@Kris – I think you’ve hit it on the head with respect to your observations about folks who sell to the RE.net generating ROI from Twitter/social media. That is the channel. Look at Mike Simonsen at Altos Research and how he’s marketed his company and services brilliantly through SM channels.

But even for them, if someone wanted to track ROI from social media activities, the key issue is still going to be efficiency: desired outcome vs. investment (time = money). And once you have that metric, you still need to think about alternative uses of that time=money.

So to a large extent, the value of social media activities so far (may change in the future) does come down to some inchoate “brand value”. This is the specific point that Benn and I have discussed in the past. It’s a fascinating discussion for marketing-heads like me. I don’t know that Dell’s experience, or GaryVee’s experience, are particularly cogent to the experience of real estate brokers/agents, and that’s where further thought and investigation need to focus.

@Karen – I think the best point you’ve raised is something I’ve overlooked entirely: that social media is an amazing education/informational channel for professional networks. There is no doubt that I personally have gained from being on social web — just last night, I got advice on dealing with a feed & Google Analytics issue that would have taken many more painful hours of research for me to figure out, thanks to Twitter. That is an amazing usage, and it does have some sort of financial/business impact. Question is, how do we measure it?

On the other major point, that by leveraging social media in your local community, you’ve gained referral business, I think you touch on the issue there — which is alternative usage of that time (which =money) — but do not directly address it. If I were a coach advising you on your business, and we learned that with your 10 hours of Twitter/SM per week, you generated 1 referral per month on average, then I surely would want to compare that to what 10 hours per week spent doing XYZ other activity would have generated.

If, as in one of your examples, spending 10 hours per week calling and having lunch with former clients led to 2 referrals per month on average, then I would have to advise you to stop with the Twitter/SM and start hitting the phones and restaurants. Wouldn’t you?

The issue today is that no one knows. No one has actually collected any data, or conducted any sort of reliable study on the effectiveness of social media activities in generating revenues (direct or indirect). That remains a challenge for marketers in the real estate space to continue to think about.

@Jason -

I also think that the most effective channel might be (I have no evidence) is a hyperlocal news site. I’ve written about that before. Trouble is, it is not at all obvious to me that anyone’s figured out hyperlocal sites yet… and doubly unobvious that real estate agents are the best folks to run such sites. There is a clear conflict of interest going on when someone who makes a living selling properties in a particular neighborhood also purports to report on news, character, happenings, and issues with that same neighborhood. That’s a different topic, but it’s an important point you raised.

Whew – again, thanks, and looking forward to further conversations on this.

-rsh

Rob – I agree that being a real estate agent on Twitter is very different than someone selling a product. I use Twitter to network with people in my community. They are getting to know me as someone with ethics, market knowledge and can be trusted. I’ve been on Twitter for 5 months and received my first referral last week from a non-agent to a friend that isn’t on Twitter. When you think about the 7 year cycle, you need to remember that much of an agent’s business comes from referrals. By getting to know local Twitterers, I hope to become a trusted friend/resource. When they stumble on someone moving, I think at least some of them will pass on my name.

I also really like your point about examining what an agent would have done with those 10 hours had they not been on Twitter. Would they have called former clients? Walked a neighborhood with door hangers? Written more blog posts? Prepared a snail mail mailing? Would any of these activities given them a direct return? I don’t think so. All agents need to find a way to prospect for business. I don’t want to call on FSBO/expireds, send out mailings or join a BNI group. Twitter and my blog ARE my prospecting tools.

Kris – I agree with you completely that Twitter is all about fun and not an ROI activity if you are only interacting with agents. I bet you would find Twitter a different experience if you did a search on San Diego and started following regular people. I use Tweetdeck on my computer and have groups set up for St. Louis (#stl and #stlouis). I also periodically use one of the apps to search on location and add anyone in my town that sends @replies…I’m looking for people who will interact with me.

In every community, there are some agents that are the most well known to the general public. On the blogosphere, there is a small club of agents that have made a name for themselves. As an agent doing about 20-30 deals a year and not paying for Google #1 search engine placement, most of the people in my city won’t have heard of me. As someone that focuses on providing solid, local blog content and doesn’t post on controversial RE industry topics, I’m not going to make it into the blogger inner circle. But, by using Twitter effectively and attending local Tweetups, I’ve been told by several people that I’m one of the top local twitterers…and everyone knows my handle when I introduce myself at a Tweetup.

One last point. As a very non-techie real estate agent, Twitter has saved me money and time by providing me with helpful followers ready to immediately answer my questions when I am having a computer problem. I found a new real estate photographer by simply putting out a tweet asking if anyone knew a good inexpensive one. When I upgraded a slideshow plugin on my Wordpress blog, and it immediately disappeared, a Twitter friend spent 30 minutes on the phone with me getting it back up. For free.

No, I can’t measure my ROI. But I’m a more effective small biz owner because of Twitter.

I on the other hand couldn’t make it all the way through without getting off on multiple tangents. Maybe when I have more time I can come back to appreciate the awesomeness that is this blog post, but right now there is just too much to digest- making more questions than answers which is the obvious point to this post anyway right? You might not get alot of comments, but you will get alot of questions and hopefully trigger many more blog posts on related topics from others who will link back to this thought provoking post.

It is too early on a Saturday morning to get my head around this, but you have (at least between the lines) hit on something I have been struggling with. As an agent, my customer is a transient. Once the moving truck backs out, real estate is no longer a hobby or a passion for him. And my customer is the world really, not some “group” that is easily targeted.

Now, if I am selling a lead generator or a web site platform or a widget, targeting my audience is quite simple. I follow all the agents. We are out there in a tidy little box. They have figured this out; the vast majority of my own new followers are companies with something to sell me.

If I am playing the broker role, the agents are my customers as well, and a full-out twitter blitz will create exposure. The ROI may be abstract, but it is there. I am building a brand.

The problem is for the individual agent to use Twitter for anything but a fun, agent water cooler. Yes, we learn stuff there. Yes, we help each other out. But, where does the business development part come in (aside from the smattering of referrals which may result)?

I have a dismal (by Twitter standards) 853 followers this morning. Only five are “civilians,” non-agents, including two daughters (who aren’t buying a home any time soon) and three clients. The clients started following me only after they were clients and later friends.

I’m not saying there is not value, of course. It is just my belief that the value for the individual agent cannot, will not, be quantified in terms of increased business and increased dollars, at least not directly. If I learn something that makes me a better agent and am able to take it to the streets, that may result in a return on my investment. If I have a problem with my IDX product and I can DM the provider, that makes me more efficient. Beyond that, the ROI opportunities are for those higher up the food chain. For the individual agent, I think it is largely a myth.