Photo

• DO use clear, representative and well-lit images

• DO allude to the appeal of the area, the nearby lifestyle and amenities

• DO use Hawaii Life Blue or White for arrows and property outlines

• DO feature aerial photos for vacant land listings

• DO feature photos shot during different times of the day

• DON’T use cartoon-like red or yellow arrows and outlines

• DON’T use dark pictures from a cloudy day

Video

• DO keep MLS listing videos under two minutes and social media videos under thirty seconds

• DO use relevant music that fits the edit

• DO use intuitive and relevant pacing between frames

• DO use a mixture of photos and videos

• DO call to action that leads to HawaiiLife.com listing page

• DO keep title fonts consistent and use Whitney or Open Sans font styles

• DON’T use too many titles

• DON’T use poorly lit video that doesn’t show the home at its best

Copy

• DO use an attention grabbing first sentence

• DO use spell and grammar check

• DO use abbreviations that make sense to the average reader

• DO include the property address in the listing description

• DON’T use bold font, ALL CAPS, exclamation points or red arrows

• DON’T use overly wordy descriptions or flowery language

• DON’T tell the reader how they will feel

• DON’T use clichés like “piece of paradise”, “dream home”, “making your dreams come true”, “Shangri-La”, “Must See”

• DON’T make financial projections, for example “good investment”

Blogs

• DO describe the surrounding area and lifestyle

• DO detail the conveniences and amenities available nearby

• DO share images in your blogs of the surrounding area, not just of the home itself

• DO showcase your knowledge of architecture and design

• DO highlight your market knowledge by putting the home and listing in a larger context (competitive pricing, inventory in the neighborhood, performance of investments in the neighborhood in recent years and market trends)

• DO use verbiage that is relevant to the buyers property search

• DO include one link to your personal site within each blog post

• DO create a link to the words “contact me” to your Agent profile

• DON’T use clichés like “paradise” and “dream home”

• DON’T forget to run a spell and grammar check

• DON’T use images you don’t own or have express written permission to use

• DON’T blog in silos, but try to connect your listing copy with linked text to other blog content about the area, conveniences, lifestyle and things to do

• DON’T violate the Fair Housing Act. Remove words like “Ohana”, “Family”, “Investment”, “Income”, “School”, “within walking distance”

Social Media

• DO keep your copy short and sweet, enticing and appealing

• DO include video and images in your posts (these rule in this space!)

• DO use the best image and leading example of the home’s best feature

• DO include an MLS number for the subject property and link it back to the HL listing page ie. (MLS# 12345)

• DON’T tell the whole story in your post, but rather, share links to the full story stored elsewhere (in your blogs, your listing and your video)

• DON’T pitch. Social media isn’t about pitching. It’s about interacting

• DON’T promise or predict the future such as potential rental income or timing to sell

• DON’T overuse hashtags