Yelp-ing Real Estate Agents: The Online Bus Bench Advertisement?

by Brian Brady

Commercial Real Estate Finance Expert
Structured Debt and Equity
Licensed Real Estate Broker in AL, CA, and FL

Author website

Todd Carpenter introduced me to Foursquare, last year in San Diego, and I immediately saw how geolocation could change the game for the neighborhood real estate agent. I envisioned agents promoting their listings and open houses on Foursquare.  I’m a natural “spammer” so I started using it to “check-in” to my place of business.  I figured it was a natural way to promote myself in front of a crowd.  The problem with Foursquare is that the crowd was measured in the dozens and most of them were bar-hoppers as opposed to “citizens”.

Geolocation was quickly adapted by Yelp, then Facebook.  My rule of social media marketing is to go where the people are.  What I like about Facebook (it’s a BIG platform) didn’t quite work for geolocation marketing.  Check-ins get lost in a sea of status updates and it’s tough to “piggy-back” on the social proof offered by Yelp.

Yelp is a really good platform if you’re trying to find the “bus bench advertising” approach to neighborhood brand building.   It’s pretty simple idea (you write reviews on local businesses) and the geolocation service allows you to ‘check-in” when you’re at a business.  There is a little point game associated with check-ins but the hidden gem is, if you have the most check-ins at a business, your picture, and link to your Yelp profile, is prominently displayed (at least on the mobile version).  This is the modern day bench bus advertisement (and it costs nothing).   Combine your check-ins with reviews and you’re building an online brand as a neighborhood expert.

What Is A “Neighborhood Expert”?

We would like to think that the big hair and Cadillac agent model is dead.  It’s not ! How often do you meet recent buyers, who tell you that they used the agent, who advertises in the Pleasantville Courier-Post ?    They often describe that agent as “a big shot” or “successful”.  They may not comment about that agent’s ethics or service but people like to think they are dealing with the “biggest”  (which they sometimes confuse with well-known).  This is why so many agents spend money on “brand building”.  I prefer direct marketing to brand building but Yelp allows you to mark your turf on every business in your town.  Mark enough businesses with your image, and you’ve built the equivalent of a bus bench advertisement on a highly-visited website.  Brand building on the cheap appeals to me.

Does it Work?

Ask Kerry Melcher.  Kerry vacationed in my hometown (alas, while I was on vacation) this past summer.  She didn’t know exactly where I lived in San Diego but found my scent trail while checking into various restaurants (which I had already marked on Yelp).   One patron at Chief’s Burgers and Brew asked me to take off my Phillies hat, then identified me as the mortgage guy, while we watched the NLCS (alas, he was a Giants’ fan).  My barber thanked me for the nice review, and asked me about mortgage rates this summer.  I hijack the buzz surrounding the hottest new sub shop in town, when people I know ask me if “it’s all that”.  As people search for local businesses on Yelp, they are likely to see my smiling picture.

It Goes Beyond Geolocation

You can add pictures on Yelp.  I wrote a review of Julian Hard Cider and uploaded a few pictures.  It was what I said in the review that prompted an email from a stranger:

What a pleasant surprise it was to find Julian Hard Cider when I picked my daughter up from YMCA Camp Marston today.   I used my cool Yelp iPhone app to search for things in the area and decided to stop at the Farmer’s Market in Wynola; Julian Hard Cider popped up on my check-in list.

This “stranger” wanted to know about the YMCA Camp.  She has a daughter in the Girl Scouts (like I do) and wondered if it was kosher to have her attend the overnight camping.  She found me by Google searching “Camp Marston”; my review for the Cider company showed up in the SERPs.  She’s no longer a stranger and knows how I earn a living now.

Yelp is a  well visited site by locals, vacationers, and folks relocating alike.  It has expanded beyond the community of geeky foodies to include the smart-phone carrying soccer moms, looking for online coupons.  It is NOT the be all and end all for your marketing efforts.  If you carry a smart phone, and spend money in your community, it offers you a better than average chance to get your picture (and brand) in front of your existing and would-be neighbors.  That ain’t a bad thing if you don’t go overboard with it.