How real estate agents can create and engage a Facebook group

Facebook is a great place for real estate professionals to establish themselves as local market authorities.

And starting a local Facebook group can be a powerful next step.

Groups bring like-minded people together, helping you build connections with your sphere of influence that should lead to more opportunities (and more sales) down the road. Let’s dive in and learn how you can start and build your first Facebook group.

Why start a group?

Because of its engagement potential, “a Facebook group gives you more control…, influencing people in a bigger way than a Facebook page” (Patel).

So if you’re looking to plant your flag as a local source of information about all things real estate, and you want more engagement out of Facebook, investing in a Facebook group is the way to go.

Related: 7 reasons real estate agents should use a Facebook business Page

How to get the group started

First, you need to define the purpose of your group. Think about your community or the neighborhoods you farm and consider how you could add value to the home search. Here’s a few ideas to get you started:

• Local restaurant culture
• Outdoor activities
• Music or entertainment
• Local causes

Once you’ve decided what your group will focus on, it’s time to actually set it up.

Facebook makes it pretty easy to start your group. Log in to your Facebook account and follow the steps below:

• “Click [the dropdown arrow] in the top right of Facebook and select create group.
• Select your group preferences, enter your group name, add group members and then choose the privacy setting for your group.
• Click Create.
• Once you create your group, you personalize it by uploading a cover photo and adding a description” (Facebook).

Of course there a lot of options and a lot of details about adding members, customization, privacy, etc. If you’d like to learn more, Facebook’s Help Center is where you want to go.

Also, make sure to own your role as moderator and establish group guidelines so that everyone is clear on what to expect from their participation. Be the point person for facilitating conversations, helping group members make connections, and be ready to (ahem) enforce the rules.

Tips on engagement

Let’s get to the good stuff.

Starting a group is a great first step. But engaging with your group is where you’re going to see a return.

Here are some tips to help get your group off the ground:

• One of the first things you should do is actually build the group. It’s going to be hard to see any return on your investment of time and energy (not to mention no one will really benefit from it) if there’s no one in the group! Invite friends to join your group, but make sure they are actually interested in being part of the group and they want to contribute.
• Promote your group on social media. You might even want to pay for some ads to get more visibility for the group.
• Invite the people who like your Facebook Page to join your group.
• Try “asking some questions that help you engage with your ideal customer.”
• One of Neil Patel’s “goals is to get people telling personal stories.” This is a great way to help members build relationships, and it makes it easier for you to keep things running.
• Create a poll to get the conversation going.
• Spark communication by personally asking new members to introduce themselves.
• Remind the group’s members to enable notifications for your group.
• Consider the role of content. Share helpful articles or blog posts you’ve written.

Get started today

Ready to be the local source of information about all things real estate? Try starting your own Facebook group! And make sure to sign up for our newsletter to get more business building marketing tips.

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