Editor’s Note: The Industry Influencers series analyzes the industry’s most effective marketing efforts and shares experts’ actionable insights.  

Jessica Edwards—REALTOR®, broker and global luxury ambassador of The Carolinas Finest | Jessica Edwards & Associates with Coldwell Banker Sea Coast Advantage Real Estate—has worked in real estate for the past 14 years. Her YouTube page has over 13,000 subscribers and her videos often tackle consumers’ frequently asked questions related to real estate.

“Videos allow you to effectively communicate to an audience, compared to just text or still photography,” says Edwards. “Viewers will retain 95 percent of a message when watched in a video versus 10 percent when reading it in a text campaign. Because people’s attention spans have shortened, it’s important to stand out from the competition and create a distinguishable message. A study predicts that 84 percent of internet traffic will be video by 2020.”

A Social-Heavy Approach
Edwards primarily focuses her video marketing efforts on social media, mostly utilizing YouTube.

“YouTube has been and continues to be a huge platform for our videos,” she says, adding that video also plays a role in her team’s email drip campaigns and blasts. In addition, Edwards also posts videos on Instagram, using the Stories function to highlight shorter clips.

“We find that YouTube and Instagram Stories create the most engagement and conversation with video,” says Edwards.

Video even makes an appearance in the team’s advertising, she says.

“We have found that short videos for Facebook ads create more engagement compared to a photo ad.”

Making the Content Relatable
Edwards’ Q&A videos tend to be a lot more relaxed than a typical marketing video, often conversational in style as she films from her parked car. She speaks directly to the camera, making a viewer feel like they are receiving personalized advice.

Her property tour videos are more whimsical, adding more of a human touch by showcasing her own family or how someone could truly benefit from a property. She also emphasizes the luxury aspect by using drone footage that highlights expansive lots and brightly-colored foliage.

Video Creates Awareness
According to Edwards, video is the best format for capturing consumers’ attention, especially in the luxury field. She has found great success in marketing her listings using video.

“It is often hard to exactly track the results, but we can directly link sales of luxury homes to buyers,” who she says would not have purchased the home had they not seen a property video.

“It has happened multiple times. We also know that it allows us a platform to show clients who we are and what we do, and share our knowledge and expertise,” she says. “Video has truly shaped our business and success.”

Jumping Into Video
Edwards recommends that agents come up with a strategy for their video marketing initiatives, and this includes doing a lot of preliminary research.

“Be strategic in what you take video of and educate yourself with the new trends in video. If you are going to be in the video, don’t be stiff and scripted—be yourself!” says Edwards. “Think about the main points you want to deliver and go for it. For property videos, we say leave it to the experts! We hire a videographer for those because it is too time-consuming and would not be nearly as good if we were to try and shoot and edit the video ourselves. And be consistent!”

Watch the video below to see how Edwards makes relatable content that builds her brand:

Liz Dominguez is RISMedia’s associate content editor. Email her your real estate news ideas at ldominguez@rismedia.com.