10 Feb I would like to share a blog post by Kevin Maggiacomo.

The subject matter of this blog is targeted towards commercial real estate but I think his ideas and principles can be applied to all types of real estate. You can read his post here.

I won’t go over all of his points but there are a few things he writes about that really stick out to me. Many are the same excuses I hear for not utilizing social media in real estate.

The idea that “real businesses” don’t use social media is laughable at this point. Did you know that Pepsi decided to skip on this year’s Super Bowl and direct its budget and efforts towards expanding its social presence? You can read about it here.

Not having the time to participate in social media is like not having the time to talk to your customers. The truth is that a lack of participation in social media can translate to “I am ignoring you” type message.

I think the greatest point Maggiacomo makes is that social media doesn’t replace real relationships, it enhances them and builds on them. I couldn’t have said it better myself. Social media is about taking existing relationships to the next level and starting new ones. Whenever I make a new contact through social media my goal is to eventually establish a real life relationship. When I say “real life” I mean a face-to-face relationship. I am not saying that our relationships on social networking sites aren’t real because they definitely are. I believe for real estate, most business relationships come from face-to-face meetings, not through Twitter. That’s only the starting point.

Real estate is an industry built on relationships. Whether you’re a leasing agent, developer, or marketer, you probably rely on your contacts and your network for business. Social media can take your relationships with other businesses and consumers to the next level. It can also help you develop new ones.

I agree with what Maggiacomo has to say on the matter:

“Regardless of where you are in the commercial real estate value chain, you won’t be able to ignore social media and remain competitive in today’s marketplace. I would offer my strongest encouragement to anyone not actively involved in social media to develop a strategy for implementation.”