Hundreds of Realtors from around the Houston area learned a lot more about social media networking at a recent event hosted by Friendswood Development Company in Heritage at Towne Lake on Thursday, July 30. The social media event gave Realtors in attendance the opportunity to gain more knowledge on the importance of social media and its role in marketing real estate, and the change to implement the concept into their own businesses.

Nearly 500 Realtors from Conroe to Clear Lake attended the event, which included two informative and educational sessions presented by Poetic Systems and Boe Creative Services, a session on setting up Facebook pages for business, YouTube filming and catering by Pierre and Candy Massoud, was praised among all who attended. The event also offered insight on the growing focus of social media networking in business, and was represented by agents who ranged in age from their 20s to their 60s. Twenty agents won Flip cameras at the event, in addition to a dozen other door prizes donated by the developer's builders.

An album of photos from the event is posted on the company's Facebook page.

“We received a lot of positive feedback from the Realtors who said that in addition to having the opportunity to tour our new Lodge facility in Heritage at Towne Lake, they were able to participate in an event that offered them so much value,” said Tim Fitzpatrick, Community Development Manager for Friendswood Development Company. “The presentations were excellent and offered a lot of insight on the global approach in which real estate is being marketed.”

Poetic Systems has also redesigned and launched new websites for Friendswood Development Company and each of its Houston area communities which include Fairfield in Cypress, Graystone Hills in Conroe, Lakemont in West Houston, Lakes of Savannah in the Pearland area, West Ranch in Friendswood, Oakhurst at Kingwood and active adult communities that include Heritage at Towne Lake in the master-planned Towne Lake community. Heritage at Towne Lake is designed for buyers age 55 and over.

The significant investment Friendswood Development Company has made in the new sites has also includes a very focused, intensive Search Engine Optimization program with blogs updated regularly and a presence on popular social media networks such as Facebook and Twitter. “Friendswood Development has a great story to tell – a long history of success and great master-planned communities,” said Cheryl Boe-Perry of Boe Creative Services, which hired Poetic Systems to implement the new websites. “The Houston real estate market has become a place where international buyers realize a wonderful investment and marketing must now be tailored to reach the global market.” Since the debut of the new sites, Friendswood Development Company has seen a significant increase in traffic on the sites, and interest from potential home buyers both locally and internationally.
 
“Our communities overall are performing very well,” Fitzpatrick said. “Summer has been particularly strong, with sales and traffic ahead of our projections.”

Friendswood Development Company hosted the event to show its commitment to its Realtor partners, offering them information that is timely and extremely important. “Realtors have always been a part of our success, and this event offered them information that can help them in their own businesses and help us all market and sell more new homes,” Fitzpatrick said.  “The internet has become the most powerful tool in marketing real estate. People are online networking with other consumers about homes, communities, builders, schools and amenities, and it’s more important than ever that we become a part of that conversation.”

The developer plans to post the seminars on its websites and YouTube, offering agents who could not attend the event, the opportunity to view it.

In addition to being hosted by Friendswood Development Company, the event was also sponsored by Houston Eflyer, CasaNuevaGuide.com and Houston Newcomer Guides.