Agent Nation

How to update Twitter from Facebook pages

2010-09-04T12:07:00.001-04:00

Interesting article on how to use facebook for lead generation.

2010-09-04T11:43:00.001-04:00

These days, a large and growing portion of some of the most valuable demographics are spending more of their time and attention on Facebook and less on other channels and media. Not only are US college students and teenagers fully engaged in Facebook, but adults, professionals, and people from around the world now constitute a substantial portion of the Facebook user-base as well.

To read more goto:
http://www.articlealley.com/article_1547948_64.html

Social Media Revolution 2!

2010-08-22T15:46:00.000-04:00

I loved the first one! Now they are back!

How social media changed Real Estate marketing!

2010-08-22T15:35:00.001-04:00

You might have to turn the volume up a little on this.

How Social Media Changed The Real Estate Marketing Plan from Matthew Gosselin on Vimeo.

The Social Media Revolution

2009-09-04T15:32:00.001-04:00

AgentNation Outside Sales Positions Available

2009-07-27T23:46:00.004-04:00

Agent Nation is seeking motivated and driven Field Representatives to present services to real estate professionals. The Field Representative will be responsible for building, increasing and retaining the client base. Field Representatives work closely with real estate professionals to educate them about Agent Nation and assist with account subscription. The right candidate will be familiar with the real estate industry and be very comfortable with internet applications.

• Must have previous outside sales experience.
• Must have reliable transportation, valid driver’s license and automobile insurance.
• Strong presentation skills are necessary for this position.
• Must be able to communicate well in person as well as on the phone.
• Computer and internet skills necessary.
• Working knowledge of Office applications necessary.
• Knowledge of the real estate industry a plus.

Compensation:
This position has a very aggressive, 100% commission based compensation plan. Target income is 55K to 75K depending on experience.

What is AgentNation:
Agent Nation is a place to build a successful real estate career through collaboration and use of valuable tools. It is professional networking, dynamic marketing, and business management. Agent Nation is powered by a group of professional real estate entrepreneurs striving to enable real estate professionals to succeed. AgentNation’s dynamic virtual tour tools allow an agent to create and promote unlimited listings for one flat fee of $89 per year.

Additional information:
Sample Listing Presentation:
http://www.agentnation.com/vt/87

Video Overview

Email PDF resume to: HR@AgentNation.com

05.01.09 Updates New Features

2009-05-01T21:07:00.003-04:00

Greetings once again, its your friendly neighborhood systems engineer reporting on the newest feature additions to AgentNation.

You may have noticed that you can comment on Activities now. We think this will be fun and help keep you in the loop.

We have also implemented the capability for you to see the friends of your friends. To do this simply click on Network, and click on the link labeled "Friends" under each persons name. AgentNation is about relationships, we hope this feature helps you to connect with colleagues and find friends across the globe.

One really minor change we made addressed a slight quirk withe the Facebook section of your Profile. On certain occasions it would complain, we have taken care of that now.

There were lots of little things we did in addition to all the above to make AgentNation faster than ever.

Finally, I hope everyone enjoys these new features, we will continue to add new tools about every week or two, so if you have any suggestions, please share. We love pony requests!

Hope everyone gets to enjoy the May flowers!

Preview of AgentNation and beta info.

2009-03-26T18:44:00.003-04:00

If you are interested in participating as a beta tester e-mail JTurner@AgentNation.com with your information. We are looking for a number of Agents to load their listings and provide feedback about the processes and functionality.

Beta Testing Has Begun

2009-03-25T17:21:00.003-04:00

Agent Nation has begun beta testing. Utilizing a group of professionals in the real estate industry across the nation, Agent Nation will work to identify current strengths and accept any suggestions from actual users of the network. Feedback to date has been positive as we make minor changes based on user interaction. We want to thank the individuals that have taken the time to join the beta group and provide ideas for this exciting professional network connecting agents to opportunity. We look forward to the full launch to occur soon!

Photo Taking Tips

2009-03-10T10:45:00.005-04:00

We all know how important it is to take photos of your listings. Statistics show that listings without images on line receive fewer views than those listings with not only photos, but virtual tours. You do not need the most expensive or state of the art photography equipment to take great photos of your listings. Here are a few tips to get you started:

Show Natural Light

Dark house pictures are always annoying, and buyers want to see natural light. You can always turn on a lamp or two to create artificial illumination, but natural sunlight makes for better pictures and will show buyers just what they are missing. Before taking pictures of your home for sale, open the blinds, remove the curtains, and let the sunlight in! Just make sure that you're always taking pictures with the light behind you to avoid glare.

Minimize Furniture

A cluttered house is almost as obnoxious as a dark house, so even if your home for sale often looks like a museum, move the furniture for pictures. The living room, for example, should contain only a couch, a love seat, a coffee table and an entertainment center to be entirely effective. Move everything else into another room while you shoot, if not for later showings. Furthermore, a room with a color theme will always photograph better than one without.

Show Off Your Yard

As well as taking pictures of the interior of your home for sale, consider taking a few shots of the front and back yards. Prospective buyers will want to see what you've done with the landscaping, and those with children will feel better knowing there's a place for the kids to play. House pictures should be as well-rounded as possible. Furthermore, make sure you snap photos of unique landscaping, such as a deck or pool.

Clear the Clutter

No one wants to see last night's pizza boxes in pictures of your home for sale, nor do they want to know that you have six-inch-thick mold growing on your bathroom sink. Before you start to take house pictures, hire a maid or learn how to clean up yourself to avoid the embarrassment (and lack of buyers) that is certain to ensue if you don't.

Avoid Corners

People don't want to see the corners of your bedrooms, living room or kitchen; instead, the want to see the entire room, or as much of it as you can fit in one shot. Standing in door ways to get the majority of the room in your house pictures is the way to go. If that doesn't work, open a window and snap the shot from outside.

Get Close-Ups

In addition to taking the room-at-a-glance shots (see above), your home for sale should also showcase close-ups of the important stuff. The sink and appliances, for example, and the shower in the master bath are appropriate. I'm not saying that buyers want to see the individual rings on your stovetop burners, but be realistic and liberal with the camera.

Get on Board!

2009-03-03T15:10:00.000-05:00

According to a survey by California based staffing firm Accountemps, Keeping employees up to speed may be the best way to boost their moods during hard times. The survey polled 150 senior executives from the nations 1,000 largest companies, and nearly half of all respondents said that better company-wide communication is the best remedy for low morale. Thirty-three said a lack of open, honest communication in the workplace had the most negative effect on workers' attitudes.

Happiness Runs In A Circular Motion

2009-02-23T15:09:00.000-05:00

A study published in BMJ, a British medical journal, indicates that people to which you are connected have a lot to do with your happiness. The research is the latest investigation into how our social connections-neighbors, friends, family, co-workers, fellow congregants at church and other associates-affect us. The premise is that we live in a social environment that shapes what we do and how we think and feel. The primary finding of the study indicates that people who are surrounded by happy people are more likely to be happy themselves.

Go Green with a Virtual Assistant

2009-02-18T15:08:00.001-05:00

Go Green! It is a term we hear constantly in the media and on the streets. It is a responsibility of which to be proud! In today’s society we are hearing more and more about the affect of our actions on the earth and that we must take action now in order to save the earth for future generations.

As research has shown we have a small window to make a difference and we need to act now. We live in a society that does not look into the future, we live in the present. This is a known fact. So, if we are a society that does indeed in live the present, then we need to challenge ourselves to begin looking into the future, if not for us but for our children and our children’s children.

By just making a few changes in our life style we can each make a difference and if each one of us just choose one or two things to help the global warming problem can you imagine what a difference we can make together? HUGE! So, take a few minutes to visit the following links to see how you and your family can begin the process of Going Green.

By teaching the children of today, they will develop compassion to make it a priority to keep our earth safe for future generations.

Interesting fact:

Virtual Assistants are going green everyday! How do we do this?

* We do not pollute our air with carbon monoxide
* Spend less money on gas
* Save trees by using electronic files as opposed to paper files
* Use artificial lighting
* Use recycled materials
* Travel is not expected

The next step you can take in your effort to go green is to go virtual as well!

Get Your E-mail Read

2009-02-12T15:07:00.001-05:00

We all struggle with the fact that some of our e-mails do not get read. One frustration everyone shares is getting people to open their emails. Traditionally we send messages with the headers like “Please vote this year”. Instead, try a different approach and send out the message with the header “Don’t vote this year…” and when the message is opened the header finishes in the email to say “Don’t vote this year…until you read this message”. It’s just human nature; tell someone not to do something and they will. Or better yet, tell them they might have won something and they jump through hoops to open the message. Instead of sending out your next message to say “Our next meeting is” try using an incitement, then when the message is opened it reads…“Attend our meeting this month and you could be the winner”. It gets their attention and most of all gets them to open the emails.

Twitter Tip

2009-02-03T12:27:00.005-05:00

Twitter is one of the newest social media websites on the internet, giving bloggers and other internet users a completely new way to communicate with one another. Twitter is all about micro blogging, or communicating through small, quick spurts of content. Anyone who knows how to benefit from regular blogging formats can also find advantages in using Twitter, which offers the same benefits of blogging but in a quicker and more bite sized format. Here are ten tips for effectively marketing on twitter.

1 - First and foremost, you need to know the difference between posting often and spamming. You do not want to spam Twitter. Instead, you are going to want to post meaningful, relevant and readable content that your subscribers are going to look forward to. Spamming is the ultimate mistake that many twitter marketers end up making early on in their marketing endeavors. Twitter is a social network, not a medium for spamming, and if you overwhelm your readers with spam, no one will stop by anymore. It may be tempting to spam, but you will never benefit from it, so do not waste your time.

2 - Know what you intend to promote when you start posting on Twitter. This is absolutely paramount when it comes to understanding how to get the most out of twitter marketing in order to drive business to your website or your door. If you know your product well, and you understand what it is going to take to market it, then you are already a step ahead of everyone else, and this is a really good place for you to be.

3 - It is vital that you know what kind of information you need to put out there, both when you're writing your own Tweets and when you are responding to the messages of others. When you have a planned out routine for how you will communicate with other businesses online, you will be more successful with Twitter and those who you communicate with on the service.

4 - One of the greatest boosts to your Twitter marketing endeavor will be to learn how to communicate effectively on Twitter. You can use twitter as a medium for conversation, but only if you know how to communicate effectively with those who are reading your Twitter feed.

5 - In order to get the most out of your Twitter marketing endeavor, it is vital that you learn how to participate in the community, communicating properly in the process. Twitter is largely a community based social networking site, so while you may be blogging on the site for your own business purposes, you will not get anywhere unless you are willing to participate in the conversation, communicating with other businesses, consumers and other individuals as well to get the word out about your business and to share something of yourself with the rest of the community.

6 - Make the most out of your account. Create a profile page with a picture and some information about your company. This allows the people who are reading your Twitter feed to get to know you better, which is what social networking sites like Twitter are really all about. The more your readers are able to get to know you, the more likely they will return time and time again to see what you are writing about.

7 - Have a plan going in, if you want to get the most out of your Twitter endeavor. Do some research and get to know what Twitter is really all about before you start posting on your own. Devise a basic outline for posting, and once you have a good solid plan you can get started. The better planned out your endeavor is, the more you will be able to benefit from marketing your business, product or service through Twitter.

8 - Avoid over promoting your product. While you can and should post about your product or service in your twitter posts, do not make this the sole focus of your Twitter account. Post all kinds of relevant information about your company, your products, the industry and anything else that is relevant, rather than overwhelming your readers with posts on a single topic. If you're selling a product and using Twitter to accomplish it, your readers will expect some marketing and product promotion, but you must take absolute care not to overwhelm them with it if you want your readers to continue following your Twitter feed.

9 - Facilitate conversation! Nobody said Twitter had to be all about sharing information; you can also facilitate conversation by asking questions. Take polls, ask thoughtful questions and come up with other unique ways to get your readers to respond to you in order to better market yourself on Twitter. Conversation is an important part of marketing your company through Twitter, so get your readers talking by asking smart questions in search of smart answers.

10 - Follow relevant Twitter feeds. When you "follow" a new Twitter feed, the owner of that feed is notified. By notifying Twitter feed authors that you're reading them, you are cluing them in to your existence, which will build traffic for your own marketing campaign as well.

Follow these ten basic strategies for improving your marketing effort on Twitter and you will notice a big difference in how much traffic Twitter can bring to your business. Marketing on Twitter is not difficult, but there are some basic rules that you need to follow if you want to be successful in such an endeavor. Whether you are selling a product or a service, or just trying to gain attention for your web presence, Twitter is an advantageous way to attract interest in who you are and what your company is all about.

10 Steps to Review Your Website

2009-01-19T09:07:00.002-05:00

Good design may be a matter of taste and taste varies. However, there are some standards that should always be considered when visiting a site or reviewing your own. As the new year begins, it is important to evaluate all aspects of your marketing strategies, including your on-line presences and its effectiveness. If you have only a minute to decide about the overall quality of a website, here are some guidelines to follow:

1. Don't make me think.
When you enter a website, you should understand its purpose in two seconds.
You should be able to navigate through it instantly. Does this apply to the website you have on your screen? Good. If you’re lost, leave the website. No need to continue.

2. WOW factor.
Is the website attractive? Does it make you think: "I like this” You probably found a good website. Most of the websites today are a copy of a copy of a website, so when you find a website with a fresh design concept, give it an extra point.

3. White space
This is the space which is NOT filled with images and text. When a website is completely covered with content, even into the tiniest corners, it is barely legible. The use of more "white space" drastically increases clarity.

4. Navigation
As already mentioned above, a clear navigation system has to answer two questions instantly: 'Where am I?' and 'Where can I go from here?'. If you get this information at a glance, the navigation is great.

5. Typography
This is an area where inexperienced web designers make the most mistakes. Typography should be used to transport content to the reader. The way type is chosen (serif and sans serif) size and appearance, line length, line spacing, and kerning increases or decreases legibility. It is not about how many kinds of type in crammed in the smallest ?available space, but about you, the reader.
Less is more.

6. Grid
How are the web pages organized? Are they organized at all? When text and images are aligned in a way that the overall impression translates into clarity, harmony, and comfort, the website gets credits. A well organized website has an invisible grid underneath it. If content is placed wildly all over the page, the designer probably had no idea where he was going with the design and now neither does the visitor.

7. Colors
There is a science that dictates the rules used for color theory in the graphic design industry. Despite such theory and science, it all comes down to a simple statement: there are colors that fit and others that don't. Colors in web design should be used to emphasize or to support content. When the colors distract the visitor, the design has failed.

8. Consistency
Is the overall visual impression of the website the same from page one to page "end?" Or does the design change drastically? Are text and images displayed differently? The design concept of a website mimics that of a book: it has to be consistent from the first to the last page.

9. Browser Compatibility
All browsers are different, and—sorry, it’s true—they all allow different rules and code in websites. So sometimes websites look good in Firefox but look terrible, or won’t even show up, in Internet Explorer. Professional web designers know this and only use code that will be interpreted in the very same way in all browsers. Check a website in all browsers to see how it performs.

10. Speed
If you can make yourself a cup of tea while you’re waiting for a website to open completely in your browser, there is something amiss. Either you have an extremely slow Internet connection or the website is way "too heavy". Even today, with super high speed Internet, a website should be built light and fast. With today's technology, it is possible to present even the largest images crisp and clear with almost no remarkable problems with file size and website loading times.

If you practice, you can analyze a website quickly by following the 10 points you read above. Practice and sharpen your analytical skills and have fun.

More Search Engine Confusion

2009-01-12T13:47:00.002-05:00

Real Estate professionals often ask what what is Real Estate SEM? Or what is Real Estate SEO? And what is the difference between Real Estate SEM and SEO?

Real Estate SEM and SEO are both effective Internet marketing strategies that have their unique benefits and weaknesses

Real Estate SEM, or search engine marketing, is a broad term that encompasses multiple methods of online marketing. SEM for Real Estate can include paid Internet advertising (pay per click), banner ads, blog postings, paid listings, and natural (or organic) search engine optimization.

immediate results
more expensive in the long run
competitive terms can be pricey
perishable
some Internet users are wary of paid advertising
control of visitor’s landing page
no minimum entry cost

Real Estate SEO, or search engine optimization, is a more specific term for the process of driving website ranking up in search engine’s natural (or organic) results.

no immediate results
cheaper in the long run
non perishable
long term benefits
better long term ROI
financial investment, high entry cost

The greatest benefits can be generated from a combination of SEM and SEO. They both have their strengths and weaknesses which when balanced can bring in the optimum amount of traffic, leads, and sales.

Streamline with Agent Nation

2008-12-30T09:07:00.001-05:00

Real estate professionals have a complete set of Web 2.0 tools to magnify their online voice and connect with buyers and sellers everywhere! Here are 10 ways to leverage an Internet presence in real estate with Agent Nation:

Earn a reputation as an expert.
A complete list of tools lets real estate agents show market expertise. You will achieve an increasing level of expertise the more involved you are on Agent Nation. Be sure to post content, listings, photos, and get involved with conversations. The more active you are on Agent Nation, the higher your ranking.
Brand yourself.
The most consumer-friendly property detail sheet is not complete without your name, your contact information, and a link right to your web site. Agent Nation offers a branded and non-branded version of your listings and virtual tours. Remember, you are a brand too; treat yourself accordingly.
Build your reputation proactively.
Construct an online profile that includes a record of your accomplishments and lists your affiliations. There’s plenty of room, so include memberships in organizations that fuel your passion even if they are not real estate related (i.e. CARE National Advocacy, Big Brothers and Sisters, Turning Point). This is just another way to connect with colleagues and clients.
Showcase testimonials on the Agent Nation profile page.
What better way to build a reputation than with the kudos of past clients and colleagues? As your are building this page, take a few moments to contact some past clients and ask them for a few words that you can use on this important page.
Drive leads to your web site.
The more tools you use, the more traffic you will drive to your web site. Consider the qualitative value of visitors who have researched the real estate market and read the answers to the questions that you post, and visitors who read your blog.
Attract your ideal client.
Put the Law of Attraction to work for you and let your personality shine. Share your thoughts and successes, share your joy as well as your frustration. Be real. Be you. Watch the magic happen as you establish an online kinship with like-minded consumers and colleagues. What a great way to kick off a formal business relationship.
Use widgets to share market stats and listings.
Use an Agent Nation profile badge in your e-mail signature that keeps your online presence ever ready.
Agent Nation broadens your reach and exposure.
Get exposure beyond the organic search. Featured listings appear at the top of search results, and you can aim your exclusive d at 20 market areas or zip codes.
Convert more inbound and outbound referrals.
Find a real estate professional in other market areas to find the right match for your family, friends, and clients. Read agents’ answers to consumers to gauge their market savvy and select an agent or several agents to interview for a chance to work with a buyer or a seller.
Carve a niche in your local market.
What is your special fancy? Spend energy and have fun sharing insights and information about the market you know best. Use the keyword search tool to find conversations other agents and consumers are having and lend your voice to the discussion. Leave a trail of footprints that buyers and sellers can follow to find their perfect agent.

A Green Holiday

2008-12-23T10:44:00.000-05:00

Statistics show that waste generation skyrockets during the holiday season. An estimated 2.6 billion holiday cards are sold each year in the United States, enough to fill a football field 10 stories high. It is estimated that between Thanksgiving and the New Year an extra million tons of waste are generated nationwide each week. In fact, 38,000 miles of ribbon alone is thrown out each year--enough to tie a bow around the Earth! Here are a number of suggestions to reduce holiday waste:

Reduce and reuse wrapping:. Make the wrapping part of the gift. For example, wrap kitchen items in a kitchen towel.

When shopping, consolidate purchases in one bag.

Save gift boxes, bows and ribbons for next year.

Carefully plan errands and shopping to save fuel and lessen pollution.

Recycle your old electronics if you get new ones.

Take your tree to the end of season collections around town to be used for mulch.

Do not burn wrapping paper. The colored paper contains lead and other heavy materials.

Mistletoe is highly toxic to children and pets. Use artificial rather than the real thing.

Consumers today are growing more and more aware of the benefits of going green. These consumers not only look to you for assistance buying and selling their properties, but all things real estate related. Take time to become familiar with green resources in your area; from recycling centers to your efforts to improve energy efficiency in the home. Your local utility company is an excellent resource of information as well as you local Chamber of Commerce. Use this subject to build a connection with your prospects and build rapport.

Staying on top of your on-line marketing

2008-12-15T17:00:00.000-05:00

There is no doubt that the real estate industry is one of, if not the toughest profession. Not only are there a lot of licensed agents out there, they are motivated. So, when competition is thick, how do you differentiate yourself from the others? One of the easiest, although sometimes overwhelming phases of your marketing strategy is your on line presence. The great thing about your on line marketing campaign is that it works for you 24/7. While you are out showing property, performing a listing presentation, or even sleeping; your on line efforts are at work.

A critical part of your web effort that some agents tend to forget, is that you have to stay on top of it. This is not something you just throw together and then forget about. It is critical that you update your profiles and add new content to your sites, blogs, and on line communities. For example, what do you think when you go to a blog that has not been updated in a couple of weeks? Where did they go? Are they still in the business? You already know how important it is to stay in front of your clients and prospects with e-mail and mailings; it is just as important to do so on line.

A great tool that many blog services offer to assist you with this task is that of post dating your blog entries. Take some time to write a few articles in one sitting, but schedule them to post at a later date. Do this once a week and you have a great pipe line of articles created. Another great tool for Twitter is called tweetlater. Much like post dating you blog posts, tweetlater allows you to post date your tweet updates. Going out of town? Just want to stay ahead of things? These are two great tools to help you. Stay tuned for more helpful hints from Agent Nation.

What is AgentNation...

2008-12-12T22:49:00.002-05:00

State of the Union

2008-11-17T21:07:00.004-05:00

Due to the lack of blog posts in the last couple of weeks, it may seem as if we have fallen off the radar. On the contrary, the last two weeks have had the Agent Nation team busy finalizing the last few features of the site with our beta group.

Remember, the mission of Agent Nation is to be the place to build a successful real estate career through collaboration and use of valuable tools. It is professional networking, dynamic marketing and business management. Agent Nation is powered by a group of professional real estate entrepreneurs striving to enable real estate professionals to succeed.

Although we can not wait to see you inside, we want to get it right the first time. Our select beta group is providing us with the necessary feedback to make your Agent Nation partnership the most successful.

So thank you for your patience and helping us build more excitement. The state of this union is good!

What Is Web 2.0 Anyway?

2008-10-29T21:05:00.002-04:00

To make the concept of "Web 2.0" simple, we came up with the following:

The first generation of the Internet net offered one way communication. You got on line, found the information you needed and that was it. Now, the second generation; or Web 2.0, offers two way communication. Blogs offer readers the opportunity to communicate with others, social networks create communities, and Wikis allow readers and users to edit and add content to the site.

The real estate profession is and always has been a service oriented business. You have mastered the art of prospecting and building rapport. Now you just take those skills on line. The first generation of the Internet gave you the tools to talk to your clients, now you can talk with them.

In previous posts we have discussed RSS feeds and marketing your blog; most of you already know about Twitter. Today we want to suggest a Web 2.0 tool that will get you in front of even more folks in your market and advertise your listings and services.

When you first got into this business you probably did not consider yourself and event planner, but you are at times. Each listing is an event with many events within it; open houses, showings, virtual tours. All of these events require coordination on your part and the involvement of others. Your Agent Nation profile will offer you the ability to advertise your events not only to those within your AN community, but also your circle of influence outside of your AN contacts. The invite you send will offer an RSVP field so you can better plan for the event and a place for comments to build your community. This business is all about relationships and maintaining them through constant contact is key. Agent Nation provides the tools to help you build and maintain your business on line and on the street.

Your next target market

2008-10-19T22:40:00.004-04:00

The Millennial Generation, those born during 1983 to 2003 became the generation always on the go. Their parents had them actively involved in sports or after school activities to the point where it is hard for them to stay focused for a long time. They get bored easily. Everything was scheduled for them. There was not much down time. They were brought up immersed in technology, i.e. cell phones, laptop computers, emailing, etc. As such, they are extremely mobile and even have an emotional attachment to their cell phones and computers.

Meet your next client; about 80 million of them, and they're rapidly taking over from the baby boomers. The Millennial Generation is upscale, well educated, and influential. This is an important generation to understand.

You already know that it takes at least ten "reminders" for someone to think of your services. What do you do when that potential client not only consumes an enormous amount of information, but does so through multiply mediums? You stay in front of them. One of the most important things to remember about this group is that they do not seek information, the information comes to them. With that in mind it is even more critical for you to diversify your marketing portfolio. As you continue with your tried and true marketing methods, add some new tools. Although you may be a member of one social network, you may need to join others to reach a wider audience. Think of this as casting a net for bait fish. The wider your net, the more fish you will catch.

The key to this multi tasking marketing plan is to be efficient and effective. This is a visual generation that has a short attention span. Providing a multi media listing presentation to earn their listing or a digital marketing package to present your listing will get their attention. Keep things short and simple and you have them.

Marketing Your Blog

2008-10-13T22:25:00.001-04:00

So you started a blog, now what? How do you get and retain readers? How do people even find your blog? You will hear a lot about search engine optimization, or SEO, as you get more involved. For those of you not familiar with the term, SEO is the act of taking steps to make your blog or site search engine friendly. We are going to give you some SEO tips, but first off, keep in mind as you write your blog posts, you have two audiences. Your first audience should be your readers and your second audience is the search engines. Like losing the forest for the trees, it is important to remember that if you focus too much on SEO you will miss the point of blogging, which is to provide your readers with information, to network, and create community.

Simple SEO Tips:

~Be specific in your blog topics and page titles. You will rank higher on search engines with “Red Brink House on Mulberry Street” than you will with Anytown Real Estate.

~When loading images, make sure you have named them and are not using the standard camera assigned identification.

~When writing your articles, use key words more often than the word “it”, to improve your ranking opportunity.

Marketing your blog is as important as search engine optimization and does not have to be time consuming. Consider your blog as one more item in your branding toolkit. Prospecting in this business is an on-going effort. Consider your blog one of your tools in your long term investment. Much like your pipeline of prospects, to maintain readers and enjoy return visitors to your blog, you need to offer an incentive. Provide your readers with information that they need. Create a niche market, just like you did when you first got into real estate. You are already a pro at networking, take those skills on line to increase the radius of your circle of influence.

Tips for gaining readers:

~Read and comment on other blogs
~Join social networks like LinkedIn, Face Book, and Agent Nation
~Start a twitter account and follow others in your market
~Create an RSS feed through feedburner
~Join MyBlogLog

The final step in maintaining your blog is monitoring your traffic. Find out where your readers live and what websites are referring them to you by utilizing analytics applications like Google Analytics and SiteMeter. These applications are free and easy to set up. Analytics allow you to monitor your readers, and your progress. Use the key word feature to find out what folks are looking for when they end up on your site. This is a great way to come up with blog ideas.

Last but not least, have fun with your blog!