As I was listening to a podcast this week, I came across something interesting that I wanted to share.  There is a lot of talk in the real estate circles about a coming recession and how to prepare for the market shift.  While this may be true, there is another recession I wanted to talk about. 

The recession I want to talk about is the Social Media Recession.

Multiple Social Media Channels

There are so many social media channels out there.  In fact, many of the coaching companies that are training agents are encouraging the agents to engage with social media.  ‘It is where the eyeballs are’.  Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, YouTube, LinkedIn, and TikTok.  What the podcast explained with the ‘Social Media Recession’ is that the amount of engagement people are getting through these channels is shrinking.  They explained that people are following so many channels on so many outlets that they are seeing less and less of the channels they subscribe to. 

My Time is Valuable

All of the time, energy and effort you are expending creating entertaining content is not getting the return that it used to.   I would recommend you ask yourself this question.  Who is watching my content and how is it getting them to engage with me.  While there is a benefit to engaging on these outlets, the question is this … are you getting a compensatory return for the time, energy and effort you invest?   

Who Is My True Audience?

One thing I have noticed is that much of the content I see on my feeds are other real estate professionals because the algorithms say that I am interested in that content.  If my goal is to engage and attract other agents, this may be a benefit, but if my goal is to engage and attract with potential clients, that is not my target audience.  Are the right people even seeing my posts?  How many real estate agents are going to buy or sell a home with you?

The Zombie Effect

Another thing that has been studied extensively is what happens to your brain as you scroll through the social media channels?  In mind mapping experiments, they discover that the reason people become so engaged with social media is that the actual act of scrolling is similar to what happens when you are watching TV.  Your neurons stop firing.  You enter a zombie-like state and you actually stop thinking.  Shutting down your frontal lobe (where critical thinking takes place) is an addictive behavior because it stops the worry and stress.  You basically ‘Bliss Out’ and we keep going back to get the hit, just like you would if you were addicted to a powerful drug.  In other words, you don’t go there for the content. You go there to ‘get high’

Social Media’s True Purpose

Social media has it’s purpose.  In my mind, it is a great place to create social proof that you are actually doing your job with the people you have a relationship with (Your Sphere).  It is a way to help stay top of mind with your sphere.  (I don’t recommend this be the only way to communicate with your sphere)  Social Media is much less effective at generating actual leads and attracting new business.  If you knew the percentages of agents that are actually getting a small return through their social media channels you would find such a low percentage that you would likely pursue other methods for finding new business. 

In conclusion, as we enter the changing market and find fewer transactions available … how you utilize your time will determine how successful you are with your business.  Make sure every minute counts and you are auditing your time and your outcomes so that you can get the highest rate of return for your time, energy and effort. Keep in mind the effects of Social Media Recession.

Rod Moser, Broker | Business Coach