It seems like everyone is searching for ways to make social media relevant in real estate marketing. If you’ve felt the pressure recently to build a Facebook page for your community or set up a Twitter account, you know what I mean. The real challenge is to integrate these new ways to communicate into a solid strategy that plants the seeds for future sales growth.

It all starts by determining what you’re trying to attain with the technology. Is lead generation the sole focus? Do you plan to use social marketing to stay connected with your current owners? Are you looking to broadcast special offers as quickly as possible? All of the above?

BrightDoor customer Hampton Lake has a robust Facebook presence.

As a primer to the potential of social marketing, I’ve compiled the following links to help as you build your plan. Although these articles aren’t necessarily real estate focused, they do provide some good background information on social media marketing, tips and best practices.

• From Pragmatic Marketing - Tuned in social media
• From Associated Content - Business: Three Risks and Myths of Social Networking
• From About.com – Reasons to Adopt Social Media Marketing
• From Duct Tape Marketing – Your Social Media Strategy

Once you’re off and running, like any other marketing initative, analyze the results and makes any necessary adjustments. In the digital age, change is just a few keystrokes away.