Realty World Northern California & Nevada

Now that we’re a few months into 2010 and moving ahead with great new products and services, we wanted to take a look back and thank all of the hard-working real estate professionals that make up Realty World NCA, including those who chose to renew with us in 2009, and to those who joined the franchise, putting their trust in us during tumultuous times.

Please join us welcoming these new offices and congratulating those that chose to renew!

New Realty World NCA Offices for 2009

Office Name Broker/Owner Location

Image by Getty Images via Daylife

Today’s top story from RISMedia is a story about short sale buyers and their troubles. Much of this stems from buyers trying to secure short sale deals under the extended tax credit.

Take a look at this story by Mary Shanklin and the Orland Sentinel here.

More than ever, due to dramatic changes in the economy over the past two years, the principles of credibility and trust are essential in building, or in many instances rebuilding, relationships. No matter what profession you are in, there are many people you reach in the business world who are struggling during these times.

Realizing that the pendulum is constantly swinging, the time has come to re-evaluate our professional model. Honestly, no one knows which direction the pendulum is moving. It is time to adjust from traditional relationship building processes and move toward building long-term relationships that are not pressure-based on one hand and taken for granted on another.

The economy of today needs to be understood fully by all in society through continuous study. With this, you will be ready to transfer hope to those you service, build relationships through educating and enlightening individuals to give them the direction and confidence they need to make home buying and selling decisions. From this, you build trust, loyalty and credibility, and become the source of direction and confidence in this interesting time.

Build confidence in those around you and be in front of people, in all forms of media, so they can grow from your knowledge and offerings. People want direction from people they can trust – make that person you.

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The press release announcing Karl Lee as the Santa Clara County Association of Realtors President for 2010 has been released today. We at Realty World NCA are proud to have Karl selected for such an honorable and respected position in the real estate and professional community.

Take a look at the press release here.

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It’s often said that imitation is the most sincere form of flattery. I tend to disagree when it comes to real estate. Regurgitation shows a distinct lack of originality and initiative to find out what people in your location, neighborhood, market outlook want and need. Copying the competition means your competition doesn’t have competition, they have a watered down version of the their own brand and consumers know it. Copying your competition means you’re not willing to think outside of the box or too afraid to act on the outside of the box thinking you may have.

If you’re going to copy someone – copy thinkers from other industries who have implemented great process, innovation and communications tools. Copy their spirit of change, willingness to be wrong and the way they embrace the shifts the market throws at them.

Gone are the days of all real estate agents being the same, a faceless mass of people who don’t know or care about what consumers want. Here are the days of Realtors as individuals, distinguishing themselves in their community as valued members of a productive, people-focused group.

This is where things NEED to be headed. This is what people want, the people that pay your commissions. I know, because I’m one of them.

Image by maistora via Flickr

I’ve always believed that the business world is a lot like dating and relationships. That has its good points and bad but there are a lot of things both of these world could learn from one another. The biggest one that both need to learn is loyalty.

In relationships, when we first start dating we’re wooed by the opposite sex with their best attire, wittiest remarks and engaging conversations. They spend money on us, bring us flowers and go out of their way to make us happy. Within a year’s time, people have settled into who they really are, sometimes this works out well because we grow closer based on shared foibles, and appreciate the person’s little eccentricities. Other times we wonder when Dr. Jekyll switched with Mr. Hyde and feel fooled by someone’s initial act.

This happens in business all the time. We’re lured away from existing services or to new gadgets with slick advertising, marketing gimmicks and giveaways. We’re told that the first six months of service are only $19.99, that we’ll pay no money down, etc.

I’m stumped.

Instead of rewarding the customers that stick around for longer than marketing gimmicks and short term offers, we give the best stuff to the people most likely to leave! Why not give people fair upfront pricing and guarantee them that as they remain loyal you guarantee their price will never increase or that they will receive increased services or perks for loyalty? Surprisingly, the hospitality industry is one of the few to catch onto this the right way. If you use a brand that has a rewards program you can earn free stays, upgrades, food, spa services, etc. The longer you’re a member the higher your status typically.

So, what’s this have to do with real estate and social media? I know Realtors can’t offer people free houses for loyal service, but there should be some real incentives for loyalty and referrals.

In order to make that a worthwhile proposition, you have to actually get a lot of referrals and repeat business and make some money from it! So, here are some thoughts on how you can create loyalty:

• Be yourself from the get-go. If you’re putting on an act when you first meet someone or in your social media outlets, people will feel you’ve been dishonest when they get to know you better and find you to be something other than what you started as.
• Provide great service the first time and every time. People remember who gave them knowledgeable and friendly service.
• Be honest about pricing, how you’re paid, what’s fair and ways they can save money. People don’t mind paying for things as much if they know what they’re paying for and why.
• Remember the little things. If someone tells you about their dogs, kids, hobbies, or travels it’s because they want to share it with you. Write it down on their business card or customer file and be sure to ask about it next time you’re in touch. If someone with a pet purchases a home from you, be sure to include a little something for Fido and Mittens in the home when they move in.
• Use social media to keep in touch with ease. Friend them on Facebook, connect with them on LinkedIn, find a way to stay in touch and make a calendar reminder to touch base at least once a month to see how they’re doing.
• Be a loyal person. Don’t just expect loyalty, be loyal to your favorite organizations, businesses and service providers. Recommend them when someone is looking for services and maintain good relationships.

Reward loyalty and be loyal to your customers and favorite companies and vendors as well – it’s just good business.

A few companies that I’ve had positive loyalty interactions with – in case you’re looking!

• Nordstrom
• Volkswagen
• Hilton Hotels
• Target
• Silk Nail Salon in San Francisco
• Kimpton Hotels – also pet friendly!
• Kildaire Animal Hospital in North Carolina (bulldog specialist on board!)

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I always get a little frustrated at the end of the year because it seems like resolutions are all about reminding you what you’ve done wrong the last 365 days. “I ate too much so I need to lose weight.” “I spent too much so I need to save.” And on and on it goes… reminding us of what we’ve done wrong and how we could, no, SHOULD, be doing better.

Well I’m sick of it. I’d like to celebrate some of the stuff people have done right and I’d love an agent or broker that did it too. Here are some ways you can help home buyers and sellers feel good about starting the year.

• Congratulate all the people that bought a home on achieving their piece of the American Dream. Remind them that they have already accomplished a huge milestone!
• Give a hi-five to those that managed to sell their homes with you this year – letting them know that selling a home in this market was no small feat!
• Reach out to those that have contacted you this year and congratulate them on taking the first step toward one of the biggest purchases of their life and give them kudos for making home ownership a priority.
• Send thank you’s and a pat on the back to your family and friends for sticking with you through a rough economy and for being a big part of your life.

Give these reaffirmations a try when you’re pondering those resolutions. You’ll start the year off with a smile.

I’m sitting in a social media presentation at NAR and I notice that Realtors that started out the session feverishly taking notes are now looking defeated, overwhelmed, annoyed or all three. This is one of the fundamental problems that I wrestle with about conferences dedicated to real estate that toss in a few social media or technology tracks and expect that people are going to garner a lot of useful information in an hour or two on a subject that was already scary to them.

So what can you do if you’re one of the agents or brokers that feels defeated after attending a session, reading social media news online, or talking to colleagues that urge you to get involved in social media and technology? I’m going to try to help! Below are a few steps to lower the FUD factor (fear, uncertainty and doubt) that might help make sense of it all:

1. STOP. Breathe. You don’t have to sign up for every social media site all at once. You don’t even have to sign up for one until you’re comfortable with it.
2. Take a look around at some social media or online outlets (like blogs) of people you know. See what you like, don’t like, what kinds of information is being passed back and forth. This will help you see what’s already out there and narrow down what you want to contribute to.
3. Look at some online sites that are successful, here are a few: TechCrunch, BoingBoing, and Hulu – see how these sites (rated among the best 100 sites in the world) are interacting with people. Most of the content people really want is user generated or allows them to interact directly with it. (Tech Crunch’s site is actually a blog!)
4. Pick ONE form of social media to start out using. My suggestion would be blogging and Facebook, but do what works for you, what you love participating in – because you’ll have much more success on social media with an outlet you like.
5. Once you’ve chosen an outlet, be committed to that outlet on a daily basis. Build a real community, friends, followers, etc. in that area BEFORE you join any other social media. Once you have made that social media second nature and have regular conversations with connections, adding a second or third social media outlet will seem much less daunting.

In the coming days, I’ll post a series of blog posts that will help you figure out how to blog in 10-15 minutes per day, not annoy people on Facebook or Twitter, how to pick the right social media tool for you, and most of all - how to ensure that this becomes a part of your life – not your whole life. Because at the end of the day, you are a much more interesting, successful and happy person, both on and offline, if you have a life beyond Facebook.

(So don’t listen if you’ve heard that you have to give up nights, weekends, TV, time with your kids, etc. You don’t. I promise.)

Feel free to reach out to me if you have additional questions, concerns of fears. I’ve been working with tech and social media for longer than I care to mention publicly and you can find me on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn or you can email me at erin.robbins@rwnc.net.

After a full week of CAR Conference related activities in San Jose, I left feeling exhausted and quite honestly a bit weary about the road ahead. I visited ReBarCamp Silicon Valley, Tech Tuesday, the CAR Expo and a number of networking events where the talk often turned to the economy, questions about how to implement the vast array of “must have” technologies” touted by “gurus” and the dwindling attendance at this year’s event.

I began to feel a sense of despair… we had so far to go through a rough economic climate, how would we survive and, moreover, how would we thrive? I decided to take a step back and to regroup, so I headed out to find a cup of coffee and my sanity.

While I sat there thinking over the hurdles we have yet to clear – getting everyone a base level of online training, integrating existing marketing practices with the new ones to come, and creating a solid focus for the industry to foster a high standard of excellence for the real estate profession – I found hope. I looked around at the people that had taken the time and money to come to the conference, the fervor of agents of all ages to learn new things, and the mentoring of generations throughout the field, and thought, at least we’re on the track and getting into the race.

So, how can we get things running smoothly? Here are some things I would recommend for conferences and any other training:

1. Know what you know, and make sure others know it too. One of the biggest frustrations I hear (at CAR and beyond) is that courses are either too hard or too easy for the audience attending. Be sure to research what sessions will cover and see if you have the skills/technology necessary to participate. If the course is too basic look for something advanced or attend a session on a topic that you haven’t tried and discover something new! Don’t be afraid to let conference or training officials know what you want from your experience. They don’t know what we don’t tell them!
2. Participate. You will only get out of a learning opportunity what you’re willing to put in. If you have questions, would like to participate in a discussion or feel confused – raise your hand, send an email or get in touch with the presenter to be sure your concerns are met.
3. Be in the moment. This means turning off and putting away your cell phone, computer, etc. Putting any preconceived notions aside and really listening to speakers – if you still don’t agree or don’t learn something of value at least you’ve done all you can!

People love seeing people, places and things they recognize on film. This isn’t a groundbreaking statement, yet most Realtors still aren’t integrating video with their home listings.

WHY NOT!? (Sorry, I’m just shocked by it.)

Video cameras are too expensive? – False. You can get a FlipCam for under $200 and it plugs straight into your computer, shoots in high definition, and will take up to two hours of filming.

You think it won’t work. – False. Being able to virtually walk through a property gives potential buyers a stronger sense of the home than seeing static pictures. This also means they know more about the home before contacting you, fewer unqualified leads.

Sellers don’t care. - False. You tell people that you’ll be featuring their home listing on a video and syndicating it out on YouTube, Dailymotion, and MetaCafe – which can provide billions of views per day – they will be excited to work with you. They’ll want to pass out the video to friends, family and colleagues!

At Realty World NCA, we provide a professional, full service video team that will come to your town, property and/or office and create videos for you. The kinds of videos we offer include: listing videos where you can be on camera or simply tell the videographer what you may like and they will narrate, city videos where you show off your community and provide it to incoming buyers to get them acquainted with the area, and office videos that serve to allow new recruits and potential clients to get to know you and your staff a bit better.

If you don’t have these services, consider investing in a FlipCam by Flip Video. The tool is easy to use, smaller than most cell phones, and makes videos on the go a cinch.

Got questions about videos? Contact me and I’ll answer your questions or put you in touch with our video professionals for more technical issues.