We have now entered the void also known as the “in-between.” It’s officially that time of year between Christmas and New Years, where most people tune out and have no idea what day it is.
So congratulations. If you’re reading this blog, you have avoided the upside-down world, and I am going to reward you with four things that will actually set you up for a strong year on social media.
These aren’t hypotheticals. These are real actions you can take before the calendar flips to help you grow your brand in 2026.
#1: Audit your content from 2025
A “content audit” sounds overwhelming, but it’s not. You don’t need a spreadsheet or a social media manager to do this. All you need is your eyes!
Here’s step-by-step for IG:
1. Go to your Instagram professional dashboard.
2. Click “Content you shared.”
3. Toggle the date range from the last 30 days to the last year.
From there, sort by highest viewed.
Now, take note of your top 20 posts from the year. Look for patterns. What were the topics? What were the hooks? What formats performed best? Were they Reels, carousels, or static images?
These are not accidents. These are data points.
If something resonated with your audience once, there’s a very good chance it will resonate again. That doesn’t mean reposting the same content. It means repackaging it. Turn a Reel into a carousel. Turn a carousel into a talking-head video. Change the hook. Change the framing. The concept is already proven, so post it again.
At the same time, it’s important to be honest about what didn’t work. Not every post deserves a second life. If something consistently fell flat in 2025, let it go. Don’t get emotionally attached to a content series that isn’t performing.
Do the same exercise with your other platforms, too. Look at email subject lines and click-through rates. Look at YouTube retention. Look at what actually performed, not what you thought should have performed.
#2: Create a posting schedule
I’ve said this a lot, but social media has to be treated like a business plan, not a mood.
Before Q1 starts, decide exactly how often you’re going to post and commit to it. Not an aggressive schedule you’ll abandon in three weeks. A realistic one you can actually stick to.
A simple framework that works for most agents is three to five feed posts per week on Instagram and Facebook, one Instagram Story per day, one email newsletter per week to your database, and, if you can stomach it, one long-form YouTube video.
Consistency is everything. Growth doesn’t come from random bursts of motivation after a conference. It comes from showing up when you don’t feel like it. Too many agents go on posting streaks and then disappear for weeks because they “can’t find the time.”
Block it out on your schedule every day like you do your calls.
My best years of growth with The Broke Agent came when I committed to posting every single day for three years in a row, no matter what. You cannot build a brand by winging it.
#3: Get Hyperlocal
2025 was the year of hyperlocal, and that’s not changing in 2026.
Trends come and go, but people will always care about what’s happening in their own community. And as a real estate agent, you’re uniquely positioned to be the person delivering that information.
Hyperlocal content includes local news, new developments, restaurants, activities, sports, laws, and lifestyle updates. The goal isn’t to go viral with other agents. It’s to become known in your community.
Agents like Alyssa Curnutt, Kyle Talbot, and Ken Pozek win with hyperlocal because they treat their social media like a media company that happens to sell real estate. The reward is reach that actually converts into leads.
Alyssa Curnutt dropped an entire video training on hyperlocal content in our BAMx community, which you can get free access to for seven days here.
One important rule: new beats old. A review of a 30-year-old pizza place everyone already knows is fine, but you’re not Gordon Ramsay. A brand-new restaurant opening in a new location is news. News gets shares. Speed matters. Be early.
And don’t just report information. Add your opinion. Straight reporting is helpful, but commentary is memorable. Safe content gets ignored. Opinions get shared.
Before you post anything, ask yourself three questions:
- Is this actually helpful?
- Would I personally share this?
- Is this new information?
#4 Don’t do content alone in 2026
We literally built a community for agents who want to grow their brand on social media without guessing.
Before 2026 starts, I strongly suggest giving it a try. Every week, our members get timely social media templates to customize and post, video scripts, blogs, and emails to send to their database.
We also do live content audits and office hours to make sure profiles are optimized and content is actually set up to get engagement and conversions (not just likes from other agents).
If you want structure, accountability, and ideas that are actually usable, this is what we built BAMx for.
Here’s a seven-day free trial. Give it a test run before the new year.
