The Real Estate Beat - Home

Treat Your Broker-to-Broker Referrals Like Internet Leads

2013-01-02T17:05:00Z

More times than you know, the referral generated by your sales associate today becomes someone else’s internet lead tomorrow. With over 90 percent of consumers now using the Internet to begin their search, industry experts agree that response time is the single largest factor when serving an Internet consumer.

Real estate firms purchase expensive software systems to ensure quick response, hire staffing to go beyond traditional business hours, and implement high standards of response time within their agent sales force to service the internet consumer.

Broker to broker business traditionally produces higher conversion results than internet business. So, why are we servicing the broker to broker “lead” differently than the internet lead?

Perhaps the business is serviced differently because it is assumed the referring agent has a known and proven relationship with the customer they are referring; that the customer may have some sense of “loyalty” that would cause them to be willing to wait for contact. Though “loyalty” is a charming thought and a throwback to years gone past, there is a serious problem with that assumption. Sometimes your agent is referring the acquaintance from the grocery store, the car repair mechanic, or the nice gentleman they met on the plane. Will the customer (loyal or not) be willing to wait for service rather than getting immediate results requesting assistance on the web?

Referrals between brokers demand the same sense of urgency that we give to our internet leads. The trusted friend, the beloved family member, the loyal customer and the respected client deserve the same expedited delivery of service that you would provide to the customer surfing the web.

Our broker-to-broker coordinators have a tough job in today’s real estate market. There’s tremendous pressure to place these referrals expeditiously.

Sales associates know they are competing with the web. If you want to increase your outgoing referral business, your associates need to know you understand their time pressures and that you have processes in place to handle these leads with the same sense of urgency that you would handle an internet lead.

As LeadingRE affiliates, we must completely understand that the broker-to-broker referrals our sales associates generate today could potentially be someone else’s internet lead tomorrow, unless we treat our broker-to-broker referrals like internet leads, NOW!

Vicki Hamp, CRP, GMS, Regional Relocation Director, Long & Foster Corporate Real Estate Services

Opening Up Your Market to the Chinese Investor

2012-11-30T17:11:00Z

Imagine my surprise when I received a call from Wes Foster late last summer asking me if I was interested in escorting a group of Mandarin speaking agents to mainland China to try to promote our company and markets to the Chinese interested in purchasing in the US! Having never been to China I was somewhat cautious with my response, but have learned never to say no to someone with the vision of Wes Foster. It turned out to be quite an interesting journey, in more ways than one!

The first objective was to find out which of our over 10,000 agents spoke Mandarin, which Wes felt was key to the visit. As it turns out, we had quite a few interested in pursuing the opportunity, and ultimately had four outstanding agents commit to the trip. The next piece was somewhat more challenging, deciding where and what venue made sense for us. As it turned out, one of our agents had attended an international property expo in Beijing in the spring and felt this was worth investigating. Fortunately they also had a fall show taking place in September, so we decided to “jump on board” and quickly get everything in place to move forward as an exhibitor. Having never done an international property expo, there was a great deal of discussion regarding what materials to present and what our booth should display.

After much debate we felt the booth should exemplify the lifestyle choices in our markets, with bright colored photos of key landmarks and housing options. Our collateral materials included new home developments, a company brochure that was translated in Chinese and information on Leading Real Estate Companies of the World®. We felt it was important to not only showcase our markets, but also to let them know we could help them around the US and in other countries because of our global network.

On a personal side, going to China required securing a China visa (which I didn’t have), packing a red suit and gearing up for that 15 hour flight in coach! I was certainly excited about experiencing this adventure, which would be a first on so many levels.

The expo itself was very worthwhile, although there were certainly “lessons learned.” We tried to stress the MLS system and the REALTOR Code of Ethics, two things that were truly foreign to them. We learned that it might have been better for us to simplify things and not present so many options, which tended to be overwhelming. However, our booth was constantly busy, as there is a tremendous interest from the Chinese in purchasing in the US, in a variety of markets and price ranges. Some were focused on sending their children to college in the US and were looking to purchase for them; some were interested in rental investments and some in luxury housing. It was truly “all across the board.” From everyone we found enthusiasm and an interest in learning more.

Although the days were long and somewhat grueling, we were able to experience some of the things you often read about: a Peking Duck dinner and driving by the Forbidden City and Tiananmen Square in the beautiful evening lights. I even made it to the Great Wall of China! From both a personal and business perspective, it was certainly worthwhile.

We are working with many interested parties – not only in this market, but also with others we will be able to refer through the network. There are numerous international expos held annually in China, so you need to do your homework to determine which is best for you. We think this market holds real promise and look forward to seeing where these first efforts lead.

Pandra W. Richie, SCRP, SGMS, VP, Long & Foster Corporate Real Estate Services

Supporting Those Impacted by Hurricane Sandy

2012-11-08T16:13:57Z

In the time since Hurricane Sandy hit the Northeast, we have witnessed an incredible outpouring of concern from members around the world for those members who were and continue to be affected by the storm.

Many have inquired how they can assist, and others have launched or are involved in grassroots efforts to lend support to those in need.

One member, Fillmore Real Estate in Brooklyn, has organized a Hurricane Sandy relief effort and is taking supplies and food to victims daily, even opening their office to displaced individuals. Those wishing to support this program can learn more here: http://www.fillmorecares.com.

To help connect our members who want to help with those who are aiding relief efforts, we have created a space in our member community, called OUR Cause. Here, members can post requests for assistance with relief efforts, learn ways to help support these initiatives, and see status reports from members and staff in the area.

Of course, the Red Cross is also doing great work in the area, and many are supporting this organization’s admirable work. Donations can be made here.

Our thoughts will remain with all of the people impacted by the storm, and our sincere thanks go to those supporting our friends in need.

Posted by: Pam O'Connor

Tell YOUR Story to Strengthen Circle of Influence

2012-09-25T11:21:00Z

If you’ve ever sat in on a marketing or sales class you’ve been told to “sell the benefits, not the features”. When selling a home with green features, rarely does anyone care what the R-factor is, they only want to know that the higher it is, the more money they will save on their electric bill. When trying to sell a specific product, if you give it much thought, it’s an easy habit to adopt. When trying to sell yourself, however, it gets more difficult.

Social media and blogging have become ways to connect with our potential customers like never before. One of the biggest mistakes we see agents doing, however, is using these as straight out ‘product vomit’ streams. They consistently blog, tweet, or share their listings, their communities, and other business topics. They miss the real connection to their circle of influence. While telling your COI what you had for breakfast isn’t any better than sharing your new listings, sharing photos of your cat, dog or horse just might be.

One of the best ways to get people to relate to you is to have a common connection. Consider how your likes, dislikes, hobbies, and general daily activities might help you gain a greater connection to your circle of influence. No one wants to do business with a robot. Very few of your contacts care about how many homes you sold last year. Tell them a story about how you volunteered this weekend at the Diamonds in the Rough equestrian rescue farm and you’ll find that Facebook will blow up with likes and comments.

Telling your story and letting others learn about who you are will create a bond between you and your center of influence. Showcasing your commonalities and building a true connection will help keep you in your COI’s “top of mind” awareness. They are also a lot more likely to pay attention when you do post business information. After all, aren’t you more encouraged to help others that you feel personally connected to?

Melissa Marro is a Realtor for Watson Realty Corp in St Johns County, FL and owner of Staging & Redesign, an online staging training company. A regular keynote speaker at industry events, Marro is known for frank and to-the-point marketing advice for entrepreneurs. To read her blog, visit MelissaMarro.com.

Posted by: Kimberly Ecker

Magnetic Real Estate? It’s All About YOU!

2012-09-20T15:23:00Z

How do you break through the infinite noise in today’s marketplace to become a trusted advisor?

Simple; the most potent marketing weapon you have in your arsenal is actually…YOU…because unlike corporations there is only one of YOU in the entire world.

What we teach in “Magnetic Real Estate” is how to use magnetic marketing strategies to become the person, leader and expert with whom everyone wants to work – the type of person whose phone calls and emails are welcomed and valued instead of detested and deleted.

You can be that person.

I’ve been studying human psychology for years and what might surprise you is the attraction between people isn’t really a choice; it’s a biological response.

By learning how to flip these attraction switches on within ourselves, we automatically begin to attract others.

Two of the most powerful triggers in existence are value and status.

People are genetically programmed to feel attraction towards others who have equal or higher levels of value and status, and you’re no different.

We respond this way because we stand to gain power through an association with that person.

If you can establish a relationship with a person of greater status and value, your value and status automatically increase as well through that association alone.

New doors and opportunity are opened.

New inside knowledge can be gained that is only reserved for people within that circle.

New alliances and partnerships with other powerful people can be formed.

This is why you are at sales meetings regularly, to gain insights from industry leaders.

This is why you idolize the top performers on stage at your company events and crowd around them to listen in on their conversations. This is why you applaud for your company’s CEO when he or she speaks.

These people have something of value to offer you, and by associating with them, you have power to gain.

We have been programmed this way from the very beginning, and if you struggle with finding customers in this industry, now you know why.

How to use this knowledge to increase your success? Join organizations and make affiliations that help you achieve this goal.

Michael Demcho, Vice President/Manager Broker, Watson Realty Corp.

Posted by: Kimberly Ecker

Military Cuts and How They Will Affect Your Business

2012-09-13T10:54:00Z

There is a large planned sequestration in January which will cut the United States federal budget, both foreign and domestic. Even if Congress avoids the sequestration, major cuts in most sectors are likely. Cuts in the federal budget mean many things, but for real estate professionals, this could signal an increase in military moves next year. Are you ready to help them move?

An example: Did you know that PCS means Permanent Change of Station, a re-assignment of military personnel which can give them very little notice to relocate? Our Military on the Move members know!LeadingRE’s recently introduced U.S. Military on the Move (MOM) program provides a comprehensive, turn-key training, marketing and affinity program to attract qualified military service personnel. The LeadingRE members who are participating in the MOM program are equipped with not only a new rebate program to help PCS-ing active duty, retired-with-20-years, and wounded warrior military personnel but also a wealth of resources to build these military relationships and provide outstanding service to this important market segment.

Hats off to these LeadingRE MOM participants and the bases they serve:

Alfa Realty --- Maxwell-Gunter Air Force Base

Amelia Bullock Realtors --- Camp Mabry

Beverly-Hanks & Associates --- Asheville VA Medical Center

Carolina One Real Estate --- Charleston Air Force Base and Naval Weapons Station Charleston

Cloud Real Estate --- Fort Hood

Cora Bett Thomas --- Hunter Army Airfield

Counts Real Estate Group --- Naval Support Facility Panama City and Tyndall Air Force Base

Crowne Realty --- Bloomington-Normal

Crye-Leike, Realtors --- Red Stone Arsenal, Little Rock Air Force Base, and Ft. Campbell

Fickling & Co. --- Robins Air Force Base

Florida Executive Realty --- Macdill Air Force Base

GARDNER, REALTORS --- Keesler AFB, NAS JRB New Orleans, Naval Construction Battalion Center Gulfport, and NSA New Orleans

Jack Conway & Co. --- Cape Cod Air Force Station , Cape Cod Coast Guard Air Station, Hanscom Air Force Base, and Natick Soldier Systems Command

J.P. Weigand & Sons, Inc. --- McConnell Air Force Base

JB Goodwin --- Brooke Army Medical Center, Fort Sam Houston, Lackland Air Force Base, and Randolph Air Force Base

Joyner Fine Properties --- Fort Lee

Kahala Associates --- Joint Base Pearl Harbor Hickam, Marine Corps Base Kaneohe Bay Camp H.M. Smith, Schofield Barracks Fort Shafter, and Tripler Army Medical Center

Kappel & Kappel --- Travis Air Force Base

Long & Foster --- Aberdeen Proving Ground, Andrews Air Force Base, Camp Pendleton, Commander Naval Surface Force US Atlantic Fleet, Commander Navy Region Mid Atlantic, Fort AP Hill, Fort Belvoir, Fort Detrick, Fort Eustis Joint Base Langley Eustis, Fort Lee, Fort Meade, Fort Myer Joint Base Myer Henderson Hall, Joint Base Anacostia Bolling, Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek Fort Story, Joint Air Force Base Langley Eustis, Marine Corps Base Quantico, Naval Air Station Oceana Dam Neck Annex, Naval Air Station Patuxent River, NASA Langley Research Center, Naval Medical Center Portsmouth

Long Realty Company --- Davis Monthan AFB, Fort Huachuca, Luke AFB

Residential Properties Ltd. --- Naval Station Newport

Roberts Brothers, a Dauphin Realty Partner --- Coast Guard Sector Mobile, USCG Aviation Training Center Mobile

Roy Wheeler Realty --- Defense Intelligence Agency Joint Use Intelligence Analysis Facility, National Ground Intelligence Center, US Army JAG Legal Center and School

Rusinak Real Estate Inc. --- Cheyenne Mountain Air Station, Fort Carson, Peterson AFB, Schriever AFB, US Air Force Academy

Russell & Jeffcoat Real Estate --- Fort Jackson, McEntire Joint National Guard Base, Shaw AFB

Strano & Associates --- Charles Melvin Price Support Center, Scott AFB

Townsend Real Estate --- Fort Bragg

Wardley Real Estate --- Creech Air Force Base, Nellis AFB

Watson Realty Corp. --- Jacksonville NAS, Mayport Naval Station, Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay

Weichert Realtors, Yates & Associates --- Macdill AFB

William E. Wood and Associates, Inc. --- Commander Naval Surface Force US Atlantic Fleet, Fort Eustis Joint Base Langley Eustis, Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek Fort Story, Langley AFB Joint Base Langley Eustis, NAS Oceana Dam Neck Annex, Naval Medical Center Portsmouth, Naval Station Norfolk, Naval Weapons Station Yorktown, Norfolk Naval Shipyard, NSA Northwest Annex Virginia, USCG Air Station Elizabeth City, USCG Hampton Roads, USCG Training Center Yorktown

Windermere Real Estate - Nevada --- Nellis AFB

If you aren’t yet participating, we need all LeadingRE members in areas with major military installations, so please contact us for more information at .

Posted by: Pam O'Connor

Economics 101- Prices Increase As Home Inventory Decreases

2012-09-11T14:16:00Z

We hear reports in the media of so many real estate brokers across the country voicing concerns over the recent decrease of home inventory.

As the real estate market begins to stabilize, inventory is beginning to go down and that naturally leaves buyers with less of a selection. As we know from basic economics, as supply decreases, prices increase. This increase in demand for existing homes also creates the delicate situation of sellers and their REALTORS® handling multiple offers.

As prices go up, many homeowners who want to move to another home now have more options. They may no longer have to face selling their home as a short sale or worry about having to bring funds to closing. We should be cheering; the free market system is working.

I recommend that you increase your contacts to buyers, sellers, previous customers and friends and share the great dynamics of the changing real estate market. You might be surprised of how many customers will want you to help them with their real estate needs and desires.

William A. Watson, Jr., CEO/Founder, Watson Realty Corp.

Posted by: Kimberly Ecker

What Else Can We Learn From Puerto Rico? Part Two

2012-09-07T14:03:00Z

Previously, we reviewed the Housing Incentives Act which provided a variety of tax concessions for buyers and sellers of new and existing residential property. So, what is Puerto Rico doing to stimulate business investment? The Energy Reform Act, enacted in 2012, will provide rebates of 50% to 60% on installation costs of renewable generation equipment at the residential, small business, commercial and industrial levels. The tourism industry, one of the main economic drivers of Puerto Rico’s economy also receives special tax concessions for both new and existing (not in use for three or more years or where substantial renovations have taken place) tourism businesses as a result of the 2010 Tourism Development Act. These include a 100% tax exemption on municipal construction excise tax, imported goods, municipal licenses and 90% exemption on income tax and are valid for 10 years from the date of opening.

Have any of these incentives had the desired result? The 139-room St. Regis Bahia Beach Resort opened in Rio Grande in November 2010 and the 130-room Ritz-Carlton Reserve of Puerto Rico in Dorado is scheduled to open in 2012. Beyond that there are three additional hotels in the active pipeline, according to the Department of Economic Development and Commerce. As a result of these proactive tax incentives, Puerto Rico will be the only region in the Caribbean with a new hotel supply as the economy recovers—an upturn that has and will be led largely by tourism, according to Jose Perez-Riera, secretary of the Department of Economic Development and Commerce. Of course, this leads to jobs and increased consumer spending. With the housing incentives already in place (see part one in this series), home purchases will most likely be a priority purchase.

Has Puerto Rico created a template by which the continental United States can format similar tax incentives to fuel economic growth? Based on Puerto Rico’s success in two short years, tourist regions within the continental U.S. should definitely take notice.

Jana Coleman, SCRP, SGMS Vice President, Business Solutions – North America | Leading Real Estate Companies of the World®

Posted by: Kimberly Ecker

What Can We Learn From Puerto Rico? Part One

2012-09-04T16:44:00Z

In an effort to boost the economy, Puerto Rico embarked on an aggressive multi-faceted strategy in January 2012. Tax incentives are being offered to both individuals and corporations on multiple levels.

At the individual level, the Housing Incentives Act, which has been extended to December 31, 2012, seeks to promote the purchase of residential property and other real estate. Buyers of new construction are exempt from property tax for five years, do not pay registration or notary fees on the mortgage deed and receive a 100% capital gain exemption at time of sale. Buyers of existing property receive a 50% discount on registration and notary fees and a 50% reduction in capital gains at time of sale. Sellers of existing property receive a 100% capital gain exemption and do not pay registration fees on the mortgage cancellation. Lastly, income earned from the rental of eligible residential property will be 100% from Puerto Rico income taxes. This proactive approach is sure to reverse the outbound trend Puerto Rico experienced between 2000 and 2010.

Can areas in the continental United States most affected by the housing downturn pattern similar incentives to increase real estate investment? Would it boost the housing industry, one of the leading drivers of our economic recovery? Only time will tell; however, suffice it to say that Puerto Rico is being strongly proactive in many ways to reverse their trend. Very soon, I believe, Puerto Rico will once again thrive and serve as a role model in making things happen rather than waiting for them to happen.

Jana Coleman, SCRP, SGMS Vice President, Business Solutions – North America | Leading Real Estate Companies of the World®

Posted by: Kimberly Ecker

The Haves and The Have-Nots

2012-08-30T09:24:00Z

With all the changes in the real estate world, some basics never change, and increasingly sellers fall into one of two categories: The Haves and The Have-Nots.

The “Haves” are those individuals that take care of the investment made in their homes by regularly doing routine maintenance like changing air filters, painting inside and out, maintaining the landscaping and keeping clutter to a minimum. The “Haves” periodically invest in improvements to their homes by upgrading flooring, installing matching kitchen appliances and replacing toilets and vanities.

The “Have-Nots” assume that the day they move in, their home is the last cash investment they are going to make in that property. They never paint, they let carpeting get stained and wear out, they let bushes and trees grow out of control. They let their pets have the run of the house. They keep anything and everything in closets, the garage and in corners of every room. If The “Have-Nots” must replace something, they buy the absolute cheapest replacement product they can find.

What happens to these two groups of people when they sell their home is pretty predictable. The “Haves” have the show house of the neighborhood. The owners do little touches to make their home totally ready to be sold: plant fresh flowers, ensuring everything is working properly, clearing counters. Realtors love to put it on their list of houses to preview to buyers. It is the example of the way to do things.

The “Have-Nots” beg and plead that their home is almost as nice as The “Have” home and in turn expect to list it for sale at the same price. They get offended when you recommend they remove much of the clutter in the home to a storage facility to better show off the features of the house. They refuse to paint the walls of the rooms that have years of kids fingerprints and of course, they clean the carpet with the rental unit from the local convenience store.

The final result is that The “Haves” end up selling their homes at the top of market prices, typically in a shorter amount of time and increasingly with multiple offers to consider. More often than not, The “Haves” get most, if not all, of their investment back out of their home when it sells.

The “Have-Nots” home languishes on the market. They get some showings with polite feedback from the showing agents: “It was not the right floor plan;” “Still thinking about it;” “Looking in another neighborhood.” The “Have-Nots” are reluctant to reduce their price. They don’t understand why their sales associate is not doing his or her job. Those that reduce their price eventually sell, but at a level well below the average for the community.

Our recent results confirm this. The “Haves” – two homes where the owners spent time and money to upgrade fixtures, keep paint (inside and out) fresh and removed clutter were each able to get their homes under contract in less than two weeks at or near list price. Each had multiple offers. They both closed in a short time and moved on to enjoy the newest chapter in their lives.

The “Have-Not” – a home where the owner actually did a little work to put the home on the market, but didn’t like the feedback that consistently stated that appliances were outdated, the home smelled from their pets and the family room furniture in the dining room didn’t make sense. They would not/could not entertain price reductions. They even ordered an appraisal to get an independent valuation of the market price then disagreed with the much lower valuation when it came back. In the end, they pulled their home off the market when no one wanted to see it anymore.

The moral of this story is much like the tagline from a commercial years ago: “You can pay me now or you can pay me later.” In this market those that have made the investment are now reaping the rewards.

Let’s keep encouraging our customers to be “Haves.” They are much more fun to sell than “Have-Nots.”

Murray Beard, Realtor, Watson Realty Corp

Posted by: Kimberly Ecker

Recruiting Disciplined Agents

2012-08-29T02:11:00Z

No real estate agency can exist without a motivated and dependable sales force on the ground, connecting with the community and providing timely customer service. But where can you find superstar agents right out of the gate? Someone who is comfortably affable with strangers, while always keeping decorum and a professional manner in mind and delivering highly competent services? How about former military personnel?

It’s no surprise that veterans are disciplined, hard-working, and accustomed to deadlines. But they can also be a great asset in connecting to the military community in your area, a source of leads as many military personnel move frequently. So how can you attract veterans to your agency?

LeadingRE member Iowa Realty, Iowa’s largest real estate brokerage firm, has started a program called Veterans to Realtors® which may inspire you! They are making it easy for veterans to become Realtors for them. These new Realtors will bring with them an intimate knowledge of military needs and concerns, which can be a great asset to your growth in that market. You can see Iowa Realty’s program at their site: http://www.iowarealty.com/vets/#first

If a military recruitment program is right for you, then you are likely located in a target demographic area for military moves. LeadingRE members who fit that description should definitely consider participating in our new U.S. Military on the Move program. For more information, email us at militaryonmove@LeadingRE.com.

Posted By: Pam O’Connor

Fall Invites New Experiences at LeadingRE and Luxury Portfolio International™ Events

2012-08-23T10:59:00Z

LeadingRE is kicking off the upcoming autumn season with a series of events, including the Fall Workshop series, that began this week in Chicago. Upcoming workshops will be held in Providence September 5-6, Denver September 13-14 and Atlanta October 9-10. Luxury Portfolio International™ workshops take place just prior to the LeadingRE events, occurring in Providence September 4-5, Denver September 12-13 and Atlanta October 8-9.

In Chicago and Providence, attendees will hear from Tom Lane, partner and consultant at The Center for International Leadership, who speaks on removing the “invisible barriers” to success. Debbie Maier, performance consultant with The End Result, will address the Denver and Atlanta events, discussing what motivates people to want to make positive changes.

Leading Real Estate Companies of the World® and Luxury Portfolio International™ will also host the International Symposium in Lisbon, Portugal October 22-24, which focuses on global real estate issues and inspires member integration, while strengthening cross-border referrals and marketing opportunities. Attendees will hear from keynote speakers including Richard Rawlings, UK Estate Agency Trainer of the Year 2012, who will discuss innovative marketing strategies; Matthew Ferrara, Matthew Ferrara & Company, will share insights on the global marketplace, and Steve Murray, editor of REAL Trends, who will share the latest industry trends.

On the horizon, the network will host its 2013 Conference Week February 24-28 at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas – featuring the first-ever Performance SUMMIT for sales associates, the Luxury Portfolio SUMMIT for sales associates affiliated with Luxury Portfolio International™, the Sales Manager SUMMIT, the MarTech Event for marketing and technology professionals, and the Annual Conference for brokers, managers.

Posted by:Kimberly Ecker

Gold Medals Aren’t Won Overnight

2012-08-14T11:52:00Z

As I heard on a Kellogg® commercial recently, “Gold medals aren't won overnight; they begin with a single step and then another.” Very soon, Leading Real Estate Companies of the World® will be requesting nominations for a variety of brokerage awards. Members will have the chance to win a LeadingRE ‘gold medal’ by being recognized for outstanding achievement in one or more of the following brokerage categories:

Customer Service – Transaction of the Year: This award honors the Network brokerage and agent who delivered a “wow” client experience, setting the bar for exemplary customer service and serving as a role model for others who are focused on developing customers for life.

Customer Service – Referral of the Year: This award recognizes the agent working in conjunction with their relocation team to deliver exceptional customer service to both the client(s) and the referring/ receiving relocation team for a LeadingRE referral to/from another member.

Sales Production Awards: This series of awards honors brokerages for superior sales volume and unit production for a full year calendar year (2012). In order to be eligible, members need to have completed and returned the market share survey which was distributed in March.

Most Innovative Brokerage Award: This award honors one brokerage that has demonstrated innovation through either a pervasive company re-invention or a major initiative that is new and different or that applies new strategies to an existing challenge.

Leadership Award: This award recognizes the principal broker who has demonstrated unusual leadership qualities. Qualifications may include resume accomplishments, honors and credentials, but should also give at least one example of how the individual dealt with a particular challenge and inspired others to follow him/her related to the company’s business, the community or philanthropic effort.

Rainmaker Lead Generation Award: This award is presented to the member company with the most diversified and accomplished business development department, focused on company generated business from all sources to its associates as opposed to traditional relocation business exclusively.

So, what is your first step? First of all, decide which categories in which your company has excelled in 2012. Did you have an agent that went ‘above and beyond’ with a client this year, either in a referral or non-referral closed transaction? Or, did the leader respond to a community challenge, rally the volunteers and meet or exceed the community needs? Did your company reach greater performance or profitability as a result of new process or technology? Were additional services provided which resulted in increased business for your associates?

After determining which award to pursue, the next step is to create a strategic plan to gather and present the information substantiating the nomination. Collect data about that special transaction in which your associate well exceeded the customer’s expectations. Document a new technology, policy or procedure implemented that resulted in overcoming an internal challenge. Be sure to detail the resulting success. Compile a current and comprehensive life-long resume of the principal broker and itemize company or community challenges in which the principal broker took a lead role to overcome successfully. Detail the process. Document new products or services which provided additional business opportunities for your company and associates.

Lastly, be prepared to provide comprehensive information supporting your nomination to LeadingRE upon receipt of nomination requests in September. And, if selected you will be taking home that LeadingRE gold medal in February 2013!

Posted by: Jana Coleman , SCRP, SGMS Vice President, Business Solutions

Making Your Marketing About the Consumer

2012-08-13T15:13:40Z

Kudos to Robin Sheakley and her team at Sibcy Cline Relocation in Cincinnati for their new site http://www.movingforlove.com/. Robin is acting on the strategy some have talked about - pursuing niche markets with very customized, user-focused marketing and "micro-sites". In this case, they are appealing to individuals who have a passion that is driving them to relocate somewhere - a personal relationship, a love of the mountains, being closer to grandkids, or whatever their “love” is - and offering them white-glove relocation services similar to what corporate transferees receive. Hitting the consumer's "hot button," whether you're trying to reach single women thinking of buying a home or - in this case - those driven to move for some kind of love, making it about THEM is a great way to build relationships and customer loyalty.

Special interest blogging, Pinterest, HGTV, houzz.com – there are lots of examples of trying to target consumers with specific interests, but we haven’t seen a lot of separate real estate websites that are structuring customized service offerings around those consumers, and what a great way this is to become their “Realtor of choice”.

What about thinking out of the box to see how you could adapt the services you already offer to certain market segments by just adding some additional related services:

• Single women – information on contractors, safety tips, places to meet people

• Do-it-yourselfers – local discounts you negotiate with home contracting and hardware stores, an archive where you collect tips from clients who have rehabbed house

• Latinos – not only doing a separate site in Spanish, but including testimonials from past Latino clients, profiles of your Spanish-speaking agents, calendar of activities and events geared to that particular (Cuban American, Mexican, etc.) group

We always stress over the difficulty of differentiating one brokerage from another. Initiatives like the one Robin has developed really position you as a ‘friend of the community’ – regardless of what that community is. What better way to engage new potential clients and build a reputation for making it about THEM?

Posted by: Pam O'Connor

Hasson Company Realtors’ Stephen Studley predicts what real estate will look like in 2030

2012-07-18T20:42:00Z

(as printed in the Vancouver Business Journal)

Real estate is bound to change immensely by the year 2030; it's changing daily! Every brokerage, every agent and every client is going to have to change how they approach each transaction to keep up with new markets, new technology and new spaces for work. We decided to look at three areas in particular as indicative of where we as realtors are going.

The future of brick and mortar

Twenty years ago, Realtors were the only dealers in information about buying or selling a home. An enormous MLS book would sit in real estate offices, and clients would come in to see the only complete collection of listings in their areas. Things look different today, and they'll continue to evolve. Clients can get more of their information online, including finding their future home.

In 2030, mobility and technology will be the most important things for an agent to have in their working environment. Realtors will need to do some office-based work, and a great deal of work away from the office, and their physical work space needs to reflect that. There will be demand for an evolution of space, catered to the needs of clients and agents alike. Local businesses like the Hasson Company will maintain forward-thinking office spaces as the base for personal connectivity with our client base. Using our space on Northwest 23rd in Portland as a model, our brick and mortar spaces in the future will change the way we work. The identity of an office is linked indelibly to its location, and the key in building for 2030 will be providing for an ever-expanding online presence while staying rooted in our neighborhoods.

Co-Existing With Technology

The advent of newer technologies as 2030 approaches is inevitable, and Realtors dedicated to staying relevant will make it work for them, instead of struggling to keep up. A greater online presence will be even more critical to an office's success than it is now, including tools for agents to conduct individual business. Companies will implement more extensive training, one on one, to better equip all members of their team with resources to work with a generation of new buyers who have grown up tech-savvy.

We also see real estate transactions growing more and more complex moving into the future; more parties involved, more choreography needed by the agents to make sure everything goes smoothly, start to finish.

The Market in 2030

We're seeing it already in the Portland-Vancouver market, and will see it more and more in the future: a commitment to hyper-local, neighborhood-based transactions. What that means for us as Realtors is an increased need for street-level expertise. We'll need to know about walkability of neighborhoods, local businesses, nearby schools, etc. for every house we sell. Houses will likely have more amenities, more sustainable building incorporated into their construction, and will be highly flexible, efficient spaces to live and work. Each structure will be unique, and our job will be to treat each one as such. This means more individualized work for us, but will result in a quality-based business model that trumps any online experience clients will find.

Stephen Studley
VP of marketing and business development
Hasson Company Realtors

Nominate Your Favorite Real Estate Innovator for Inman’s 2012 Innovator Award

2012-06-26T16:23:21Z

Five days remain to nominate the most progressive real estate technologies/companies for the 2012 Innovator Award.

The Innovator Awards recognize technologies/companies in the following categories: Most Innovative Brokerage or Franchise, Most Innovative Real Estate Website or Web Service, Most Innovative MLS or Real Estate Trade Association, Most Innovative Real Estate Startup, Most Innovative Mobile App, and Most Innovative Real Estate Social Site or Social Service or Blog.

You have until Sunday, July 1 to nominate your firm or your favorite innovation.

Posted by: Kimberly Ecker

LeadingRE Stories: A Civic Duty Fulfilled

2012-05-31T15:21:57Z

We often hear stories about our members doing exceptional things – whether for the community at large or a specific family they are assisting. We thought we would share some of these stories, which illustrate the kind of service that brings customers back again and again and makes these professionals so integral to the communities they serve. We begin by highlighting Houston member Martha Turner of Martha Turner Properties and her efforts with the National Night Out.

Martha Turner, president and CEO of Martha Turner Properties and community activist, had a goal to market Houston as a safe place to live. To help achieve this, Martha Turner Properties began sponsoring National Night Out (NNO), a community campaign designed to heighten crime prevention awareness. By partnering with the Memorial Villages Police Department and Martha Turner Properties sales associates through an ad campaign, direct mail outreach, and other media vehicles that targeted homes throughout the community, Martha Turner Properties helped double last year’s NNO attendance of community members at the 2011 event. Martha Turner Properties’ sponsorship gave the local police, fire, SWAT and DEA members the necessary resources they needed to reach out to citizens and communicate important safety messages in person.

“It is the relationships we have built within the business community, such as the one we have with Martha Turner Properties, that allow us to provide the level of service to the citizens in our community we might not otherwise be able to provide,” said Memorial Villages Chief of Police Gary Brye.

In addition, Martha Turner Properties distributed free child fingerprint kits (“Safe Child ID/DNA Packages”) to all NNO attendees. The “Safe Child” kits serve as “real-life” tools that parents view as a true value and continue to be in great demand.

Martha Turner Properties’ efforts to help keep children safe extend beyond NNO into an ongoing campaign that was developed in partnership with Memorial Villages Police Department’s Officer O.G. Miller, the policeman who interfaces with students at the area schools. Because he is well-respected by the children, Officer Miller’s name and face are now on safety tip cards that Martha Turner Properties mails to homes throughout the community.

We salute the entire Martha Turner Properties team for making a real difference in their community.

Posted by: Kimberly Ecker

Consumers Vote for Local Business

2012-05-10T19:00:00Z

As we slowly emerge from this recession many Americans are looking for ways to help jump-start the economy by contributing to and hopefully accelerating, the rebound process. After such a difficult, emotional and turbulent time, people have been scarred by unprecedented loss. Perhaps more important, they have been scarred by their loss of control and are now actively seeking ways to gain both losses back. Thankfully for a network made up of locally owned, independently branded companies, one way we are seeing this societal momentum is through consumer preference towards local business.

For example, witness the trend at farmers markets, grocery stores and restaurants around the country towards the latest buzz word, “locally-sourced”. Today, many menus proudly proclaim that produce or meat is from a local provider, reinforcing patrons’ desire to give back to their community and to support a local business. In fact, it is not uncommon to pay a premium for something that comes from a local provider. Yet patrons are happy to pay more since “locally-sourced” represents freshness, quality and the good feeling that comes from knowing they are supporting their local economy.

Or take, for example, the progressive city of Austin, Texas, where they have taken the trend towards locally sourced a step further with the city’s own Go Local card which anyone (even visitors) can purchase (for a few dollars) and use to obtain discounts at local businesses. This is evidence of truly “inspired consumerism”. The locally minded consumer can infuse dollars into the Austin economy, support local business, and even get a discount while also getting the good feeling that comes from knowing they are giving back and supporting their own micro-economy.

What more evidence? Well, you’ve heard of Flash Mobs, no? What about its latest iteration “Cash Mobs”? This is when people gather to help a selected local business by descending on said business as a mob, infusing the business owner with a small cash boost from at least a $20 purchase from each participant. Participants win because they know they are doing a good thing by supporting a local business and their economy, while the business gets a small cash windfall. It’s a win, win.

Even Google has jumped on board by revising their search algorithm to lead users to local brands and businesses by defaulting to your location and giving you separate, local results. No longer do consumers need to rely on TV advertising or national brands to find a brand they are comfortable with. Now Google will steer them to the local, high-performing product or service provider, naturally.

And so – it’s easy with commodity products – when there’s choice, choose local. But what about the mass majority of the fuel for our economy, the service providers? Does the same principle apply? In fact it does. By selecting a local service provider – a hair salon, a tax preparer, a real estate agent – consumers are selecting a more individualized, market-specific service that is more about their needs than a one-size-fits-all mass approach. And, by selecting a local service provider, like with products, they ensure their dollars are going to local businesses and are ultimately being re-invested in that local community. Their dollars are not going to a large, mega franchise whose business may not even be the business in hand. Point in fact, their business is selling franchises.

Ultimately, it’s a good time to be a locally rooted, independent company, especially a real estate broker, because consumers prefer what you represent. Local knowledge and roots. Commitment to the community. Customized service. The stronger we are, the stronger our communities become. And of course, as a member of Leading Real Estate Companies of the World® you provide the best of both worlds because you are a local business with global connections. In fact, you have more global connections then any of your franchise competitors because collectively LeadingRE has more listings and sales, more agents, more market share, and is number one in more markets in the U.S. then any of those folks in the franchise sales business.

It’s great news, but the story needs to be told. So be sure you are sharing your locally-focused values and your global connections with your clients. Help them to make informed, educated decisions by arming them with the facts.

The result will benefit us all.

Note: Special thanks to Hank Perry and Mary Ellen Mancino-Dudum at Empire Realty Associates in Danville, CA in for their contributions to this piece.

Posted by: Stephanie Pfeffer

Business Is Going Global; Are You Maximizing International Referral Opportunities?

2012-03-07T17:35:00Z

This post is being composed after a fantastic conference call this morning/afternoon with my panel for the upcoming Leading Real Estate Companies of the World® conference entitled: Business Is Going Global; Are You Maximizing International Referral Opportunities? At 11:00 on Sunday, March 25e, I am delighted to be moderating a fabulous panel of Esslinger-Wooten-Maxwell’s Sherrie Porter (U.S.), WETAG Consulting’s Peter Rabitz (Switzerland) and LeadingRE’s Chris Dietz (UK/Germany).

Now you can see why I used “morning/afternoon” to define the timing of the conference call.

I’ve had the pleasure over the past several years to explore the “international” topic through presentations and posts. A consistent theme throughout is the express interest in showcasing why “global” matters in real estate. My intro will again tackle this topic, but if you don’t know today that global matters, then you likely won’t be in the room to hear it.

Global does matter, but it matters to a varying degree based upon the real estate market. In some markets it’s very important and in others, not at all.

To help discover how important it may be to your market, I’ve created a brief and completely unscientific quiz. Answer the following six questions and record the correct number of points for each response.

Sharon E. Michnay, CRP, GMS
Executive Director
Corporate Business Development
Halstead Property

The New Reality in Home Buying

2012-02-08T15:41:00Z

Roger Atchinson, senior vice president of sales and marketing for RELO Direct®, shares his insight on the new reality in the home buying process as it relates to relocation with realestatepro.com. In the article, Atchinson provides an up-to-date analysis and stresses key elements that weigh into relocating – including shifts in how the consumer sector approaches the real estate market, the current realities of the home buying dynamic, the continued importance of location and the greater need for professional assistance. Atchinson describes how all areas point to a “resurgence in relocation activity as the economy shows signs of rebounding.” See recommendations for homebuyers and view the full article here.

Posted by: Kimberly Ecker

'Tergiversating' in 2012

2012-01-03T11:49:05Z

Dictionary.com's ‘2011 Word of the Year’ was tergiversate: to change repeatedly one's attitude or opinions with respect to a cause, subject, etc.; to equivocate. Here is some background on why this word caught their attention this year.

Politicians are criticized when they “flip flop,” and people who change their minds repeatedly are often perceived as being weak or easily manipulated. But in these times, when circumstances change from week to week, flexibility may be a sign of an agile, ever-thinking mindset. As more facts become known, or experience shows that something that seemed to be a good idea might not have worked well in actual practice, don’t be afraid to change course rather than remaining married to a particular strategy or philosophy.

This doesn’t mean you don’t have a strong “moral compass” that serves as a guidepost for decision-making. That is foundational for everything we do and determines what we consider right or wrong, what we base loyalty upon, what we consider to be priorities in our lives, and what we stand for.

But sometimes, it’s possible to confuse those basics with a viewpoint or ideology that may need to be re-visited given current circumstances. In other words, being open-minded without compromising heartfelt principles is often a real asset.

So my New Year’s resolution – along with the usual ones you can probably guess – is not to be afraid to tergiversate! Join me in doing that, and maybe we can not only mix things up a bit and have some fun, but also find some new solutions that could make a real difference in 2012. Happy New Year!

Posted by: Pam O'Connor

Leading Real Estate Companies of the World Tops Inman's Most Influential Real Estate Leaders List

2011-12-20T17:18:00Z

Leading Real Estate Companies of the World® had a great showing on the Inman 100 report, an annual ranking of the Most Influential Real Estate Leaders.

Nearly 30% of the people in the category of Brokerages, Franchisors, Brokerage Organizations are affiliated with the network:

Matt Beall, Principal broker, CEO, Hawaii Life Real Estate Brokers Helen Hanna Casey, President, Howard Hanna Real Estate Services Harold E. Crye, President, co-founder, Crye-Leike Realtors Jeffrey S. Detwiler, President and chief operating officer, The Long & Foster Companies Joseph A. Horning, President, Shorewest Realtors Paul Hulme, President, founder, CEO, Alain Pinel Realtors Robert Moline, President, chief operating officer, HomeServices of America Inc. Pam O’Connor, President and CEO, Leading Real Estate Companies of the World Ronald J. Peltier, Chairman and CEO, HomeServices of America Inc. Jim Weichert, Founder and President, Weichert, Realtors

Also making the list is member Eric Bryn, Vice President, digital innovation at Baird & Warner, in the Digital Innovation category and a number of LeadingRE Solutions Group Partners.

Congratulations to these brokers and partners and to our own President/CEO Pam O’Connor for illustrating the strength of Leading Real Estate Companies of the World®.

Click here to view the complete list.

Posted by: Kimberly Ecker

What does it feel like to have someone go the extra mile?

2011-12-14T16:22:00Z

While I was traveling very recently, I had some situations that reminded me going the extra mile does make a difference. In today’s hustle bustle world of life and business, so many of us look at how we can accomplish a task the fastest so that we can complete our to do lists. In the long run are we stopping to smell the roses? Are we actually having a positive impact on someone else?

Dealing with car rental companies for many of us is just an ordinary procedure. Last week, I was at the Detroit airport - Enterprise car rental company. When I arrived the registration desk staff verified that the driver carried my bag (he actually insisted, nicely, that he help me), reviewed their hours of operation and what how to contact them if I needed them after hours, was offered a map, presented me with water etc. which is much more than had ever happened with any of my other rental experiences. To my surprise when I returned the car, the manager greeted me by opening my door and asking how my travels were. Well, there was a slight challenge with the car that I mentioned to him for the sole purpose of helping the next customer of this car. Again, to my surprise, he bent over backwards to secure I had a great experience and was leaving smiling. Now, to top that, I received a call from the Detroit Enterprise staff to see how my experience went (he knew nothing of the discussion I had when returning the car) and was there something else they could do for me to make my experience the best to secure the return of my business. Come to find out, all of these interactions are just part of their normal business procedures in Detroit which to me was going the extra mile with their customers. Are we doing that with our real estate business? Do we do the most complete follow-up from first meeting to last with hopefully a closed transaction? Do we hope to do this and then shelve the discussion because we get busy or other items end up on our plates?

Another experience just occurred Saturday. My husband and I take one day in December each year to enjoy Boston. Now, I have had a shrimp allergy for the past 6+ years and always tell the waitperson if I am ordering any fish dishes. When we were ordering, the waitperson asked about allergies and even though I was not ordering any fish items, he took extra note about my situation. On this occasion, the manager of the restaurant actually delivered our meals and completely explained how the food was prepared for both of our dishes, making sure I knew not to eat any of my husband's french fries (darn!) as they could have been cooked in oil that had had shrimp in it. Please note, at time we were there the restaurant was full. Well, this was a first for me. Actually taking extra steps and in numerous actions to make sure we had the best meal and experience. From the greeting, to the initial interaction with our wait staff, to the personal attention from the manager, all the way to our leaving the restaurant was above and beyond. Please note this did not mean the cost factor was higher than any other similar restaurant!

To piggyback these experiences, there was a blog posted yesterday that asked about your experience when you call a company. From the first interaction to the last, are we going the extra mile to make sure we are delivering the most positive, memorable experience? What do we have in place to secure our customer/client will return to us?

Posted by: Pam Chute

Janet McAfee Real Estate Agent Appears on HGTV’s My First Place

2011-12-07T18:14:00Z

Tune in to HGTV December 8 at 6:30 p.m. (EST) to see one of our network’s very own, Julie Lane with Janet McAfee Real Estate, on the series My First Place. The episode is titled "Waiting in Vain for a House" and will follow a set of first-time St. Louis homebuyers as Julies assists them with the process of purchasing a new home. The episode brings to reality the challenges first-time buyers face in today's market and reveals how an agent’s expertise can make the world of a difference.

Since joining Janet McAfee Real Estate just four short years ago, Julie Lane has quickly become a top agent, a consummate professional and now, ambassador for the St. Louis real estate community on HGTV. You will find Julie on the short list of the Central Corridor's most successful real estate professionals.

Leading Real Estate Companies of the World® continuously brings publicity opportunities to its members including through HGTV and its home-listing site FrontDoor.com.

To view more on Janet McAfee Real Estate, click here.

Posted by: Kimberly Ecker

Cast Your Vote for Inman's 2011 People's Choice: Real Estate's Most Influential!

2011-11-09T16:03:00Z

Leading Real Estate Companies of the World® members and partners had a strong showing on the Inman 100 list, which recognizes those whose voices and actions have the power to change the industry.

Chris Meyers, Houlihan Lawrence; Harold Crye, Crye-Leike, Inc.; J. Lennox Scott, John L. Scott Real Estate; Jeffrey S. Detwiler, Long & Foster Companies; Jim Weichert, Weichert, Realtors; John Paul Horning, Shorewest Realtors; Martha Turner, Martha Turner Properties; Matthew Dollinger, @properties; Merle L. Whitehead, RealtyUSA.com; Michael Montsko, Weichert Realtors; Michael Saunders, Michael Saunders & Company; P. Wesley Foster, Long & Foster; Pam O'Connor, Leading Real Estate Companies of the World®; Pat Riley, Allen Tate Realtors; Paul Boomsma, Luxury Portfolio International™ / Leading Real Estate Companies of the World®; Rob Sibcy, Sibcy Cline Realtors; Ron R. Roe, Russell & Jeffcoat Real Estate; Ronald J. Peltier, HomeServices of America, Inc.; Stephen Baird, Baird & Warner Real Estate; William "Bill" Watson, Jr., Watson Realty Corp.; and William Raveis, William Raveis Real Estate. LeadingRE Institute 2.0 Faculty Matthew Ferrara, Matthew Ferrara Learning Network, and Steve Harney, Keeping Current Matters, were also named.

Now is your chance to vote for the leader you believe has had the most significant impact on the industry this past year. through the "People's Choice" Most Influential Real Estate Leader award. This honor is based on a popular vote of Inman News readers and will be announced during the Real Estate Connect conference in New York City January 11-13, 2012.

To view the complete list of readers' nominations and cast your vote (by the December 1 deadline), click here.

Posted by: Kimberly Ecker

Walkability Beyond Homes Scores

2011-11-04T17:13:00Z

Looking for an interesting way to improve time spent on your website, while providing useful information to home buyers? Take the lead from Kahala Associates, which has incorporated a “Walk Score” on its website for every home for sale in Oahu.

In their weekly Tuesday morning show segment, “Beyond Homes,” Kahala Associates’ Chuck Garrett and Tammy Mori describe how the “Walk Score” conveys how easy it is to walk to areas of interest from a given home.

Walk Score is an online application that measures walkable neighborhoods. Walk Scores range from 0-100 for any address—the higher the score, the better the walkability. A score of 90-100 is a walker’s paradise, where daily errands do not require a car. 70-89 indicates a very walkable area where most errands can be accomplished on foot. The mid-range from 50-69 is somewhat walkable; some amenities are within walking distance. The lower ranges of 25-49 are car dependent—only a few amenities are within walking distance. Finally, 0-24 is definitely car dependent—almost all errands require a car.

For example, homes located in older, established areas that were originally developed around shopping, restaurants and businesses have a higher walking score. The same may be true of Oahu’s re-developed urban core where new developments offer easier access to goods and services. Lower Walk Scores are typically seen in suburban or rural areas.

To learn more about walkability, visit walkscore.com.

To view the full morning segment, click here.

Posted by: Chuck Garrett and Tammy Mori

Castello di Casole

2011-11-03T14:06:00Z

Future luxury property by Luxury Portfolio International™

The sun was shining down on Tuscany on September 8 as a group of ten of us paid a visit to Castello di Casole, a fractional ownership luxury property offered through Luxury Portfolio International™ member Joshua & Co. in Aspen. I previously had the pleasure of meeting Amy and Gary Feldman with Joshua & Co. at the Luxury Portfolio International™ meeting in Chicago, and when I heard about this Timbers Resort property, I knew I had to see it for myself.

The local Tuscany representative, Jennifer Young, was a delightful tour guide and led our group through three existing homes as well as a luxury boutique hotel under construction. Sitting on 4,500 acres, Castello di Casole presented a unique opportunity to the discriminating buyer, and I felt as if I were in the Tuscan countryside, not part of a development. Yet, the community still provides all the amenities someone could hope for, and I anticipate that when the 41-suite hotel opens in April 2012, there could be nothing lacking from a homeowner’s perspective. Our guide informed us there would be a total of only 28 Casali farmhouses on the 4,500 acres, with an additional small group of two and three bedroom hotel villas.

In addition to the extensive tour Jennifer provided, we were the guests of a private luncheon done exclusively for us. Castello di Casole really rolled out the “red carpet,” and after the experience I would highly recommend taking the time to send any clients there who are traveling to Tuscany.

Not only was I able to share this wonderful opportunity with the friends traveling with me to Tuscany, but I was also able to register one referral following my return. In this respect, the trip was a great investment of time and allowed me to share the fabulous development with others, along with the value of being an exclusive member of Luxury Portfolio International™ and Leading Real Estate Companies of the World®.

Posted by: Pandra Richie, Long & Foster

Favorite Real Estate Applications

2011-10-27T21:10:00Z

In their weekly Tuesday morning show segment, “Beyond Homes,” Kahala Associates’ Chuck Garrett and Tammy Mori list some of the latest mobile apps for homebuyers and sellers involving home improvement projects, investment analysis and loan payment calculation:

Benjamin Moore® “Color Capture” tool and Color Snap® by Sherwin-Williams: These apps allow you to snap a photo of a wall color you love on your iPhone or BlackBerry and then produces a matching color code, along with complimentary color suggestions. Wikihood: This tool enables you to discover specific details about most any neighborhood in the world, providing information on people, culture, businesses, points of interest, and overall geography. 99₵ Real Estate Calc App-(Loan Qualification Calculator): This mortgage calculator, loan qualifier, and down payment calculator offers the capability to email yourself detailed reports. Walk Score®: This program provides amenities within walking distance from your current location. Property Evaluator: The most powerful real estate investment analysis software (according to Inman News), this app for iPads allows you to enter minor details about the property to view major performance projections compared to other properties; you can email with friends via pdf. Kurio app: Launched by the Honolulu Board of Directors, this tool allows you to search for nearby listings for sale from any web-enabled mobile device.

To view the full segment, click here.

Posted by: Chuck Garrett and Tammy Mori

Nominate Your Most Influential Real Estate Leader!

2011-10-19T15:37:00Z

Inman News is now accepting nominations for this year’s Inman 100 List, which features the top 100 Most Influential Real Estate Leaders. Get your nominations in by Tuesday, November 1, 2011 to recognize those leaders who have demonstrated leadership, innovation, ingenuity, power and persistence in the success of the home buying and selling business.

Leading Real Estate Companies of the World® had a great showing on Inman’s 2010 Most Influential Leaders List in the brokerage category, with 9 of the 24 honorees affiliated with the network. Making the prestigious list were:

Stephen W. Baird, President, CEO, Baird & Warner Mary Frances Burleson, President and CEO, Ebby Halliday Realtors Harold E. Crye, Co-founder and president, Crye-Leike Realtors P. Wesley ‘Wes’ Foster Jr., Founder, Chairman and CEO, The Long & Foster Companies Howard W. ‘Hoddy’ Hanna, III, Chairman and CEO, Howard Hanna Real Estate Services Paul Hulme, President, Founder and CEO; Alain Pinel Realtors Pam O’Connor, President and CEO, Leading Real Estate Companies of the World Ronald J. Peltier, Chairman and CEO, HomeServices of America Inc.. Jim Weichert, Founder and President, Weichert, Realtors

Nominations are reviewed by Inman News' editorial staff and company managers, and an internal review team will consider these and other influential individuals that fit the criteria before making a final selection. Now is your chance to honor those who have inspired you to become an expert in real estate!

View the online Nomination form here.

Posted by: Kimberly Ecker

Clients Need to be Given a Reason to Call You Their Realtor!

2011-10-12T21:44:00Z

This very important principle must be understood. It basically deals with the fact that clients must be given a reason to contact you. This then begs the question: What do clients want? In addressing this challenge you must ask yourself the following questions:

1. What are my client’s motivations?
2. What is most important to my client?
3. What does my client want to buy or sell?

The key to finding out what clients want: ASK THEM, then listen hard!
Finding out what your clients want is easier than you think; just simply ask them when you have them on the phone when you prescreen them.

Not understanding your clients’ needs is definitely the biggest mistake that most business people make, especially in real estate.

For example, we make assumptions why someone is selling. We might automatically assume they want to move up, or perhaps are in pre-foreclosure.

People have many different reasons to need the services of a professional real estate agent based on their personal situation. Given this, it is important to speak to each prospective client differently, addressing his or her specific questions, concerns and needs.

The key here is to ensure you go deep enough into their thinking to understand their true motivation. If someone wants to downsize from a home to a condo, that’s great, but that’s not all the information you need. Ask…what got you thinking about doing that? Question each answer until you get to answer 5, 6 or 7. That’s when you really start to understand their motivation and when you know how you can best serve them.

Posted by: Michael Demcho

Vice President / Managing Broker

Watson Realty Corp.

How Amway Made Me a Better Realtor® (and person)

2011-10-07T20:48:00Z

I actually got involved in Amway years and years ago when I had a very bad week as a Realtor®. Three customers had tanked on me in one week, and I’d been working with all of them for months. Amway was presented as an alternative to real estate, and I bit.

While Amway did not end up making me the money I had imagined, it did teach me a lot about how to look at my business and my life. At that time, Amway recommended a path to success that included three things: ‘books, tapes, and functions’.

Here is what they meant. Books – they recommended a book each month. That book was something like a Napoleon Hill or a Dale Carnegie or an Og Mandino; books that had something to offer that would make you a better person.

Next, was tapes. At that time (pre-CD days) you were supposed to subscribe to the tape-of-the-week. Each tape was made by someone more experienced in the business and listening to them provided training for becoming better at your (Amway) job.

Finally, functions. There were weekly meetings, monthly meetings and great big out of town meetings. They were educational, but their real purpose was to put you in touch with positive people who were moving on in their lives.

While I only stuck with Amway for a few years, I carried the philosophy into my real estate career. To this day I continue to read books that will help me understand myself and others and help me be a better person.

I continue to take advantage of opportunities to learn more about real estate and stay on top of the business and become better at what I do.

Finally, I learned that it was better to be around positive people than negative ones. Those friends who are always complaining about life and how unfair things are, yet do nothing to change their lives for the better – I don’t hang with them any more. I prefer to be with people who get up each day and believe they can make a difference in their own lives and the lives of others.

So while Amway didn’t make me rich in the sense I had expected, it actually made me richer in a far greater way. I know that I have become a better person and Realtor® because of it.

Posted by: Crissie Cudd, Manager, Watson Realty, Southside Office

Proud to be a REALTOR® in America

2011-09-27T21:00:00Z

As a new REALTOR®, I don't have much advice for people in the business, but here's why I got in.

I just love the idea of running my own show, being the boss, taking it to the streets, putting the pedal to the metal. Enough clichés already, but I am serious about the idea of free enterprise, the lifeblood of The American Dream. We all better get serious about it, or we could be facing an American Nightmare!

As Realtors we are free - to plan, organize, prospect, follow up, inform, educate, and help people. As our business gradually builds, we can legitimately call it an enterprise. How great is it that we are free to build a business of our own, a business based on working hard and helping others? It's not complicated, but it is very important.

It is easy to get frustrated by people who would rather get than to give. The economy is tough, and we need growth to bring jobs back and renew prosperity. The political situation now is clogged by red-blooded Americans who stand with their hands out waiting for help. Guess what? Most of us need to go out there and help others before we can begin to get anything for ourselves. When we see this clearly, we can appreciate the way things really work and start to put ourselves in the position to grow, build, and create our own slice of the free enterprise pie.

Proud to be a REALTOR® in America.

Posted by: Liz Reiman, Watson Realty Corp.

Renters, renters, and more renters

2011-09-19T15:36:00Z

After many requests (actually “pleas” may be the more appropriate term) to agents and managers for help with transferees who want to look for rental homes when they arrive in our region, it occurred to me I need to connect the world our agents are living in with the world inside a relocation department. Distressed sales make up 30% to 45% of our agents’ transactions. Agents speak daily with sellers who are about to face foreclosure, need to do a short sale, or are under water and cannot move. They understand the stress in the market, but do they relate that to the calls from our relocation department to ask for assistance with another renter. We all miss the days when a corporate client would send us a number of buyers and an occasional renter. Those days have past – at least for now.

If 30 to 45% of sellers are in distressed situations, then it only makes sense that a corresponding percentage of relocation properties are distressed. Transferees who have just experienced a foreclosure cannot buy in the new location. Transferees who just completed a short sale cannot buy in the new location. Transferees who have been told they are underwater are most likely going to rent the old house and not buy in the new location. Yes, agents, 30 to 45% of relocation business to our area is now from rental clients. Add to that the stress about the unemployment numbers and talk of new layoffs in various industries (example Bank of America and the Post Office), and transferees arrive at their new location concerned about having a job next year. Given that, the percentage of renters is now pushing 50%.

BUT, there is good news. Statistics show that once a person/family has owned a home, they want to own a home again. A recent poll by the New York Times/CBS News showed that 55% of Americans think owning a home is part of the American Dream. 63% think it is important for the federal government to continue the home mortgage interest deduction. Put these statistics in the perspective of historical home ownership running around 60%, and the dream is still alive. These transferees will buy again.

In any market, a smart agent will help a transferee looking for a rental. A basic of real estate 101 is to develop a sphere of influence. It is to build a real estate family who sends the agent business, either for themselves or as a referral. Successful agents live on referred business. Add to this the fact that the best way to build a relationship is face-to-face. Given an opportunity to meet someone new, deliver a needed service to them, impress them with expertise and professionalism, how can an agent turn this down? This new contact is a strong addition to any agent’s real estate family. This new contact has seen this agent in action. It makes asking for a referral a pretty sure bet. And they will buy again someday.

Thank goodness we still have agents in our company who do remember real estate 101 and are there to help us develop rental service to our clients.

Author: Carolyne Hotze, CRP, GMS

Regional Director, Southern Virginia Region

Long & Foster Corporate Real Estate Services

804-320-2561 direct 800-446-6009 toll free

Leadership in 2011

2011-09-15T15:09:00Z

A Cogent Case for What Makes a Successful Leader

You are the CEO of your real estate business. That being said, I thought you’d be interested in what The Economist magazine listed as key qualities of successful leaders:

A sound ethical compass (a requirement of our REALTOR® Code of Ethics)The ability to make unpleasant decisions (always put your clients’ interests above your own)Clarity and focus (show discipline in your work habits…prospect daily…get the job done)Ambition (you set goals that stretch you a bit)Effective communication skills (your clients understand what’s going on at all times)The ability to judge people (figure out how best to work with co-brokers and clients)A knack for developing talent (hired a new agent or an assistant lately?)Emotional self-confidence (get over the setbacks you’ll inevitably face in this business)Adaptability (who moved your cheese today?)Charm (you have oodles of it!)

How do your leadership skills stack up against this list? After all…you’re the leader of your business.

Author: Tom Gongaware, CRB®, e-PRO®, GRI, ABRM

General Sales Manager – Triangle Region

Allen Tate, REALTORS®

Adverse Possession...An Old Law Takes A New Turn

2011-09-14T19:18:00Z

Well, just when you think that you’d seen it all, “Wait… there’s more!” You may have read recently that Polk County, Florida, has a record high of over 800 Adverse Possession claims on real estate currently pending with the County Appraisers Office and Florida Statutes 95.16 and 95.18 outline the details of how to go about it. Why such a rise in claims? Well, it seems that certain individuals have decided to take advantage of abandoned and foreclosed homes by going into the County Appraisers Office and paying back taxes with the idea that if the original owner does not object over the next seven years, the property will convey to the ‘possessor’… adversely. And, by the way, many of these possessors are not just satisfied with ultimately obtaining the property for relatively little. They also are renting out the properties to unsuspecting tenants who think that they are renting from a legitimate owner/landlord!

All 50 states currently have Adverse Possession laws on the books that date back to Renaissance England where large tracts of land would often go unattended for long periods of time. It was a method that was put into place to restore the integrity of the land and ultimately, reward the possessor for their ‘public service’. That said, today’s adverse possessor seems to be motivated by greed and preys on the misfortune of others for personal gain. It’s not that easy to get adverse possessors out of the properties that they are occupying. The process is very lengthy and requires the Sheriff’s Department to obtain copies of the Adverse Possession Registration and then actually go out to the property to interview the occupant. If the occupant is a tenant, the Sherriff will inform them that they are paying rent to someone that doesn’t own the property and that they do not have to continue doing so. Next, the Sheriff has to locate and interview the individual who actually abandoned the property and inform them that their property is being occupied by an unauthorized tenant who may cause damage to the property, and that they, the abandoner, will ultimately be responsible. Hopefully, given that information, the abandoner will sign a trespassing warning which will be served on the occupant/tenant who will then be ordered to move or be arrested.

Given the dramatic increases in the number of Adverse Possession filings throughout the state, it’s hard to imagine that the local Sheriff’s Department will be able to keep up with the process required to evict these unlawful detainers. Those who practice this scheme say that it’s a way of providing housing to those less fortunate and cleaning up our neighborhoods, but at the end of the day it’s really a devious and deceptive practice by some who are clearly taking advantage of the misfortune of others… for personal gain.

Author:Ken Bennett,
Regional Vice President,
Watson Realty Corp.

Be a Solution Provider, Not a Sales Person

2011-09-13T19:14:00Z

Clients Don’t Want To Be Sold

The harder you pursue in your attempts to be a salesperson, the faster your potential clients will run from you.

A great real estate agent will establish value, build loyalty and lifetime clients.

Consider that most real estate agents think of themselves as salespeople instead of educators, counselors or service providers. They’re marketers, too. As soon as your client feels you’re a salesperson, he/she will instantly view you as easily replaceable and lose interest in dealing with you. This is the fastest way to lose your value to any client; especially someone you’re trying to help.

Do Something Different… Market “Outside the Box”

Most agents try to advertise homes with classified ads that say the same old thing: “3/2 Colonial in desirable part of town” or “Move-in charmer!” You know what? Do something different.

Run an ad that says something like: “Tired of real estate agents hounding you? Search the MLS like a pro and learn the home buying process.”

Change it up. It’s absolute madness if you have the same marketing message as everyone else. Separate yourself from all the stereotypical agents, and bring business in the door. If your ad looks, feels and smells like advertising, it’s likely that your best potential clients will never see it. Because the average person is exposed to thousands of ads and messages every single week, they have become immune to advertising. So while big, flashy adverting is done by most marketers, they all make the same old tired promises of service, quality and integrity. Often, their advertising is haphazard, with no tracking to determine what is effective.

Prospects do not want to be sold; they want to seek counsel with a credible, trusted professional. Do your best to truly help people overcome their challenges and difficult situations. That is actually what I believe is my duty, and my greatest source of inspiration to get started each day is knowing that if I didn’t get there first, the customer will work with someone else who will deliver a lower quality of service. I will always remember some of the bad decisions I made over the years, and how much my mentor guided me to correct those mistakes. Today, it gives me great satisfaction to share my experience and knowledge with others who are newer to the business.

Establishing The Right Frame Of Mind

Realize that you are unique and have the ability to add tremendous value to your clients and help them fulfill their dreams. Develop a single-minded focus on that, and when you do, success will come your way.

Posted by: Michael Demcho
Vice President/Manager Broker,
Watson Realty Corp.

Debt Ceiling’s Impact on Interest Rates and the Real Estate Market

2011-09-06T16:08:00Z

Following a conversation with UV Professor Ed Burton on what the raising of the debt ceiling would mean to interest rates and the real estate market, Roy Wheeler Realty Company CEO, Michael Guthrie, who also hosts “Real Estate Matters” every Saturday on WINA Radio, speaks with station host on the matter.

Jay: We’ve been looking at the debt ceiling from different angles and I think one industry we all look to when we try to gage the barometer of the economy is the real estate industry. Is this a relief to your industry?

Michael: This particular act, as far as raising the debt ceiling, it really didn’t do anything other than raise the debt ceiling. No promise for tax revenue, no promise for dealing with the entitlements, we just raised the debt ceiling. Going back to the personal; it’s like all of us. If you have a credit card and you can’t pay it, that baby just keeps on going up because you pay the minimum payment and you’re not even paying the interest on it.

The point being is confidence. You’ve got these companies that have had some success in the last few months and real estate has picked up a little bit in the last 2 or 3 months so you’ve had a little bit of optimism and you have a little bit of the momentum going, and yet you don’t really want to pull the trigger on some new opportunity because you don’t know what’s going to happen in the next 3 or 4 months because you don’t have the confidence. That’s a lot of what prevents people from buying homes.

People may be ok and they may be secure in their jobs and they’re thinking, but what happens “if”…and that’s what hasn’t been answered yet. And so if we can build some trust; if people can see some positive things happening and see they’re really dealing with the issues to start paying down the debt, then you start getting the trust, then you start getting the confidence and people say ok and are ready to step out and do something.

Jay: Do you feel like real estate is the most critical to your industry about this confidence you’ve been talking about..more so than cars, more so than other types of other things because of how large a purchase a home is?

Michael: People know when they buy a car and they drive it off the lot, it’s not worth what they pay for it. But in real estate, you buy something, you hang on to it and ultimately, you have an investment. It appreciates, you pay down on your mortgage, and ultimately you have equity that you sell the house and do something or else or buy another house.

Well right now, a lot of people don’t feel that way. We’ve been hit bad enough that we’re down to 2006 prices, so that anybody who bought a house in 2007-10, there’s a very good chance that they can’t sell their house for what they paid for it.

If you’re a first-time buyer, one of the things I tell folks is find out what that house can rent for and don’t buy the house and have a monthly payment that’s more than what you can rent it for so that if you do get moved in a couple years, and its not the right time to sell you can rent it and have somebody else paying your mortgage until the market improves or you come back to enjoy that house on football and basketball weekends and whenever you want to come back during the summertime.

Visit this link to hear the full interview.

Posted by: Kimberly Ecker

Are Agents Using the Internet as a Crutch?

2011-09-01T09:13:00Z

In the olden days potential buyers relied on Realtors® because we were the only ones who had knowledge of what properties were for sale. Now customers believe that with the Internet they can find the homes themselves. Some agents perpetuate the problem by telling customers to go online, pick out the homes they want to see, and let them know when they do so the agent can make appointments.

Recently one of my agents got a call from a customer to look at properties. When asked if the customer was working with an agent, the customer replied, “Not really. I looked at several homes with a Realtor® but they didn’t do anything. I picked everything out myself and they just showed them to me.”

Surveys show that the most important service a buyer wants from a Realtor® is to find them a home. When Realtors® abdicate that responsibility they become, in the buyer’s mind, a door-opener. They don’t yet realize that the Realtor’s skill and training is really called into play for writing and negotiating a good contract and following up on inspections and deadlines all the way to closing.

Realtors® need to spend time educating buyers on the process and explaining how buyers can use the Internet to SUPPLEMENT what the agent is doing, but not replace it. Our agents need to help buyers understand how their skills will be put to use through the mortgage and inspection issues as well, and the unforeseen things that always come up prior to closing. Realtors® all have “listing presentations” but most don’t have “buyer presentations”. Those are just as important if we truly want to help them develop buyer loyalty.

Years ago it was prophesied that agents would become obsolete when customers had access to the Internet. Yet we know that in this day and age Realtors® are more necessary than ever to help buyers through this complex market. We will only become obsolete when we fail to demonstrate that skill to the buyers.

Check out our website.

Posted by: Crissie Cudd, Manager, Watson Realty, Southside Office

Michael Guthrie Discusses Social Media Strategies on News Radio 1070 WINA

2011-08-25T20:34:00Z

Roy Wheeler Realty Company CEO, Michael Guthrie, who also hosts “Real Estate Matters” every Saturday on WINA Radio sat down with the station’s news director Coy Barefoot to discuss how integrating social media into business strategies helps to build rapport, gain credibility, and ultimately show people that you care.

Coy: With social networking, this is not just something the kids are doing, it’s something businesses are doing and you have really gotten a hold of it and taken advantage of it and been a real leader in the community to show other people that it isn’t just something you do for fun, it’s about good business and networking…give me an idea of how you think all this social networking has impacted how businesses operates in Charlottesville?

Michael: Classic example: Why I’m here right now.

Coy: You sent me a message on Twitter.

Michael: Yes, we were tweeting back and forth about stuff and you said why don’t you come on the show?

Coy: It was on Facebook actually.

Michael: Yes, if we hadn’t been having that conversation, I would have been on your show at some point because I come on from time to time, but it wouldn’t have been today….and that leads me into what I want to share and that is what people need to understand about social media.

I look at it as just a conversation: …. think about the coolest Christmas party that you always want to be invited to because 1.) it’s a really cool Christmas party and 2.) all the people that are going to be there are people that maybe you don’t get to rub shoulders with the rest of the year. They’re all in the same room and you’re talking and then you hear a conversation over here and you want to get in that conversation so you move respectfully and politely out of this conversation and over to here. That’s what I see social media as…social media is just the beginning of conversations and if you’re not there, you aren’t in the conversation and things are going to be happening and going along and by the time you find out about it; it’s too late…somebody else has moved in and taken advantage of that particular situation.

Social media is not the “be all, end all”. It is engaging in conversation. You begin to build rapport with people; you begin in the business role. If I friend somebody or somebody friends me, we begin to have a conversation, so I’m building a rapport with that person. They begin to see what I’m posting, whether it be on my own site, or whether it be on my “Real Estate Matters” Facebook page, or Roy Wheeler’s Facebook page, I begin to gain credibility with them. They think this guy has some idea of what’s going on so they track and see what I’m doing and then the back end of it is once I’ve built the rapport, gained the credibility, how do I show them I care? You do that by birthdays, or you see somebody passed away and you’re right there saying, “hey, I’m so sorry”. But here’s the key from my standpoint: In one of those situations, you come out of the Facebook and you pick up a pen and write that person a note, “Hey I’m so sorry to hear your grandmother died”

Coy: It really does make a difference

Michael: It does. I was on a call today and we were talking about these types of things and the guy said, “In business, we hear all the time about ‘return of investment’, he termed social media as ‘return of engagement’. And the whole point is that as you engage into this social media, what kind of return is your business getting? I can tell you for a fact that since I’ve decided to engage in social media, so that I can lead my agents into this type of marketing, what the agents are experiencing as far as building that rapport, gaining credibility, and showing people that they care and then doing business with them is significant.

Visit this link to hear the full interview.

Posted by: Kimberly Ecker

Get energized for the fall...

2011-08-15T13:21:48Z

LeadingRE is looking forward to the upcoming Fall Workshop series where we’ll be delving into the latest trends, economic impact of the credit downgrade, new LeadingRE announcements and lots more.

We’ll hear from keynote speakers Mike Staver in Providence on September 7 and Costa Mesa on September 22 and Brian Parsley in Chicago on August 23 and Atlanta on October 4. Mike is Institute 2.0 Chief Learning Officer for LeadingRE, and since he’s just returning from a 2,000-mile Harley open road junket, he should be full of new stories! Likewise, Brian, who is our Institute 2.0 content partner and CEO of WeSkill, never fails to engage his audiences.

In addition, the opening session will feature network leaders offering their insights on the latest industry issues, and we’re fortunate to have participation from Harold Crye, Crye-Leike®, Nashville, TN; Dan Parmer, Harry Norman Realtors, Atlanta, GA; Carol Bulman, Jack Conway Realtors, Boston, MA; Sally Lapides, Residential Properties, Providence, John Turpin, Turpin Real Estate, Far Hills, NJ; Bud Clark, Willis Allen Real Estate, La Jolla, CA; Charles Moore, McGuire Real Estate, San Francisco, CA; John DeSouza, Cressy & Everett, South Bend, IN; Jose Perez, PCMS Consulting, Atlanta, GA; and Steve Hudson, The Hudson Company, Winnetka, IL.

And we’ll also dive into other topics ranging from REOs and short sales to property management, business planning and broker brainstorming forums. Information about the four workshops, which are open to all LeadingRE members, is available here.

Hope to see you there!

Posted by: Pam O'Connor

Inman Nominates Selected LeadingRE Members and Partners for 2011 People's Choice Innovator Award

2011-07-19T20:52:00Z

THREE days to cast your vote for the 2011 People's Choice Innovator Award, which closes Friday, July 22!

Selected LeadingRE members and partners are being honored by Inman as nominees for the People's Choice Innovator Award, one of nine categories that will be featured in the annual Inman News Innovator Awards. The winners will be based on popular vote and are set to be announced during the Real Estate Connect conference in San Francisco, which runs from July 27-29, 2011.

The People's Choice award is intended to recognize a standout real estate-related technology. Last year's winner was the DocuSign ESIGNControl app. This year, member nominees include Baird and Warner, Barrett & Co, Crye-Leike, Edina, First Team, Howard Hanna, Intero, Laffey Fine Homes, Long & Foster, Nothnagle, William Raveis, Windermere. Partner nominees include CoreLogic, KeepingCurrentMatters.com, KWKLY, Obeo, Onboard Informatics, Roost and .

We are so pleased and proud to have such a great showing on the list this year…Congrats to all those nominated!

Please support your fellow members and partners by getting your votes in now!

Click here to read more and vote

Posted by: Kimberly Ecker

Sales Spectacular: REAL Trends Names Leading Real Estate Companies of the World® Leader in Sales for 2010

2011-06-14T08:22:00Z

Leading Real Estate Companies of the World® was once again recognized by a widely recognized, third-party survey known as the “The Top 500 REAL Trends” report for being the highest-producing network in terms of total sales for 2010.

The 97 LeadingRE affiliate firms on the Top 500 list produced 551,832 sales “sides” in 2010 totaling sales volume of $142.4 billion, over 30 percent more transactions than the closest competitor, Coldwell-Banker, with 415,540 units and 60 firms on the list.

The power of local branding was further emphasized with #1 market share rankings for the nation’s top 96 markets. In that portion of the study, LeadingRE members ranked first in the market in 40% of the cities, compared to 24% and 11% for the next two networks.

LeadingRE’s entire network of over 550 affiliates produced collective 2010 sales units of 800,000 and volume of $225 billion.

Posted by: Kimberly Ecker

Classroom vs. On-Demand Education

2011-05-26T16:40:00Z

Selecting delivery options for training agents is not as simple as it used to be.

Classroom training is an opportunity to get face to face, get a glimpse of the level of commitment in the room and stimulate lively, educational exchanges. The down side is that it is costly, not necessarily convenient for attendees and it’s easy to get side tracked by an overzealous student.

Live webinars involve people in real time, accessing information at the same time while not having to travel. Depending on the size of the group, you can engage in active conversation and idea sharing. The down side is that it’s difficult to gauge the attention level of the learner. Also, people who are more familiar with the traditional classroom method may not be comfortable asking questions, so their learning experience may be diminished.

On-demand training offers asynchronous learning that does not require the trainer and learner to participate at the same time. These are self-paced courses, done online with greater flexibility and the opportunity for the learner to repeat challenging material as needed. This is great for those people too embarrassed to raise their hand in class and ask for the instructor to repeat something (that would be me).

Realtors are busy entrepreneurs out there building their business. Do we stick them in a classroom for 5 hours teaching them? Since webinars have a maximum attention span of 45 minutes to an hour, do we tie up numerous days to fit in all the different training or do we take the time to create scripts and presentations that we post and then track?

The strategy of a learning organization is to target the issues that are important to the company and then make sure the solutions implemented deliver the intended results. After evaluating our agents’ experience following different training methods, on-demand seems to make them smile.

I applaud LeadingRE for providing online, on-demand course content through LeadingRE Institute. The courses they now offer (and those to come), augment what we do as a company and adds even further value to our LeadingRE affiliation.

Posted by:

Devon Hill, CRP, CPLP, Relocation Training Director, Long and Foster Corporate Real Estate Services

LeadingRE Stories: Referral Success Down Under

2011-05-25T00:00:00Z

When a natural disaster caused desperate times to call for desperate measures, Judith Haslam of Harcourt’s International LTD, Christchurch, New Zealand and 1st Runner Up of the 2011 LeadingRE Customer Experience: Referral of the Year Award, went to courageous lengths to aide clients. Judith not only handled a variety of country-specific counseling and orientation details for her American client referred by Cutler Real Estate, but also went above and beyond when an earthquake struck just a week prior to closing. She arranged for further inspections before the clients even reached her by phone, and provided this family of five tremendous peace of mind during a challenging international relocation.

Prior to this, however, as noted in a client email: “The homes she had lined up for us were spot on. She took us to lunch that first day and continued to narrow down our needs. She listened to us carefully and intuitively and went to work for us with vigor and enthusiasm.” The clients’ satisfaction was also measured by Judith’s efforts to make sure they were aware of the differences abroad, “Judith and the mortgage broker she arranged for us walked us cautiously through the home buying process since we were new to the laws, procedures and processes for purchasing in New Zealand. We found a great house one afternoon and she had us in that house and making an offer within 48 hours.”

Posted by: Kimberly Ecker

LeadingRE Stories: An RV Experience

2011-05-24T14:54:27Z

Too often, the real estate stories that illustrate the ‘beyond the call’ efforts of top practitioners don’t get told. We’d like to share some of these with you in this series highlighting the service that brings customers back again and again.

Sandi Salisbury with Allen Tate Company brought the phrase “make yourself at home” to a whole new level, and was recognized as the second runner up for the LeadingRE Customer Experience Transaction of the Year Award at the this year’s 2011 conference, when she opened her lot and her home to her clients’ parents, allowing them to park their RV on her property for several weeks while they searched for a vacation home. Without making previous arrangements, The Hartzlers (client’s parents and RV owners) went so far as to take Sandi’s dogs out, cook loaves of homemade bread and brownies in Sandi’s oven, and even request her internet password during their stay in Sandi’s backyard.

With patience and diligence, Sandi was able to put the Hartzlers in connection with Allen Tate Realtor Cindy Ransone who found them a home well suited for their family’s needs. During inspection negotiations, it was quite convenient for Sandi to knock on the door of the RV to get any initials or signatures needed. At first it was a little strange, but it became pretty normal after the first three days. When they finally departed Sandi’s yard, the Hartzlers left behind words of gratitude, several loaves of Margaret’s homemade bread and a basket of peaches from Georgia they picked up en route back to Charlotte. Both agents and clients came away with a funny story of how personal the real estate transaction can become.

Posted by: Kimberly Ecker

Noise Accelerates Concerning Use – or Mis-Use – of Listing Data

2011-04-28T08:40:47Z

Leading Real Estate Companies of the World® has taken a stand opposing NAR's policy allowing franchisors (Realogy brands, Prudential, etc,) to post IDX listings on their national websites for all of the markets where they have affiliates and have the permission of those franchisees. LeadingRE is requesting that this policy - approved last November - be rescinded for several reasons, the main one being that those franchisors are not cooperating members of the MLS systems and are therefore not bound by the same obligations concerning those listings, nor do they have the same rights as other brokers within the MLS systems. The more that listings move out of the control of local brokerages, the more liable listing brokers become concerning the protection of that data

In addition, there are restraint of trade issues around the fact that certain national networks are being given a competitive advantage. LeadingRE, along with HomeServices of America and Realty Alliance, will be voicing these concerns to the NAR Multiple Listing Issues and Policies Committee on May 12 during the NAR mid-year convention in Washington. This move – and other policy proposals coming before NAR involving distribution of IDX listing data to social media outlets and mobile devices, underscore the growing concerns about listing syndication and the increasing erosion of control of listing data by brokers, despite the fact that they own that data. We believe it is important to take a stand to begin reversing this trend.

This matter has been covered by Inman News and the larger issues around syndication are addressed quite aptly by two recent industry white papers from The WAV Group and Clareity Consulting.

Have an opinion? Let us hear from you on this important topic!

Posted by: Pam O'Connor

LeadingRE Stories: Calm Before the Real Estate Storm

2011-04-25T15:09:00Z

Coming in as the first runner up at the 2011 Annual LeadingRE Conference for the Real Estate Transaction of the Year Award are the well-deserving real-estate agents out of Manhattan’s Halstead Property, LLC.

The agency gives true meaning to the eight million stories in the Naked City, as their associates – in four separate New York real estate transactions – managed to navigate a perfect storm of supremely convoluted circumstances and obstacles to ultimately close transactions that would have floundered if handled by anyone else.

Halstead’s agents took measures as drastic as hunting down a home-owner at a golf course whose property had been taken off the market, and, armed with a digital camera, requesting a one-time access for a one viewing, one customer deal. Another agent worked around the clock for a divorcee couple, standing in at court hearings for them and coordinating requested showings around visits by the children, making sure to clear each and every showing in advance. Halstead’s agents even went as far as to compile bilingual information for a board application. Collectively, Halstead’s team ensured all areas were covered to bring a necessary level of professionalism to each and every step of the process.

These multiple transactions were all protracted situations in which the agents had to be tenacious and follow-up focused over months if not years in order to bring these sales to successful conclusions. This kind of dedication is typical of the best in the business and doesn’t get nearly the attention it deserves.

Posted by: Kimberly Ecker

LeadingRE Stories: Paying It Forward

2011-04-22T10:06:00Z

Lending his philanthropic hand to help a client in need, Frank Flynn of Stark Company Realtors, was recently acknowledged at the 2011 Annual LeadingRE Conference where he received the Real Estate Transaction of the Year Award for his commendable client services.

This one-of-a-kind agent whose client, John, had already quit his job, liquidated his pension and refinanced his father’s home in order to provide round the clock care for his 92-year old dad, recognized an opportunity to help. When his father passed away, leaving the family home to him, John was unable to even pay the utilities.

In seeing his client’s selfless efforts, Frank decided to pay it forward and reached into his own pocket to help John cover utilities, remediate a mold issue, cover property insurance, and negotiate with mortgage lenders and other creditors to avoid foreclosure and postpone debt payment upon closing. Not only did Frank sell John’s home, but he continued to work with John, driving him around the city to find an apartment rental he could afford. The client was so grateful that he presented the agent with a plaque, “for caring, concern, and dedication to his client.”

Posted by: Kimberly Ecker

Broker Relevance: Where’s the Beef in Virtual Offices?

2011-04-05T16:16:06Z

There is a lot of talk during the lingering real estate recession about reducing brick and mortar. Overhead costs have been a huge challenge for many brokerages during this market downturn. But as so often happens, the pendulum swings from one extreme to the other. Yes, we all know there is no financial prudence in having beautiful 10,000 square-foot offices with few agents working in them, given how technology has made us all so much more mobile. That said, though, I’m not sure the answer is creating purely virtual companies with no physical office presence at all.

This topic generated some conversation in posts following an Inman story on LeadingRE.

Our argument is that credibility (to the consumer) and culture (within the brokerage) do rely to some extent on an office presence. Companies are learning how to balance space costs with the need for a “home” where agents can interact and energize one another and where the company can convey its message and mission by action as well as email. This may be a business of independent contractors, but the best companies who survive and thrive over time are about more than just a group of people who happen to hang their licenses under a particular broker. The trick in today’s environment is to create places that are less about ego and more about a base of operations that allows the company’s culture to take root and blossom.

Posted by: Pam O'Connor

The World is Ours, If...

2011-03-04T16:40:00Z

One of my favorite books, “Guns, Germs and Steel, The Fates of Human Societies” by Jared Diamond brilliantly examines how those items and more formed our world today. While far too complex to do justice here, I will attempt to summarize a sliver of information – one that has been in my thoughts since I learned about OUR WORLD™, LeadingRE’s brilliant new community platform being rolled out to members in the coming months.

In Chapter 11 “Necessities Mother”, Mr. Diamond discusses the development and spread of technology. (Technology as in the wheel, not Google-powered Android PDAs) Mr. Diamond credits our adoption of a sedentary lifestyle with a huge jump in accelerating development.

“All other things being equal, technology develops fastest in large productive regions with large human populations, many potential inventors, and many competing societies.”

In today’s global world where societies are not defined solely based upon geography or government, I would propose that we could define additional distinct societies for ourselves as our individual companies and our collective network. In both, we have specialists from luxury to first-time homebuyer, from management to sales and from customer service to IT/Marketing. We are also varied by the specific needs of our communities, local customs and laws, as well as company size and cultures. Most importantly, we have traditionally diffused technology/knowledge very successfully to the benefit of our companies and our network.

I use the term “traditional” to describe both the history of successful sharing and the manner in which we have executed that sharing up to this point. OUR WORLD™ is the technology through which we will have the ability to diffuse information more quickly, effectively and securely.

OUR WORLD™ is a significant point of differentiation for the LeadingRE membership that has the potential to give the network and every participating member a real, definable and eventually an income-verifiable competitive advantage. While the vision and the capability are in place, success also requires commitment and participation. The forum comes from LeadingRE; the conversation must come from us as individual members.

This technology is game-changing not in the fact that it exists, but in how we implement and exercise it. I encourage every member to finally discard the “referral only” perception of LeadingRE and include all department heads in the implementation discussion. It should be considered in 2011 business plans for the company and each division. How is corporate headquarters disseminating information to managers and agents? What one-way communications would benefit from becoming two-way conversations? What “communities” already exist within your company that could improve and grow online? How does your Relocation or Corporate Services department keep their trained agent team informed in between training session?

Look at your company – what it does, how it does it or what it can’t do, but would like to. Take a moment to post a comment and share in this “traditional” way one idea for how you think you could use this business-side-of-social technology.

Posted by: Sharon E. Michnay, CRP, GMS, WRS, Executive Director, Corporate Business Development, Halstead Property. Sharon is a member and former chairperson of the LeadingRE Advisory Council.

Who Likes Referral Fees?

2011-03-01T15:21:00Z

That’s a rhetorical question since we all know the answer. I think many agents understand and accept the necessity of referral fees. Many agents who choose not to work with Relocation because of these fees may not.

The term “referral fee” is really not accurate. In the context of e-business (or e-leads), a more appropriate term is “lead generation fee” – because that’s what it is. The fee covers the expense (marketing, listings syndication, SEO, staff, systems, etc.) associated with generating and processing e-leads. Leads don’t just happen. “Build it (a website) and they will come” is a myth. Listings must be marketed to generate leads.

The cost to you, the agent, to do all this on your own would be significant (time, expertise, money). Aren’t we all better served when agents can focus on selling and servicing customers?

Posted by: Dan Cheek, Director, e-Real Estate, Long and Foster Real Estate, Inc.

Getting a Bigger Piece of the Pie may be Easier than You Think

2011-02-17T20:32:00Z

Our goal this year is to recruit 100 agents to Balistreri Realty. This may sound quite lofty but I have divided the recruiting plan into a 12 month strategy with weekly assigned tasks. My first task was to analyze the membership makeup of the Realtor Association of Greater Fort Lauderdale and by doing so, learned that from 2006 to 2010, membership dropped from 13,800 to 7,400. For the same period, sales volume dropped from $6,166,000,000 to $3,391,000,000. This translates to an increase in per agent volume from $447K to $458K in 2010 from 2006. That’s right – fewer agents sold more (per agent) in 2010 and this trend is expected to continue in 2011. Clearly, those agents still active in real estate today treat this industry as a career and represent a vast recruiting opportunity. Secondly, I analyzed the average age of our current agent base and determined that in order to ensure continuity and prosperity, it was necessary to recruit young talent to replace those who would be retiring soon.

My next task was to choose a coach that would not only guide me with selecting weekly activities to achieve my goal but also hold me accountable. In turn, I would coach my four office managers to ensure their tasks were being accomplished. I chose Mike Ferry, of The Mike Ferry Organization to assist me. With his help, I have developed a 12 month plan divided into weekly duties. Each week, the four office managers at Balistreri Realty and I are required to speak with 40 agents not currently affiliated with Balistreri Realty. These conversations can take place over the telephone or in person at open houses, caravans, closings or other industry events. The goal is to lay the groundwork which opens the door for the recruiting appointment. Every Monday, I speak with Mike to review the previous week’s contact report showing the combined details of our calls, other forms of contact, recruiting appointments and new recruits. We are also tracking listings, sales and closings on a weekly basis and these are reviewed with Mike, as well.

In order to streamline the recruiting appointment, we also developed a new tool, the pre-recruiting package, to aid in the recruiting process. This information package details the benefits of associating with Balistreri Realty and is delivered via FedEx to the prospective recruit prior to the appointment. We are in the process of creating a television campaign to recruit agents between the ages of 23 – 35 and a separate commercial for the 36 -54 age group. In fact, we are going to use some of our earliest recruiting successes as actors in these commercials.

In order to reinforce my goal and ensure achievement, I verbalize our goal frequently to those around me. Similar to increasing the chance of success with any diet, telling those around you how much weight you plan to lose usually results in a much greater chance of achieving that goal! Most recently, I announced our goal to all agents and staff at the annual awards breakfast and remind them of the $1,000 incentive for helping us reach quality agents. The response was overwhelmingly positive.

We are off to a great start with new recruits to show for our efforts and anticipate that the plan in place will gain momentum throughout the year.

Posted by: Jim Balistreri

"ENGAGE, INNOVATE and LEAD" in the 2011 Business Year

2011-02-08T01:10:00Z

The 2011 Leading Real Estate Companies of the World® Annual Conference encourages audiences to “ENGAGE, INNOVATE and LEAD” in the 2011 business year. Being held at the exciting, luxurious new Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas March 8-10 the conference offers a compelling line-up of speakers, including:

Todd Buchholz

The Associate Press says Bucholz “lights up economics with a wickedly sparkling wit.” A former director of economic policy at the White House, a managing director of the $15 billion Tiger hedge fund, and an award-winning economics teacher at Harvard, Buchholz will show attendees how to thrive in a challenging economy, while gearing up for future prosperity.

Scott Belsky

Scott Belsky has committed his professional life to help organize creative individuals, teams, and networks. He is the author of the national bestselling book MAKING IDEAS HAPPEN and is the founder and CEO of Behance, a company that develops products and services for the creative industries. In 2010, Scott was also included in Fast Company’s list of “100 Most Creative People in Business.”

Simon T. Bailey

Voted the best keynote speaker by the readers of Meetings and Conventions magazine, Simon T. Bailey is a compelling instigator who enriches people’s lives by encouraging them to create the destiny they want. He does this by illuminating and then magnifying the brilliance inherent in everyone through his positively contagious energy and enthusiasm.

Jared James

As a Realtor and broker, Jared James built one of the largest and fastest growing teams in the country, was inducted into the International Hall of Fame, wrote a best-selling book and was even voted by the over 2 million readers of the international publication REALTOR Magazine as one of their “30 under 30”… all before the age of 28. At the conference, he will share insights on “Recruiting & Retaining the Next Generation of Superstars.”

Michael Tchong

Michael Tchong, founder and trend analyst of Ubercool, Inc., is the founder of five start-ups. His expertise in marketing, media and technology will help you better grasp how massive trends, called “Ubertrends,” are reshaping the consumer culture.

Brian Solis

Brian Solis is the author of Engage, the complete guide to build, cultivate, and measure success in the social web. Solis is globally recognized as one of the most prominent thought leaders and published authors in new media. A digital analyst, sociologist, and futurist, Solis has influenced the effects of emerging media on the convergence of marketing, communications, and publishing. He is principal of FutureWorks, an award-winning New Media agency in Silicon Valley.

The conference is open exclusively to members of LeadingRE, who can find details and register here.

Posted by: Robin LaSure

Conversation Guide to the Needs Assessment Call

2011-01-19T19:24:00Z

Establishing an employee’s need doesn’t mean asking how many bedrooms & baths they want in their new home. It also doesn’t mean finding out they want an agent who is responsive. Shouldn’t all agents be responsive? The last time I checked, it doesn’t take a specific expertise to locate a 3 bedroom home versus a 4 bedroom home. So why are we asking those questions.

The most critical role the Real Estate Brokerage Firm’s Relocation Division has in a transferring employee’s move is matching the employee to the sales associate who has the expertise and communication style that best meets the employee’s need. There are 7 key elements you need to uncover during that first call with the employee: motivation, experience, ability, status, urgency, requirements and expectations – aka “MEASURE.”

Motivation

How will this move impact the employee’s current lifestyle? At the end of the day what is going to determine if the employee makes this move or not. What do you need to help the employee resolve in order for him/her to commit to this move? Power question: If you couldn’t have…. would you cancel your move?

Experience

Have you relocated before? Have you worked with a real estate agent before? Tell me about those experiences. Uncover their hot buttons and/or pre-conceived notions about how this is going to work. Listen for the keys to the employee’s personality (visual, audio or kinesthetic). You have to get the employee talking to discover their style of communication.

Ability

How long has the employee been in their existing home? Has the employee spoken with a lender? (do you need an agent who’s familiar with the short sale process; do you need an agent who is capable of assisting this employee if they end up being a renter).

Status

When does the job begin in the new location? Are they already familiar with an agent? Sometimes employees are afraid to advise they’ve already acquired assistance prior to receiving their employer’s okay. It’s best to deal with this upfront and not after you’ve already involved another agent.

Urgency

When does the employee want to be in his/her new home? When does he/she want to list the property for sale? Have they made their plane reservations for the house hunting trip? So often we choose a realtor based on the timing the employee provided only to find out those time plans were not concrete.

Requirements

Is there anything else I need to know? Am I missing anything?

Expectations

What do you expect from your agent to market your home? Make sure there aren’t any disconnects in the way your agent markets and the way the employee expects the home to be marketed. A good example is print ads versus internet ads. What does the employee expect to accomplish on the house hunting trip? Are they ready to identify a home or are they coming to determine if the new location is a place they feel confident moving their families to.

All professionals qualify their clients. It’s the only way we can provide the ultimate service. Sales Associates don’t become frustrated if they know the quality of the lead before they accept it and employee’s don’t become frustrated if they are getting what they need. It’s much easier to be successful from the start than it is to redirect the service delivery later. The needs assessment call is critical to that process.

Posted by: Vicki Hamp, CRP, GMS

Economy Spurs Extreme Requests Being Made of Relocation Departments

2010-12-21T09:55:00Z

These days, the economy is having an impact on virtually every area of our business in expected and unexpected ways. In relocation, one of the most unusual developments has been in the area of pre-decision tools. While we have often been involved at this stage of a relocation, what is unique today is that more and more frequently we called in even before the employee knows they are being considered for a job or promotion involving a relocation.

It is not unusual for relocation directors to receive a call from a third party relocation management company or an corporate client noting a hiring manager is thinking of offering a position to a homeowner, and the potential transferee does not even know they are being considered yet.

Because of declining real estate values, the employer wants to do a preliminary search to determine what the potential loss on sale expenses will be before going further down the road. In trying to determine just how much they stand to lose with the hiring of a given employee, they want to know a head of time the potential loss for a candidate’s home.

In these cases, relocation departments try to help as much as we can, being careful not to violate any laws or privacy issues. Because so much information is publicly available, it is fairly easy to offer assistance, but it does require a local eye because MLS photos can be outdated (depending on the last time the home was actively on the market). Many of us offer these services with no compensation, but with the understanding that if the relocation proceeds, we would have the opportunity for the referral and one of the brokers asked to provide a BMA.

Employers are not the only ones reaching out early in the game. The other extreme is when a potential transferee calls us directly before deciding whether to pursue a job in another location. Like the employer, they want to know what their house is worth so they can make an informed decision.

With these types of requests, the same strong customer service principles apply:

Be sure to be responsive, pick up the phone and be available. Act quickly, as these requests usually carry an immediate need; it’s not uncommon for them to need to know tomorrow. Pull in a top agent who really knows the area. Or, ask a sales manager to drive through, take photos and make an assessment. Everyone is so eager to get business, I have found my managers and agents to be willing to go the extra mile. Whether a sales associate or manager has done the assessment, have them report back with comps and a synopsis of the home and neighborhood. It can be challenging because they cannot get interior photos, so it is advisable to use a range for the market value, noting that it can vary based on the condition of the interior.

Having involved parties understand what they face before going too far down the job offer road is a wise approach in today’s market – essentially putting the “real” back in real estate. Without these pre-decision tools, someone may start the hiring path, thinking there will be a relocation package, only to discover later on that the costs make it prohibitive – either for the homeowner, the employer or both.

Of course the old relocation considerations still apply. Is the relocation a good fit? Is it a good for the employee and his or her family? Will the spouse be able to find employment in the new city? Is it a good investment for the company? But these days – the value of the house is a key determinant in the “pre”-decision process.

Posted by: Deborah Benavides

LeadingRE Brokers Dominate Inman’s Most Influential Real Estate Leaders

2010-12-17T21:37:00Z

Leading Real Estate Companies of the World® had a great showing on Inman’s Most Influential Leaders List in the brokerage category, with 9 of the 24 honorees affiliated with the network. Making the prestigious list were:

See the complete list.

Congratulations to these brokers and to our own President/CEO Pam O’Connor for exemplifying the quality and strength of Leading Real Estate Companies of the World®.

Posted by: Robin LaSure

The Nordstrom’s Philosophy Translated To Real Estate

2010-12-03T19:24:00Z

I didn’t set out to be my own Santa Claus last week. In fact, I was supposed to be shopping for everyone else on my day off. But that’s what happened thanks to the superb service from Carmel and Holly at Nordstrom’s. Most everyone is familiar with Nordstrom’s philosophy: to offer the customer the best possible service, selection, quality and value.

Well, I experienced this first hand on the day before Thanksgiving. My plan was to simply return one item purchased online and then look for a pair (yes, one pair only!) of jeans and then proceed to check a few others off my Christmas list. The return went smoothly and quickly and before you knew it, I was in my favorite department. Carmel was quick to introduce herself but not overbearing. She was kind enough to ask my name and use it but not so pushy as to constantly bug me while I perused the beautiful clothes. She also searched all of the departments for just the right skirt to go with the sweater I had to have.

When all was said and done, I had purchased jeans (multiple), shirts, a sweater (the one I had to have!) and a skirt from the other side of the store. Carmel then escorted me to the shoe department on another floor to find appropriate footwear for each outfit. Yes – that’s right – she informed her co-worker that she was leaving and we were off to the shoe department! Carmel was candid in expressing her opinion of what looked right and what did not and she also streamlined the entire buying process by ringing up all of the purchases together once at the conclusion of the (multiple!) footwear purchase. She asked where I was headed next, and I meekly replied ‘well, I had intended to shop for my husband today’. She promptly whisked me over to the men’s department, introduced me to Holly and explained that she would store all of my bags in the back until I finished. Holly was just as helpful with picking out my husband’s gifts but this went a lot quicker – it’s just not as fun when you can’t try it on!

At the end of the day - I had never touched a bag and Carmel and Holly carried my bags out to the car for me and loaded them into the trunk. Was I ‘wowed’? You bet! In every business, there is a way to ‘wow’ the customer by going the extra mile. In real estate, it may be:

Asking that one question the competitor did not ask during the listing presentation Taking the time to walk the customer to the car every time they visit your office Have calls coming into the office forwarded to your mobile phone so that the customer does not have to wait for a call back – immediate access is ‘wow’ service

At Jordan Baris Inc., Realtors it’s inviting the seller to move in with you when the back-to-back closings go awry! This seller is not only a customer for life now but extols the virtues of Jordan Baris, Inc. Realtors to everyone he meets, and Ken Baris has made a lifelong friend. You can see why Leading Real Estate Companies of the World® selected Jordan Baris Inc., Realtors as the 2009 Customer Experience – Real Estate Transaction of the Year Award winner!

At Westmark Realtors, its agents like David Rayburn who prepared a worksheet where he analyzed ten investment properties and put together a plan to sell the properties for a seller in trouble. He spent untold hours over a year’s time strategizing and many long distance phone calls trying desperately to help the seller understand what she was up against, as well as what was in her best interest. He knew early on that this would be very time consuming with very little monetary return. Eight of the properties were sold via short sale within the year. Westmark Realtors was the 2009 Customer Experience – Referral Transaction of the Year Award winner.

Nordstrom’s philosophy has remained unchanged for more than 100 years since its establishment by John W. Nordstrom as a shoe store in 1901. As a result, Nordstrom’s has weathered the various economic downturns over the last 100 years and continues to thrive in these challenging times. I am confident that Jordan Baris Inc., Realtors (in business since 1952) and Westmark Realtors (in business since 1981) will also continue as shining examples of superior customer service providers in the real estate industry.

Posted By: Jana Coleman

De-Recruiting or Managing Performance?

2010-11-12T13:53:00Z

You often hear organizations talk about Performance Management of employees. Tracking performance is an important tool in talent management and achieving organizational goals, but what about REALTORS? Because sales associates work as independent contractors, do we have a say in how they conduct business? Of course we must manage their actions in regards to liability issues, but what about their day-to-day efforts to increase their business or the sapping of company resources due to their inactivity?

Once we answer the question “should we monitor agent performance,” we might ask ourselves:

Why should we document performance?How do we go about documenting performance?What are some possible reasons for agent performance problems?Is there anything our organization is doing to cause these performance problems?

Finally…what is the ROI in time and money spent improving performance?

How we recruit might have a lot to do with managing agent performance. Agents have many options on what firm to affiliate with. There are companies with just a desk fee and zero support all the way to full manager support and training with adjusted compensation. If an agent chooses the second example, can you safely assume they are looking for support? I would think so, and managing their performance, similar to an employee, would not be out of the question. Those agents we think we want to let go of might just need a more structured approach.

I would encourage brokers and managers to become familiar with methods of Performance Management and start holding agents more accountable. As independent contractors they might be running their own business, but at the end of the day, we are all looking to make money.

Posted by: Devon Hill, CRP, CPLP, Relocation Training Director, Long and Foster Corporate Real Estate Services

Online versus Print. Most firms find value in both.

2010-11-08T10:25:18Z

Recently, in response to a member inquiry on how our affiliates were handling their advertising budgets, I posed the question via our Luxury Portfolio listserv: “How are you approaching marketing budgets in terms of online versus print advertising?” As expected, the trend toward online efforts is strong, but most are still finding value in print advertising and other more traditional avenues.

One member notes that his firm is always expanding online, but that the company also committed to run a full page, full color ad for the next 52 weeks in their largest regional newspaper.

Taking a similar approach, one company ramped up its newspaper ads, just as competitors were pulling out. Even though he notes it is difficult to tie sales results to the ads, they remain popular with this firm’s customers and agents alike.

Many noted that print advertising focuses more on corporate branding, rather than specific listings, designed to drive consumers back to the company website for property information.

Another member shifted away from print advertising 25 years ago – long before the development of the web – and instead invests in direct outreach to each agent’s sphere of influence, using postcards, letters, success stories, visits and calls. Despite his avoidance of print advertising, he recognizes that many sellers want to see their home in print, even if it does not necessarily help sell a home.

Other firms embrace newer forums such as YouTube and social media sites. One firm has recently entered into an agreement to have a video on YouTube for each listing, with the videos linking back to either the agent’s personal website or to the corporate site. This company has dramatically decreased their newspaper expenditure – by more than 60% in the last four years – noting that the firm’s agents and clients find little value in it.

One respondent notes that “the choice between print and online should be guided by your objectives,” citing mass media as the best outlets for brand awareness and online efforts (such as AdWords, SEO, banner ads and even ads on Facebook) as the best approach to drive traffic, leads or business.

While the tactics shared by our members in this informal discussion were varied, most agreed that a variety of media should be employed. As described by one member, the most effective approach is “a deliberate marketing mix that combines a variety of outlets.” These real estate firms are reaching out to consumers in a variety of ways – combining pay per click advertising, social media, syndicated marketing, direct mail and, yes, traditional print.

Another common theme: ongoing evaluation of what is working – and what is not. If you are not achieving the desired results, mix it up. The good news is today’s media gives you many options for engaging consumers in meaningful ways.

Posted by: Robin LaSure

Banks Need To Keep Their Eye on the Ball: Helping Qualified Buyers Buy

2010-10-13T10:25:15Z

Some say that the latest decision of major banks to halt foreclosures temporarily is not all bad. Yes, homeowners facing foreclosure may have just received a reprieve, and the temporary delay in sending these homes to the market could allow for some price stabilization, and that could help sellers who act quickly.

But realistically, doesn’t this just give buyers one more reason to sit on the sidelines in what is already a troubled housing environment? Doesn’t it create fertile ground for lawsuits that won’t benefit anyone except attorneys? And doesn’t it just delay the inevitable and prolong the foreclosure overhang problem?

Banks seem to be “dumbing down” the whole process to help the lowest common denominator – and cover themselves to the max – rather that doing everything possible to help buyers with resources buy homes. If there are truly situations in which a homeowner’s rights were compromised in the foreclosure process, then of course that should be addressed, but if banks are doing this because of minor technicalities, they are once again worrying about those who defaulted, creating a ripple effect of plummeting price comparables, homeowners who will stop making payments because they can, and escalating finger-pointing spawning litigation…instead of focusing on facilitating the home-buying process for qualified buyers.

I just heard about a buyer with a 40% down payment trying to buy a home. The mortgage was declined because other homeowners in the subdivision were behind on assessments. Other banks are saying “no” to qualified buyers because the ratio of renters to owners is too high.

And in some cases, the brokerages being used by asset managers to market foreclosure properties are out of the area or otherwise poorly qualified, making the process difficult if not painful for the buyer and his or her agent.

It’s understood that liberal lending practices are what got us into this mess, but the other extreme is not the answer. The foreclosure problem is a sad one affecting lives, and no one likes to see that – but it is what it is and the sooner we move beyond it the better. What is needed is leadership with thoughtful, practical solutions to problems we haven’t seen before caused by the preponderance of distressed properties. Without such attention, buyer confidence will continue to erode. The data tells us there are many individuals who are sitting on cash and want to buy. We need to do all we can to remove the barriers.

This latest news is yet another example of blocking one of the roads to a better housing market – absorption of foreclosures – as banks take steps to “check their paperwork.” Is anyone else frustrated?

Posted by: Pam O’Connor

The State of Housing: Filling the Half-Full Glass

2010-08-26T13:44:50Z

We live in a Chicken Little World, which is why I love Steve Harney’s take on the latest gloom-and-doom housing market numbers: http://kcmblog.com/2010/08/26/everybody-calm-down-armageddon-is-not-upon-us/.

No, the sky is not falling, and yes, anyone who really knows real estate could have predicted these numbers. We know the tax credit pulled forward many buyers, and we know that poor jobs numbers and lagging consumer confidence directly affect housing. Regardless, many brokerages will book better numbers than 2009 at year-end, even though the story would be happier had it ended in June. As Steve and others note, we’ll still see about 5 million sales this year, similar to what we had in 2000, which we thought was a pretty good year. Like much in life, it’s all relative.

What IS different is that we have far too many sales agents and far too much brick and mortar – even after the attrition of the past few years. That absolutely has to change to “right-size” this business. Smart-and-savvy practitioners must skate where the puck is going:

Opportunity: Fewer agents don’t necessarily mean less revenue. How about putting the effort we put into recruiting bodies into coaching our fertile raw material to a 20% or 30% increase in units? How would that look from a productivity, profitability and branding standpoint?Opportunity: Home ownership as a percentage of households is declining for various reasons, which means rentals will be stronger. People have to live somewhere. What are the opportunities in developing profitable rental and property management offerings?Opportunity: Many Americans are sitting on cash they’ve been unwilling to invest due to market uncertainties. At some point, they’ll want to put that money to work. Real estate is a great buy now. How many of our associates are truly educated and proficient at working with sophisticated investor buyers, who can represent a long-term, customer-for-life income stream?Opportunity: Years from now when we look back on 2010, we’ll be saying things like, “Gosh, I could have bought this house for X in 2010. Boy, did I miss the boat.” Are we articulating that to buyers when they ask us, “How’s the real estate market?”

I keep reading that recruiting is the only salvation of today’s broker. Yet, in private conversations with brokers, I hear them say that probably 30% of their sales force is truly engaged, committed and effective. Think of the wasted effort and resources spent on the other 70%, and on continuing to spin that revolving door by adding the wrong people to your bus with feverish but not necessarily thoughtful recruiting. Remember the old saying about continuing to do the things we’ve always done and getting the same result?

Success does in fact depend on a GREAT sales force. It does not depend on recruiting for recruiting’s sake. The real key is quality talent selection, arming that talent with market-relevant, consumer-focused skills development and coaching, and enforcing standards and accountability.

So what if you take a temporary step back in market share in that re-tooling process? Building a company with universally strong talent is the ticket to true brand differentiation. It will trump body shops every day of the week in this consumer-driven economy. And you may in fact not step backward, because cleaning house sends a powerful message to those remaining: “You meet our standards, we only have winners here, our leadership is focused on helping you achieve your full potential.”

As someone smarter than I said: “Stop waiting for the storm to pass, and learn to dance in the rain.” Opportunities are everywhere. Those who seize this day will be the market leaders of tomorrow.

Posted by: Pam O’Connor

Experience design principles and cultural understanding applied to real estate websites

2010-08-04T00:34:00Z

When was the last time you were “tricked” by a brand? The last time a promise conveyed via a brand’s marketing and promotional efforts was not honored or fulfilled? How many customers feel like Spike Lee when he learned that Lebron James was not signing with the Knicks?

“We got hoodwinked. Led astray. Hornswoggled,”…“We got bamboozled.” cite

Oftentimes this “trickery” is unintentional or inadvertent. Indeed, many times it’s a result of not fully mapping a consumer experience. Usability, accessibility, and readability are base-level components of any effective website, according to this research article. These elements are important considerations in designing a superior customer experience. But the article points out that an understanding of cultural nuances is equally important in elevating customer satisfaction. And it’s this angle in the article that led me to think this concept could be applied to real estate website design.

Think about it. Each of your targeted customer niches is essentially part of a distinct consumer culture. First-time home buyers’ culture differs from second home and vacation home buyers’ culture. Understanding these “cultural differences” is critical to delivering a superior customer experience that flows from your web presence to your call center to your agents. Accordingly, a first-time home buyer webpage/website will have different imagery, calls to action, content, property choices, etc, than a webpage/website targeted at fulfilling the needs of second and vacation home customers.

The biggest take-away from this article is that brokerages should not try to create a “one-size fits all” website, but to focus on creating distinct webpages/websites that recognize “cultural nuances” in these distinct consumer segments.

“The right approach is to create a “culturally usable” website where designers localise websites for each of the target cultures, taking into account all the overt and covert factors that need to be considered when designing for such cultures.”

Another point the researchers make regarding website design is for developers to ensure design consistency across a company’s entire web presence. This consistency should take the form of uniform navigational elements and layout.

Thus, to minimize the possibility of “consumer trickery” the article states that businesses should focus on understanding cultural nuances, designing a web presence that meets each consumer culture’s unique needs, with an eye towards consistency and ease of use. This article is a very easy read (about 24 pages), includes a handy design flowchart on page 15, and includes sound advice for anyone interested in ensuring that their web presence properly resonates with potential customers.

Posted By: Eric Bryn

Building a Global Mindset: Conclusion of a 5-Part Series Exploring the Globalization of Real Estate

2010-08-03T00:37:00Z

“You can learn a lot from people who view the world differently than you do.”
- Anthony J. D’Angelo

Multi-national corporations use pre-decision surveys and questionnaires to identify if an employee will be successful in an overseas assignment. While the exact list of the attributes they are trying to discover in candidates varies slightly from company to company, essentially they are looking for those who are adaptable, open, and empathetic.

In this series we have looked at how, in order to be local experts, we need to have an understanding of what happens elsewhere; at how small changes in how we express ourselves can create a huge improvement in comprehension no matter what the language and how to redefine “International” into more actionable consumer segments for better marketing and service situations.

The world is a very big place, and the complexity of culture makes it impossible to identify and understand every single person around the world within its context. Since we can’t develop a local mindset for everywhere and every situation, the best we can do is to develop our global mindset. Working to further develop our adaptability, openness and empathy is an important part of the process.

Although difficult for everyone, those living in large or more isolated countries have a greater challenge. For example, compared to other countries, those of us in the U.S. are actually at a disadvantage in the race to develop our global mindsets. Just based on our location, we are separated from most other cultures by vast oceans. Even the media we consume lacks diversity. A 2004 study found that only 12 percent of local television news was international, and of that, 81 percent was devoted to the war on terror and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. The remainder—49 minutes out of 48 analyzed hours—was spent on all other international issues.

To build or expand an existing global mindset means an independent investment and dedication in many cases. The links to information about real estate and business customs around the world in PART II can be helpful, but are just one resource. Foreign news websites and travel, taking advantage of new technologies to “chat” with people in different parts of the globe and making a point to share information with existing relationships outside your home country are things that consistently challenge and educate me in my pursuit of a more global way of viewing my business and the world.

Posted by: Sharon E. Michnay, CRP, GMS, WRS, Executive Director, Corporate Business Development, Halstead Property. Sharon is a member and former chairperson of the LeadingRE Advisory Council.

Where’s the Beef in Innovation?

2010-07-29T20:44:00Z

We live in times where the truth is a hard thing to find. Journalists present opinion as fact, making it difficult to distinguish between the front page and the editorial page. A journalists’ list-serv was exposed recently for sharing tips on how to present stories to influence a particular outcome. Whatever your politics are, this should be disturbing because we rely on the media for facts we don’t have time to research ourselves.

The same disconnect occurs in the real estate business. Our industry’s own “news arbiters” face the same challenge, I suppose, of generating revenue, so they respond by being provocative and positioning themselves as the hotbeds of innovation and bad boys of real estate.

They make judgments about which companies are the most innovative in real estate, based either on “pay to play” sponsorship dollars, or whoever touts the cool new business model. What they often fail to consider, however, is who is actually doing the business.

Creative marketing is one thing, but too often, reality is something else entirely. Actual results are what truly matter. We should be searching behind the Wizard of Oz curtain to ask, “Where’s the beef?”

When one highly-touted “model of the future” company claims to have 24 average transaction sides per agent – a goal anyone would want to emulate – and in fact did 32 sides in total in the first half of 2010 and is ranked about 75th in the market per the MLS, what’s with that? Certain companies are highlighted in every real estate media outlet, yet no one seems to ask how much business they are actually doing relative to their competitors.

Yes, we should respect new ideas and new forms of competition, but we also must balance hype with results. Accurate statistics paint a true picture of who is doing what relative to whom, how they are improving or declining compared to the market, and the kinds of customers they are serving. That is why – in this age of transparency – numbers reported to real estate news sources must be submitted correctly and validated appropriately so that we can identify the emperors with no clothes.

At LeadingRE, we talk a lot about numbers and performance because they matter. We put a high value on innovation, with our own “Most Innovative Brokerage” award, but to even qualify, the company has to be a market leader within its footprint, regardless of size.

Ideas without execution and marketing without monetization are meaningless.

So let’s pay attention to what’s behind the curtain to see whether ideas are producing results. Talk is cheap. Results require hard work, tenacity and staying power. Regardless of size or business model, the true verdict must rely on how well high standards of performance are generating growth, profitability and market leadership.

Posted By: Pam O’Connor

All Things Come Full Circle

2010-07-27T18:52:00Z

Four years ago challenger Google passed incumbent Yahoo! for dominance on the consumer web (as measured by market share). Guess what’s happening right now? Facebook is turning the tables on Google, and in less time.

The two graphs below look strangely similar no?

Granted, Facebook is not yet in a position to substitute for Google in search the way Google was for Yahoo!. But I think the analogy still holds well. Yahoo! was not simply a search engine at that time either. It was the gateway to the web of the day, and that’s what we’re talking about.

The point? Even if SEO is working well for your company today, you need to start paying attention to Facebook.

The good news is that Facebook is not another lead generation platform; it is a referral sphere builder for both your company and your agents.

Facebook is a platform for building out both an individual REALTOR and brokerage company’s network with an eye to generating referrals.
As we all know, the majority of any successful REALTOR’s business is word of mouth referral, the minority SEM/SEO/leadgen driven.

Have someone on your team build a Facebook centric marketing strategy for your brokerage and your agents. Those who do so now will get an advantage over their competition the same way the early SEO visionaries did.

Alex Chang is the CEO of Roost, a proud partner of Leading Real Estate Companies of the World® and a real estate technology company leading the way in innovation in the Social Media space. Roost’s Social Media Toolkit provides free and premium tools for Real Estate Agents & Brokers to get real ROI out of Social Media.

International is Everywhere but Here: Part 4 in a Series Exploring the Globalization of Real Estate

2010-07-23T21:53:00Z

Terms like International and Global are both in heavy use however they are far too broad to be useful.

In our local business, we recognize different consumer segments – luxury, first-time homebuyer, investor, etc. From a macro level, we typically segment our customers at the customer level. Internationally, the macro level is the country level.

The best place to start identifying which countries are most interested in your location is by checking your company website analytics. Analytics from www.relohomesearch.com and www.luxuryportfolio.com reporting can enhance your knowledge of potential consumers and where your marketing efforts should be directed.

With the countries identified, you now know:

What languages you potentially should translate your website and materials into Cultural training to offer your agents Where to investigate on and offline marketing venues

To approach your marketing from the micro level, you need to consider the in-market segmentation and detect segments across borders. This is going back to some of our “local” segments such as luxury and investor and identifying the segments that exist in each identified country. Additional research should be performed here as not every segment exists in every country or in the same amount in every country.

Don’t forget the valuable relationships you have through your membership with Leading Real Estate Companies of the World. Other local experts are willing to share the venues that have generated the best response for them and if a reciprocal client base exists perhaps a co-branded campaign can be an option.

While we have the tendency to look elsewhere when we consider the International issue, migration has created another consumer segment to consider when marketing and developing services.

Statistics from the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development showed a 61% increase in immigration to the U.S. and a 104% increase in immigration for the combined countries of the EU during the same 9 year period of 1998 – 2007. Although immigration has slowed along with everything else recently, it is predicted to resume as economies improve.

Increasing evidence indicates that diversity is growing in more areas than just New York City and L.A. New U.S. residents are less likely to choose these gateway cities and more likely to opt for a mid-sized metro area. This switch is bringing home the international issue.

Posted by: Sharon E. Michnay, CRP, GMS, WRS, Executive Director, Corporate Business Development, Halstead Property. Sharon is a member and former chairperson of the LeadingRE Advisory Council.

How Target* Takes Aim at the Millennial Generation (and what we in the real estate industry can learn from it)

2010-07-15T18:12:00Z

For us, the 4th of July weekend was rainy with no breaks for fun on the beach. Our annual family gathering, which usually takes place outside at Madeira Beach, Florida, had turned into a cocooning event spread out over several condominiums overlooking gray skies and a turbulent Gulf of Mexico. My nieces and nephews, ranging in age from 22-30, were starting to get cabin fever by the second day when one piped up and said “let’s go to Target!”

These college graduates in their first post graduation jobs all agreed in unison with great enthusiasm. I had to ask: “What are you going to Target for?” Their response? “We don’t need anything; we just like to shop there. We like to look at what’s on sale, buy toothpaste and anything else that may be a bargain.” Well, I looked at them like they were speaking a different language and had to get to the bottom of this strong customer loyalty that Target had created in this Millennial Generation. Next question: “Why Target? Why not the other mega retail stores?” Now they were looking at me like I had two heads. “Aunt Jana, we don’t go there.” I won’t convey their reasoning but if you have ever searched the mega retailers by name on YouTube for visual entertainment, you will understand their sentiment.

At this point, it was their turn to question me, the one sitting on the fence between the baby boomer generation and generation X. “So Aunt Jana, where do you buy your toothpaste and deodorant?” My response, of course, was the grocery store. Okay, I got the two headed look again**. In a final attempt to understand this fascination with Target, I inquired again, “What is so special about Target?” My nephew responded, “Aunt Jana, when we all started college and had to furnish our dorm rooms, Target had packaged together everything we needed: a comforter and sheets, a tall mirror, dorm approved microwave and other stuff. It was so convenient and the stores are clean.”

Yes, they used this word and being a clean store was important to them. Add to that Target’s convenient locations near most major universities in Florida (and probably nationwide) and their extended hours and you have a winner as far as college students are concerned. It seems that Target has effectively captured the attention of the freshman college student, managed to keep their attention throughout the student’s college career and secured a loyal following with this generation as they enter their first job/apartment/house.

How can this information be used to develop a customer base for real estate companies? Can effective marketing and delivery of multiple services (real estate, mortgage, title, insurance, home warranty) neatly bundled together to the Millennial Generation be the competitive edge needed to capture and retain this generation of first time home buyers? Is there something else unique that real estate companies located in college towns do to cultivate these same college students with the goal of turning them into loyal customers once they get that first job/apartment/house? If it takes on average of five years (average time to get college degree) for Target to create these dedicated customers, how does this translate for the average real estate broker and their customer outreach program?

The tastes and preferences of the Millennial Generation will most likely change once significant wealth accumulates, and only time will tell if this steadfast faithfulness to Target will fade. In the meantime, Target will continue to enjoy the strong loyalty and purchasing power of the Millennial Generation, or at least the allegiance of those in my family!

**Apparently, my nieces and nephews don’t shop for groceries at a grocery store – they go to the gourmet market which offers primarily food items. Their food buying/consuming habits are a customer loyalty story for another day!

Posted By: Jana Coleman

International Marketing: Part 3 in a Series Exploring the Globalization of Real Estate

2010-07-08T14:41:00Z

The web is inherently international, but does just placing something on the web equate to international marketing?

How do we reach the greatest audience? Place the listing on the company website, syndicate it out to multiple locations and maybe write a blog post or “share” it on social networking sites. These are all very good tactics, but there is a less glamorous side that is equally important: making sure the information is understandable from multiple language and location perspectives.

Selling clients search for and want to find their home on international sites like www.relohomesearch.com and www.luxuryportfolio.com, and we place them here and on other sites. The websites they will search to see their home marketed and their interpretation of the content can be quite different than that of someone from abroad.

When marketing to a global audience, it may not be possible to include “apartment” “flat” and “condo” in the same web description. That would just be weird. Taking a closer look at those descriptions is definitely warranted.

Someone from London will connect “apartment” and “flat”; however, what will he/she make of “C/A/C?” And really – will someone explain to me what a “tear – off roof” is? Here are some more of my favorites: “mn lvl office”, “surrnd snd” and “wndw”. English is my first language, and even I had difficulty getting some of these.

Look at it this way:

German: Zimmer
English: Room
Web Description: Rm

Getting from “RM” to Zimmer requires at least a 3-step process whereas if “Room” is used the translation becomes much easier for the reader. In addition, if you are participating in a site using an automated translation system or if a user attempts to use the Google Translate tool, the meaning of these abbreviations will not be correctly expressed.

Another issue arises when syndicating website listing information to third-party websites. Most listing descriptions are written in the context of their appearance on the main corporate website. Most of these sites contain rich content further describing the neighborhood/town and its amenities which in that context would not necessitate inclusion of that information in the web description. If the syndication site doesn’t also contain this information, the property description will be less effective as readers are unable to identify the location and lifestyle benefits of the property.

In a global context: Stay away from colloquialisms, slang and abbreviations. Write property descriptions as stand-alone articles expressing every benefit and feature of the listing.

I would love to hear your favorite abbreviation nightmare or colloquial confusion story.

Posted by: Sharon E. Michnay, CRP, GMS, WRS, Executive Director, Corporate Business Development, Halstead Property. Sharon is a member and former chairperson of the LeadingRE Advisory Council.

Local vs. Global: Part 2 in a Series Exploring the Globalization of Real Estate

2010-06-22T23:33:00Z

In Part I, I suggested that our business had become as global as it is local. Real estate is a local business in a global economy. It is undeniable that we must know our neighborhoods and local real estate practices in order to provide superb services to our clients, but that isn’t the complete picture.

Every client that comes from further than across the street has the potential to be accompanied by a different real estate culture and, with it, many different assumptions and expectations. The MLS system is probably one of the most obvious examples of this.

The U.S. and Canada have an extensive, well regulated listing sharing and cooperation program between brokers that rarely exists elsewhere. The impact to real estate culture and the expectations of services available from real estate professionals is immense.

If you are an American, you will expect your broker to work on your behalf and to share with you every property that meets your parameters. In the reverse, a French national may impede a search in the U.S. by working with multiple agents and gaining the full attention, resources and benefit of none of them.

Add in the culture of homeownership and different tax and legal issues for an even better look at the depth of complexity we aren’t really addressing with an exclusively local focus. It is just as important to understand our local business as it is to understand how it is the same or different than others.

The opportunity exists to improve services by learning some of the major differences that exist between our own and other markets. When working with a client from another country, take a few moments to do research on his/her real estate market and business culture.

It’s easy to look at “International” as a challenge, but there are also many benefits. New information brings new knowledge brings new ideas. Even if the concepts are foreign, they have the ability to spur innovation and the creation of beneficial programs and services at home.

Posted by: Sharon E. Michnay, CRP, GMS, WRS, Executive Director, Corporate Business Development, Halstead Property. Sharon is a member and former chairperson of the LeadingRE Advisory Council.

What is "International?": A Series Exploring the Globalization of Real Estate

2010-06-11T18:15:00Z

Over the past several years, I have had several opportunities to speak on the subject of “International.” Over this time, I’ve seen interest peak and would consider the current state as waning in the real estate industry.

Is this because we have a limited view of what “International” is? Perhaps all the information we’ve gathered has simply created a confusing interpretation of an overused term.

While International can be defined by its opposite – local – doing so leads not only to confusion but an unadressable issue. Using this definition, how exactly can you create a program, develop a solution or offer services to essentially the rest of the world?

This is the age of localization, market segmentation and specialization, and we need to learn how to translate that for the international arena. So much of our conversations have been about developing international business, but I would argue that in today’s world our business of real estate is as global as it is local. Globalization continues to escalate rapidly and our challenge is how to deal with, derive benefit from and add value to it.

We need to be the local experts, but not to the exclusion of everything else. We need to better understand marketing our exclusive listings in a global environment. The definition of “International” as “Everything outside my country” needs to be re-examined and addressed in the manner in which we address the rest of our business. And ultimately, we need to develop a more Global Mindset.

In light of the global economic crisis which has slowed migration, dampened foreign investment in real estate and made higher priorities of other issues, that is a lot to ask. It is also quite challenging to accomplish because there are no established best-practices to follow.

This is part one of five segments that attempt to explore some of these topics. As one voice with an overwhelming subject, I hope you will join me by adding your comments, asking your questions and sharing your knowledge and experience along the way.

Posted by: Sharon E. Michnay, CRP, GMS, WRS, Executive Director, Corporate Business Development, Halstead Property. Sharon is a member and former chairperson of the LeadingRE Advisory Council.

Is There a Place for Assumptive Selling in Generating Outgoing Referrals?

2010-06-01T14:39:00Z

Funny thing happened at lunch the other day. I was dining along with Carlotta Landschoot and Mary Lou Lee (Watson Realty Corp) at one of the newest restaurant chains of Darden Restaurants known as Seasons 52. If you are lucky enough to have one in your market, you’ll understand it’s all about the seasonal offerings, each under 460 calories and their wonderful mini-desserts.

Well, when it came time for dessert, the waitress, Kyla, came to our table, laid down fresh cutlery and napkins assuming we were all having dessert. I immediately pointed out to Kyla that I had noticed this bold selling gesture, and she responded indicating it was known as assumptive selling and all waiters are trained on this practice. Of course, it helped tremendously that she also had on hand a tray of 10 different freshly prepared mini-desserts just waiting to be selected – no waiting for dessert here! We each had a different dessert and enjoyed every bite.

The first question is: how can we incorporate assumptive selling into referral generation? How about instead of saying: I understand you are moving to Orlando. May I have someone contact you to assist? Say this: I understand you are moving to Orlando. I will have our Leading Real Estate Companies of the World® member in Orlando contact you immediately to offer their assistance. At this point, the only questions should be the “what” (needs) and “when” (timeframe) of the move. Try it once and see what happens.

The second question is: how can we provide immediate response with virtually no waiting? (Remember, the desserts on the tray were fresh and ready to eat, not a display of what we could order.) With technology today, it is entirely possible to have an agent in Orlando call your customer while you are still sitting in their living room. It takes efficient coordination between you, your relocation department and the relocation department and agent in the destination market. While we may not be able to literally deliver the destination agent to the customer’s living room (yet!), conversations can happen immediately via mobile phones and video conferencing is available via Skype.

If reading about this has made you hungry and you are lucky enough to have a Seasons 52 nearby, check it out. I bet you have dessert!

Posted By: Jana Coleman

Leading Real Estate Companies of the World Leads Again

2010-05-21T11:41:27Z

REAL Trends recently released its always-anticipated Top 500 Report highlighting the country’s biggest real estate firms. Again this year, the brokers of Leading Real Estate Companies of the World® led all national brands in units sold and sales volume, with 27.5% of total units and 26.9% of total volume of the top 500 companies. This translates to about 75,000 more transaction sides than the closest competitor!

The network also had the #1 market leader in 41 of the top 90 markets in sales volume, transaction sides or both – nearly double that of the closest competitor.

Congratulations to these companies for continuing to achieve these results even in challenging times!

Posted by: Robin LaSure

Interesting Facebook Facts

2010-05-14T16:22:00Z

In 2006, Yahoo offered Mark Zuckerberg (the founder and CEO of Facebook) $1 billion, and he refused. Want to know what this social networking site is valued at today? Below is an infographic of some very interesting Facebook facts that Mashable shared on their blog. The facts below clearly illustrate that Facebook has come to dominate social networking.

Tip: Facebook updates their stats frequently and you can find this information on their Press Room page.

[Source: Online PhD Programs for Mashable.com]

Posted By: Jennifer Sciortino

Interview with a Propopoly Blogger: Sonja Lovas of Houlihan Lawrence, Katonah & True Tales of Blogging Success

2010-05-07T22:07:00Z

Sonja Lovas of Houlihan Lawrence Real Estate in Katonah, New York is one of Propopoly’s most active bloggers. Her content is dynamic, interesting, comprehensive and a joy to read – she covers everything from buying/selling tips to local events to her listings (including excellent videos) to school reports to fine dining. She brings her heart and personality into every post and truly conveys her passion for selling real estate and living in the community she loves. She has made blogging a main focus of her marketing plan and her hard work has paid off in the form of new clients and referrals.

Be sure to learn more about Sonja and read more of her over 130 posts: GuideMeHome2Westchester.com/Sonja-Lovas

What got you into blogging?

I attended a meeting about blogging presented by Eric Bryn. He was so enthusiastic I decided to join the group and went home and wrote my first blog and signed up on Twitter. I then attended a LeadingRE function in NYC where I met Jennifer Sciortino and listened to her speak about the importance of it as well and was motivated to continue posting.

What keeps you motivated to blog?

I like to blog because I find it to be a creative outlet. I get to talk about what I do, and I love what I do. There are many aspects of Real Estate that a lot of people don’t understand and are not aware of. I have heard agents say 100 times or more when discussing their transactions, “we should write a book,” so in some ways, I am. I can write about my experiences about unusual conditions of the sale, accomplishments, activities and events I care about, places in my geographical market area and my pet peeves.

How do you keep coming up with material?

If you take any question that anyone has ever asked you about real estate and write a blog post in response to that, you’ll have 20 or more posts right there. I also look at real estate magazines such as House & Home, REALTOR® and my local board newspaper and identify the things that I as a Realtor need to know and then summarize them and make them a blog post because buyers and clients need to know the same things we do. Also, as I look around at everything I do, I try to tie it into real estate and that becomes a blog post. It’s fun to look around at the events and things around your town and community and then share that via a blog post.

Most bloggers use social media tools like Facebook or Twitter as a way to publicize themselves. Do you?

I use Twitter, Facebook, Flickr and LinkedIn. It is a great place to stay connected with people, find people and learn about the “buzzzzz.” You never know where or how someone will find you.

A lot of people are interested in blogging for the money earning potential. What are some tips for people interested in making money from blogging? What are some realistic expectations in regards to what can be made?

My realistic expectation is to be a better agent. Writing helps me become an expert. I understand and can communicate information about the process of the sale from seller and buyer points of view because I can express it in written form. It is one thing to know something, and quite something else to be able to put it in writing. When you write it, you own it. I have learned more about my geographical area and am paying closer attention to details of events because I started blogging than I would have had I not. I have a better understanding of the market because I write about it and describe my charts. Blogging and social media allow me to use technology to start interactions with people when other agents are uncomfortable. Blogging for earning potential is there but not with an occasional post and cannot be specifically defined. It’s how you use it and what you focus on that will pay dividends. The people who are watching and evaluating you to see how you work won’t find it with a couple blogs. I have been most successful by combining blogs and social networking. Writing also enables me to describe more elegantly the properties I represent as well as improved my writing communication skills through letters and email with clients. It is difficult to define exactly what the ROI is, but so is “word of mouth,” or “through the grapevine.” I look at blogging as my way of spreading the word, my word, and growing a bigger, more intertwining vine.

If you had to offer one success tip for someone who is contemplating starting a blog, what would it be?

Start by writing a minimum of 20 minutes every day, 1 hour or more works best for me. Keep a running list of blog ideas that pop into your head, and stay organized on your computer with your blogs and photos (it will save a ton of time). Don’t try to write a book with every post and read other people’s blogs about any subject you have an interest in.

Have you received business from blogging?

I’ve had a number of ways that I define results from blogging. I think it is success if someone posts a response to one of my blogs or when I find out that a client is reading my blog.

I’ve received an inter-office referral from an agent who is not a blogger but is reading the blog. I received a phone call from a person about listing her house - I returned the phone call and asked how she’d come across my name. She said that a friend of hers came to an open house that I had back in August and I’ve been sending her follow-up information. I send Just Sold and Just Listed postcards with a tagline stating “For more information on me, visit GuideMeHome2Westchester.com.” And so this new client looked me up and said she was so totally impressed by all of the blogs that I have written and by how active I am that she felt that social networking and social media was the only way homes were going to be sold and so she wanted to talk to me about listing her home.

I also received an inquiry from my listing on Trulia – he wanted to have some more information about the property sent to him. I remembered that I’d done a blog post on that condominium so I replied back and said that I had a blog post and I did a video of the entrance and the entire complex and I sent that along and scheduled an appointment and I then had a buyer client! I also I have 2 accepted offers I directly contribute to my Wildwood blogs. Propopoly is working for me.

What do you do when you’re not blogging?

My first love is for my family so any time I can spend with them is a pleasure. I also exercise daily by walking and jogging, spinning, or weight training. I’m a firm believer of 10,000 steps a day (that’s 5 miles), and while my goal is much higher, over the course of a year I actually achieve closer to 11,700 steps. Yes, it is computerized and downloaded. I love to read books, listen to books on CD and read other peoples blogs about a variety of topics. I love playing with my Golden Retrievers and watching them swim. Cooking is a passion so I test 3-5 new recipes a week and gardening is always enjoyable. Actually, all these activities are intertwined and mentioned in many of my blogs. They are in many ways, my profile and resume.

Posted By: Lauren Ake

What is the ROI of a Corporate Giving Plan

2010-05-07T00:00:00Z

The return on investment for corporate giving can be measured in a variety of ways, as I explored in a recent article in Mobility, the magazine for Worldwide Employee Relocation Council members.

Here are a few outlined by www.tano.org, website for the Texas Association of Non-Profit Organizations:

Media hits as a result of corporate giving – these include press releases, references in annual reports, and recognition at annual events. Employee satisfaction – According to www.Time.com, 76 million members of Generation Y representing the new 20-something workers want to spend their time in meaningful and useful ways. For many, this is volunteering in the local community. Leverage potential – the possibility of solving a local community concern by teaming up with corporate partners sharing similar corporate and philanthropic goals has a long term impact on all involved.

A good example of a real estate company that has excelled with corporate giving is Chicago-based Baird & Warner, which established the Baird & Warner Good Will Network in 2002.

According to Jim Schiefelbein, vice president, chief marketing officer, the mission of the Baird & Warner Good Will Network is “to assist our neighbors in need in communities in which we work and live. Money is raised through donations on every real estate and mortgage transaction, employee payroll deductions (with 100% company match) and branch office sponsored events.”The long-term impact of Baird & Warner’s efforts – as well as those of countless others in the real estate industry – is beneficial on so many levels. As Jim notes, “Our firm has long believed that doing good is good for business. When our neighbors need us, we want to be available as a resource to them, and further to be recognized by our clients as a good corporate citizen that they are proud to do business with. Also, from a strategic perspective, our philanthropic efforts enable us to regularly showcase another dimension of our firm in the press, which helps to differentiate us in the marketplace.”

Maybe now is the time for you to initiate or re-engage in your own corporate giving program. Whether your company’s contributions are financial or the gift of time, fostering an environment where each individual can make a difference cultivates an environment commensurate with the values of the next generation employee, supports your firm’s marketing efforts and demonstrates your company’s commitment to your community and those in need.

Posted By: Jana Coleman, LeadingRE Vice President of Business Solutions

How we Sold our Condo in 10 Days

2010-04-26T16:56:00Z

Earlier this year, my husband and I decided to sell our condo and upgrade to a single family home. We called our trusted real estate agent, talked to her about our plans and started our next adventure.

Luckily, I get to read home selling tips on a daily basis from our Propopoly® bloggers. I remember one of our bloggers, Julie Sarton from Keefe Real Estate, writing about how to stage a home. She did a series of posts on how to stage your kitchen, bedroom, living room, and more. Her posts were very helpful and offered great advice. After reading them, we took action and started staging our home to sell. We…

Rented a storage facility to eliminate some of our “clutter” (i.e. our Wii Rock Band set, etc.) Displayed fresh cut flowers on our kitchen table Cleared off our kitchen and bathroom countertops Bought new towels to display in the bathroom Stopped using our elliptical as a closet

We were surprised at how many showings we had within the first week our condo was on the market. On day six, we had a couple coming over to view the condo for the second time. Four days later, they became our buyers.

So… how did we sell our condo in 10 days in this market?

Listing Price: We listened to Steve Harney’s advice on pricing your home to sell. We looked at what other similar units were selling for today and used this to set our price Staging: We made our condo look neutral and uncluttered so that perspective buyers could picture themselves living in it, not us Sensible upgrades: Due to lack of storage in the unit, we transformed a recessed wall into a closet Started with a good asset: Our condo was nice, in a great location near public transportation, great restaurants, bars and shopping. This is what originally sold us and is what sold the current owner Worked with a great agent: She helped us think through the major decisions but always took our final decisions in stride

Did we make bundles of money on our sale? No, but we achieved our goal of selling our property quickly at a fair price and now have capital available for a single family home.

Posted By: Jennifer Sciortino

The Power of Word of Mouth (WOM) Marketing

2010-04-07T19:58:00Z

The Power of Word of Mouth (WOM) Marketing from Eric Bryn on Vimeo.

Posted By: Eric Bryn

Conference Success: Making the Best Brokerages Better

2010-03-15T13:43:00Z

We’re back from an exhausting but hugely gratifying conference week in Las Vegas at the beautiful Encore at Wynn hotel. So many members, speakers, sponsors and industry leaders contributed to making this a terrific learning, networking and energizing experience to help us all turn 2010 into a great year despite market challenges. Thanks to every single one of you!

And, we had a special tribute to a special lady, Ruth Ann Pepple, as she opens the next chapter of her life post-retirement. In a “This is your life” tribute with several surprise guests including Steve Murray, Cris Collie, Joe Aveni, Shel Detrick, Wes Foster, Rose Marie and Bob Phillips, Chip Roach, Dick Christopher, Dick Elsea, and – via video – Senator Johnny Isakson, Ruth Ann was feted in fine fashion to celebrate her outstanding 37-year career. Congratulations, Ruth Ann! (You can reach out to her in person at 312.424.0430 or rapepple@leadingre.com ).

The buzz on Twitter throughout the conference was fast and furious (#Leading2010) and some bits of the awards evening are even on YouTube.

From the great tech minds at work during MarTech, to the many broker insights in the Sales Managers Leadership Symposium and broker tracks in the main conference, to our top producers at the Luxury Portfolio SUMMIT, to terrific relocation and referral sessions, to a wonderful shared general session with RESPRO featuring FHA Commissioner Dave Stevens, Ron Peltier and Guy Kawasaki, it was simply a fabulous week.

And now, the challenge for all of us is to roll up our sleeves, make a list of the top two or three take-aways, and execute back at home. Recessions are fertile territory for those who understand opportunity. Let’s get to work Making the Best Brokerages Better…our LeadingRE mantra.

Posted By: Pam O’Connor

Stimulating the Economy with Assumable Mortgages

2010-03-07T17:07:00Z

Mortgage assumability is a great way to stimulate additional real estate sales and also prevent many properties from being foreclosed!

In the 1970’s and early 1980, there was not a “due on sale” clause in mortgages. If this clause was removed, the number of foreclosures would drop significantly over the next six months. We would have buyers to take over these mortgages since it would require little or no down payment. Home owners and investors would be willing to pay more than the current comparable because there is no qualifying requirement and very little cash required and the belief that the market value will be going up in the next few years.

The new buyer would receive a deed which would have a clause “by accepting this deed, the buyer (Grantee) agrees to accept and assume the mortgage and become personally liable.”

The only negative is the possibility that a new buyer may not live up to their new obligation because of the ease of acquiring the property. Thus, a good credit history should be a requirement of the buyers. The positives are saving the foreclosure, stabilizing or increasing the real estate values, preventing future credit problems for some sellers, increased State revenue by State Stamps on Deeds and providing housing for a lot of good individuals who lost their employment and now have a regular job but cannot qualify because of credit issues.

This type of program would excite investors, since most investor loans for single family rental properties are 30% down (or at best 20% down) plus closing costs. My estimate is that this could reduce foreclosures by 20% within one year and would not be a subsidy by the Federal Government.

We don’t like the Government telling the mortgage industry what they can put in their mortgages. Unfortunately, they are already dictating to the mortgage industry.

Mortgage assumability is a simple answer whose time is right in 2010.

Posted by: Bill Watson, Chairman of the Board,
Watson Realty Corp.

Is It Ever Prudent To Reject Corporate Referrals?

2010-02-09T04:04:00Z

Throughout the past 10 years, approximately 15% of my incoming referral business has been generated from 3rd party company referrals. When looking at my 2010 business plan I questioned that business. Is the time and money spent to manage this business worth it? Should those efforts be redirected to securing other more profitable business?

Real estate brokerages are comprised of independent contractors who affiliate themselves with a company because they feel they will be provided with the best business platform to be successful. The company’s success is determined by the professionalism of those contractors.

Corporate clients want their relocating employees to be provided with a comprehensive relocation program. The core of this program is to assist their employees with either the purchase or sale of their home in order to facilitate their relocation, and they typically outsource this task to relocation management (3rd party) companies. As long as these corporations believe that their programs are being administered in their best interest and at a reasonable cost, they will continue to work within those 3rd party relationships.

Real estate companies have long sought 3rd party corporate business because it was repetitive, profitable, and generated market exposure/buyers through listing inventory. However, due to creeping referral fees, that decision is being revaluated. With referral fees continuing to increase for many 3rd party companies, along with other administrative or training fees, some of our best relocation-trained agents are saying no to this business.

To retain these third-party accounts for the company, we are asking agents with less experience to handle these referrals, and in order to maintain high service expectations, the relocation department often has to invest more time to manage these referrals, further eroding our margins.

I am reluctant to give up one referral, so I can only imagine the reluctance other Directors face when making the decision to accept or reject multiple referrals from one relocation management company.

Balancing the profitability of corporate relocation business in such an environment without compromising our service levels is a challenge, and unfortunately, there are always companies and agents who will accept high-cost referral business. The real losers are the corporate transferee and the employee footing the bill, since sub-standard service often translates to higher relocation costs for homes that aren’t sold in a timely manner. Unfortunately, that message is not reaching the ears of corporate employers.

While we can hope that corporations will at some point realize the impact of the policies and pricing practiced by their relocation companies, the short-term solution for our departments is to pro-actively pursue other types of business to provide to our agents…broker-to-broker referrals, REO leads, Internet leads, and even local business that can be generated through company portals. Accepting or rejecting corporate referrals is an individual company business decision, of course. If we each treat our relocation business as a business and have the courage to reject referral assignment that do not meet our corporate objectives for profitability, recruiting and retention, brand strength, etc., we should also make a point to explain why in order to effect future positive change for the clients we serve.

Posted by: Larry Zapf, Director of Relocation and Business Development,
Beverly-Hanks & Associates

Registering for Any Conference is Just the Beginning

2010-02-01T03:15:00Z

Networking is one of the most valuable tools for business development in any industry. Let’s face it: conference networking is especially integral to the continued success of any business as it puts ‘a face with that name and number’. Networking is about making initial contacts appropriately, building relationships and creating opportunities. Great networking goes well beyond the initial meeting – it takes discipline to develop and sustain the relationships.

The first rule of networking is being prepared to talk to strangers, something even the most outgoing personalities can sometimes find daunting. Conference networking is easier in that those attending are engaged in the same industry, revealing an immediate commonality and topic of dialogue. For first time conference attendees, the idea of networking may be especially intimidating. If you are a first time attendee, shift your mindset – it’s easy – here’s how:

First of all think of yourself as a unique source of knowledge on your company, the services offered and market(s) covered – you have much to offer! Secondly, realize that you are a new source of business for other attendees – you are a very valuable contact!

Following are additional tips to ensure success.

Before you go:

Prepare a list of those you would most like to meet.

Following are additional tips to ensure success.

Before you go:

Prepare a list of those you would most like to meet. Visit the conference web site to see registered attendees.

Call or e-mail those you would like to meet before your go. Take advantage of the networking opportunities at the conference (networking night, breakfast, lunch) to meet these contacts in person.

Try and find out as much about the contact and company as possible prior to the conference. Information about fellow members can be found at Jana Coleman

Hey Las Vegas, Here I come!

2010-01-21T15:35:00Z

You might think that my trip to Las Vegas is for a chance of luck. But it is quite the contrary. If I don’t go to Las Vegas for the Leading Real Estate Companies of the World® Annual Conference I would be taking a huge risk. This year’s conference is an exceptional value and is worthy of your time and money. The return on your investment is a sure win!

If you are uncertain if you will attend, consider these reasons.

Re-Energize Yourself: The conference has a history of high energy and exciting experiences, and this year will be no exception with the partnership of the lights and dazzle of Las Vegas. Re-Tool Yourself: The conference is known for the quality sessions and speakers, and this year will be no exception. In fact, the conference program has been expanded and enhanced to provide a broader audience with valuable take home information. Re-Kindle Relationships and Make New Ones: It has long been known that conference is the best time to build relationships and re-kindle old ones. It is a wonderful opportunity to put faces with those voices we have long been talking with. It is commonly known that people want to do business with people they know, and if they don’t know you, how can they do business with you?

If you are uncertain if you will attend, consider these reasons.

Now that you have decided to attend here are some tips:

Register NOW and save some money. The early bird conference rate ends February 9, 2010, and the fabulous rate at Encore expires on February 12, 2010. Arrive early and stay late – for the conference, for sessions, for receptions, for everything. Make an effort to meet someone new at every opportunity. It is easy to spend much of your time with people you already know, but it is important to expand those relationships and make new relationships. Bring lots of business cards and don’t be shy about sharing them. Entrench yourself. It will make the event even more memorable. Be well rested before you arrive. You will be getting up early and staying out late and need to have every ounce of energy to rely upon. Drink seltzer water instead of alcoholic beverages. It is easy to get caught up in the after hours activities, but be careful, overindulging can result in the loss of business. Be on your best behavior; no one wants to do business with someone who has become unruly.

Extra Benefits:

I hope that you will achieve the same extra benefits that I have received from attending the conference. I have found the conference to be more like a vacation with good friends than work. I look forward to it every year, and I hope you will too.

Posted by: Carlotta Landschoot, CRP, GMS, EVP Relocation Services,
Watson Realty Corp.

2009 Clean-up Time!

2010-01-14T19:13:00Z

Thank goodness 2009 is over! What a tough year it was for all of us. But… we survived!!

Now it’s time to start thinking about 2010 if you haven’t done so already. One of the best ways to get your New Year started off in the right direction is to finish up 2009 and bag it for good. In other words, “Clean Some Things Up” and get a clean start in 2010. Listed below are some good tips to help us complete that clean up and set ourselves up for Great Success in 2010.

1. Clean that Computer up!

Now is the time to clean up all those old e-mails. Go through your Contacts and make sure they are all correct and needed. Purge your My Documents file. Transfer all of the documents and files you want to keep to your Server, an external hard drive or to a thumb drive for safe keeping. Check your computer out for performance issues. Do you need a new one? Is it time to transition to a laptop? Check your memory and see if you may need to add additional memory. How about your virus software? Is it up to date? Have you defragged your hard drive recently? How about your software? Do you have the most up to date versions? Great sales going on right now, and it is the perfect time to upgrade. Finally, it’s time to update all of your Social Networking sites and information. Do you need to un-friend some folks on Facebook or My Space? Do you have all the right contacts in Linked In and other Business Networks? How about your Profile? Is it correct and up to date and do you have an up to date photo?

Thank goodness 2009 is over! What a tough year it was for all of us. But… we survived!!

1. Clean that Computer up!

2. Calendar Transition

Now is the time to decide if you are finally going to go completely electronic or continue to use a paper based calendar. If you decide to go electronic, learn to use your smart phone calendar option correctly, know how to sync and make sure your e-mail is connected properly. If you decide to continue to go with paper, it’s time to go on-line or to the local Office Products store and get a new one for 2010. Get your calendar ready for 2010. Transfer any recurring appointments or dates like birthdays, anniversaries or business meetings. Outlook is probably what most everyone uses and there are some great tools available within the calendar option for color coding and labeling appointments and meetings so you stay more organized.

3. Get Organized – Clean up those Paper Files

There is nothing worse than to have a bunch of old files sitting around. Make sure you use a new storage box labeled properly to put your old 2009 files in. Remember keeping those old documents does come in handy. Always try to keep two years of records nearby. You probably will need them. Not to be politically correct here, but now may be a good time to reduce your carbon footprint and start moving toward a paperless record keeping process by going completely electronic with your files.

4. “If you don’t have a Plan for 2010 you definitely won’t achieve it” (In other words, it is time to set your Goals for 2010!)

Look at your 2009 Goals and your Plan and see what worked and what didn’t. Where were you successful and what do you need to change? Keep your Plan simple. I find just setting five key goals that I can accomplish helps me to have a better focus and a better chance of succeeding. Set 5 Business Goals and 5 Personal Goals. Just a reminder that you should always do an evaluation every month to see where you are and adjust your plan if you need to. Stretch yourself in 2010. You probably worked harder in 2009 than any other year so you have yourself set up for a great 2010. Don’t take the easy road but set some lofty goals that are achievable! Some suggestions: revenue goal, income goal, total sales, health goals, community service goal and a goal to help your company be more successful.

Final thoughts

As I said, 2009 was a tough year for all of us. The economy was atrocious. Many people lost their jobs. Most all of us suffered monetarily and had to tighten our belts. But there is a silver lining in all of this. We have survived! We learned some things about ourselves and we probably became better at what we do. So now that we have gotten through 09, here are a few thoughts for 2010.

Be Positive! There is a tendency to be cynical when times are tough. Make up your mind that you are going to have a positive attitude and be a part of the solution and not a part of the problem. Attitude is half the battle or more in being successful Build relationships in the new year. Find new people to associate with. Genuinely show interest in them and their lives. We all need each other. We just saw how much in the last year. Take responsibility for your success. Don’t blame everything around you when things get tough. Live a life of gratitude. There is always something we can be grateful for. Think about it! Be where we are and be committed to serve others. If you don’t like where you are, change it. If you do like where you are, get better at what you do and make everyone around you more successful.

Finally… some words to live by:

5 Laws of Success

Law of Value
Your true worth is determined by how much more you give in value than you take in payment.

Law of Compensation
Your Income is determined by how many people you serve and how well you serve them.

Law of Influence
Your influence is determined by how abundantly you place other people’s interests first.

Law of Authenticity
The most valuable gift you have to offer is yourself.

Law of Receptivity
The key to effective giving is to stay open to receiving.

Posted by: Tammy Russell Carroll, CRP, GMS, Broker, ABR, CRS, GRI, SRES, e-Pro
VP, Corporate Real Estate Services
Bob Parks Realty

Looking Back on 2009 for the REAL Story

2010-01-02T16:19:00Z

You may have been reading the various “top 10 2009 real estate stories” assessments while relaxing over the holidays, as I have.

On CBS MoneyWatch.com, Alison Rogers viewed 2009 from a macro consumer perspective in her analysis, citing things like increasing foreclosure numbers, the ongoing credit crunch, and increasing rentals.

A more cut-to-the-chase recap was that by Steve Harney. Steve just states the “facts of the year” rather than his opinion, backed by statistics. While it’s not necessarily fun reading, the good news is that we’ve navigated it so far, and his real service is to underscore the areas where great real estate professionals can make a difference. Creating strategies to solve these specific problems for clients provides a powerful action plan for 2010 for real estate practitioners.

A more internally-focused review of 2009 comes from Stefan Swanepoel on Active Rain’s blog. Several of Stefan’s picks were right on the money – the impact of the housing credit on sales, foreclosures and short sales, RPR – while some others seem a bit random. The change of one brokerage franchise brand to another? The creation of NAR’s credit union? GMAC changing its name when that had been expected for over a year? One comment on the post read, “I didn’t know about a lot of these happenings before,” perhaps because they didn’t really rise to “top 10” status?

You may have been reading the various “top 10 2009 real estate stories” assessments while relaxing over the holidays, as I have.

A well-rounded, insightful analysis of 2009 was that done by Matt Carter and Angela V. Brambila on Inman News. Their top stories of the economy’s impact, lending landscape, foreclosures/short sales, tax credits and appraisal/valuation problems addressed the market at large, while they also focused attention on industry events like brokerage musical chairs and financial challenges, and the impact of mobile technology, social media, RPR and online data analytics on the way we do business.

All of these recaps do a good job of capturing the essence of 2009 for us, yet it seems to me that there may be some potential “understories” woven throughout that could have a longer-lasting effect on our industry:

Is NAR’s role as the real estate trade association crossing the line from industry representation to member competition? In their focus on individual licensees, are they trying to displace the brokerage companies that provide the critical infrastructure of the business? Too soon to tell, but worth watching.

Is the sheer “national brand” strength of franchises a sufficiently compelling value proposition today? With limited to no organic growth in most of the national brands other than Keller-Williams, switching of brands by some, migration of some long-time franchisees back to independence and local branding, what does this say about brokerage reliance on a national brand for their success? When franchise fees may represent the difference in a brokerage being profitable in this environment, are some brokers asking “where’s the beef?”

Is the Wild West persona of RE Bar Camps a phenomenon with legs or is it already losing its steam? Are the most visible social media stars really the ones doing business through this new medium? There is no shortage of real estate practitioners who like to hear themselves talk, but the real success stories may well be those under the radar, the serious bloggers who are engaging consumers rather than each other.

Is the very brokerage model changing? Not just in terms of less brick and mortar, but with a more strategic view of selectivity and productivity in the associates who carry their flags? Quality over quantity? The resurgence of brokerage brand equity by creating an outstanding experience that is simply not the same elsewhere?

In many ways, 2009 presented us with more questions than answers. But what we can be fairly certain of is that we are in for an exciting ride in 2010 as we emerge from the past “Year of the Slump” (2007), “Year of the Bombshell” (2008), and “Year of Adaptation” (2009).

Hats off to those who have survived thus far, who have helped consumers through the messy maze, and who have shown real leadership and stamina. When the history books are written, yours may be the REAL story of 2009.

Happy New Year!

Posted By: Pam O’Connor

Referrals and engaged responsiveness rule the roost

2009-12-04T18:20:00Z

The National Association of Realtors® Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers 2009 again shows the power of a referral and responsiveness.

p. 62, National Association of Realtors® Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers 2009

p. 94, National Association of Realtors® Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers 2009

Over fifty percent of buyers and forty-nine percent of sellers who used a real estate agent found their agents through a referral by friends or family, another real estate professional, or from an employer or relocation company. What attributes lead to increased referrals? Let’s look at some more NAR data below to find a plausible answer.

p. 60, National Association of Realtors® Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers 2009

p. 96, National Association of Realtors® Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers 2009

These charts reinforce what we already know: buyers and sellers want knowledge experts. Help with negotiations, finding the right home, competitively pricing a home, and marketing expertise are among the most important attributes to your potential clients (and likely your past clients, too). What other attributes do buyers and sellers find important?

p. 64, National Association of Realtors® Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers 2009

p. 97, National Association of Realtors® Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers 2009

These charts show that reputation, honesty, and integrity are among the most important attributes for an agent. Responsiveness and listening skills are also important. As you plan for the next 90 days and for next year, ask yourself whether you want a reputation as a lackadaisical agent or a consummate and engaged professional, ask yourself what skills (like negotiation) should I build-up to reinforce my reputation, ask yourself what attributes I need to hone to increase positive recommendations and referrals from current and past clients.

p. 63, National Association of Realtors® Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers 2009

p. 94, National Association of Realtors® Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers 2009

Sixty-six percent of buyers and sixty-four percent of sellers contacted just one agent to assist them with the purchase or sale of a home. What this tells me is that responsiveness, already a key point in selecting an agent, is likely a key factor in gaining business too. The first agent to pick up the phone, answer an email, respond to a chat, reply to a Tweet, comment on a status update, etc, increases their odds of gaining a new client or retaining an existing one.

Are the charts above simply a representation of common sense? Treat people like you like to be treated? Likely. But it’s also useful data to use to ensure that you’re providing as superior and meaningful and remarkable (as in Seth Godin’s definition) and memorable experience as you can to your current and past clients, which will inevitably have a positive impact on your business.

Posted By: Eric Bryn

Radio Show Creates Long Term Benefits for Company and Agents

2009-11-20T04:14:00Z

Hosting a local talk show, All Things Real Estate, has created a synergy, goodwill factor and an opportunity to show our company culture of service to the public. This educational marketing strategy has fostered immediate benefits for our company and associates.

The talk show format is upbeat, conversational and real. The guests come from all tangential industries to ours such as attorneys, appraisers, lenders, other brokers, interior decorators, insurance representatives, inspectors and clients who all have a story to tell. The weekly topics are easy to fill and there is no shortage of guests willing to come on the show and share their valuable information.

We are not selling anything on the show other than straight information. People can say all the right things but if they have an ulterior motive in trying to sell a product, service or property, it comes across as disingenuous. We are transparent and if we are not genuinely sharing information for the public good, we would be found out rather quickly. The indirect benefits of appearing on the show are reward enough. The seeds are sown with the potential future customer listening to the show.

The radio format helps me to establish instant credibility not only with the public but with our guests who are in many ways, our partners. And it helps me foster even better relationships with our most important adversaries: our brokers.

The show also allows me to share my own philosophies, stories, experiences and conclusions with our guests. Our listeners can observe and make their own judgments and so far, the outcome has been exceptionally positive.

Our weekly presence on the show through all of the different themes has given us a benchmark credibility that is essential in a slower market. When the phoenix rises again, we want to be there with all the established experts. And we will be.

Our company’s persona has increased n value, as well. Our agents are proud that the show is brought to the public by us and not another company. The podcasts we produce for each show are the most valuable indirect marketing tool the show provides us. I typically send them to all new clients along with other pertinent information about our area. It lets people know we are knowledgeable of our market and that we care about our clients. Practicing real estate is not only an honor but a tremendous responsibility. If we get that message across to the customer, we’ve won half the battle already.

Posted by: Bill Sahadi, Broker Fore Properties Realty, Inc.

Can Contraction and Productive Retention Co-Exist?

2009-11-10T16:51:00Z

Yes it can! In September 2004, prior to the devastation of four hurricanes and the recession, Pruitt Real Estate had seven offices and 207 agents serving Brevard County. As the largest independent company serving the Space Coast of Florida, we enjoyed a commanding 19% market share in our primary market area.

Back to back active hurricanes at the end of 2004 coupled with the economic recession resulted in a 58% decline in sales from 2005 to 2008. This downturn required us to take immediate cost cutting measures; however, I along with my management team was cognizant not to make the wrong decisions and risk losing key producers.

Today, we have 3 offices and 142 agents serving the same territory. Market share now stands at 12.3% in our primary market area, a declined shared by most companies ranked in the top ten. Market share fragmentation has occurred in the last two years due to the rise in small start up companies. When asked how I was able to accomplish this productive retention rate of agents and market share, I can attribute this success to these factors:

Honesty – we were also forthright with the agents and staff regarding our financial position and the reasons behind each decision

Accountability – we always did what we said we were going to do; if we promised them a particular benefit in return for relocating to a different office, we followed through

Key management – my managers average 12 years with Pruitt Real Estate and know where I and the company stand at all times; this makes it so much easier for them to instill loyalty in their agents

We did not retain everyone but fortunately those agents lost were non-producers for us. Many of them chose to leave the business entirely or go to our referrals company. We could not have accomplished this contraction successfully if our company mission had not always been transparency, accountability and integrity in everything we do. Our management team has always strived to build and maintain excellent relationships with our agents over the years and we were able to rely on their loyalty and trust in our decisions to ensure a smooth transition as we contracted to meet the changing market. Open communication is not an option; it is a requirement in everything we do.

Posted by: Michael Pruitt, Broker,
Pruitt Real Estate, Inc.

The Forecast is Partly Cloudy

2009-11-05T22:34:00Z

As real estate marketers dive with enthusiasm into the lastest social networking and cloud computing offerings of the web 2.0 world, there are some basic questions to be asked. Concerns regarding the ownership of content, security, and what could happen next are discussed in this prezi.com presentation below. This is the first in a series on this topic - please post any thoughts and comments below.

Posted By: Neil Elver, Sr. Web Developer - LeadingRE

Top Agents Show Enthusiasm for Industry's Future

2009-11-04T16:52:00Z

There has been plenty of gloom and doom in real estate for quite a while now, but I’m fortunate to be exposed to shining confidence and enthusiasm for the future of our industry. There are many who inspire me and others with their positive attitudes and willingness to share.

Some of the best examples come from our Power Producers, an elite group of top performing sales associates participating in the LeadingRE Institute, our network’s education portal for sales associates, brokers and managers. These professionals meet monthly to network, brainstorm and share success tips on various topics. In between calls, they have ongoing dialogues via a listserv.

What we’re hearing from them is energizing and validates why we have every reason to be optimistic. They are reaching out to one another, and even to competing agents in their markets, working together to overcome new hurdles in the closing process and ensuring positive outcomes for their clients.

“At the end of the day the ones still in the game made a choice. I will not fail. I will learn and become stronger! What a bright future we have.”

“We have learned we have so much more in our gas tank than we ever thought. We have learned the way we used to do business is simply not good enough. Stepping up and doing a better job is the right thing to do, it feels good, you can see the reward, and customers appreciate it.”

“If we sit back and worry about how the times used to be, we let each day go by not focusing on what we have to work with in front of us.”

These Power Producers are smart. Some are having their best year in the business, significantly growing market share. They’ve incorporated social media and blogging into their advertising mix, but they are also capitalizing on opportunities tied to the first time home buyer tax credit by utilizing targeted direct mail, home buying seminars and on traditional methods to really stay in touch with their spheres of influence. They are also investing in their own professional development with market education, and they surround themselves with other positive and productive professionals.

Posted By: Cecelia Chott, LeadingRE Director of Education

The Most Under-Utilized Strategy in Real Estate: Target-Marketing

2009-10-28T16:19:00Z

Our business is (unfortunately) known for following a one-size-fits-all approach, whether it’s the same commission rate charged for the novice or the 20-year seasoned veteran, or for the listing that is sold in a few days versus one with high carrying costs over a multi-month period of time.

Likewise, we’re in a box when it comes to online leads. We pretty much assume that this term is synonymous with inquiries that come to a website from a consumer searching listings. Well, of course, search is the primary way in which consumers engage us online, but why should it be the only way? And while the listing agent may know the most about that particular home, is that the best way to choose an associate to vet and analyze and advocate for a particular buyer?

We now have the perfect platform to proactively engage consumers looking for trusted advisors – blogging. But even with blogging, we’re taking the traditional inside-out view: “What do I the blogger know and want to blog about?” versus “What is the audience I want to engage and what do they want to learn about?”

We live in an age of mass customization, where we can have jeans made to our specifications online, or order the burger “our way,” yet we still aren’t applying that consumer reality to real estate. Blogs offer a great opportunity to engage specific targeted customer segments in a way that makes it all about THEM.

If, for example, your “business development department” (AKA relocation department) were to create different blogs for single-women homebuyers, first-time buyers, Latino (or any ethnic group) buyers, military families, luxury consumers, or virtually any other target audience, and enlist the help of associates who specialize in working with those audiences to contribute meaningful content, what a powerful platform this could be with each of these consumer constituencies.

If the blogs are done well – with robust, continually fresh content, the right keywords for good SEO, and a “personality” that resonates with the respective target audience, members of that audience will find you on Google. More importantly, in our viral world, they will tell their like-profile friends, who will also find you and call your “Luxury Client Care” or “Military Family Services” or “Latino Customer Center” (the consumer face of your BizDev department).

The key, then, is to align proper “response” teams to these the inquiries; for instance if you create a first-time home buyer blog targeting that vertical for single women, then your response team should be able to a) track that inquiry from the web, b) know to ask on the phone where they found the number (better yet, set up a special number to call so you KNOW that any inquiry to that number came from this site), c) have a list of “known” issues and scripts so you can “engage” the person at a higher level (i.e., be able to anticipate the questions and train your people on the proper responses with the proper information), d) have a “team” of ready and able agents who also know this target. This way you’ve vertically aligned everything so satisfaction should logically increase.

When those inquiries are vetted and nurtured and then placed with target market specialist associates for a reasonable referral fee, everyone wins. The brokerage has unencumbered business that can be monetized. The associate has incremental quality leads he or she didn’t have to spend time and money prospecting for. Consumers get an exceptional, customized real estate experience from trusted advisors focused on their needs.

So why aren’t more real estate brokerages doing this? Food for thought.

Posted By: Pam O’Connor

Crafting a Broker Level Strategy to Serve Your Online Consumers

2009-10-22T13:47:00Z

Many brokerages across the country have managed their online presence and successfully served clients on their websites for years. Others know they need to…and it’s never too late. A successful strategy to serve consumers on your website, often referred to as Internet Lead Management (ILM), must first start with an analysis of your goals, your company cultural, and your resources. I’m a firm believer in the under promise and over deliver philosophy.

So what is your goal when creating this ILM strategy – fast response times, 24 hours a day coverage, and the ultimate in lead capture? How about quality consumer engagement and a real a value added for sellers…or is it more about agent appeasement? Maybe it’s some version of all of the above. How will your agents view this new initiative – big brother or helping hand?

One misstep firms often make is to create a strategy where consumer inquiries on their agents’ listings are routed directly to the listing agent with no company follow up or notification (and no support). In these same firms questions on competing companies’ listings are immediately engaged by a company staff member, receiving a rapid response and connection to a quality agent. I understand the original thought behind this approach, as it takes away a lot of the “big brother” factor, but when you boil it down are you not simply providing a higher level of service to your competitors’ listings than your own?

Don’t fall into this trap. Instead provide support to your agents and a consistent response within a set timeframe to all inquiries on your website. A consistent consumer experience and strong back office support for your team will quickly develop into a key point of difference for your organization. ALL your agents can then assure their sellers that no matter where they are, what they are engaged in, or how crumby their cell reception is in a particular part of town that any consumer asking online about their home will get a rapid response. 10 minutes, 30 minutes, 2 hours, 4 hours – whatever timeframe you decide as long as it is appropriate and consistent.

Not all agents are created equal…even in your organization. By providing staff support to all online inquiries, you have set the bar for the consumer’s experience on your website and their online view of your brand. The vast majority of consumers do not purchase the first home they inquire about, so for your sellers and agents a consistent level of service is critical to keep bringing that consumer back for the next search of their dream home – which just might result in the sale.

Posted by: Ryan Carrell, CRP, Director of Relocation and Client Services,
Carpenter Realtors

Have You Started Planning for 2010?

2009-10-13T04:33:00Z

With business planning season in full swing, it is important for all of us to look ahead to the coming year and outline specific objectives to ensure our success. What do you plan to do differently in 2010? What actionable goals do you have in mind? Now is the time to evaluate where you want to go and how you plan to get there.

With this aim in mind, we invited noted industry coach Steve Harney to be the keynote speaker at the upcoming LeadingRE Sales Rally and Executive Exchange, being held during the NAR conference in San Diego on November 13. Steve will share “Five Keys to Preparing for a Great 2010” to inform and motivate us.

A panel of top producing agents will offer more inspiration, sharing success tips on topics ranging from luxury marketing, to mentoring, to green initiatives and social networking. And, brokers and managers will participate in a lively and informative brainstorming session where they set the agenda and share ideas on current challenges and solutions.

We invite you to attend and get started now on a terrific 2010! LeadingRE members can learn more here: conference.leadingre.com/salesrally. You do not have to be registered for the NAR conference to participate in this meeting (but your company does have to be a member of LeadingRE).

Posted By: Dan Schmitz, LeadingRE Director of Broker Resources

Do These Pants Fit?

2009-10-12T16:43:00Z

How many times have you either asked that or thought that? Today, it’s a tough question being asked in the relocation industry. In fact, I’m not aware of one organization – whether corporate, third party, or brokerage – that isn’t being asked to redesign our service menu, reduce the bulk, offer leaner items, and create a healthier diet for us all.

Challenging? Yes, it is…it’s not easy to slim down. Achievable? Yes, it is…when we set our goals and work towards them.

Everyone’s financial diet is being trimmed; there are no “seconds” available on our tables. We are doing this at home and at work. We are cutting back on out-of-date and unnecessary expenses, overhead, and jobs, while trying to increase and grow revenue at a time when not too many companies and transferees are biting.

Weighing In:

Can the relocation industry continue to support the zero-fee pricing model as a viable solution? No.

Can broker referral fees and supplier participation fees continue to be increased either internally or by their valued clients? No.

Can a corporation see relocation costs continue to rise, yet achieve more with less? No.

Can we really expect each other to survive if we continue with the same old diet? No.

What if we don’t change our old habits? Will we be the next ‘biggest loser’?

Challenging? Yes, it is…it’s not easy to slim down. Achievable? Yes, it is…when we set our goals and work towards them.

Weighing In:

Can the relocation industry continue to support the zero-fee pricing model as a viable solution? No.

Can broker referral fees and supplier participation fees continue to be increased either internally or by their valued clients? No.

Can a corporation see relocation costs continue to rise, yet achieve more with less? No.

Can we really expect each other to survive if we continue with the same old diet? No.

What if we don’t change our old habits? Will we be the next ‘biggest loser’?

Balancing the Scale:

There is no magic bailout for our industry. There is no Robin Hood. Maybe one old adage of being “brilliant at the basics” needs to be revived. By being the best at what we do, we bring value to one another. Value equals revenue. We aren’t NPO’s. I remember my father always saying, “A dollar saved, is a dollar earned.” That doesn’t sound too hokey in today’s economy, does it?

We can’t survive without one another. We all compliment and create a great palate together. And this makes a healthy diet. Can’t we create solutions that will help one another, without expanding our waistlines for a bit? Can’t we achieve the successful outcome we desire while trimming down some of the fat? We’re a smart and viable industry that can balance the scale by creating the best plan, the best diet, and the best solutions to answer the question correctly: “Yes dear, they fit perfectly!”

Take a Bite Out of This Topic…I’d love to hear your thoughts and comments…

Posted by: Ginny T. Logan, CRP, GMS, Senior Vice President,
Briggs Freeman International

A Facebook Real Estate Success Story

2009-10-07T17:43:00Z

With all the chatter and “hype” around using social media for selling real estate there inevitably comes the questions: “what is the ROI (return on investment)?”, “Is anyone actually making money using these sites?” and “give me a concrete example of success.”

Realistically the ROI for social media is hard to calculate (but so is the time you spend at social events), but people definitely are making money, and, YES, there are success stories. Social media is a “soft” sell/tool and shouldn’t be measured directly by time in, results out – but by overall results. By a “soft” sell, I mean it’s not about posting listings to your Facebook page or Tweeting them via Twitter and expecting to find that perfect buyer.

That said, here is a great example of how social media can work for you. Chrissy Smith, the marketing director at Peabody & Smith in Franconia, NH, recently shared a great success story about one of her agents – Joy Moore , CRS, GRI (and btw Lakes Region Board Realtor of the Year 2009).

Joy is an agent in her early 60s who isn’t intimidated to try new things. With Chrissy’s help, Joy jumped on the social media train, joined Facebook and immediately began connecting with friends, family and even her 30-ish daughter’s friends. Low and behold, one of her daughter’s friends was in the market for a home, was reminded of Joy’s career through their Facebook connection, and ultimately ended up contacting her and buying a home, with her assistance, that was far above their marketplace average.

Chrissy and her team have helped lead the social media charge by holding classes to make her agents more comfortable with these tools and even help them to build profiles. She’s counciled her agents about how social media is just one more touch point and encourages them to blog and write in their real voice – i.e. if you are writing from home, talk about home. If you are writing from work, talk about work. Chrissy’s advise is “be real, be yourself and be out there.” Clearly it’s working.

Posted By: Stephanie Pfeffer

Can you do it?

2009-09-30T20:53:00Z

Can you effectively introduce a business unit which is counter-intuitive to the very foundation that your company was built on? The answer is an emphatic YES! Michael Saunders and Company started in 1976 as the premier luxury real estate firm serving the Sarasota elite and expanded over the years to meet the demands of the affluent along Florida’s Gulf Coast.

For years, their sales price has been significantly higher than the MLS in all areas serviced and $1MM+ sales were the norm. But even then, while known as the luxury leader in Sarasota, they did in fact handle less expensive homes by appealing to the wants and needs of those buyers.

In 2008, in response to the changing real estate market, the company continued to adapt to the times by actively seeking and obtaining key REO accounts to augment revenue. By creating a completely separate division (BEST Opportunities & Bank Owned Properties) with a unique logo but similar color scheme, MS&C has successfully integrated a profitable division which might to some seem, detrimental to the core foundation on which the company was built. As a result, their market share continues to grow while their competitors on the sidelines look on.

Since the inception of the program, MS&C has experienced a 35.8% closed conversion rate for properties in the program. According to recent website statistics, a Best Opportunities property attracts 4-5 times more visitors than an IDX listing. In addition to this, clients stay on a Best Opportunities property detail page 35% longer than IDX listings and 97% of the visitors view two or more properties.

“Our mission is to be the market leader,” comments Michael Saunders, “and that requires us to be nimble in dealing with whatever market is handed to us. But we believe we can still do that in the context of the brand we have built…as the brokerage of choice of the most discriminating consumers.”

Posted By: Jana Coleman, LeadingRE Regional Vice President, Southeast

Does Constant Chatter Distract Us from What Really Matters?

2009-09-29T12:59:00Z

As I walked into the auditorium for the New Media Atlanta Conference, hosted by REtechSouth , I was struck by the fact that virtually all of the attendees were armed with their laptops, and I immediately regretted not bringing mine.

It has been a while since I attended a technology event, and maybe this practice is the norm. Given that it was a conference on social media, it is not surprising that attendees were tweeting, blogging and sharing their impressions in real-time. People were also taking pictures of slides (so much easier than transposing them!), video taping presentations, and – yes – simply typing their notes.

When Chris Brogan , co-author of Trust Agents and president of New Marketing Labs, took to the stage, my admiration for these multi-taskers took a turn. It seems Chris is a fan of letting discussions on BackNoise.com (a site that allows people to hold conversations on the fly) run live on the screen during his presentations. An excellent presenter, he is un-phased – even amused – by the conversations taking place on screen behind him, taking his own advice and listening to the feedback social media provides. Occasionally, he even paused to address some of the comments or ask, “How am I doing?”

Two things struck me about the constant commentary. First, I was surprised by the tone and language in some of the posts. While most about the actual presentation were quite positive, many comments were seemingly unrelated and unnecessarily rude. Given recent discussions on civility (or the lack thereof) in America, I will avoid a lengthy discourse on the topic, but I had to wonder what these people sought to accomplish beyond eliciting shock.

Secondly, I questioned if they were really hearing all of the great insights Chris was sharing. So focused on their attempts at a witty post and so engaged in the “conversation” going on online, were they missing what they came for?

No matter how much we engage in new media, no matter how skilled we get at multi-tasking, there are times when it pays to slow down and simply listen. Constant chatter in any form can distract us from focusing on what matters.

Posted By: Robin LaSure

X+Y ≠ Z

2009-09-24T02:12:00Z

Recently during a lovely dinner with colleagues, the conversation turned to a common one for any industry: Generations X and Y.

Even the names allotted to these generations give them an air of mystery, and there are many seminars, studies and conference sessions that try to examine how to attract, communicate with and serve these groups both as consumers and real estate agents.

Common solutions often discussed include recruiting new real estate agents from these generations. According to NAR statistics, 70% of Realtors come to the industry from non-related fields, the inference is that most real estate professionals do not enter the real estate industry right out of college. Although there are many solid reasons why real estate is a good career, one can hardly fault anyone facing substantial student loan debt from not starting their career in a commission-only position. Most of us in the real estate industry recognize that real estate is often a second, third or fourth career. The average age of the “older” GenX crowd is in the early 40s and GenY is just entering their 30s. If the studies showing the average time GenX spends in a job is 3.5 to 4 years are correct, and the assumption is made that not every job change equals a corresponding career change, then as a workforce, GenX is just now entering a potential second career phase, and GenY has a long way to go.

Recently during a lovely dinner with colleagues, the conversation turned to a common one for any industry: Generations X and Y.

Another greatly investigated and discussed solution regarding the need to communicate better on “their terms” is Social Networking and Social Media. I performed random and less than scientific but readily available research on LinkedIn. The average median age for the six companies across the U.S. I examined was 44 years. These companies had anywhere from a 34% - 51% LinkedIn participation rate with an average of 44% participation. The average age of LinkedIn compared to other social networking sites tends to rank higher across the board, and these statistics would indicate that a large percentage of current real estate professionals is at least experimenting and making an effort to incorporate social media in their business. As a benchmark, NAR reports that the median age of a Realtor is 52 years.

The importance of these two generations should not be undervalued. For the same six companies researched on LinkedIn, research was also performed on quantcast.com. Information for all six according to the site was estimated and not quantified, but the estimates showcased interesting results that definitely require additional research. These sites had an average of 66% of users under the age of 49 with an average 25% of users being between 18 to 34 years of age.

So what is the solution to attracting and serving these two groups? Recruiting younger sales associates who “talk the talk” should be a focus, but unless we can dramatically change the profile of a real estate agent, it is a long-term goal. We can train agents on social media and get them to set up social networking profiles, but even then the median age drops only slightly, and just being there is very different from communicating effectively through the medium.

With published statistics stating that consumers start their search for homes online anywhere from 84 - 96% of the time and an industry average inquiry response rate of about 50%, there is an enormous disparity between service expectation and delivery.

We need to build a bridge between now and the point in time when either GenX & GenY enter the real estate industry or a larger percentage of real estate professionals effectively learn to communicate and service them. That bridge may be the same solution discussed to solve other industry issues such as market segmentation and shrinking broker profit margins.

More and more often, real estate companies are assuming responsibility for generating and developing relationships with customers, allowing real estate agents to focus on their areas of strength. Oftentimes these companies are adapting their former Relocation Divisions into Corporate Services Divisions whose customer service skills can easily translate to other market segments. The employee status of these divisions’ personnel can also be more attractive to debt-laden graduates whose insight into their peers can further strengthen a company’s position with the X &Y generations.

Posted by: Sharon E. Michnay, CRP, GMS, WRS, Director, Corporate Business Development, Halstead Property. Sharon is chairperson of the LeadingRE Advisory Council.

Reset Business and Personal Models to Persevere

2009-09-08T15:59:00Z

The last several years, a confluence of social and technological events have altered our industry in ways we could never have imagined.

Consumers today have access to a huge repository of data made available by sources outside of a conventional real estate destination. These entities have accessed our knowledge base, acquired our service position and offered it to our customers in ways we have never imagined.

As a result, each of us, from brokerage business owners and management to individual sales associates, have had to take stock of our surroundings in order to shift with the times and position our businesses to survive and thrive. Actions taken to position a business to grow are the mark of vigilance and vision. The time has come for brokerage companies and agents to reset their business and personal models to persevere. This will speak volumes about the people we are and our commitment to our clients and our brands.

The last several years, a confluence of social and technological events have altered our industry in ways we could never have imagined.

As we consider where we’ve come from as a brokerage and now, most importantly, where we are going, we need to take steps to position our brands as the brokerages of choice in our respective markets.

I believe the path forward is, and should be, foremost rooted in our past – the history in the communities we serve, progressiveness, along with the reputation and the respectability we have earned. This is where we come from. Where we go will be culled from that very essence and applied to the changes we understand are happening around us.

I believe with many real estate companies today there is a prevailing tendency to remain complacent, avoid change and wish things were different. That sensibility cannot, and should not apply to us.

The events that have impacted our industry are calling those whose eyes are on the future to action. With this in mind, while others find comfort in reminiscing about the past, those of us who are here for the long term need to be tenacious about embracing the future.

To this end each of us needs a full-scale rediscovery of what our brand is and how we must express it to the world going forward. With a different kind of real estate brokerage we must ensure that those differences are clearly understood by everyone who touches our brand.

We can be a traditional type real estate brokerage, yet fueled by progress. We can have a rich history yet not be old fashioned. We can be experienced, yet not out of touch. When it comes to the Web, we cannot rely on conventional technology used by everyone else. We must build our own. Our legacy may have been built working with boomers but our future resides with their children and grandchildren.

To achieve these goals every leading brokerage needs a website that will deliver state of the art in design and usability. We need to create original content (video and blogs) to broadcast our message through social networks, creating an entirely new channel of marketing that will eventually replace newspapers, post cards, flyers – mediums that longer hold the value they once did for us or your customers. We should design our marketing content to distill a universally coherent meaning around our brand. We should build our text and mobile applications to enable the consumer to access information in a timely and non threatening manner. This entire process should be designed to engage the consumer in a collaborative approach offering the resources of both company and sales associate. All actions should have the ultimate goal of expanding market share, increasing business and positioning each of our firms as the leader in the marketplace.

Yes, the market remains in flux. The economy is beginning to recover but is still not completely healthy. Now may be the perfect time to invest in ourselves, connect with our marketplace and let them know that our investment in our companies is also an investment in the consumer’s real estate future.

Ask questions, be open to great ideas. It’s a great future out there for us. To learn more about Avery-Hess, Realtors, visit: www.averyhess.com.

Posted by: S. Scott Avery, President, Avery-Hess, Realtors

Next Generation Recruiting

2009-09-03T16:40:00Z

Is GenX (individuals born between 1963 and 1980) too much of an outlier demographic to plan your future real estate brokerage recruiting goals around? I don't know the answer to this and will shamelessly dodge this question. For this post I'm focusing on the nexus between Millenials (individuals born between 1981 and 2000 which are also defined as "Gen Y" and "Generation Next") and Boomers (individuals born between 1946 and 1962).

Recruiting is generally one of the top two or three most important goals a brokerage has to remain profitable. This has been covered in a variety of forums:

Who Needs a -Broker?
Recruiting Experienced Agents – What’s Your Strategy?
Do Your Technology Investments Help You Recruit, Retain and Coach Agents?

And after reading Generation Blend, Managing Across the Technology Age Gap, I'll add my two cents to the mix. According to the author, Rob Salkowitz, the book is "about people, generations, and the transformative impact of new ways of communicating, collaborating, and managing information." The book, indeed, is a great read and includes some really good summary stats about the convergence across generations as well as actionable advice. What's surprising is that Salkowitz points to many statistics and characteristics that Millenials and Boomers share. Here are some salient tidbits taken from a "Generational Workstyle Matrix" (pp. 58 - 60) Salkowitz put together:

Motivation - Why they work
Boomer: (a) gain status through achievement, (b) make a personal impact, (c) save for impending retirement
Millennial: (a) make a social impact, (b) satisfy high expectations, (c) learning and personal development

Trust and transparency
Boomer: (a) trusts philosophies and ideologies but not institutions, (b) expects that commitments will be honored
Millennial: trusts parents, teachers, and guiding figures, (b) sees popularity as validation, (c) wants to hear the big picture

Collaboration and autonomy
Boomer: (a) peer consensus valued, (b) smooth team dynamics prioritized over efficiency
Millennial: (a) collaborative by nature, (b) values networks as problem-solving tool

Work/Life balance
Boomer: (a) Workaholic legacy, but now seeking more balance, (b) reluctant to forgo status conferred by work; wants to stay relevant and active, (c) may have increasing responsibilities to children, aging parents, grandchildren
Millennial: (a) accustomed to multitasking; work is just one more thing to fit into the schedule, (b) looks for work opportunities that advance personal development goals and social values

Let's assume a brokerage wants to recruit young new talent to its firm and groom and train this new talent to align them with the firm's culture (ala a Zappos-like mentality). Let's further assume that the firm targets a 25 to 28 year old age group. Using the insights from the Generational Workstyle Matrix, this firm could create the following infrastructure and culture that would appeal to their targeted age group by implementing the following:

Knowing that their Boomer agents may be craving worklife/balance the firm could "recruit" a team of these agents to mentor the new hires while taking the pressure off their sales goals; perhaps compensating these mentors with a flat salary combined with traditional agency commission structure. This allows the Boomer agents to stay "relevant and active", gives them certain status within the firm, frees them up to manage personal matters, and gives them a bit of income stability. Reciprocally, having a group of mentors meets the "trust" needs of the Millennial new hires while giving them a team that by its nature would be collaborative and focused on fostering Millennial learning and personal development goals.

Additionally, the mentor team would function as a ready "network" for problem-solving. The firm could go further and create a specific social network (a Facebook page or Ning.com powered site, for example) focused on this recruiting team where each mentor maintains a presence, thus, integrating their presence into the Millennial new hire's existing social networking stream. The firm could also institute clearly defined goals and milestones so as to give Boomer mentors a stake in defining the firm culture and legacy going forward (thus allowing them to define an ideology through their participation in the mentor program) while giving the Millennial new hires a sense of the big picture and how they fit into it. Finally, as part of this mentor-mentee network, the firm could offer a couple of firm-sponsored social causes for which Millennial new hires could volunteer; doing so creates a positive public relations message for the firm while fulfilling the Millennial goal of making a social impact.

This is just one idea stemming from the Generation Blend book. I encourage you to get a copy of this book and develop generational strategies that will make a positive future impact on your business.

Photo credits: adpowers, Dennis Wong

Posted By: Eric Bryn

New Real Estate Role: Social Media Manager

2009-08-24T14:23:00Z

Given the proliferation of social media over the past few years through such venues as Blogs, Twitter, Facebook, Yelp, Flickr, YouTube, etc., and the growing engagement of the consumer public, along with our desire to market our company and our associates in new ways, we are pursuing a corporate strategy of dedicating a new position – Social Media Manager – to maximize these new social media opportunities in the most skilled manner possible.

As this video illustrates, the power of social media is undeniable.

The Future of Real Estate - Avery-Hess, Realtors from Amit Kulkarni on Vimeo.

It is well documented that the companies who embrace these networks are witnessing greater connection with their constituents. By conversing and connecting through this manner, these companies are able to better translate their inherent value proposition in new ways, building brand loyalty in a manner never before available. The impact this is having across all corporate and sales channels – from brand awareness to sales – is noteworthy. We have a lot to learn from Zappos in the shoe business and many other industries that are using social media to strengthen their brands, engage new customers, and ensure repeat and referral business through viral marketing.

Our new management team member, David Tra, who brings a background in social media and possesses significant writing and communication skills, will be compiling our interactive video content, managing all our social media outlets (Twitter, Vimeo, YouTube, Facebook, blogs) and training/coaching our associates on how to incorporate social media into their personal business.

To our LeadingRE colleagues, stay tuned for updates on how this focused strategy is working for our company…and how it might be something to consider for your own.

Learn more about Avery-Hess, and search for home in the DC Metro: www.averyhess.com

Posted by: Amit Kulkarni, Director of Marketing & Technology, Avery-Hess, Realtors®, northern Virginia suburbs of D.C.