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Can Social Media sell my Vienna home?

June 17, 2011 By Doug Francis

Answer: No… but it will play a role.

Of course there are plenty of SM gurus out there who are preaching a very different answer to my question, but I really don’t think they have any idea what it takes to sell a home or the tools that I see actual home buyers using every day. People aren’t hanging on every Tweet mentioning their local real estate market (okay, maybe Realtors are) but Northern Virginia buyers Bob and Mary Beth certainly aren’t.

Bob and Mary Beth are putting in their criteria (see below) and are waiting for an e-mail alert with snappy pics.

Promoting you’re on Facebook or Twitter has become, I dare say, …cliché.

Doug Francis Twitter Social Media Vienna VA

Using Twitter is only one pillar of Social Media strategy

So what will sell your Eudora colonial in that cute suburban cul-de-sac to Bob and MB? The old-fashioned truth is that your home needs to be in excellent condition and priced right. Vienna VA home buyers are looking at online photos of your home on sites such as Homesdatabase, Trulia, Redfin or Zillow only after they have received an e-mailed “alert” from the site. Often on their iPhones during a meeting at work.

And if your house passes that test only then will they show up for an in-person tour.

They aren’t searching for Tweets at #ViennaVARealEstate

Last year I “liked” a Facebook page for a real estate brokerage on Nantucket after stumbling across a post, but the result was a wave of  Facebook spam of hot new listings every thirty minutes. These were people who did not “get” what social media can do for their cause, but were viewing it as a free advertising opportunity to crush the competition. They were missing the point of it all and I promptly “un-liked” them.

About 600 million people, including myself, have found Facebook to be an opportunity to have fun with people from many parts in our lives. I haven’t lived in Vienna my whole life so to reconnect with old friends from Boston or Providence makes me understand that the world is a much smaller place, and that my life is actually pretty normal. (Okay, normal is subjective)

To properly sell your home, get it ready for the market, have great photos online, tell your friends that you are moving, and then the “social internet” will spread the word about your home being on the market. Using Facebook to tell your friends that you are moving to Florida will create the natural conversation about your Vienna house being on the market for sale. The concept here is very different than that of the realty firm on Nantucket… because you are leveraging your social network to help sell your home.

Believe it or not, your friends will be rooting for you to get your home sold.

For more real estate strategies, read my blog some more or send me an e-mail.

 

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Filed Under: Blog, Home Seller Tips Tagged With: Facebook, technology, Vienna Virginia

About Doug Francis

A Realtor specializing in unique and new homes around Vienna, Virginia, Doug started writing a first-hand blog about his everyday real estate experiences a decade ago. In-depth, helpful and fun has always been the objective. Outside real estate, he was profiled in a commercial for Verisign's "Where the World Clicks" global ad campaign, and was quoted in Money Magazine's Best Places to Live article on Vienna (#3!). He's a Boston University graduate who feels morning coffee is non-negotiable.

Vienna real estate agent Doug Francis

Everyone has a different reason for moving. Helping people focus and put a life plan together isn’t what most people think of when they hear “Realtor”.

Where you are in life today will be our starting point, from first home, marriage, kids, cross-country relocation, retirement, divorce, to estates. Yes, I’ve helped people navigate happy and difficult times.

All conversations are confidential, and helping my clients achieve their unique goals is my mission.

My background… I’ve been an active licensed agent in Virginia for 25 years, work at TTR Sotheby’s International Realty in McLean, and sell homes in all price ranges. I donate to the Town of Vienna tree replacement fund, participate in a neighborhood citizens association, and try my best to stay in shape.

Let me help you: Email doug@dougfrancis.com or call me at (703) 304-6827 to discuss your plans. Cheers!

Filmed in Vienna and McLean

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About Doug Francis

I am a Realtor with TTR Sotheby's International Realty® just outside Washington D.C. in Northern Virginia. I have been a full-time Realtor licensed in Virginia since 1991, and cover a big territory specializing in the Vienna real estate market and custom homes for sale.

I have unique knowledge of digital real estate marketing, and my marketing starts here. My clients have been attracted to my results-oriented strategy for years, and I am accepting new clients for 2023 right now.

Thanks for reading, and feel free to contact me at 703-304-6827 or email me at doug@dougfrancis.com anytime!

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