It is easy to figure out when you are over sharing in a face-to-face conversation.  It is even easier to figure it out when you are dealing with a business marketing situation. But what happens when the business mixes with the social and the line between the personal and business blurs? How much is too much? Here are some tips on what information you might want to hold back, and what information you shouldn’t hold back.

Hold Back:

It’s pretty obvious what not to share like your personal information, health history or details on your relationship. But what about other things that seem harmless like stuff about your family? Those details depend on your personal level of comfort, but then again consider your audience and that in the end this is for business. While we are at it let’s steer clear of volatile subjects such as politics and religion. There is a time and a place for that. And I absolutely know that you would never under any circumstances make your home address public information, for your whole networking sites to see. Avoid posting photos or comments about how wild your weekends are or salacious gossip. Facebook users don’t post updates on what your Mafia Wars or Farmville pets are up to.

Feel Free to Share:

So what information can we include without sounding like a boring business presentation? Plenty! How about some information about what you do? What do you specialize in? How long have you been doing it? Talk about some of the organizations you are a part of. It is okay to have a little fun, share some thoughts on that fabulous restaurant you found hidden away in your favorite neighborhood, or stories about your recent trips. If you find it interesting, they will find it interesting because your passion will shine through your words.

Now some of us maybe a little more open than others. For those of you that are consider this before posting. I suggest getting some feedback from a trusted confidant. Sometimes saying it out loud helps. And for the rest of us just follow this rule of thumb, would you share that information with someone you just met? If not, then don’t post it. Or simply follow your gut; if you aren’t comfortable saying it, then you probably shouldn’t post it on your social media sites.

Via: InMan News

So you did it, you went ahead and started a twitter account for your business. Now what? While you probably won’t be tweeting about your breakfast options, or that funny comment you heard at happy hour you can still add your own personal touch.  Twitter is a great tool for sending out real time information to your followers, and can be effectively used in localized situations, such as for a real estate professional. So here are some things to consider.

Custom Feeds Are Key- So you figured freely posting live information would be a breeze, just hastily type a sentence or two and voila ! Instant communication to the world. Well my friend, you would be wrong. Take the time to customize your feeds. No one will read what you have to say if you are not reading what he/she are tweeting. You can find people by using the Twitter directory.

Stay Organized- Just like you group your phone numbers on your smart phones you should also categorize those you follow on twitter, fellow realtors, real estate enthusiast, you can even follow real estate publications in your area.

Get Localized- Just because there is a plethora of information out there does not mean you have to stay tuned to everything. Get yourself localized by finding out who is tweeting in your area. Real Estate is all about location and tweeting can help you stay on top of fellow realtors and new happenings in your area.

Mind Your Manners: Survive the Tweeting World

Remember that tweeting has it own set of rules, so keep these in mind when tweeting for business purposes.

1.Re-tweet: When you Re-Tweet (repost someone else’s comment) you are A.) commenting on something you like (which is always great) and B.) you are allowing your audience to exponentially grow.

To Re-tweet: Click “Re-Tweet” button next to a message you like and want to share with your followers, or simply just copy and past the message, don’t forget to add RT @ _____ (that would be the person you are re-tweeting).

2.Be thankful: For all those who mention you, make sure to thank them. You can check to see who mentions you by clicking on the @_ _ _ button on your home page. And do it every day, yes tweeting is a constant so be prepared to stay on top of what is going on.

And also make sure to respond to those direct messages you get, just say thanks. Beware, don’t start sending those annoying spam messages it is an easy way to lose followers and quickly.

3.Sharing is Caring: Don’t shy away from being personal and letting your spunky personality shine, after all this is twitter and it is all about connecting with people. Be genuine and in no time finding material to tweet about will be a breeze.

Social Media is a fun and personal way to keep your business growing. What are some other things that you have found helpful when using twitter?

Source: Inman News

Let’s face it in this fast-paced kind of e-world attracting the right clients to a property has become increasingly difficult. Attention spans are not what they used to be. However, there are a few tried and true tactics to keep your real estate listing from falling into the gutters of real estate oblivion.

Visual Appeal

You wouldn’t put a listing up with out enhancing its visual appeal, so don’t forget about it in the ad copy. This is the property’s calling card, it needs to be easy to read, clear and concise. Formatting your ad copy is one of the easiest things to do when trying to grab a buyer’s attention.

• Don’t use all capital letters or all lower case letters.
• Break up big blocks of text. Studies have shown that buyers tend to read the first few sentences and headlines of ads. Make sure your most pertinent information is placed in the beginning.
• Include Heading and Subheadings
• A picture is a worth a thousand words. Don’t be afraid to include images, just make sure they reflect what your text is saying. If you describe a staircase, show the picture.

Literary Appeal

Everyone loves a good story. Writing students are often urged to show rather than tell. This is a great tool to use for advertising a property. Find the home’s “story” and place the reader in it. What makes this home special? Even something as simple as a new stovetop can be used as selling point. Realtor Magazine suggests asking the sellers to tell you what they will miss most about their home. By emphasizing the positive aspects of a home a buyer is more likely to consider the listing.

Avoid using puffery. Puffery is described as flattering, often-exaggerated praise and publicity, especially when used for promotional purposes. The fine line between creative use of information and puffery can be avoided by including both the positive and negative aspects of a home. Don’t be afraid to include a potential negative instead try show it in a positive light.

Know Your Market

Not everyone is going to be a fit for every home. Avoid generalizing a property by focusing on the target buyer, rather than generalizing. Consider the neighborhood, the lifestyle of that person who would want that type of property. Readers will respond better if they feel they can relate,  good copy will consider the client’s personality. For example, an ad for a loft in the middle of the art district could include points an artist will appreciate like great lighting, and perhaps an easily accessible sink to rinse out used brushes.

Take the time to be a little creative. With a few simple adjustments any home can be written to attract its rightful new owner. For detailed samples on telling the story visit Laurie Moore-Moore’s tips on ad copy at: http://www.luxuryhomemarketing.com/real-estate-agents/home.html

Click here to view the embedded video.

ActiveRain currently has a membership of over 160,000 RE Industry members averaging 200 new members daily.  There are more than 1.3 million articles posted, with an average of 10,000 new posts monthly.  Two million+ visitors traffic the ActiveRain network each month, over 80% are consumers.  Only Rainmaker upgraded accounts receive Google traffic to their blogs and posts.  ActiveRain Members blog posts receive more than 500 views on average.  Activerain provides a wide of variety of tools, services, and solutions to the Real Estate community and to the consumer.

So you think this might be a good resource for your business?

• Think about building your realtor base nationwide
• AR is a cost effective way of starting a blog
• Access to Localism  you can sponsor your community ( if it is available )

Here is the link to an ebook that will guide you through ActiveRain

One way to set up a blog is on a site such as Trulia. Trulia is similar to other MLS aggregators that put together the property listings for the public ot search. You can start your blog once you set up your account on Trulia. Here is a short video on seting up your blog.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Trulia has other features like trulia voices where consumers can  ask questions about real estate and realtors who have signed up for trulia voices can answer these questions. Just another  way to make contact with the consumer !

Zappos is an online store that sells shoes and other items. They have a huge selection and are very efficient. I heard Alfred Lin speak at the Real Estate Connect Conference in San Francisco in August of this year and I was very impressed. He talked about what his company sells, which one would imagine was shoes but instead he said that Zappo’s sells happiness. Zappo’s mission is for their customers to be happy. So everything they do is with this in mind!

This led me to think of the real estate business and what we sell . One might think it is property but I would say we sell the experience. Think about what your customers experience with you. What sets their experience with you apart from the rest?

These are Zappos 10 Core Values. We can use them for our business as well. I encourage you to take a look at them and think about how you can utilize them to better attend to your own business. or better yet come up with your own.

Send me a list of YOUR values.

1. Deliver WOW Through Service
2. Embrace and Drive Change
3. Create Fun and A Little Weirdness
4. Be Adventurous, Creative, and Open-Minded
5. Pursue Growth and Learning
6. Build Open and Honest Relationships With Communication
7. Build a Positive Team and Family Spirit
8. Do More With Less
9. Be Passionate and Determined
10. Be Humble

In the video below Seth Godin & Tom Peters talk about the value of blogging. Never before has it been so easy to reach the masses and get your message out. Are you sitting on the sidelines or contributing to your profession, community and the greater good?

As a Managing Broker I have seen so many different types of people enter the field.

The Worrier : they have done the same thing over so many times and still do not think they know what they are doing. They continually doubt themselves and thus, their customers may doubt them due to the fact that they are always doubting themselves.

Don’t get me wrong I think what we do as realtors is very important & serious business. We deal, in most cases, with the largest purchase & investment a person will make in their lifetime.  My only observation is that the continual doubting and worrying by the agent makes the customer nervous. So I ask you when does the doubting end?

When do you know you know what you are doing? How would you feel going to a doctor that was worried about what he was doing? I don’t think you would go to that doctor. So the same goes for the customer who feels their agent is insecure and not able to fully support them through their transaction.

Now on the other hand….

 The Warrior :  Their attitude is I don’t care what I don’t know just let me out of here so I can work with customers!The Warriors are those agents that don’t know what they don’t know ! Many times they don’t care either ! (Which is pretty scary!)

They are so eager to work with the customers that they skip the training and hit the streets customers in tow !  The customers don’t know, they don’t know, they trust them because their confidence and their ability to work with them is their greatest skill.

If those agents just take some time to learn the technicalities they will be super stars! Instead many times they run themselves ragged and figure they’ll deal with the important details later !

My hope for them is that  they have a strong manager that will slow them down just a bit and assist them in learning the basics, so, that they can  assure that all those deals will close with the least amount of complications possible !

I have been using Google Voice, formerly Grand Central for quite some time. I got a number when it was still Grand Central. I am sure you would agree that in the Real Estate business your phone is your everything! Customers have your number, your office has your number, vendors have your number, its on your cards and website. As realtors, you need to be accessible & responsive by email & phone.

Well, Google Voice makes that very easy. You need be invited to join & then you can choose practically any area code you want, from local or faraway destinations. You set it to ring your work phone, your cell phone & your home phone or whichever numbers you want to ring. You then can screen your calls, listen in and then decide to pick up or send directly to voice mail. Google Voice also transcribes the voice mail into text and it emails it to you !

SMS and Miscellaneous features

When people SMS your Google Voice number, the message will go directly to one or more (however many you have set up) mobile phones. You can respond to those SMSs directly from the phone, and that response will appear to come from your Google Voice number. You can also send and receive SMSs right from the Google Voice Web interface, so that you don’t have to take out your phone every time you want to text your friend to ask why he’s late picking you up—assuming you’re in front of a computer already, that is. Google Voice lets you archive your SMS logs too so that you can reach them anytime from the website.

Stay tuned for more information on how to use Google Voice in my future posts.

My Google Voice # is 954-892-6199.

Give me a call!

Click here to view the embedded video.

Tell them what comparable homes are selling for – 11% of buyers want this from their real estate agent.
Help determining how much they can afford – 11% of buyers want this from their real estate agent.
Help find and arrange financing – 2% of buyers want this from their real estate agent.

Be sure you don’t make a habit of “winging it!”

Do you have up to the minute knowledge of the market?

Do you have a credible and dependable loan officer that you work with to qualify your buyers?

I’m sure you will agree, when you get to the point of submitting their offer you will be asked for documentation and the credit worthiness of your buyer … JUST BE PREPARED!