How to use TikTok as a Real Estate Agent

Marketing yourself in real estate is often harder than you think. It is not only in-person marketing and door to door, you have to navigate social media too. There are so many platforms that cater to all different audiences. The next big thing for real estate marketing is TikTok. Here are some things to consider when starting a real estate TikTok. 

Step 1: DO IT

TikTok is truly the next big wave of social media and it is super easy to jump on it! 

Step 2: Get to know how the app works

Start by getting a TikTok account and familiarize yourself with the trending sounds. Trending sounds are what you are going to want to use for most of your videos. It is how people will start to find you without actually knowing who you are. 

Step 3: Follow other professionals in the real estate industry

Following your fellow agents, photographers and local businesses is a great place to start your following. 9 out of 10 times they will follow you back. 

Step 4: Find a sound

Once you are familiar with how TikTok works, find a sound you really like. If you want your video to organically perform, find a trending/viral TikTok sound. You can use the sound to voice over, film your surroundings or have a put together “sketch.”

Step 5: Use a fun caption and use hashtags

Captioning your video is just as important as the content of the video. It will feed the algorithm on TikTok and with SEO. If you are using a trend, there is often a generic caption that you can use on your video. But don’t forget to spice it up. Make the caption fit your personal brand and the content of your video. Adding hashtags is a MUST! Each video you post should always have the hashtags “fyp” or “foryoupage.” These are how you will get your video on the average person’s feed. The “for you page” is the basic feed that shows up when anyone opens the app. Using those hashtags will give a higher likelihood of your video showing up. Then add 2-3 more hashtags that pertain to the content within the video. Note: there is a 150 character limit for captions. 

PRO-TIP: Use at least 1 trending hashtag even if it does not pertain to the content of the video. It will also help more people see your video. 

Step 6: Post your first video

The hardest hurdle with TikTok is getting over the fear of your first post. TikTok is a very personal platform and it can be challenging to get the confidence to post that first video. Good news is, it gets easier. After you post your first video, the next one will be easier to post and it gets easier and easier. Once you hit publish, sit back and let it go viral! 

Step 7: Keep creating

One cool thing about TikTok is it super easy to save content to post later. When you are about to post a video, you can hit the “Draft” button to save it for later. In your drafts, you are able to re-edit, re-caption and post at any point. One thing to remember is that your drafts are only visible to you, even if another person has your log in, you will only be able to see a draft one your own device. 

Helpful Tips: 

1. You can add text on top of any video and have it become “automated.” This talk-to-text feature is really helpful for sounds that are all instrumental. 

2. You can add stickers to videos. 

3. You don’t have to film content using the TikTok App. You can upload video AND photos from your device and it can set it to fit the sound you choose. 

4. You don’t need to know ANY video editing software to make a cool TikTok. The app is rather self explanatory and it is very easy to mess around with all the features.

   
   

   Haley Galvin, Realtopia Real Estate Marketing/Brand Manager