For Sale $500,000 - Nic Fren's Social Media Pages

No, I'm not selling but this is an article you need to read so I had to get you here.

Recently I wrote a piece called "Who owns your social media" & the response showed we all had no clue.

As profiles grow and get stronger we have never before seen the kind of results these portals are producing.

So, what are your pages really worth?

I received a private Instagram message where I was asked if I would sell my social media profiles and if so for how much.?

Curious, I asked the sender what would they would be willing to pay & the response was "Well how many homeowners follow you"?

This was a really interesting question. I gave my social media profiles a good audit. I have a few profiles over a range of platforms so I started a list separating those from the industry, family, those I don't even know and "potential clients".

Just to define "potential clients", these are people I know that own property.

Here are the numbers I came up with.

I have a combined following of just over 60,000 people. Now if 0.1% of those were to sell in say the next 3 years that's 60 sales. If I was able to list at least 50% then we have 30 sales. That's 10 sales a year just from my social media alone. If each sale was $1,000,000, sold with a 1.5% fee that's $450,000 in commission.

So, would it be fair to say that my profiles are worth at minimum around half a million dollars?

"But Nic, what if you don't get 30 sales in the 3 years"? I hear you ask. Great question.

Is it any different to buying a rent roll?

There's no certainty that you will retain all managements and that's a risk you run.

Like a social media page, there's no certainty that the followers will continue to engage with you to the point of becoming a client.

Say you don't get 30 sales from your followers but you get 30 managements with an average rent of $750 per week at 5.5% management fee. That's around $1,200 per week in fees. An annual income of around $65,000 - $70,000.

If you go by this report your rent roll could easily be worth around $200,000. Figures are guesstimate only & not to be relied upon, but you can see where I'm going with this.

So, what do you do with that agent in your office whose platforms are worth somewhere between $200,000 - $1,000,000?

If you are that agent what protections do you have in place in case of a dispute?

Well that's up to you and how you negotiate your employment agreements.

Business owners need to ensure they protect IP & databases in all forms & agents need to ensure they have a clear understanding and protection of who owns what & what could potentially happen if/when the working relationship ends.

There have been some high-profile cases recently where agents have left an office that has given them a platform to grow their social media presence and taken their following with them. This is great for the agents but it could be detrimental to the business owner.

We have asked it before, but do you think an employer has the right to ownership or at the very least a partnership to your profiles? Should there be an option to buy out the platforms? On the other hand, if an agent has been instrumental in the success of the office’s platforms do they also have a claim against the business?

It might seem silly now but it's coming. The fact that these conversations are taking place is a sign of where things are headed.

Your social media is valuable. Protect it.