Social Media for Property Professionals: What Anastasia Learnt from Rosalia Lazzara

In this week’s episode of ILA On Air, Anastasia sat down with Rosalia Lazzara, founder of Manuka Media, to talk about social media and personal branding within the property and finance industries.

Rather than focusing on surface-level marketing tips, the conversation explored something more fundamental. Why visibility has become such an important part of professional credibility, and how social media is shaping the way investors, brokers and developers are discovered.

For many people working in property, social media can feel like an optional extra. Something to explore when time allows.

What came through clearly in this conversation, however, was that visibility is increasingly becoming part of the landscape of doing business.

Below are some of the reflections Anastasia took from the discussion.

Visibility Is Becoming the New Currency

One of the most striking points Rosalia raised early in the conversation was the idea that being the best is no longer always enough.

In many industries, the people who attract the most opportunities are not necessarily the most experienced or technically capable. They are often simply the most visible.

That visibility creates familiarity. And familiarity tends to build trust over time.

Rosalia described this as the starting point of the well-known idea that people buy from those they know, like and trust. Before trust can develop, people first have to know that you exist.

For professionals who have spent years building expertise quietly behind the scenes, this shift can feel uncomfortable. But the reality is that social media now plays a significant role in how reputations are formed and discovered.

Personal Branding Is Often Built Without Realising It

The phrase personal brand appears frequently in conversations about social media, but Rosalia was quick to point out that many people build one without intentionally trying.

Earlier in her career, she worked as a business development manager within property finance. At the time, she believed she was simply documenting her work: meetings with brokers, conversations about deals, visits to lenders and industry events.

Looking back, those posts were gradually building a reputation online.

Her experience highlights an important point. A personal brand is not necessarily about carefully crafted marketing messages. It is often simply the story of what someone does, how they work and what they care about.

Over time, those small moments of visibility can accumulate into something much more significant.

Why Authenticity Is Becoming More Important

Another topic that emerged during the discussion was the increasing appetite for authenticity online.

For many years, social media has been associated with polished highlight reels. Celebrating the wins while ignoring the challenges behind them.

Rosalia suggested that audiences are gradually becoming more sceptical of that type of content, particularly in industries like property and finance where the stakes can be high.

People increasingly want to see the reality behind businesses. The learning curves, the difficult decisions and the occasional mistakes that inevitably happen along the way.

This does not mean sharing every internal challenge publicly. But acknowledging that business journeys are rarely perfect can make a brand feel more credible rather than less.

Social Media as a Modern Portfolio

For developers and property investors in particular, social media has also become something resembling a live portfolio.

Platforms like Instagram allow professionals to document projects from start to finish. The early stages of a site acquisition, the progress during development and the final result once a project completes.

This type of content offers something traditional marketing materials rarely provide: transparency.

Instead of only seeing the finished property, audiences can see the process behind it. The decisions, the setbacks and the transformation over time.

Rosalia described this as a modern version of a CV for property professionals. A public record of projects, activity and expertise.

The Importance of Due Diligence

However, one of the most interesting parts of the conversation was the reminder that social media should never replace due diligence.

While platforms allow people to showcase impressive projects and portfolios, the online world is still curated by nature.

What appears polished on the surface may not always reflect the full picture behind the scenes.

Rosalia shared an example from her own experience as an investor. Despite seeing strong online content from a property professional, the reality behind the scenes did not match the image presented on social media.

The takeaway was not that social media should be avoided. Instead, it reinforced the importance of combining visibility with proper verification.

Online content can open doors to opportunities. But decisions still require careful investigation.

Comparison and the Challenge of Social Media

Another theme explored during the episode was the psychological side of social media.

While platforms offer opportunities for visibility and connection, they can also encourage comparison.

Algorithms are designed to surface highly engaging content, which often means showing the most polished or successful examples within a given industry.

For professionals working hard behind the scenes, constantly seeing those extremes can create unrealistic benchmarks.

Rosalia emphasised the importance of perspective here. Instead of comparing with the most visible success stories online, it can be more productive to look at peers who are only a step or two ahead.

That perspective keeps progress feeling attainable rather than overwhelming.

Getting Started Without Overthinking It

For many professionals, the biggest barrier to using social media is simply getting started.

The conversation touched on how common it is for people to feel uncomfortable posting online, particularly when video content is involved.

Rosalia’s advice was refreshingly simple.

Start small.

Posting written updates, sharing reflections from projects or discussing lessons learned from day-to-day work can be enough to begin building visibility.

Video, photography and more polished content can come later. What matters most initially is consistency rather than perfection.

Over time, familiarity with the process makes the experience far more natural.

Actionable Takeaway

This episode was not about turning every property professional into a full-time content creator.

Instead, it highlighted how the landscape of professional visibility is evolving.

For developers, brokers, lenders and investors, social media increasingly acts as a place where credibility, expertise and reputation can be discovered.

The key takeaway from Anastasia’s conversation with Rosalia was simple.

Visibility alone does not create trust. But without visibility, trust rarely has the opportunity to form.

Want to Hear the Full Conversation?

This article is based on Episode 8 of ILA On Air, where Anastasia speaks with Rosalia Lazzara about social media, personal branding and how visibility is shaping the property and finance industries.

Listen to the full episode here:

https://open.spotify.com/show/114c5xCQSdAkwCLYpFDGHb

If you work within property or finance and are curious about how social media fits into the wider industry landscape, the full conversation offers practical insights from someone working at the centre of that space.

Making the complicated simple.

Tiny disclaimer alert 🚨

This is not advice from iLA. It is simply a helpful summary of conversations shared on ILA On Air, our educational podcast for the property finance community, making the complicated simple.

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