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Words matter in real estate listings

Study offers advice on what to say — and what not to say.
By Ann Brenoff
LOS ANGELES TIMES
Sunday, December 17, 2006

Words matter. Wars have started over them. Civilizations have collapsed because of them. And it would appear that the speed with which a house sells might be determined by them.

As listings grow old on the vine and frustrated sellers grapple for the slightest edge, the findings of several academics might offer some guidance.

For example, a Canadian professor, as part of a broader study on real estate sales patterns, found that homes where the seller was "motivated" actually took 15 percent longer to sell, while houses listed as "handyman specials" flew off the market in half the average time.

"It surprised even me," said researcher Paul Anglin, who teaches real estate and housing trends at the University of Guelph in Ontario. The study dissected the wording of more than 20,000 Canadian home listings from 1997 to 2000.

What surprised him most was how the buying public put style over substance. Words that denoted "curb appeal" or general attractiveness helped a property sell faster than those that spoke of "value" and "price."

Homes described as "beautiful" moved 15 percent faster and for 5 percent more in price than the benchmark. "Good-value" homes sold for 5 percent less than average.

Another finding in Anglin's study was that the plea of "must see!" was received about as enthusiastically as a dinner-time telemarketing call. Homes with listings using the words "must see" had a statistically insignificant impact on the number of days they took to sell.

Listings where the word "landscaping" was heralded sold 20 percent faster, and homes in "move-in condition" took 12 percent less time to sell than the benchmark, although the study showed "move-in condition" had an insignificant impact on the sales price.

Owners use listing language to convey how serious they are about selling. Some words work better than others, Anglin's study found. Listings in which the seller said he or she was "moving" sold for 1 percent less in price compared with 8 percent less when the seller was "motivated."

Real estate listings, not unlike personal ads, are crafted to minimize blemishes and maxi- mize perceived selling points. So if "enjoys moonlight walks on the beach and cooking together" means "I'm unemployed and am looking for someone who won't always expect to eat out," then

"needs TLC" might mean "this house will have you on a first-name basis with the clerks at the local hardware store."

Anglin's study isn't alone in efforts to determine what language moves the market.

Last year, the impact of listing language was covered in a National Bureau of Economic Research study that looked at whether real estate agents selling their own homes hold out for a higher price. (They do; the study found they take longer to sell but fetch a higher price.)

Descriptions of houses that indicated an obvious problem — such as "foreclosure," "as-is" and "handyman special" — drew substantially lower sales prices.

Words that suggested desirable attributes — "granite," "maple," "gourmet" — translated into a higher sale price, the study found.

One problem discovered was that "superficially positive" words that, in effect, condemn with faint praise — such as "clean" or "quiet" — had zero or even a negative correlation with prices.

Those findings echo those made in a 2000 paper called "Real Estate Agent Remarks: Help or Hype?" researched by University of Texas-San Antonio finance and real estate professor
Ronald C. Rutherford.

Rutherford found, among other things, that buyers read between the lines. If you can't find anything better to say than "new paint," perhaps it's best to say nothing at all.

Positive and factually verifiable comments such as "golf" or "lake" drew increased sales prices; other presumably positive comments regarding new paint or new carpet brought lower ones.

"What you say needs to be extravagant," Rutherford said, "or the signal that is received by buyers is that it's not worth talking about."

But what do sellers know? "New paint" appeared on 15 percent of the listings and was the most commonly listed comment.

Rutherford said sellers would be best served by a listing with "just the facts, ma'am."

"In today's market," he said, "if it's a good deal, you need to convey it with factually verifiable language."

An example: "Needs repairs," he said.

Of the information from his study, conducted between 1994 and 1997 of almost 60,000 closed residential transactions in Tarrant County, what surprised him most?

That homes with "motivated" sellers stayed on the market 15 percent longer than average and sold for 4 percent less.

His theory: "They overpriced the house to start with and eventually had to lower it. That explains the length of time on the market and the lower sales price."

Does he have any advice for today's sellers?

"Yes," he said, "avoid the word 'motivated.' "

Real-Estate War Traps Consumers in the Middle

Found this article this morning. The points I found important - the percentage of consumers using discount brokerages has increased from 2% to 11% in just a few years. That the new trend of buyer discount firms that offer to just do the paperwork and don't actually show you any houses (the listing agent shows the home) has a major flaw. But most importantly, the dispute between the discounters and the full service companies puts our industry in a bad light in the eyes of the media, and consumers...

Real-Estate War Traps Consumers in the Middle
The Wall Street Journal Online
By James R. Hagerty

Full-Service Brokers' Tactics To Rebuff Discount Rivals Sometimes Hurt the Customer

In the fight between traditional real-estate brokers and their discount rivals, some consumers are getting caught in the crossfire.

With house prices surging in recent years, a number of people are seeking ways to cut commission costs, which are based on a percentage of a home's selling price. More home buyers are turning to discount brokers that offer to rebate a portion of the commission if you are willing to do much of the work in finding a home. And sellers are hiring discounters who, for a flat fee of a few hundred dollars, will include your home in a multiple-listing service, a database on houses for sale used by agents.

About 11% of home sellers last year used "alternative" brokers (ones offering flat fees or other forms of discounting), up from less than 2% in 2002, according to surveys by Real Trends, a publishing and consulting firm.

The competition from discounters has prompted some traditional brokers to use a variety of tactics to fight back, and this can end up hurting consumers. The controversy will get a public airing Monday when the Consumer Federation of America, a nonprofit research and advocacy group, releases a report on "how the real estate brokerage industry functions as a price-setting cartel."

The stakes are high. People selling homes typically pay commissions of 4% to 6% of the price, which is split between brokers representing the buyer and seller. Residential real-estate sales generate more than $60 billion a year in commissions. Full-service brokers say that in exchange for the commissions they provide expertise and an array of services that help consumers navigate the housing market.

For consumers, the clash among brokers underlines a need to be wary. Buyers hoping to get a cash rebate from the commission earned by their agent need to be aware that they might meet resistance from agents representing sellers. They should check whether there are any conditions attached to the rebate offer and make clear when viewing homes that they are represented by an agent. And sellers using flat-fee listing services sometimes find that agents for buyers shun their homes.

Most real-estate agents are ethical, says Albert Hepp, the owner of BuySelf Realty, Bloomington, Minn., who helped create a new national association of brokers that charge home sellers a flat fee for a limited range of services. But some full-service brokers step out of line, putting their interests ahead of consumers, he says, adding: "The best analogy I can use is a high-school classroom when the teacher walks out of the room."

One area likely to stir up more disputes involves the discount firms that offer rebates to buyers. The practice got a boost this year with the launch of two ambitious companies, BuySide Realty Inc. and Redfin Corp., which are promoting this concept heavily as they try to build national brands. Both encourage buyers to do part of the work in finding a home; they don't offer the free car rides from house to house provided by most traditional agents.

Andrew Calloway, a financial analyst in St. Louis, decided to use BuySide because that firm rebates 75% of the commissions it receives to the buyer. He recently agreed to pay $200,000 for a three-bedroom home in Glen Carbon, Ill. He expected a rebate of $4,500.

But Mr. Calloway says Karen Malench, an agent for Coldwell Banker Brown who represents the sellers, tried to dissuade him from using BuySide. He says she offered a rebate of $2,000 to him if he dropped BuySide and used her firm instead. He declined and went ahead last month with his offer through BuySide. Then he learned that Coldwell plans to refuse to give BuySide a share of the commission on the ground that Coldwell, not BuySide, showed Mr. Calloway and his fiancee, Rebecca Collins, the house and made the deal happen. If BuySide doesn't get a slice of the commission, it isn't obligated to pay a rebate to Mr. Calloway.

"The thing that really upsets me is that the listing agent smiles to your face and puts a knife in your back," says Mr. Calloway.

Ms. Malench, the listing agent, declined to comment. Gerry Schuetzenhofer, president of Coldwell Banker Brown, a franchisee of the national Coldwell brand, says that Ms. Malench denies having offered him $2,000 to drop BuySide. Mr. Schuetzenhofer says Mr. Calloway and his fiancee didn't make clear that they were working with another broker when they first viewed the home. Mr. Calloway says he did make that clear.

Joseph Fox, BuySide's chief executive, says this is the first time his young company has encountered such a commission dispute. He says he is trying to work out a solution with Mr. Schuetzenhofer. The latter says Mr. Fox tried "to intimidate me into accepting his demands. I don't believe he would have done that if he was on sound footing." Mr. Fox retorts: "He'd rather think about his pocketbook and not the best interests of the client." One option for the parties is to seek mediation or arbitration through a local arm of the National Association of Realtors, a trade group.

BuySide currently has operations in California, Florida, Illinois and Georgia. The company plans to cover 39 states by the end of 2008.

Cem Sibay, a business-development manager at an Internet company in Seattle, sought a rebate through Redfin. Mr. Sibay says he and his fiancee, Tam Pham, arranged to see a condo about six months ago. The agent representing the seller, Ron Waxman of Coldwell Banker Bain, was initially friendly and helpful, Mr. Sibay says. But Mr. Sibay says Mr. Waxman's attitude changed when Mr. Sibay mentioned that he planned to use Redfin as his agent. Mr. Sibay says Mr. Waxman then refused to show the condo to the couple again and said he would advise his client not to consider any offer they made.

Mr. Sibay and Ms. Pham gave up on the idea of bidding for the condo.

When reached for comment Wednesday, Mr. Waxman said, "I don't remember that at all." He said he stopped working as an agent last year; then, a few minutes later, Mr. Waxman acknowledged that he was still working as an agent and declined to comment further.

Bill Riss, the owner of Coldwell Banker Bain, says his agents sometimes "push back" against discounters like Redfin because they believe such firms don't do their share of the work. But he adds that his firm's policy is to work with any member of the local multiple-listing service, including Redfin.

Mr. Sibay kept working with Redfin and last month agreed to buy a different home in Seattle. He expects to receive a rebate of about $10,000 when the transaction is completed.

Glenn Kelman, chief executive officer of Redfin, says resistance from traditional agents will abate as his company completes more deals and becomes more established in the market. The company began operating in Seattle in February, recently opened up offices in the San Francisco Bay Area, and plans to expand to San Diego and Los Angeles and perhaps Washington and Boston by year end. In what Mr. Kelman calls a "charm offensive," Redfin recently began sending $100 gift cards to the listing agents when a Redfin buyer completes a purchase. "We need to turn these agents around one at a time," he says.

Discounters representing sellers also are meeting resistance. Jeff Kermath, who owns Amerisell Realty, a flat-fee broker in Saline, Mich., says one of the multiple-listing services he works with, Realcomp II Ltd., in the Detroit area, discriminates against firms offering discounts for limited service. For instance, Realcomp, owned by local Realtor groups, doesn't send limited-service listings to popular home-search sites like Realtor.com. And the default search setting for agents using Realcomp excludes limited-service listings, meaning fewer potential buyers hear of them.

Realtors using more technology: Nar Survey

Well, the good new is as an industry we are adapting. According to this most recent survey from NAR the number of people using technology in their business has drastically increased, but in my opinion, still pretty low.

NAR Technology Survey Reveals Heavy Tech Investment By Realtors®
CHICAGO (May 11, 2006) – The number of Realtors® with Web sites has increased 129 percent over the past five years, and many of the sites display property listings, according to a new survey by the National Association of Realtors®.

The 2006 Realtor® Technology Survey, conducted by NAR’s Center for REALTOR® Technology, reveals that the Internet ranks third in generating leads, behind referrals and repeat clients, and ahead of community involvement. The survey also shows that there is a clear connection between technology spending and Internet-generated leads, and that getting leads from the Internet continues to grow.

Realtors® have invested heavily in Internet technology and security, through Multiple Listing Systems and individually, in the past several years. For example, the survey showed that thus far in 2006, 56 percent of agents spent more than $1,000 apiece on technology and that 30 percent spent $2,000 or more. In addition, 16 percent of agents and 28 percent of brokers are now spending more than $1,000 annually on their Web sites. Realtors® with personal business Web sites – not including an area on a broker’s site – was 71 percent in 2006, compared to 31 percent in 2002, showing a jump of 129 percent.

“Consumers are able to use information portals to look for homes to buy because Realtors® have invested huge amounts of resources in technology to make accurate information available on secure sites, thus bringing added value to the transaction. All this information is available to consumers, free of charge, 24 hours a day,” said Thomas M. Stevens, 2006 NAR president and senior vice president of NRT Inc., from Vienna, Va.

The survey also showed that the amount of investment in Web sites has a direct relationship to the number of leads coming from the Internet. Thus, 40 percent of those who spent more than $5,000 on their Web site showed that more than 60 percent of their leads come from the Internet.

Realtors® are also reacting more quickly to online inquiries. In a surprising change from past surveys and findings, over half the survey respondents indicated that it takes them less than two hours to respond to an Internet inquiry, and only 2 percent indicated that it took them more than a day to respond. That compares with a 2004 survey showing that only 27 percent of practitioners responded within eight hours to an online inquiry and 46 percent of inquiries received no responses.

“While the survey indicates that the vast majority of Realtors® take steps to protect themselves and the listing information provided by their clients and customers, more work remains to be done,” said Mark Lesswing, NAR vice president and director of CRT. “Less than a third of respondents have received information security education from their MLS or brokerage. Only one-third are aware of written security policies that they must follow and less than half have a written privacy policy. Programs like CRT’s REALTOR® Secure can definitely play a role here.”

The survey shows that use of automated transaction management systems, used to electronically monitor each step of the real estate process, continues to rise, moving from 13 percent in 2005 to 26 percent in 2006, with 70 percent of users saying they are satisfied with their applications.

The survey was based on data from field research conducted in April of this year. CRT e-mailed the survey to 20,000 NAR members, including agents and brokers and generated 719 usable responses. The 2006 study is available at http://www.realtor.org/crtweb.nsf/pages/CRTsurvey?OpenDocument.

NAR’s Center for REALTOR® Technology was established to provide technology leadership, guidance and assistance for NAR members; CRT makes available informed industry insight, research and open-source applications through its mission of implementation, advocacy and information. Information about CRT is available at http://www.realtor.org/crt.

The National Association of Realtors®, “The Voice for Real Estate,” is America's largest trade association, representing more than 1.2 million members involved in all aspects of the residential and commercial real estate industries.

How to Attract the Type of Customers You Want

Another good article from Bernice Ross of Inman news... The premise here is that people are naturally attracted to people like themselves. So if you want friendly clients, you should be friendly, if you want funny clients... well I think you get the idea....take the quiz!

One of the most powerful strategies from professional coaching is the principle of attraction. Attraction refers to the fact that people "attract who they are." In other words, those we attract normally are like us in one or more ways. No matter what price range you work with, the clients who gravitate to you will probably share a number of the same characteristics that you have. If you want high-quality clients who tell the truth, do what they say they will do and are a pleasure to work with, you must be the same way. On the other hand, if your life is always in chaos, if you lie, or are undependable, you will attract people who behave in the same way. Consequently, one of the primary ways to attract a better quality clientele is to raise your own personal standards. To determine your "attraction quotient," take the quiz below:

1.) Do you always tell the truth, even when it is unpleasant?

2.) Are you always on time for appointments?

3.) When things go wrong, are you the one who stays calm and solves the problem?

4.) When you take a listing, do you deliver all the services that you promised the sellers?

5.) Do you stay in constant contact with the sellers keeping them updated on the showings and the responses to your advertising?

6.) Does your print advertising fall into the category of "understated elegance?"

7.) Do the people who have visited your Web site tell you that your site is "very professional?"

8.) Do you avoid using profanity when you are with clients, no matter how bad the circumstance is?

9) Do you avoid telling off-color jokes or making remarks that may make others uncomfortable?

10.) Is your car clean and well-maintained?

11.) Do you go out of your way to make sure that your buyers have water, snacks, and something to keep their children occupied if you are taking them out to look at property?

12.) When you lose business to a competitor, are you gracious to the buyer or seller when they tell you?

13.) Are your marketing materials "top drawer?"

14.) When someone becomes angry with you, do you make peace rather than escalating the argument?

15.) Do you (or your assistant) respond to your telephone, e-mail, and Web inquiries at least once daily?

16.) Are you relaxed and calm when you are with clients rather than hurried, frazzled, and stressed out?

17.) When you hold an open house or have a client meeting, do you always dress professionally?

18.) Do your past clients consistently refer new business to you?

Scoring:

Each "No," represents an area where you can begin working to raise your standards. It makes no difference where you start. The goal is to take a number of simple steps over time. Begin with whatever is easiest on this list to fix. The more items you clear off the list, the more attractive you will become to a wide range of clients.

The key to becoming more attractive to the best possible clients is to always maintain a client-centric focus. When you are client focused, people are attracted to you. They are also more likely to refer you business. On the other hand, if your focus is on making the deal rather than providing the best possible service to the client, your desperation may cause some clients to go elsewhere. Remember to always put your clients' needs first no matter how desperate you are for money.

Being more attractive to better clients also means being willing to say "no" to clients who are dishonest, unethical, or who make your life miserable. Saying "no" reduces your stress. It also helps you avoid problems that can pull you off focus and cost you money. More importantly, if you hang on to buyers or sellers who consistently fail to perform, you actually block better business from coming into your life. Eliminating them creates the space that attracts new business. Before you question the validity of this claim, ask any veteran real estate agent what happens every time he or she plans a vacation. Business always picks up. Thus, raising your standards by eliminating non-performing clients opens the door for new and better business.

If you want to raise your personal attraction quotient, continually work on upgrading your professional image, market with top drawer materials, maintain a client-centric focus, and be willing to say "no" to people who are not a good fit for your business.

Working Quotes for a Monday Morning

Hard work never killed anybody, but why take a chance?
- Edgar Bergen (1903 - 1978), (Charlie McCarthy)

All paid jobs absorb and degrade the mind.
- Aristotle (384 BC - 322 BC)

Pleasure in the job puts perfection in the work.
- Aristotle (384 BC - 322 BC)

One of the symptoms of an approaching nervous breakdown is the belief that one's work is terribly important.
- Bertrand Russell (1872 - 1970), Conquest of Happiness (1930) ch. 5

It has been my experience that one cannot, in any shape or form, depend on human relations for lasting reward. It is only work that truly satisfies.
- Bette Davis (1908 - 1989), The Lonely Life, 1962

Real success is finding your lifework in the work that you love.
- David McCullough (1933 - )

When a man tells you that he got rich through hard work, ask him: 'Whose?'
- Don Marquis (1878 - 1937)

A human being must have occupation if he or she is not to become a nuisance to the world.
- Dorothy L. Sayers (1893 - 1957)

Get happiness out of your work or you may never know what happiness is.
- Elbert Hubbard (1856 - 1915)

Creating Customers for Life

A lot of this we've all read before, but it's nice to take a minute and refocus. The point of this article is that to build customers for life, you need to focus on the client, not the end result...

RISMEDIA, March 22, 2006—Fostering a client for life goes far beyond marketing plans, print ads, or postcard drip campaigns. Like any long-term relationship, a basis for mutual respect, trust, and honesty must be formed through repeated demonstrations of goodwill and promises kept. iSucceed Mentor and client retention expert Diana Ivas, of Hinsdale, IL, has managed hundreds of repeat clients for decades, some of whom she’s helped buy and sell over ten homes a piece.

Creating a lifetime client from the very first day always begins with a meaningful first impression. Diana’s years of experience have taught her that buyers and sellers are especially sensitive to canned dialogues or disingenuous presentations, and she offers a few tips here, “Dig deep with questions. Find the motivations and commonalities. Be genuine, upfront, and honest; and learn how to entertain your clients without coming off as a phony.” It’s a tightrope walk, finding just the right balance between objective counselor and controlling party, but the level of detail Diana is able to unearth from her prospective customers

The long-term relationship is the ultimate goal, but Diana makes a conscious choice not to dwell too much on the end result of her daily activities. She’s made a clear commitment to remain focused on the client of the moment, especially when the time comes to negotiate price. She remarks, “Most Realtors I know would admit that when it comes to negotiating the deal, they just want it done. And while that may be the gut reaction, I choose to focus on the process rather than the results.” That focus has also allowed Diana to keep a mindset of service in lieu of profit. She explains, “Excellent service generates repeat business – that’s the first thing. The second goal with client retention is to dominate mindshare: when people in your market are thinking about buying or selling a home, yours must be the first name that comes to mind.” Building and maintaining that reputation for quality, enjoyable service keeps Diana motivated from sunup to sundown.

The real challenge for Diana is to effectively communicate on a regular basis with her repeat customers in such a way that doesn’t come off as hokey or contrived. “I really pride myself on the depth of relationship I try to create with each and every one of my clients,” Diana explains. “You must be sympathetic to people’s needs. With a big database, this can be a challenge, but with the right systems in place, you can do it in a meaningful, personal way.” Diana’s personal touch is nearly legendary in her market – from letter-writing campaigns to personalized closing gifts to special events and impromptu visits to her clients’ homes comes an annual sales volume of more than $40 million.

Twenty-year real estate sales veteran Diana Ivas of Hinsdale, IL, has served the suburbs west of metro Chicago since 1986, averaging annual sales in excess of $40 million plus, due in large part to a balanced partnership with her husband, Chuck. When it comes to client retention, no other local Realtor tops the Ivas team – over 60% of their business comes from repeat clients and their referrals. They each play to each other’s strengths, with Diana handling the marketing and buyer’s agent management, and Chuck focusing on the financial and administrative tasks. Diana has been the recipient of a bevy of RE/MAX awards, including the Lifetime Achievement Award, Hall of Fame, Platinum Club, Chairman's Club and Northern Illinois Top 10.

Think Search Marketing is New for Real Estate Agents? Think Again

A recent report shows that almost half of local keywords purchased online are purchased by real estate agents. The fact is, advertising online works, and thousands of agents are doing it. Here are some exerpts from a report on Inman News today:

Complying with the dictum, "Follow the money" (or at least the consumers), real estate advertising now comprises half of the local advertising on search engines, according to a report released this month.

Paid search ads for individual local real estate agents account for 49.6 percent of listings on keyword searches for local business segments across 10 different cities, up from 17.5 percent of local search ads 18 months ago, according to Borrell Associates' "2006 Local Search Advertising" report.

Local advertisers now occupy a third of sponsored links in search-engine results, according to the report, and many on city-related keywords.

The Borrell report predicts that paid search advertising by local advertisers will more than double this year to $987 million, and nearly double again in 2007.

Local agents' search ads jumped from 17.5 percent of all local search ads 18 months ago, to 23.9 percent a year later, the report said.

Search ads for the keyword "mortgage" comprised 25.1 percent of listings on keyword searches, the report said. According to the report, the highest bids in terms of amount paid per click were for DUI attorneys, mortgages and real estate.

According to the March 2005 report, local agents occupy almost half of all search advertisements, and not just in big cities, either. "In Des Moines, half of the advertisements on the Google and Yahoo results pages for 'Des Moines real estate' are being placed by local agents bidding as much as $3 per click," the report said.

Matt Shaw, an agent with Coldwell Banker Mid-America Group in Des Moines, told researchers he estimates as much as half of his total advertising budget is spent on search-engine advertising, and an additional 20 percent on other forms of online marketing. "It's paid off," Shaw said, according to the study.

The report tracked more than 2,000 online search ads on Yahoo! and Google and also compiled the predictions of 400 so-called ad experts. One of the reports' more interesting predictions: "More than three-fourths of the Borrell panel agrees that within the next five years, yellow pages books will evolve into directories of local Web site addresses. Eighty-five percent of respondents think this will happen within five years."

60 Days Into 2006 - How is Your Business Plan Working?

This article is written by Allen Wright, who is a Business Planner. It has some excellent points on checking in on your business, to see how you are doing so far, compared to where you intended to be. He talks about what points are important to keep track of frequently, and what things to be wary of micromanaging.

RISMEDIA, March 1 — As an ongoing process, business planning has many stages and focuses and the most important remains to continuously monitor your results. Sixty days into your 2006 business plan is a good time to see what needs adjusting. There are many purposes for doing this review such as checking accuracy, noting changes, developing habits and evaluating progress.

Check your plan for accuracy. There are two major areas that you need to check for the accuracy of actual activities and expenses. Since you have completed your first two months did you forget to account for anything in your budget? You should be recording all the activities you complete as you move towards your goal. Have you accounted for all the sources of business and business producing activities? Have you have forgotten an activity? Make sure you go back into your plan and add the item and any associated expenses in your plan/budget section as well as the business development section if appropriate.

An example of this might be a postcard you send out to all of your past clients, personal sphere and farm that lists the “Top Five in “05”. This postcard would have the best five homes you participated in closing for the year. If you do this type of marketing did you account for it in your marketing budget?

Another example would be expenses. Since several real estate overhead expenses are paid at the beginning of the year be sure to periodically review then throughout the year. You should be recording these expenses in your business plan or accounting software. Take a look at your business plan … did you forget any of these expenses? If so, go back to your plan and add them to this year’s business plan. In the process don’t forget that changes to your business plan will affect other areas. Make sure that after you make a change that you check and see what effects that change has had on your total plan and business development. It is recommended to make minor adjustments to your plan throughout the year as a quick check to see if you have accounted for everything.

One secret to success is establishing success oriented habits. These habits include recording your activities and appointments from all sources of business. Additionally, you should be recording each transaction and the associated transaction expenses as well as the normal expenses you incur throughout the year. Remember the golden rule of sales management, “If you cannot measure it you cannot manage it.”

Finally, check your progress. Although you are only two months into this year you should make sure you are laying the proper foundation for future success. We have all heard the “pipeline philosophy” time and time again … keep the pipeline full. A good tip for doing that is to examine your production and activity results as follows:

• Record and Check Activities Weekly
• Check Expenses Monthly
• Examine Revenue Every Other Month

The reason for this is simple. Activities are the lifeblood of any sales oriented business and therefore should be examined frequently. As time progresses you will forget some activities and appointments that you completed, so by recording them each week you will be able to quickly recall what you have completed.

Expenses can often creep-up and get out of control. Examining your expenses on a monthly basis will keep you on top of your budget and prevent an “out-of-control” scenario. You should be recording your expenses each week but don’t micromanage your business by examining them that often; monthly is sufficient.

Revenue is more unpredictable than the other parts of your business. Revenue may shift from month to month because of delayed closings resulting from things outside your control. With that being said, examine your revenue at least every other month. Once again, don’t micromanage your business and over analyze your revenue. As long as you are completing revenue producing activities things will naturally fall into place.

If you are struggling to manage or monitor all these activities manually, consider using an online real estate business planning and weekly accountability system that can do all this for you automatically. Visit CreateAPlan (www.createaplan.com) and keep your business moving on the right path.

Rookie Realtors, Will They Succeed? (Part 3)

This is the last of a three part series by Bernice Rossof Inman News. Here are parts 1 and 2. In it she talks about different personality tests and character traits that might predict a new agent's success or failure in the business. It's certainly an interesting read for recruiters, new agents and those considering entering the business. As usual I've shortened it a bit to cut down your reading time.

Last week we looked at the demographic results of a new study examining the relationship between various factors and real estate success during agents' first two years in the business. Because the Real Estate Simulator was standardized using the profiles of agents who make over $150,000 per year in real estate, it is currently the best instrument available for predicting whether an experienced agent will become a top producer. The DISC Behavioral Assessment and the PIAV (Personal Interests, Attitudes, and Values) Assessment from Target Training International are used in other industries to identify top sales performers and to help them better understand what motivates their behaviors. Do these three assessments accurately predict new agent success as well?

Based upon the results of this study, managers can feel comfortable hiring men or women from any age group. What they should look for is the following "ideal new agent profile."

1. High score on the Real Estate Simulator, especially in the areas of closing and assertiveness. The overall Simulator score was highly predictive of Rookie Realtor success during the first year an agent is in real estate.

2. High score on the "D" (Dominance) factor on the DISC.

3. High score on the "Traditional" factor on the PIAV.

4. Agents who are prepared to work 35 or more hours per week in real estate.

Based upon the results of this study, personality and behavioral style factors influence an agent's success during the early stages of their career. The different assessments correlate with Rookie Realtor performance to various degrees. What these results reflect, however, is that agents who are confident, assertive, energetic, and to some extent forceful rather than self-centered or arrogant, are more likely to experience early career success.

The research findings further suggest that during the early stages of an agent's career, personality and behavioral style may be critical to determining whether an agent will experience early success. For new agents, having the "right" personality, (e.g., assertiveness), can be more important than having strong selling skills. Selling skills certainly enhance performance for those with assertive personalities, but may not be sufficiently strong to compensate for having the "wrong" personality (e.g., indecisiveness). Previous studies using the Real Estate Simulator demonstrate that over time, selling skills become increasingly important in determining an agent's long-term success.

In a slowing market, managers should be especially wary of hiring new agents who score high on the "S" (systems or steadiness) and "C" (compliance) factors unless these scores are supported with a "D" score that is above the 50th percentile. People who score high on the "S" and "C" factors often make excellent assistants or transaction coordinators, but lack the drive necessary to generate high levels of business during their first year. Successful experienced agents who have high "S" or "C" scores generally report that they built their businesses systematically over a long period of time. Unless these new agents have considerable financial backing, most will be unable stay in the business long enough for their systems to produce sustainable results.

Since there was no difference in the performance of agents who work for brokerages that offer in-house training and those who do not offer training, this finding highlights the importance of selecting the right people. Training speeds up production for those who have the right behavioral profile, but it is not a substitute for proper assessment and selection. Putting it a little differently, the right hires will succeed whether or not you train them. The wrong hire will not succeed, no matter how much train them. Ultimately, training works for people who are capable of benefiting from it.

The Real Estate Simulator and the DISC are two instruments that can assist both agents and brokers in determining whether real estate is the right career for a given new agent. Recognizing when someone is not a fit can help these individuals to avoid the heartbreak of a failed business as well as a substantial loss of money for both the agent and broker as well.

Managing Real Estate Relationships

Another good article from Inman News... this time talking about CRM or customer relationship management, specifically dealing with online leads. This aspect of our business is becoming crucial, as more leads are generated, and these people are 12-18 months away from a transaction. If you don't stay in touch with leads, someone else will...Here are some excerpts (the article is a bit of a sales pitch for a few products, but it still has a lot of good points):

"First, fast and frequent" might sound like a recipe for a very different kind of relationship, but it's one real estate marketing company's rule for customer relationship management.

"You want to be the first agent in contact with the home buyer or seller," said Matt Heinz, senior director of marketing for HouseValues. "You want to follow up quickly. And you want to stay in touch – frequently.

"We've found over the last seven years that leads aren't enough," said Heinz. "It's almost as important to have a system in place to cultivate relationships with people as it is to get the leads."

"If they (the prospect) are not buying for many months, they still want to hear from you," Heinz said.

One of the best practices his company teaches is to send useful information, not sales pitches, to prospects, echoing comments made by many real estate agents.

However, Heinz cautioned, it's important not to be intrusive. Another best practice: Let the consumer stay in control.

"Let them drive the timeline," Heinz said. As prospects do their research and amass the information they need to make decisions, they will decide when it's time for action.

Another best practice: "Make yourself an expert on the neighborhood," Heinz said. Advice about local businesses, local vendors, schools, nightlife, weather and any number of things can make an agent stand out, he said.

Linda Howard, president of network services for Prudential California, Nevada and Texas, agrees with Heinz that speed of response is a very important best practice. It's also important to separate those who are interested in buying in the next three months from those who are more long-term, Howard said.

"We get them in the loop with an agent if they are going to buy pretty soon," Howard said. Otherwise, "we put them in our LeadTrax."

"We call it an incubation process. We nurture that consumer and supply them with information they need during that period of time and when they are ready to start their search we assign them out to an agent," Howard said.

The system sends prospects e-mails on a regular basis, "giving them bits of information about mortgage rates, special insurance programs, anything related to the home purchase process," Howard said.

Howard agreed with Heinz' suggestions on best practices.

"Consumers these days are savvy. They will see right through a sales pitch," she said. "What they want is mortgage rates, insurance information, information about the area they are moving to. We try to make whatever we sent them valuable information."

Pru California is unusual in having a comprehensive CRM product available to its agents, according to Bob Woehrle, CEO of PropertySource. PropertySource is a customer relationship management technology firm that works with large brokerages including Baird & Warner in Chicago, Hunt Real Estate in New York State, Realty South in Alabama and Edina Realty in Minnesota.

Regarding CRM, Woehrle said, "You are 40 times more likely to generate business from someone you know than a random relationship."

As a best practice, his company recommends that agents establish and identify groups– former clients, friends, relatives, PTA, church members – and get them into a list. "We provide an electronic tool to do this with every contact they have," Woehrle said.

Another PropertySource best practice: "Surprise and delight," the CEO said.

"Our software allows agents to send out automatic e-greetings on birthdays, anniversary, the changing of the clocks twice a year. Remembering customers at times they would not expect you to remember them has a strong emotional appeal," Woehrle said.

Woehrle joined the chorus recommending that agents send useful information to prospects. His company offers newsletters that agent customers can send out, tailored to buyers and sellers who are actively engaged, and to homeowners.

"We also recommend building a target group of preferred customers. The two easiest ways to make money are repeat sales and referrals. We want to target them and give them a special dose of attention," Woehrle said. This is known as the 100 List, the group of an agent's 100 most likely contacts to provide a referral.

With postage rates going up, "with our agents across the country we unrolled a promotion. For their 100 list, we sent them 100 cards that welcomed the new year and the new postage rate and in the cards we included a sheet of two-cent stamps," the CEO said.

The most important best practice: "Segment them (prospects) according to their needs and speak intelligently to those needs," Woehrle said.

Rookie Realtors, Will They Succeed? (Part 2)

The long awaited second installment of this three part series on predicting a rookie's success in this business (read part 1 here). This article, again by Bernice Ross of Inman News looks to see if demographic information can predict a newbie's success in the biz...I've shortened it a bit for your reading enjoyment :)

Study participants

In the summer of 2005, 175 agents from different companies and geographical regions in the U.S. participated in the study. Each agent was asked to take the Real Estate Simulator, the DISC and the PIAV. Participants also completed a survey that included information on age, sex, length of time in the business, number of listings taken, number of listings closed, number of closed transactions, commissions earned, hours worked per week, and whether the agent's company offered an in-house new agent training program.

Demographic Results

Age

Fifteen percent of the participants were ages 20-30; 28 percent were 30 to 40; 22 percent were 50 to 60; and 7 percent were 60 or older (N = 160). In terms of this study, age has no effect on performance. Older and younger people do equally well during the first year in real estate.

Gender

Thirty-five percent of the respondents were male and 65 percent were female. In terms of this study, gender also has no effect on performance. Men were no more or no less successful than women were.

Work Experience

In terms of the sample, 18 percent of the agents had less than six months of experience and another 42 percent had from six months to one year of experience. (Sixty percent of the respondents had one or less year of experience.) Twenty-three percent had one to three years of experience and 17 percent had more than three years. Not surprisingly, real estate experience was highly correlated with closed sales, commissions earned, and listings taken (correlation coefficients ranged from .46 to .67). In other words, the more experience an agent had, the more transactions they closed and the more money they earned.

Part-time vs. Full-time

In terms of the number of hours worked, there were no differences based upon age or gender. In terms of this study, 60 percent of the respondents worked at least 35 hours per week in the business. Twenty-five percent worked 21 to 35 hours per week and 15 percent worked 20 or less. This research supports the conclusion that working full time in real estate is directly related to earnings. Chi square analysis revealed that agents who worked 35 hours or more per week earned significantly more commissions, closed more sales, and took more listings. (p < .002). Many agents mistakenly believe they can be successful by working part time in real estate. This study suggests that working part time or hiring part-timers is not conducive to real estate success during an agent's first year in the business.

Training

Sixty-eight percent of the agents reported that their company offered an in-house training program. Thirty-two percent reported that they did not have an in-house training program. Surprisingly, agents who had in-house training scored no better than those who lacked access to an in-house training program. The presence of an in-house training program had no significant relationship to the commissions earned, the number of closed sales, the number of transactions placed under contract, listings taken, or to overall performance. What the study did not address was the nature of the training offered. Some companies provide contract training without sales training. Others may rely on video or online training as opposed to live training. Additional research is needed to determine whether sales training and/or training provided concurrently with coaching influences performance during the first two years of an agent's career.

Selection Process

If age, gender and training do not predict real estate success, the question is what does? The study results show that assessments are solid predictors of a rookie agent's success during their first year in the business. To learn more about this study, see next week's column.

Zillow Launches!

Surprise! It's live!

There's been a lot of talk about Zillow.com in this industry in recent months. Some people have actually feared it's launch, thinking it would do to real estate what Expedia did to the travel industry (Richard Barton is the founder of both companies). Well, it's live, and it's pretty cool, but I don't think we have too much to worry about just yet.

For starters, it only works in the US so our Canadian readers need not fear. But just so you have an idea of what it does, it allows visitors to the site to get an estimate on the value of their home. They don't have to provide any contact info, and they don't have to wait for an agent to get back to them with an estimate.

My guess is this will have a much greater impact on HouseValues.com than agents and brokers.

They have 2 terrebytes of data on 60 million homes in the use. Their statisticians have created an algorithm that is accurate withing 7.2% according to Zillow. According to some posts I've read on Agents Online, it doesn't sound quite that accurate.

Either way, the info that Zillow provides will be of information to consumers. It's accuracy is certainly questionable, but cool none the less. One feature I like is the ability to see how your home's value has increased compared to homes in other areas of the country.

Oh, one last thing, Zillow is not selling leads, they are selling ad space. You can have a banner ad on their site targeted to people looking only in the areas you service. Which could generate some business for those who like to advertise online with banners.

Get your own free, accurate, online market evaluation in the Edmonton area.

The Perfect Media Interview

So you've done something newsworthy! Congratulations! Now the media is calling and wants to do an interview. These 7 steps from Duct Tape Marketing will help you ensure the interview goes well.

7 Steps to the Perfect Media Interview

So, what happens when all of your PR activity actually prompts a reporter to call for an interview? Getting the interview is only one-half of the deal. Follow the steps below, and you are more likely to turn your interview into a powerful marketing tool.

Set Goals for the Interview

When a reporter calls to schedule an interview, either by phone or in person, ask a couple of innocent questions. Find out the nature of the story, who is the audience, when it is expected to run. The answers to these questions will help you better prepare your responses.

Never Wing It

The primary point of almost any interview you will be asked to give is to get your company's core message communicated in a compelling manner.

To do this in the context of an interview, you should script very quotable core message sound bites, no more than 20 seconds or so in length, and be prepared to deliver them word for word at the appropriate time.

Break the Ice

When a reporter that you may not know calls to interview you, there is often a bit of a control issue. The reporter is asking all the questions, so he/she is in control. You actually want to wrestle some of this away right up front. Think about this like you would a sales call. In order for you to get your message told, you may need to interject it into the discussion.

I find that asking a couple of ice-breaking questions can be a great way to settle your nerves and open up the reporter. My favorite questions are to ask the reporter where they are from or what brought them to this specific publication. Establishing a little personal ground seems to make everyone a little more relaxed.

Redirect

Sometimes a reporter just won't get what you are trying to communicate. Or worse, he/she seems to want to talk about everything but the key points you are trying to communicate. It's not that the reporter is intentionally being difficult, most of the time it is because he/she may not really know much about your industry. In these cases you need to have a few redirecting phrases that allow you to answer his/her questions with your answers.

Here are a few phrases that work wonders:
~ What's important to consider in this case, though . . .
~ Let me make that more relevant for your readers . . .
~ What we can take from that point is . . .
~ That's a good example, but I think you'd also be interested in knowing . . .

The key to redirecting a question from a journalist, of course, is to have a plan and preset answers. Then all you have to do is be alert for the proper way to direct the journalist to your message.

Don't Panic

Sometimes you will get a question for which you don't have an answer. Don't panic and don't make up an answer. Simply tell the journalist that you don't know the answer, but promise to get it. This can give you a great excuse to follow up with a reporter. Oftentimes you remember some other point you wished you had made and you can add during a follow-up call.

One Last Thing

I find that it's good to get the last word. Many journalists have been schooled to finish an interview with an open-ended question like, "is there anything else you would like our readers to know about . . ."

This is a great sound bite opportunity, and you should always have a prepared comment that is very powerful.

Even if the reporter doesn't ask, you should interject your last statement, "You know, there's one more thing I'd like to point out."

Prepare a Takeaway

Make it as easy as you can for the journalist to get the facts and figures right. Prepare some sort of takeaway that will help your story and make sure that all your contact information, including web sites and other places to find more information, is included. If the interview is via phone, you can email or fax the takeaway.

National Real Estate Convention - Free Registration

Can't make it to IBC? Well here's a convention you can attend without leaving your home. It's totally online and it's totally free!

Allan Dalton to Keynote Fifth Annual National Real Estate On-Line Convention & Exposition In Cyberspace February 20 - 26, 2006

The Fifth Annual National Real Estate On-Line Convention and Exposition, is expected to attract over 50,000 real estate professionals over the seven days event dates from February 20 - 26, 2006 making it the largest industry gathering of real estate professionals. There is no charge for real estate professionals to attend this virtual event which is open to the entire real estate community worldwide.
Complimentary convention passes along with convention scheduling information are at: www.REcyber.com/preconvention

The convention will feature a major keynote address, plus over 30 Nationally recognized real estate trainers, authors and industry experts in three educational tracks: Top Real Estate Trainers; Top Agent Tips and Tricks; and Top Industry Prognosticators.

The Convention Keynoter Allan Dalton is President and Chief Executive Officer of REALTOR.com®, the consumer website and the official Internet site of the National Association of REALTORS®. He will bring a well informed overview to attendees when he presents the Convention Keynote: "More Marketing Now - Now More Than Ever!" The Keynote will feature audience questions and feedback. Attendees will be able to meet the Keynoter immediately following the keynote address.

The Exposition at the 2006 Convention will feature over 300 booths open 24 hours a day during the event with the latest products and services of interest to today's real estate professionals. In addition to checking out new products and services at the booths attendees can win door prizes, hear presentations, view video presentations and discuss the vendors wares.

Over 200 real estate associations and organizations worldwide have joined to sponsor this unique virtual event which is produced by the Real Estate CyberSpace Society www.REcyber.com with over 9000 real estate professional members from 28 countries. Many prominent real estate organizations and real estate media sources have pulled together to make the Fifth Annual production of this event cost free to attendees.

The Major Industry Partner for the 2006 event is Fidelity National Real Estate Solutions. Major Media Partners include RisMedia, and the National Real Estate & Relocation Magazine. The Major Technology Partner is The Tech Hotline. Official Sponsors include e-Agent, The Real Estate Apprentice, iSucceed, and The Warren Group

Society Executive Director, John M. Peckham III said "Like the four previous annual events which have grown steadily from 20,800 to 40,136 attendees and have featured over 120 national speakers, the 2006 On-line Convention brings real estate professionals all of the excitement and features of a "hard floor" convention. This year, in addition to Keynoter Dalton, attendees will learn from over 30 top-notch nationally recognized trainer/speakers such as: Allen Hainge, Dan Gooder Richard, Michael Russer - Mr. Internet, and Terry Watson; from top notch agents including: Dr. H. Nathan Booth, Mal Duane, Rob Levy, Judy McCutchin and Zahara Mossman. and Real Estate Prognosticators: John Tuccillo and Jim Sherry.

"This years event features networking centers including an array of discussion rooms at selected Expo Booths, a "Rap with the Speakers" Section and a 24 hour "Ticker Tape" featuring special announcements regarding events, exhibitor chat room openings, special drawings and speaker chat times."

"What was considered a curiosity five years ago has now blossomed into the largest real estate event of the year.". Peckham concluded, "All of the elements of a 'hard floor convention' will be there in February.. As always at the On-Line Convention, the only thing missing will be out of pocket costs for airfare, hotel bills, lost shoe leather, aching muscles, travel hassle, registration fees - and time away from home!"

Registration is now open and agents may now obtain a Complimentary pass to The Fifth Annual National Real Estate On-Line Convention and Exposition.

Changing Perceptions on the Housing Bubble

Do you have clients who are concerned about the housing bubble? Here are some tips from RISMEDIA to help you address their fears.

RISMEDIA, Feb. 8 — No matter where you stand on the “bubble” debate, there is little doubt that there are many folks wringing their hands over what they believe to be the end of the “wild ride” that has accompanied the soaring real estate market. The truth is that every market has its distinct advantages.

If you want to be successful, this is one of the best times to do just that. Consider the following:

- Buyers are still out there, and they need our guidance more than ever. With all the market misinformation floating around on the airways and in the press, it is a minefield for an uneducated consumer. Without the guidance of a real estate sales professional, buyers will miss out on finding the home of their dreams. Underbidding, waiting for prices to come down, refusing to make a “fair” offer going in and refusing to work with your agent as his/her buyer-client are among the most troubling possibilities.

- No matter where the mortgage rates go, people need to move. The harder it is to qualify for a mortgage, the tougher the market becomes. The upside is that there are going to be fewer unskilled agents gumming up the works. Only consummate sales professionals are going to be able to tackle the challenges of getting listings and finding motivated, qualified prospects. Sellers, who may have been sitting on the fence or waiting for next year to make a decision, are going to come out of the woodwork. While they may not be willing to acknowledge openly that they probably won’t get the same amount of money their neighbor got a year ago, they are fearful that that is what is going to happen.

- How good are your pricing-right techniques? Become the most compelling marketing guru when it comes to making the right pricing decisions. Stick to your guns with your prospects and refuse to contribute to the problem of a growing inventory, expanded absorption rates and the inevitable expireds.

- Add new sources of income to your book of business. The mortgage industry is telling us that foreclosures are up and predicted to continue to climb. Do you know how to go after the foreclosure business in your marketplace? Approach the smaller banks that will not have departments set up to handle that business in a cohesive way. How about the inventory properties of corporate clients…are you prospecting the smaller corporate accounts that perhaps move five to eight people yearly? Those clients are not usually linked to a large relocation company and could use some solid professional assistance.

No matter what you decide to do to position yourself for the year ahead, do something new. Something is always going to work—doing nothing ever will.

Rookie Realtors - Will They Succeed?

The following is taken from an article By Bernice Ross of Inman News. A study was recently conducted to determine if there are certain traits a young agent possesses that will determine whether or not they will success in this business. In the states there are 25,000 new agents joining the industry every month, while NAR predicts their membership will actually drop from 1.2 million to 800,000 this year. If the market slows, the cost of hiring the wrong agent will increase for brokerages, and it will become tougher for new agents to succeed. Today's article talks about the different tests used, later this week the continuation will talk about whether they predict a rookie's success. Here are exerpts from the Inman article:

In summer of 2005, isucceed.com, RealEstateCoach.com and RealEstateSimulator.com conducted a study to identify the correlates of real estate success for rookie agents. The study evaluated agent production as measured by number of listings taken, number of transactions closed, and GCI (Gross Commission Income). It also examined agent performance using three different assessments:

1. The Real Estate Simulator

This assessment contains three online video sales simulations, a quick IQ test, and an analysis of key behavioral factors related to real estate sales success. The Real Estate Simulator provides feedback on 12 different scales and compares the agent profile against those of agents who earn a minimum of $150,000 per year. Validation studies show that the simulator is a highly accurate predictor of real estate sales success for experienced agents. This is the first study to examine whether the same holds true for rookie agents.

2. The DISC (Target Training International online version)

The DISC assesses the agent's behavioral style. Agents who score high on the "D" factor (drive, dominance, i.e. the "get-it-done" factor) traditionally do well in sales. So do agents who score high on the "I" factor. These agents are "people-people." The most successful agents (approximately 5 percent of the population) score above the 50th percentile on these two factors. Agents who score high on the "S," or steadiness, factor succeed best when they rely on systems. Those who score high on the "C," or compliance, factor are detail-oriented and often make excellent assistants or transaction coordinators. The challenge for "S" and "C" agents is that their behavioral style makes prospecting and converting leads more difficult than those agents who score high on the "D" and "I" factors. The DISC profile accurately predicts sales success not only in real estate, but in numerous other sales professions as well. The question is whether it is predictive of sales success for new agents.

3. The PIAV (Target Training International online version)

The Personal Interests, Attitudes, and Values assessment examines six key motivators underlying behavior. The six categories of motivators that drive behavior are:

Aesthetic
People who score high on the Aesthetic factor of the PIAV have an appreciation of form, beauty, art, and design.

Individualistic
These individuals often seek to be a leader or influencer in their chosen profession. They are normally independent and may have trouble taking direction from others.

Social
Those who score high on the social factor love people. They enjoy being around others and will actively seek out social interactions.

Theoretical
Their primary focus is seeking truth through observation and logic. These people tend to be intellectual and seek knowledge for the sake of knowledge.

Traditional
Traditional individuals prefer systems with defined rules and regulations. They are often politically conservative and place a high value on religion and authority.

Utilitarian
People who score high on the Utilitarian factor are motivated by money and security. They tend to be practical, entrepreneurial, and business-focused. Accumulating wealth is important to them, not only for themselves, but for their family as well.

Target Training's cross-cultural validity studies based upon sales leaders from 178 companies show that the most successful salespeople in America (72 percent) and Germany (71 percent) score high on a single factor. Regardless of their DISC profile, "when it comes to what is on the inside of top performing salespeople, both United States studies as well as the German study confirm it is hands-down, a Utilitarian attitude (i.e. a focus on practicality, efficiency, or economics)." Target Training International's research demonstrates that behavioral style is secondary to sales success. An agent with any behavioral style can succeed, provided their behavioral style is coupled with a high Utilitarian score on the PIAV. Does having a high score on the Utilitarian factor on the PIAV predict early real estate success or are other factors more predictive in new agents?

Read part 2 here.

Coldwell Banker Centennial Society

Congratulations to Coldwell Banker Peter Benninger Realty for being named to the Centennial Society! This group of 75 companies is participating in the 100 homes by our 100th anniversary campaign, and Peter Benninger's company is the only Canadian company to be included, in fact, they're the only company outside of the US!!! The 75 companies will raise 5 million dollars by the end of the year to sponsor local Habitat for Humanity homes.In a recent interview Jim Gillespie, President of Coldwell Banker Real Estate Corporation, said of the Centennial Society: "To raise this much money and help 114 families so far gain a home is astounding... They have made such a major commitment and spent hours and hours on fundraising projects, as well as the actual home build. This Centennial group is special to me and I'm certain the entire Coldwell Banker System as well."

Way to go!!!

Tracking Your Online Spend

Inman news has been agressively reporting on the importance of tracking and managing online leads lately. The following exerpts are taken from an Inman article published today entitled "Tracking Real Estate Dollars on the Web."

Some consumers are not quick to commit to real estate services online, and it may take several months and even more than a year before they make a serious inquiry about buying or selling a home.

Kim Gorsuch-Bradbury, senior vice president for strategy and corporate development at LendingTree, said a company study found that about 25 percent of the Internet leads it provided to real estate professionals in its network led to closed transactions, and the bulk of those closed within six months while about 35 percent closed after that period.

But when it comes to lead response time, "speed matters," she said. "What matters is that the broker and their agent picks up the lead very quickly and then calls the consumer."

As for tracking costs per lead, she said it can be as simple as creating a spreadsheet that includes such variables as the amount of spending for each type of online marketing and the total closings and revenues related to leads from those online marketing efforts.

Gorsuch-Bradbury said that real estate professionals can help their cause in online marketing by providing lots of ways for consumers to reach them, including a prominently displayed phone number. "Consumers definitely vary in their behavior. Give consumers a choice. Some will go with a Web form and some of them will call you," she said. Those brokers who arrange face-to-face meetings with prospective clients have a higher success rate in converting leads than those who do not, she said.

Tina Bean, sales and marketing director for VisiStat, a Web analytics and statistics company, said "web sites are no longer considered an optional marketing tool for real estate professionals. In the past, the argument has been that you need to get a Web site. Now it's taken for granted. People understand that's a part of the business model." Now, she said, the key is to understand the value of online marketing efforts.

Online marketing is not "a dart on a dartboard," she said. "It is a systematic way of marketing and tracking exactly where those dollars are spent." Technology now makes it possible to measure the effectiveness of advertising campaigns in real-time, she said, so that advertising dollars can be immediately adjusted.

"Not only are there applications out there than can tell them the amount of traffic your Web site has, but how did that traffic find you." Bean said that one of her company's clients, a real estate team operating in the Tampa, Fla., area, spends about $10,000 a month advertising at the Realtor.com home-search site, which they consider to be the premier source for attracting new business.

Joel MacIntosh, WolfNet Technologies

Joel Macintosh, CEO at WolfNet Technologies, a real estate technology company, said quality of Internet-based leads can be more important than quantity. WolfNet offers Web metrics that track users' history of visits to a Web site, and these analytics can prove useful in reviewing the effectiveness of online marketing, he said.

"When a lead comes in, wouldn't it be nice to know that the person had originally visited that site 45 days ago, was the result of Google AdWords, and the phrase that got them there was 'X,'" he said.

WolfNet has found that between 1-in-130 and 1-in-150 Web site visitors will make an inquiry, while about 1-in-60 to 1-in-100 site visitors will make a telephone call. Most people searching for real estate information on the Internet are not ready to commit to a real estate transaction, he said.

Converting Online Leads

Inman News is doing a series on converting and tracking online leads. Today's article gave a brief overview of what some of the top companies are doing, but all I really got out of it was that the top companies are generating a ton of online leads, and now realize they need to track the conversion.

One point I found interesting was that about 6% of online leads convert (ie actually turn into a deal). Now we know that online leads take about 6-12 months to buy or sell, so the importance of staying in touch is even greater.

If your website generates 100 leads a month now, in about 6-12 months you should be pretty busy! Contact me if your site isn't performing the way you'd like.

Search Engine Ranking Tool

Ever wanted to know how your site ranks on the top search engines? I just found this cool tool.... click the link below, scroll part way down the page and enter your web address in the submission form, and the keyword you want to check. In about 30 second it will show you how you score on the major engines...

Search Engine Rankings - Instant, online reports of web site rankings in 7 top search engines, including Google, Yahoo! Search, MSN, AOL, Teoma (Ask Jeeves), AltaVista, AllTheWeb, and the top 3 web directories; Yahoo! Directory, Open Directory (Dmoz), and LookSmart - FREE!

Real Estate Agents Lose Their Blackberries?

NTP is suing RIM for patent infringements. How on earth does that matter to real estate professionals? Well.... RIM is the company from Waterloo, Ontario, that makes Blackberries, which have become very popular among Realtors. NTP owns some patents, and claims that RIM has been using these patents in their technology. The case has been in the courts for quite a while - RIM denies the charges - and on Monday the U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear RIM's appeal. NTP can now seek an injunction forces RIM to stop using the technology, which would pretty much end service for Blackberry users. Of course, RIM could settle with NTP and avoid the situation, but it might be best to prepare just in case.

New Online Real Estate Bookstore

www.realestatebooks.org is a new online bookstore that sells only books related to real estate. Excerpts and reviews are available for the books which are broken into different categories such as sales strategies, marketing and technology. The bookstore's goald is to make it easier to find books relevant to real estate professionals, as most bookstores carry only real estate books that are relevant to the consumer. Check it out!

More Reliance on Agents, More Internet Use - NAR

NAR does a survey of homebuyers and sellers every year that gives insights into how the industry is changing. Although NAR is out of the US, CREA does not do a similar survey (as far as I am aware) so we have to go with the American stats. When it comes to technology, Canada generally has a faster adoption rate than the US, so we can assume our stats are similar, if not slightly higher. I did read a survey from Ipsos Reid last year that showed exactly that.

This year's NAR survey shows an increase in internet usage when searching for a home from 2% in 1995, to 77% in 2005 (it was 74% in 2004). How a decade can change an industry! 24% of buyers said the first learned about the home they ended up purchasing on the internet, up from 15% last year.

“Buyers who use the Internet in searching for a home are more likely to use a real estate agent than non-Internet users, and consumers rely on professionals to provide context, negotiate the transaction and help with the paperwork,” said Stevens, senior vice president of NRT Inc.

In fact, 81% of buyers who used the internet as part of their search, purchased their home through a real estate agent, as compared to 63% on non-internet searchers.

“We find that the level of for-sale-by-owners is on a sustained decline and is now at a record low. In addition, a growing share of FSBO properties are not placed on the open market – they’re private transactions,” Stevens said.

Only 13% of sellers sold on their own (of which 39% were between parties who knew each other in advance), down from a cyclical high in 1997 of 18%. The median price of homes sold with the help of an agent was 16% higher than those sold FSBO.

When it comes to choosing and agent, most people were referred by a friend or family member, and the most important factor in deciding on who to use was reputation. 85% of buyers and 82% of sellers said they were likely to use the same agent again.

The complete survey results are available here, and include other stats mostly to do with demographics of home buyers and sellers.

Master Your Real Estate Business

I previously did a post on sites that all real estate professionals should bookmark, well, I missed one. www.brokeragentnews.com is loaded with good articles on this business.

One article in particular, titled "In pursuit of real estate mastery" outlines the reasons why as a real estate professional you should choose to become a "master of real estate competencies" and how it can help you succeed in your business and life.

He talks about the three roads we all have to choose from in this business:

1. You can choose to become a master of the competencies and have your value speak for itself.
2. You can take the road of prospecting, lead generating, selling and closing, which requires you to become a master of persuasion.
3. Or concede your lack of value, become master of nothing and make working for less your value proposition.

I particularily identified with these paragraphs:

Many extremely ambitious people fail in real estate. Hard work isn't the answer. You can't prospect harder. You cannot hold an open house harder. The key is to make it easier, not harder.

To make it effortless, it has to be fun. If it doesn't provide you with satisfaction, you cannot succeed. Note that athletes and performers are among the best compensated people in our society. And, they are doing what they love to do. The love of an activity and a high level of proficiency go hand in hand. How can anyone achieve their full potential doing things they don't enjoy?

Consider the words of author James Michener:
"The master in the art of living makes little distinction between his work and his play, his love and his religion. He hardly knows which is which. He simply pursues his vision of excellence at whatever he does, leaving others to decide whether he is working or playing. To him, he's always doing both."

The complete article is available here, I highly recommend giving it a read.

Zillow.com - Aiming to put Brokers out of the biz?

I found this article on the Business Week Online Blog called Hot Property. Zillow.com is the latest idea from Richard Barton, who founded Expedia.com and changed the way we travel. He spoke at the Inman News conference in New York City yesterday, and apparently let very little out about what Zillow.com would actually be. It is supposed to launch in the next 6 months, and Richard assures he is not out to "wipe out the jobs of real estate agents and brokers." There was very little information given about what Zillow.com would actually be, but he did say it is going to be an advertising vehicle for brokers and agents, and the users of the site will provide much of the information.

More details...

Real Estate Blogger Makes It Big

Inman News published a story today about a mortgage broker in Minneapolis who credits his blogging to bringing in $4 million in mortgage originations, a new job and a radio show. His blog, Behind The Mortgage, broke the story of a 2005 FBI investigation into local mortgage fraud gaining a lot of attention from the local media, and consequently consumers in his marketplace. Inman reports:
The blog has been a marketing boon to Alex Stenback, who created the site in October 2004 "out of my own frustration," Stenback said. "There was no good spot to find out what local people were talking about regarding local real estate and mortgages."

The local newspapers carried such news, as did other sources, "but to find all the content was hard, because you had to go to so many resources. I tried to aggregate the information and pick up things that were interesting and start conversations about them," Stenback said.

Stenback's approach to the fraud story is classical for blogs: He posted the letter with a comment that sources reported the FBI was investigating mortgage fraud in the Twin Cities, saying, "Though we've yet to corroborate these reports, and no specific companies were named, we thought we'd throw this out here (we check our facts in real-time here in blogland). Anyone heard anything?"

"The victims of this thing (mortgage fraud) are the public," Stenback said. "Why not let them know what's going on, rather than making it secret?"

"Blogs are a great way to get business directed to you," the broker said. He bases his estimate of business attracted by the blog on e-mails from people who tell him they heard of him through Behind The Mortgage.

"The advertising on my blog is very low-level," said Stenback. "I don't use the blog as a promotion of my business. People appreciate it as a resource, and they reach out to me.

"If you have a blog or a radio show, you don’t want to turn it into a commercial. Answer people's questions, give the information, and the business will come," Stenback said.

In Stenback's case, not only new business but a new job and a radio show grew out of his blog.

After learning about the broker through the blog, CTX Mortgage Corp. offered him a job as a senior loan officer/sales manager. Part of his duties involve contributing to a weekly radio show the company sponsors and hosts by providing content.

"We thought it (the blog) was a great warehouse of information we could use in order to provide content for the radio broadcast. It certainly helped that Alex is articulate and understands the market and we could play off that," Velasco said.

Links Every Agent Should Have Bookmarked

Here's a list of sites I visit all the time...I highly recommend you check them out:

www.inman.com - ok, if you don't already get their daily updates on the industry, it's time

www.rismedia.com - has a good mix of press releases and advice articles, all to do with real estate

www.businessknowhow.com - tons of articles on running a business, stuff like advertising on a small budget, business planning etc.

www.agentsonline.net - an online discussion board for the real estate industry, agents and brokers post questions and offer advice to eachother. This site also drives a ton of traffic to your site if you post frequently.

http://overvalued.blogspot.com/ - interesting blog that is tracking the actual values of homes in major US cities compared to the trend over the last 30 or so years.

http://edmonton-homes.blogspot.com - shameless plug for our other blog...

www.edmonton-homes.ca - shameless plug for our web site.

Thats all for today, I'll add more soon :)

Agents blog for success

When you think of blogging, you think of an online journal - people writing about vacations, posting family photos, politicians getting in trouble for inappropriate comments... But now blogs are starting to earn a purpose for business, and the real estate industry has jumped on board. Companies and individual agents are starting blogs left right and centre, something you should consider or risk missing the boat.

An article I read in the National Post recently reported that 70,000 new blogs are started everyday. The two blogs that our humble little company produce deliver enough traffic to our website to bring as many leads as our paid search campaign brought in. In fact, we put our paid search placements on hold over Christmas, hoping to cool the site down so we could take a break from the leads, but our Edmonton Real Estate blog more than picked up the pace and we spent much of our time of dealing with leads.

The real estate industry has embraced blogging. It is easy to do, requires very little technical skill (if you can send an e-mail you can start a blog), and it gives us professionals a place to demonstrate how much we really do know about selling real estate. If you're sitting there thinking, I barely know what a blog is, and I don't know any agents who've started one, this girl is crazy....think again. I just did a quick search on Google's blogsearch and found 2.5 million blog entries to do with real estate. (Oh, and in case you haven't read any of my previous articles, search engines LOVE blogs....)

A recent article from RISMEDIA talks about a company in the states that started a blog in late October (just after yours truly). Their blog is a place where they write about the houses they are selling, their city's quality of life, give advice on how to obtain a home loan and list the area's accolades, such as its ranking as a top place to retire. They got the idea for the blog after reading an article about real estate blogging in the Wall Street Journal. They once thought blogs were a fad until they discovered Really Simple Syndication, a program that feeds Web sites that consumers choose to them every day.

Their blog hasn't yet resulted directly in the sale of a home, but the agents believe the new tool is getting the word out about their company and them. "Anytime we can get our name out is a good thing." Some weeks there are daily entries while other weeks, submissions might pop up several times. The agents blog as much and as often as they want. Of the office's 70 agents, about 30 are blogging. Visit the Long & Foster Daleville office's blog at roanokerealestate.blogspot.com.

Real estate blogs alone don't necessarily drive buyers to purchase a certain house. They often are the first step to connect a person to a real estate company's Web site where they might find other home listings and information. Most firms link to their own home pages from their blog sites.

Fourth Highest MLS Month on Record in November

Looks like November was another banner month, if you haven't seen the press release from CREA yet... here it is.

National MLS® home sales climb in November
Higher activity in Alberta and Ontario

National existing home sales via the Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) rose to their fourth highest seasonally adjusted monthly level on record in November 2005, according to statistics released by The Canadian Real Estate Association.

Activity also remains on track to set a new annual record in 2005. Transactions for the first 11 months of 2005 were just half a percentage point lower than total MLS® home sales recorded in 2004.

A seasonally adjusted total of 41,724 homes traded hands in November, representing a gain of 1.6 per cent compared to the previous month. Higher activity in Alberta and Ontario more than offset fewer sales in British Columbia and Quebec. Year-to-date, transactions were running 4.9 per cent ahead of levels recorded during the first 11 months of last year.

Sales activity reached its highest monthly level on record in Alberta and New Brunswick, and set new records for the month of November on a national basis and in Alberta, Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Newfoundland. Year-to-date, actual (unadjusted) sales increased compared to the same period in 2004 in British Columbia, Alberta, Manitoba, Quebec, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia.

Seasonally adjusted MLS® residential new listings totaled 64,621 units in November, a decline of 0.8 per cent from October. The decline in new listings and an increase in sales caused the national resale housing market to tighten in November compared to the previous month.

Seasonally adjusted dollar volume totaled $10.6 billion in November – the third highest monthly level on record. Dollar volume set a new monthly record in Alberta, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, and reached its highest level ever for the month of November in every other province except Prince Edward Island.

The national MLS® residential average price hit $256,126 in November, shattering all previous monthly records. Average price rose 11.0 per cent compared to the same month in 2004.

November was also the sixth consecutive month in which year-over-year price growth exceeded 10 per cent. MLS® residential average price reached its highest monthly level on record in Alberta, Ontario and Quebec, and set new records for the month of November in every other province except Newfoundland.

“Continuing growth in full-time employment and rebounding consumer confidence in November mean that economic fundamentals will continue to support strong housing activity in the coming months,” said CREA Chief Economist Gregory Klump.

“The small increase in mortgage rates in November may have prompted many prospective homebuyers to jump into market in order to take advantage of pre-approved mortgage rates.

With the Bank rate hike in December and more increases expected next year, resale housing activity is expected to gradually drift lower in 2006 as homes prices continue to rise,” Klump added.

CREA cautions that average price information can be useful in establishing trends over time, but does not indicate actual prices in centres comprised of widely divergent neighborhoods or account for price differential between geographic areas. Statistical information contained in this report includes all housing types.

This report is published by the Communications Department of The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA). Further information can be found at http://www.crea.ca/.
For more information:
Gregory Klump, Chief Economist
(613) 237-7111
gklump@crea.ca

Search All Edmonton and Area MLS listings at www.edmonton-homes.ca.

Big Advertising on a Small Budget

Found a new website today called "Business Know-How" that has a ton of great articles about running a business. This article talks about getting the most bang for your marketing buck, and has a true-story about trying to sell a home using the agent whose "name was everywhere in my town" and is having a terrible experience.

Big Advertising Strategies on a Small Business Budget
by Anne M. Obarski

I am always amazed by business owners who say that they can't spend any money on advertising. Many of them validate that idea by saying, "Besides, most of my business is by referral." Building a business based on repeat and referral business is admirable. It simply means that clients are so pleased with the value of the product or service they receive on a consistent basis, that they become "cheerleaders" for that company. Consistency is the key word.

If a company combines a strong, branded advertising campaign to an already strong marketing and service program, that becomes the foundation for a successful business. I use the example of a three legged stool. One leg is your product or service, the second leg is your marketing and advertising and the third is the customer service you or your employees offer, all on a consistent basis. If any one of the legs has a "weakness," the stool is going to wobble.

Have you ever had a wobbly table or stool in your home? You probably tried to fix it by putting something under it to stabilize it. It was just a "band-aid" and not a true correction. It fixes the problem for a while, but sooner or later it will start to wobble again and at that point you probably say it is time to replace it.

Customers will be happy to be a cheerleader for you if you are consistent in how you run your business. After all, their reputation of referring a good company is on the line. Each of us has the ability to recommend or discredit a company based on past experiences. What is more important is that we have a circle of contacts that could either become a referral stream or a business choker.

Companies would be smart to study the three following statements and focus on how that could affect your "word of mouth advertising."

1. You don't know who I know!
I am in the midst of selling a home. I think I would rather have brain surgery than go through this again. I have bought and sold 5 houses in my life and this has been the worst. I firmly believe that the job of a real estate person is to make the job of "selling" the house as easy as possible. That is, if they are willing to do the work to make things happen seamlessly.

I chose my real estate person because her name was everywhere in my town; mistake number one. Mistake number two was that I didn't interview at least three potential agents to find out what their plans would be to sell my home in the shortest amount of time. Her focus is on how many houses she can list and not the service she could offer in order to make me a happy customer. I have told everyone I know that I would never use her if I had to do it all over again.

Unhappy customers like to tell other people and that is a fact. 95% of unhappy customers leave a business because of uncaring employees. Unfortunately, I have a binding contract and I am stuck. I have a reputation of being the person to call when you need just about anything because everyone knows what I do for a living. You can imagine how many people I can influence with just one sentence. Now the question is, what will that sentence sound like?

Do your employees realize the importance of treating each and ever customer like they have a golden tongue? They can build your reputation or ruin it with the words, "I wouldn't use anyone else but..." The question is, "Is your name the one that follows the word "but"?


2. I don't know who YOU know!
Every business owner loves to hear a client say that they were referred by another happy customer! Day after day you probably have new customers walking through your doors who were referred and you didn't know it!

So how can we increase that number? One simple word, "ask"! A basic sales class will teach you that if you don't ask for the sale you won't get it. So why don't we ask for referrals? We are scared of the answer "I don't know anyone." That is like asking a person the age old question "May I help you?" You know the answer is going to be "No, I'm just looking."

I recommend changing the request to: "Mrs. Smith, I know you have shopped here a long time. I hope that you will mention our name when one of your friends is looking for ..." Better yet, tell Mrs. Smith that for every third person she refers who come in and actually buy, you will give her 25% off her next purchase!

Everyone knows someone who can use what you offer at some time. The point is to use your own mouth and become a shameless self promoter! Just ask!


3. Have a "Super Bowl" commercial!
Do you remember what kind of hype occurs just before the Super Bowl? Football, yes; but the biggest hype is about the commercials during the game. There are teasers before the game and then there are "arm chair quarterbacks" critiquing the commercials on the early news channels on Monday morning. So what makes them so important? They are memorable and they are repeatable.

That's where big business and small business owners differ. Big businesses realize that if you are out of sight you are out of mind. They spend billions on advertising to make sure you don't forget. If I said the words, Target, Dell, Wal-Mart, McDonald's and gave you crayons and asked you to draw their logos, you probably could without even having an artistic background. Those logos are embedded in our brains. Strategically executed like a well run battle plan!

However, you may be saying; "I'm not one of the 'big guns' and I could never begin to develop an advertising plan like that." You probably can't. But what you can do is create a 30-second commercial that perfectly describes what you do so that your "cheerleaders" can repeat it to everyone they know.

Here is an example. I have a favorite restaurant in my town that I love to recommend. When anyone asks where I think they should go to eat, I become the biggest cheerleader for this family owned restaurant. I say, "You have to go to _____because they have the best cold salmon salad that will ever pass through your lips and the atmosphere and service are unbeatable." If you just screwed up your nose when I said salmon, then how about the hot apple pie and cinnamon ice cream dessert that is to die for.

Each and every one of us has done commercials for businesses that we like to do business with. What do you do that is unique or different that makes you and your business memorable. If you could eavesdrop on a conversation between one of your satisfied customers and a potential client, how would they describe you and what you do?

You'd be surprised the different ways people would describe your business. The question is, are they pin-pointing what you want to be known for? If not, then maybe your "Super Bowl" commercial isn't memorable enough. Work on a sentence that describes you or your business and practice saying it whenever you meet someone who asks; "so tell me about your business." I once worked with a financial planner who said that people walked the other way when he told them what he did. I said, "Why don't you tell people that you help them sleep better at night." He really looked puzzled, but the end result of managing your finances well is that you probably will sleep better at night. It also was a definite conversation starter!

You may not have the million dollar advertising budget, but you could have word of mouth advertising that affects millions.