Top Agents Are Selling From Instagram in 2026: How Charleston Realtor Lauren Delamater Closed $5M From Social Media in One Year

If you’ve ever caught yourself thinking, “Does Instagram even work for real estate anymore?” Charleston, South Carolina Realtor Lauren Delamater is here to say "yes… yes, it does".

Because while some agents are still posting “5 Reasons to Refinance” graphics and wondering why no one is blowing up their DMs, Lauren quietly closed five million in sales from Instagram in her first year of taking it seriously.

This feature in our Top Agents Are Selling From Instagram in 2026 series breaks down how she did it, why it worked, and how agents can replicate it.

TL/DR Because You’re a Busy Agent:

- Instagram still drives real leads in 2026. Good ones.
- Lauren’s best performing content leans a lot more local lifestyle and lot less real estate.
- Her reels don't always take off instantly. They slow burn for weeks and that right there, is the magic.
- Guides, as lead magnets, are the most underrated lead gen tools agents should be putting to work daily.
- Consistency beats confidence, every time.
- Lauren followed the exact strategies inside C&C and saved a lot of guesswork.

👋 Meet Lauren

At the start of 2025, Charleston Realtor Lauren Delamater promised herself one thing: ‘This is the year I start taking Instagram seriously."

But what she did next is not what you think. She didn't overhaul her brand or try to become a viral influencer. She decided to show up; and if she was going to show up, it had to be in a way that felt real to her and real to the people looking for homes in Charleston.

After committing to the strategies inside Coffee and Contracts consistently, everything began to click for her. Lauren started having more local conversations in the DMs with people saying things like "I've been following you for awhile and have a quick question" which escalated (honestly, kinda quickly) to five million dollars in closed business.

🎯 The Content That Built a $5M Instagram Funnel

What made Lauren's strategy work is that it focused on what people naturally gravitate toward on Instagram. It wasn’t overly produced or complicated; it matched the way people want to experience a city when they are dreaming about a move. Here's what we can learn from Lauren's funnel:

Local lifestyle reels have staying power

If we zoom out on Lauren's content strategy (and what we focus on the most at C&C), it's that the best performing posts aren't a noisy sales pitches or market updates. The posts that changed everything were small slices of Charleston, local hot spots, corners of neighborhoods you could only feel if you lived there and the hidden gems that makes someone pause and think "I could picture myself here".

This isn't the kind of strategy that takes off instantly but starts compounding and picking up views, sometimes long after she hit post. That slow and steady reach is what turned casual browsers into people who felt connected to her when it came time to make a move.

The biggest takeaway here is that people don't come to Instagram to memorize housing data. They want to explore how life might feel in a new place and Lauren captured exactly that with her content. Her content allowed people to feel the city in a way that was warm, real and welcoming.

Local Resources that start conversations

Lauren shared with us that the number one driver for her was value packed lead magnets that had viewers raising their hands and asking for more.

She uses a mix of relocation resources, neighborhood comparisons, and Charleston themed guides to start conversations with people who are researching their move.

“The guide downloads are definitely great conversation starters,” she said.

Guides create a natural bridge between "just looking" and "tell me more" because they contain information that's actually useful and gives potential clients a comfortable way to start a dialogue without any pressure.

🧲 The Secret Behind Lauren’s Instagram Lead Flow

Lauren's philiopshy is simple. She believes Instagram works when you treat it like a long game instead of a quick experiment, which she's experienced first hand.

“The proof is in the pudding. Anyone who says it doesn’t work probably didn’t give it a real effort. Testing it for a few weeks isn’t fair.”

A lot of agents struggle with posting only when the motivation shows up and they assume the platform is the problem when traction doesn’t happen instantly. But Instagram rewards familiarity and showing up often enough that you've established an audience that recognizes your content without seeing your username; stories they don't want to skip, but soak in because they relate to you.

Lauren’s year proves that slow and steady visibility creates real momentum. Her biggest advice is to start and stay committed. “Just start. It’s going to feel uncomfortable. Give it twelve months.”

Lauren believes that it takes that long to get comfortable and for people to feel like they really know you. Visibility begins to stack every time you post something that helps people understand who you are and how you work. Eventually, that familiarity turns into trust which translates to real business.

🔥 How to Use Lauren’s Strategy to Get Leads in Any Market

Lauren’s results weren’t about lucky timing or a unique market. They were the outcome of a few simple practices any agent can adopt.

Show your city through your own lens

In 2026, overly produced content is out and what people really want is to get a feel for what life actually looks like where you live. When people can picture themselves becoming part of the community, they’re already one step closer to reaching out.

Create a strong guide and use it consistently

Lauren leaned on two guides: a local guide and a relocation guide, from the C&C Content Vault, and she used them consistently. Each one played a clear role in her strategy.

The local guide helped show that she really understood what everyday life in her area looks like which positioned her as the expert in her market. The relocation guide gave people who were still quietly researching, a low pressure place to start. Together, they offered real value and built a database of warm leads.

Instead of asking people to DM cold, which most won't, the guide gave them a natural next step to engage. When you share it regularly, it becomes an easy conversation starter and a steady part of your Instagram funnel.

Choose a posting routine that feels sustainable

Lauren found a rhythm she could stick with and did, even when she didn't feel like posting.

Her routine was simple: lifestyle reels that highlighted Charleston from the local's point of view, guides shared regularly as a reminder that she had something helpful to offer,a. And stories that showed her day-to-day work.

That steady presence is what kept her top of mind and is the same structure C&C members follow.

☕️ How Coffee and Contracts Helps a Real Estate Agent Grow their business on Instagram

Lauren says to herself: “Coffee and Contracts makes it so easy to show up and position yourself as an expert. There’s no excuse not to give it a shot.”

That’s the difference C&C makes. Instead of guessing what to post, starting from scratch or chasing whatever Instagram gurus are saying every week, you're following a clear and (most importantly) proven structure that tells you exactly what to share, why it works and how it fits into the bigger picture of converting more leads from social media.

Inside the membership, agents get fresh monthly plug- and- post templates, weekly trending social media concepts to easily replicate, guides that work with the content and practically build your database on autopilot, plus so much more.

Did we mention the coaching and community? There's that too because along the way, you're going to need support from "am I doing this thing right?" to motivation to keep going even when you don't feel like it, because everyone in the community wants to see you win too!

Ready to give it a try? Grab a free week of content HERE and when you're ready to unlock the full C&C strategy, use code START20 for $20 off your first month.