July 29, 2021
Ginger Crosbie
Oh yeah, and you’ve probably never heard of them.
It’s undeniable…
Whether you’re in real estate or another industry, you can’t deny the way that video can captivate an audience.
Consider this…
When you’re scrolling through social media, regardless of the platform, what content gets you to stop your scroll most often?
Is it a lengthy status update someone had written about their cat? Likely no.
What about that video with the flashy headline that’s answering the question you were just talking about with your friend? That probably caught your attention.
In today's fast-paced world where the answer to any question is a keyboard stroke and a click away, you need to be able to stand out from the competition if you want to get a prospect's attention.
Google, YouTube (owned by Google), and Pinterest are three of the top places that people go when they have a question. And if a video happens to pop up as a result you can bet that they are at least going to click on it to see if it answers their question.
When it comes to gaining more influence and having buyers and sellers seek you out for your knowledge and expertise, there are six ways you can do that. Robert Cialdini talks about the science of influence in his book, Influence. The science of influence are:
Look, your leads have questions. And top agents in today’s competitive market are always looking at how they can use one of these methods to influence more buyers and sellers and answer their questions.
Do you need to start a Youtube channel and create regular content in hopes of getting more leads?
Not necessarily.
But video is a great medium for building authority. And when you establish yourself as an authority people are more likely to listen and trust what you have to say.
When people already like and trust you before they meet you, your transaction rate speeds up because you are that go-to person. You’re the local celebrity they know and trust. In their mind, you’re their best option because they already know that you know your stuff.
“People work with people they like”, Stephen Covey, The Speed in Trust.
Using video in your business can help solidify you as the trusted expert in your area.
This isn’t about dominating on Youtube. It’s about creating a cohesive and comprehensive experience for your clients.
Below is our list of the top real estate agents that are using video to reach their leads, are providing value to the market, are using one or more of the 6 ways to gain influence and are killing it.
Name / Brokerage: Brendan Spear, Broker/Owner Caprika Realty
Why we love it: Brendan Spear is the broker/Owner of Caprika Realty in Annapolis, MD. Caprika Realty is not only using video to share their listings, market updates, and advice, but Brendan and his team regularly get video testimonials from their clients and share them to their YouTube channel and Facebook group.
Caprika Realty believes in providing 5-star service to their clients and who better to tell their prospects about what it’s like to work with Caprika Realty than Caprika’s past clients. Talk about amazing social proof!
He might not have a huge following, but he definitely maximizes his exposure using video. He genuinely wants to help his audience and prospective clients have a stress-free home buying or selling journey. He uses social proof to drive home the fact that they are the local expert for anyone looking at buying or selling a home in the Annapolis area.
Name / Brokerage: Shaheedah Hill, Shaheedah Hill Real Estate
Why we love it: Shaheedah Hill Real Estate posts regular home buyer tips to her YouTube Channel so homebuyers can “Confidently Buy Their First Home”. She brings energy and enthusiasm to all her videos.
Shaheedah makes great use of Commitment and Consistency to gain influence with her audience. In each video, Shaheedah encourages her audience to like, subscribe, and turn on notifications so that they can be notified when she uploads a new video. She asks for micro-commitments from her audience which encourages them to consistently show up to her channel and content. If a viewer opts in by subscribing and turning on notification then they are more likely to consistently show up, consume her content and get to know her, which increases their likelihood of working with her in the future.
Name / Brokerage - Allen Johnson, AJ Team Realty - Keller Williams Realty
Why We Love It: Allen just made the cover of Real Producers. He makes a ton of content, some highly produced while others are shot on his iPhone. He is clearly knowledgeable when it comes to real estate (heck, he wrote this book).
AJ made our list because he is incredibly likable and knowledgeable which helps him gain influence with his audience in the DMV area. Prospects will not only find real estate-related content, but they are also learning more about AJ.
He even has a video sharing his Top 3 Meals In Aruba. This type of content, along with his real estate content, help his audience get to know him and like him which helps him gain influence.
Name / Brokerage: Suzy Morrison, The Suzy Morrison Team
Why We Love It: Though Suzy does a lot of great real estate market content to help keep buyers and sellers informed of local trends, Suzy also has really great feel-good content which helps her gain influence through liking. For example, in this video, she is showcasing a local rescue organization to help bring awareness to causes that she thinks people in her community will care about.
She is gaining influence with buyers and sellers while helping to highlight other local businesses that support the community her home buyers and sellers will live in.
Creating this type of content benefits her business because it shows that she knows her area, shows her interests, and helps her audience relate to her. If they like her they will likely want to do business with her.
Name / Brokerage: Nicole Nark, Nark Homes
Why we love it: She purchased her first home with no prior real estate knowledge and ended up making several financial mistakes in the process. Now Nicole creates regular home buying tips for first-time home buyers. Her mission is to create the content that she wishes she would have had back then as a first-time homebuyer.
Though all the videos on Nicole’s channel help establish her as a real estate authority for first-time home buyers, this video where she shares the “9 Life-Changing Lessons Buying My First Home Taught Me” really helps to drive home the fact that she is an authority in this space.
She speaks directly to the lessons that first-time homebuyers learn in the process from the standpoint of being a first-time homebuyer.
Name / Brokerage: Jeb Smith, Coldwell Banker Realty
Why we love it: Jeb has been in the real estate business for 18+ years started creating content on Youtube 7 years ago. Like the others on this list, his primary goal is to educate home buyers and sellers.
With his video “The Housing Market Is About To Flip” he uses his real-life experience being a “boots on the ground” agent and his knowledge of trends to appeal to those home buyers and sellers that are concerned with Scarcity. Jeb isn’t creating scarcity in his content, but he is talking about a scarcity that many of his prospects are concerned about. Addressing this and using his knowledge, data, and trends to back up his point of view really helps him gains influence with prospects.
Name / Brokerage: Javier Vidana, My Home Group
Why we love it: Javier is a licensed real estate agent in Arizona with My Home Group Real Estate. He uploads content multiple times per week designed to help home buyers and sellers in their home journey. His videos are informative and he answers a lot of questions that people have.
In the video we linked to above, he shares how he and his family are preparing to buy their home in this wild market. Javier definitely uses his video content to build authority, but equally important, Javier does a really great job of using reciprocity to gain influence with his viewers. In the description, he shares links to freebies that viewers can download in exchange for an email address. He uses reciprocity to gain influnece by providing something viewers want and is useful in exchange for their email address which helps him grow his business.
If you’re a real estate agent that’s looking to maximize your income-generating potential then you’ll definitely want to consider how you can gain influence with your prospects using the Science of Influence.
Remember people like to do business with people they like. It’s that simple.
And a simple way for you to gain influence with buyers and sellers is by using the Science of Influence: Social Proof, Liking, Reciprocity, Scarcity, Authority, and Commitment & Consistency.
What do you think of our list? Do you agree with us? Have you heard of any of the agents before? Did we leave off someone you know who is using video to gain influence, grow their business, and is killing it?
Let us know.
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