Earlier today I was asked what I was thankful for - and since I've been grumping and grousing about the inconvenience of having my computer in the repair shop AGAIN, it was a good exercise to just stop and think about the many reasons I have to give thanks.

Family - A husband who has put up with me for most of our adult lives, and will even cook dinner on occasion.

Two smart, handsome, and loving sons - who actually love each other as well as us. A daughter-in-law and an adorable grand daughter.

Friends - a handful of people whose company I treasure - and another handful of internet friends who enrich my life, each in his or her own way.

My furry, 4-legged friends - companionship, protection (no one gets near this house without me knowing it!) loyalty, love, and entertainment all rolled up in 5 bundles of fur.

Good health - a treasure in itself.

Work - doing something I truly enjoy, and being glad to sit down to work each day.

My home - a wonderful house built by my contractor husband, at the edge of a meadow where I can look across and see the mountain and trees - and occasionally spot wildlife passing through.

And Active Rain. When I joined here I felt a little out of place, because I'm not a real estate agent. I'm a copywriter who helps agents promote themselves, but I wasn't sure I really belonged. Still, I stayed because I do enjoy reading all the posts, and knowing the issues and challenges you face helps me to do a better job for my clients.

I shouldn't have worried. Everyone here has made me feel welcome, and I thank you all for that!

Now... if I just had my real computer, with real programs, I'd give you a picture of one of those list items... but oh well. Maybe next week I'll be able to say I'm thankful to have my computer back.

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

Marte

Darn but I hate it when I put things off just a little too long.

I knew when my computer went haywire a few weeks ago that I needed to find some way to back up emails - but I was so busy trying to deal with getting programs re-installed, and then with trying to make the "repaired" computer work - I didn't do it.

Now I think it's too late. My "real" computer is back at the "fix-it place" and this time I hope they get it right. But it appears that getting it right will mean wiping out everything I had saved. And I had lots of things saved that I did want to keep.

This time, I'm going to make the time to find out how to back up e-mail. There has to be a way. But that's water under the bridge, and I can't do it until I get my computer back.

Now I'm thinking about other things I've been putting off and making a list... I should probably impose some deadlines on myself while I'm at it.

What have you been putting off that you should do now?

Is it something that's going to cost you time and money if you don't tend to it?

Maybe you need to give your website a pick-me-up - or finally install that opt-in box on your short sale page.

Or maybe you need to check your database and make sure you've got all your past clients in there - and check to see that you have new addresses for your sellers.

Perhaps you need to write some letters for your autoresponder, or create your holiday message so you don't end up doing it in a rush at the last minute.

Or maybe you should take an hour or so right now and put together a Thanksgiving message to send to everyone on your list.

We all have a list of tasks that are "important but not urgent."  We put them off because, in all likelihood, they're tasks we don't especially like doing. It's easy to replace them with "urgent but not important" or even "not urgent and not important" tasks. Anything to keep ourselves busy so we don't have to get over there and do the things that aren't fun.

If you have a list like that there are only 2 ways to get rid of it. Either jump in and just do it, or delegate.

Either way, you'll feel better when you mark it off the list.

That said, I'll help you mark off one task - writing a letter to first time buyers. I already wrote one that you are welcome to use, and all you have to do to get it is ask. You'll find the box at www.copybymarte.com/firsttimebuyer.html

Here's to lots of year-end sales!

Marte

Marte Cliff, Real Estate Copywriter
www.marte-cliff.com

I expect you might be thinking “It makes us illiterate, that’s how!”

That is part of it, of course. Just like texting. I do worry that kids growing up texting and twittering may never learn to write a complete sentence with actual words. And I do have trouble figuring out what people are trying to say when they transfer their shortcuts over to their email messages.

All those abbreviations make my head spin. I sit there going over all the things in my mind that could fit a given set of numbers and letters. Sometimes I just give up.

But think about the other side of it.

If you want to convey an idea on Twitter you have to stop and think how to condense it into 140 characters. Sometimes it can’t be done in real words, but often it can be done if you turn the sentence around and cut unnecessary words.

Meanwhile, you’re being forced to distill your idea down to one important point – with no fluff. And that is vital if you want people to read what you write. When you focus in and cut the fluff you make things easier and faster for your readers.

No one with any sense will start sending emails or prospecting letters composed of just 140 characters, but when your brain starts thinking in “Twitter terms” you’ll begin to naturally hone in on the most important idea – and you’ll write better as a result.

I know someone who writes about 8 pages of rambling prose when the point he wants to make could easily be conveyed in a paragraph or two. I haven’t read one of his messages in its entirety in years, and I doubt if any of his other friends have either. It’s simply too much work. (I tried to get him to start using Twitter, but he wasn’t interested!)

Plenty of writers recommend just dumping all your thoughts on the paper and coming back later to edit, cut, revise, and re-arrange – and I agree that is a good way to work. It gets you past worrying about what you’re going to say, because you know you’re going to cut part of it.

But before you begin, think of your letter in Twitter terms and determine the main idea. Then write that thought at the top of the page and keep it in mind. Focus on it, so that everything you say either comes back to it or supports it.

You’ll end up with a letter that’s easy to read and understand, especially if you cut the fluff as you edit.

Did you know that the new “Homebuyer tax credit” can apply to you when you build a new home?

For the purposes of the credit, you may claim your new home as long as you begin occupancy between November 6, 2009 and April 30, 2010. This date can be extended to June 30, 2010 as long as your binding contract was in force by April 30.

I can’t imagine being able to move into a newly built home that wasn’t under contract two months earlier, but perhaps they are counting the installation of a manufactured home in the “new construction” category.

But anyway… if you enter into a contract for a new home now and it is not ready for occupancy until June 29, you can still claim the credit.

Be sure that you get and keep documentation of that occupancy date, because you’ll need it for proof of your eligibility when you claim the credit. In some counties this is a sign-off from the building inspector.

First time buyers who meet the income requirements can claim the entire $8,000. And you don’t actually have to be a first time buyer to qualify. You simply must not have owned a home for the previous 3 years. So, if you sold your home a few years ago and have been traveling around, “trying out” new communities, you’ll be eligible even if you had owned a home for 30 years in the past.

The other class of consumers who are eligible are those who own a home now and have lived in it for 5 of the previous 8 years. So, if you had owned your home for at least 8 years and just under 3 years ago you moved out and turned it into a rental, you’d still be eligible.

These consumers can receive up to $6,500 as a tax credit, depending upon their income. The calculation is a bit convoluted, so do check with your tax advisor to see if you qualify. He or she should soon have the official regulations from the IRS.

I have to be honest. I was not in favor of the previous credit and am not in favor of this one, but there it is. Your taxes are paying for it, so you might as well use it.

I am curious about why they decided to exclude certain people. I’m thinking of those who have owned their current homes for less than 5 years and people who don’t own a home now but did 2 years and 11 months prior to their new purchase.

Are these people that they want to discourage from buying? If so, why? It's another one of those "What were they thinking?" questions that we ask about the government every day now.

And now... a shameless plug for an e-book that could save you thousands of dollars and months of grief...

If you are thinking of building in time to take advantage of this credit, and if you haven’t yet read “Home Building Simplified,” I urge you to get a copy today. At only $17, this e-book could be your most money-saving resource as you enter into the home building process.

In home building, time is money, and even a few day’s delay can cost hundreds of dollars.

Using this book, you’ll be prepared ahead of time for the questions your lender and your contractor will ask.

But don’t take my word for it. Go to www.yourhomebuildingsite.com and read about it. Then order the book. If you read it and think it has nothing of value to you, just send me a note and your money will be refunded.

Simple. Easy. No risk. And I promise not to write and ask you if you're crazy! (Yep, I've had that happen to me!) My husband and I wrote this book after 19 years in real estate sales and custom home building... and it's purpose is to help people keep from making costly mistakes.

But if you think it's contents aren't helpful, then we won't argue.

Wishing you a happy home... be it old or new!

Marte

A couple of days ago I reblogged Clint Miller’s excellent post on things you must do if you plan to be a successful real estate sales person.

One of the points he made was that it is vital to stick to a set working schedule – not allow yourself to decide that you don’t feel like working today. I agree with him. I also think it’s important to “Work when you’re working.”

I can’t count how many times I’ve watched real estate agents sitting at their desks gossiping, or shopping on line, or playing video games. Now there are even more ways to fritter away time – such as playing around on Facebook.

Why do they do this?

For one thing, it’s awfully easy to get pulled in when someone else wants to waste their time talking about last night’s episode of some TV show, or gossiping about one of the closers at the Title Company, or telling their tales of woe about spouses, kids, or in-laws.

Sometimes those folks just come right on over and pull up a chair and start talking.

While it isn’t a great policy to be rude to co-workers, you do have to find a way to take back your time. You need to learn to say “Gee Helen, I’d love to hear about that, but I promised to have this done by 2:00. I need to get back to work.”

When the person trying to steal your time is a guest who just walked in to visit knowing that “You aren’t doing anything” because you’re at a desk, you can use the same tactic. Or… if you know the person is too rude to take that hint, you can look at your watch and say “Oh gosh! I didn’t realize it was so late. I have to be somewhere in 15 minutes!” (It's not a lie, you have to be anywhere except sitting there wasting time!)

Then excuse yourself and actually leave the office. If you think your guest will hang around talking to everyone else, use the time to check on your signs or refill your brochure boxes. (Of course you do have extra copies in your car at all times, don’t you?) You could also pick a neighborhood and drive through looking for FSBO’s – if you find one, stop and offer your free report. Maybe there’s a home nearby that you’d like to preview – use your cell phone to call the agent and see if you can go there right then.

Now for the toughest one… what if it’s YOU who is stealing your time?

This happens for a lot of reasons. Sometimes you’re just plain tired or discouraged. You might need to schedule an evening out just having fun. You might even need to schedule a day or two away from the office, doing something totally unrelated to real estate. Everyone can get bogged down when they think about the same thing day after day, and if you’ve just had a disappointment after working hard on a transaction, depression can also set it.

That’s when you need to do something pro-active to pick yourself up - wasting time is apt to make you feel even worse.

But often, not working when you’re working is because you haven’t set up a system to reach your goals. You haven’t told yourself what you need to accomplish each day, so when you find a free hour you don’t know what to do with it.

This can especially be a problem if you really have just an hour or a half hour before your next commitment. Everything you think about doing seems like it will take too long – so there’s no sense getting started and having to stop.

What’s the cure?

Make a list and keep it handy. When you have a free half hour, take out the list and choose a task to fill that time. Start with things that will only take a few minutes.

• Follow up calls to current prospects
  
• Staying in touch calls to past and present clients
  

For both of these, put names and #’s on the list so you don’t have to hunt for them. Then when you call, note the date next to each name… so you’ll know where to begin next time you have those extra few minutes.

• Checking your briefcase to make sure you do have those extra flyer box brochures in case you see a box that’s empty.
  
• Transferring notes on phone calls, etc. to the permanent file on a current transaction.
  
• Uploading photos from your camera.
  
• Checking the MLS for Expired listings.
  
• Working on a post for Active Rain!
  

Now, for those times when you have a whole day with nothing scheduled, add some items that can take an hour or a few hours:

• Following up on all your leads
  
• Writing an ad for your new listing, or updating an ad for an old listing.
  
• Working on marketing copy for print publications.
  
• Writing a letter for your autoresponder series.
  
• Writing a prospecting letter for mailing
  
• Updating a property brochure for a flyer box
  
• Working on your own personal brochure
  
• Creating a postcard to go to your farming area
  
• Working on your newsletter
  
• Working on your “special reports” for buyers and sellers
  
• Writing another Active Rain post
  
• Taking new photos to use in a Localism post
  

 I know you can add to both of these lists – they’re just examples of what you might include - the important part is to make them so that you do have something positive to accomplish when you find yourself with a little free time.

I don’t know the “why” of it, but sometimes even when you know there’s plenty to do, you just can’t think what it is! And yet, you know that when the hour or so is up your brain will kick in and you’ll say “Darn, I could have used that time to… “

So make the list - don’t let free time turn into expensive time because it was wasted time.

Since you DO have plenty of things to do each day, you might also enjoy reading these two posts about the "Highest and best use" of your time.

Delgate the Busy Work and Should you be Writing?

Clint makes some wonderful points the following post...

While all of them are right on target, two stand out for me... One is the necessity to keep on marketing and working on lead generation, even when you're busy.

Lead capture enticements on your website, in social media, and on your business cards can allow you to automate that to a large degree when you combine them with a good set of follow-up letters loaded into an autoresponder.

I think everyone - in real estate or any other business - should take advantage of that opportunity to stay in touch with leads while you're busy doing other things.

The other was his differentiation between work and busy work. It sure is easy to let yourself get distracted by things that don't matter. You know - stopping to straighten out your desk, or order some new pens, or transfer some names from your notebook into your day planner. They might need to be done - but not until you've done the work that counts!

An even worse problem comes when you can't think what to do next, so do nothing. I've seen a lot of agents playing computer games at their desk when they could be following up on leads or writing their next house ad.

Wishing you success,

Marte

Austin's post below backs up my feelings on real estate marketing - and every other kind of marketing.

When you want customers and prospective customers to trust you, you need to let them know who you really are underneath that professional exterior.

When you do, you allow them to see that in some way, you are like them. And you know, when you meet someone who is somehow like you, you tend to see them as a good person.You may be wrong in that first impression, but that's another story.

I'm a dog person, so I naturally trust other dog people. If you're a golfer, or a non-profit volunteer, or a parent to 6 kids, or a gourmet cook, you naturally are drawn to others who share those interests and activities.

You don't have to reveal every aspect of your private life in order to show who you really are, but if you share a little, people will trust you more. You become a real person.

Strangely, with some of my copywriting clients, I have to struggle to get them to share anything about their life outside of work - even with me.

And, since the client who pays me is always the boss, all I can do is give my professional advice. If they don't agree, their copy is written devoid of personality. But I think it's a huge mistake.

Be who you are, and let others know who you are. Not everyone will love you, but you don't need everyone to love you.

Besides, you'll have more fun working when the people who choose you are "like you."

Have you seen the ad for metal roofing on TV? 

They must run it often, or always at the time of day when I hear TV, because I don’t go there often.

There’s a young couple about to view a home for sale, and the real estate agent mentions a few features inside the home, then starts going on and on about the benefits of the wonderful metal roof.

She tells them how it will keep them safe from fire, last forever, look beautiful, etc. Then she says “So, ready to make an offer?” The potential buyer asks if they can look inside first and the
agent looks at them and says “Why?”

I always get a kick out of it, but I’m not so sure it’s an effective ad.

Will it sell metal roofing? More importantly, will it cause homeowners to go to that particular website to buy their metal roofing? The ad doesn’t say why theirs is better than any others, which is one mistake. If it mentions a brand name, I haven’t caught it – I’m too interested in how silly the agent is acting.

If it has any effect at all, it might just be to make people consider metal roofing if they’re building, or re-roofing a current home. Then, my guess is they’ll call their local builder, and the local builder would contact a local source. I don’t see metal roofing as something you’d order on line. (Do they send the installers along in the shipment?)

What about seeing it from the real estate point of view?

Will the ad serve to make real estate agents look ditzy? Or will viewers see it the way it was probably intended to come across – that metal roofing is so superior that an agent will go off the deep end, and that a buyer really doesn’t need to know anything more about a house?

I don’t know. I think that actress playing the agent is very likeable, but I don’t think I’d want her working for me!

If you’ve seen that ad, what do you think?

Here's to good marketing,

Marte

This contest announcement made me really stop and think – what AM I doing with my blogs? I've just been going along, doing what seemed to come naturally, without stopping to think about it.

My primary means of staying in touch with past, present, and future clients is my ezine. Or rather, my ezines, because I have 3 different ones for 3 different sets of people. One is general marketing, and that's the one most closely tied to the blog on my website.

The other two are more specialized, for real estate and for fund raising. But “marketing in general” applies to all forms of promotion – whether you're promoting your services as a real estate agent, your products, or your non-profit cause.

Sometimes, when writing my ezines, I do reference a specific blog post in my ezines, but I think they come most into use for my clients when they write me with questions.

Often, people who are new to my ezines or my blog have questions that have been covered before. For instance, they may ask about ways to build their SEO and I can send them to a post with tips that will increase their chances of being found. Many ask how to get started in real estate self-promotion, and I send them to several different posts dealing with that problem.  Of course I always have something to add, depending upon the particular situation they've described to me. 

I don't use my own blogs exclusively. You know how some real estate clients don't always want to listen to your advice. Well, copywriting clients are sometimes the same way. So when I can't convince them of something (for instance, the need for a call to action) I use someone else's blog to back me up. Sometimes it works.

I offer a lot of free advice in both the ezines and blog posts – and some say that's foolish. If I tell people how to write their promotions, they'll just do it themselves and won't need me.

But I don't believe giving away information hurts my business a bit.

People who truly want to write their own materials can use my tips, and people who truly can't afford a copywriter can be saved from some damaging mistakes. Meanwhile, those who don't want to write their own copy can see that I know what I'm doing. I think it's a win-win situation.

One more thing... Since reading an AR post a couple of weeks ago, I've started building a good list of blog post titles and their links and sorting them by subject matter – so that I can quickly reference them in new blog posts as well as have the information at my fingertips when I want to answer a question.

That project has been halted momentarily, however. Last week I had a crash and when I went to my external hard drive to get my back up files I found that they looked like something out of a nightmare. Compare what I found to what you'd see if you took all your paper files, opened the lid of a big trunk, and just tossed them all in.

I decided to quit searching until I found out if my computer lady could retrieve my files. She says she can, so I'm putting that project on hold until I get my “real” computer back. Then I'm going to learn a better way to do back-up.

So far, I haven't printed and mailed or hand-delivered any of my blog posts. Every one of my clients contacts me via e-mail, and I seldom meet any of them in person, so links are the fast way to get people the information they want.

Thanks for offering a contest that made me think about this - so that I can do even more of what's working!

Rebecca makes some important points in this blog post - and even though I do marketing day in and day out, she taught me something. Thanks, Rebecca!

First, about your profile. People want to do business with other people, not with robots. In addition, they want to deal with others who are "like them" and can understand their wants and needs. 

Including a little information about yourself turns you into a real person - one they can identify with and see as somehow being "like them." I always recommend to my copywriting clients that they include some references to pets, family, hobbies, or community involvement. You don't need to go on about it, but subtly weave it into your profile copy.

Her idea of having something pre-written where you can get your hands on it quickly is a time saver everyone should practice.

Next, the call to action. Marketers have done the tests that prove it - most people don't take action unless you tell them to. Even in fundraising - you can tell a story about how much your cause needs help, but unless you actually ask for the help, you won't get it.

So come right out and ask for what you want. Call me. Send your friends and family to me. Come to my open house. List with me. Visit me on Active Rain!

Rebecca's 3rd hint is one that had escaped me... adding links to your old blog posts on your new ones. It's brilliant.

After I read this post, I went through all my old Active Rain posts and captured the links on a document I can use for reference. Then I sorted them into categories to make them easier to find.

But why stop there? Why not also reference posts on your other blogs - such as the one on your website, or something you might have posted to Squidoo?

It will take a little time to gather all those links, but if you keep them in a file along with your ready-made profile paragraphs, getting at them will be fast and easy.

That said, you might want to read this tip on writing copy for that website:

Remember You're Talking to Just One Person.

And this one: Before You Write, Get Clear on Why Your Service is Special,

and then, Give Your Prospects a Reason Why They Should Choose You.

Not too many people on line are using ANY of these methods - so get started today and lead the pack!

Yours for success,