How can GeoSocial Targeting benefit property professionals?
The Internet has changed our world immeasurably over the last 10 years. Nowhere more so than for us as individuals, and as consumers.
We now enjoy a greater level of FITO than ever before:-
- Freedom, to investigate the world from our PCs, laptops, mobiles, and armchairs. To share the results with others, instantly, at the click of a button;
- Independence, to make those discoveries OUR way, from OUR perspective, and build new, transglobal, relationships as a result. What we share gives others a better picture of who we really are, and what we’re about;
- Transparency, because our activities put us “out there” and make us discoverable, to make a name for ourselves, , to make a contribution, to tell it the way we see it;
- Openness, to connect with each other, make new friends, and share information with that growing band of “friends” and “followers”. As human beings we are social creatures, hence the exponential growth of Social Networks such as Facebook and Twitter where we talk to each other, do research, and look out for each other.
What does this have to do with property? Everything!
“When it comes to property, information really is power”
Mark Stucklin of Spanish Property Insight
Every single property, development, venue & event has a location
From that spins the client question “What is in the local area for me?”
Getting to grips with your methods of answering that question will establish your leadership position.
GeoSocial Targeting encompasses Public Relations, Promotion, Lead Generation, Customer Relations Management, and Aftercare all-in-one! It assumes you already have the social media infrastructure in place (which a specialist property internet marketing company like RGM Digital can help you with) then simply adds at least one extra layer: Location.
GeoSocial Targeting has changed the Marketing world, forever
Shoppers, buyers, consumers are, or can be, much more informed than ever before, and, with the advent of smartphones, that can mean information, immediately, and on the spot, through location-based services, which track through GPS &/or the phone’s nearest cell.
Local Search can “automatically” find whatever you are looking for, based on what it can find nearest to your actual location! It needs to find your property or development or venue, and inform, easily.
Recognising this level of sophistication, addressing it, and using it, are the elements of new marketing that are both vital & smart. The buyer of today is simply more savvy.
“Buyer” is the operative word. In the connected, global marketplace, attempts to “sell” are increasingly being met with derision. Organisations are struggling to come to terms with the fact they no longer “control” the message, or even their own sector. However, they can still “dominate”, but the approach has to be radically different. The consumer is king!
By changing our mindset we are offered the opportunity to build a community from within our audience. A community who recognises us as providers of trustworthy, reliable, information that is of value to them.
Through maps and networks we can provide them with locations they can find (on their mobiles), and independent recommendations for not only our venue but for many of the facilities and amenities they might need or be interested in around it. Tell them the date of your next Open Day, give them a link to a map, and show favoured local cafes, restaurants & hotels.
So what do you do?
Address this new marketplace with respect, understanding and professionalism. This will help to promote your brand, and, when handled properly, make you the “go to” source of information for an area or development.
You should feed the need for information by recognising that 60% of all US Internet access is now from a mobile device – laptop, iPad or phone – and that percentage will continue to grow around the world.
That access level brings with it another vital evolution of our times: we are not just social, we are geosocial – location-based networks such as Foursquare, Yelp, and Google & Facebook Places, enable us to identify, and display, our whereabouts instantly, and find out about the local scene, from just about anywhere.
Expect that some of your clients & prospects are already using geosocial networks!
Learn & implement
For a property business, the biggest bonus of “getting geosocial” is that it is a low cost source of ongoing, dynamic, marketing for both the business AND the property or venue you are promoting. It also offers a wonderful opportunity to build closer relationships with the local community because a burgeoning social network presence will inevitably help to promote local businesses and amenities as part of it’s natural growth.
Invest in other people, and the learning curve required to get this right – it is not going away, and is already becoming an integral part of the social sales process, right now, today. Understand that people are NOT interested in you, only what you can do for them. What useful, easily accessible, information you can provide.
By doing it as right as possible from the start you will massively differentiate yourselves from the others who will be playing catch-up, and you will set yourselves up to be leaders in a new field, and attract more followers as a result.
This is a new and evolving form of marketing, so it will be important to stay on top of it. It is not an instant fix, but the future rewards will make it worth the effort!
Many geosocial fans ensure that their “check-ins” appear in their Facebook and Twitter streams, so the wider world will also get to see these locations, and these are Google searchable = Opportunity!
People on Facebook
• More than 500 million active users
• 50% of our active users log on to Facebook in any given day
• Average user has 130 friends
• People spend over 700 billion minutes per month on Facebook
Global Reach
• More than 70 translations available on the site
• About 70% of Facebook users are outside the United States
• Over 300,000 users helped translate the site through the translations application
People on Twitter
• More than 175 million users
• Growing at 500,000 per day
• All tweets can be “GeoTagged” (user’s choice)
The tools
Foursquare
A fast-growing, people friendly, location-based network of some 6 million members which introduced the concept of “checking in” when you arrive somewhere, to tell your friends you are there, and available to meet up for chat, drinks, eats, whatever. They make this a little more fun by adding “badges” you can collect as you travel around, and if you check in somewhere in particular, on a regular basis, more than anyone else you can become the “Mayor” of that place (providing a golden marketing opportunity).
If this type of information shows up around a quality property you are showcasing, you need to be aware, before a prospective buyer brings it to your attention!
In the US, take-up of all things geosocial is considerably higher than in many places around the world, but, make no mistake, whilst it is currently leading the field, many other countries, and commercial sectors, will be striving to catch up in 2011.
Facebook Places
A more recent addition, but simply Facebook “getting on the bandwagon”, with potential to dominate very soon. A very serious contender for business consideration once it expands properly outside of the US by linking to Facebook Business Pages & Facebook Deals
Gowalla
A smaller, but innovative, competitor to Foursquare. First to enable attachment of photos to check-ins, which Foursquare added later. Now enables check-ins on 4 different geosocial networks at once – get your message out further, faster!
Yelp (North America, UK, parts of Europe)
Post & find pictures & reviews of local businesses
Google Maps
Find, and view, almost any address in the world
Ensure a property is properly described and located.
If it’s a business, there should be a Places Page with options to add reviews, direct from the venue, with a smartphone.
Google Places
Like a cross between a website & a review page for businesses – check to see if you have one. If not, set it up, then monitor for accuracy & comments on a regular basis. Encourage clients to contribute.
“Others are out there”
Various countries or regions of the world have smaller localised geosocial networks – it is well worth being aware of them for your territory. For instance, Orkut (Google owned) Popular in Brazil & India, but now being surpassed by Facebook
In wrapping up, please consider how “Getting GeoSocial” could help put both you and your property on the map.
Second, ensure any websites you are currently using are mobile friendly – many don’t load properly, take too long, or don’t make the important information easy to see & share.
Third, check regularly to ensure information about your business or property is up-to-date and accurate, especially contact details.
Written by Howard Moorey – Founder of Hojomo Group… connecting local business folk to make it a smaller world!
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