Social Platforms rarely lead directly to new business, but they can significantly enhance your presence
When it comes to social media, SIORs say it’s not only what you say, but how you say it that determines how much impact your posts will have. “Your topic needs to be relevant to the audience, your headline needs to be catchy, and your content needs to be either very to the point or quite entertaining—or both,” says Bjarne Bauer, SIOR, managing partner, Commercial Real Estate Transactions, for the NAI Sofia Group in Shanghai. “Nice visuals help a lot,” he adds.
Bauer says he has been publishing in social media for about 15 years, is currently running a YouTube channel, has a company website, and is “regularly publishing” on LinkedIn (“carousel” and articles).
“I frequently use all the social media platforms and have put thought into how messages should differ between them, but also be consistent,” adds Kostas Stoilas, SIOR, with Fortress Commercial Real Estate, Tampa, Fla. Stoilas says he uses Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter, and TikTok. “Just be consistent and active, even if it’s just commenting on others’ posts that are relevant,” he says. “We like to add value and not just create noise out there.”
“I’m huge on LinkedIn, and have a presence on Instagram, and even Facebook,” notes Eric Northbrook, SIOR, executive managing director and partner at Voit Real Estate Services, in San Diego.
“Social media can’t be a place to pound your chest and say, ‘we did these deals,’ ‘we closed this,’” Northbrook continues. “Unfortunately, a lot of people—including us—just use it to basically brag about the deals they’ve done (everything on Instagram and LinkedIn is like that). That’s a portion of what you do, but there really has to be thought leadership; be a thinker, create content, and ideally it will go viral.”
How did he and his colleagues learn/become adept at using these platforms? “Really, just by trying them all out and seeing what works on each, and how or what you can post easily,” he shares.
“Mostly by learning and doing, but in part by watching people who’ve made YouTube videos about it or written articles about it,” adds Bauer.
“Day one, you have to have an account,” says Northbrook. “Then, you have to be thought leaders. You can do posts on Instagram, take the same post, and maybe put it on LinkedIn. It’s not that hard to do; if you want to, you can post everything on your phone.”
There really has to be thought leadership; be a thinker, create content, and ideally it will go viral.
BE CLEAR ON THE BENEFITS
In recognizing the benefits you can realize from social media, it’s important to know what to expect—and what not to expect. For example, will these posts boost your business dramatically? “Not really,” says Stoilas, “but they do keep us top of mind and make brand awareness easier and less expensive.”
“It’s not that often that direct new business stems from it, but by good use of social media, one establishes oneself as a figure of authority,” notes Bauer. “It helps a lot as a marketing and branding tool. It seems to me a bit comparable to in the old days carrying nice business cards, wearing a suit, and having a good website. None of it wins business for you, but without it it’s very hard to even get a seat at the table.”
And, he adds, it’s not difficult to quantify results and evaluate the platforms you use. “It is easy to track how many views and likes content gets on social media, and so far, we have had the best results on LinkedIn.”
“If you do thought leadership and get people to follow you, they’ll think ‘This guy has good insight,” says Northbrook. “If people follow you, you get to be top of mind.”
You can evaluate your platform by seeing if you increase followers, “and you can send out a ‘thought leadership’ piece by having something profound to say, and not the same as everyone else,” Northbrook adds. “Our wheelhouse is a little different —private clients, family offices, institutional businesses, and tenant representation. A lot of our thought leadership involves giving them something—like, ‘A guide for your leasing success.’ We’ll talk about what steps you need to take to relocate, what the process is, etc.”
“We haven’t gotten that far,” says Stoilas, “But I can break them down as such: LinkedIn is definitely more professional, and for posting market updates or perspectives, and that goes for Twitter too mostly, but Twitter can also be a little more personal and fun. Facebook is for close friends and family, so they’re aware of what we’re doing. Instagram is for simple posts with graphics and visuals to portray what we do, and it can be professional and fun. TikTok is new, so I’m mainly using it to post personal videos about what’s on my mind regarding the market and our industry, or what our local area is doing or seeing.”
PLUSSES AND MINUSES
When it comes to how satisfied SIORs are with the current social media options, it’s a mixed bag. “I have come to terms with the fact that any content I put out there takes real effort,” says Bauer. “I'm giving it my best with the hopes of getting the content to go viral.”
A changing social media landscape, he continues, “is part of a reality that we can hardly influence, and when it appears clear that something is the direction of the future, then I want to be in on it reasonably early. However, I do not attempt to be an early adapter who tries out all the new stuff. I’d rather wait a bit and observe what seems to work and what may be worth the effort.” If he could change what’s available in social media, what would he like to see? “It would be nice to have platforms with lively exchanges, but limited to a relevant audience,” says Bauer. “For example, only SIOR members, or only CEOs of companies.”
Bauer notes that there was a company named 'ASMALLWORLD’ that did that for a few years between 2005 and 2009, “and it seemed to work well, but eventually they also moved to another business model,” he says.
Northbrook says he’s pleased with these platforms, adding that each must be used according to their strengths. Accordingly, he also focuses on platforms like Instagram, where the users may be younger. “LinkedIn is a more professional network, [while for Instagram,] it’s difficult to see a direct correlation [to business success]. There’s definitely some indirect correlation that will help you in the future,” he notes.
“I think the one game-changer is ChatGPT,” Northbrook asserts. “It’s total AI that helps you craft a letter that makes you look brighter than you are. What would normally take you an hour to do, you can do in five minutes.”
One case in point, he shares, involves the fact that he had been struggling with what his company’s differentiators were. “I said, ‘I need the top 10 differentiators for real estate services,’ and BOOM—in five minutes it created this ‘Top 10’ list. It saves a tremendous amount of time,” he states.
Beyond that, Northbrook summarizes, there are no aspects of the current platforms that he’d like to change, or more he would like to see them do. “The platforms will work; it’s really up to the individual or the company to ultimately provide content that’s compelling for others to read or take a look at,” he says.
Stoilas, however, is not totally onboard…yet. “So far, I love that people are paying attention and noticing,” he declares, “but we’ll see what it turns into in regards to leads and referrals.”
This article was sponsored by the SIOR Foundation - Promoting and sponsoring initiatives that educate, enhance, and expand the commercial real estate community. The SIOR Foundation is a 501(c)(3) not-forprofit organization. All contributions are tax deductible to the extent of the law.
CONTRIBUTING MEMBERS