Are you a property manager trying to grow your audience on Instagram?
We get it, Instagram can feel daunting.
But don’t worry, we have you covered!
In this post, we will cover everything you need to know in order to start benefiting from Instagram and connecting with owners.
We’ll start by covering how you as a property manager can benefit from using Instagram.
From there we will go over how to set up your profile, discuss what kind of content to share, and cover the different types of posts that you can create on Instagram.
You may also be wondering: How can I determine how effective Instagram is for my company? How can I make sure that the time and energy is worth it in the end?
Luckily, this article will teach you just how to measure the success of all that hard work that you’re putting in!
So, are you ready to get started?
How Your Property Management Company Can Benefit From Using Instagram
When it comes to social media marketing for property management, Instagram is one of the most effective platforms out there. With millions of users a day, there is an incredible amount of growth opportunity.
Marketing your business on Instagram allows you to connect with your audience directly, removing any barriers between you, the property manager, and your prospective clients.
This builds trust and allows them to get to know you personally. This then translates to clients who are excited to work with you!
Setting Up Your Profile
When you are setting up your property management company’s Instagram profile, you need to make sure that you are setting it up for the highest level of success possible.
Here are some tips and tricks that we recommend doing to optimize your profile:
1) Choose a catchy, relevant, and memorable handle name that is easy for users to spell and find.
2) Set up a business profile to establish yourself as a legitimate company.
3) Write a bio that is short, informative, and punchy. Make sure that it is complete with your contact information, business hours, areas you serve, your website link, and your office location. Include keywords, such as professional property managers in Newport News, to make your profile easier to find.
What Should Property Managers Post?
Now that you have set up your profile, let’s talk about what you should be posting on social media for property management.
Your main goal should be to make content that is interesting and valuable to owners.
Here are just some Instagram ideas for property management companies:
1. Educational Content
Share posts that can educate owners about your property management services and how they can add value to their investment.
This can include information about market trends, maintenance tips, legal and tax advice, and other topics that owners might find beneficial.
2. Testimonials
When was the last time you purchased something without looking at the reviews first?
You probably can’t think of one!
Sharing positive feedback from your clients and peers can be a powerful endorsement for your business. Don’t underestimate the power of good reviews.
3. Case Studies
Post before-and-after pictures of the various properties that you have managed. Case studies show how you were able to enhance their value or found reliable, high quality tenants.
Be sure to highlight instances where your work led to increased rental income or property value for the owner.
The goal here is to show off the value that your company brings to the properties you manage.
4. Networking
Collaborate with other local businesses that cater to property owners. This can include real estate agents, home improvement companies, or local contractors.
Tagging each other or featuring each other’s services can help tap into a broader audience base and increase your profile’s exposure.
5. Industry Insights
Share the latest updates about the real estate industry, local market trends, and other investment opportunities.
This will demonstrate to your audience that you are well-informed and ahead of the game.
In short, this shows that you are an expert in your field, which builds more trust with your followers.
6. Behind-the-Scenes
Showcase your team and office operations to highlight your company’s professionalism and efficiency.
This can help to humanize your brand and show some personality to your audience.
Making your content more personal can help your audience to see exactly who will be managing their assets, which will ultimately build trust with them.
7. Value-Added Services
Take some time to highlight any additional services that set you apart from the crowd, such as advanced tech solutions, 24/7 maintenance response, or a thorough tenant screening processes.
Your goal here is to answer the question: Why should a property owner choose your management company over the countless others in the area? Why you?
Different Types of Posts and How Best to Use Them
By catering content to the wants and needs of property owners, as well as actively engaging with them, your property management company can effectively use Instagram to build relationships and expand your potential client base.
Ready to get started? Time to dive into the different types of posts.
Standard Feed & Carousel Posts
The first kind of post that you need to know about is the most important one.
This is your standard type of post that will show up in your audience’s main feed. It will also show up on your profile’s grid page.
These posts are crucial to your success on Instagram, as they are the primary posts that your audience will see and interact with when they first come to your profile.
Standard posts have the potential to educate your followers and nurture your connection with them.
You can enhance these posts by making them into a carousel, meaning you can post multiple photos at a time that your followers can simply swipe through.
Now, let’s talk about your profile’s grid. At the end of the day, Instagram is a reflection of your business, so make it look good!
Take time to consider what your grid looks like. Is it a cohesive brand or is it all over the place?
If it isn’t quite at the level that you want it to be yet, consider what your aesthetic goals are for your page.
Get together with some team members and talk about different grid styles or colors that you can lean into to make your business really shine on Instagram. Make sure it aligns with your company’s branding!
Once you have narrowed down your style, we recommend using an app to help you plan your posts and see how they will look on your grid ahead of time.
There are plenty of good apps to choose from, but go with one that will help you visualize your feed the best.
Another aspect of your main posts that you need to think about are your captions.
Make sure that all of your captions feature captivating hooks to get your audience interested, using your own unique style and voice to keep your posts from seeming too robotic or promotional.
Use hashtags, keywords, and emojis all while keeping it short and sweet. Don’t make your audience read a novel!
Finally, end your caption with a call to action that can drive your audience straight to your website.
Reels
With the rise of apps such as TikTok, everyone is looking to short form video content to market their businesses.
Reels are Instagram’s version of this, and we promise that it is worth the effort.
Reels are short, eye-catching videos. They show up in both your audience’s main feed and a separate feed that is exclusively for scrolling through Reels.
They are the best way to entertain and attract new followers, as short form video content is currently the most popular among users.
You can also use trending audios with your Reels to get more views on your posts.
This can also increase your engagement, which, you guessed it, grows your audience even more!
When creating Reels, make your video relatable, to the point, interesting, and personable so that you can show off your expertise while letting your company’s unique personality shine through.
Here are some property management social media ideas for Reels:
- Tell stories about how your property management company started.
- Show off some of the properties you manage in a short video tour.
- Share unique tips and tricks for how to make a rental property thrive.
- If you are promoting vacation rentals on Instagram, share local travel tips and guides.
Stories
Stories are shorter posts that feature on your page for 24 hours before going away.
However, you can also save these to your profile’s highlight section for as long as you want.
Stories can be incredibly useful for FAQs, sharing a quick thought or story, or conducting polls to ask your audience questions.
Lives
An Instagram Live is essentially a live broadcast that allows you to connect with your audience in real time.
This can be great for showing the behind the scenes of your business, doing Q&As, and discussing *** topics that your audience will want to know more about.
You can even create a countdown leading up to your Live so that you can create anticipation and remind your audience to tune in.
Growing Your Online Following
Cultivate an Organic Community
An organic community is one that prioritizes quality followers who are eager to work with you rather than disengaged or inactive ones.
In order to build an online community like this, you will need to post regularly, share helpful content that your audience wants to see, respond to comments, engage with accounts you like, and build genuine connections with your followers.
Growing an account doesn’t happen overnight, it takes time! So don’t be discouraged if your hard work isn’t paying off just yet.
Be authentic, consistent, stay engaged, and you will see results!
Post Consistently
Many Instagram users wonder: How often should I be posting? Our top recommendation is this: Whatever you do, be consistent.
If your company can only manage to post 3 times a week, then do that, and commit to it!
It’s better to create 3 high quality, engaging posts a week than to make low quality content on a more regular basis.
That being said, here is a general idea for how often to post each type of content on Instagram:
1) Regular Feed Posts: We recommend sticking to 3 to 5 times per week. This is regular enough to keep your business in front of your audience without overwhelming them. This will also give you the creative space to post a mix of different kinds of content.
2) Stories: You can post Stories daily or every other day, as they are designed to be more spontaneous and casual than a main feed post. Since they disappear after 24 hours, they won’t clutter your profile.
3) Reels: While Reels can be more work than a standard photo, we recommend really leaning into them as they are the most popular and engaging kind of content. Try posting a Reel 1 to 3 times a week.
Calculating the ROI of Your Instagram Campaign
Remember that while your ROI is a crucial metric to keep in mind, it is not as tangible or as straightforward when it comes to your social media marketing strategy.
Measuring ROI (Return on Investment) for Instagram involves both quantity and quality.
For a property management company, it’s particularly important to connect Instagram metrics to tangible business results.
Here’s a step-by-step approach to measure the ROI for a property management company using Instagram:
Define Your Objectives: Before measuring ROI, it’s essential to have clear objectives for using Instagram. Do you want to increase brand awareness, acquire new property owners, retain current clients, or drive traffic to your website?
Set Up Tracking Tools: Use tools like Instagram Insights and other third-party tools to track relevant metrics.
Quantity
- Lead Generation: Track the number of inquiries, direct messages, or email sign-ups you receive through Instagram.
- Website Traffic: If driving traffic to your website is a goal, monitor the number of clicks on the link in your Instagram bio or from swipe-ups in stories.
- Conversion Rate: Of the leads generated from Instagram, how many were converted into clients?
- Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC): Determine how much you’ve spent on Instagram (advertising, content creation, tools) and divide that by the number of new clients acquired from the platform.
- Revenue Growth: Track any increase in revenue that can be directly attributed to your Instagram marketing efforts.
Quality
- Engagement Rate: Monitor your likes, comments, shares, and saves. High engagement can lead to stronger brand loyalty and word-of-mouth referrals.
- Brand Awareness: Track metrics like reach and impressions. These indicate how many people are seeing your content, even if they don’t directly engage or convert.
The Bottom Line
As a property manager, there is a huge amount of potential when it comes to growing your audience on Instagram.
If you put in the hard work and planning, we are confident that you will be able to effectively market your company and connect with your audience in a meaningful way.
If you have any further questions about marketing your property management company online, our team at Upkeep Media is here to help!