Text messaging – a must to stay in touch

Yesterday’s computer whiz (OK, political correctness aside…computer geek) is today’s homebuyer. And today’s real estate professional needs to be aware of how today’s homebuyer (i.e., Echo Boomer) communicates in order to compete for his attention and his business.

By 2010 there will be over 60 million of these “eecho boomers” buying homes and they will own 40% of American’s wealth.Young adults are buying more homes faster than either their parents or grandparents, according to a survey by Coldwell Banker Real Estate Corp. Overall, 58 percent of respondents have owned more homes than their parents did when their parents were of a comparable age, the survey shows. Nearly half of Gen X homeowners, who are between 32 and 41, and 36 percent of Echo Boomers, who are younger than 32, have already owned between two and five homes. Daily Real Estate News | August 22, 2006

And how are these young adults communicating? They’re letting their fingers do the talking with Text Messaging. Just in Time Marketing, or Text messaging can be accomplished a few different ways: phone to phone and Internet to phone or multiple phones.

How do you start? First of all start asking your clients for their cell phone numbers. Ask them if they “text message” and if you can communicate with them that way? Be sure to check with your cell service provider and find out what your text messaging options are. You need a data contract on your cell phone plan to use texting. If not each text message can cost from 10 to twenty five cents each.

By putting in a person’s ten digit cell phone number and a short message – up to 160 characters, you can start marketing.

Just imagine . . . you need to confirm an appointment or need to tell a buyer client that a house they were interested is back on the market. You want to tell your seller clients that you have showings or an offer coming in. You can stop wasting time on voice mail tag and get right to the message. By sending the message via text message, your client gets the message instantly.

What else can you do with text messaging? Send pictures. Most cell phones have a built-in camera. Practice using it and turn your cell phone into an instant marketing tool. Consider this…you just landed a new listing and have several buyers in mind. Since you already have their cell phone numbers stored in your contact list, take a few pictures of your new listing, access your contact list, create a text message titled “New Listing – Must See,” attach your photos and send. Your clients will receive a text message, complete with a few cool photos, right on their cell phone. Now that’s Instant Marketing!

On Verizon’s site, you can also send photo messages to clients. You just upload your images. They can be transmitted as a slide show complete with music and text. Also check out www.teleflip.com where you can send a mass text message by using email. Very cool.

Go one step further and record a personal marketing message and send that with the text message. Now that is marketing on the web.

Think about sending text messages for information that does not require a call.

Text messaging is not just for kids any more.

Monthly Podcast on Tools of the Trade – Enhancing you Digital Presence

Starting this month, I will have a monthly podcast called Tools of the Trade for your listening pleasure. If you visit www.agentroundup.com and click on "How to Subscribe" you can receive the Podcasts every month right into your ITunes and IPOD or other MP3 Software.

This months topic features an interview with Jeff Turner, COO of RealEstateShows.com and the person who invited me to Activerain.

Let me know your thoughts! I look forward to hearing from you.

Consider updating your Ad copy with www.writemyads.com

81% of consumers go online before ever calling or emailing you. In essence the first showing of your home is online. Photos are the number one item that consumers want . . . and lots of them. But many of us have gotten away from writing good copy for our listings. All I have seen lately, yes I am generalizing, are ads with words like: 3 br with frm and frog. What is a FROG? Family room over the garage. We have those back East.

Remember . . . the basic rule of advertising: Sell the sizzle, not the steak. I am speaking about the benefits of living in that home, what were the reasons they bought the house. What have they enjoyed about living there. All these things can create great ad copy. If you are not a great copy writer check out a new product called http://www.writemyads.com/. You can try it for free and write an ad just by filling all the features of your home in a wizard driven product. You don't even need to type, just use pull down menus and click off features. The result will be wonderful ad copy that paints a picture. For just $10 a month you can also properties, photos, publications and for a small fee give access to other associates. Check it out!

The TREO has begun revolutionizing REALTOR’S® lives.

A student came up to me on break in a recent class, all excited about what she had just done with her TREO 650. She had received a call from a buyer prospect wanting more information on a home. She started up the web browser on her TREO and went to her website, copied and sent the link to the client. He text messaged her within minutes to confirm the date and time of the showing. All this while she was on a break from class.

If you are ready to upgrade your cell phone or handheld, you should consider the popular TREO, a convergence model – which is a cell phone combined with a PDA (personal digital assistant.)

The TREO is available through Verizon, Cingular and Sprint. It is a little bigger than a cell phone but it can take the place of your laptop when you are out in the field.

Here are some of the top features for a Realtor®.

Email – Have a copy of your emails sent to your TREO. Now that you have access you can decide whether the email needs immediate attention. If the person has put their phone number in the message you can click on it and instantly dial the person.

Photos – the TREO uses a memory stick (the sandisk) which is very common in digital cameras and other devices. You can load all your photos and even video clips for a chance encounter with a prospect.

Documents to Go – This program allows you to load any important Microsoft Office document and take it with you. This includes Word, Excel and PowerPoint.

Consider doing a PowerPoint presentation on your handheld when you run into a prospective client.

Bluetooth – This is cool! Bluetooth is a wireless technology – just a chip that allows you to wirelessly connect to other Bluetooth devices up to 30 feet. Have a Bluetooth printer? Print those excel spreadsheets. Wireless Bluetooth headsets are now seen on many REALTOR'S(r) ears – blinking blue. That freedom allows you to walk around and chat without holding a phone to your ear.

Downloadable programs – the Palm OS boasts over 30,000 downloadable programs to make your life easier. Some are free, some you need to pay for. Visit a site like http://www.palmgear.com/ or http://www.handango.com/ to download some of them. Most programs give you a full version trial. If you don't like it, just delete it! Some favorites include financial calculators, pocket quicken to keep track of costs, mps 3plyaers, and games. My favorite is TRIP – a program where I enter my mileage and when I synch to my computer it downloads into an excel spreadsheet which I give to my accountant at the end of the year.

Outlook- If you use Outlook to manage your business, whatever you add to your calendar, contacts, or tasks updates on your TREO. So you have all your office with you. It is easy to look up a phone number and dial it, dates on a calendar and what you are supposed to do today.

And . . . last but not least! Can you access your MLS via the web browser for real time information? If you are paying for a monthly data contract to access your email, the next most important feature would be to have access to your MLS. If they do not have this feature, get involved and make sure they implement it soon. From Long Island to Baton Rouge, to Dayton, Ohio, Realtors have up to the minute access not only of their MLS but a membership roster and data on properties.

Mobility has just gotten easier for REALTORS! Check out the new smart phones at your local cell phone provider.

Text messaging – a must to stay in touch

As I was walking through our technical support call center the other day, one of our Tech Hotline technicians was proudly wearing a shirt with those very words. I chuckled as a made a sly comment about his "geek-wear" but then realized how true those words are.

Yesterday's computer whiz (OK, political correctness aside…computer geek) is today's homebuyer. And today's real estate professional needs to be aware of how today's homebuyer (i.e., Echo Boomer) communicates in order to compete for his attention and his business.

By 2010 there will be over 60 million of these "eecho boomers" buying homes and they will own 40% of American's wealth.Young adults are buying more homes faster than either their parents or grandparents, according to a survey by Coldwell Banker Real Estate Corp. Overall, 58 percent of respondents have owned more homes than their parents did when their parents were of a comparable age, the survey shows. Nearly half of Gen X homeowners, who are between 32 and 41, and 36 percent of Echo Boomers, who are younger than 32, have already owned between two and five homes. Daily Real Estate News | August 22, 2006

And how are these young adults communicating? They're letting their fingers do the talking with Text Messaging.

So, how do we market to this generation of homebuyers? For starters, we need to communicate in a way that fits their lifestyle. Although email is still one of the most widely used communication tools, young homebuyers use email differently today.  "Email, once the cutting edge ‘killer app,' is losing its privileged place among many . . . as they express preferences for instant messaging (IM) and text messaging as ways to connect with their friends."." Pew Internet & American Life Project, July 25, 2005, http://www.pewinternet.org/PPF/r/162/report_display.asp, accessed on August 30, 2006. Just in Time Marketing, or Text messaging can be accomplished a few different ways: phone to phone and Internet to phone or multiple phones.

How do you start? First of all start asking your clients for their cell phone numbers. Ask them if they "text message" and if you can communicate with them that way? Be sure to check with your cell service provider and find out what your text messaging options are. You need a data contract on your cell phone plan to use texting. If not each text message can cost from 10 to twenty five cents each.

By putting in a person's ten digit cell phone number and a short message – up to 160 characters, you can start marketing.

Just imagine . . . you need to confirm an appointment or need to tell a buyer client that a house they were interested is back on the market. You want to tell your seller clients that you have showings or an offer coming in. You can stop wasting time on voice mail tag and get right to the message. By sending the message via text message, your client gets the message instantly.

What else can you do with text messaging? Send pictures. Most cell phones have a built-in camera. Practice using it and turn your cell phone into an instant marketing tool. Consider this…you just landed a new listing and have several buyers in mind. Since you already have their cell phone numbers stored in your contact list, take a few pictures of your new listing, access your contact list, create a text message titled "New Listing – Must See," attach your photos and send. Your clients will receive a text message, complete with a few cool photos, right on their cell phone. Now that's Instant Marketing!

On Verizon's site, you can also send photo messages to clients. You just upload your images. They can be transmitted as a slide show complete with music and text. Also check out www.teleflip.com where you can send a mass text message by using email. Very cool.

Go one step further and record a personal marketing message and send that with the text message. Now that is marketing on the web.

Text messaging is also useful in the office environment. I was scheduled to speak for a company and the meeting room was double booked. As I ran to tell the secretary, she picked up a phone and very calmly called a local hotel and booked a room. She told me how to get there and not to worry; she would get the students there. We had 40 people attending. How did she do it? She sent a bulk text message to all the participants of the change of location. We only missed 15 minutes of the class.

Think about sending text messages for information that does not require a call.

Text messaging is not just for kids any more.