworthy about your real estate business. This type of content typically gets more attention than older comments and reviews.
Bear in mind that even if your real estate business has a solid online reputation, that may not always remain the case. Well written press releases are a great way to be proactive in protecting your image and mitigating the impact of negative publicity.
Tip 5: Encourage Reviews and Referrals
Reviews have the power to influence consumer decisions. They strengthen a company’s credibility. They are a driving force towards gaining customer trust. It is through positive reviews that people are encouraged to work with your company.
Reviews give agents overall ratings. To stand out, do your job well, and have a favorable online reputation.
Before you can get those positive reviews, identify the review pages that are most important for your business. Those that fit in with your target market and audience.
To get reviews, send out customer appreciation messages before asking them to leave their feedback. This could be by email or SMS message with a link to leave feedback on a review site of your choice.
Positive real estate agent reviews are crucial. Potential home buyers looking for an agent are easily convinced to hire your services when they see positive feedback about you online.
Conclusion
The internet has drastically changed the way real estate agencies earn and maintain their reputation. This used to be an industry that relied largely on word of mouth and personal referrals. Today, people look to others online to suggest a reliable real estate professional.. This is why it is important to monitor your online reputation.
Ben Hartwig is a technical writer and editor at InfoTracer, a data search firm in Boston.
