Part II: Top 9 Real Estate Social Media Sites

Here are Peter's last top 4 real estate social media sites that you have all been waiting for. For the real estate professionals looking to grow their business, I hope this helps you in some way, shape or form.

6. Meetup Another great site to create relationship and connections for yourself. Just like LinkedIn, Meetup is a great way to network in your area.
Action Tip: Form a Meetup Group in your area. This is a great way to mastermind with other investors. Your imagination are the limits to what you can do there are.

7. Trulia Over the past year, Trulia has become very popular. Many buyers and sellers head over to that site in search of finding answers and/or selling their home. So, how can you benefit there? Through their Trulia Voices.
Action Tip: Trulia Voices gives people the ability to ask their question and for expert to answer those questions. This is the place where you can answer common questions for people who are in need of selling their house.

Hmmm, could this be a way of finding possible sellers? I think so… Make sure you answer their questions and don’t blatantly advertise yourself. Most of all, don’t spam or you’ll get banned. I just looked on their site and there was one lady looking for a foreclosure and short sale specialist in her area. I don’t think it can get any easier than this :)

I’m on a roll. Here’s 2 more bonus sites…

8. Twitter What the hell is twitter you ask? if you haven’t already heard of this site, Twitter is a social media site that uses micro-blogging technology. Basically, you post short posts on their site, under 140 characters. You can follow and be followed by others. This site is focused more on building personal relationships than anything else. I am planning on experimenting with this platform in the next few months and will keep you updated.
Action Tip: Signup for twitter and you’ll get addicted. Don’t believe me, try it? :)

9. Zillow’s Duscussions Similar to Trulia’s Voices, you can use Zillow to answer questions from people that need answer. By answering questions, you become an authority and who knows, you might get your next deal there. As always, don’t spam and do be selfish.

+ Part I: Top 9 Real Estate Social Media Sites
+ Top 7 Real Estate Social Media Sites [Real Estate Internet Marketing]

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Part I: Top 9 Real Estate Social Media Sites

I've recently been reading a bunch of Peter Kolat's blog posts on social networking. He has a wealth of knowledge on real estate marketing and offers some insightful tips on his blog. For those of you who do not know who Peter is, he is the founder of the Real Estate Black Book.

Here are his "Top Real Estate Social Media Sites" for real estate professionals, with an additional 2 bonus sites from SIREN (SIBOR and StreetEasy). Come Back tomorrow for Part II and see the other 4 social media sites Peter recommends.

1. ActiveRain ActiveRain is a Real Estate Networking site for real estate professionals. As of me writing this post, there are over 98,000 members there. You can signup for a free membership, create your profile, and start interacting with the community.
Action Tip: Make sure you use their unique referral program. As of right now, the service is free. You can use the referral service to find the best real estate professionals, real estate leads and form local real estate relationships. One of the best parts of the referral service is the ability to search on a local level, right in your county.

2. Facebook One of my favorite social media sites. I use Facebook on regular basis. Unlike Myspace, Facebook has developed a platform that prevents spam. It is a very professional network that is growing at an unprecedantant rate. Everyone on Facebook is real. Their identities are real and because of their profiles, you can form great relationships in a much better way.
Action Tip: This tip was one of the tips I was going to share on my July 22 Brain Dump Webinar But I decided to share it here. (If you are going to be on the webinar, don’t worry because I have more tips to share with you).

Unlike other Ad services around the internet, you can target your EXACT audience on a much deeper level by using Facebook Ads These ads, when properly configured, will be displayed to the right person at the right time. You can target your audience by age, location, keywords and their relationship. Also, I will be sharing some more real estate marketing secrets with my Real Estate Internet Marketing Domination Facebook Group in the near future.

3. FlippingPad All real estate, all real estate investing. Flipping pad is designed specifically for real estate investors. It’s a great site for creating relationships with other real estate investors in your area and around the country. You can list your Pads (flips) there very easily. If you are a rehabber or a wholesaler, this site is a great opportunity to network and get new leads.
Action Tip: Interact with other investors in the forums section of the site. Ask and answer questions that provide valuable information. More you interact, more visible you become among flipping pad members.

4. LinkedIn Linked in is one of my favorite sites I use to form relationship among real estate professionals and other industries. This one site has provided me with many leads, different relationships and outsourcing opportunities. Sign up is free as well. Once you signup you can start networking and building relationships with others.
Action Tip: Make sure to build out your profile. When people search for you, they can find you by your keywords, places, employment, and experience you have in your resume. When searching for people, never spam others. When asking people to be added to your network, it is best to ask people you know first.

Just like Facebook, LinkedIn is very protective of their members and can cancel your membership if they suspect you are spamming other members. If you would like to join my network, send me a message from my LinkedIn profile , tell me you saw me on my blog and I’ll be more than happy to network with you.

5. Localism How would you like to own your neighborhood? The entire neighborhood! Well, here’s your chance. Join this site and whenever someone goes over to their city on Localism, you’ll be right there in front of them. So, become a neighbor at Localism and you are well on your way.
Action Tip: To become the Top Neighbor, make sure you provide quality information on your blog there. I’ve noticed that top neighbors are the ones who are most active.

SIREN's Bonus Sites:

1. SIBOR The Staten Island Board of REALTORS® (SIBOR) is a 2,400+ member, not-for-profit trade association that serves real estate professionals throughout the borough of Staten Island and surrounding areas. Its purpose is to enhance the ability and opportunity of its members to conduct their business successfully and ethically; and to promote the preservation of the public’s right to own, transfer and use real property. All members belong to the New York State Association of REALTORS® and the National Association of REALTORS®.

2. StreetEasy StreetEasy, Inc. operates an online community for the real estate industry. It provides information for home shoppers, such as public school information, market data, mortgage rates, stats and trends, rentals, details about neighbors and neighborhoods, and building and neighborhood photos. The company helps the shoppers, sellers, and brokers to discuss things related to neighborhood and real estate.

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Video Feature: Facebook Etiquette Lessons

To my fellow real estate bloggers and industry professionals this video is especially dedicated for you. Here is a fun little video about some of the “rules” on Facebook. It is done in a retro type setting but the rules apply.

Also, check out the podcast on How To Dominate Your Local Real Estate Market Using Facebook, here.

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"Tweet" Your Properties on Twitter

Twitter basically bum rushed the social networking game and said I'm the new big dog in town, just as Facebook and Myspace did. The crazy thing about Twitter is that they are a non revenue generating business (for NOW at least), but yet they stay strong and are growing everyday. I'm sure they have plenty of big buyout offers on the table; after all every celebrity seems to Twit and endorse this site. It's almost like a novelty thing at this point.

To build on top of the Twitter phenomenon, there is a new site call Tweetlister that promotes properties over Twitter. So the question is, how can real estate agents use this site to their advantage? Well, Tweetlister takes all the listing details you input in to the site and automatically creates a 140 character “tweet” for you and gives you a landing page for the property. It's very simple to use and links directly to your Twitter account, with an intuitive control panel to help manage, schedule and post real estate lisitngs on Twitter.

As crazy as it sounds, if you are a real estate agent and have not heard of Twitter, check out this post from The Real Estate Tomato, Twitter Explained for the Real Estate Blogger.

Don't forget to check out SIREN on Twitter and show me some love!

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$8,000 Tax Credit Goes Viral on Facebook and Youtube

Social Networking has become a term that is universal throughout the globe, and is one of the most cost effective and efficient ways to disseminate information to the public.

NAHB is utilizing two of the most popular social networking sites, Facebook and Youtube, to educate first-time home buyers about the new $8,000 tax credit. To coincide with what I've been blogging about, I recommend you check out NAHB's Facebook and Youtube pages, which has access to the latest information and resources on the tax credit, including a consumer-focused Q&A video and television public service announcement. There is a lot of valuable information to get consumers off of the fence and into their first home.

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