Real estate agents, are you ready to knock your lead generation strategy out of the park and make serious income in real estate? Good! Then let’s talk about how Facebook Ads (i.e. Meta Ads) are one of the easiest ways to get real estate leads today.
Meta Ads (i.e. Facebook Ads) have allowed many of our real estate agents to fast forward through their real estate careers. For example, Tony, who works in Florida, continues to sell many million-dollar homes through Meta Ads.
When Tony needs leads, he submits a request into our internal team hub. Then, our in-house digital agency creates the campaigns, leads show interest, and Tony starts calling and following up with the leads that come in.
If you want to see the same amazing results, there are a few steps that will get you there in no time. Let’s get into it.
Step 1: Create a Personal Meta Profile
First things first, you need a profile from which to work. Setting up a Meta/Facebook profile is simple.
- Go to Meta and click on “Create New Account” or “Sign Up.”
- Fill in the required information, including your name, email address or phone number, password, date of birth, and gender.
- Follow the prompts to complete the profile setup, such as adding a profile picture and connecting with friends.
- Verify your email address or phone number to activate your account.
EXPERT NOTES
Keep in mind that while personal profiles are necessary to run Meta Ads, you’re NOT running ads through the personal profile. In the next step, you’ll see how running ads actually works.
Another thing I hear a lot is that some agents are locked out of Facebook Advertising. Now, if you are, you’ve likely already appealed and created another Facebook Ad account. If nothing is working, you’ll need to create another personal Meta account instead.
Make sure you use a VPN to create that other personal account. If you don’t, Facebook staff will find out that you’re attempting to circumvent them with a different email or phone number.
Once you’ve got another personal account ready to go, it’s time to start moving on into marketing territory!
Step 2: Set Up a Meta Page for Your Business
Once your personal account is ready, it’s time to get down to business with a business account. Here’s how:
- Log in to your personal Facebook profile.
- Click on the downward arrow in the top right corner and select “Create Page” from the drop-down menu.
- Choose the “real estate” page category
- Provide the necessary information about your business, such as the page name, category, and contact details.
- Customize your page by adding a profile picture, cover photo, and relevant information about your business.
EXPERT NOTES
It’s not necessary for you to create content on this business page. However, you do need to fill in as much information as you can. Fill in your hours of operation, location, banner, profile pic, etc. You want Facebook to see you as authentic…and, of course, you want consumers to see the same. An empty business page is a big red flag for most people!
As a bonus to really boost your business page, consider asking 3-5 past clients to give you a review on the page. Reviews will boost your SEO and help you keep up a reputable front for the leads who come in from other areas.
Step 3: Create a Business Manager Account
Your next step is to get a business manager account going so that you can use your business page to launch Facebook Ads for real estate.
- Visit Facebook Business Manager and click on “Create Account.”
- Enter your business name, your name, and your business email address.
- Follow the prompts to complete the setup process and verify your account.
- You’ll get directed to the Business Suite, but you’ll want to go instead to the old layout “Business Settings.”
- Here, you’ll want to do 4 things:
- Add users to the Business Manager Account (e.g., your VA or others who help run things).
- Add your Business Pages to the Business Manager Account.
- Update your Business Information.
- Create an Ad Account.
Step 4: Create an Ad Account
When you get into the Business Manager account, you’ll finally get the option to create an Ad account. Follow the steps to create the Ad account, including inputting your credit card information. Don’t forget to add that information to the billing section in the Ads manager site as well!
Step 5: Plan Your Ad Campaign
Now, your Ads account is set up! It’s officially time to start running some Ads. Before you get started:
- Determine your advertising goals and objectives—what type of lead are you looking for (buyers, sellers, etc.)? How many do you hope to get?
- Define your target audience based on their demographics, interests, and location.
- Decide on your budget and the duration of the ad campaign.
- Develop compelling ad content, including images or videos and ad copy.
It’s that easy! As soon as that’s set up, you can create and launch your ad.
Step 6: Create and Launch Your Meta Ad
You’re ready to start bringing in leads! Let’s launch your ad.
- Access the Facebook Ads Manager dashboard.
- Click on “Create” to start creating a new ad campaign.
- Follow the prompts to select your campaign objective, target audience, ad format, and budget.
- Design your ad by adding engaging visuals, compelling copy, and a strong call to action.
- Preview and review your ad to ensure it meets Facebook’s ad guidelines.
- Set the start and end dates for your ad campaign.
- Launch your Facebook Ads!
Step 7: Monitor and Optimize Your Ad Performance
Launching an ad is far from the end of the story. Once your ad is out there, it’s crucial that you follow its progress to ensure it’s making headway.
- Regularly check ad performance using the Ads Manager dashboard.
- Track key metrics such as impressions, reach, clicks, and conversions.
- Make adjustments to your ads based on performance data to improve their effectiveness.
- Experiment with different ad variations, targeting options, and ad formats to optimize your results.
- Remember to comply with Facebook’s advertising policies and guidelines to ensure your ads run smoothly and reach your intended audience.
Optimizing an ad may sound difficult, but it really isn’t. Your goal here is to try different things until you get the best result! If an image ad isn’t doing great, try a video ad and see if it does better. If your ad isn’t reaching your target audience, try new settings to reach a different demographic.
Just like anything, setting up and creating an effective ad campaign takes practice and dedication. Don’t give up after the first try! Keep optimizing until you get major results.
Step 8: Follow Up
Don’t EVER forget to follow up! Once you get a lead, take the time to reach out to them as soon as possible. Hire a VA to help you if you don’t have time yourself! Whatever you do, don’t fail to call, text, or email a lead right away to get the conversation started.
Once you have a lead in hand, don’t give up on them! Reach out regularly until you get a response. If they’re not ready to transact yet, add them to a drip campaign so that they’re still in your database for the moment they are ready to buy or sell.
As you can see, using Facebook Ads for real estate lead generation really is easy. Take a few minutes to set up an account and design an ad and you’ll start seeing results in no time!