92% of people trust recommendations from friends, 48% of people trust newspaper, tv and brand websites.

Which one should you be putting more effort into? My guess a 5 star online reutation!

Recent studies revealed that 72% of people trust online reviews, combine this with the 92% trusting personal recommendations and all of a sudden your online reputation, Google and Social Media becomes vital to growing your business online…

You might have done this yourself, searching for reviews on products and companies online before you decided on buying it!

FACT: Your online reputation is becoming vital in converting customers online, any bad reviews and how they were handled will affect future customers purchase decisions, studies also show that a lack of online reviews are as damaging as bad reviews.

The average searcher looks at between 6 and 10 reviews before buying, companies with 10 and more good reviews are trusted and engaged over 1st place SEO rankings, makes you think doesn’t it.

Research also shows that having NO ONLINE REVIEWS are as damaging as bad online reviews, in short to be successful online you will have to build a 5 star reputation and embed a service culture with your staff and in your business, keeping customers happy and coaching them in leaving online reviews.

Warning – DO NOT fall into the fake review trap! You will get penalised by Google and you WILL damage your online reputation immeasurably.

So in my opinion the most important Internet marketing, local business can engage in, in 2013 is reputation marketing, maps marketing and eventually SEO

Note: Reputation marketing is NOT reputation management because reputation management is after the fact, after the bad review has happened.

Reputation marketing is all about creating a 5 STAR Online Reputation and then marketing it so that you get more leads and thus make more money in 2013.

So to find out how wecan help you create a 5 star reputation and maket it call me on 021-556-9014 for a consultation.

FACT: If you have not started with a comprehensive Internet marketing campaign you have some catch up to do because it’s all about relevant content these days and the more of such you can get out there the bigger your traffic net becomes.

Twitter is a great way to market your business online and is becoming one of the hottest sites in social media. Twitter is a great way to spread your message connect with prospects and future customers.

Many business owners want to use twitter specifically for marketing but it is important to see it for what it is and understand that it is a social media site and not a media site.

Social media means interaction and relationship building, not spamming with your marketing and advertising messages. Those who use twitter to broadcast all day long without communicating and building relationships get nowhere.

Since twitter is a social media website it is important to remember to be social and to build targeted relationships. On twitter, you want to share both who you are and what you do. Most business owners talk about what they do too much and don’t share enough about who they are as an individual. It is important to have a balance here because you don’t want people to unfollow you because you keep saying what you do over and over. Let’s face it! they will get sick of it. But if you share who you are and what some of your hobbies are or comedical things that happen in your life mixed in with your work then you will be a human being and not a walking billboard. People want to connect with tangible people on twitter, not a billboard.

Image by birgerking via Flickr

Understanding the relationship and flow of business on twitter is very important because you begin to make a larger impact and connect with more relevant people by doing that. When you are all about business your twitter followers will be all about not following, unfollowing or not listening to your tweets! and you don’t want any of those things. After learning this lesson you want to make sure that your profile is setup properly and that you are using the space you have to get your message out there in a non-advertising kind of way.

In twitter you have a description and you have 160 characters to say who you are and what you do. In this area you can say something like “A Single Mother of 3 who loves to go to the spa on the weekends and help my therapy clients” or something like that. Make it about who you are first and then briefly mention what you do after you share who you are. You only have 160 characters so make it short and simple.

There are many more twitter lessons for networking and marketing online but I don’t have enough room to share them here so be sure to go below and click to visit my website and get access to the 3 free twitter influence videos that I created for you.

Take care and have an awesome rest of the day!

David King

To Get Your 3 Free Twitter Influence Videos Valued At $50 Go To Twitter Training, and Twitter Marketing

For SEO Los Angeles Los Angeles SEO Local SEO specialists…More at Twitter Marketing Training For Business Owners

Posted by Mackenzie Fogelson

This post was originally in YouMoz, and was promoted to the main blog because it provides great value and interest to our community. The author’s views are entirely his or her own and may not reflect the views of SEOmoz, Inc.

It’s common for potential clients to have unrealistic expectations or to have been misinformed somewhere along the way about SEO. Because it has evolved so much in the last year, what it now takes to achieve desired rankings really goes beyond the former gold standard of keyword research. For the new complications, we heartily blame a guy named Panda, but after the finger-pointing is done, we’ve got our work cut out for us. SEOs need to keep up on all the latest and greatest to ensure proper integration and execution of SEO, and also to manage client expectations about success. That’s a pretty hefty job.

However, just because a client doesn’t have a proper understanding of SEO doesn’t mean they won’t be great to work with. Instead of being frustrated with their mainstream understanding, make it your job to dispel myths and educate them about the process so that they can make informed decisions about their web marketing needs.

And make sure you do this before you’re under contract. Otherwise, you’re locked into an  uncomfortable situation with no easy way out.

It’s important to be picky about who you work with

Qualifying and landing clients can take a lot of effort. When you’re in the acquisition phase (and you’re not yet under contract), you need an efficient process for determining eligibility and filtering prospects. One of the most effective ways we’ve found is by conducting a competitive domain analysis (CDA). After we’ve had an initial phone call to do a general qualification of the client, we put a CDA together for two reasons:

1. It provides us with the opportunity to properly educate the client and help them understand where they rank (among their competitors of course), why, and what would need to be done in order to improve their standings.
2. It allows us to showcase our knowledge, build trust, and get a feel for whether the client would be a good fit for us before we even bid the project.

Domain authority is usually a wake up call

You’ll find that many clients are very keyword focused and want to rank #1 for some of the most competitive terms in their industry. That might be OK for a brand like Coke or Nike who have domain authorities in the 80s and 90s, but for businesses who are just starting out online (with a DA that’s less than 30), who may not have spent any time building links, brand awareness, or focusing on customer experience, and they want to go up against Amazon (DA of 97) for “baby blankets,” they’re in for a rude awakening.

Instead of setting their expectations up for failure, I like to discuss domain authority right out of the gate so that the client fully understands that:

1. There is a lot of work to be done (and it doesn’t just involve keywords).
2. There is a lot more to competition than they’ve probably realized.
3. They most likely will never beat Amazon (just sayin’).

As you know, raw domain authority is less important than relative domain authority. The client doesn’t have to beat Amazon, or Apple, or Coke. They just have to measure up to their competition. Presenting them with a competitive domain analysis helps them to understand just how much work we need to do in order to close the gap.

The bottom line

Just because your client has spent a ton of money on a beautiful website doesn’t mean that they are naturally going to rank well. You know this, we know this. It is your unpleasant duty as an SEO to make sure that your client knows it, too. Driving home the reality of the time and effort required to successfully market their website online, build trust, and earn authority is just one of the crosses that an SEO must bear. We’ve discovered that a tool like our competitive domain analysis eases that burden a bit, helping us educate our clients and ensure that we’re working with the right ones. Give it a try and see if it works for you too.

What processes do you use to qualify and educate potential clients? What tools have you found useful?

Sign up for The Moz Top 10, a semimonthly mailer updating you on the top ten hottest pieces of SEO news, tips, and rad links uncovered by the Moz team. Think of it as your exclusive digest of stuff you don’t have time to hunt down but want to read!

…More at Competitive Domain Analyses: Educating & Qualifying Clients in One Fell Swoop

A report from AYTM Market Research suggests that pairing a Twitter marketing strategy with effective website content may help small businesses appeal best to their target audiences. Sixty-nine percent of consumers said they ……More at Consumers want Twitter and website content from brands

The Future of Marketing Strategy Destination CRM Period. “Marketers still need to shift their traditional campaign management strategy around executing campaigns to a customer and move toward a digital marketing, two-way engagement approach that acts as a mutually beneficial decision journey … …More at The Future of Marketing Strategy – Destination CRM

RT: 500 Social Media Marketing Tips: Essential Advice, Hints and Strategy for Business: Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest… http://t.co/N7E9f9Jc

— SocialeBusiness (Social business) (@SocialeBusiness) Fri Oct 5 2012

all 30 news articles »…More at Twitter to survey users on campaign impact – Marketing Week

Check out these 7 essential #Twitter #Tips businesses can use to promote their product: http://t.co/tjnbqfZ3

— InfluMedia (Influence Media) (@InfluMedia) Fri Oct 5 2012

and more »…More at Aligning SEO Strategy & Social Media Activity to Build Links – Search Engine Watch

#Twitter: Huge #mobile use makes us ideal for #real-time #marketing http://t.co/IhIUkWfx | #mobilemarketing #tech #promote #strategy

— Bizhappy (Bizhappy) (@Bizhappy) Thu Oct 4 2012

There are many bloggers and brands that just leap onto Twitter, setup an account and start tweeting. This random approach is fine if you are a person that is doing tweeting for fun and you want to share your rambling rantings ……More at How to Create a Twitter Marketing Strategy that Rocks | Rock The …

BUT

Are they giving you the full picture?

Like Kimberley’s big hole, the Internet will suck your website in and it will disappear below the surface never to be seen again without SEO.

Well perhaps never is a bit strong lets rephrase it to never to be seen by anyone except the few who know about it.

SEO simply helps your website to be seen by potential customers online, customers who would NEVER have discovered you otherwise, so NEW business.

The life blood of any business is customers, likewise any website is TRAFFIC and simply put no SEO no traffic.

So my answer is NO, in the longterm your website will not survive without SEO because it will get buried so deep on the search engines by those who do SEO that no one will ever see it.

Take into consideration the fact that 97% of people search online 1st and that its estimated that in 2013 mobile search will overtake pc search then you might have a bit of a marketing dilemma on your hands.

SEO is big for local businesses because local SEO gives every single local/small business the opportunity to capitalise on Internet traffic/search in their neighbourhood.

Take into consideration that print marketing is shrinking and Internet marketing is exploding, it’s very good news for local business.

That is at least for those with the vision to take advantage of this opportunity, the rest will go the way of any out dated technology and business not keeping up with the times, extintion.

The other fact SEO and Internet marketing is incredibly cost effective in comparison, give us a call on 021 556 9014 and we’ll prove it to you.

Below Jeanne’s answers to our revealing questions…..

1) When did you start out in real estate? 2007

2) What did you do before real estate? Sales Manager for Panasonic Business Systems (South Africa)

3) Why did you join Harcourts? I joined Harcourts within a month after the Homenet deal was done and Harcourts entered South Africa.

I saw huge potential to move to Harcourts due to the fantastic reputation of the Group Globally and Harcourts being voted as within the Top 5 Brands Globally.

Locally, for me the opportunity was mind-blowing; the Harcourts values and people are known within the industry as ethical and always forward thinking.

It was also a huge challenge for me as GM of Business Development, to be able to launch and grow a new International brand people in SA had hardly heard off at the time of the worst recession the SA real estate sector has ever experienced.

This challenge for me was what tipped the scale  to join Harcourts.

4) What is the best thing about Harcourts for you? The people and Values. Many companies put fancy pictures of their values or code in their passage ways and boardrooms, but hardly anyone ever uses this as a guideline to operate their business.

At Harcourts the values are an integral part of every decision making process and this totally separates Harcourts from other brands in SA.

5) What advice do you have for aspirant property franchisees? Make sure that you are prepared to be hands-on.

This certainly is an industry where you can potentially set-up a business with a very low investment capital compared to other franchise systems.

But if you have to be prepared to get ‘dirty’ so to speak – this meaning hands-on with your agents at canvassing, at the mandate appointments, at show houses and a structured coaching and mentoring process and commitment to each and every one of your staff will guarantee your success.

6) What advice do you have for aspirant estate agents? Make sure your company offers you the best in technology and that you have the competitive advantage. There are many white-labeled property management systems out there, but none offers you anything as unique as Harcourts.

iPad applications, iPhone database management, live deed office feeds to your iPad while you’re at the listing presentation etc. make sure you embrace technology and make this integral part of your method of selling property.

7) How important is Social Media in your opinion? The key is understanding the power thereof. Many agents simply share listing after listing on their FB page and frankly, do that twice and I unfriend you.

Think out of the box and interact with your potential client and create a personality behind your FB and social media activity. People want to do business with people like themselves – make sure your client can relate to you via your social media strategy.

And please note, social media is not just FB, it is a basket of products and services that brings you what you need.

8) How does Harcourts cutting edge technology help your business? In my opinion, Harcourts is at least 5 years ahead of the other major brands in SA when it comes to technology.

Our propriety  software “Harcourts One” is a single platform for all your real estate requirements, from listing system, full Customer relations management (CRM), SMS system, email marketing on-line training academy and office reporting system.

Furthermore, Harcourts is in the process of launching two more iPad applications this year, with live data feed from Harcourts One to your iPad as well as a Property Management  / Rental inspection Application. Certainly leading the way in SA.

9) What would improvements you like to see in technology and real estate? More use of social media on a structured basis by agents. And agents focused not on selling property, but creating client experiences with a WOW factor!

10) How do you feel about the future of Harcourts in real estate? Harcourts has grown over 44% in footprint and in excess of 20% in sales year on year over the past 3 years.

While most real estate companies have experienced regression in almost every aspect of their businesses, Harcourts certainly is bucking the trend.

We are also launching our improved Property Management offering and our sister-brand RentalsDotCom over the next 2 months. Giving our business owners access to the most advanced property management system and training currently offered by any other real estate group in SA.

Well thank you Jeanne, I sure enjoyed reading your answers and found it very uplifting and inspiring. So people, please comment on this article, we appreciate your input, always…

One only has to look at the many mediocre business websites on the Internet to realise that business marketing on the Internet is a subject that many business owners and even web masters in South Africa know very little about.

As an Internet Marketing consultant I’m trained to look past the “pretty” of a website and focus on how much commercial worth this tool brings to a business. Yes, TOOL, nothing more, nothing less. Does this marketing tool deliver results? 

What is the main result we expect from any form of marketing we do? Traffic, leads, enquiries, etc.

This is exactly the same for your Internet marketing campaign, may it be a website or a Facebook Page, you need to get traffic to and from both to have a measure of success.

I bet many of you wonder whether business marketing on the Internet is for your business or even affordable because unfortunately like in any growing industry we all suffer the rip off artists, read on and learn how to spot and avoid them.

FACT: According to Google statistics, 97% of your local customers with a smartphone or an Internet connection use that devise FIRST to search and research potential products and purchases.  

Can you afford to ignore the bulk of your market due to a non-existent Internet marketing strategy?

I bet not!! So what can you do about your business marketing on the Internet? Read on here’s a couple of how to tips I normally only share with my clients.

1. The first thing you will want to do is to either claim your Google Places page or set one up if there’s nothing. Google is busy integrating these Google Places pages with Google+ Local but this will take sometime, so for now it’s good enough for you to claim the Google Places page but do register your Google+ profile at the same time, it is useful to your on-line presence. TIP: make sure you complete your profiles completely with as much info as possible, it will help with the SEO of these.
2. If you have a website make sure the SEO (search engine optimisation) is done properly and that it is focused on your local area, this is very important because most of your customers will come from your neighbourhood, right? Make sure the people most likely to buy from you can find you, simple! If you don’t have one add a blog to your website or simply use a blog as your website, use this to inform your customer and to position yourself as an expert.
3. Take a dip into Social Media, more that 90% of South African Internet users have a Facebook profile. Be sure to connect with your local friends and clients on Facebook and engage in some Reputation Management using Social Media, these days people say all kinds of things about your business on-line, make sure you are aware of it because how you respond is vital to your business image on-line.
4. If you do the 3 point above right you should now have some traffic coming to your website or blog. What do you do with them? Simple, you find a way for them to leave their contact details so that you can add them to a database of customers and prospects that in time you can mass communicate specials and new additions to. This database (good will) can be worth it’s weigh in gold as your business grows.
5. The next step is to consider whether you are satisfied with the results you are getting and if you should embark on some paid Internet advertising like PPC (pay per click), done right it can add a new dimension to your business income.

It is a fact like taxes and death, business has to market in order to survive in the market place and in difficult economic times like these business strictly speaking should be doubling their marketing spend, unfortunately this is often not the case and you suffer.

The fact is that business marketing on the Internet is your most effective, cost effective marketing strategy you can invest in right now. Don’t let the technology angle dissuade you from experiencing the success that’s a couple of mouse clicks away.

I trust the information will be of use to you. Do remember that we specialise in Internet Marketing campaigns for all kinds of businesses, big or small, so give us a call on 072 405 3932 so that we can discuss yours.

FACT: 97% of customers with a smartphone, tablet or pc turns online FIRST for product and service information before looking elswhere e.g. print media, radio, tv. Yet many small business owners are still stuck in the old advertising and marketing rut.

Local small business owners in South Africa have a very real window of opportunitty right now to dominate their area of business online, either you take it or unfortunately for you someone else will.

Barely two-thirds of the small NYC businesses surveyed in a new report have a website or use social media tools to advertise their service….More at Too Many Small Businesses Are Not Embracing Technology …

Social media might be the big thing, but print and e-mail marketing aren’t anything to be ignored. How SMBs utilize different media to get their messages across.…More at Infographic Shows The Power Of Media | Small Business Technology

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USA TODAY

Apps now key to small-business savings USA TODAY Small businesses are using technology to help them operate more efficiently and cost-effectively in an increasingly competitive environment. Each Monday, USA TODAY looks at new ways companies are gaining an innovative edge in a tough economy.and more » …More at Apps now key to small-business savings – USA TODAY

Small Business Trends

PHP MySQL: The Missing Manual is A Great Tech Find Small Business Trends But small business owners who have already exhausted HTML and are growing the complexity of their sites may want to check out this particular book for learning some of the right technical concerns. The text is a beginning coder’s delight, first and …and more » …More at PHP MySQL: The Missing Manual is A Great Tech Find – Small Business Trends

The Best Technology for Small Business in 2012 – http://t.co/GeVEnbPE

— SmallbizhubNz (Small Business Hub) (@SmallbizhubNz) Tue Aug 21 2012

Image by dgray_xplane via Flickr

Small businesses are using #Technology and #SocialMedia to help them operate more efficiently and cost-effectively http://t.co/yZJxW5Ch

— SlvrUmbrella_ST (Seth Thomas) (@SlvrUmbrella_ST) Mon Aug 20 2012

Business plans are usually put together for three reasons:

• For clarity and to fuel an action plan in developing a strategy around growing your business;
• To provide a backbone for your idea when trying to get money from investors;
• To show others (potential partners, executives, and mentors) what your vision is and how you plan to get there.

One of the many challenges of writing a business plan is that it is typically written for a number of audiences, and so the information within it must satisfy as many questions as possible while keeping it succinct and focused. The one thing you can guarantee is that no mentor, VC, or business professional who reviews your plan will come away thinking the exact same thing. The reason is because each person has their own interests in mind, and looks for specific points that help them make a decision.

So, while you will very likely run into some areas where you’ll have to elaborate — or perhaps alter — your line of thinking, there are a few things you can do to help get your plan off on the right foot, no matter who might take a look at it. Don’t put your business plan in danger of being discarded; avoid these 5 pitfalls:

1. Attaching Your Business Vision to Dated Technology or Declining Markets

When spelling out in your business plan the opportunity you see for a product or service, you can’t just have a sense that the idea will have legs in the real world. A proper business plan (and anyone who you hope will give you money) will ensure you are setting yourself up for success. This means you must develop a business vision around something that will make an impact on an emerging or existing market. Those markets that are dwindling or are being taken over by new industries will make it incredibly difficult for you to get funding.

For instance, what would your reaction be if someone developed waterproof ink for typewriter ribbons? You wouldn’t necessarily be enthused, because the number of people looking to buy something like that is incredibly small.

2. Not Acknowledging Your Weaknesses

To be a successful small business owner, you must know that it’s impossible to do everything on your own. Mentors and investors don’t expect you to successfully juggle the production, operation, administrative, marketing, and sales aspects of your business – at least not for the long term. An impactful business plan will have a strategy for dealing with weaknesses. Don’t convince yourself that investors won’t provide funding if you draw attention to a challenge you struggle with. If you acknowledge only what you’re good at, those that review your business plan will very likely ask the tough questions looking to uncover the contrary.

3. Identifying Your Core Customer as “Everyone”

There is no product or service that is everything to everyone. If there were, we’d all be driving around in the same car. The fact is, your product or service is specific and beneficial to an ideal type of customer, not anyone willing to fork over a handful of cash. It’s tough to wrap your head around, particularly when you’re just starting out, and when you need every customer possible to make your case. But as your business grows, you’ll be positioned for success only when you aren’t trying to please everyone that comes through your door. Your market research will not only help you target the “right” customer for your business, but will also help you determine the proper market size for your projections.

4. Having Unrealistic Growth Projections

Yes, a business plan will require you to do some legitimate math, and not just estimate what you believe to be the opportunity. You must first estimate your market size and use as many resources as you can to determine what kind of audience you’re talking about. The stronger a position you can take as to what opportunity the market provides and how you can capture their attention, the more likely you are to secure funding. This includes understanding the market value (how much is spent by various types of customers), not just the market size. If you’re looking to grow a presence online and want to display how you’ll capture a sizeable market share of web traffic, you may use data from search engines to determine how many people are looking for keywords related to the products you provide as well.

5. Acknowledging Your Competitors, but Not Analyzing Them

It’s common for new business owners to say, “We have no competitors,” in hopes of appearing to be unique, but it’s far more impressive to simply list your competitors as considerations when surveying the market. Listing your competitors is not a strategy against winning business from them. When putting together this section of your business plan, it’s important to know as much as you can about the people you’re going up against. It’s important to be as objective as possible: What are they doing right? How are they succeeding? Why do customers choose them? Knowing this information helps you prepare your own strategy to differentiate your business from theirs.

What other business plan challenges did you have to face? …More at 5 Most Common Business Plan Pitfalls

Selling Stuff on Facebook. Yay or Nay? – Small Business – Yahoo!7 http://t.co/ROsoEq3Q

— ICMILeisa (ICMI Speakers Entert) (@ICMILeisa) Mon Aug 20 2012

Social Media is not an experiment. It’s not something you try. It has to work for your business. But how? Read On….More at How To Use Social Media For Business The Right Way | Small …

Using Technology To Fight The Small Business Trust Bias http://t.co/IF0qHou1 #business #smallbusiness

— successwise (Successwise) (@successwise) Mon Aug 20 2012

The glaring fact is that many small business owners are totally overwhelemed by technology and the latest developments in online marketing! The problem here is not being overwhelmed but not doing something about it.

It does not need to be anything drastic but small changes and improvements on how you do things can have a huge impact on future results and income, so don’t wait any longer, give us a call on 072 405 3932 and discover how we can put technology to work for you.

Below, Richards answers to the 10 revealing questions we asked him.

Richard Gray – CEO Harcourts SA

1) How did you start out in real estate? Although I have only been working for a real estate company for 2 years, I have a long association with the property industry.

Having worked in homeloans at NBS and then as a mortgage originator at Bond Choice I dealt extensively with real estate people and with the industry. When the opportunity came to join a real estate group, it was an easy step.

2) What did you do before real estate? My background is in Information Technology, having an honours degree in Computer Science.

I worked for Oracle and then joined NBS where I headed up the IT development division for homeloans. I was a founder director of Bond Choice and worked there until 2010.

3) Why did you join Harcourts? I was looking for new challenges and had always been passionate about property and the property industry. I had a long association with Harcourts going back nearly ten years, and knew most of the people.

When an opportunity arose to join the company it was a relatively easy decision, although I was joining the industry at a time when sales were at an all time low and when many people had left the real estate industry.

4) What is the best thing about Harcourts for you? Not even a question, the people and culture. As much as I believe that we have the best systems, training and marketing capabilities, it is the people of Harcourts that differentiate us from the rest.

Even though we are now a big company, we have retained a family culture with a very strong value system.

5) What advice do you have for aspirant property franchisees? Real estate companies are full of opportunity and potential reward. However, there is no “quick buck” to be made and to be successful you need to invest and build a team that lives by your values.

It has been shown time and again that a strong leader with good business acumen will almost always be successful in real estate.

6) What advice do you have for aspirant estate agents? Basics, basics, basics. I see too many good agents who struggle because they don’t do the basics. Real estate doesn’t change despite the technology advances.

At the end of the day the same basic rules of being an estate agent need to be followed. Don’t get distracted by sideshows, stick to the basics.

7) How important is Social Media in your opinion? Hugely important. One only has to cast one’s mind back to the 90’s when the Internet was largely for entertainment.

Now it is integral to any business and your web strategy is generally your most critical one. I see social media already following the same trend. Where Facebook was merely a place to keep contact with friends, it is becoming the face of your company.

YouTube used to be a place to upload crazy videos, now it is the place that companies use to communicate with their customers. Very exciting!

8) How does Harcourts’ cutting edge technology help your business? Buyers and sellers are obviously far more technology literate and real estate has to keep up with this.

The vast majority of buyers look on the web before they look at their newspaper for houses. Sellers want to see their properties appearing on as many property portals as possible.

We measure leads from websites as a key indicator. Clients want iPad apps and interactive websites. Clients want to see properties on their smart phones. Clients want to speak to you via Social Media.

Real estate companies that cannot provide these tools will die. Simple. In addition, back office efficiency is critical as costs come under pressure. Our internal system, Harcourts1, is able to deliver tremendous efficiency and is one of the key reasons why people join the group.

9) What would improvements you like to see in technology and real estate? Property portals have become cluttered with duplicate properties and poor quality information. A way needs to be found to remedy this in the interests of the consumer.

10) How do you feel about the future of Harcourts in real estate? Harcourts is incredibly well positioned. Not only are we already one of the major players, we also have the people, capabilities and tools to lead the industry.

Our footprint is established and covers a diverse range of markets. As part of a leading international property group we are able to leverage off advances made by Harcourts in the rest of the world.

Thanks Richard, really enjoyed your answers and I totally agree with you. I’m looking forward to watching your rise here in South Africa, well done…you can fing more information on the Harcourts opportunity on the Join Harcourts property franchise website.

It is not a quick fix and it takes time, dedication and some knowledge but do it right and you will dominate your local market and benefit from targeted, interested leads 24/7…

If you’ve been researching doing internet marketing for the small business, you certainly would’ve seen or heard a lot of people speaking about the advantages of it. Nonetheless, as a business owner, you cannot rely solely for the opinion of ……More at Internet Marketing For Small Businesses – Get More Buyers Online …

Small businesses use guerilla marketing techniques AmsterdamPrinting.com Many companies are turning to social networks while some are still looking to increase its marketing efforts in TV, the internet and radio. Marketing experts recently introduced another method … Large businesses have already implemented guerilla … …More at Small businesses use guerilla marketing techniques – AmsterdamPrinting.com

Bop Design Illustrates the Difference Between a Mobile Website and an App for … Virtual-Strategy Magazine Fortunately Bop Design has released an outline of the differences specifically for small business marketing. Bop Design web developer, Jordan Paraso, comments, “If a marketing director is not technically keen on the subject, confusion between the two …and more »…More at Bop Design Illustrates the Difference Between a Mobile Website and an App for … – Virtual-Strategy Magazine

The internet has been around for about two decades, but it is only been about fifteen because everyone’s been using it. Individuals are still figuring out the effects of this world-changing technology. Businesses specially are ……More at Small Business Internet Marketing and SEO For Starters | 2leep.in …

Small business internet marketing tips: There are hundreds of suggestions that you come across on the internet b… http://t.co/yzDyIjjy

— beraler (Eolande Formby) (@beraler) Tue Aug 14 2012

If your business is certainly not showing up on the top of the page of Google – then you may as well not really be in business, and a small business marketing firm can fix that will. Here’s some shake-your-head-in-disbelief figures: 97% of your … If you aren’t on the internet and showing up near the top of top page of the search engines – especially Google – you may as well not even exist online. Developing the #1 ability in business – the opportunity to consistently attract ……More at Small Business Marketing Organization – Your own garden – Home

Benefits Making of Small Business Marketing Mobile: The Huffington Post published an article on August 7, 2012, … http://t.co/0fL6rAVA

— internet_know (Derek Weller) (@internet_know) Sun Aug 12 2012

If you’ve been researching doing internet marketing for the small business, you certainly would’ve seen or heard a lot of people speaking about the advantages of it. Nonetheless, as a business owner, you cannot rely solely ……More at Internet Marketing For Small Businesses – Get More Buyers Online …

Local Online Marketing For Small Business Owners | Internet …: Hey CrazyWebDude, so how do I get on the first … http://t.co/MBOMOkXx

— MikeSchleif (Mike Schleif) (@MikeSchleif) Fri Aug 10 2012

Small Business Internet Marketing

Internet marketing is a cost-effective way for all small business owners to grow their sales and profits. It can allow you to expand your marketing efforts to attract more customers and increase your sales and profits. It can also help you to increase your income from your current customer base.

With the changes in consumer behavior, improvements in technology and the increasing use of mobile devices, more and more consumers are turning to the Internet as a preferred way of planning their shopping day. Consumers are also using the Internet to search for online coupons and special deals. More and more retail businesses are catching on to this trend and offering “website only” discount coupons. All of these fall in the category of online marketing strategies.

With all of these changes happening at the same time, it has become essential for small business owners to have a cost effective way of getting their advertising message out and attract these potential customers to their offers.

Not too long ago, a small business owner had to make a fairly large investment in order to just test out a new marketing idea, whether it be placing an ad in the yellow pages or a regional publication and then waiting and hoping for some kind of return on the investment. This kind of marketing was not only very costly for small businesses, it was also very hard to accurately track the return on investment (ROI). Fortunately, times have changed with the evolution of Internet marketing strategies and many more options for small business owners to reach out to their prospects and customers.

The various strategies now available to small businesses can easily be customized to fit the market and the budget of almost any size business. This includes everything from a one-person business all the way up to 100 or more employees.

Implementing Your Website Marketing Plan

With online marketing, there are many proven methods for a business to choose from to create a customized online marketing strategy. The options range from getting free search engine traffic by implementing Search Engine Optimization (SEO) strategies along with social media marketing (like Facebook, Twitter, etc.), to paying for traffic using pay-per-click programs (like Google Adwords), banner advertising and many other options. And because of the information-based nature of the Internet and online analytics it is very easy to track and monitor the success of your various marketing efforts. This is critical as it allows you to constantly test and track different strategies, optimizing your marketing ROI every step of the way.,

One of the biggest challenges many business owners face is trying to decide where and how to get started with their small business Internet marketing. The answer is going to be different for every business but the one thing that all small business online marketing efforts have in common is the fact that you need to get started now. If you are already online, you should be constantly testing and tracking new methods. Online marketing is a fast changing environment and small businesses have the advantage of being very fast and nimble when it comes to marketing. The bottom line is to get started before your small business gets left behind in the online world.

For most small business owners the best way to get started is to use free online resources to attract more prospects and customers to their business. This can be done using classified advertising, Facebook, Twitter, blogging and so on. You may also try contacting a a local SEO company to see what options or plans they recommend.

All of your marketing efforts should be focused on the following 3 things

1. Getting increasing amounts of traffic to you website
2. Starting and growing an email list of prospects and customers so that you can start to build a relationship with them.
3. Continuously test and track your online marketing efforts so that you can continually improve your conversions of website visitors to loyal customers.

The key to taking advantage of the profit potential and the business growth opportunity that a good small business Internet marketing strategy can provide you with is to – “just do it”….More at Small Business Internet Marketing

I trust you found the information above enlightening. Do make sure you comment below and ask questions you want answered…

As energetic CIO (chief Internet officer) of Harcourts SA he’s instrumental in bringing all in the group up to speed with their innovative technology tools and on the implementation of these tools.

Anton Janses van Vuuren photograph by Suzanne Gell

I recently managed to dig a little deeper into what makes this dynamo tick with an e-mail interview, below the results, read on I’m sure you will enjoy the answers…

1) How did you start out in real estate?

I started as a Regional Manager in 2006. We were then Homenet and the position was focused on servicing our offices. We were not a property franchise then.

2) What did you do before real estate?

I was a Senior Correctional officer for almost 19 years.

3) Why did you join Harcourts?

At that point in time I was looking for new challenges and I was in the process of studying for my BCom degree. My field of study and what I was doing was not complimenting each other anymore.

I urgently needed a new challenge and I knew I had good management skills. Getting an opportunity in Homenet was great and up until today I believe it was destiny that brought me to this company.

4) What is the best thing about Harcourts for you?

Our values and team culture. We are a family. We have the right people doing the right things in a time of opportunity. Management is not old folks with an old mindset.

We are there to embrace our future and to tackle all challenges head on. The international support is great and it feels good being a part of an international company / organization.

5) What advice do you have for aspirant property franchisees?

Harcourts is more than great systems, support, training and technology. You need to understand our values and what we want to achieve and how we want you to be part of this business. We want to create success and we know what is needed to achieve success in a real estate business.

6) What advice do you have for aspirant estate agents?

If you don’t see this as a long term career then don’t join. It is hard work with great rewards. We offer all the support and training but at the end of the day it is up to you to make a success of it.

If you have the customer relationship skills and the willingness to learn and use our systems then we want you part of our company. Just make sure that you can associate your way of living and operating with our company values. Our values is the driving force behind the way we work and think.

7) How important is Social Media in your opinion?

It is definitely the way of the future but there are certain things that must first be mastered before attempting to make social media as part of your business. Real Estate has some basic principles that must be mastered and social media is just one of them.

8) How does Harcourts cutting edge technology help your business?

Harcourts has created technology that not only assist the property consultant to be more productive and to work smarter but it also allows them to be more professional.

The industries clients are more informed and uses the web to do the majority of their homework prior to contacting any real estate company. Our clients makes one of their biggest decisions in their lives when they buy or sell a property. It is our task to make this a stress free and transparent event.

In most cases time is of the essence and with technology we can assure that a person’s property get maximum exposure in the shortest period of time to the buyers database within Harcourts.

9) How do you feel about the future of Harcourts in real estate

The future will be challenging but all good things do not come easy. We will be leaders in the real estate industry and we will be a household name. If we keep on moving forward at the same pace as we have up to date then the sky is the limit….

I certainly agree with Anton on he’s take on technology in the real estate industry and how it is a tool that will make your life easier if you would just take the time to get the basics down.

Right now there is still benefit in the old marketing ways but the cross over to electronic marketing is steady and sure and with the momentum gathering, agents paralysed in the old ways will suffer at the hands of the early adopters dominating all the quality leads and business.

Make sure you get yourself up to speed with the latest in digital marketing…

Without a constant flow of leads any business will eventually stumble and fall, making sure that your marketing delivers a constant flow of qualified leads is vital

A 3 Step Content Strategy That Works

1. Identify Your Target Audience.

First and foremost, you need to identify the type of audience you are trying to reach. Are you trying to reach buyers or sellers? From there, get more specific…

Do you want to work with first-time home-buyers only? Do you specialize in a specific type of property like say, water-front homes?

Is there a specific type of home-seller that you’d like to work with? A certain price range?

2. Create Content That Helps Them (Not You).

Once you’ve identified your target audience, the next step is to create a list of content that answers everything they could possibly want to know about buying and selling real estate in your market area. So start by creating two lists: 1.) a list of every question your target buyer/seller wants to know about buying or selling real estate, and 2.) a list of everything they could possibly want to know about the area.

Don’t just write hype (e.g. “now is a good time to buy”).

3. Be Consistent.

You can’t be successful if you only seem to have the answers every now and then. You have to always be on. Especially in real estate, where the market is always changing.

What’s the average Days on Market for homes in this area? What’s the average sales price? What are interest rates like today? Any new developments in the neighborhood that I should know about?…More at A Quick 3 Step Content Strategy That Works

Sage Partners Turn to Blogging for Lead Generation and SEO – Equities… http://t.co/AK54n1D0 #seo http://t.co/Wpk5EdOZ

— SEOteks (Seth D. Olson) (@SEOteks) Tue Jul 31 2012

Change is (or should be) an ever-present parameter in every B2B marketer’s strategy or plan, especially in lead generation telemarketing where recent….More at 6 Fresh Insights on B2B Lead Generation for 2012 and Beyond …

Resume List Generation – Lead Generation at http://t.co/9c9fEkzL (Sun City, AZ): Looking for someone with a premi… http://t.co/qhczZeVu

— speedyjobs101 (speedyjobs101) (@speedyjobs101) Tue Jul 31 2012

10 tips to create better elevator pitches that generate more leads in social and business gatherings | Polish your elevator pitch to engage your listener….More at Lead Generation | 10 Golden Rules for effective elevator pitches

Small Business News Bop Design Provides 4 Tips for Using LinkedIn as a Lead Generation…: Many sales and market… http://t.co/NXnJT2yw

— sballewh (sballewh) (@sballewh) Tue Jul 31 2012

Bop Design Provides 4 Tips for Using LinkedIn as a Lead Generation Tool MarketWatch (press release) “The most valuable lead generation tool on LinkedIn is InMail,” exclaims Durant. The InMail service allows a sales person to contact a decision maker who is not a 1st degree LinkedIn connection. Depending on a firm’s LinkedIn subscription level, a …and more »…More at Bop Design Provides 4 Tips for Using LinkedIn as a Lead Generation Tool – MarketWatch (press release)

Business 2 Community

Learn How to Become the B2B Lead Generation Master Business 2 Community b2b lead generation Many B2B lead generation methods are already deemed successful at the first glance of generating qualified sales leads. A lot of b2b companies already jump for joy during this time. However, they should not be doing so as the sales …and more »…More at Learn How to Become the B2B Lead Generation Master – Business 2 Community

I need a lot of help with sales, marketing and lead generation. This is where you come in. I am trying to tell people I develop web-based software. Nothing new about that, as the market is saturated, but we offer cost-effective solutions. You will ……More at Sales/Marketing/Lead Generation – PeoplePerHour.com

I guess one of the main principles in lead generation is simply to start, for info on how we can help you call us on 021-556-9014