How a 25-Year-Old Built a Real Estate Machine With Just Her Phone | Ep 231 with Fontine Da Luz

Summary

Founder's Story: How a 25-Year-Old Built a Real Estate Machine With Just Her Phone | Ep 231 with Fontine Da Luz

In Episode 231 of IBH Media’s Founder’s Story, host A engages in a compelling conversation with Fontine Da Luz, a 25-year-old real estate entrepreneur who has ingeniously leveraged social media and humor to build a formidable real estate business. This detailed summary captures the essence of their discussion, highlighting Fontine’s innovative strategies, challenges, successes, and insights that offer valuable lessons for aspiring entrepreneurs.

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1. Innovative Marketing: Blending Humor with Real Estate

A opens the dialogue by praising Fontine’s unique approach to marketing, noting her impressive 11 million views achieved by intertwining comedy with real estate content. Fontine elaborates on this accidental yet strategic pivot:

“We pivoted from doing these basic videos into just something that I really love to put out because I think it's funny. It’s just me being myself.” [00:36]

She emphasizes the importance of making real estate content entertaining and educational through metaphors and analogies, making complex concepts relatable and memorable for her audience.

2. From Traditional Marketing to Authentic Content

Fontine recounts her transition from a conventional marketing team to a more authentic, self-driven content creation strategy. Dissatisfied with the lack of return on investment from traditional methods, she decided to invest her time into content that genuinely resonated with her personality:

“Nobody wants to watch a realtor talk about real estate. You need to make it entertaining for people.” [00:36]

This shift not only reduced her marketing expenditure but also significantly increased her engagement and viewership.

3. Creating the Ling Ling Character for Virality

A pivotal moment in Fontine’s journey was the creation of her comedic character, Ling Ling, inspired by a viral trend. Fontine took a risk by diverging from her marketing team’s advice:

“I did Ling Ling because I’ve been called Ling Ling before. So I thought that was funny and that blew up.” [02:41]

This character became a vehicle for embedding real estate lessons within entertaining content, leading to widespread recognition and engagement.

4. Overcoming Negative Feedback and Embracing Risk

Fontine addresses the common fears associated with taking unconventional paths, particularly the fear of negative feedback. Her approach was resolute:

“I just didn’t care. People are going to hate on you until it works.” [04:32]

Her steadfastness paid off as Ling Ling’s popularity surged, transforming initial skeptics into supporters and proving the efficacy of her authentic approach.

5. Transforming Viewership into Business Leads

The surge in social media popularity translated seamlessly into tangible business growth. Fontine explains how she managed the influx of inquiries:

“I trained my assistant, Divine, to start filtering everybody out... It’s really easy for you to book an appointment.” [05:49]

By automating responses and streamlining appointment bookings, she ensured that her growing viewership directly contributed to an increase in qualified leads and business opportunities.

6. Scaling the Business and Future Aspirations

Fontine shares her ambitious goal of achieving financial independence by the age of 25. To sustain and scale her business, she has already built a team that manages leads from around the globe. Her future plans include:

“Within a couple of years I’m gonna just keep building a team and automate everything so that there are systems in place.” [08:10]

She aims to transition towards larger-scale transactions, including commercial properties and high-end homes, driven by her passion for helping people make money through real estate investments.

7. Strategic Social Media Platform Utilization

Discussing her social media strategy, Fontine advocates for a hyper-focused approach tailored to each platform’s unique algorithms:

“Being hyper-focused on one social media platform and then spreading your content words is the best way to do it.” [10:23]

While Instagram remains her primary platform due to its visual appeal and engagement potential, she effectively repurposes content across Facebook, LinkedIn, and YouTube, each with tailored strategies to maximize reach and impact.

8. Building Long-term Relationships Through Consistent Content

Fontine highlights the importance of consistent, relatable content in fostering long-term relationships with her audience. Her authentic persona ensures that followers feel a personal connection, leading to sustained engagement and loyalty:

“The people that know me when I’ve done real estate when I was 18 see my videos... it leads into a conversation.” [12:42]

This relationship-building approach ensures a steady stream of referrals and repeat business, reinforcing the effectiveness of her content strategy.

9. Advice for Entrepreneurs: Authenticity and Persistence

In response to entrepreneurs seeking to enhance their social media presence, Fontine offers straightforward advice:

“Be yourself, be authentic and just stop caring. So much about what other people think.” [14:43]

She stresses the importance of authenticity over perfection and encourages continuous experimentation, sharing that her most successful content was unscripted and genuine.

10. Connecting with Fontine Da Luz

For listeners inspired by Fontine’s journey and interested in leveraging her strategies for their own ventures, she provides clear channels for connection:

“My Instagram is FontaineFONTEtheRealtor. And you can also get in touch with me through my email which is [e-mail].” [15:53]

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Conclusion

Fontine Da Luz’s story, as presented in this episode of Founder’s Story, is a testament to the power of authenticity, creativity, and resilience in entrepreneurship. By blending humor with valuable real estate insights, she has not only built a substantial online presence but also converted her digital influence into a thriving business. Her journey underscores the importance of being genuine, taking calculated risks, and continuously adapting strategies to align with personal strengths and audience preferences. Aspiring entrepreneurs can draw significant inspiration from Fontine’s approach, applying her principles to cultivate their own success in the digital landscape.

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Notable Quotes with Timestamps:

• Authentic Content Creation: “Nobody wants to watch a realtor talk about real estate. You need to make it entertaining for people.” [00:36]

• Risk-Taking: “I did Ling Ling because I’ve been called Ling Ling before. So I thought that was funny and that blew up.” [02:41]

• Overcoming Fear: “I just didn’t care. People are going to hate on you until it works.” [04:32]

• Business Scaling: “Within a couple of years I’m gonna just keep building a team and automate everything so that there are systems in place.” [08:10]

• Social Media Strategy: “Being hyper-focused on one social media platform and then spreading your content words is the best way to do it.” [10:23]

• Entrepreneurial Advice: “Be yourself, be authentic and just stop caring. So much about what other people think.” [14:43]

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This summary encapsulates the dynamic dialogue between A and Fontine Da Luz, providing valuable insights into modern, authentic marketing strategies and the entrepreneurial spirit required to thrive in today’s digital age.

Transcript

[A]

Fantine, I'm super excited because something that you're doing that I think every business leader, owner, they need to understand is how to market correctly on social media, but themselves, not specifically the company. And you've garnered over 11 million views. I've seen tons of your videos. I've laughed harder than I have with many other people that I've watched when it comes to the comedy side. And normally they're in comedy, but you're into real estate, so you using social media and comedy to sell million dollar homes. How did this come about?

[B]

Well, this was an accident actually. So we were looking at how we could scale my business because before I was using a marketing team and it wasn't producing any results. However, I'm still spending money. We're not spending, it's more of an investment. But I wasn't seeing a return on my investment. So we pivoted from doing these basic video into just something that I really love to put out because I think it's funny. It's just me being myself. And I want to mix education with humor because nobody wants to watch a realtor talk about real estate. You need to make it entertaining for people. You need to put in metaphors where people can actually break down the information and kind of associate it with something else. Like when I do my buy presentations and my listing presentations, I always use analogies and metaphors so that people, people can connect it with something. So if you do like for example, I, I used to, when I do my buyer presentations and it's a guy or a girl and they're single, I'm like, okay, well a contingency in real estate is kind of like dating. You want to see if there's red flags. You don't want to go in non contingent, have them meet your mom and then you find out they have five kids and that they're broke and that they have no morals. So a contingency period is where you're kind of vetting out your, your dates, your spouse. Yeah. So you know, and that it makes it easy for people to understand and they'll actually learn something from it. So it's not just educational, but it's a way for people to actually be able to process and remember the information that you're giving them.

[A]

I noticed that your content, your content had changed drastically over the last few months, which has obviously turned into this huge reach that you're getting and you're connecting with a lot of people. Can you break down what went into the thought process of this is what I'M doing maybe what's working, what's not. And then how did I get from A to Z?

[B]

Well, I just took a huge risk actually. A lot of people told me not to post those videos except my marketing team. So I love them. Focus Media and we, it just was by complete accident. So we did a take on like a variety. What is it? It's like it's kind of a trend where everybody was saying, oh, my name isn't this. I don't even know how to do this. My name is X and I do this. So it's kind of that format. But I just did Ling Ling because I've been called Ling Ling before. So I thought that was funny and that blew up and I thought, okay, well how do I make, how do I make leads out of this? How do I create? How do I generate leads from this? And then I just kept doing more Ling Ling but with real estate lessons embedded into the videos. And it's crazy because people actually text me and tell me that Lingling has taught them about real estate because they'll actually sit and watch a video of Ling Ling explaining it. They won't sit and watch a video of, I don't know, let's say like a boring average realtor talk about real estate, which I did before.

[A]

It's very interesting. You created a character and that character is now educating people, making them laugh. And I feel like social media now if you want to stand out. Comedy seems to be something that is massive. It really resonates. It seems like virality speaking. If you're not like dancing to some dance trend music, you got to be doing comedy and that really resonates with people. So what went through your mind in terms. So you put this out there, obviously sounds like people said, hey, maybe don't do it. Maybe you are nervous. How did you get over the fact of, you know, maybe the comments or things that might have come in that could have been negative.

[B]

I just, I didn't care. Honestly, I really didn't care because people are going to hate on you until it works. So in my mind I thought, okay, well they're going to tell me this, but then when it blows up now they're going to support me. And that's exactly what happened. Because people want to hate on something that they've never done or will ever try to do. And then when you do it, and then it actually produces results. Now they're going to tell you that they supported you and they actually doubted you. And that's just because they doubted they doubt themselves. So, I mean, in my mind it was either this is going to work and I'm going to become viral and I'm going to generate, hello, tons of leads from this, or it's just another video online, which is okay with me because, I mean, people's attention spans are extremely low. Even if it was a complete disaster, who cares? Everybody's going to forget about it the next day.

[A]

That is true. We have, we have no attention span. We do, we do forget in five minutes. And there's so many. The media moves so fast in all forms of media that.

[B]

Exactly.

[A]

Yeah. Will happen, know, yesterday or this morning. So how did you take all this viewership, the traction, and then translate that into sales leads, something related to the business?

[B]

Well, I started getting tons of dms about real estate, so I trained my assistant, Divine, to start filtering everybody out. So now when you text me, you'll get an automated text message with how to buy, how to sell. Actually, I do private equity funding for people as well, so for startup companies. So I, and I don't only help you with the funding, but also help you find a place where you can have your startup company held, the main, you know, office address. And I mean, I could just show you. It's, it's really simple, but it's really easy for you to book an appointment. And then when people start booking appointments with me, I notice that because they already see my videos, they're more authentic, they're, they feel more comfortable because they don't feel like they have to walk on eggshells. They want to work with me because they like me. But then when we get on the call, I'm very professional and I actually handle all their problems and have a listing presentation, I have a buyer presentation. Even a couple of family offices reach out to me. So then I was like, hey, this is what I have. I've done larger scale transactions. I'm very well versed in this and the X, Y and Z. I showed them my Excel and I'm always open to collaborating. So I mean, you, number one, you have to like the person you're working with. Number two, you have to trust them. So this is already me getting my foot in the door. Okay, you like me. All right. Okay, great. Here are ways you can get in contact with me. There's also a link tree where actually I need to change that, but there's a link tree where you can read an article about me that someone published. And there's also my references, my reviews, pretty much all of my edifications are there. So, you know, you like me, you see the results. Book a call now. We're here.

[A]

Yeah, yeah. It reminds me of. So we had Ryan Sirhan on and he, you know, he, he's like the most followed real estate agent in the world on social media. And I foresee this as being, and I thought it was interesting. I'm like, wow, social. And he's doing like Netflix, like he's doing a lot of different media that then translates into the business. And I like the fact that your approach is, is very unique and different and the fact that you've leveraged it almost from the beginning. So I mean, sky's the limit. How do you, how do you see this in, in a few years time into all the things that you're working on?

[B]

Okay. My goal is to be pretty much retired by 25, so I will, I won't have to work if I want to. I already have two buyer agents that are working with me and I have a housing coordinator. And it's just because I'm getting so many leads off social media and they're from all over the world, which is crazy to me because I've had somebody in Canada, as somebody in the Netherlands, I had somebody in Puerto Rico ask me for real estate advice instead of asking their local expert. And I was like, okay, well I need to go find a, a real estate agent out there. But the good thing is within Tarot, it's so easy for me to find a referral partner. So I just put it in. I'm able to help them. Like Illinois, I had somebody want to buy and sell, sell their house in Illinois and relocate over here. I had somebody in Texas, a lot of people in Texas want to sell their house and move over here. And they found me on social media. And I think within a couple of years I'm gonna just keep building a team and automate everything so that there's systems in place which I'm already building. And ideally I would like to start focusing on the higher scale things, which is what I'm transitioning to, and maybe pivot towards commercial or like the higher end homes like in Menlo park, in Palo Alto, in the Peninsula area. But my passion has just been making people money. So that's why I really like the larger scale transactions like hotels, shopping plazas and like 300 plus multi units. Because when you're helping people make money, they're really happy. They'll always do business with you.

[A]

It's always good when you can help people make money. So you might Become the next most followed on social media. Real estate agent, you might beat Ryan soon. So when it comes to looking at the platforms that you're putting your attention to or focusing on, it used to be like, like Gary Vee told us when he was on that, you know, you got to go everywhere and you got to do this where I don't know if that's the same anymore because that was a few years ago. But what we're finding, a lot of the people that we've talked to, they're hyper focusing now on like one platform. How do you see that when it comes to where are you putting the content?

[B]

Mostly on Instagram, but I also, I also put the same content on Facebook and LinkedIn and YouTube as well. But I feel like there's different strategies. Like Facebook and Instagram, they're owned by the same company, but they're different. The algorithm is completely different because on Instagram you have trial reels. LinkedIn, you want to be a little bit more professional. So my videos don't hit as well on LinkedIn, YouTube, my video, YouTube shorts, my videos perform fairly well. But for the long, long form style content, that's a completely different ball game and ballpark than Instagram reels because, yeah, it's just a different algorithm for each of them. So I think being hyper focused on one social media platform and then spreading your content words is the best way to do it.

[A]

Yeah, that makes sense. Do you find you get the most leads and conversations that might lead into business from Instagram, Instagram and LinkedIn?

[B]

So people will see my sales on LinkedIn and then DM me.

[A]

Are you doing the same content? Like, are you doing the comedy style content on LinkedIn?

[B]

I am, but is. It's crazy to me. But I'm also having my assistant target people. So I have her add a lot of probate attorneys, I have her add a lot of family offices. I have her add a trust attorneys as well. So she'll just, that's one of her tasks. Every day she just add more people and then it's, you know, it's a hit or miss. Either like me or don't like me, which is I can't please everybody. But the people that think my content is funny, they always reach out and these are people that I'm targeting and they want to work with me.

[A]

Yeah, it's amazing because a lot of people talk about, you know, algorithm changed or it's harder to reach more people like it was before. A lot of people always complain about or, or talk about I mean, I, I feel it myself that, you know, reach isn't always as easy as it was back then. But it sounds like if you, if you really create this character or you create this Persona, you create this style that resonates with a lot of people, no matter what the algorithm does, they will still remain. Are you finding that as you're going that people that you were talking to before, are they continuing to reach out? Like, are you building more long term relationships?

[B]

Yes, definitely. The people that known me when I've done real estate when I was 18 see my videos. A lot of them support it, they think it's funny. And it's also a way for me to pretty much follow up, if you will, without me texting them. Because they'll just see me on their Instagram every week posting this content and then they'll text me like, oh, Fonte, I thought that video was so funny. And then it leads into a conversation like, oh, how are you? It's like, oh, I'm great. You know, Then you know, they knew how to do real estate. I helped them before. So then it's like, oh yeah, actually some blah blah, blah is looking to buy a house.

[A]

It makes me think that I have to create. Maybe I should start interviewing people in a character. I think I might do that. I'm come over a Persona because it's hard to separate yourself among the pack of so many people talking about the same thing. But I really like this idea of creating a Persona character and mixing in comedy with education. I think I would imagine if you looked at stats like the people that watch your videos watch probably much longer than if somebody is just doing education. Right. That doesn't do.

[B]

Absolutely correct. Because I started off the first three months of me using that marketing team and working with them. I had only a thousand views and they were very professional and it was just me talking about real estate. And yeah, I mean even, I mean right now they're a little bit more. I mean, but here, I'll just show you. These are my more professional videos. They only have 5,000 views. That was just from December.

[A]

Big change. So lastly, what if, you know, I'm thinking about doing something, another business owner is thinking about doing something, we're all like, yeah, we, our Instagram kind of stinks. You know, I want to, I want to ramp it up, I want to change. What advice do you have for me that I should be thinking about right now? In order for me to up level.

[B]

I would just say be yourself, be authentic and just stop caring. So much about what other people think because I promise you, they don't care. And even if it doesn't perform the way you want it to perform, just keep trying. Because, I mean, I didn't get results from for like three months and then my video just blew up. And that video was actually just me being myself. That was the video that wasn't scripted. It was just me being myself and making a stupid joke. But people connected, that connected more with that than you having a formal script and actually educating them in a formal way. Because when people do business, they're going to do business with you. So you should just be yourself.

[A]

I really like that. So the being authentic, being yourself, not overthinking. I think we overthink. We want the scripts, we want to look like AI now. So we need to be human, perfect. We need to be ourselves and, and don't seek perfection. This has been great. People want to get in touch with you. Let's say they want to buy real estate, they want to follow your social. How can they do so well?

[B]

My Instagram is Fontaine F O N T I N e the Realtor. And you can also get in touch with me through my email and that's going to be Fontaine Delu. So F o n T I N E D A L u [e-mail] Fontaine.

[A]

Deluze this has been great. I. Every day I see your videos, I have to laugh. And the fact that you're doing it, plus working in a business and combining the two, I think is extremely unique. It's one of the few. That's why when I saw it, I'm like, I really want to talk to you about this because I feel like this is a massive miss for a lot of business owners out there, a lot of entrepreneurs. They can really learn from this and it can really uplevel. I mean, basically it's like a, a, a very low cost, a way to market because you're not running like millions of dollars of ads, you're making these videos, which is like, you know, anyone can do it with, I imagine, like, you know, you got some costume stuff, whatever they want to do, but it's a low cost way that almost anyone can do and once they hit and go viral, it could change their life. But Fantine, this has been amazing and thank you for joining us on Founders Story.

[B]

Of course. Thank you for having me.