Unroll.me will help you manage email lists and become a Gmail power user

If you have read my real estate techie blog previously, you know my infatuation with Gmail. I’m on the east coast, but from what I hear, techies in technology hot bed, Silicon Valley, dig it too.  Gmail just offers so many features, rarely crashes or freezes (unlike Outlook/Windows Mail), and for most users is free, so what’s not to like.

I recently came across an article on USA Today by gadget writer, Alice Troung (@alicetruong on twitter) teaching folks how to be Gmail power users, and found some really nice gmail hacks.  She mentions, rapportive, which I discussed in a previous post, but there was one  I wasn’t aware of, and that was unroll.me.

What is Unroll.me?

Unroll.me is an bulk list manager for email.  It currently works with gmail, yahoo mail, and aol mail (do people really still use aol mail? haha!). Unroll.me allows you to receive one email per day that includes many of the bulk list emails that clutters your inbox on a daily basis.  It also allows you to batch unsubscribe to any unwanted email lists.

The first time I logged on, it took several minutes to analyze my email lists.  Once unroll.me spits out your list, you can choose which list to add to your “daily roll up” and which to unsubscribe to.  When I signed up for the service, I was on over 80 bulk email lists.  Now all of those weren’t bad, and they all didn’t email me daily, but I did unsubscribe to about 20 lists.  The unroll.me service now cuts my daily email down by at least 15-20 emails per day, and gives me one email to glance over to see if there’s anything I’m really interested in reading.  That way there’s less chance that I miss a really important email, because there’s less clutter in my inbox.

Email is necessary in today’s business climate, but can be a time stealer if you’re getting too many unimportant emails.  Use Unroll.me to  help declutter that out of control inbox of yours and get back to getting things done.

Check out the article below for more tips on becoming a Gmail power user.

 Gmail Power User Tips

A Smaller iPad Could Compete with Kindle Fire Tablet

Many people have been asking if the rumor is true.  Will Apple release a smaller, seven, or eight inch iPad?  I’m not sure if even Apple knows the answer to this question, but personally I would like to see it. Some of the newer Android tablets aren’t bad, but the iPad is simply the de facto standard in tablets. Many say that could change now that Steve Jobs has passed, but it remains to be seen if current Apple leadership can maintain their high standards.

Kindle Sales are Up – So Wouldn’t Apple Release a Smaller iPad?

 Amazon has probably close to 5 million Kindle Fires sold.  Why wouldn’t Apple won’t a piece of that action?  It seems like they are leaving money on the table, and Steve Jobs didn’t become an icon for that.

I’m sure we’ll find out in the coming months if the smaller ipad rumors are true or not.  But with Amazon capturing around 15% of tablet sales, I believe Apple will step up to the plate and dominate the smaller tablet market just like they have the 10″ tablets.  After all, Apple has been working with developers on smaller tablet touch screen displays for several months now.  Are they testing a smaller iPad prototype?  I sure hope so!

More Smaller iPad Rumors

TechCrunch Says Smaller iPad is Coming

Venture Beat Says Eight Inch iPad Will Be Released

Mobile Internet Use to Overtake Desktop Use

You’ve probably been hearing about how hot “mobile search” is. As a matter of fact, mobile internet use will overtake desktop internet usage in the very near future. The graph to the left projects it to happen as early as next year. So, what does that mean if you are marketing online?  It means you better optimize your website for mobile use.  If you don’t, mobile users are going to leave your website in a hurry.

If you’ve ever used your smart phone on a non-mobile friendly web page, it’s not too much fun.  On a touch screen phone, you have to pinch, zoom and slide the content around to read the page.  So, does that mean you’re going to have create a whole new website to make it easy to use on a mobile device?  Not necessarily.

WordPress Can Make Your Real Estate Website Mobile Friendly

WordPress is a fantastic platform to run your website on.  As a matter of fact, you can see down at the footer of this page, it’s my preferred website platform (this site as well as several others I manage all operate on WordPress).  A few of the great things about WordPress are the ease of use for non-techie users, the amount of customization you can do to your site, and the low cost.  You don’t have to know any html/css (but it helps), there are literally hundreds of thousands of plugins (tools to help make your website more functional and user friendly) to customize your site with, and if you self-host your site (and you should), it’s only about $10 per month.  I believe all of those are good enough reasons to switch to WordPress if you are using some other platform for your real estate website.

What WordPress Plugins Will Optimize My Website for Mobile Devices?

There are a few good WordPress plugins that I’ve seen to make your optimize your website for mobile devices.  Some of them are free and some of them are premium plugins that you must pay for.  Most of the plugins I use are free, but occasionally I come across plugins that are worth paying for.  And even if the free plugins are “free”, it doesn’t hurt to send the developer a small donation for providing something to you for free that will make your website better.  As a matter of fact, I encourage sending them a donation if you really like their plugin.  A guy (or gal) has gotta eat!

One downside of using a mobile plugin is that it might reformat sidebar “call to action” links.  If you are building a list with a “call to action” marketing links in your sidebars,  you might want to adjust your strategy.  On my real estate sites that I am using to prospect buyers or sellers, I add a “call to action” in almost every blog post I make.  That way when someone hits my mobile site, they still see at least one marketing link I wanted them to see on my side bar.  Most of the mobile plugins I’ve seen strip out the sidebar to keep the mobile site clean and simple.

WP Touch Mobile Plugin for WordPress

Personally, my favorite mobile plugin is WP Touch.  I have it installed on this site, so if you have your phone handy, give it a try to see how it looks.  WP Touch also supports Google Adsense if you are monetizing your blog with advertising.

This plugin has a free version, which I’m currently using, and a WP Touch”Pro” version with a couple of different pricing options.  If you want to host a forum and use it on multiple sites, you might want to pay for the pro version.  It’s reasonably priced so it’s worth a small investment for advanced bloggers.  If you want to stay with the free version, you can install it from the link below.

WP Touch Free Mobile Plugin for WordPress

WordPress Mobile Pack Plugin

WordPress Mobile Pack is another plugin I have used and is very similar to WP Touch, and it is a very easy to use and functional plugin as well.  Here are a few features that the developer states:  ”It includes a mobile switcher to select themes based on the type of user that is visiting the site, a selection of mobile themes, extra widgets, device adaptation and a mobile administration panel to allow users to edit the site or write new posts when out and about.”

You can check it out at the following link.  WordPress Mobile Pack Plugin

Wapple Architect Mobile Plugin for WordPress

One thing you might not like about the WP Touch or Mobile Theme Pack is that it slightly changes the look of your WordPress theme.  That’s not necessarily a bad thing, but if you want to keep a consistent look with your blog give Wapple Architect Mobile plugin a try.  Any theme you have installed will be carried across to your mobile site giving you a consistent look and feel for all of your website visitors.

Why Wapple Architect is different than other mobile plugins:

• Other mobile plugins for WordPress use a default mobile style which results in an inconsistent experience for your users, Wapple Architect Mobile plugin for WordPress retains the styling of your site from web to mobile.
• There’s no redirection to a mobile version of the blog – URLs are exactly the same on web and mobile giving you the ability to promote and use one single domain!
• No transcoding happens here – the mobile version is written in WAPL (an advanced mobile markup language) that results in a completely tailored solution perfect for your mobile visitors.
• Other plugins try to replicate every single feature and plugin you’ve installed onto the mobile version. We know what mobile users want and have written this plugin with that in mind – the result is a far better user experience.

It’s Simple to Make Your Website Mobile

If you’ve been procrastinating about making your website optimized for mobile devices, STOP! Do it today! It’s not that hard, and if you’re already using WordPress, it will take you about five minutes tops.

ADT Security Referral Program Offers Real Estate Professionals Referral Income

ADT Security Referral Program for Real Estate Professionals

Most real estate professionals know the importance of developing multiple streams of income…especially in this market!  ADT Security offers an exceptional referral program for real estate pros to earn up front referral fees plus long term residual income. The program is similar to what many home warranty companies offer to Realtors® when they refer a home warranty to one of their clients.  Click the image to the left to learn more about it.

It gives you a chance to increase your real estate ancillary income, by paying you $125 for every client who signs up with for the ADT alarm system and monitoring.  Not only is that higher than what you receive for referring a home warranty, the referral program is even better due to a little residual twist.  For every referral partner you refer (another real estate professional who offers the security systems to their clients), you earn $25 for each alarm system they refer to ADT.  This is only a single level residual payout and does not have a multi-level structure (if they refer a referral partner, you don’t receive anything from any of their sign ups).

Offer Your Real Estate Clients Discounts on ADT Security Systems

Increase Your Referral Income with ADT Pays

ADT Security is the number one security company in the world serving over six million customers.  With crime rates up, it makes sense for home owners to protect their largest investment as well as give them peace of mind that their family is going to be safe with alarm monitoring.  By being a part of the ADT Pays Referral Program, you can offer your real estate clients (or anyone for that matters), a nice discount off of their security systems plus you get paid.

The ADT alarm systems and monitoring are extremely high tech.  They have systems that allow you to install an app to your smart phone and connect to a video camera in your home.  That way you can see what’s going on in your house without actually being there.  With this advanced alarm system you can also turn on and off lamps to make your home appear that someone is home.  ADT also offers fire and carbon monoxide monitoring.

How Does the ADT Referral Program Work?

The referral program is very simple. Once you sign up and are approved, you get access to the ADT Pays back office. There you can download and order flyers to hand out to your clients or prospects. Your first fifty flyers are free, and after your first sale, you can order more.

On the flyer is an 800 number with a referral code. You or your client calls the number and ADT makes the appointment for you. Then your ADT rep is notified to contact the client to set up the appointment. You don’t have to worry about any of the technical aspects of the alarm systems, because your assigned ADT rep does all of the selling for you. Once he/she sells the system, you get paid in about thirty days. If you sell an alarm system and a home warranty, this could add $200 to each home sale you make.

ADT Pays Referral Partners Earns You Additional Residual Commissions

As I mentioned earlier, the extra special thing about the ADT Pays program is the ability to earn residual income. All you have to do is tell a friend or associate about the program and have them sign up. They even offer flyers to had out to your real estate associates. If you’ve been in the business for a year or two, you’ve probably got at least one hundred real estate professionals you network with.  You could tell a Realtor® friend, real estate investor, HVAC guy, electrician, or any type of professional who deals with homes and home owners.

Once they sign up and make a referral sale, you earn $25.  This $25 is residual income.  You tell your real estate friend/associate about the ADT Referral Program and they sign up one time.  Then every time they make a referral sale, you earn $25.  Pretty sweet.  So sign up at the following link and let’s start increasing our real estate referral ancillary income together.  Sign up for ADT Pays Referral Program

Extensions/Plug-ins/Add-ons make Gmail more useful

Screenshot of Rapportive.com

So, now that I’ve got you on board to switch your pop 3/imap email to Gmail, lets look at another great feature.   Since Gmail is web based, you can use your browser of choice whether it’s Google Chrome (my personal fav), Mozilla Firefox, Apple Safari, Internet Explorer (not sure why anyone chooses that one!), Opera, or any other browser.  That means  there are extensions/add ons/plug-ins to make it more useful.  I just found this gmail plugin/extension and thought you might want to check it out.

Rapportive makes Gmail whistle Dixie

I know if you are a real estate professional you spend a lot of time on your email and most likely social media sites.  Rapportive is pretty slick, because it adds social media profiles to your Gmail contacts.  When you open up an email from a business associate, you have the option of connecting your social media profiles, linkedin, facebook, twitter, google+ and others to your contact.  This allows you to see right in your Gmail account what your contact is talking about online with their social media accounts.

Rapportive as a CRM (Customer Relationship Management) Tool

CRM is a pretty big deal for real estate professionals.  Many real estate pros have been able to sell their book of business when they are ready to retire, because they managed their database well.  Rapportive is another tool you can add to help you with your CRM tasks.

Rapportive Replaces Gmail Ads with Contact’s Social Media Profiles

You know I love Gmail, but one of the bad things about free online tools is they are usually supported by ads.  Gmail is no different, but when you add Rapportive to your browser extensions, the ads in the sidebar are gone and your contact’s social media profiles are added.  That alone may be reason enough to add this to your must have gmail add-ons.

Do you have other Gmail plug-ins to recommend to our users?  I would appreciate your comments below.

Got Gmail?

Have you been wondering if there is a better solution for your email?  It’s time to for you to consider Gmail.  Let’s face it…we’re all inundated with way too many emails, but it’s a necessary, and sometimes primary, form of communication for real estate professionals.  Most of us are constantly checking our email morning, noon and night whether at home or on the go.

Personally, I converted to Gmail from Outlook over a year ago, because I got tired of having problems with Outlook/Windows Mail.  Dude…Gmail is sooooooo much better!  And if you have your own domain, you can still send email like it’s coming from your domain not gmail.  If you’re still using Outlook/Windows Mail, you should kick it to the curb and use Gmail.

Gmail is email in the cloud

For the last few years, you’ve heard everyone talking about cloud computing.   Many software applications that were necessary a few years ago, are now available online and many of them for free.  Gmail is no different.  One great thing about cloud computing is that it eliminates a lot of wasted storage and resources of your computer.  Without the Outlook taking up precious computer memory and resources, your computer should actually be faster.

Gmail chews up the spam and spits it out!

One of the reasons I switched from Outlook to Gmail was spam.  I got tired of receiving so much spam (yes, I had the Microsoft spam blocker turned on but it sucks!) and much of it was inappropriate.  I have kids, and couldn’t leave my email open at home because I didn’t know what might come up on the screen and scar them for life.

Some organizations pay big bucks to fight spam.  As a matter of fact, I’m on a Tech/Communications committee at our local Board of Realtors® in Winston-Salem, NC.   The committee found out this week that they are paying almost $500 per year to BLOCK SPAM!  That’s ridiculous, because Gmail does it for F-R-E-E!

Gmail syncs your email on your smart phone, desktop, tablet or anything else…

Of course almost every real estate professional checks their email on the go.  (Yes, I said almost.  I have seen some agents and investors using flip phones in 2012.  Come on people!  Join us in the 21st century!).  When I was using Outlook and my smart phone to check email, I would get really tired of having to open emails multiple times so they would appear “read”.  When you’re checking your email frequently  and you don’t have to worry about checking email on your smart phone, coming back to your desktop/Outlook and finding unread emails that have really been read (huge headache!).  I even paid for an imap email solution for awhile to sync my emails.  If that’s a thorn in your side with Outlook, no worries.  Gmail handles all of that for you.  You can check your email on your iPhone, iPad, Android phone, Android tablet, PC, Mac, etc.  When you go to use a different device, those emails you read earlier, will actually show as “read” and not new.

Sync Your Contacts with Gmail

One of the reasons I used to use Outlook was for contact management.  Gmail offers that as well, and allows you to sync your contacts to your phone whether you are using a Blackberry (dying by the way side), iPhone or Android smart phone.  You can also create multiple lists in your contacts if you want to separate your clients from your prospects and vendors.  If I need a repair done on a house and I’m out in the field, it’s easy just to go to the contacts on my phone and pull up the “Home Improvement” list.

Gmail rules!

I hope you can see the advantages of using Gmail over Outlook/Windows Mail or any other pop 3/imap email.  Since, Gmail is web based, there are also other extensions/add-ons/plug-ins that will make your email sizzle.  We’ll talk more about those on a different post.  Here are a few listed on the Google Gmail Blog.  Gmail really will help you save time and be more productive.  Let me know how you like using Gmail or any tips you have to make it better in the comments below.

Google Drive Gives You Instant Access to Your Google Docs

Google announced today that they have entered the cloud storage arena to compete with Dropbox, Sugar Sync, Box, Sky Drive.   and others.  The service will offer 5 gb for free and allow you to save documents, photos, videos, pdf’s and other files.  You can actually open about 3o different file types including Photoshop.  That means you don’t have to have Photoshop installed on your computer, but yet you can view a Photoshop file.  Pretty cool!

Google Drive will also allow you to drag and drop files into the folder to sync with other devices much like Dropbox.  Google Drive is available now for PC, Mac, Android, and will be available soon for the iPhone and iPad.

Users start with a free 5GB of storage; you can upgrade to 25GB for $2.49/month, 100 GB for $4.99/month, or 1TB for $49.99/month. If you get a paid account, you also get  25GB extra Gmail storage.  Not too shabby!

Google Drive Integrates with Google Docs and Google+

Google Drive comes with Google Docs built right in, so it’s easy to share files and collaborate with other users.  It’s also easy to post photos right to Google+.

Google Drive Video

Google Drive even comes with it’s own video.  Check it out below.

Finally an MLS Search that doesn’t need Internet Explorer!

Photo Courtesy of Core Logic: Use Fusion MLS with Macs, Google Chrome, Firefox, etc

I know from the popularity of several posts I’ve made on using a Mac to search Tempo MLS, that many other Realtors® and real estate agents are looking for a better way to use their Macs and ditch Internet Explorer.  Well, have I got good news!  Our local Triad MLS recently implemented Core Logic’s Fusion MLS Search Platform.  Fusion is an open MLS platform that allows you to use a Mac, Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Apple Safari, Opera or most any other browser for that matter.  There are also iPhone and iPad apps to use Fusion MLS on the go.

I love my Mac! But…

I’ve had a Mac for almost three years, and I really like the Apple operating system.  It just works better.  There’s no spinning hour glass and waiting for programs or sites to open (except when I open 20+ tabs in my browser, which I’m bad about doing!).  I had been considering switching my other PC’s and laptops over to Macs, but as a Realtor® the negative was using our MLS to search local real estate listings.  The Tempo MLS requires Internet Explorer to search the MLS.  There was a work around, as you can see from my other posts, but it just didn’t work great.  There was always a lag.

Fusion MLS for Macs, Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Apple Safari, etc.

Several weeks ago, I got a preview of the Fusion MLS and man was I excited!  It works great with my Mac and my preferred browser, Chrome.  If you’re familiar with Tempo 5 MLS, then the learning curve for Fusion should be pretty low, because they’re very similar.  You can customize searches and set up notifications for yourself or clients.  You can also do quick CMA’s and run multiple searches simultaneously which is pretty slick.  I can’t tell you enough how much it will make your MLS real estate search so much better!

Fusion MLS Search Features

Here are the features of Fusion MLS provided by CoreLogic.com:

• Multi-tasking:  the ability to edit multiple listings, run multiple searches, etc.
• Three-way integration between Search Results, Mapping and Images
• Easy-to-use map shape drawing tools, points of interest, and informative overlays
• Demographic content and charts
• Auto-generated Quick CMA
• Email/home page notifications triggered by website activity
• Reverse Real Estate Prospecting
• Uploading multiple images for a single listing simultaneously
• An image editor with rotation, brightness and contrast controls
• Document upload via Fax cover page option
• Listing statistics that show the number of MLS views, IDX views, times added to Favorites, etc.

If you have been looking for a better way to search the MLS on your Mac or other internet browser , I would highly recommend getting in touch with someone on your MLS committee at your local real estate board.   Let them know there’s a new MLS Search Platform that is available for Macs, Chrome, Firefox, etc.  Tell them to get Core Logic Fusion!  I’m sure you will love it too!

Evernote will help you be more productive in your real estate business

Photo courtesy of evernote.com

I’ve been using Evernote for about a year and a half, and now it’s one of those apps I can’t live without. It’s great for taking notes on the go and then accessing it on your computer, iphone, ipad, android phone/tablet or online later. Evernote keeps everything in sync in the cloud and on all of your devices.  It’s a versatile app that you can use for business, school or in your personal life.

You can use Evernote for school to take notes or record audio from your teacher so you can listen to it again later (but don’t sleep in class even though you can listen to his lecture later!).  It makes a great backup in case your laptop hard drive ever crashes.

If you use Google Chrome or Firefox, there is an extension/add on which is excellent for browsing the web and clipping those things you would like to read or access later.  And you can even attach an audio recording for your personal notes.

3 Tips for Using Evernote for Business and Real Estate

PCWorld.com had an excellent article recently on 3 Smart Ways to Use Evernote in Business .  The first tip was to use it as a Receipt Manager.  Wow!  I just had an “aha moment”.  Just ask my wife about me and receipts.  We don’t get along so well!  I know this tip is going to help me tremendously!

The second tip was to use Evernote as a Digital File Cabinet.  It really makes a fabulous digital file cabinet.  You can store the electronic version of the manuals of all of your electronic gear in an Evernote notebook.  You can save Word files, PDF’s and most any other document file on Evernote. If you work with an assistant or virtual assistant in your real estate business, Evernote makes it easy to share those important files.

The third tip was to use Evernote as a Word Processor.  This is probably how I use Evernote the most.  Many people use Google Docs for their online documents, but Evernote might be better because it’s so easy to access from all of your devices.  In my opinion, Google Docs is a little harder to access from your smartphone than the Evernote app.  You can use it to take notes on the go with all of your real estate clients.

Evernote also makes it easy to share with your business colleagues and other real estate agents or investors.  Maybe you come up with a process that helps streamline your real estate business.  If you are mentoring other agents or investors, Evernote is an excellent way to share that idea or collaborate with others your are working with.

Evernote for Real Estate

So, as you can see, there are many different applications to use Evernote in your real estate business. Are any of you using this powerful app for Real Estate? If so, I would love to hear how you’re using Evernote to be more productive in your real estate business. Please comment below!

I’m up for a new phone in June.  I’ve been debating between a new Android phone like the Samsung Galaxy S II or the new iPhone 4S.  I’ve been using an HTC EVO and like the larger screen, so I was leaning toward the larger Samsung phone because of the 4.6 inch screen.  But Reuters is reporting the next iPhone (iphone 5) will have a larger 4.6 inch retina display.  Sweet!  I may have to go with the iPhone this time.  Most sources believe the next latest and greatest iPhone will be released 2nd quarter 2012.  I believe iPhone’s iOS operating system is probably more stable than Android’s so I believe I’m going to give it a try.  What do you think.  Would you like an iPhone with a larger screen?  Be sure to leave your comments below.

Read the full Reuters article:  Next iPhone to have 4.6 inch retina display