Ah, the holidays. A time to unplug, unwind, and savor moments with loved ones. A season of creating cherished memories in a joyful, stress-free atmosphere filled with relaxation and family.
PSYCH! Jerome Powell just crashed the market! Your portfolio is down 20% and the expected tailwind that we thought we had in 2025 is GONE! Plus, you just boarded your flight, and every client and lead you’ve ever had suddenly needs something from you. Your escrows are on fire, you left a light on at one of your listings, and you still haven’t bought any gifts because your closing got delayed until the New Year! Your seller has already left you three angry voicemails since you’ve been in the air.
Here is what agents should NOT do over the holidays—and some ways you can stay top of mind (without being annoying.)
1. Don’t post generic graphics.
I wouldn’t have to keep saying this if agents stopped doing it. Do NOT post a generic Holiday graphic that says “Happy Holidays.” You think your clients want to see a square, poorly colored, Keller Williams-branded graphic while they are scrolling? NO! Nobody wants to see that. It is impersonal, unthoughtful, and pointless. It gets no engagement and guarantees an immediate scroll-by and eye-roll.
If you have nothing to post on Christmas, don’t post anything. It’s better to just leave the feed alone than to curse it with that algorithm destroyer!
On this week’s Walk Thru, we had on the #1 eXp agent in the world, Kyle Whissel, and he said, “If your brokerage sends it to you, don’t post it!”
Watch the full episode here:
INSTEAD: Post photos of your family and your holiday traditions. IG stories will pop over the holidays because people want to see more authentic content and less BS in the feed. Upload videos and photos of how you’re spending the holidays and humanize yourself a little. Show people you aren’t a real estate robot or show the events you go to in the community!
2. Don’t send generic emails.
Do NOT send a generic Holiday email that says “Ho Ho Home” or something nauseating like that. Want to stand out over the holidays in people’s inboxes? Don’t send one! Everyone’s email is already clogged with meaningless “Merry Christmas” messages, so maybe sit this one out. Sometimes, less is more.
INSTEAD: If you do decide to send something, send something that is actually meaningful. How about a personal email to your clients about why you’re grateful for them or something useful like a list of local holiday events? Imagine the open rate on a “5 family-friendly things to do over the holidays in (insert market)” compared to a “Merry Christmas from the Simon Group!” Also, don’t forget personal cards. Something tangible is more memorable than an email.
3. Don’t text on Christmas.
Do NOT text your clients a generic “Merry Christmas” message on Christmas. Handling text messages is already a burden, don’t force your clients to respond to a copied and pasted message from their Realtor. Sometimes it’s good to just leave people alone.
INSTEAD: Send a personal video message or audio message… on INSTAGRAM. Do this on the days leading up to Christmas, so you’re not annoying people on the actual holiday (and when people are more likely on their phones). This strategy is GENIUS because it also juices the algorithm as people respond to your DMs. Remember, Instagram values DMs as the number one form of communication on the app, so the more messages you send and receive, the more you will pop up in people’s feeds. Audio messages tend to be creepier than video messages, so I would go with video.
4. Don’t post real estate content on the holidays.
Do NOT post your regularly scheduled content on December 24th, 25th, and 26th. Christmas will be a dead content day (except for holiday-related posts). A Reel about why buying is better than renting, a screen-shotted Zillow review, or a “Price Reduction!” post will not be well-received. It’s not offensive, but it won’t perform well because nobody wants to see that content right now. Save it for the week after Christmas. If you have regular real estate content scheduled on a third-party service or Facebook Meta Business, push the content back a few days, so the content is not wasted.
Remember, a lot of people are just waiting until after January 1 to go back to their regular schedule. Big announcements and updates might get lost in the holiday sauce.
INSTEAD: What are you doing in the community over the holidays? Charity, giving back, toy drives, Christmas light tours—that type of stuff will play well. Or again, just don’t post anything.
5. Don’t humblebrag that you’re working on the holidays.
Nobody humblebrags more than real estate agents. We love to show that we’re working during inopportune times. Writing offers on the beach, showing houses on Super Bowl Sunday, taking calls on Christmas Eve! Obviously, proof of work content is important, but I think people get a little sick of agents showing off their constant “grind.” Nobody is going to applaud you besides your broker and they also don’t care unless the deal gets done!
INSTEAD: Share the experience that you gave to your clients. For example, if your clients are posting holiday photos or content in their new home, you can share that with permission and gratitude that you helped create these new memories and how happy you are for them!
Pro Tip: If you want to be effective on social media without posting, engage with other accounts. Remember, you don’t always have to post to make an impact. Liking, commenting, DM’ing, and being supportive to your clients and community can be just as useful as touchpoints as showing up in their feed with a post. Spend time giving engagement and it will be reciprocated!
Hope that helps! Having said all of that, HAPPY HOLIDAYS to all of you reading this. I hope you have a few days of peace and get to spend time with your families.
