If you’re stuck with how to use your Facebook business page vs personal page, I want to make it super simple for you on this post. Over the last 5 years there has been many changes at Facebook, but it’s never been more clear the distinction between the two.
Do you need a Facebook business page or personal page?
It depends on what your goals are as each are used for two entirely different objectives. I believe you should use your personal page for referral marketing efforts and your Facebook business page for cold marketing or advertising efforts.
FacebookBusiness Page vs Personal Page: Which is best for marketing your database?
I cannot tell you how many referrals I’ve received from Facebook since 2011, but it’s one of my best real estate marketing tools for referrals. Using Facebook as one of your lead sources is not just suggested, IT SHOULD BE REQUIRED! The most important part of your business is marketing.
Referrals come from the relationships, not strangers. Your personal page on Facebook is nothing more than a large relationship center of everyone you know of and knows of you. It allows us to stay relevant amongst your “database”, but you must remember that Facebook is a social media platform and not Craig’s List. Therefore the way you market yourself on Facebook should be in a “sell without selling type of way”.
Why couldn’t you just tell your daily story on Facebook as it relates to real estate?
Don’t you come across some pretty interesting things on a daily basis that other people would like to see? Cool views, sweet kitchens, moldy houses, or even happy clients?
Any one of these can be a Facebook moment that reminds people you are in real estate.
The goal of referral marketing is to stay on top of mind and Facebook allows us to continuously remind our database what we do for a living so that they can remember us when they come across a referral opportunity or need our service directly.
Many agents try to build a business page and use that to post, but the truth is that the majority of your “friends” will not like your business page and its reach will be very low.
Think about the traditional real estate marketing tools you would use to with communicate your “database” or sphere of influence. We call this our audience. You might have an email list or a monthly mailer you send out. Social media has given us a 3rd dimension to stay on top of mind with more people in a visual way. Referrals and repeat business are the lifeblood of all agent business (60+%!).
Real estate is not something people buy frequently, but if they remember that you’re an agent and they personally like you. It’s a much better strategy to just keep reminding them in a “sell without selling” type of way so that you are thought of when real estate comes to mind. That’s how simple it is.
Common Objections About Posting Real Estate On Your Personal Page
“I don’t want to feel sleazy posting about real estate”
Don’t post sleazy stuff then. Don’t treat it like a classified ads section and share stuff that is funny, cute, fun, cool, and whatever else you think that would create engagement.
“It’s not professional”
It’s not supposed to be. Be you. You don’t want to be a slick salesman always trying to sell something. Sell without selling and be human. It’s ok to make mistakes and be like everyone else.
“How much should I post?”
As much as possible, just don’t be annoying with it.
“I don’t want creepers on my personal page”
Don’t accept their friend requests then. The more “friends” you have the more opportunity you will have for business. You should be friends with anyone you know or knows of you. If you want to double your business, then double your audience.
Facebook Business Page vs Personal Page : Your Business Page Is To Run Ads Only
Your Facebook business page should be the complete opposite of what your personal page is. You only need one if you’re going to invest in Facebook ads. It’s organic reach is said to be as low as 5% of your likes so it’s become a pay to play thing, which doesn’t mean it’s a bad thing, you just need to define your strategy.
I love Facebook ads. They are great if you know how to use them the right way.
Some of the audiences you can target will be your database. Did you know you could upload your database right to Facebook and target them in ads? The reason this is so important is because only about 15-18% of your personal page will actually see your posts. You can increase the amount of your database who sees your posts through running ads.
With recent changes at Facebook, generating leads has become more difficult. I like to treat my Facebook marketing as more of a branding platform nowadays. You don’t need a big budget and it’s extremely easy to stay in front of the RIGHT people with custom and retargeting audiences, but that’s another post.
If you would like more information on how to run ads on Facebook you should check out Grant Wise’s software Witly.
in Conclusion when. it comes to using Facebook business page vs personal page, your personal page is for reminding your relationships you’re in real estate.
You don’t need a Facebook business page until you are ready to pay to play. It’s a great tool to use to drive traffic to your website, but you have to have the right offer and the right content to create that engagement. It will be interesting to see where Facebook goes in the future as it’s changed so much but stick with the advice here for now.
If you have any additional questions or need help with your real estate marketing check out some of our services, especially if you want to build your brand with video!