clients: The Day I Went to Jail - 12/23/10 09:50 AM
I don't go to jail very often. In fact, I've never actually been arrested and thrown in jail. But I got to go to jail yesterday thanks to Real Estate! Yep, I had to go get fingerprinted to renew my Real Estate license.
It was a good thing that I called the jail before heading their way. Seems they take cash only when it comes to financial dealings. I tend to live by credit and debit card, so I'd been up a creek and out of luck. Also, they only do fingerprints between certain hours in the morning and certain hours … (19 comments)
|
clients: When the Buyer Disappears - 07/30/10 08:42 AM
Winter, spring, summer or fall,all you got to do is calland I'll be there yeah yeah yeah.Ain´t it good to knowthat you´ve got a friendpeople can be so coldthey'll hurt you and desert youwell they'll take your soul if you let themoh yeah don't you let them.James Taylor
If you've been in Real Estate very long you know what Mr. Taylor sang is true. Clients can be cold. They will hurt you and desert you and sometimes your clients will even take your soul if you're not careful. Every now and then this discussion comes up among agents and I found myself having it again last week … (85 comments)
|
clients: The Solution to my Database Blues! - 10/28/09 10:40 AM
I've written about databases and client management lately because I've been very frustrated by this aspect of the real estate business. Also, I have a confession to make. Okay, maybe not a confession, but an observation.
Ready? Here it is...
The organization of my clients has been haphazard and random since I started in this business. There's a couple of reasons for this, one of which is I'm a pile maker. Organization into neat, alphabetical folders isn't how my brain is wired. I usually have a pile of papers on my desk. It looks terrible, but I know what is in the pile … (6 comments)
|
clients: Kicking Your Butt Part Two - 09/04/09 07:37 AM
To the AR Community,
Yesterday, I wrote a passionate blog about social media and those who choose not to embrace the new technology.
When the blog got featured, I was excited! I mean, who doesn't want to have a feature on AR? That's good stuff!
I learned a couple of things from yesterday's featured post:
1. You get a lot of readers when you get featured.
It is humbling to think a couple of thousand people would take the time to read what you write. And, of course, you get a lot of comments. And that brings me to the second thing … (33 comments)
|
clients: Say Hello to Amy White with CityScape Mortgage in Owasso, Oklahoma! - 08/14/09 09:51 AM
Say hello to Amy White with CityScape Mortgage in Owasso, Oklahoma, a great place to get your next home loan!Amy White has been in the mortgage business since January 2005. She likes to say that the business chose her. That's because after she and her husband had bought five homes in seven years, she had had it with much of the poor customer service they had experienced in securing their financing.
"By the time we were purchasing our last couple of homes," said Amy, "I had researched the process of what it takes to get a loan and I found that it just … (1 comments)
|
clients: An Old Fashioned Technique that Works Like Nothing Else! - 08/13/09 08:18 AM
We all know the importance of using the Internet for marketing these days. This morning there is a featured blog by Riel Roussopoulos in regards to the old mailing system and the new Internet marketing system. To read the blog, click the link. http://activerain.com/blogsview/1193691/where-is-real-estate-marketing-going-
I agree with everything the guy is saying in the video. But there is an old school technique that works and works well. It is hand written notes.
I learned about this (or should I say relearned) from Brian Buffini, the master of working by referral. The idea is that you send 5 handwritten notes per day … (5 comments)
|
clients: How You Can Benefit from working with a Real Estate Professional - 07/22/09 08:50 AM
You know someone who sells real estate right? We all do. In fact, you probably know several people who are real estate professionals. But did you know that your real estate Realtor brings you some excellent benefits when you work with them?
You are protected
As your real estate professional, I am not allowed to point you to just one mortgage lender or service provider. And I'm not allowed to take kick backs from anyone in exchange for business.
This is a good thing. It protects you as a consumer. And quite frankly, you don't want that kind of thing going … (2 comments)
|
clients: I Don't Drive that Far... - 06/19/09 08:18 PM
I was talking with another Realtor recently when I told them that I had some buyers who were interested in looking at a property that was about 45 miles away from where I live and work.
Their response back to me was, "I don't drive that far to show properties. I only work in ____________ area."
I thought that was kind of a funny thing to say and yet it isn't all that strange. In our area we have several suburbs surrounding the Greater Tulsa area. Many agents work their little suburb exclusively. Other agents will work larger areas. And some … (1 comments)
|
clients: The Good Things that Real Estate Professionals Do for Clients - 03/27/09 10:56 AM
I'm sitting here writing this in a Word document in frustration as I wait for my wireless connection at my house to try to re-establish itself.
Ah, there it is! The icon says we're connected! But wait...I go open Internet explorer only to find...nothing. It won't connect. My heart falls and my frustration level rises because I know what this means. I will call the cable company. I will listen to their forever long menu of choices. I will finally reach some live person who may or may not be in India somewhere. They will tell me to disconnect the power … (6 comments)
|
clients: Your Cell Phone or Your Spouse... - 02/23/09 08:29 AM
Believe it or not, one of the most important lessons I learned in real estate and about real estate has to do with the cell phone.
How often do you take your incoming calls?
If you're like most of us, a ringing cell phone is a call to action. If the thing rings I'm scrambling to answer it before the caller hangs up. Might be another client you know. And I can't miss anybody, especially in today's economy.
When I first began in this business two years ago, I wouldn't miss a call for anything. I'd keep my phone turned on … (0 comments)
|
clients: When the Magic Happens - 02/10/09 07:48 AM
I recently blogged about a nice buyer I was working with. She's "older" and is moving here from a nearby state to be close to her grown son. She was in town this past weekend and ready to go find her new home.
This would be our second time out looking for houses.
The first go around was typical. We looked at right around 10 homes that day. We saw some nice homes, some duds and one that she really liked. The one she liked was a bit out of her price range, but we thought we might take a stab … (2 comments)
|
clients: How to post and restrict pics of properties on Facebook for select clients - 01/13/09 08:43 AM
So we're on Facebook now, right? Pretty cool so far. Through this wonderful social networking tool, I've been able to advance my real estate sphere of influence by connecting with old friends. And I've even been able to find a client who I needed to track down in another state. I couldn't get him on his phone and he was moving. I jumped on Facebook one Saturday morning and there he was on-line. We were able to use the Chat feature to catch up and solve the problem.
One of the coolest features of Facebook is the ability to send pics … (2 comments)
|
clients: Think Outside The Box with Your Ipod Touch - 01/08/09 06:35 PM
My kids (who rock, by the way) got me an IPOD touch for Christmas. I'd been wanting one for some time, but hadn't purchased one because I'm a tightwad. Man, I need to kick myself! I should have done this SO much sooner.
I was adding and deleting pictures on my new IPOD today when a thought crossed my mind. Why not use this wonderful little gadget for real estate? So I added the pic folders of my current listings to my ITunes Photo library and then Synced up my IPOD.
Now I have folders on my IPOD of my current listings. Pretty … (2 comments)
|
clients: Why You've Got to Get on Facebook... - 11/22/08 06:24 AM
I'll admit it. I held off plunging into Facebook for a long time. This was mostly because I own three teenagers who have been Facebooking and MySpacing for years. It's a kid thing right?
WRONG!
I finally took the plunge a few weeks ago after reading Jason Crouch talk about social networking and real estate. Click here to read his post.
Facebook is very easy to set up and install and it is FREE, which is great. Once you set up your account and upload a pic, you can go pick your high school and graduation year and click the search … (3 comments)
|
clients: Dual Client Monitors - 09/06/08 10:10 AM
I blogged the other day about setting up a second monitor where clients can see what is going on while you're typing in the details of the contract. Here's a picture of the general idea.
What I was talking about in my original blog was how my wife and I felt disengaged while checking in at the hospital for her upcoming surgery. One thing that I thought would be helpful would be being able to see what was going on while the lady helping us was typing. I realize that the health care industry might not WANT us to see what is … (5 comments)
|
clients: Politics: The Passion, The Passion! - 09/06/08 08:44 AM
Now that the conventions are over, and Sarah Palin has been added to the mix, it seems like the political rhetoric posts here at AR have really picked up.
I love it that we live in a FREE country where we can discuss and debate our choices and positions. Sometimes I like to read what people write about their candidate and why they are supporting that person. Sometimes, it is really hard to read some posts because you just kind of go, "Is that person really THAT biased and bent and hateful???"
You see negative posts on both the liberal and conservative sides of the … (2 comments)
|
clients: Checking In - 09/04/08 06:15 PM
The wife is having "girl" surgery on Monday morning, so we went to the hospital for our pre-op appointment today. As we were sitting there across from the young lady doing the check-in, I noticed something. We were isolated and cut off from what she was doing. Here's a picture of the check-in area.
For example, she would ask a question. We answered. She'd type for a while on the computer, watching the input on the screen that only she could see. Back and forth went the process, sometimes with large gaps of time passing while the computer did whatever … (3 comments)
|
clients: A Great Website to Pass Along to Your Clients (and Yourself!) - 06/27/08 08:27 AM
www.safemanuals.com
Ever needed that user's manual you had when you bought that new (fill in the blank), but you couldn't find it? It happens to most of us (except perhaps for accountants and other better organized people in the world than I am). Pretty frustrating to need that darn thing and not be able to find it, isn't it? Guess what? This happens to your clients too.
Now you can be the hero for your clients and friends! Just get the word out to them that their lost manual might be available online at www.safemanuals.com. And the best part is that … (5 comments)
|
clients: Cancer and Real Estate - 06/18/08 10:48 AM
This is an update on my mom who has cancer. Many of you ask from time to time how she is doing. I often don't respond to the questions because I can't. It's too emotionally taxing somedays.
The current update on my mother is...
She is about to complete treatment #6 of her hard Rituxin treatments. She's supposed to have 8, but the doctor is only going to do 6 because she isn't strong enough to finish all of them. This, of course, leaves some room for doubt as to whether or not the evil cancer has fully been dealt with.
… (3 comments)
|
clients: The Floor Duty Phone Call - 05/02/08 07:55 AM
Floor Duty. Ahh Floor Duty...the opportunity to take prospective phone calls, get to walk in clients first and advance your business.
Whoo Hoo! Good stuff, right?
It's a long story, but in our particular office, the phone doesn't ring a whole lot when you're on floor duty. It could be that we're in a smaller suburb and we just don't have the phone traffic. It could be for other reasons, I don't know. It does ring...just not as much as I'd like!
Whatever the case, it really doesn't matter. Last year I picked up a nice couple who walked in the door and I ended … (9 comments)
|
;)
;)
;)
