In order to begin to attract investors, you will first and foremost need to develop the credibility that comes with being an expert and an educator in the industry. Of course, if you are just starting out, you will need to build this reputation from scratch.
The internet, and all the social media outlets, have made this increasingly easier to achieve.
To become an expert, you must be consistently reading and learning everything you possibly can about the industry. You must not only be learning as much as you can, but you must be constantly teaching others, with an emphasis on education.
In order to be viewed as an expert, you must be an educator first.
In order to be an educator, you must first learn everything that you do not know.
This comes with reading, writing, engaging, learning, experience, work, and determination.
Here are a few things you need to consider doing if you want to become an educator and have investors coming to you with their hard-earned money:
- Start a blog: A blog with a catchy name will do wonders for developing your reputation as an educator. Consider posting articles about everything you have learned from all the books and articles that you have read. Consider featuring other writers on your blog. Feature other bloggers. Respond to their articles with comments, bring on co-authors, and share your experience in real estate and the deals that you have completed to establish credibility.
- Become active on social media: In today’s internet age, this is something that you cannot avoid. You don’t need to be a social media aficionado, though it helps. You don’t need to be a master of Twitter or Instagram. But you do however need to share your experiences and knowledge and build a following so that people out there know who you are. Instagram is a great place to share before and after pictures of remodels. Twitter is a great place to share your thoughts on the current real estate market and on your journey. If you can relate to people and help them on their own real estate journey you will be viewed favorably, develop credibility, earn yourself a good reputation, and eventually, have money flowing to you.
- Start (or participate in) a podcast: Podcasts are the newest popular medium. More so than blogs. But how can you get on a good podcast with lots of traction if you don’t follow through with a personal blog and your social media presence first? You have to be known to a degree to get the kind of exposure that comes with podcasts. Reach out to podcast hosts with your blog and social media profiles. Engage with them regularly. Let them know who you are and what you are doing. This is something you should be doing regularly, not simply because you want to be featured in a podcast.
- Write an eBook: An eBook is a great way to show the world your expertise in a given industry. You can feature the eBook on your blog, and even offer it for free. The eBook should be proofread and should include hyperlinks to your articles and information about you and your business, your contact information so that readers and potential investors can reach out to you if they have any questions.
- Register your business: Register a business so that you can invest in deals. This is better than simply putting rental properties under your legal name. Creating an entity, an LLC, will limit your risk, provide tax incentives, and given enough time and deals under your belt, will establish you as a key player in the industry.
Investors need someone they can trust to lend their money. In order to gain that trust, you must first establish yourself as not just an expert in the industry, but as an educator as well.
Registering your business, starting a blog, becoming active on social media, participating in podcasts, and writing an eBook, are all great avenues for the first-time investor to develop a reputation for being a leader and an educator in real estate.
