This week’s post is not about technology. or about the latest and cool web site, or even about how to do something.

Instead I want to toss out a thought that I have then ask you some questions in return.

This blog reaches over 600 readers via RSS feed, quite a few more subscribe via email, Google Analytics tells me that I reach up to several thousand views a week, it also gets ported over to my Facebook business page where another potential 500 viewers are,  from there it also goes to my Facebook personal profile where there are over a thousand “friends”.  It also appears on my LinkedIn profile where there are over 350 connections and finally a link to the latest post shows up on Twitter each week where I have over 4,500 followers.  All of this happens automatically after I create the blog post.  In other words, I just put my work on the blog and the system I have set up takes over and puts it everywhere else.

While these numbers might sound impressive, they really aren’t all that unusual.  If I were to make a really concerted effort to publicize this weekly blog I’d probably get much more readership.

Yet, even so, this blog has opened up quite a few opportunities for me.  I have gotten speaking gigs, consulting gigs and sold a few Facebook business pages as a result of people contacting me after reading a post.

So when it comes time for me to write a post, and my natural resistance to work shows up, I just remember that for the huge sum of $9.95 a month (what I pay Bluehost to host my blog) I have an opportunity to reach thousands of people.  Some of whom become customers.  Others have become friends which is really cool.  And, the content is out on the Internet and shows up in Google and Bing searches…it works for me long after the post is forgotten as it turns up in new searches and introduces new people to my work.

So, having said all of that, I want to know if you are doing anything like this.  Do you have a blog?  Do you have a Facebook personal profile?  If so, do you have a Facebook business page?  If so, does that page have a custom tab or two?  Do you have a LinkedIn profile?  Is it 100% complete?  Are you a member of any LinkedIn groups?  How about Twitter?  Are you there?

I think that these tools are a necessary part of any service based business’s tool box.  And I am firmly of the belief that a real estate professional who is not engaging their present, past and future clients and customers this way is missing out on a fun way to build their businesses.

There is a caveat to all of this, and it may not be what you think it is.  More on that next week.  In the meantime, please take a moment and share your successes with these tools.  It may inspire others to take action.  And if you are really brave, tell us what your frustrations and problems are because they may be shared by others as well.  And who knows, maybe somebody here will have the answer you need.