Social media for business
Discussion
Hi all,
I’m about to set up a ltd co with a friend with the aim of buying Buy To Let properties. We would like to showcase what we are doing on social media. Despite being in our early 30’s neither of us use much SoMe so need some guidance on what platforms might be best.
YouTube? Instagram? FB? Twitter? I’d imagine YouTube and Insta are the best in order to do quick 2 min videos and post photos/updates?
Any thoughts?
(Please don’t comment on the viability of BTL, I know it’s not well thought of on here but we are doing it regardless).
Thanks in advance.
I’m about to set up a ltd co with a friend with the aim of buying Buy To Let properties. We would like to showcase what we are doing on social media. Despite being in our early 30’s neither of us use much SoMe so need some guidance on what platforms might be best.
YouTube? Instagram? FB? Twitter? I’d imagine YouTube and Insta are the best in order to do quick 2 min videos and post photos/updates?
Any thoughts?
(Please don’t comment on the viability of BTL, I know it’s not well thought of on here but we are doing it regardless).
Thanks in advance.
what are you trying to achieve via social media with this business? To me, it’s really not the type of business you would want/ need to advertise on socials.
- do you want to showcase what properties you have to rent? surely most people would just look via estate agents and base choices on location/ price
- do you want to show people what type of properties you pick/ figures involved? if so why would you want to give the competition free information?
- do you want to show off with: we bought this for £50k, spent £2.50 and bag of haribo and now rent it out for £1k a month making us lots of money....... best not to let your customers know what sort of profit you are making off them.
- do you want to show off the full refurb process of making a house look nice?
- are you wanting to monetise your socials? adverts from suppliers? freebie flooring/ curtains/ kitchen/ bathroom for a bit of promo?
sorry if any of that comes across harsh- just trying to work out what you expect to achieve from a social media presence on a BTL business
- do you want to showcase what properties you have to rent? surely most people would just look via estate agents and base choices on location/ price
- do you want to show people what type of properties you pick/ figures involved? if so why would you want to give the competition free information?
- do you want to show off with: we bought this for £50k, spent £2.50 and bag of haribo and now rent it out for £1k a month making us lots of money....... best not to let your customers know what sort of profit you are making off them.
- do you want to show off the full refurb process of making a house look nice?
- are you wanting to monetise your socials? adverts from suppliers? freebie flooring/ curtains/ kitchen/ bathroom for a bit of promo?
sorry if any of that comes across harsh- just trying to work out what you expect to achieve from a social media presence on a BTL business
malks222 said:
what are you trying to achieve via social media with this business? To me, it’s really not the type of business you would want/ need to advertise on socials.
- do you want to showcase what properties you have to rent? surely most people would just look via estate agents and base choices on location/ price
- do you want to show people what type of properties you pick/ figures involved? if so why would you want to give the competition free information?
- do you want to show off with: we bought this for £50k, spent £2.50 and bag of haribo and now rent it out for £1k a month making us lots of money....... best not to let your customers know what sort of profit you are making off them.
- do you want to show off the full refurb process of making a house look nice?
- are you wanting to monetise your socials? adverts from suppliers? freebie flooring/ curtains/ kitchen/ bathroom for a bit of promo?
sorry if any of that comes across harsh- just trying to work out what you expect to achieve from a social media presence on a BTL business
No need to apologise, not harsh at all. We want to just explore it as another potential income stream. I know that there are lots of people interested in BTL but don’t know where to start. I’ve got a close friend with 50k Instagram followers who earns £30-40k per year thru sponsorship on there. All she has done is take photos of her private residence and document the transition from shell to really really well done interior design. - do you want to showcase what properties you have to rent? surely most people would just look via estate agents and base choices on location/ price
- do you want to show people what type of properties you pick/ figures involved? if so why would you want to give the competition free information?
- do you want to show off with: we bought this for £50k, spent £2.50 and bag of haribo and now rent it out for £1k a month making us lots of money....... best not to let your customers know what sort of profit you are making off them.
- do you want to show off the full refurb process of making a house look nice?
- are you wanting to monetise your socials? adverts from suppliers? freebie flooring/ curtains/ kitchen/ bathroom for a bit of promo?
sorry if any of that comes across harsh- just trying to work out what you expect to achieve from a social media presence on a BTL business
Obviously I’m not expecting to make money from it straight away but we would essentially be documenting what we are doing and why. People can comment and ask questions and we will try to answer them as honestly as possible. We are complete newbs to this and just want to document how we get on. If SoMe makes us a bit of an income stream in future then all is well. If it doesn’t pan out it’s unlikely to have cost us much in time/money/effort.
Hope this makes sense. BTW my friend spends about 5hrs per week on her insta account and does it alongside a full time job. She had no prior experience but it’s just seemed to have done very well with little effort on her behalf.
Ah so there are two things here. I thought you wanted to use it to advertise your property/ies, but it seems you want to get followers and make money from advertising.
It can work; I have a friend with a YouTube channel on DIY that brings in about £60Kpa, but it's not an area I understand. But I do know that you need lots of regular content - at which point you might wonder if the time spent on that is detracting from your time running a BTL business. Not everyone can make £60K from it.
It can work; I have a friend with a YouTube channel on DIY that brings in about £60Kpa, but it's not an area I understand. But I do know that you need lots of regular content - at which point you might wonder if the time spent on that is detracting from your time running a BTL business. Not everyone can make £60K from it.
99% of SME type businesses on social media use it as a willy-waving exercise; a means to demonstrate to the business owner's mates what wonderful entrepreneurs they are.
So, the first rule is not to fall into this trap.
The next rule is to think carefully about who you want to engage with, what you want to tell them and why. Different platforms will reach different people so you need to use each wisely. For example - LinkedIn will connect you to the business community. Facebook will connect you with younger middle aged potential tenants. Instagram with younger potential tenants. And TikTok... their kids!
Invest in good content creation. Video will attract 80% more engagement than static imagery.
Invest in reaching an audience via Ad Manager.
And when you post something - invite engagement. This is the whole point of Social Media. Unlike a magazine, you can engage in real time with those you need to.
I've used the word 'Invest' twice. Unless you're a cracking, creative, content creator you will need to pay someone to do this. And whilst social media can be very effective, you need followers in the high hundreds, if not 1,000s and that requires either time or investment.
HTH
So, the first rule is not to fall into this trap.
The next rule is to think carefully about who you want to engage with, what you want to tell them and why. Different platforms will reach different people so you need to use each wisely. For example - LinkedIn will connect you to the business community. Facebook will connect you with younger middle aged potential tenants. Instagram with younger potential tenants. And TikTok... their kids!
Invest in good content creation. Video will attract 80% more engagement than static imagery.
Invest in reaching an audience via Ad Manager.
And when you post something - invite engagement. This is the whole point of Social Media. Unlike a magazine, you can engage in real time with those you need to.
I've used the word 'Invest' twice. Unless you're a cracking, creative, content creator you will need to pay someone to do this. And whilst social media can be very effective, you need followers in the high hundreds, if not 1,000s and that requires either time or investment.
HTH
Simpo Two said:
Ah so there are two things here. I thought you wanted to use it to advertise your property/ies, but it seems you want to get followers and make money from advertising.
It can work; I have a friend with a YouTube channel on DIY that brings in about £60Kpa, but it's not an area I understand. But I do know that you need lots of regular content - at which point you might wonder if the time spent on that is detracting from your time running a BTL business. Not everyone can make £60K from it.
Thanks for this. If it ends up taking up too much time we will abandon it. We are thinking just a few short clips per month. What platforms does your friend use? Insta/YouTube?It can work; I have a friend with a YouTube channel on DIY that brings in about £60Kpa, but it's not an area I understand. But I do know that you need lots of regular content - at which point you might wonder if the time spent on that is detracting from your time running a BTL business. Not everyone can make £60K from it.
StevieBee said:
99% of SME type businesses on social media use it as a willy-waving exercise; a means to demonstrate to the business owner's mates what wonderful entrepreneurs they are.
So, the first rule is not to fall into this trap.
The next rule is to think carefully about who you want to engage with, what you want to tell them and why. Different platforms will reach different people so you need to use each wisely. For example - LinkedIn will connect you to the business community. Facebook will connect you with younger middle aged potential tenants. Instagram with younger potential tenants. And TikTok... their kids!
Invest in good content creation. Video will attract 80% more engagement than static imagery.
Invest in reaching an audience via Ad Manager.
And when you post something - invite engagement. This is the whole point of Social Media. Unlike a magazine, you can engage in real time with those you need to.
I've used the word 'Invest' twice. Unless you're a cracking, creative, content creator you will need to pay someone to do this. And whilst social media can be very effective, you need followers in the high hundreds, if not 1,000s and that requires either time or investment.
HTH
Thanks for the reply. So, the first rule is not to fall into this trap.
The next rule is to think carefully about who you want to engage with, what you want to tell them and why. Different platforms will reach different people so you need to use each wisely. For example - LinkedIn will connect you to the business community. Facebook will connect you with younger middle aged potential tenants. Instagram with younger potential tenants. And TikTok... their kids!
Invest in good content creation. Video will attract 80% more engagement than static imagery.
Invest in reaching an audience via Ad Manager.
And when you post something - invite engagement. This is the whole point of Social Media. Unlike a magazine, you can engage in real time with those you need to.
I've used the word 'Invest' twice. Unless you're a cracking, creative, content creator you will need to pay someone to do this. And whilst social media can be very effective, you need followers in the high hundreds, if not 1,000s and that requires either time or investment.
HTH
I don’t anticipate us willy waving. Both of us have successful businesses in our own right and neither of us are on FB or feel the need to advertise our success.
Good point regarding investing in a content editor. Neither of us are very creative. We don’t anticipate setting the world alight but I agree we will need 5000+ followers to really make it even worthwhile.
JapanRed said:
Thanks for this. If it ends up taking up too much time we will abandon it. We are thinking just a few short clips per month. What platforms does your friend use? Insta/YouTube?
As far as I know only YouTube. He was a decent cameraman and professional editor anyway, and a tradesman friend does the DIY presenting bit. Here's one: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J19y7nGHM3c
JapanRed said:
unlikely to have cost us much in time/money/effort.
Hope this makes sense. BTW my friend spends about 5hrs per week on her insta account and does it alongside a full time job. She had no prior experience but it’s just seemed to have done very well with little effort on her behalf.
Unlikely to have cost you much money yes, but do not estimate the time/effort taken to create content and respond to the constant feedback and questions, DMs etc, all this is required to build a channel or account to the point that you have enough traction and followers to generate 5 figure income per year in the form of sponsorships or partnerships. It always requires more effort than you think.Hope this makes sense. BTW my friend spends about 5hrs per week on her insta account and does it alongside a full time job. She had no prior experience but it’s just seemed to have done very well with little effort on her behalf.
Not wanting to put you off but you say your not on SoMe so I thought worth pointing it out if you are inexperienced. People want to interact and expect responses in a timely fashion or they lose interest fast.
Simpo Two said:
JapanRed said:
Thanks for this. If it ends up taking up too much time we will abandon it. We are thinking just a few short clips per month. What platforms does your friend use? Insta/YouTube?
As far as I know only YouTube. He was a decent cameraman and professional editor anyway, and a tradesman friend does the DIY presenting bit. Here's one: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J19y7nGHM3cDon’t they estimate about £1k-£1.5k per 1m YouTube views? It’s not easy getting a channel which can regularly put out videos obtaining 1m views each.
Full time job in itself unless you find a niche / get lucky etc
JapanRed said:
Having done a bit of research on this in the past few hours I think it looks like YouTube and Instagram are our best bets.
Can anyone explain how those 2 can be used to generate income?
How about TIKTOK for the younger market who may aspire to get into BTL, DS LIVERPOOL is you man when it comes to TIKTOK!Can anyone explain how those 2 can be used to generate income?
YouTbe and INSTA I agree on tbf, then again why not use FB as well?
You can use social tools that will post to all channels at once by the way, best to get as efficient as possible when handling multiple channels
Social media is a great business tool. If you have opened an online store, the best way to promote it is to use Instagram. However, with some tweaks, you can do it faster. I'm talking about the promotion of subscribers. I couldn't even imagine that services like https://famoid.com/buy-instagram-followers/ work so well. They grow subscribers very quickly and at a low cost. I liked that in addition to subscribers, they also offer services for boosting likes and views. For as little as $ 1000, you can make your online store much more popular.
Edited by JessicaDavies on Tuesday 18th May 19:59
jonamv8 said:
JapanRed said:
Having done a bit of research on this in the past few hours I think it looks like YouTube and Instagram are our best bets.
Can anyone explain how those 2 can be used to generate income?
How about TIKTOK for the younger market who may aspire to get into BTL, DS LIVERPOOL is you man when it comes to TIKTOK!Can anyone explain how those 2 can be used to generate income?
YouTbe and INSTA I agree on tbf, then again why not use FB as well?
You can use social tools that will post to all channels at once by the way, best to get as efficient as possible when handling multiple channels
It certainly generates work from some very unexpected sectors.
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