Mastering LinkedIn for Real Estate Success

While LinkedIn is a go-to platform in the tech industry for networking, lead generation, and recruitment, it’s notably underutilized in the real estate sector. With over 930 million users, many of whom are in the prime demographic for home buying, LinkedIn offers an immense opportunity. In this guide, we’ll break down actionable steps you can take to leverage LinkedIn for your real estate business.

LinkedIn : Your Digital Business Card

Think of LinkedIn as your online business card—a snapshot of your professional identity. Therefore, keeping it updated is crucial. Whenever I network in person, I make it a point to connect on LinkedIn. This offers a dual benefit: a quick professional summary of each other.

Build Your LinkedIn Profile

The first thing you need to do is build up your LinkedIn profile. Again, your profile is your digital professional reputation

1. Professional Photo: If you’re a seasoned realtor, you likely already have a top-notch headshot. If not, Groupon has affordable options for local professional photography.
2. Banner Image: Use a banner that echoes your brand. Optimal dimensions are 1584 x 396 pixels. Fiverr is an inexpensive resource if you need one designed.
3. Compelling Headline: This is the tagline that appears under your name and should succinctly summarize your professional essence. Keep it within 220 characters. For inspiration, check out profiles of other successful realtors.
4. Showcase Accomplishments: Use the ‘Featured’ section to display your awards and media mentions.
5. Your Professional Bio: In the “About” section, this is where you can write a professional bio.  With a 2600 character limit, you have ample space to tell your story.  This is where you can use ChatGPT to help craft your bio.
6. Fill out your profile completely: Yes, this may feel mundane, but take the time to fill out your education, job experiences, awards etc. This does a few things. One, is that it paints a picture of you professionally. Two, it gives people the ability to relate to you (maybe you worked at the same company or went to the same school). Finally, it helps with your searchability.
7. Ask for recommendations. Linkedin makes it easy to ask for recommendations. Positive recommendations will really help build your credibility.
8. Personalize your LinkedIn URL: When you first create a LinkedIn profile, it will create a unique URL like linkedin.com/in/rforeman123. However, LinkedIn has the ability for you to customize your URL. Mine for example is https://www.linkedin.com/in/startupjedi/  (this shows that I’m a nerd and I like startups).

Build Your Network

The bigger your network, the bigger the reach you have.  I personally have almost 18,000 connections.   How do  you build it?  One connection at a time.  Here’s some advice on how to grow your network:

1. Connect with past and present coworkers, friends, and family.  These should be people that you genuinely know.  I caution that if you try to connect with people that you don’t know, you may be penalized for too many rejections (this happened to me).
2. When you meet someone, connect with them on Linkedin shortly afterwards.
3. On your business card, put a QR Code to your Linkedin profile.  This makes it easier for people to connect with you.
4. Accept all connection requests.  For the most part, I accept all connection requests.  The exceptions are if they don’t have a profile picture, their profile is in a different language, or it’s an obvious fake account.  Sadly though, usually, when I accept the connection, they immediately want to sell me something (don’t be that guy).
5. If you want to connect with someone you don’t know, add a personal message explaining why you want to connect with them.

Elevate Your Professional Brand

Don’t just use LinkedIn to post your listings; you need to offer value first. Share insights, trends, and valuable information related to real estate. This positions you as a subject matter expert and keeps you top-of-mind for when your connections are ready to make a move.

As a realtor, what I would post would be things that would be helpful to someone that’s looking to buy a new house (like trends, interest rates, things to look for etc.).  This would build your brand as someone that is an expert in real estate.  Your connection may not be currently looking for a house, but when they do, they may remember you as a competent knowledgeable agent.   How often do you post?  I personally try to post one item a day.

Engage Your Network

One way to get onto more people’s feed is to engage them.  What does that mean?  Well, you should check in LinkedIn regularly and like and comment on their posts.  If a connection is hosting an event, help them promote it by reposting it.  In addition, there are numerous groups on LinkedIn.  Join those groups and post relevant content.  The one group that might be interested in your listings would be investor groups.  However, they are mainly looking for deals.

Final Thoughts

In general, I don’t see many real estate agents marketing on LinkedIn.  If you do this right, you’ll be marketing in a space where there are a lot of high value individuals that would be your ideal client.

About the Author

Rich Foreman is the Chief Operating Officer and Co-Founder of MarketingHero Inc., bringing a wealth of experience to the role. His career highlights include being the Founding Chief Technology Officer at CORDICO, where he spearheaded the development of the innovative CordicoShield / CordicoFire Wellness App. This noteworthy accomplishment earned CORDICO the Sacramento Innovation Award in 2021 and led to the company’s acquisition by Lexipol in 2020 after generating a seven-figure annual recurring revenue.
Rich’s academic credentials are just as impressive. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Industrial Engineering from the University of Washington, and a Master of Public Administration from Troy State University. His continuous thirst for knowledge is evident in his completion of certificate programs in Artificial Intelligence from esteemed institutions, namely MIT and UC Berkeley.

As a former officer in the U.S. Navy, Rich brings discipline and strategic thinking to his work. His entrepreneurial spirit is demonstrated in his co-authored book, “Tap into the Mobile Economy,” and his leadership roles in various startup organizations. He served as the Founding Director of the Sacramento Chapter of Startup Grind, and he continues to actively participate as a board member of StartupSac.

In addition to his technological prowess and strategic leadership, Rich has also demonstrated his business acumen in his co-founding of Apptology, which was recognized as Small Business of the Year in 2014 by the Sacramento Asian Pacific Chamber. Rich’s expertise and achievements have led to features on various media platforms, including KCRA3, NEWS10, 1170 Tech AM PowerDrive, Business Radio Money 105.5, SiliconIndia, the Sacramento Business Journal, and the Sacramento Bee. Moreover, Rich has dutifully served his community as a Utility Commissioner for the City of Folsom.55

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