Inman

Sebastian Barrett St. Troy on how smaller companies lack direction on social media

Age: 52

Years in real estate: 20-plus

Job title: Realtor and market-ready ontologist

Location: Austin, Texas

Hours per week spent on social media: 14

Social media accounts: Ello, Google Plus, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Yelp, Houzz, Pinterest

Target demographic: C-level executives, retirees and luxury market

Average number of posts per day: two

Which social channels do you work more?

Twitter and LinkedIn.

How many friends, likes and so on, do you have?

100-plus.

Does that number matter to you?

The number isn’t important, but what matters is that the people I connect with actually interact and are interested in what I post.

Do you ever give it a break?

Yes, periodic breaks help give a renewed interest from time to time by those who see my posts.

Does social help your business, and how?

It helps by building relationships, arranges introductions I may not have otherwise, and helps get listings in front of other Realtors.

What’s your goal for your favorite social channel?

Insightful, purposeful and engaging content that gets liked, retweeted or otherwise shared by others.

What’s your strategy to achieve it?

Be mindful of the content I post, making it unique to my business and always of interest to my clients.

Is it worth it?

Every connection is worth the investment in time, and social media helps build those relationships.

What’s your craziest social media-related story?

Crazy is what I’m known for, but I try to keep crazy away from my social media.

What actions do you take that have gotten the most results?

Partnering with other local businesses, nonprofits and bloggers to assist in building their networks, which helps build my network.

Is this more about “social” or about business?

It is all about business. I’ve limited myself to posting only items on my personal profiles that would connect to clients. I created various Facebook pages in order to be free to comment or post items that my clients may not appreciate.

How do you monitor the channels? Do you use software or apps to manage your accounts?

I use each media’s app, but do not use a monitor or posting system because they do not allow my website link to be seen clearly.

How many hours per day are you on social? Do you check it daily? Multiple times per day?

Morning, afternoons and evenings — daily, unless my schedule is too hectic.

Do you ever think of retiring?

I have retired my social media previously; it was a profound relief. However, everything was recreated this past year to build a new aspect of my services.

Do you consider yourself an influencer?

I influence those who matter to me.

Are you social in real life?

Yes, as I believe that social media should never replace actual face-to-face interaction.

What did you do with your time before?

As I have always consulted and assisted my clients with their own social media, it has always been the same for the last 14 years.

How do you leverage your prominence/influence on social?

I use it to arrange introductions to promote properties to buyers that would be interested in a property.

Do you have someone helping you?

No.

Whom do you follow, and why?

I usually follow businesses or individuals who are connected with a property or product I am featuring. When I comment or mention them, then they often repost or share the information.

Where do you find the content that you put out?

I create my own content.

What has been your all-time hit share? Can you share a link to the post?

Who doesn’t enjoy the Royal lifestyle? For $3,800,000 you can enjoy your own Country Manor fit for Royalty, #Helicopter not included, but Heliport is!
http://doorsandgables.com/royal-country-manor-estate

Who do you think is doing social media well in real estate?

Those that have the larger budgets and can create their own content seem to be doing well, but smaller companies and agents lack direction or knowledge and rely too heavily upon other people’s content.

Are you a social media all-star who’d like to participate in our profile series? Email amber@inman.com.