The Real Estate Tomato

The First Virtual Real Estate BarCamp: A Huge Success!

Real Estate Tomato (Real Estate Tomato) — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 15:47:16 -0600

Thank You!

Thank you for all your wonderful comments, kudos, suggestions, concerns, promotion, enthusiasm, and most of all, your participation.

We're chalking this event up as a huge success, thanks to all of you. We couldn't have done it without you. It seems like we simply set the event in motion, a little over a month ago, and you all took the ball and ran with it. If we take anything away from the experience it is that there is a very clear need for this sort of event. So be certain, we will continue to fill the need in every way we can.

Statistics From The Event:

1. Number of Registered Attendees: 1928
2. Number of Live Presentations: 26
3. Number of Pre-Recorded Presentations: 1
4. Hours of Live Content: 13
5. Maximum Number of Attendees in All Webainrs at Once: 1004
6. Maximum Number of Attendees in a Single Webinar: 404
7. Registered Attendees That Participated: 1634
8. Number of Live, In-Office Events: 71
9. Largest Population at an In-Office Event: 127
10. Number of T-Shirts Printed: 500
11. Number of T-Shirts Delivered by Tuesday: 460
12: Total Unique Traffic to VREBC.com in 30 Days of Existence: 11,161
13. Total Unique Traffic to VREBC.com on Day of Event: 3,651
14. Most Registrations in One Day: 366 (11/16/09)
15. Fewest Registrations in One Day: 5 (11/8/09)
16. Greatest Referrer of Registrations: Facebook 20.9%
17. Referrer Runner-Up: Office/Co-Worker: 20.2%
18. Number of Sponsors: 13
19. Total Money Raised For Warmath Charity on Day of Event: $427
20. Total Number of #vrebc Tweets During Event: 2330
21. Number of Countries that Tuned In: 11
22. Number of Attendees in a Bathrobe: Insufficient data.

Of all the stats above, the one that stands out most to me is the charity total. If everyone had donated a quarter ($0.25) we would have raised $475 for the Warmath Children College Fund. Collectively, we raised only $425. If we can find 120 more donors that feel like they got $5 worth of knowledge from this event, then we can at least present the family with a $1000 donation in all of out names. Together, by giving a little, we can all make a big difference.

Presentation Downloads:

Below are download links for the Notes and PowerPoint presentations of the Speakers that we have received. If you presented at the event, and have something for us to post here, please send them so that we can update this list.

Ross Hair - Converting Social Media Into More Real Estate Closings
Ross Hair - Social Media Mind Map

Frances Flynn Thorsen - Social Media Risk Management Part 1
Frances Flynn Thorsen - Social Media Risk Management Part 2

Was It Social?

One of the concerns before the event, even at its conception was: Can it be social?
Can we capture any of that social magic that happens in the real life barcamp events?

We set up the 3 obvious avenues, a Twitter Hashtag (#vrebc), a Facebook Fan Page, and a Chat Room.

Here's what Matt Stigliano had to say about the experience:

My biggest fear as it was a very simple scrolling chat, was that the conversation would inevitably turn boring. It didn’t. People engaged and discussed the finer points of what was being said in each session. We shared our tips, tricks, and ideas. My guess is that it was a lot like the conversations that take place in the hallway of REbarcamps all over the country.

This was the sense that I got from many of the participants that we heard from. We also heard that people were jumping from the Twitter hashtag to the chat room, not wanting to miss anything. With 2330 #vrebc tweets and 100's of active attendees in the chat room, there was at least a conversation happening, that's for sure.

71 Offices held their own live event during the BarCamp. One office wrote this blog about the experience, mentioning that, "The day exceeded all expectations as 3 rooms had standing room only attendance." He continued, " it provided me with the opportunity to spend a day with the agents and then kick back at the social meetup party afterward."

Our goal with the office events and the in-real-life meetups after the event were to try and bring participants together, physically, much like the standard BarCamps can. The feedback we have received from the office meetups and the after event meetups is that everyone enjoyed themselves, and really took advantage of the social aspect of the day.

I think we can continue to improve the social experience in subsequent events, but for a first go at taking the conference online, I think the consensus is that YES, it was Social. Mission accomplished.

Suggestions We've Received:

Here are some suggestions that we are considering and would love some discussion among our participants in the comments.

1. Longer Sessions.
Is 30 mins too short? Should we encourage the speakers to present on a mitigated topic? Or, do we extend the presentation time to 45 mins, or even an hour?

The format we went with mirrors the standard BarCamp schedule. 30 mins up, 15 mins down. After experiencing this schedule online, I do think that we should extend the sessions by 15 mins, making the schedule 45 mins up, 15 mins down. Thoughts?

2. More Engagement with the Presenters.
Should we allow for live question and answer? Do we need to encourage the presenters to have a partner to handle the live questions?

In the presenting guidelines, we encouraged the presenters to not engage the live audience in the their sessions. 30 mins was such a short window to present in the first place, and we wanted to avoid the likely possibility of being taken off track with dozens of questions from the large audience. That said, I do believe that there is a need to engage with the presenters, and I propose that we set up 'break out' chat rooms for each presenter to 'hold court' for 15 minutes after their session.

3. Offer a Panel Format for Some of the Sessions.
Can we pull off a 3 or 4 person panel with a moderator on the line, all virtually? Should it be given at least an hour, given the range of participation needed?

I like the idea. If we have a solid panel that proposes a session, why not? Thoughts?

4. Record the Sessions.
We have received a TON of requests for replays of the sessions. The reality of the situation was that we were just 3 people doing everything we could (at the time) to make this a smooth event. Adding the recording to the dynamic was the first thing we had to sacrifice in the production to maintain our sanity. Now that we have the experience of this event behind us, I guarantee that our future events will have full recordings of each session, available for download.

5. Less 101 and More Advanced Topics.
We recognize that the majority of the audience did find out about the event because our social media reach, which would lead us to understand that the majority of the attendees were somewhat versed in the fundamentals of using Social Media, and other online marketing strategies. Catering to this audience with more advanced topics and content is crucial, and we will make an effort to secure some advanced topic presenters for future events. However, we can't ignore that the clear goal of these events is to educate the new adopters, not the early ones. With a little more attention to pinning 101 classes at the same time as advanced ones we can hope to satisfy the greatest number of you.

6. Less Selling in the Presentations.
We put up some guidelines for all the presenters, and included a "no selling" point in said guidelines. But, we can't and won't control what happens in each session. We can only hope that all the presenters 'get' the spirit of the event and follow suit. That said, I personally don't mind a little 'selling of your time' in your presentation. Maybe it is the salesman in me, but if I have a captive audience, a little shameless self promotion is impossible to resist.

Tech Challenges:

What were the "tech difficulties"?

1. Limit of attendees allowed in each webinar was accidentally capped at 300 instead of 1001.

It seems we made the mistake of launching the Webainars manually, about 15 minutes earlier than schedule. We were anxious and wanted to get them up and running to test them and get that detail out of the way. Well... it turns out that this is how you limit the permitted attendance of a webinar to only 300 instead of the advertised 1000. In fact, the Admin Control Panel continues to read: Max 1001. Immediately we started getting complaints of people not being able to join "Full Webinars". We called Citrix and they informed us that we shouldn't have launched them manually, and that there is now nothing that they can do. We closed each wenbinar room, relaunched it, and this seemed to reset the allowed attendees to 1001 again.

2. Jumping in and out of webinars was not "easy".

We realized that the switch between webinars was not going to be smooth. There is just no way to have it automatic, given the service that we used: GoToWebinar. We think that we can improve expectations by posting a clear, step-by-step expectation of jumping from room to room.

3. Audio issues for the speakers.

A few of the speakers had issues calling in and being heard. We solved all of them but 1 instance, and are still unsure what caused that challenge. The other challenges were related to permissions, access links and audio pins. With practice we can better manage these potential challenges, and hope to minimize them in the future.

4. Audio issues for the attendees.

Some attendees were not hearing the audio. The only solution we have heard to overcome this is to log out and log back in again. It seems to resolve all audio issues. Otherwise, attendees must dial in and listen with their phones.

Our Next Event:

It is official. We are going to ride the wave of interest and enjoyment from this event and produce another. Bigger, Better and Broader.

Date: Monday the 4th of January (just before Inman NYC)
Time: 9AM PST - 4PM PST
Webinar Rooms: Four.
Number of Presenters: 28
Length of Sessions: 45 mins.
Length of Breaks: 15 mins.
Registration Goal: 3,500
Office Event Goal: 200

In the meantime, we will be working feverishly to build a more social experience around the event. If you would like to be more connected to that experience, please join the beta version of TomatoUniversity.com.

Thanks again to our sponsors, speakers and those that helped produce this awesome event.

Will Brokers Guarantee Our Quest For 1000 Registrants For Virtual REBarCamp?

Real Estate Tomato (Real Estate Tomato) — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 15:42:15 -0500

“You buy the pizza, we’ll deliver the education”

Brokers, imagine providing your real estate agents the ability to learn from industry leaders, top marketing professionals and social media experts without leaving the office or paying for speakers to visit your destination.

This is what Virtual RE Bar Camp (VREBC) can do for your office.

Your entire office can get the educational experience that REBarCamps have provided to thousands of agents across the country. Bring the power of this event to your agents, without the cost and travel. The Ultimate Office Meeting.

Every brokerage is looking for new and unique ways to provide value to their agents. The Virtual REBarCamp is the solution:

Progressive Education: Stay relevant in this changing marketplace.
Diverse Content: There is something for everyone.
Nationally Celebrated and Recognized Presenters: Value!
All Day Event: Everyone should be able to participate with this schedule.
It’s Free: The price is right!

Brokers and office managers, this is the perfect opportunity for you to offer an experience of incredible value to your agents.

Suggestions for a successful, in-office RE BarCamp:

- Projector screens and a strong audio source.
- Separate rooms for the separate webinar channels (3).
- A tech-savvy assistant or manager to ensure a smooth operation.
- Computers dedicated to Social Media avenues (Facebook, Twitter, TomatoChat.com) allowing the office to get into the national conversation.
- Pizza and refreshments.
- The After-Event-MeetUp. Plan an off location MeetUp to have a drink together and meet other participants from your community.

If you are going to plan an in office VREBC we would love to know. We will showcase your event and brokerage on our website: http://www.vrebc.com. Instant cool! We’d also appreciate it if you could request that the participating agents register on our site so that we can get a sense of the overall participation count.

we will be holding the first of its kind,
Virtual Real Estate BarCamp.

What is it?

In place of a rented venue, we'll be holding the event online.
In place of break-out sessions in rooms, we'll we have simultaneous webinars, all day.
In place of the hallways, we will be chatting on Twitter, Facebook, Backnoise and TomatoChat.
In place of traveling you'll be able to attend from the comfort of your home or office.
In place of an impromptu calendar, we will be filling presentation slots all month.

Attendance is unlimited, and it is still FREE!

It's Official! We're Holding A Virtual Real Estate BarCamp On November 17th

Real Estate Tomato (Real Estate Tomato) — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 10:55:11 -0500

Some said we were crazy, but no one said it was a bad idea.

On November 17th from 9AM until 4PM PST
we will be holding the first of its kind,
Virtual Real Estate BarCamp.

What is it?

In place of a rented venue, we'll be holding the event online.
In place of break-out sessions in rooms, we'll we have simultaneous webinars, all day.
In place of the hallways, we will be chatting on Twitter, Facebook, Backnoise and TomatoChat.
In place of traveling you'll be able to attend from the comfort of your home or office.
In place of an impromptu calendar, we will be filling presentation slots all month.

Attendance is unlimited, and it is still FREE!

And finally, so as to not lose the Social Aspect of the BarCamp atmosphere, we are encouraging volunteers around the country to organize In-Real-Life MeetUps for immediately after the online event. Sponsorship donations will help fund these Social Media Happy Hour style gatherings, so please let us know if you would like to help by volunteering your time to organize a local MeetUp.

As the calendar of sessions and the IRL MeetUps start to come together, we will keep you all posted through Twitter and our Facebook Fan Page.

Block off your entire calendar for Tuesday, Nov 17th. None of these webinars will be available after the event. You do not want to miss this.

Teresa Boardman Talks With The Real Estate Tomato TODAY at 3pm on RETomatoRadio.com

Real Estate Tomato (Real Estate Tomato) — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 16:08:30 -0500

We are thrilled to announce that on RETomatoRadio.com will be speaking with Real Estate Blogging Royalty, Teresa Boardman. Teresa has launched the StPaulRealEstateBlog.com in November 2005, and has hardly missed a day of blogging since.

Her dedication, and local-focused approach to blogging has been the inspiration of 1000s of real estate bloggers across the country.

Together, with Teresa we will be discussing the following:

How on Earth she manages to regularly write for:

StPaulRealEstateBlog.com

Photo Blogging

Topic Development

Blogging Discipline

And the “Future of the Future” because no one is addressing that.

And much more, including your questions.

Time: 3pm PST
Where to listen live: RETomatoRadio.com
Call-in Number to listen away from your computer: 347-884-9764
Live Chat: www.TomatoChat.com

How To Choose A Domain Name For Your Real Estate Blogsite

Real Estate Tomato (Real Estate Tomato) — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 12:11:29 -0500

How To Choose A Domain Name For Your Real Estate Blogsite

Without doubt, the most common question that I get from brand new blogging clients is, "Can you help me choose a domain name?"

The days of agents using their own name as their website identity are gone, and this has them left with the task of developing a new, powerful brand.

After answering this question and setting up several hundred domains over the last few years the formula has become clear. That said, you could probably break everyone one of these 'rules' and still end up with an incredibly successful blog.

But before we get the guidelines, you need to get into a Domain Buying State of Mind.

What Are You Going To Be Blogging About? Ultimately your content will determine your success, not your domain name. However, taking into consideration what your topics of focus are to be make a nice direction for your site's name, and help potential visitors understand your focus.

Who Is Your Ideal Reader? Once you can define who you need to read your blog, you can consider what impact the domain name will make on them.

What First Impression Are You Looking To Make? We ask this question in our design interviews because it makes all the difference in connecting with what our clients' design needs are. This consideration can make a difference in your domain name selection.

What Are Your Blogging Goals? Leads VS Relationships - Communities VS Traffic - You As The Expert VS Your Site As The Tool.

Who Will Be Writing On The Blog? Is the name you choose going to work for everyone involved?

Basic Guidelines to Choosing A Real Estate Blog Domain Name

1. Easy To Remember

If your audience can’t remember your domain name at first glance then you have made a poor decision.

Note: Terms like “Real Estate” and your community of focus (San Diego, for example) are incredibly easy for your audience to remember. If your blog is a real estate site about San Diego simply tag a word that’s easy to remember to that and you’re fine. Wire, Voice, Blog, Report, News, Wave, Juice, Crab, Cafe… are all examples of single words added to an easy-to-remember combination.

StPaulRealEstateBlog.com
StLouisRealEstateVoice.com
MiamiRealEstateCafe.com

I’m not suggesting this type of combo as the best alternative, but it is common for a reason; it’s memorable. (There is one clear peril to using a term like 'blog' in the domain: Your site may grow to be bigger than the identity of the blog, and yet now limited, in impression, by the domain).

Beware of easy to confuse combinations of words. If the order of words don't make a strong impact, or don't have a natural order, you can be sure they will be jumbled, and your potential visitor will end up on someone else’s site.

ChicoHomeSearching.com VS HomeSearchingInChico.com VS ChicoHomeSearch.com

And finally, if it can’t be remembered, it can’t be branded.

2. Easy To Spell

Google does a good job of suggesting words when it catches a misspelling with their “Did You Mean?” feature. But that doesn’t mean that they will suggest your site. And, not all browsers automatically utilize a search engine if they don’t recognize the url.

If you cover a community that is commonly misspelled (Schenectady, for example), it would be worth buying domains with common misspellings just to cover all bases. I own RealEstateTomatoe.com, and you wouldn't believe how much traffic I still get for this misspelling.

And finally, if it is difficult to spell, it makes your domain harder to remember.

3. Value Of Keywords

The question is, "Do I Need "Real Estate" in the Domain Name?

The short answer is: No.

The other question is, "Should I have keywords in my domain name"

The short answer is: Yes, keywords are a benefit in your domain name. The reason is because when you are linked to, by another site using your domain name, the link the use contains these keywords, and they are considered a relevant description by the search engines. For example, if I link to SantaBarbaraRealEstateVoice.com from this article, the spiders will see the keywords Santa Barbara Real Estate associated with my link, giving a description to the site I am linking to. This is a key element to success with inbound links: that they clearly define and describe your site. You’ll see me regularly use keywords (and alt titles) when I link from my articles to boost the value of the link for site.

-BUT- Keywords in a domain are not required for your site’s success. Most of the successes you will gain in the search engines come from your content, not your domain name. I recommend that you first consider the memorability of the domain before you start adding keywords, just for keyword’s sake.

Some favorite real estate blogsite domains without a definitive keyword:

Miamism.com
HomeSection.com
CentersAndSquares.com

4. Length

The length of the domain is certainly relevant to the above considerations. 5 words in a domain name is not necessarily too many if it makes sense. Take Valerie Fitzgerald’s domain name:LosAngelesRealEstateTalk.com. The name of the area and the term ‘real estate’ are a given, leaving just the term ‘blog’ to be remembered. No one interested in reading a blog about real estate in Los Angeles is going to forget that domain name.

However, something like: CastleRockRealEstateHomesForSale.com is ridiculous. It is difficult to remember, keyword stuffed and a P.I.T.A. to type. Remember, the object is to create a powerful brand that supports your powerful content, not to make a mockery of your site's name just to improve your SEO.

There are still 6 more Major Determining Factors for choosing your Domain Name.
To read those, you will need to collow the link to this article's original location.

How To Choose A Domain Name For Your Real Estate Blogsite

IT HAS BEEN CHOPPED BECAUSE THIS IS A SYNDICATION OF THE ORIGINAL, AND IT HAS BEEN PROVEN THAT FOR SEO PURPOSES IT IS NOT A GOOD STRATEGY TO POST THE SAME ARTICLE IN ITS ENTIRETY IN MORE THAN ONE LOCATION.

10 Inman Connect San Francisco Passes Are Up For Grabs.

Real Estate Tomato (Real Estate Tomato) — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 15:48:20 -0500

Yesterday, during our Tomato Radio Show with Brad Inman and Daniel Rothamel of Inman News, Brad was feeling generous and announced that he would give us 10 free passes to the upcoming Inman Connect conference in San Francisco. He also mentioned that we can give them away in any manner that we please.

So, instead of just handing them out to the first to raise their hands, I figured we would run a little competition.

I know how busy real estate agents are, so I’m not going to make this too difficult. However, I also know that the biggest challenge for bloggers is the commitment to developing regular content. So this competition will be about swift and easy content creation.

Requirements to get one of the 10 Inman Connect Free Passes:

1. Write an article (or post a video) on your blog that includes a 50 word reason that you deserve a ticket. The article doesn’t have to be 50 words, but the reason that you deserve the ticket has to be exactly 50 words.

2. The article (not the reason) must link back to this article on the Real Estate Tomato Blog, and to the Inman Connect San Francisco page.

There are 2 ways to win:

1. The first 5 respondents that meet the above requirements automatically win a free ticket.

2. The 5 most creative entries will each win one of the remaining free tickets.

We will be rewarding only one ticket to each winner. Real Estate Tomato staff will be voting to determine the for the creative entries.

Please note: If you don’t have a blog, well, we can help you with that.
And we will find a way to get you a free ticket if you become a client today.

If you didn’t win a free ticket, but would still like to attend the Inman Connect Conference in SF Aug 4th-7^th, we can still help you receive a substantial discount by visiting thisregistration page and using the coupon code: Tomato.

If you enjoyed reading this article, why not Subscribe to be notified of the next one?

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Brad Inman and Daniel Rothamel To Appear on Tomato Radio, July 15th at 3pm PST. The Inman Connect Show!

Real Estate Tomato (Real Estate Tomato) — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 15:35:36 -0500

This week’s show is another amazing opportunity to learn from some of the biggest names on the Real Estate Industry.

On Wednesday, July 15^th, at 3pm PST, we are thrilled to have the opportunity to chat with Brad Inman and Daniel Rothamel of Inman News.

For the last several years, Brad has organized, what I consider, to be the most important conference for the real estate industry. The opportunity to connect, network and learn from some of the brightest minds in the industry make it a Must Attend event. It is labeled as 3 days, but those of us whom attend know that it is a full week of opportunity.

So what are we going to be talking with Brad and Daniel about? Well the big event in San Francisco, of course.

Brad and Daniel will be sharing their thoughts on:

What makes this Connect Event different than all the ones in the past?
What are they most excited about for the upcoming event?
What makes Blogger’s Connect so special?
What will they take away from the experience?
Who are the 'do not miss' names speaking at the event? (Besides me, of course!).

And, we will be taking you calls as always. So prepare your questions for them now!

The event this summer is in San Francisco from the 4^th to the 7^th of August at the Palace Hotel.

To Learn More About Inman Connect:
Bloggers Connect
Schedule of Events
Conference Program
Workshops
Start-Up Alley
Speakers
Innovator Awards
Social Networking
Sponsors
Pricing
and more.

Visit RETomatoRadio.com at 3pm PST on July 15^th to listen in live.

Call in to listen away from your computer, and Ask Questions: (347) 884-9764
(Hit the #1 on the keypad to get our attn, and we'll bring you on live!)

There's a chat room too!

Yes, there will be a podcast in case you missed the live show... but being there is where it's at!

Are you a fan yet of Tomato Radio’s Fan Page on Facebook?

50 Sound Real Estate Blogging Tips

Real Estate Tomato (Real Estate Tomato) — Sat, 11 Jul 2009 16:49:08 -0500

50 Sound Real Estate Blogging Tips

Most of my blogging efforts revolve around delivering sound real estate blogging advice. The articles generally take me at least a couple of hours to develop, format, publish and broadcast. I have dozens and dozens of ideas that are just waiting to be developed and published, but as we all know, the mostchallenging thing about blogging is carving out the time.

Then it strikes me. Micro Blogging on Twitter would be a fantastic solution to my dilemma: a ton of ideas, and no time to get them into blog-shape. So, on April 25th, 2009, I started posting Real Estate Blogging Tips to Twitter, under the hashtag #reblogtips. Only having 140 characters with which to deliver sound advice forced each one to be clear and definitive. The following are a collection of 50 of those first two months of tips.

1. Near holidays, timely posts can drive HUGE traffic to your blog. Great article on just that phenomena: http://bit.ly/WysfJ

2. Tell it from your perspective. If you think you don't have one, then you don't have much business being a blogger.

3. Getting your readers to subscribe to your blog is crucial. Make it VERY CLEAR how to subscribe via email and rss reader.

4. Copy/Pasting entire articles you find on the Wire to your blog = Fail. Grab a paragraph and leverage your own opinion.

5. Do an Interview Post with a local business owner and it will dominate the SE's for their business. Good power to have!

6. Never, I mean never, under estimate pointing out the obvious. What's clear to you is that "a ha" moment of others.

7. Looking for your blogging voice? Tell a great real estate story, a story that has a point with value for your ideal reader.

8. Write posts with the intention of making your blog better. Each article is someone's first impression of you.

9. Want good SEO content about yourself on your blog? Interview yourself with some keyword rich questions. It'll be fun too

10. Use Sub Headers to break up the different ideas or sections of your blog articles. Easier to read, and huge for SEO!

11. Blog from your ideal reader's point of view. Ask their questions, in their voice, and then answer them.

12. Don't be afraid to ask for guest authors to contribute to your blog. Or pay it forward and offer to write on someone else's.

13. 3 reasons LISTS make for great blog articles: 1. They make engaging headlines. 2. Easy to write. 3. Easy to read.

14. 2 great locations for FREE and interesting IMAGES for your blog posts: http://cli.gs/DHsj1R and http://cli.gs/RTBRj8

15. Your images will rock in Google with keyword rich file names and alternate text. These details make all the difference.

16. Learn to add padding around your images to keep them from butting up against the text. It will make it look like you care.

17. What is the most challenging element of blogging? Finding the time. If it’s that important, you must schedule it!

18. Every article needs an image. It's worth the $1/per to get the perfect one at istockphoto.com.

19. Your categories NEED to be Keyword Rich. Yes, you should change them if they are vague, or lame.

20. Your readers love lists. They represent the perfect Snack Sized Article that they can quickly consume.

To read the REMAINING 30 Blogging Tips, you'll need to head over to the Original Location of this post on the Real Estate Tomato:

50 Sound Real Estate Blogging Tips

IT HAS BEEN CHOPPED BECAUSE THIS IS A SYNDICATION OF THE ORIGINAL, AND IT HAS BEEN PROVEN THAT FOR SEO PURPOSES IT IS NOT A GOOD STRATEGY TO POST THE SAME ARTICLE IN ITS ENTIRETY IN MORE THAN ONE LOCATION.

iBidcondo.com – The New Way to Buy Real Estate

Real Estate Tomato (Real Estate Tomato) — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 11:36:53 -0500

My friend Melani Gordon from Gwave Consulting brought this to my attention, so I thought I would bring it to yours.

July 27th iBidcondo is set to deliver a deal of a lifetime in Dallas. Buy your auction seat today. Bid for a brand new 1,300 sq ft condo in downtown Dallas, TX.

Full property details - http://ibidcondo.com/auctions/29/details

iBidcondo is a new and exciting way to purchase high quality real estate using a unique (Patent Pending) online-auction system that has NO RESERVE or MINIMUM PRICE.
iBidcondo covers the cost of the property by “selling a limited number of seats” to the Auction.

This means that the majority of the net proceeds will be donated to a registered Charity that the winning bidder nominates prior to the auction.
•    iBidCondo auctions are online live property auctions where properties are auctioned without reserve or minimum prices.
•    To bid at an iBidcondo Auction, Bidders must first purchase a "virtual seat" to the online Auction from the iBidcondo website.
•    The revenue from the sale of the Auction Seats subsidizes the price of the property.

At a recent auction of a property in Austin, a condo with a $690,000 value was sold for a bid of $86,840, and more than 1,200 people participated in the auction. Followhttp://www.Twitter.com/ibidcondo to learn how you can win an auction seat.

The 11 Most Common Pitfalls For New Real Estate Bloggers

Real Estate Tomato (Real Estate Tomato) — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 13:41:51 -0500

The 11 Most Common Pitfalls For New Real Estate Bloggers

We’ve trained hundreds of real estate agents to make the blog an effective marketing tool. We run them through a dozen hours of personal training classes, aiming to keep them on track to success.

The following represent the most common issues that we help them recognize in or to keep them focused.

___

1. Worrying About Design Before the Writing

___

This is akin to planning a wedding before you have even met your husband/wife to be. Before you even ‘deserve’ a great looking home for your blogging, you need to have shown a solid commitment to The Writing.

Our process with our new clients is to get them to start thinking and acting like bloggers while their custom design is being developed. The process usually takes around 4 weeks, providing us with ample time to establish a strong commitment in the form of 10–12 well written articles.

Not to take away from a killer design, but the impression that you should want to make with your blog is that you are an Expert, delivering a Consistent Message. This will gain you an audience, to whom you have earned the right to show-off you fancy site.

More on this topic:
Why Am I Blogging Again?

___

2. Failing To Establish A Clear Focus for the Content

___

If we stick with the idea that the common blogging goal which we all share is to gain and retain an audience, then we need to consider their experience.

Good headlines and great content will surely gain the audience, but keeping them there, and earning their subscription and return visit is the real trick. Categories, Related Posts, Tags, a Mission Statement and clear Calls To Action are your opportunity to make your message clear. But the first thing you need to do is carve out exactly what topics of content you plan to deliver on a consistent basis.

If your audience is confused as to what categories of content they are going to get from your blog, they aren’t going to bother subscribing. You put $1 down and pick up a newspaper without even looking inside because you know what you are getting (local news, world news, sports, business, entertainment, comics, etc). Your audience needs to react with a similar understanding. When they recognize a solid commitment to a clear group of topics that meet their interests, they will commit to you in the form of subscription.

More on this topic:
Your Real Estate Blog is Your Newspaper.

___

3. Failing to Recognize and Write to Their Ideal Reader

___

In order to gain the right audience, you need to define them. I know that most of you have worked with all ages, all incomes, all races, and have gone miles in all directions to help them… but who do you want to work with? Define him/her, and then write to him/her. Take a second, write down who they are and even name them if you have to.

When you can visualize the reader, it is much easier to explain things to them. What’s easier, explaining something to a friend or to a room full of strangers? When you ‘know’ your audience, it will be much easier to hatch and deliver your ideas.

More on this topic:
8 Things That You Are Not Doing On Your Real Estate Blog, But Should Be.

___

4. Failing to Read and Learn from Other Bloggers

___

To become a better writer you need to be an avid reader. We learn from example, and there is no shortage of fantastic writers in and out of the RE.net.

Read from the perspective of a writer.

I learn something every blog surfing session. I see new formatting ideas, new call-to-action approaches, new PlugIns, etc. But before all that, the new blogger can pick up so much from established bloggers. Blogging is not like other forms of writing, and reading others will help you recognize the rhythm and formatting that works best.

In addition to learning the writing style, new bloggers will notice the dedication shown by the successful. This is the most valuable lesson of them all.

More on this topic:
7 Reasons Why Your Local Real Estate Blogging Peers Are Not Your Competition.
How Twitter Makes You a Better Writer

For Pitfalls 5-11, you'll need to click through to the original location of this article on Real Estate Tomato.

The 11 Most Common Pitfalls For New Real Estate Bloggers

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Jeff Turner of Real Estate Shows To Appear LIVE on Tomato Radio, TODAY July 1st at 3pm PST.

Real Estate Tomato (Real Estate Tomato) — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 12:40:38 -0500

Call in #: 347-884-9764
Click Here to Listen Online (starting at 3pm PST)

We have been having so much fun, and getting such great feedback that we have decided to add a second show a month to the Tomato Radio schedule. Now, instead of just one show on the 15th of each month, we will be hosting 2 shows, the additional date being the 1st of each month. The bi-monthly shows will air live at 3pm PST, and will also be available as a podcast shortly thereafter.

Todayy, July 1^st, we are thrilled to have the opportunity to chat with Jeff Turner, president of Real Estate Shows.

Over the last few years, Jeff has positioned himself as one of the most visible personalities in the online real estate space (aka the RE.net). He has been a top point earner (~400K) for much of the existence of ActiveRain, he is stalked by nearly 7000 on Twitter, 2000 on Facebook, 360 on Flickr, 500+ on LinkedIn, shows up to speak at most of the REBarCamps, and Inman Connect events. The man is connected.

Our format will be to talk with Jeff for the first 30 minutes regarding:

Real Estate Shows News
Mastering Social Media
Real Estate and Social Media
Must-Have Web Tools
iPhone and Real Estate

And the second half of the show will be Jeff answering your questions!

Click Here to Listen Live at 3pm PST on July 1^st.

Call in to listen away from your computer, and Ask Questions: (347) 884-9764
(Hit the #1 on the keypad to get our attn, and we'll bring you on live!)

There's a Chat Room too!

Yes, there will be a podcast in case you missed the live show... but being there is where it's at!

Are you a fan yet of Tomato Radio’s Fan Page on Facebook?

Listen to Tomato Radio Today At 3pm PST: We're Getting a Behind The Scene Look At ActiveRain with Jeff Corbett (VP of Operations).

Real Estate Tomato (Real Estate Tomato) — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 13:25:13 -0500

Listen in from 3 to 4pm PST to get a Behind the Scenes Look at the Real Estate Industry’s Largest Social Network, ActiveRain (About to eclipse 150K members).

Our guest, Jeff Corbett, is an old friend of the Real Estate Tomato, but more importantly, he is the VP of Operations and Business Development for ActiveRain.

He’s Bald, Bold and Brazen. and we’re hoping he’ll open up and give us the mud (dirt in the rain).

We will be talking with Jeff about:

His Role At AR
New AR Developments
AR’s Big Challenges and Possible Solutions
His thoughts on a Yogi Berraism: “Nobody goes there no more; it's too crowded!"
And more…

At 3:30 We will be taking your questions. Don’t hold back, we know you have a lot on your mind.

Listen Live: http://cli.gs/tb7u8t

Call In To Listen: (347) 884-9764

Call in with your questions. (347) 884-9764 (Then hit the #1 on the keypad to get our attn, and we'll bring you on live!)

There's a Chat Room too! http://cli.gs/tb7u8t

Yes, there will be a podcast in case you missed the live show... but being there is where it's at!

An Honest Look at the Impact of Video on Your Real Estate Blog

Real Estate Tomato (Real Estate Tomato) — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 18:41:41 -0500

Welcome to our latest Tomato Collaborative Article where we cover the topic of Video in Real Estate Blogging.

We recently had a Tomato Radio episode on the same subject, and this article is the collective opinion and insight from the contributors on our internal Matrix Blog.

My question to our audience was What is the Impact of Video in your Real Estate Blogging?

Below is my best effort at stitching together their comments in a comprehensive manner.

Pros:

The Audience Better Identifies With Author.

Rob Saxe: Who I am comes through more on video than when I write an article. From experience, that video blogging as a marketing tool is indispensable and an absolute necessity for my business.

Bruce Lemieux: A blog with compelling and informative written content can be a huge net to gather leads and build an audience. To pull leads into the boat and convert them to clients, you need to build trust by making a personal connection. Video can be just the lure to get them hooked. The trend is clear: people will continue to buy houses from people, not computers.

Cyndee Haydon leveraged Albert Mehrabian's Rule of 7%-38%-55% to reinforce the idea of how effective video with conviction can be for Real Estate. According to Mehrabian, there are 3 Main Elements of Communication, with ranging influence to your audience:

* Words, (7%)

* Tone of voice and (38%)

* Body language. (55%)

"I love the thought that the non-verbal cues are important to conveying our "belief and conviction" so videos give the viewer the ability to connect to us as people (100%) versus just words on a page (7%). "

Gena Riede: We are in the age of transparency and videos certainly do contribute to that aspect. The consumer is looking for REAL.

Bruce Lemieux: I think Gena's got it exactly right - your written blog is the foundation, video adds the transparency and enhances a blog. It doesn't replace the written blog.

Video Is Not a Fad

It was just announced that YouTube users are adding a staggering 20 hours of video every minute. Video viewing and capture on cell phones has greatly improved. Embedding video in your blog articles and pages is a snap.

HD video capture is available in your hand for as little as $229.

Search Engine Results

Well described videos published to Google Video and/or YouTube do very well in the SERPs for obvious reasons. Viddler is also starting to show some promise with their members' videos placing well.
Its a well known fact that Google is working on developing powerful Voice Recognition Software to add to their search algorithm making it possible to spider audio and video clips.

Convenience For Your Audience

Watching and listening is easier than reading. Just ask your kids if their homework is done while they are sitting in front of the boob.
Soon, most will experience the Internet from the couch (10 feet from the screen) or by handheld device. Reading is not convenient in either instance.

Cons?

...CONTINUED

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How Does Teresa Boardman Post Every Day To Her Real Estate Blog?

Real Estate Tomato (Real Estate Tomato) — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 18:32:41 -0500

For most, the most challenging element of blogging is clearly finding time and the act of pounding out an article. Even our clients, whom we train, and train and train some more on the best approaches to blogging find that keeping a consistent blogging pace is difficult to maintain.

So who better to get some advice on consistency than one of the only everyday-bloggers that I know, our great friend, Teresa Boardman of StPaulRealEstateBlog.com?

Writing About Writing

By Teresa Boardman

I never thought I would be writing about writing but I am. I consider myself to be a non writer but have found that with practice it gets easier. Writing a blog is like writing an email. There was a time in business before email when we used to send memos but that writing style is much more formal.

The process was intimidating as my administrative assistant and my boss would question my choice of words and sometimes my tone. When email replaced the memo even business writing became less formal and more about communication.

Blog posts can be informal like sharing an idea with a friend. Blogs work because people like doing business with friends. The tone is less formal and the goal is to make the post informative but at the same time easy and enjoyable to read. As I write I sometimes get a mental picture of who will be reading it and I write to that person or group of people.

It takes discipline to write every day and to know what to write about. Sometimes sitting down and writing a blog post seems like work. A couple of years a go Jim published a post I wrote with 101 ideas for real estate blog posts. It wouldn’t be hard to come up with a 101 more ideas. The ideas come from the ordinary experiences that I have on the job and in life. Some of the experiences are unique and others are very common experiences that people can relate to.

The hard part is actually doing it each day. Most people run out of steam by the end of their first month writing a blog.

I am going to share some tricks that have worked for me.

...CONTINUED >>>

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How Does Teresa Boardman Post Every Day To Her Real Estate Blog?

Real Estate and Twitter - Use Hashtags to Dominate a Niche.

Real Estate Tomato (Real Estate Tomato) — Tue, 12 May 2009 13:26:49 -0500

Success in Real Estate is largely due to who you know.

The more Whos, the more opportunity you create for yourself.

Creating a database of regular contacts has always been a sound strategy for real estate marketing.
Mailing Lists
Rolodex
Walking Farm
Past Clients
Friends/Family
Business Contacts
Email Database
Blog Feed Subscribers
Facebook Friends
Twitter Followers... and now the Hashtag: #

Why follow Hashtags instead of just keywords on Twitter?

Hashtag 101: When Twittering, by adding the # in front of a term (like this: #conan) it automatically groups your post with any other post that included the same #term. This term ‘group’ can be found by using http://search.twitter.com and searching for the #term.

The use of a Hashtag signifies that you are intending to group your updates to that specific term.

For Example: You may Twitter a phrase like “on fire in Santa Barbara” that could have many contextual meanings, whereas using the Hashtag #sbfire makes it clear as to what conversation you are contributing.

Although a search for “Santa Barbara Fire” may yield more results, and therefore arguably be a better way to find out information about the fire, it is the intention of those using the Hashtag that I am interested in leveraging. Users of the Hashtag are looking to be grouped together on purpose: they want to hold a conversation as a group.

Want to follow the absolute latest group chatter on the Manny Ramirez bust? #manny
Updates on the aporkalypse? #swineflu

Participating with Hashtags on Twitter.

...CONTINUED

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Don't Miss May 15th Tomato Radio Episode: Online Video In Real Estate

Real Estate Tomato (Real Estate Tomato) — Tue, 12 May 2009 13:24:11 -0500

This month's Tomato Radio Show is Dedicated to Discussing Online Video in Real Estate: Video Blogging, Live Testimonials, Property Highlights, Community Reviews, and More!

In an article from Nov, 2007, I described the future of the real estate blog as something that will demand regular video updates in order to satisfy the audience that will no longer be hunched over their laptop.

On tomorrow’s television (an all-in-one entertainment console), the internet and blogs will need to cater to those sitting 10 ft from the screen, making text that much moredisengaging.

Although we haven’t quite made it to ‘tomorrow’, there are a growing number of real estate agents leveraging video to gain exposure and earn a reputation of expertise. Their efforts today have not only prepared them for tomorrow, but more importantly, won them success today.

We have 2 very special guests:

From 3 to 3:30 we will be talking with Ian Watt of IanWatt.ca.
Ian is best known for his mobile video blogging, where he mixes driving, personality and sound real estate advice.

We will be talking with Ian about:
His approach to video blogging
The success that it has helped him achieve.
His advice to those looking to get started.

From 3:30 to 4pm we will be talking with Tara Jones of ReelProductions.tv.
Tara, a Realtor and Emmy Award winning journalist specializes in high quality video production for the real estate industry.

We will be talking with Tara about:
How video can help your business
How brokerages are depending on video for success.
How to get started, now that you know it's not a fad.

Just as with every Tomato Radio show, we will be live starting at 3pm PST on the 15^th of the month.

What: Online Video in Real Estate with Ian Watt and Tara Jones.
When: May 15th from 3pm to 4pm PST
Where: BlogTalkRadio.com/retomato

How Do I Call In?: (347) 884-9764

Lost In The Crowd: Realtors Fail To Effectively Leverage Social Media.

Real Estate Tomato (Real Estate Tomato) — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 19:08:14 -0500

Don't Get Caught On Your Knees Sifting For Gold When You Could Be On Stage, Making A Lasting Impression.

I am so proud of the real estate industry. You've come so far!

In the latter half of the 90's decade, as the Internet promised to be a modern gold rush, curiously, Realtors showed little interest. It wasn't until just recently that the Realtor's personal website was accepted as an obligatory expense. The irony is that now it has little chance of being effective.

But today, I actually have faith in the real estate agent's embrace of the Internet as an effective marketing tool.

As much as the $500 brochure website of yesteryear catered to the ego of the Glamour Shots® agent, it failed to jibe with their gregarious nature. Affable and outgoing agents couldn't recognize any immediate relevance to their obvious business model; network, network, network.

Yet now, with the rise of Social Media, Realtors are feeling much more at home online, recognizing the opportunity to leverage the Internet as a viable networking tool.

Where it once seemed that Realtors needed to be dragged into the 21st century, they are now marching forward in droves. A rush, if you will.

But there's a problem.

...CONTINUED

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8 Things That You Are Not Doing On Your Real Estate Blog, But Should Be.

Real Estate Tomato (Real Estate Tomato) — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 09:38:08 -0600

1. Microblogging

Twitter is all the rage… and yet most blogging agents aren’t using it becausethey don’t grasp the value.

Here’s another way to approach the Micro-Blog: Instead of catering to the audience in a Twitter Community, consider those that are actually coming to read your blog. Short updates from you about the market, your efforts as an agent, new listings, and news flashes are just the sort of thing that your readers will appreciate. Now pop them on your blog, and syndicate that back up to Twitter instead of the other way around. (More on this in coming weeks)

Hot tip: When it comes to your blog, avoid the community babble that gave you the creeps when you first looked at Twitter: “Having a hard time deciding what cereal to get.” Your audience came for tangible real estate topics, not the stream of consciousness that you feel the need to share. Try: “Cleaning out the gutters for the today’s 2pm open house at 123 Elm St, Eastville.”

2. Video Blogging

With high quality and too-easy-to-use video cameras available for under $150, you’d be a fool to not start including local video clips on your blog. Whether you post yourself vlogging, or replace the photo-op with a quick clip, your audience will appreciate it.

Hot tip: Try to keep videos under 2 minutes. That digestible expectation will have them watching every video you publish.

3. Extending Your Soapbox to Other Community Experts

At Inman Connect last summer, we held a panel on Taking Your Blog to the Next Level. My take then (and still) is that there is way too much Realtor-on-Realtor action happening in what are supposed to be local level real estate blogs, aimed at developing an audience of potential clients. It took several paragraphs to cover all the bases in an article, so I will save the space and provide a link to the benefits of getting other local voices to carry the load of your blog content.

Hot tip: Once you know you have a local audience that cares about your efforts, it won’t be difficult to get others to provide valuable content. Trying to put the cart before the horse will be a hard sell.

4. Using Google Maps

I’m not talking about just popping a map on the site to showcase a location. Google maps are so incredibly versatile now, that the range of resources you can create for your audience is endless. To whet your appetite, here is a link to Lori Turoff’s post that describes her Open House Map for Hoboken, NJ.

Hot tip: Next week, I will be publishing a comprehensive overview on how to leverage Google Maps on your real estate blog. It will include several exciting map examples like Lori’s above. I feel that the proper use of Google Maps will be what makes your site an invaluable resource unlike any other in your community.

5. Including Unique Calls To Action

What separates a real estate blog that generates appointments from one that doesn’t? More often then not, it is Call-To-Action. As bloggers you are writers/reporters, but most importantly, you are real estate agents that need to have appointments with clients. Writing alone will not always be enough to get someone to act in a manner that leads them to working with you. Place visiblecalls to action in your navigation, in your sidebars, in your footer, in your articles, in your videos and in your email blasts.

Hot tip: Spend some money to have someone design something nice for the calls-to-action on your site. These graphics can be what get people to ‘act’ so it is worth a small investment. Mix in a theme to the graphics that you use for your calls-to-action. Cool looking icons, or a mascot will stand out, and yet not be seen as ‘pushy’.

...CONTINUED

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Social Media: It's About the Contact, Not the Conversation

Real Estate Tomato (Real Estate Tomato) — Wed, 17 Dec 2008 18:47:18 -0600

Social Media: It's About the Contact, Not the Conversation

We have a real treat for you today here at the Tomato. Brian Brady, easily one of the most well-known Mortgage Bloggers on the planet, has just delivered to us, a solid piece on a topic that we both feel really needs some clarity: Social Media.

If you are struggling to embrace social media as a viable marketing strategy, this post, and the announcement at the end is your ticket to success.

It's About the Contact, Not the Conversation

By Brian Brady

Google calls me "America's #1 Mortgage Broker" but funding loans is not what I do for a living. You might consider yourself to be a "real estate consultant" or a "short sale specialist" but I assure you that your job is not selling houses.

You and I are Marketers...Salespeople...Client Attractors. Our number one job is to find prospective clients. Now, I know that many folks detest that role. Nobody likes the pushy insurance agent at the Chamber of Commerce meeting or the overbearing stock broker at the family picnic. In contrast, many of us embrace the Web 2.0 revolution as a way to generate business. Certainly, blogging is one medium to attract clients BUT...

Blogging ain’t enough if you want to put up big numbers on the scoreboard. I play this game to win so I'm all about scoring points. Every day, I want to hit a grand slam, catch one in the end zone, score a hat trick, or hammer three-pointers. I EXPECT to win, every single day, because of my social media strategy.

Five years ago, I started learning how to use social media to circumvent the pending "Do Not Call" legislation. Since college, I always made my living on the telephone. A typical day consisted of me rooting through my rolodex, with two-phones glued to each ear. That damned "Do Not Call" list threatened my very existence

LinkedIn changed all that, in 2003. I was invited to LinkedIn and found that I was the only mortgage guy in a roomful of well-earning tech folks, who owned homes. Myspace came, in 2004. I honed the rich demographic data to connect me with REALTORs by creating and promoting a group called MLS on Myspace. Active Rainwas a no brainer. Facebook is the perfect combination to mix both consumer direct and professional referral platforms.

Folks on the ClueTrain might suggest that social media are "all about the conversation"; I couldn't disagree more. It's all about the contact. Your social media efforts, which include blogging, need to have some sort of ROI if you intend to thrive in business. I measure my ROI by contacts made daily. My goal, every morning, is to find five new contacts who give me permission to market to them. I engage in pull marketing through rich content and engaging hooks (I'll discuss those hooks on the webinar). It's designed to be non-intrusive and qualifying, always getting participants to "raise their hand" but it starts with the contact. If you're blogging your little heart out and nobody's reading you, you're like that tree that fell in the forest.

Let me give you an example. The Facebook status bar is a tremendous tool; it's like Twitter with pictures. I feed the Facebook community by sharing things about my life:

1- I rejoiced when the Phillies beat the Rays to win the World Series
2- I listen to George Strait
3- I voted for Mc Cain
4- I lock mortgage rates below 5%, for selected clients.

When I dropped that sub 5% rate, on my Facebook status bar, every disco lovin', Obama supporter, from Tampa Bay, wanted to talk to me...WHY?

...because I hold their interest. They needled me on Election Day, hated me when the Rays lost the World Series, and were appalled that a guy in suspenders listens to old-school country music but I hold their interest. I love people so that gives me a leg up on the competition. I congratulated them when President-Elect Obama won and taunted them throughout the World Series but I love the contact.

The contact then, becomes a conversation.

Do I troll the social media, looking for likely candidates, then spam them with a friend request? Absolutely! I love people...seriously, I LOVE them. I think everybody I haven't met is just a friend in waiting...and so should you. THAT is our job, folks. The buying, selling, and financing of houses is the easy part.

Jim Cronin and I will be holding a FREE webinar about how to make lots of friends online. I’ll walk you through how I set up my profiles, fill up my friend's lists, and engage the community. More importantly, I'll show you how those friends will become clients.

December 30
1:00PM to 2:30PM
Pacific Standard Time

Space is limited.
Reserve your Webinar Seat Now at:
https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/305650851

PS: Every time I speak or offer a webinar, some REALTOR says "Well, he's a lender. It's different for him". That is the silliest thing I've ever heard. I get more business from consumers than I do from REALTOR referrals and those consumers come from my social media efforts.

PPS: If you don't like the webinar, we'll refund every penny we charge you for it.

PPPS: That was a joke; the webinar is free. See you in two weeks !
—

Thanks Brian, we are thrilled to have you on the Vine!

Read more from Brian Brady:
Brian’s Website
Brian’s ActiveRain Blog
Brian’s Post Archive on the BloodhoundBlog
P: (858)- 777-9751

Inman Connect NY Real Estate Blog Makeover Contest - One Day Left!

Real Estate Tomato (Real Estate Tomato) — Sat, 13 Dec 2008 14:36:37 -0600

Our gift to Inman Connect NY this year is the complete makeover of one lucky, yet necessitous real estate blog.

Be certain that the re-skinning of a blog is by no means a guarantee to improve your blogging, nor your ability to generate business from the effort. This is precisely why our approach to this makeover effort is going to go way beyond first impression aesthetic. In addition to a fancy new look and feel, the blog makeover is going to include (at a minimum) Constructive Suggestions regarding:

1. Headline Writing
2. Article Aesthetic
3. Article SEO
4. Calls-To-Action and Lead Generation
5. Sidebar Management
6. Widget Management
7. PlugIn Management
8. Meta data SEO
9. Comment Aesthetic
10. RSS and Email Subscription
11. Category Organization

and much more… until they kick us off stage Wednesday.

If you are interested in being in the running to be selected as the lucky winner of this year’s Real Estate Blog Makeover, and don’t mind be ripped apart on stage by an audience of critics… you have just one day left to submit your entry.

Here's how it works:

1) Submit your blog for a makeover. To do that, simply leave a comment in the Inman Community Blog Makeover Contest Group. In your submission, make sure that you give the URL for your blog. Most importantly tell us why you think your blog deserves a makeover. Any type of submission is fine, you can write the whole thing out, make a video and link to it, be as creative as you want. The more creative, the better. This isn't a random drawing, so keep in mind that the quality of your submission matters.

2) We will collect submissions from THE COMMUNITY GROUP ONLY through Sunday, December 14, 2008.

3) We will then select one winner, who will be announced on December 17, 2008.

4) In addition to the Blog Makeover, the winner will receive a full conference registration to Inman Connect NYC '09. (winner to cover his/her own travel expenses)

5) During Bloggers Connect, the winner's blog will be discussed by all the attendees and presenters, who will offer their insight, input, and expertise as to how to create the most effective blog.

6) Using the input from Bloggers Connect, the winner will work with Jim Cronin and his team at The Real Estate Tomato to build a completely transformed blog.

7) We'll follow up with the winner and with Jim periodically afterward to see how the blog makeover has affected the winner.

If you have any questions, you can leave a comment here, or send Daniel Rothamel an email: Daniel.Rothame(at)Inman.com

So, what are you waiting for? If you have always wanted to do something new with your blog, but never thought you had the time or resources, now is your chance!

Related Articles:
Inman Community Blog Makeover Contest Group
The Official RE Blog Makeover Announcement on the Inman Blog
Inman Connect Registration (use the code tomato08 to save $150)

WARNING! Horn Tooting: The Inman List of the Top 25 Most Influential Real Estate Bloggers for 2008 Is Out, and We're On It!

Real Estate Tomato (Real Estate Tomato) — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 02:13:20 -0500

After what has been an absolutely whirlwind year of company growth, product development and business travel, it’s hard to believe we had any time to blog at all. So, I have to admit, being recognized for the 2^nd year in a row as one of the most influential real estate bloggers, came as a bit of a surprise… albeit a pleasant surprise.

I’d like to think that the reason that I have been recognized as being so influential is because of the success of the many hundreds of real estate bloggers that we have developed over the last 2 years.

Collectively our clients have published 10’s of 1000’s of great looking and informative blog posts. So as much as I would like to take the credit for this achievement, the real honor belongs to our incredibly talented staff and to the dedicated bloggers of Tomato Nation.

Here’s the complete list of Inman News’ selection for 2008:
(In no particular order)

Congratulations to all those selected!

Broker and Agent Blogs

Kris Berg Founder, The San Diego Home Blog
Teresa Boardman Founder, St. Paul Real Estate Blog
Noah Rosenblatt Founder, Urbandigs.com
Daniel Rothamel Founder, Real Estate Zebra
Jay Thompson Founder, The Phoenix Real Estate Guy

Community, Multi-Author Blogs

Lani Anglin-Rosales New Media Director, Agent Genius
Greg Swann Founder, Bloodhound Blog

Mortgage Blogs

Todd Carpenter Founder, Lenderama
Dan Green Founder, The Mortgage Reports

Housing Economics Blogs

Barry Ritholtz Founder, The Big Picture
"Calculated Risk" Founder, Calculated Risk

Industry Commentary Blogs

Michael Wurzer Founder, FBS Blog
Joseph Ferrara Co-founder, Sellsius Real Estate Blog
Joel Burslem Founder, Future of Real Estate Marketing

Marketing and How-To Blogs

Dustin Luther Founder, 4Realz.net
Nicole "NikNik" Nicolay Co-author, MyTechOpinion
Jim Cronin Founder, The Real Estate Tomato

Local Blogs

Lockhart Steele Founder, Curbed
Jonathan Butler Founder, Brownstoner

Company Bloggers

Rudy Bachraty Social Media Guru, Trulia
Drew Meyers Co-author, Zillow Blog, Geek Estate Blog
Glenn Kelman Contributor, Redfin blog

Journalist Blogs

Peter Viles Co-author, L.A. Land
John Cook Co-founder, Where Are John and Todd

Housing Bubble Blogger

Patrick Killelea Founder, Patrick.net and Reality Parser

Why Should I Blog? - It's About the Value of Being Seen as the Expert in Your Niche

Real Estate Tomato (Real Estate Tomato) — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 13:23:22 -0500

As I was standing at the podium at the Christie’s Global Conference talking about the marriage that is Real Estate and Content, an idea struck me that at the time I only had an opportunity to touch on... knowing it deserved more.

The audience I was speaking to deals mostly in incredibly high end luxury homes. We're talking mansions, castles, villas and the like. What struck me was the idea that if you were to break down the value of their time when applied to working with one of these listings, you're easily looking at several hundred dollars an hour... and perhaps the prospect of putting several hours a week into blogging for business might be difficult to justify.

The more I thought about it and considered the true value of real estate blogging, one question came to be the measure: What would you invest to be the leader of an audience of potential and qualified clients looking forward to hearing from you?

The power of blogging and the answer to why you should, lies in the goal of developing an audience that you can lead.

Blogging is taking the initiative to be a leader, a leader in thought, reporting, opinion and exposure.

In the offline world, you may have 90% percent of your market wrapped, but what about the online mind-share?
Are you seen as the leader?
Do you have the exposure?
Are your opinions respected?
Are you recognized as a resource that stands apart?

TO CONTINUE READING PLEASE VISIT THE ARTICLE AT ITS ORIGINAL LOCATION ON THE TOMATO:

Why Should I Blog? - It's About the Value of Being Seen as the Expert in Your Niche

Disclaimer: THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CHOPPED BECAUSE THIS IS A SYNDICATION OF THE ORIGINAL, AND IT HAS BEEN PROVEN THAT FOR SEO PURPOSES IT IS NOT A GOOD STRATEGY TO POST THE SAME ARTICLE IN ITS ENTIRETY IN MORE THAN ONE LOCATION.

Hey Real Estate Bloggers, Where Are You Aiming When It Comes To Subscriptions and Subscribers?

Real Estate Tomato (Real Estate Tomato) — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 21:56:20 -0500

Today’s post is a special treat! Dave Smith of the Real Estate Blog Lab (and many other blogs) has found that he has so much to say, that he needs yet another outlet… and we’re happy to be there for him.

We are looking forward to publishing at least a couple of posts a month from him, focused specifically on our most popular topic of Real Estate Blogging Advice.

So, without further adieu…

Subscriptions and Subscribers: Where Are You Aiming?

By Dave Smith

Much is made of getting Traffic, Readers and Subscribers to your blog.

However, not all blogs should have the same goals. If your blog is monetized then it is clear that you want as many readers and subscribers as possible to see your pages. But how many of us who are Real Estate Bloggers have actually monetized our blogs and are looking to make money from traffic and clicks? I doubt very many are making a living or any real revenue from ads.

Extra reading from RET:
7 Compelling Reasons Google AdSense Will Ruin Your Real Estate Blog

I wrote today’s post to examine the difference between a short-term need Business Blog and a long-term need Business Blog.

Ongoing Interests Vs The Specific Need or Want

When I'm searching for a new home I start searching on the net. I look at homes, communities, activities etc. But once I've bought my home and moved to the community I stop reading about real estate and available homes in the community.

I was using a targeted search to find specific information about a particular event in my life.

This is unlike my hobby "Photography" this is something I'm always reading about. There are new things in the field of photography going on all the time. Cameras, software, photo sharing sites, services for storing photos. Tons of information is out there for my hobby and I subscribe to those blogs which keep me coming back and reading because this is an ongoing passion in my life.

I also subscribe to several photography magazines for the same reason. One about Landscape Photography, one about Outdoor Photography and one on photography in general. I have blogs that fit in each of these categories.

At the Real Estate Blog Lab I want subscribers.

Unless anyone plans to quit blogging or stop using WordPress as their blog platform I want readers coming back to read what I've discovered about the things going on in the WordPress and REBlogworld (I like that term, thanks to Todd Carpenter and Jason Berman).

My business blogs are not structured to attract that regular reader traffic. I'm writing to have informative content about Tucson on the internet structured in such a way that it comes up competitively in lots of different searches (The Longtail). This means I'm looking for more pre-qualified clicks and readers - not long term subscribers. If someone subscribes, that’s fine, but that's not why I'm blogging and I'm not going to focus on getting more subscribers to my business blogs.

If you author a blog with a specific topic of ongoing interest, then subscribers are your goal. If your blog is to help provide a service or meet a short term need, subscribers are bonus.

To Find The Remainder of this Informative Article, You Will Have To Visit This Article At Its Original Location On The Real Estate Tomato: Click Below.

Hey Real Estate Bloggers, Where Are You Aiming When it Comes to Subscriptions and Subscribers?

6 Secret Resources for Finding Real Estate Blog Topics That Attract Buyers.

Real Estate Tomato (Real Estate Tomato) — Sun, 21 Sep 2008 13:53:42 -0500

“The charm of fishing is that it is the pursuit of what is elusive but attainable,
a perpetual series of occasions for hope.”

-John Buchan

Actually attracting real estate buyers through the act of blogging can be seen as a lot like fishing. It’s the location of the bait, not the quality of the equipment that hooks the fish. Knowing what to write about, at the right time, can be as rewarding as a favorite, yet little-known fishing hole.

One species of Ready-To-Act Buyer is the newly or soon to be relocated.

Knowing what questions they have and where they are finding their answers can have you standing waders deep in favorable opportunity.

New-to-towners have a ton of questions that they are using the internet to answer:

Where to stay?
Where to eat?
What activities are there to do?
What to avoid?
…and so on.

To me, the value of a local Real Estate Agent is beyond the ‘offer-to-close’ events. I see the agent as much a community consultant as a transaction consultant. A well rounded real estate blog is a reflection of this range.

You commonly see RE bloggers detailing the amenities about their different neighborhoods, reviewing a new restaurant in town, or digging up interesting historical facts.

I’ve heard the argument that these kinds of community topic posts are a detraction from gaining the Ready-To-Act Audience that we yearn for. I couldn’t disagree more. As necessary as the ‘real estate consulting’ content is, it would be like cooking without seasoning to ignore the value of well aimed, and even whimsical ‘local color’ content.

The challenge with writing effective local color content is that knowing your town doesn’t always equate to knowing what blog topics make a wise investment of your time.

There are several incredibly resourceful, yet mostly untapped websites available when it comes to uncovering the “Right Now” questions of a potentially relocating audience.

1. TripAdvisor.com

This site is actually one of my least favorite travel sites online, but yet it proves to be a fountain of topics for targeted local color articles.

The reason I dislike it is exactly the reason why it is such a great resource for topics. Every time I start searching on Google to plan a trip, this site is always in the top 10 results. I normally look to find the Mom and Pop boutique inns, and it is sites like this one that have a strangle hold on the search results, making it difficult to find the places I would prefer to stay.

Because it has such a solid search engine presence, many people looking for answers to their travel questions find themselves relying on it for answers in the well maintained forums.

Take for example a TripAdvisor search for San Diego, CA.
There are an abundance of conversations about things to do, restaurants, night-life, where to stay, attractions, and resources.

TripAdvisor Forum San Diego
Sampling of Recent Topics:
– Snorkeling in La Jolla
– Condo to rent
– Moving to San Diego
– Dinner recommendations

I must make it clear that in any social network structure you can end up wasting valuable time by getting caught up in the social aspect of it. You must always remember that you are looking to leverage these networks to improve your business, not detract from it.

Look at the exposure you can generate in forums such as TripAdvisor as opportunities to drive traffic to your blog, where readers will recognize that you are committed to their education and appreciate the focus of content you have built for them to enjoy (and respond to).

You are looking to expand the audience that embraces your blog as a resource, not necessarily mingle with them in the forums. The questions that you are answering in these environments are shared by many, and they will see you as the community expert.

Here’s the link for the United States Forums.

2. Google Maps

Search your general location at http://maps.google.com. What you find to the left of your mapped result can yield a few gems for topics that people are most commonly searching when pulling up this same map.

A quick search of San Diego, CA reveals.
San Diego Zoo
San Diego Convention Center
Sea World
Wild Animal Park
Vons
Hotel Circle
Hotel Del Coronado
Legoland
House of Blues
Seaport Village

In addition, you can see user-created maps that reveal other topics of great interest:
Tip: Zoom in to your area, and the sidebar results can change offering more local content in relation to the map.

Southern California Fire Maps
25 Reasons We Love San Diego
San Diego Reservoirs
SD Downtown Happy Hour Map

**How can these topics reel in buyers?**

It’s about covering all the bases when aiming to attract an audience interested in visiting/moving to your community.

If you are able to uncover and write about topics that are commonly sought out by people using mapping tools for your area, then you can be certain, that with theSEO power of your blog, you will be getting yourself in front of a similar audience, through the search engines.

In the above example, the topics are on the minds of people searching about San Diego. Rather than guessing what people coming into the area are looking for answers to, now you can start fishing where they school.

To Find Out What The Remaining 4 Secret Resources Are, You WIll Have To Visit This Article At Its Original Location On The Real Estate Tomato: Click Below.

6 Secret Resources for Finding
Real Estate Blog Topics That Attract Buyers.

Announcing the Launch of Real Estate Tomato 2.0 - Community. Knowledge. Excellence.

Real Estate Tomato (Real Estate Tomato) — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 13:06:59 -0500

For the last 2+ years, we have been forwarding the domain name RealEstateTomato.com to this blog (realestatetomato.typepad.com). Today, that changes. We are happy to announce the launch of the official website for our company and community, RealEstateTomato.com!

This blog here will continue to be our Real Estate Blogging Advice column, and for now will remain mostly unchanged.

So why the new site?

1. Community First

The care that we put into each and every client, has us feeling like one big family. Each blogging client has a relationship with our whole crew, and many of them with each other.

The homepage of the new RET is dedicated to showcasing our extended family by displaying the latest articles published in the network*, as well as featuring their avatars and blogsites as featured bloggers.

In the next couple of weeks we will be bringing the whole family even closer together by turning on a universal, members only, back-end blog that will be shared by ever member of our community. As they log in to blog to their local audience, they will have the option of being exposed to a national conversation centered around the art of blogging. Advice, announcements, discoveries, videos, tips, studies, contests and business referrals are just a sampling of the topics that we will maintain and encourage on the Real Estate Tomato Vine.

2. Separating the Message from Messenger

As effective as the blog has been at inspiring potential clients to contact us about our products and services, I’ve always felt that the true nature of our business model and offerings has been less than obvious to the casual observer.

The clean, uncluttered presentation of the new website gives visitors a clear understanding of our services as well as our community focus and most recent blogging advice articles.

Clear descriptions of our Agent Blogsites, Broker Blogsites, Tomato University Course, A La Carte Training, and Community Vine make it much easier for visitors to answer their questions about our ability to service their needs.

3. Change is Good

We all get tired of the same experience over and over, and I had finally had it with giving everyone else a new home, while we were still in the same one we moved into Day 1. A new coat of color scheme, a new layout, and a new slogan have us all feeling energized and in step with the progressive changes we have in store.

Many have noticed that our own blogging came to (another) halt this past month, and it is because every bit of spare time has been dedicated to launching our new home. We hope you love it as much as we do.

The Real Estate Tomato

The First Virtual Real Estate BarCamp: A Huge Success!

Statistics From The Event:

Presentation Downloads:

Was It Social?

Suggestions We've Received:

Tech Challenges:

Our Next Event:

Will Brokers Guarantee Our Quest For 1000 Registrants For Virtual REBarCamp?

“You buy the pizza, we’ll deliver the education”

Suggestions for a successful, in-office RE BarCamp:

we will be holding the first of its kind,Virtual Real Estate BarCamp.

It's Official! We're Holding A Virtual Real Estate BarCamp On November 17th

On November 17th from 9AM until 4PM PSTwe will be holding the first of its kind,Virtual Real Estate BarCamp.

Teresa Boardman Talks With The Real Estate Tomato TODAY at 3pm on RETomatoRadio.com

How To Choose A Domain Name For Your Real Estate Blogsite

Without doubt, the most common question that I get from brand new blogging clients is, "Can you help me choose a domain name?"

Basic Guidelines to Choosing A Real Estate Blog Domain Name

1. Easy To Remember

2. Easy To Spell

3. Value Of Keywords

4. Length

10 Inman Connect San Francisco Passes Are Up For Grabs.

Requirements to get one of the 10 Inman Connect Free Passes:

There are 2 ways to win:

Brad Inman and Daniel Rothamel To Appear on Tomato Radio, July 15th at 3pm PST. The Inman Connect Show!

This week’s show is another amazing opportunity to learn from some of the biggest names on the Real Estate Industry.

On Wednesday, July 15th, at 3pm PST, we are thrilled to have the opportunity to chat with Brad Inman and Daniel Rothamel of Inman News.

Brad and Daniel will be sharing their thoughts on:

50 Sound Real Estate Blogging Tips

iBidcondo.com – The New Way to Buy Real Estate

The 11 Most Common Pitfalls For New Real Estate Bloggers

1. Worrying About Design Before the Writing

2. Failing To Establish A Clear Focus for the Content

3. Failing to Recognize and Write to Their Ideal Reader

4. Failing to Read and Learn from Other Bloggers

IT HAS BEEN CHOPPED BECAUSE THIS IS A SYNDICATION OF THE ORIGINAL, AND IT HAS BEEN PROVEN THAT FOR SEO PURPOSES IT IS NOT A GOOD STRATEGY TO POST THE SAME ARTICLE IN ITS ENTIRETY IN MORE THAN ONE LOCATION.

Jeff Turner of Real Estate Shows To Appear LIVE on Tomato Radio, TODAY July 1st at 3pm PST.

Call in #: 347-884-9764 Click Here to Listen Online (starting at 3pm PST)

Todayy, July 1st, we are thrilled to have the opportunity to chat with Jeff Turner, president of Real Estate Shows.

Listen to Tomato Radio Today At 3pm PST: We're Getting a Behind The Scene Look At ActiveRain with Jeff Corbett (VP of Operations).

An Honest Look at the Impact of Video on Your Real Estate Blog

Welcome to our latest Tomato Collaborative Article where we cover the topic of Video in Real Estate Blogging.

Pros:

The Audience Better Identifies With Author.

Video Is Not a Fad

Search Engine Results

Convenience For Your Audience

Cons?

IT HAS BEEN CHOPPED BECAUSE THIS IS A SYNDICATION OF THE ORIGINAL, AND IT HAS BEEN PROVEN THAT FOR SEO PURPOSES IT IS NOT A GOOD STRATEGY TO POST THE SAME ARTICLE IN ITS ENTIRETY IN MORE THAN ONE LOCATION.

How Does Teresa Boardman Post Every Day To Her Real Estate Blog?

For most, the most challenging element of blogging is clearly finding time and the act of pounding out an article. Even our clients, whom we train, and train and train some more on the best approaches to blogging find that keeping a consistent blogging pace is difficult to maintain.

Writing About Writing

I am going to share some tricks that have worked for me.

Real Estate and Twitter - Use Hashtags to Dominate a Niche.

Why follow Hashtags instead of just keywords on Twitter?

Participating with Hashtags on Twitter.

IT HAS BEEN CHOPPED BECAUSE THIS IS A SYNDICATION OF THE ORIGINAL, AND IT HAS BEEN PROVEN THAT FOR SEO PURPOSES IT IS NOT A GOOD STRATEGY TO POST THE SAME ARTICLE IN ITS ENTIRETY IN MORE THAN ONE LOCATION.

Don't Miss May 15th Tomato Radio Episode: Online Video In Real Estate

This month's Tomato Radio Show is Dedicated to Discussing Online Video in Real Estate: Video Blogging, Live Testimonials, Property Highlights, Community Reviews, and More!

We have 2 very special guests:

How Do I Call In?: (347) 884-9764

Lost In The Crowd: Realtors Fail To Effectively Leverage Social Media.

Don't Get Caught On Your Knees Sifting For Gold When You Could Be On Stage, Making A Lasting Impression.

But there's a problem.

IT HAS BEEN CHOPPED BECAUSE THIS IS A SYNDICATION OF THE ORIGINAL, AND IT HAS BEEN PROVEN THAT FOR SEO PURPOSES IT IS NOT A GOOD STRATEGY TO POST THE SAME ARTICLE IN ITS ENTIRETY IN MORE THAN ONE LOCATION.

8 Things That You Are Not Doing On Your Real Estate Blog, But Should Be.

1. Microblogging

2. Video Blogging

3. Extending Your Soapbox to Other Community Experts

4. Using Google Maps

5. Including Unique Calls To Action

Social Media: It's About the Contact, Not the Conversation

It's About the Contact, Not the Conversation

Inman Connect NY Real Estate Blog Makeover Contest - One Day Left!

Here's how it works:

WARNING! Horn Tooting: The Inman List of the Top 25 Most Influential Real Estate Bloggers for 2008 Is Out, and We're On It!

Broker and Agent Blogs

Community, Multi-Author Blogs

Mortgage Blogs

we will be holding the first of its kind,
Virtual Real Estate BarCamp.

On November 17th from 9AM until 4PM PST
we will be holding the first of its kind,
Virtual Real Estate BarCamp.

On Wednesday, July 15^th, at 3pm PST, we are thrilled to have the opportunity to chat with Brad Inman and Daniel Rothamel of Inman News.

Call in #: 347-884-9764
Click Here to Listen Online (starting at 3pm PST)

Todayy, July 1^st, we are thrilled to have the opportunity to chat with Jeff Turner, president of Real Estate Shows.

**How can these topics reel in buyers?**