Creating a social media business plan can be an overwhelming task. However, the right plan can recession-proof your real estate business.

It also allows you to make the most of your online presence, creating a road map to success.

So what does it take to integrate social media into your overall marketing strategy?

Below are five core areas to build out, research or incorporate into your plan if you want to achieve social media success in the New Year.

1. Manageability
Creating a manageable social media strategy will determine immediate failure or long-term success.

Know who will manage your social media strategy and how often you will post to your social networks.

Managing social media can become a full-time job. If you cannot commit to what it will take to build a substantial presence, then give it away!

2. Sustainability
Additionally, a business plan is key to the sustainability of your online presence.

A social media business plan will add an additional layer to your overall marketing plan, serving as a guide as you work towards your goals. Furthermore, reaching one milestone enhances the motivation to complete the next.

3. Competitive Advantage
As you begin to market your business online you must identify what gives you the competitive advantage within your market.

One way to gain the competitive edge over your competition is to remain ahead of industry trends. What's new when it comes to technology and communication tools and strategy? Knowing this will allow you to better serve potential customers.

You also want to spend time researching your competition. Answering a few questions before moving forward will make the build-out of your social media plan much easier.
» Who are the top competitors within my local market?
» How do they use social media to build their business?
» Does it appear they have a strategy in place?
» What can you learn from what is/is not working?

4. Measure Your Results
Once you have established goals, it is imperative that you put systems in place to track and measure your efforts.

Your goals might include:
» Increasing business or personal brand visibility
» Building relationships
» Driving traffic to your website
» Adding prospects to your email or subscriber list

Each strategy you put in place that supports one of your goals should be analyzed for success and adjusted accordingly.

5. Be Flexible As we said above, social media is very fluid. What works today may not necessarily work tomorrow.

Never feel so attached to a specific strategy that you lose focus on what really matters: your goals.

Make sure you are agile and able to adapt to changing trends.

Remember, the road to success is not always a straight one. More often than not you will need to evaluate and adjust to meet changes within your community and industry.

A business plan is vital to your success. Ready to build yours?

We'd love to hear what steps you plan to take in the comments below!

Rebekah Radice is a social media strategist, content developer, trainer and Co-Founder of Imagine Social Wow. Rebekah's goal is to provide insight and inspiration to business owners and entrepreneurs, enabling them to build a powerful online presence that includes the strategic use of social media marketing. Rebekah was recently named an Inman Top 100 Most Influential Leader, as well as one of the Top Social Media Professionals to Follow in 2013.