Nicky V's Marketing Update

How Video has Helped Improve Sales

Nick Van Assche (Sea Glass Properties) — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 20:34:44 -0500

I am very fortunate to be in a market where we still have consistent interest from people who are looking to either relocate or buy a second, third, or in some case fourth vacation home. With that said, many people come to the Virgin Islands thinking that they can find a home in one day. Upon pre-qualification of my customers, I have found that utilizing video as a major tool has been very beneficial. Instead of driving around to 40+ homes that are on the market, my clients and I sift through all of the listings, throwing out ones that fit their needs, and leaving behind the few that they are very interested in. Now granted, many of them have been on island and I have had a chance to get a feel for what they want. However, instead of having to wait 6 months to a year for them to take another trip down here, I am now able to do a walk through on a property as if they were here. I have a long way to go, but here are a few of my videos. Some are short, some are long... but nonetheless I have written offers on almost every home I have taken video of. Any tips or ideas for how I could make this better?

The Virgin Islands market is heating up!

Nick Van Assche (Sea Glass Properties) — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 08:50:40 -0500

IfIf you haven’t heard already, the Virgin Islands real estate market is starting to show signs that the market is turning around.

In order to stay ahead of the market I want to let you know what the market is doing and what we are doing here at Sea Glass Properties to make sure you have all of the tools you need to buy, sell, or rent a home.

1. July and August saw 12.6% and 21.1% increases in year over year sales.

2. I just published our very first HOMESVI.com real estate guide. 4,000 copies are currently on a ship coming to the Virgin Islands. If you would like, I can mail you a copy for free!

3. Sea Glass Properties has increased our local market share from 4% in 2008 to 13% in 2009. Our aggressive growth strategies and marketing will only further our market share.

4. You are now able to save searches and set up auto email on www.sellvi.com

5. If you are in the market for a condo, now is the time to buy. Prices are down and sales are picking up quickly.

6. Home prices are leveling off, and in some cases are raising prices.

7. Commercial real estate is still taking a hit. If you are looking for an investment property (office space or multi-family) now may be the time to make an offer on something.

8. Unlike the majority of real estate agents in the Virgin Islands, I offer buyer representation. Don’t be stuck buying a home without having someone looking out for your best interests.

9. Next month I will be launching a new RENTAL website: http://www.rockcityrentals.com – here you will be able to access many of the available rentals on island.

10. Sea Glass is expanding. If you know of anyone in the Virgin Islands who has real estate experience and wants to join one of the premier real estate companies on island please let me know.

If you are looking for a waterfront property, there is a great deal in Frenchman’s Bay. Also, there is a potential resort/ hotel opportunity in Red Hook. Email me for details.

Let me know if you are still in the market for a property here in the USVI.

When you are first you win...

Nick Van Assche (Sea Glass Properties) — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 15:24:15 -0500

What do Craigslist, Zillow, Backpage, and Point2 have to do with you? Nothing. Nothing at all. If you are just now signing up for these, then you are behind the curve. If you haven't signed up at all, then you probably didn't know a curve existed.

I want to share a few "firsty's"??? with you as inspiration that its worth giving things a shot:

#1. Yellow Foreclosure List signs - Sold two homes in '08 on a $300 investment.

#2. Craigslist Boise - Before there were 10,000+ listings there were 1,000 listings. I sold 5 homes in 08 on a FREE investment.

#3. REOBOI.com and Sellvi.com - $595 per year. Do numbers mean anything at all? Over 300 leads and $30,000 in direct monies brought in from these websites. Thats what we call R.O.I.

#4. Postcards - yes they work. Obtained a $3 million dollar listing from a .75 cent postcard.

#5. Real Estate Book - it isn't about the print advertising, it is about the fact that we are willing to think outside of the box and create a publication that can be distributed and mailed all over the territory/state. I can't put a number on this.

Maybe it isn't about being first. Maybe it is about loving what you do, thinking outside of the box, and doing whatever it takes to make this business work.

-- Please share a time when you have taken a risk or thought outside of the box and found it paid off for you!

Print Advertising - Step it Up

Nick Van Assche (Sea Glass Properties) — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 09:55:40 -0500

We have been advertising in a local real estate book for almost a year and a half now. We usually purchase two full pages and the cover when possible. Unlike many advertisers in our area, we work to pay our bill early or on time to be certain we can pay for it.

Due to the market conditions, this book was unable to publish a new issue after May. We were out $1399. When we tried to get our money back, the person running the publication said "sorry, I don't have the money right now".

For us this is a huge set back because of the volume of traffic we receive. Months have gone by and we still haven't received our money. So I decided to create our own publication. And here is what I found:

www.PSPrint.com offers booklet printing for cheap. Here is what we got:

4,000 books
16 pages
Glossy print
Higher quality than previous book
$1400 w/ shipping to the US Virgin Islands.

I then went out and got three advertisers to pay a total of $1000 and one agent to pay for two pages. The results were a full color booklet advertising all of our services exclusively for the same price as we were paying before.

If you would consider having your own booklet made, contact me. For a small fee I can help set up the book for you, input listings, and give you guidance as to who to contact as potential advertisers for you book.

Nick

When one isn't enough - 3 ways to build a business for life.

Nick Van Assche (Sea Glass Properties) — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 14:05:30 -0500

The art of real estate is simple; yet complex. A transaction often consists of a buyer, a seller, and half a dozen middlemen. I have spent four years trying to simplify the way real estate is conducted. The marketing, the sales, the expenses all add up to stress. Seven years is "supposably" how long it takes to build a successful real estate business. Yet, even in this economy long time agents are dropping like flies. Maybe the missing piece to the puzzle is right in front of you. Here are a few thoughts as to how your team can affect your brand and your long term stability so that when the time comes 20 years from now you can cash out.

My first experience in real estate was a team concept. There was a rain maker, a slacker, a builders wife, and a young college kid who thought he knew it all. Here is how it played out: The rain maker landed the developments. The builder's wife drove around all day selling her husbands homes, every now and then manning the fort at the development. The slacker spent his time at the project talking with builders and making false promises. The young college kid spent his time creating new marketing ideas for the homes and for the builders: all at the expense of the rainmaker. Where did everyone end up? Going there separate ways. The pie was cut too many ways, the agents had their own agendas, and everything that went into marketing the team went "POOF!!!"

The problem in this case is that without the rainmaker the team concept stinks. Do you have a positive or negative team story to share?

Maybe your team is a great success. If it is a great success, are you your own company? If not, why not?

(rant) I want to pick my real estate team like it is a baseball game. I'll take the REO agent, that short sale specialist, um and that bi-lingual guy over there. Shoot, I guess I'll take the good lucking secretary...

A brand. No. Nick Van Assche, REALTOR is not a brand. Why? Because I can't sell it like I can sell "Sea Glass Properties." But let's say for instance that you want to be 'self employed' AND have a brand. Then you need a niche. You need to focus on something and put all your energies towards it. However, this doesn't come without great research. You need to understand the need for your niche. If you live in small town with limited condo projects, then calling yourself "CONDO KING" probably won't work.

I recently learned the differences in marketing and advertising. There is a lot of energy that goes into building a brand. Colors. Fonts. Logos. However, if you don't have a consistent brand I would highly recommend getting on it! You can tweak the details later.

Products. Do you have one? Two? If I wanted to buy your company today, what would I be getting? I can tell you that if you bought my company today you would be getting:

Websites. Marketing Materials. A business that can run WITHOUT me. A brand. A business.

Agents were a dime a dozen when the market was hot. Everyone had a grandma, aunt, uncle, cousin, neighbor, who was in real estate. Many of these people have left the business. How many of them do you think invested $1000s of dollars only to walk away? If you had to leave your business tomorrow, do you have something that you can sell? Do you have something that can run without you?

Three ways to build a business:

#1. Create a plan. (to build a team, a brand, a product)

#2. Implement plan.

#3. Adjust plan. Repeat.

1 reason why you MUST HAVE e-fax.

Nick Van Assche (Sea Glass Properties) — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 14:59:36 -0500

There are probably a dozen reasons why having e-fax is extremely beneficial to your business. Today's technology calls for a mobile office and being able to send or receive a fax is definitely a must.

However, today's number one reason that you MUST HAVE e-fax is simple:

So that when you go on vacation, you don't miss a beat!

Ahhhhhh! How annoying is it to have someone in your office have to check to see if the fax went through. And then if it did, either scan and email it to you, or fax it to another agent.

OR!

You spend half a day scrambling to find a kinkos or local fax machine so that you can receive the offer, only to have it come out terrible.

I am very disappointed in myself for not having done this already...

Do you have any stories about trying to send or receive a fax on vacation?

are you generating 40+ leads per month?

Nick Van Assche (Sea Glass Properties) — Sun, 02 Aug 2009 19:38:42 -0500

One year ago to date I was averaging 2000 hits per month on a one year old website. I was buying leads from lead to realty at $50 per lead (5 per month).

I also was part of a short sale system that cost me another $500 per month.

On top of this I had a team of investors from California that kept me as busy as I could be. I jumped into building a team because I couldn't property manage all the leads myself.

After leaving Idaho for the Caribbean for an opportunity of a lifetime I have already begun to build something big.

5000+ unique visitors per month in a one year span (brand new website).

I started out with no adword or yahoo marketing budget.

over 500 leads.

95% of my personal business comes from my website. Every now and then I get a referral from a client that I worked with in the past that I received from my website!

5 things you can do to generate business today:

Find 5 new websites to manually post your property to.
Add new listings. If you don't have any ask your broker. If they won't allow you to market the offices listings on your site... um... find a new brokerage??
Search wanted postings on your local newspaper website.
Add sales reports, school information, and other pertinent information. If you drive business to your site, make sure they come back. Check your bounce rate on your homepage.. is it less than 25%?
Repeat. Add listings. Syndicate. Search. Update site. Again. Again. Again.

YES! Everyday. You can do it!

Message me for help.

Check out my site: http://www.sellvi.com

I'm in the process of building two others right now. NO, I'm not 100% computer savvy, but I am real estate savvy, I ask questions. I know what my clients want. I ask them about my site. I ask for feedback. I ask for testimonials. I tweak my site for them every chance I get. WHY?

Because without them. I wouldn't be in this business.

When You Get Lost

Nick Van Assche (Sea Glass Properties) — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 14:46:27 -0500

Do you ever feel like you are NOT FOCUSED??

My brain seems to function like my business: feast or famine.

I often look to others for guidance to get back on track. My thought processes usually come in spurts and have been like this for years. Here are a few things I have found to help me focus.

Whiteboard
Coffee
Day off
Beach
Make a list

Do you have anything you do to get focused?

http://www.sellvi.com

Skype, Twitter, and much much more.

Nick Van Assche (Sea Glass Properties) — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 23:13:53 -0500

You would think that for someone who has built a business around computers and technology that I would be all over social networking. For some reason I felt the need to backlash and not use any of these tools. Today I have come out of my shell and will begin to highlight the many different benefits that each social networking site manages.

One of the most consistent problems I have preached since day one with Social Networking and Internet Marketing is that you have to work it. You have to put the time and energy in to make it work. With 100+ new sites out there each day to make our business better we tend to get overwhelmed.

Make it a goal today to try one new website or social networking site. Report back and let me know if you think Facebook, Myspace, or any other site can or has affected your business!

I look forward to hearing from you soon!

TWITTER: www.twitter.com/nickvanassche

SKYPE: search Nick Vanassche

ACTIVERAIN: www.activerain.com/nckerbocker

The Power of Video - What sites do you use?

Nick Van Assche (Sea Glass Properties) — Mon, 11 May 2009 11:15:11 -0500

It has been a while since my last post. In an attempt to jump start my business here in the Caribbean, I have had to take some time away from all of my extra-curricular internet marketing strategies and focus on my current business.

As I continue to take my online marketing strategies to new heights, I keep coming back to one consistent problem: my clients are either overseas or stateside, which puts a damper on me being able to provide them with everything they need to make a decision.

I previously toyed with using video in all of my listings back in Idaho. However, since many of my clients where either a short plane ride away, or local, I decided that I couldn't afford the investment: both in time and financially.

So, we have come full circle. My clients now need to see more. They want to feel the property. And thus, it is up to me to make this happen. Normally, this is where I list 20 different video hosting sites.

Unfortunately, I don't have a lot of experience in video, so I am reaching out to you:

Do you know of any good sites to use for a real estate video?

only YOU can make it happen. 4 tips to success.

Nick Van Assche (Sea Glass Properties) — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 17:05:46 -0600

Yes. You heard me right. Only you can make it happen. If you are not 100% committed to this business, then get out. It doesn't matter if I give you all the tools available to succeed and put them in front of you. If you don't want to work, you are going to have a hard time.

Many people enter into real estate thinking "piece of cake." They don't think about the marketing, accounting, time management, client management, budgeting, phone calls, and everything else that goes with the "JOB".

Secondly, if this is a J.O.B. then it is possible we have another problem. If you love what you do, then there is way to make money. It doesn't matter if you are one of ten agents in your town, or one in ten thousand agents. Creativity, hard work ethic, and commitment will prevail.

I handed out 100+ leads over a period of 2 months to agents who said they wanted to work. Not one lead amounted to anything. I learned the hard way that giving away leads to agents does not teach them anything. So, today I worked on 6 leads myself.

Here are 4 tips to help your business grow in these slow times:

#1. (your sphere) - and everyone else you can possibly talk to. Make up postcard sized flyers with a discount or promotion. Hand these out in the malls, shopping centers, business centers. Go meet people. Sure we are in a recession. But people are still buying.

#2. Think outside the box. Hand out flyers at the bus station, airport, gas stations, you name it. Direct everything you do back to your website, but include your phone number. Don't forget to include a "call to action" on EVERY piece of marketing you do.

#3. Internet Consistency: Build a website that generates leads. Update the information on the site. AND- offer to advertise any agent who will let you advertise their listings. Remember, business generates business. It is a snowball effect.

#4. Don't give up. Syndicate your properties daily. Hand out flyers a couple times a week for a few months. Attend open houses. If you aren't out doing something or creating business, then what are you doing? Think to yourself throughout the day "what am I doing to grow my business?"

You can do it. I know you can. Now make it happen.

Thanks for reading and I would love to hear feedback or other ideas.

-- visit http://www.sellvi.com for more information on investing in the US Virgin Islands.

The market is down?? How creative are you?

Nick Van Assche (Sea Glass Properties) — Fri, 12 Dec 2008 13:58:14 -0600

Now is the time for the cream to rise to the top. Are you a top producer? Do you have all the time in the world and little cash? Start thinking outside the box.

Newspaper ads aren't working. Website banner ads can be high cost low return (depending on the source). Anyway, now is the time to get creative.

Today we compiled a "Season Greetings Card" with a seasonal promotion for our services. Sure we could have mailed them out and gone back to our listings. INSTEAD our agents went to three different shopping centers and distributed them to all of the stores. Already we are seeing results (both from the exposure of our company, as well as the exposure of our website).

What are you doing to put yourself out there and let people know you are in business and ready to work? Are you pounding the pavement?

Check out http://www.SellVi.com for all the latest information on Moving the Virgin Islands.

Mall Kiosk: How does location affect your business?

Nick Van Assche (Sea Glass Properties) — Mon, 08 Dec 2008 10:52:56 -0600

Location, location, location!!! But, how is location really affecting your business? Our current location is on the water in a high end shopping center where Yachts and Cruise Ships come into port.

Unfortunately, while this helps with second time home buyers and state-side clients... however this does very little for our local market.

We are currently exploring the idea of a Kiosk in the local mall. Our goal would be to grasp a larger share of the local market.

In a world of internet marketing do you feel high traffic locations are worth the extra overhead? Any other thoughts about location and how it affects your business?

Energy Vampires: are they dragging down your company?

Nick Van Assche (Sea Glass Properties) — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 09:47:27 -0600

An energy vampire can have a huge impact on your business. As we continue on our growth journey, we find ourselves daily having to work around the negativity that surrounds our business.

I will be the first to admit, I too can be an energy vampire. It isn't easy to remain positive every day, especially with the markets in turmoil and everyone wondering what the future will bring.

Do you have someone in your life or office that is constantly complaining and talking about how the glass is empty and we are all doomed?

I recently wrote a blog post in which I had a ton of negative comments. While that was not my intention, I had some great positive responses that really made me think about positive solutions.

Here in our office we are working to eliminate complaining and negative energy. In doing this we have already seen a rise in moral and productivity.

How do you deal with these people? Does your office contain a "no complaining rule?" or something else to handle these "energy vampires"?

E-Pro vs AR-Pro: are you an AR-PRO?

Nick Van Assche (Sea Glass Properties) — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 14:15:40 -0600

In my previous post: E-Pro is a waste of a designation, I talked about why E-Pro (in my opinion) is a waste of a designation. Overwhelmingly, there were many people who believed that the designation was a waste of money.

While I was not intending to completely Bash the designation, I was intending to obtain feedback as to whether people agreed with me or not.

A few hours of clicking and a few hundred dollars later you can have a “E-Pro” designation. Good for you!

What about AR-Pro? Are you serious about conquering the internet? I would like to discuss ActiveRain vs E-Pro and the benefits of each. Finally, why ActiveRain should or should not be as qualified as E-Pro to have a designation.

ActiveRain:

Pros
Free
120,000+ members
Quickly Search Blogs
Multiple Channels to Distribute Information

Cons
No Designation

E-Pro

Pros
CE Credit in many States
Great for Beginners

Cons
Outdated
Cost is located on http://www.epronar.com

I will take Pros and Cons and add them to each list. I would personally like to see a push for either an updated E-Pro class or a class designed to highlight Web 2.0 and/or ActiveRain!

E-Pro is a waste of a designation

Nick Van Assche (Sea Glass Properties) — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 11:28:04 -0600

The E-Pro designation is a complete waste of money.

Yeah, I just went there. For many agents, the E-Pro designation is an “opportunity” to learn about all of the ‘new’ tools available to agents. And sure it does live up to the promise of a bunch of new tools, but it is a waste of money.

Think about it, you are on ActiveRain networking with some of the top agents in the Country. You can search blogs for many great new tools, and often find these things before anyone ever has a clue about them:

Example: home411.com. I was one of the first agents to sign up for a free 1-800 number.

Point2 agent has been out for 5 years. It was free for the last number of years (still free for 6 months). Point2 is one of the greatest tools available to agents. In my opinion ActiveRain has far more content and tools than the E-Pro classes could ever have.

I guess I feel like E-Pro fails to deliver on the cost of the designation. What good is a tool chest of websites and domain names if no one knows how or what to do with them? They need to update the classes and tools for today's market.

Maybe I am way off track, but I feel there could be substantially more substance than there is.

Why do you feel the designation is valuable or invaluable? Any other thoughts?

How many Point2 websites is enough?

Nick Van Assche (Sea Glass Properties) — Sat, 29 Nov 2008 16:59:00 -0600

If you haven't had an opportunity to read Susan Friedmann’s newest book “Riches in Niches: How to Make it BIG in a small Market, I would suggest you pick it up.

We have found many niches to work on, however we cannot seem to figure out how to put all of this information into ONE powerful website.

Our Sellvi.com website had 3000+ unique visitors this month with over 30 new prospects. However, we haven't even begun to put the information into the site that needs to be there.

If you are not using Point2 as a business tool, I would highly recommend it. If you need helping setting up your site, there are many companies out there that specialize in Point2 design. I can also do a basic set-up of your layout for you.

Are you using Point2 in your business? If so, how many sites is enough? Do I put ALL of the information in one site, or do I break it down into Niche websites and link them all to our main site?

Clean Cut or Scrubby Mess: HOW DOES YOUR WEBSITE LOOK?

Nick Van Assche (Sea Glass Properties) — Sun, 23 Nov 2008 15:32:50 -0600

Please put your personal relationship preferences aside for a second, it is time to focus on your business! All kidding aside, is your website clean cut or a scrubby mess?

Open your webpage. What is on it? Does it scroll down three hundred miles or is everything you could ever need right in front of your eyes?

When you open the page is there a "search homes" or some other type of SEARCH button in plain visible site?

Everyday I stumble across webpages that drive me crazy. I can't find anything I am looking for. While on the other hand, there are those websites that are so simple to use, that I find myself spending money I don't have for tools I don't need.

Here are a few things would like to see on your webpage:

#1. FAQ Sheet. Have one. Be specific. Target your niche.

#2. Blog Page. Static information is overrated. Keep me updated in your life and your business. (or just your business!)

#3. Downloads. Do you have anything that would be useful in my relocation to your area? (where I can find employment, doctor's office, school info). Put this information in an easily down-loadable PDF. Share it with me.

#4. Easy to use IDX. I don't like things that don't work, don't look good, and take 4 clicks to get me where I want to go. If I don't like it, I can probably say that most clients wont like clicking 4 or 5 times just to see a list of properties. MAKE IT EASY.

#5. Keep it clean. I don't want to see ALL of your designations no your main page - along with the weather widget plastered randomly and a strange background color with white letters. If it hurts my eyes to look at, then it won't matter if the tools are great.

If you are utilizing a Point2 website, there are some great site designers out there that can assist you with adding custom menus and other tools to make your site fun and easy to use.

-- If you are a designer, leave a link to your site so we can take a look at your work!

"It's Not Worth My TIME" - THEN QUIT!!

Nick Van Assche (Sea Glass Properties) — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 09:31:46 -0600

Do you love this business? Are you at the office right now because you are excited about the opportunities that are at your feet today?

I don't quite understand why, but it seems time and time again I hear the agents I work with complaining: "it wasn't worth my time", "I am only getting $300.00", "What for???", "Why should I do this?", "These people are time consuming."

The list goes on and I could easily include 100+ other excuses or comments about how they are unhappy or how they only want to sell $1,000,000+ property.

What I am about to say may come as a shock to you; or you may have heard it 1,000 times already. "love what you do and the money will follow."

Sometimes we forget why we chose to get into real estate. I know that I absolutely love this business. I love working with people, I love the adventure. I have fun going into the office and working with other agents. But, I also understand that this is a business. If I didn't love this, if I felt like this was a job, I would probably do something else.

----

EVERYTHING YOU DO IS WORTH YOUR TIME. If you are spending time doing something that isn't helping your business, then yes, it is a waste of time (solitare on the computer, watching tv, running personal errands).

If you are in front of people with an opportunity to meet a potential customer or client then why are you complaining? Of course if you are showing a rental for free and have another client who wants to buy a $200,000 property, then that may not be the best use... BUT, you need to adjust.

Put together a priority list. With the economy the way it is, you must keep moving forward. If you have no business, get find new business; but DO NOT complain if somethings small comes along... because before you had nothing, now you have something.

I am NOT sorry for being extremely irritated by people who say "it's not worth my time".

If YOU are sooo valuable that you can't handle more business, then refer it out. Or don't take the project on.

.... On a brighter note...

It is FRIDAY. The weekend is almost here. Make it happen and have a great day!

Website for Success

Nick Van Assche (Sea Glass Properties) — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 11:45:02 -0600

As websites become more important by the day in our field, it is hard to figure out where to start and when to stop. I have spent countless hours working to build a lead generation machine that would need little maintenance. After going round and round this is what I have to share:

Less is more. If no one can figure out how to navigate your website, then you will limit your website potential.

More is more. Take the clothes off the front page and let it's beauty show. We all know the beauty lies within. So make sure that your website is deep with value-added content!

Don't Clash. Lead generation doesn't have to be pretty, but your customers need to be able to read what you have written. Brown on black does not fly very well.

If you will, I will. If you will honestly use your site for research, then your clients will too. But, if you have built a site with only the intention of generating leads, but you would never use it... then we need to fix that!

I am halfway through an overhaul of my two websites. This included changing one domain name, and the entire layouts of both sites.

http://www.reoboi.com

http://www.sellvi.com

They are not yet where I want them to be, but both of them are starting to churn out the leads like I had originally hoped!

Enjoy 11/11 and thank you veterans!

Understanding YOUR Business Plan

Nick Van Assche (Sea Glass Properties) — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 18:05:52 -0500

Are you ready to take your business to the next level? I sure hope so! The company I am currently working with definitely is. So, with that we have taken the next step to a successful long term business, built on a foundation of creativity, structure, flexibility, and the right people.

There are many important aspects to a business as you all know. Whether you are a single business owner or agent working on your own or a full service brokerage with 200 agents, many of the concepts and ideas we go over in the next few months will be applicable to your business.

With the market on a roller coaster ride, my question to you is: ARE YOU PREPARED? Today, we need to survive, but more importantly we need to be on the right track to long term success. So, before I can say "here is what YOU need to do" we must take a step back.

The company I am currently working with has a ton of potential. And for those who know me, I have a ton of passion and energy when I am focused on something; so I am sitting here just crazy about getting started.

Before I can take the next step in our venture though, I need to conduct a SWOT analysis. You can find a basic free form here: http://www.businessballs.com/swotanalysisfreetemplate.htm

If you have questions about this form you can shoot me an email or leave a comment! Anyway, upon completion of your SWOT analysis, you can then begin to build a competitive business plan based upon Guerrilla Marketing techniques with a combination of Web 2.0 & Strategic Print Media.

If you can't tell me what your Return on Your Investment (ROI) or how much money you have budget for the year, then that is definitely a priority. Because, if you don't know where your business is coming from and how much it costs, then how can you effectively build upon the marketing tools that are working. You can access a free Marketing Budget Form Here: http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/templates/results.aspx?qu=marketing+budget&av=TPL000

Stay tuned for more tips on business planning including: marketing, budgeting, sales, customer service, branding, and much much more.

Marketing Documents posted ONLINE?

Nick Van Assche (Sea Glass Properties) — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 13:55:44 -0500

Our consulting journey hasn't officially begun yet, however I am already deep into creating a full spectrum of online and print marketing documents. One question I have is whether or not to create a site that would showcase my work?

One idea I have is to add all of the docs in to an online report section of the website http://www.sellvi.com and then people can view these. The link would only be accessible to those who found me through ACTIVERAIN.

Anyway, that was just a thought, considering most marketing materials will be viewable to the public anyone. Let me know if you have any ideas as to whether or not this is something that people would actually view; or would I just be wasting my time?

Thanks for reading!

Oh btw, I just signed up for a travel thing that allow people to search airline tickets, hotels, vacations, and dream trips. If you have any feedback on World Ventures please let me know!

The website is http://nickvanassche.worldventures.com

The Journey of a New Company

Nick Van Assche (Sea Glass Properties) — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 16:47:59 -0500

I am sure you have been standing impatiently on your tippy toes for the initial release of our Journey Journal 08' and now it is finally here.

Over the next 6 months we will write about the struggles we face as well as how we were able to overcome obstacles. Our goal will be to build a program that will be systematic in nature, but streamlined and flexible to change.

The purpose of this journey will be to position the company as a market leader and innovator. We will discuss new tools that we have opted to use as well as outline the progress of our plan.

One of our first steps will be to do an "overview analysis". This will be quite detailed in nature and should outline our current position in the market as well as lay the ground work for future growth.

Please stay tuned and all comments will be appreciated.

Thinking of investing in a down market? http://www.sellvi.com for US Virgin Island Deals.

What is your website ROI?

Nick Van Assche (Sea Glass Properties) — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 08:51:23 -0500

Time and time again I have asked my students and fellow agents: What is your Return on Investment for your website?

Last year I was able to have a 10,000% return on my website investment. Fortunately, I did not pay anything, and I generated many leads.

So here are a few things to think about when asking yourself if you are with the right company:

How many sales have you had in the last year because of your website?

Another thing to think about is the amount of traffice you are receiving and what the conversion rate is. If you are receiving 1500 unique visitors a month and not one person is inquiring for more information or contacting you, then you may have some problems.

Also, firefox offers a website rank checker for key words on Yahoo! Google and Live.com

It is beneficial to know where your site shows up in the rankings.

Well, I hope all is well Stateside and abroad!

For ideas on what your website could look like go to http://www.sellvi.com

Point2 Themes: Which are the Best?

Nick Van Assche (Sea Glass Properties) — Sun, 19 Oct 2008 17:17:38 -0500

As I begin to build my second point2 website I am stuck on the theme of the website. I know that professional members have two different templates to choose from.

But, I still can't figure out which template is the best to build a main base from. Even though I plan to make changes through the templates I am having trouble finding the right theme to use for my site.

So in my search to find the best template based theme I have a few questions you might be able to help me with:

What theme are you using and why?

What are the pluses or minuses of this theme?

Would you recommend this theme to other agents?

If you are struggling with this same questions, have you found any resources to use that may be of assistance in finding the right theme?

Please view my websites to see how one theme has worked well for one area: http://www.sellmyidahoproperty.com

While in the other area I am having little to no luck: http://www.sellvi.com

Thanks for your help!