You can position yourself as a helper, and not a salesperson, in today’s real estate market by using these tips:

1. Maintain a connection.

There’s never been a more crucial time to remain connected to your buyers. Keep in mind that:

• This isn’t about making a sale. This sensitive time is about strengthening relationships, addressing concerns, and ensuring buyers know that you’re in their corner.
• Building relationships takes time. Reach out via phone or text, send emails, and stay active on social media. (Don’t forget to ask your Academy Loan Officer partner about market-facing emails that you can personalize and share.)

Real estate agents are an important part of the community; you’re not just here to sell houses. You might be surprised by how much clients appreciate a quick check-in call, text, or email offering help, sharing data, or asking if you can answer any questions. Some agents also report success in combing through social media threads or local apps and messaging users to answer their questions.

How can we help? Contact us to learn more about co-branded market resources you can send to your clients.

2. Share videos.

As you probably know, video is the way to go if you’d like to gain the most reach in the shortest amount of time. This is because:

• Social platforms prioritize video—and so do users. Eighty-two percent of Instagram marketers post videos and rely on video-based content.
• Short-form video (less than 10 minutes) also rules Facebook. More than 60 percent of Americans over age 16 prefer watching short-form videos on Facebook versus TikTok.

It’s only natural to feel camera-shy if you’re new to putting your face out there. But recording and posting weekly or monthly market insight videos is a simple-but-effective approach to staying engaged with your clients. Videos can help you reach new followers and connect to your existing audience. Posting a variety of content (videos, Reels, listings, blogs, personal photos, etc.) is always recommended.

3. Use graphics.

As a voice of reason in a shifting real estate market, your followers are going to turn to you for answers. It can help to remember that:

• The saying “a picture is worth a thousand words” is true. Relying on visuals may be the most effective way to break down real estate market data in a way that is easy to understand.
• It’s one thing to say that today’s mortgage rates are still historically favorable. It’s another to demonstrate this truth with this graphic. (Contact us if you’d like some social posts explaining this.)

By leveraging graphics, you get ahead of the ever-changing industry news and provide an invaluable service to your clients. Prospective homebuyers and sellers who follow real estate market news online are bound to run into conflicting information. Using graphics to clearly illustrate local market shifts positions you as an expert and automatically builds trust with your audience.

4. Don’t sell—educate.

Clients don’t like hearing a sales pitch, a difficult truth to swallow in a sales-oriented field like real estate. Instead, consider that:

• Your audience will appreciate being educated. You can do this quickly and easily utilizing points two and three above, integrating more market-facing videos and graphics.
• To thrive in your industry, you need to stay one step ahead. Churning out real estate market insights, made personal with your expert take on the information, is one of the most successful ways to do this.

Educating may mean talking about national news in a video before breaking it down locally. You can also identify current consumer fears and offer solutions. Worries about job or financial loss can be calmed with facts about home equity helping to build prosperity. Fears about the upfront cost of homeownership can be addressed with resources explaining Temporary Buydowns and down payment assistance.