- Ming Qin, sales director for Wallace North Shore, uses social media creatively to boost his real estate profile.
- Qin’s videos, featuring colourful outfits and singing, have increased his recognition and client engagement.
- He brought 235 homes to market in the past year, with a 3% increase from the previous year.
In the attention economy, authenticity counts. Social media rewards big characters who are true to themselves, and in real estate, there are plenty of big characters. However, not every agent can bring their personality to life in a 30-second video. And few can make that work for the properties they are selling.
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One agent whose social media game is top-notch on both counts is Ming Qin, sales director for Wallace North Shore, in Auckland. He has thousands of followers online, and it’s easy to see why.
Qin combines business and pleasure on his social media platforms, so you might find him posting a video of himself singing a song in Chinese to wish people a good week, or you might find him wearing a kingly attire or a flamboyant outfit as he shows prospective buyers around a home.
Qin with the successful buyers of a three-bedroom house in Campbells Bay that sold within a week of hitting the market. Photo / Instagram
Qin tells OneRoof that singing is his hobby, and notes that the crown he wore in one of his recent videos was his way of promoting a listing.
Not many real estate agents use the social media platforms the way he does, decked out in colourful clothes and regalia with theatrical gestures, but he says he’s just being himself.
He likes to make people happy, he says, “because every day I feel very happy, and I enjoy my work. I just do things that I like and want."
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People, he says, are often bored or stressed, so he likes to bring a little sunshine into their lives. And sometimes they see a post and turn up at open homes.
He says that his posts have boosted his profile, telling OneRoof that he often gets stopped by people who recognise him from his videos. Some people have told him they saw him on Instagram, liked his videos and then asked if he would sell their house.
He says he gets great feedback from clients, too: “Yeah, they like me. I have so many fans now, from like seven- or eight-year-olds to 70- or 80-year-olds.”
Other agents who have tried social media might get negative feedback from clients and give up after one attempt, but Qin says, “I’m a camera person."
At 34, he's part of the Instagram generation, so fronting the way he does is easy for him. “I’m not shy at all,” he says, although he says he’s not sure if his Instagram posts have translated into increased sales.
“So far, I have no idea, but you don't know what will happen in the future.”
One video that was a hit was Qin's promotion of a three-bedroom brick-and-cedar home on Aberdeen Road, in Campbells Bay. The post on Instagram, in which Qin extolls the delights of the modest home and the coastal suburb while wearing a snappy purple silk shirt, was liked by internationally acclaimed Kiwi photographer Simon Devitt, bringing Qin to a whole new audience.
The house, which had been on and off the market with different agencies several years before, received an pre-auction offer within a week of the listing going live with Qin and sold under the hammer for $1.28 million - $80,000 above RV.
Qin's video of the sale to a young couple was accompanied by a jaunty piano soundtrack (smiles were all around) and racked up the likes on social media.
Qin is the country's sixth-biggest lister. A recent OneRoof report found that he brought 235 homes to market in the 12 months to the end of August - up 3% on the previous 12-month period.
He told OneRoof at the time that hard work was the key to getting listings, along with enjoying every day, treating people well and providing a good service.
He used to be a social worker in China, so real estate had been a big change: “A very big difference, because I used to be a social worker in mental health, so I help people when people feel very stressed in their lives and how to help them achieve their goals, and have a better and brighter life.”
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