Technology Strategies for Real Estate

I had the distinct pleasure of speaking for over 500 sales people at from Coldwell Banker Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana.  Sean Carpenter, the education director for the company has a vision of where his sales people need to be with social networking, video, and technology. And, he is doing something about it. We had an hour class on successful selling on the internet and then a great panel which I was asked to facilitate. On the panel we had the leaders in online websites. Each spoke for 15 minutes and then took great questions from the audience. Present were:

• Ben Philips, Managing Director for Openhouse.com
• Leza Van Beuren, Vice President of  Realtor.com
• Arjun Arora, who leads the Business Development team at Yahoo.com
• Sara Bonert Partner Relations Manager for  Zillow.com
• Pierre Cadazilla an onine Media maven at Trulia.com
• Rob Zellar - Director of Business development and solutions for Cyberhomes.com

If you ever get a chance to hear these people speak on a panel, do it! You will learn in 15 minutes the newest strategies, products and systems that each of these companies are bringing to the web.

Here is a little video of the day:

Click To Play

What was amazing is that these people drive from all over to attend this class. Kudos to Coldwell Banker and their inspiring leadership.

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I just had the opportunity to speak for the Women’s Council of REALTORS Mega Summit in Boston over the weekend. I taught a breakout on Video in Real Estate and was asked about Video Emails. I have seen lots of products that like to spend out money and I am not totally convinced that these branded polished email templates really reach and touch today’s consumer. Please check out TalkFusion and Covideo.

Then I found EyeJot - Wow! I must admit that I found it when logging into my RealEstateShows account. Jeff Turner had written a post on this product awhile ago and guess it didn’t interest me until . . . today!

You have to check this out.

Eyejot is a robust video messaging platform. It can be used in a number of different ways, including recording videos for email distribution, so you can send quick messages to anyone with your webcam! It is really easy to do and works with your email program. BUT . . . there is also Eyejot This!

Eyejot This! is a bookmarklet that allows you to send Eyejot video messages attached to web sites you visit. Your Eyejot message will automatically contain a link to the page you’re on, along with the page title.

You can install Eyejot This! on most browsers..

So, lets say you are sending a listing link to a client, you can comment directly on the web page you are viewing and have your video travel with that web page to your client, or whoever else you are working with. How can this help you and your business?

You can point out features that are not apparent in the text or even in the Virtual Tour.
You can educate today’s Buyer who may not know why solid Brazililan Cherry floors rock
You can include a call to action like: I am showing this home on Thursday - if you would like I can fit you in.
You can send an article from the Wall Street Journal on the housing market (that is not hosing us) to your sphere and let them know why you like it.
I think you get it.
What do you need? All you need is a webcam and an Eyejot account.

Webcams come in all shapes and sizes, and to fit any budget. One thing they recommend is looking for a webcam with a built-in microphone. Logitech has a great famil on Webcams.

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A great video from the HAR.com website.

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REEA Conf Tues 005

Originally uploaded by rfarrow

Just recently returned from the annual REEA conference (Real Estate Educators Association) where I taught a class on bringing video into the classroom and using video as an educational tool. Lots of fun, and always a challenge teaching your peers. We were in Bonita Springs, FL at the lovely Coconut Point Hyatt. Lots of great networking. The best things I learned were about distance learning, getting my classes on line the best way. I want to include lots of multimedia so the students stayed engaged.

Working on an Internet Risk Online class - will keep you posted.

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This is a test post from , a fancy photo sharing thing.

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In the class Automated Agent where I speak on all the “tools of the trade” I am constantly asked what I think of the new IPhone, with the recent update release. Although I also have IPhone envy I am sticking with my Blackberry. Why, you ask? Because I still feel it is a superior business tool, and costs less. The encryption of the email keeps my data (any my clients) safe and the ease in which my email arrives is just a lovely thing.

Matthew Ferrara of my company just wrote a great post on this topic on our company blog and he says it all. So here is the link to hear my thoughts . . . and Matthews. Click here to read the article titled: Why iPhone will never beat Blackberry.

Good reading . . .

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You have two tenths of a second to capture a visit to your website. Can video be the key to engage the consumer? Could be, if your video is professional looking, Creating good video is an art form - it gives a good first impression each and every time. If you ever need to be reminded of how bad real estate video is take a look at Rachel Natlie Klein who produces Intothebox and look in her archives for the videos titled “Best of the Bad.” She has a humorous look at the evolving real estate video.

What types of videos should you have on your website? Consider:

• Welcome message
• Top Clients saying why you are great to work with
• Property Showcase
• Town Profiles

Once your videos are produced they can be packaged and marketed as:

Banner video ads on relevant websites

Client videos can be sent to potential new clients

Video on your blog or enewsletter

Video clips can be sent to the press for new services or updates on the market.

Also keep in mind multiple uses for your video so you have a great return on your investment.

The consumer comes to your website from many different entry points. So begin your internal marketing through your website, newsletters and email campaigns. Consider:

Video syndication on sites like:

•  Youtube
• Wellcomemat
• Blip.tv
• Googlevideo
• Yahoo
• Aolvideo
• Facebook

 Add your videos to these sites are free and take advantage of the social networking aspect of the web. When you have a chance to, go to Youtube put in your city, state and the words “real estate” and see who is marketing this way. A great example of this is done by Coldwell Banker in Massachusetts. On Youtube  put in “Marion, MA real estate” with the quotes and watch their promotional video, an excellent use of this resources.

Also consider vendors, industry websites might welcome your video on their website.

As with all social networking sites, never never SELL. A topical video will get more play, increase distribution and visibility. It promotes you to expert and thought leader in your area. Your goal is to “inform and entertain.: This will allow you to take advantage of the viral nature of video on the web, people who find it interesting will recommend it and send it to others.

The product of web video packs a punch. It can be highly engaging, keeps people there and consumers can take immediate action on what they see.

So, don’t leave them hanging.

Consider:

Navigation and search options

Chapters or table of contents allowing them to jump to what interest them. Check out the chapters on the video on RackSpace. The have customer testimonials and a table on contents so you can skip to the topic that interests them.

Try to include between one to four call to actions Consider some of the following:

• Send more information
• Schedule appointment
• Ask a question
• Download PDF with more information
• Share video with a friend
• Subscribe to a newsletter or listing search

 Make sure you track your results so you can gain insight into your prospects and develop better content as you go.

Coming soon: What makes a good video

What free products are out there to help create videos.

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Michael Fanning, an EVP from Windermere Real Estate just did a study on Multi Media and photos.  Very interesting results. Weigh in with your comments.

 http://mfanning.wordpress.com/2008/06/02/how-to-create-the-best-real-estate-multimedia-presentation-online/

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Yes I am a Twit, are you? Twitter a microblog allows you to post short (140 character) messages to anyone who follows your Twitter blog post. How can Twitter help you with your real estate business. I came across this great article published by Homestomper. Click here to follow the link for a great article.

If you have never heard of Twitter, here is a short video that can educate you. Come follow me!

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As always I so enjoy speaking for the Women’s Council of REALTORS. Speaking on “Best Practices for Online Communications with your Members” Speaking about keeping in touch with members with

• Online invitations (EVITE and SendoutCards)
• monthly enewsletters such as Icontact and Constant Contact
• Blogs and Social Networks using Ning
• Webinars like GotoMeeting.

If you are not at convention download the audio file at Realtor.org.

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