How to Write an Instagram Bio for Real Estate & REALTORS®
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You have 150 characters.
And in those 150 characters, you have to get a lot done. You need to sum up who you are. What you do. What makes you interesting. How you provide value. Why somebody should care. Why they should click that follow button.
And not only that, you need to take it one step further. You need to provide a call to action or lead magnet that entices and excites. Keeps them coming back for more! Don’t forget to throw some emojis in there to make it fun, and be sure to represent your personal branding.
Deep breath.
That’s a big ask for such a small piece of online real estate, right? That’s why today’s quick tip and Episode 13 is all about how to EASILY write an Instagram bio for real estate or as a REALTOR.
Today’s Real Estate Marketing Freebie!
To help you along the way, I have a great freebie - an Instagram Bio template for Realtors! Use this simple template by filling in your own information, and you’ll have a new Instagram bio in minutes. In the blog, below, I cover the basic bio template, but today’s freebie has two additional templates you can use.
First up, let’s take a look at the Instagram bio breakdown for personal real estate accounts. Basically, your Instagram bio for real estate is the top portion of your Instagram feed.
Breakdown of Your Instagram Bio
In your bio, you have 150 characters to tell the world all about you, explain why they should follow you, and even highlight a lead magnet or call to action.
Above your bio, you have 30 characters to display your “Name.” Your name is not to be confused with Username which is what people follow and use the @ symbol to tag you.
If your username is something branded like “Heart & Homes with Heather,” I’d make sure to include your actual name and applicable title (ex. REALTOR®) in the name section.
This section is searchable! This is a key opportunity to add keywords to your name section. You could add “Realtor in (XYZ Area”) and this could come up the someone searches for a local Realtor on Instagram.
There are four lines of text that display in your bio. If you go over the four lines, a “more” option will appear.
By sticking to four lines in your Instagram bio, you’re ensuring that everything will be seen. You don’t want to have your call to action or valuable info be hidden by the “more” option.
You can include links back to other accounts and clickable hashtags.
This is a great option if you have more than one Instagram account or are associated with another account. For example, you might want to include in your bio the brokerage you’re at by tagging their account.
Hashtags can be used to further emphasize something or filter your own posts! For example, if you do a lot of open houses you could include in your bio - “See Saturday’s Open Houses in Orlando - #HeathersOpenHouses.” You might even say, “get tips for first-time homebuyers in Orlando follow #HeathersNewBuyerTips.” That way, when they click the hashtag it sorts to your posts with this hashtag. The trick here is that you want to use a branded hashtag that nobody is using or would use.
Visually, you can also include emojis to break up your bio or draw your attention to a specific part of your bio.
It can be fun to describe yourself using short words punctuated with emojis.
The bottom of your bio (which you edit in the profile section) has room for a clickable website link.
Always link over to your own personal sites. If you link over to your Zillow profile or listing link, you run the risk of somebody stumbling upon another REALTOR® on one of the search sites.
You can also use the fourth line of your bio to give info about what your website link is all about and encourage them to click on it.
You can change this up for specific Calls to Action, such as “download my first-time homebuyers guide checklist” or use services like Later’s Link in Bio or Link Tree to have multiple options that people can click on.
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Follow These Guidelines
So, now that we know the basics of a personal Instagram profile, let’s make the most of it!
If you’re using your Instagram for the purpose of marketing yourself in Real Estate, I’d always make the following clear: that you’re a REALTOR®, where you work, your general location, how to get in touch with you, and a website link.
Also, try not to use industry jargon. You might be very proud of your designations, but people have no idea what all of those letters mean. The same goes for saying “multi-million dollar top producer.” While that’s an impressive accomplishment, most people outside of real estate have no clue as to what that means. So, think of other more relatable ways to show off your expertise and above all genuine commitment to your customers.
From there you can add some creativity with information about your personality or even include personal branding.
It can sometimes be intimidating because we want to be cute or clever with Instagram bios. Honestly, at the end of the day, we want people to know who we are AND how we can help them. Think about your ideal customer reading your bio. Would they be intrigued to keep following you?
A Simple Framework You Can Easily Follow
Here’s a framework that will cover all of your bases and allows for you to shine through your own personality.
Example 1: The Foundation
Name: Agent or Team Name
Line 1: What you do & where
Line 2: Personal info
Line 3: How to contact you
Line 4: CTA or Call to Action
Link: Website
What that would look like on Instagram?
Note the use of emojis and line breaks to make it interesting. You could also add hashtags and other accounts in the bio as well.
Now, I have several more examples in my template. So, don’t forget to download it here. It’s kind of like paint by numbers but for Instagram bios.
The most important thing to remember about your Instagram bio is that it needs to be immediately clear who you are, what you do, and how you can help your followers (ahem, future home buyers or sellers!).
Don’t make people dig through your profile to find out you are a real estate agent or exactly where you’re located. We want your Instagram bio to further affirm that you’re somebody your ideal customer would want to follow. We also want to give them an idea of what to expect from you and the type of content that you post.
If you’re struggling with what to post on Instagram, I have an entire episode about what to share. Check out Episode 7: What to post on social & Instagram for some more inspiration.
Keep in mind, bios aren’t set in stone. So, feel free to switch it up and change it depending on your current promotions and real estate marketing efforts.
P.S. After you spruce up your bio, feel free to take a screenshot of it and post it to your stories to share your new bio. If you tag me, I’d love to take a look at it - @IdeasForRealEstate.
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Up Next:
It's time for seasonal marketing! Fall-themed real estate content and marketing on social media is not only trending, it also works in your Instagram Reels, posts, carousels, and more. The secret is to customize this content with photos and videos of you. So, in today's episode, let's plan an easy fall content shoot for you as a REALTOR to use in your marketing strategies this season!