RealtyTechBytes.com

10 October 2010

3 ways to avoid being a dinosaur in real estate

Posted by Jerry Kidd under: Rants; Sales Tips .

A few weeks ago I attended a real estate BarCamp in Redwood City.  Don’t ask me why it’s called that.  Instead, go to http://rebarcamp.com/ and learn more about what BarCamps are all about.

While I was in a session that was talking about marketing yourself online, the presenter was talking about how his team uses social networking as part of their overall marketing plan.  About 10 minutes into his talk one gentleman in the audience was quite vocal that sites like Facebook were “dangerous” and “could crash your computer”.  He went on to make a few more heartfelt, but erroneous statements.

At first I was annoyed by his lack of knowledge.  In other words, he had absolutely no idea of what he was talking about.  Yet, he was passionate in the defense of his indefensible position.  Then I realized that I was listening to the voice of fear.  He could see that the market was moving away from his comfort zone.  He knew that he did not know how to keep up, and so he attacked.

He was present in several other sessions that I attended that day and he was equally incorrect in his understanding.

Here is my take away from this experience, when you find yourself in a learning opportunity (as all BarCamps are), leave your ignorance at the door.  Instead, bring your curiosity and be prepared to learn.  Had he done that, he would have walked away with at least four new ideas of how he could adopt the new tools to grow his business.

Point one is this: Do  not engage in contempt before investigation.

If you can’t attend BarCamps, learn how to find information on line.  You may not be aware of the fact that YouTube is the second most searched entity on the Internet, second only to it’s parent, Google.

What this means is that there is probably a video on YouTube that will walk you through ANYTHING that you want to learn.  Spend some time there and look for (and watch) some videos on marketing, prospecting, Facebook, Twitter and yes, even videos on how to use YouTube.

Point two is this: Learn how to use the FREE resources to learn how to do anything.

Most of us have web sites that don’t bring us the type and amount of business that we would like.  We were sure that if we built it they would come.  But the evidence (closed transactions directly attributable to our web sites) just isn’t there for the majority of real estate web sites.

SEO gurus tell us that it’s because our sites can’t be found on a search.  While there is some truth to this, I think that your site may be getting traffic right now.  But, the problem is that the traffic isn’t targeted traffic and when someone does land on your web site, where is the incentive for them to take action?  In other words, are the RIGHT people finding your web site, and if so, when they get there, does the site “speak” to them?

Probably not.  Go back and read last week’s article http://realtytechbytes.com/rant-are-you-a-dinosaur/ and this time click on the link contained in point four…and read it!

Point three is this: You MUST know who you are trying to reach.  Once you have identified them you can build a web page that resonates with them when they arrive.  And then you can ask them to take action.

Finally, consider giving up that web site in favor of a blog that you can change at will.  Consider setting up a Facebook business page with tabs that speak to your different niches.  Consider the whole concept of personal marketing NOT from the standpoint that YOU are the number one REALTOR®, but instead consider personal marketing from the standpoint that you have the solution to the pain that your ideal client is experiencing.

Once you do that you will have taken giant steps up the evolutionary ladder and will avoid extinction.

Or, just keep on doing what you are doing.  The choice really is your after all.

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