Episode Details

 🎙️ Episode 70: More Than Real Estate Podcast — How to Make Your Sphere of Influence Come Alive on Instagram 

Ceci Sutcliffe walked into Socially Sold skeptical — she'd already lost $5,000 to a lead gen company and wasn't about to get burned again. Less than a year later, she's on track to close 20M+ in production, up from a previous best of 12M, and not one dollar of it came from a stranger. 

This episode is for every agent who thinks Instagram is only for building a new audience. Your sphere is already watching. The question is whether they're seeing you.

✨ The $5K Burn That Made Her More Careful — Ceci came in with more skepticism than most. A prior lead gen company had cost her $5,000 and delivered nothing, so when she messaged Ashley before joining, she needed real answers. What she got back was: "I can give you the framework and all the tools. You just have to go out and do the work." That was enough.

✨ Sphere Ignition Over Stranger Leads — Ceci hasn't closed a stranger from Instagram yet. She'll tell you that herself. What she has done is get 18M sold through the first half of the year and win a $4.75M listing from a woman she plays mahjong and tennis with. "Because your social media is amazing" is exactly what that client told her when Ceci finally asked why she chose her.

✨ The $1.7M Listing She Won Over a Best Friend — Ceci competed for a listing against an agent who was the sellers' best friend. She won it because the sellers said she could do everything the other agent could do, plus bring her social reach and video marketing to the table. That's what a personal brand does in a savvy market.

✨ Ryan Serhant Picked Her Because of Instagram — Ceci is now at Serhant's brokerage, and the connection started because of her Instagram presence. After growing to 10,000+ followers in six months, she reached out to the regional broker when she saw an opening, and three hours over lunch turned into a done deal. Ryan's line that she'd been waiting to hear: "Personal brands are the most undervalued, underutilized asset in America."

✨ 15 Hours a Week — and It Looks Like Living — Ceci spends about 15 hours a week on content. But those are hours at mahjong, on the boat, at a coastal dinner with her husband, at tennis. "Give me 15 hours of living my life and filming it versus 15 hours of soul-sucking cold calling. I'll do it any week." Her one honest gap: Instagram stories, which she's making a non-negotiable going forward.

✨ Where She's Headed — Ceci knows what's next. More stories, more on-camera presence outside the listing videos, and continuing to own the Vero Beach relocation niche while her listing appointments keep rolling in from buyers who want access to her audience. She's not chasing volume. She's building something that compounds.

Ceci Sutcliffe is a top-producing agent based in Vero Beach, Florida, specializing in coastal relocation. She's a Socially Sold graduate and Agent Collective member now affiliated with Serhant.

Ashley Walker is the host of the More Than Real Estate Podcast and the founder of Socially Sold, where she helps real estate agents build authority through Instagram. She's a top-producing agent, mama, and wife to her best friend.

🎓 Ready to build your real estate business on Instagram? Join Ashley's signature coaching container Socially Sold here join.socially-sold.com/podcast