Turn up the volume on your real estate success at Inman On Tour: Nashville! Connect with industry trailblazers and top-tier speakers to gain powerful insights, cutting-edge strategies, and invaluable connections. Elevate your business and achieve your boldest goals — all with Music City magic. Register now.
Omer Reshid moved to this country from Ethiopia just nine years ago at the age of 13. Now, as a 22-year-old, he’s built a thriving real estate sales business, mostly through social media.
In addition to his sales business, he’s built the social media agency Refitified, which had over $750,000 in revenue in 2024 focusing on helping agents in the Washington, D.C., metro area build their businesses through social media and video content.
In this article, he shares his social media blueprint for agents.
Where to start
Success on social media starts with having the fundamentals in place and just beginning. Reshid shared that your profile page is your resume. When people find your profile, you want it to be attractive and informative enough for people to choose to follow you as quickly as possible.
This starts with a few fundamental pieces, such as having your name include the market you serve. In other words, your name should read something like [Agent Name] — [Your Market Real Estate Agent], or you want the market you serve located right below your name in the bullet points of your profile.
This brings immediate clarity to someone about who you are and what you do. You should also have a clear photo of yourself so people easily recognize you who may have already met you in person. The next step is to have a few bullet points about who you serve, your specialties and maybe a couple of highlights of your achievements. Make your description about the viewer for higher conversion rates.
‘When asked how agents should start building a following, Reshid said, “It sounds basic, but as soon as possible, put yourself on camera and start to post. Once you overcome the fear of what others will think and you begin to consistently post video content, whether on Instagram or TikTok, you will build momentum, and your audience will find you.”
Instagram, TikTok or both
Reshid focuses on Instagram and TikTok for building his personal business and for the clients his agency represents. When asked about whether agents should focus on Instagram, TikTok, or both, he answered by saying both if possible, but start with the platform where your ideal clients are spending the most time.
“Instagram and TikTok are similar, but different types of content perform better on each platform. Instagram is your resume. I’ve never had anyone ask me for a resume; they simply check out my Instagram account, and they know who I am, who I serve, and how I operate.
I’ve literally had a developer call and tell me he has been watching my Instagram and understands how I work. He asked me for my listing side commission rate. He immediately said that rate would work and began telling me about the project he wanted me to list for him. Understanding that Instagram acts as your resume, your content should be more professional and polished on this platform,” Reshid stated.
Reshid shared that less polished and more personal content performs really well on TikTok. Simple videos shot where you are looking into your iPhone are not only acceptable but typically outperform more professionally edited videos on this platform. “Although higher view counts are easier to achieve on TikTok, Instagram often produces more leads even with the lower view counts,” Reshid shared.
Content that is working right now
“Effective content should accomplish one of two goals. It should either educate or entertain your ideal prospect or audience. If you are able to accomplish both educating and entertaining your audience in a video, then you have a piece of content that has the potential to do really well,” Reshid said.
Understanding there are different styles of content that do best on Instagram and others that do well on TikTok, Reshid provided examples that are generating the most opportunities for agents on both platforms right now. For Instagram he provided three specific types of video content including listing tour videos, “day in the life” videos, and testimonial videos.
He said listing tour videos are foundational for agent success on Instagram. If you don’t have listings of your own, ask agents that do have listings if you can post about their listing on your social media and always give credit to the listing agent in the video.
This is an example of one of his recent videos for a listing:
Next he shared a “day in the life” style Reel. He said these give the viewer the ability to share in the process. These videos show the business being done and create a connection with the viewers.
This is an example of one of these videos:
The third type of video he suggested for Instagram is a testimonial video. This unique way of having the client tell the story while using b-roll footage of him interacting with the family creates a powerful combination of authenticity and trust-building content.
This is an example of one of these videos:
We then shifted to effective content on TikTok. As you will notice, there is a different tone and less polished videography for his content on TikTok. His TikTok is a mix of education, entertainment, and inspiration.
This is an example of an educational video. Simple format utilizing a selfie video with his iPhone.
This is a day-in-the-life post that generated over 1.3 million views. Notice the difference in the style and flow versus the Instagram day-in-the-life post shared above.
This is an inspirational post that has over 2.4M views. Another simple format that does extremely well on TikTok.
Click to view
Social media is the new CRM
The CRM has been the go-to way to keep in touch with an agent’s sphere of influence and past clients for decades. Reshid said he accomplishes the touch points and relationship nurturing through Instagram instead of a CRM.
“At every closing, I shoot a video about the closing, and I casually ask the client their Instagram handle (if I don’t already have it), and then I tag them in the post along with following them. I never have to send out an email or nurturing piece because now we are friends. I interact with their posts, and they interact with mine,” Reshid said.
If you’ve been wondering the best way to increase the quality and quantity of touch points for your prospects, social media is the new CRM. The key is to remember that it is social media. Being both social and producing content (media) are important. Interact with people’s posts, share valuable content, and be consistent with your presence in both areas. This is how agents are generating leads and business through social media.
“Just get started. Start posting video content, and your audience will grow over time. Be patient and understand that results come with consistency and time. The sooner you start, the sooner you will see results,” Reshid said.
Jimmy Burgess is a real estate agent and national team builder with Real Brokerage in northwest Florida, servicing the 30A, Destin, and Panama City Beach markets. Connect with him on Instagram and LinkedIn.
Turn up the volume on your real estate success at Inman On Tour: Nashville! Connect with industry trailblazers and top-tier speakers to gain powerful insights, cutting-edge strategies, and invaluable connections. Elevate your business and achieve your boldest goals—all with Music City magic. Register now.
Great years don’t just happen. They are the result of strategic planning and relentless execution. This article provides a framework for turning your dream year into a reality.
Get real and stop playing
Having your best year starts with you. Are you being honest with yourself about the effort you are putting into your business, or are you just blaming the market for your reduced production? Are you waiting for your prospects to reach out to you or are you initiating value-driven conversations?
Success in real estate starts with accepting personal responsibility for your success or struggle in this business.
It’s OK if you’ve been in a season of struggle or have longed for the ease of business we saw during the pandemic years. It’s not OK to stay there. If things are going to change, then you must change. You must do the tough stuff — the things you know you should do but don’t want to do.
Most people don’t need to be taught; they need to be reminded. Let this be your reminder that everything you want in your business is right on the other side of pushing through your discomfort or unease and executing on specific tasks. I’ve found it practical to identify and act on what I call the “tough three.”
What are three activities you know will grow your business but are hard or uncomfortable? A few examples of these for many agents are:
Cold calling
Follow-up with cold leads
Shooting video
Posting consistently on social media
Attending a networking event
The list goes on and on, and it is different for everybody. But the key is to identify the three activities that you know would have the biggest benefit to your business that you find hard to do. If you will identify these “tough three” for you and execute on them daily over the next few months, your business will respond, and you will set the stage for your best year ever.
Need a little extra tough love to get you moving? Check out this article that shares 7 brutally honest truths you need to hear right now.
Develop a daily plan of action
Having a goal for this year is needed, but without a daily plan of action, your goal is just a dream. One of the frameworks I like to use is what I call the 5-4-3-2-1 success plan. This plan involves identifying five activities for your business that you will execute consistently.
This is an example of this strategy:
5 – Real estate-related conversations per day
4 – Conversations with people from your sphere of influence per day
3 – Handwritten notes per day
2 – Coffee or lunch appointments with someone from sphere of influence weekly
1 – Unsolicited video CMA per day
The key is that the results are easily trackable and uncomplicated. If you are in a season of building momentum, you may need to do a 10-8-6-4-2 program. Whatever you decide to do, consistency is what leads to success.
Expand your reach
If you’re going to have a growing business, you must have a growing database. If I was able to review your database by understanding the number of leads flowing in on a weekly basis and the communication that is going out to the people in the database, I feel confident I could predict the type of year you will have.
Do you have systems in place that bring new leads into your business consistently? Do you have a systematic approach that nurtures the leads you are generating? If you answer yes to these two questions, you are heading in the right direction.
Leads can come from paid lead sources or from organic lead generation strategies like geographical farming, hosting open houses, or content creation online. Whatever it looks like to you, focusing on expanding your reach is a fundamental part of building a business that has the capacity to exceed any previous levels of success.
If you aren’t sure how to generate leads, check out this article with 24 unique ways to generate leads.
Shrink your circles
You only have so much time. As mentioned above, expanding your reach by growing your database is important, but the people and areas you focus on will determine the results you receive.
One of the best ways to ensure success is to shrink your circles or areas of focus. Put differently, get focused on dedicating your time to a few impactful areas and people that increase your ability to exponentially improve your business and life instead of spreading yourself thin.
The three areas I suggest you apply this to include your prospects, your business spending, and the people you spend time with. When it comes to your prospects, identifying your most likely to buy or sell in the near future and focusing your attention on them creates an opportunity to build momentum in your business.
You should be systematically producing new leads for your business and nurturing those leads. But I suggest putting together and focusing the majority of your attention on a Next 10 list of buyers and sellers along with an MVP list of the people who are most likely to refer business to you. This list provides the ability to keep the most valuable prospects and referral partners front and center in your focus.
I did this with a whiteboard in my office, but many of the agents I work with now use a spreadsheet. The key is to review this list daily and focus your efforts on staying in constant communication with this group.
The second area to shrink is where you are spending regarding your finances. This is not just about reducing wasteful spending; it is about focusing your spending on the areas that are generating the most bang for your buck.
But let’s start by eliminating your wasteful spending. Most of us have ongoing services we are paying for that we don’t even realize. Rocket Money has a tool that reveals all your ongoing subscriptions, and it allows you to cancel the ones you no longer use with a simple click from the dashboard they provide.
Most agents have areas they spend money on for their business that simply do not produce. Maybe it is a lead service, a tool you never use or a social media company that doesn’t get you results. However, if you do a deep dive into where your leads and business are coming from, you may find specific areas that yield most of your business. In this case, eliminating the ineffective and redeploying the funds to the effective strategies can lead to growth as well.
The last area to shrink is the people you spend time with. Focus on spending more time with leaders and less time with needers. Surround yourself with fewer people that drain you and more time with those that encourage you. When it comes to people, quality time spent with a select few who inspire you to become a better version of yourself is way more valuable than the quantity of time with the masses.
By focusing on fewer impactful things and surrounding yourself with the best people, you will see a dramatic change in your business and life.
Have a season of massive action
There’s a reason rocket ships have booster engines attached to the side of them during takeoff. It takes more energy during the launch to get started, but once the rocket reaches a certain speed and altitude, the rocket boosters peel off because they are no longer needed. It is the same way with creating momentum in your business.
For you to reach the level of business you want, there will need to be a season of massive action. You will not have to operate at this level forever, but to launch your business to a new level, it will take extra effort.
Depending upon the level of success you want to achieve it may be a month or it may be three months. Whatever it is for you, decide to go all in for that season. Make more phone calls than you’ve ever made. Host more open houses than you’ve ever hosted. Bring more value to the marketplace than you’ve ever brought.
It’s the end of January; are you on track to have your best year ever? If not, get in the game. There is business to do, and someone is going to have their best year ever. Why not you?
Jimmy Burgess is a real estate agent and national team builder with Real Brokerage in northwest Florida, servicing the 30A, Destin, and Panama City Beach markets. Connect with him on Instagram and LinkedIn.
