Inspiring & Community-Focused Real Estate Content During the COVID-19 Pandemic
I originally wrote this back on March 29, 2020. I ended up not publishing it at the time, I think because I wasn’t sure if it was appropriate to talk about “real estate content.” Things were changing by the hour, and well, it was all overwhelming and hard to know what to do at times.
I also want to add that ALL of these featured agents shared much more content in support of their communities during COVID-19, so this content only covers what had happened up until March 29, 2020.
Anyway, about 4 years later (today is March 26, 2024), I decided to share this!
March 29, 2020
The situation surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic sure has kept real estate agents on their toes these past several weeks. It feels like so much changed overnight, and back in mid-March, things were changing literally by the hour.
Needless to say, it’s been challenging to help my real estate clients create their marketing content with things changing so rapidly. Weirdly, the past couple of weeks have been much busier than usual for me as my clients are having to quickly pivot their marketing plans and release new guidelines for conducting business. Just a couple weeks ago I worked on a blog post for a client about the impact coronavirus was having on their local market (it was a Friday), and by Monday we had to rework the post because a lot of the information had just not aged well over the weekend.
Real estate agents, teams, and brokerages have had to quickly pivot their marketing strategies. I admire how many agents have embraced the challenge. I *especially* admire the agents who have stepped up in a big way to provide their communities with important information, resources, and support.
In this post, I’m going to shine the spotlight on several of my favorite pieces of real estate content that I’ve seen created in response to COVID-19. (And of course, there’s so much other great information being shared out there, but these are just a few examples!)
I hope that these blog posts, social media posts, videos, podcasts, and other ideas will help to inspire you as we continue to face the challenges ahead.
1. Move to Tacoma: New Podcast Episodes
I want to give a BIG shoutout to Tacoma Real Estate Agent Marguerite Martin. I really admire how quickly Marguerite sprang into action in response to COVID-19.
On Friday, March 13, 2020, Marguerite and I had a Zoom call to revamp her Move to Tacoma content calendar. As the situation surrounding coronavirus kept escalating, we knew we needed to pause everything we already had planned and re-evaluate.
For a quick refresh, back in the beginning of January 2020, Marguerite and I had a “Content Hurricane” for her website MovetoTacoma.com. We planned out and created 3 months worth of content over 2 days, and since then I have been publishing and distributing a couple of Move to Tacoma blog posts every week.
As we looked ahead in the Move to Tacoma content schedule, we realized that a lot of the content we had planned just wasn’t going to work for the time being. Some of the content was not actually useful at the moment anymore (for example, we needed to pause any content sharing restaurant/bar recommendations, much of which was geared toward dining in), and sharing things about real estate or things to do would definitely come off as tone deaf.
The good news is that there were still a handful of posts that could still work well (topics on things people could still do and enjoy from home!), and the posts we’re putting on hold aren’t just scrapped—they’ll (hopefully) be relevant again at some point.
After working through all of that, Marguerite decided to record new podcast episodes to help people navigate the many challenges that were quickly presenting themselves.
In just a few days, Marguerite had recorded 4 podcasts with timely topics, including the following:
Marguerite has also been very vocal about calling for a suspension of rents and mortgages, and she also offered real estate agents *free* consulting sessions to talk over how to pivot their marketing plans in response to COVID-19. (Consulting with Marguerite ain’t cheap but those who do hire her know it’s worth every penny.)
2. Team Diva Real Estate: Blogs, Videos & Online Events
Team Diva is a powerhouse of incredible content, and way back on March 9th (most of us, including myself, were still very much out and about!), they published an incredible “Things to Do in Seattle In Response to Coronavirus Chaos” guide. In this post they shared a smart mix of ideas, including real estate-related tips, ways to support local business + artists + community, and suggestions for how to make an impact politically.
Since that first post, they have consistently put out value-packed content on their blog and social channels, AND they hosted a virtual variety show via Zoom from their home for a magical evening of artists sharing their talents (and you bet I attended!). Team Diva always shares great video content, but they’ve stepped it up a notch to stay in front of their peeps as we all stay at home.
Here is more of their very informative content:
Thank You to All of the Supporters of Divaland’s Variety Show
Support the Arts in Seattle During the Covid Crisis: How You Can Help
Team Diva also immediately pivoted to virtual home tours and open houses. They have already done a ton of video and have the systems in place to transition to online open houses. So smart!
3. Annie Cash Team: Blogging & Supporting Local Businesses
Annie Cash on Whidbey Island has been doing a new weekly series called “Local Lift,” and each week she buys gift cards to local businesses to give away to Whidbey Island residents. She is also making sure to highlight awesome local businesses to keep them top-of-mind, and Annie also has a new COVID-19 Support page (link has since been deactivated) on her website where people can find everything all in one place. Here you’ll find not only the giveaways, but other resources, like ideas for how to help the Whidbey Island community, a list of restaurants doing takeout/delivery, and more.
Annie has been so generous to her community, and I think it’s freakin’ amazing. (Also full disclosure, Annie is one of my clients and it has been amazing to work with her on all of this!)
As Mr. Rogers told us, “Look for the helpers.” And of course, there are a ton of incredible real estate professionals out there who immediately rose to the occasion, reaching into their communities to help those in need. Sometimes this has looked like sharing useful information that benefited their communities in one way or another via blog posts, podcasts, newsletters, social media posts, etc., and sometimes it’s looked like “boots on the ground” help delivering food or other supplies.
Either way, there is a lot of good out there happening right now. I wanted to be sure and highlight all of the wonderful real estate content I’ve seen out there that’s been a response to the COVID-19 pandemic.