Making Sure Your Customers Are Really Satisfied
Thank you so much Bob Corcoran for sharing this with us.  

Have you ever thought of using a satisfaction questionnaire to keep in touch with your clients? According to Businesstown.com, most unhappy customers will not complain directly to the business they are unhappy with. Instead, they will complain to everyone they know while taking their business to a competitor. To counteract this possibility, businesses are increasingly making follow-up calls or sending out satisfaction questionnaires after a sale is made.  If you go to Walgreen's, Red Lobster, or JC Penney's, you will find a number on the receipt to call to complete a customer satisfaction survey.

You might consider sending out a survey to clients who have completed a transaction or even to prospects who have received a few months of your emails.  Your questionnaire can be very simple and straightforward, and if done right, the survey can convey that you care about your service and want to improve it.  This means that you may ask customers questions that can be answered by checking choices like "Very satisfied," "Somewhat satisfied," or "Not satisfied," but you also offer them a chance to voice an opinion about why they made the choice.

The responses to open ended questions can offer insights about what you do right and what needs improvement.  It may spotlight employees who did a great job.  If you follow up on your negative or lukewarm responses, you can pave the way for repeat business or at least soften the anger of a customer who feels he was mistreated.  Often, even a customer who was unsatisfied with aspects of a transaction can be pacified with a call that attempts to make things right or at least offers an apology.

Make sure you are prepared to act on negative responses. Nothing turns a customer sour faster than to complete a questionnaire voicing dissatisfaction, only to never be contacted by that company again. On the other hand, businesses who promptly follow-up and resolve customer complaints quickly are finding that those customers are more likely to do repeat business than the average customer who does not have a complaint. 

Thank you to all the soldiers that are protecting our country and all of the Veterans.

May God Bless America and may all of them return back to their families safely.

MEETUP  was a word that I heard for many months before I finally took a look at it and realized that this may be a new way for me to meet new people, network and share leads with them.

I told one of the agents at my office that we are going to schedule our own
Investors Meetup Group for Johns Creek/Duluth and Alpharetta, Georgia.  We set it up in a restaurant and I said either someone will show up or she and I will enjoy a wonderful dinner together.

Well, here it is a year later and we have over 288 members who thought this was a great idea and joined us.  Now we meet on monthly basis and what is happening is that relationships have built and we are doing so much together.  We have speakers, we network, we have a wonderful lunch and it's a win-win benefit for everyone.

If you are curious about Meetup go to www.meetup.com and put in your zip code.  Every single meetup group will pop up from mothers with children with autism, internet marketers, investors meetup, singles, etc.

Find what you want to learn more about or what would benefit you best.
Then MEETUP with those people on regular basis.  Good luck!

If you are interested about our meetup group - visit www.realestate.meetup.com/413 and check us out.

GREEN, GREEN, GREEN! 

Money is GREEN but now everywhere you look builders, developers, investors are talking
about the new buzz word "GREEN".  Green Buildings, Green Homes, Green Communities!
I went to visit a new development last week and the developer/builder took me on a tour
of his homes with more natural light, green materials and built to the green specifications.

I know that every BUYER that invests in a home today will get more for their GREEN!  They
will get GREEN because these homes are more efficient, they have tighter materials, they
offer value for your GREEN! 

I have now attended two conventions for CREW (Commercial Real Estate Women) where
I learned about the developer/builder utilizing LEED Standards. I want to be knowledgeable
so that I can assist my clients in today's market to give them GREEN for their money and
my knowledge and expertise. 

The question is NOT how much more does GREEN cost? The question is how much GREEN
can we be with our today's budget and how much GREEN will this give us over the years?

It's truly remarkable.  I discussed with one developer how schools are now built GREEN.
Manufacturing companies put more skylights so that employees can have more natural
light, therefore, they work more efficiently.  Children in GREEN schools are more alert.
I flew thru the Paris airport and noticed that they were planting GREEN plants on their
hangars.  The carpeting they now install is GREEN, it is supposedly static free and has no
chemicals that are dangerous to us.

We better watch out!  Pretty soon our neighbors will be turning GREEN with envy if they
see how much GREEN we have in our homes.  So my advise to you is, don't be mean,
GO GREEN!

I was born in Europe and moved to the U.S. as a teenager.  I have traveled to 38 different countries and built a huge network of friends and professionals from all over the world.  What I found out is that we all interact through e-mail, through conferences we attend and through the business we do internationally.

I receive calls daily from friends, colleagues and past clients asking me who do I know that can finance a deal for them in Costa Rica, which attorney can they use setting up offshore corporation, how do they get a visa, which translation companies to use when working with clients in another country, where can they get more information about currency, what are the laws in Panama regarding ownership, etc. etc. etc. etc.  I've answered questions for everyone from A-Z over the years and now with this incredibly huge network I've built, I've decided to link it all together and let people that I know and the people they know start communicating through my network.  We now have so many more of our colleagues e-mailing us their link and soon you will see our incredibly huge network "International from A-Z" appear worldwide.  Millions of contacts, professionals in all of these categories are now being processed and we welcome you to join this incredible network.  E-mail us your link and you too can benefit from networking with us. 

Please e-mail us at:  dagmar@WorldClassRealEstateBroker.com with the headline "We're excited to be part of  "International from A-Z". 

Let us also hear your testimonials about how our network has helped you and we will post them later on our testimonial page. 
Sincerely,  Dagmar Sands

"Your World Class Real Estate Broker and your International Connection from A-Z".

What can real estate professionals do while business is slow in their own market area?
They can help baby boomers who are retiring purchase an investment in resorts overseas.

Costa Rica, Panama, Mexico, Dominican Republic, Carribean Islands, - anywhere they can
still do business, receive medical assistance, medical tourism, relax on the beach next to
the ocean, near a spa,etc.  Who can make the connection for these Realtors that want to
receive referrals from sending their clients to us?  Our network in FIABCI and our network
International from A-Z.  All you need to do is e-mail us and we can sign you up for our
referral network.  Huge developers are signing up with us to pay 3-6% commissions to
referring brokers.  Teaming up with these developers is giving us an opportunity to help
agents in a slow market.  Allow us to make that connection for you if you are interested.
e-mail us at:  dagmar@WorldClassRealEstateBroker.com and we will send you all the
instructions. 

Yesterday I tried to sit down with my dad who just retired and teach him how to
use a computer.  My dad still is resisting.  He has retired in January of last year
and he is very bored at home.  I thought finding ways to google interesting
subjects, visit his home country of Czech Republic would interest him.  Well,
he watched me as I showed him what to do and how to do it and then said
NO... I don't think this is for me.

My dad is old fashioned and he's from the old school!  That's o.k.  I am patient
with him because when I was growing up he was patient with me.  The role
somehow changes as we age.  We think we know more than our parents but
in reality, we don't.  I only want both of my parents to stay active seniors and
active adults.  I will always be there for my parents.  I'm also from the old
school.  I don't believe in putting your parents in a retirement home.  In
my country, Czech Republic, children always took care of their parents.

I have visited many of the adult communities because of my real estate
profession and knowing that this is the future in real estate.  I am pleased
to see our adult seniors very active.  Just last week I heard of a couple that
lives in one of the Parc communities in their eighties that they walk up the
stairs each morning up to the 19th floor.  That's incredible!  Congratulations
to them.  Let's all stay active, let's all do our part to take care of our parents.
Sincerely,  Dagmar Sands

Connecting People with People, learning about daily thoughts members have that they
are willing to share, being real and being fun! 

1.  LinkedIN
2.  Active Rain
3.  Plaxo
4.  Xing
5.  Ning
6.  Boomj
7.  Facebook
8.  MySpace
9.  International from A-Z
10.WordPress
11.Del.i.cious
12.Loopnet
13.Creopoint


What are your favorite Networks?  Please share them with me and let me know if there
are any that I have not mentioned yet.
I look forward to your comments.  Sincerely,  Dagmar Sands - Real Estate International, Inc.

What an incredible event at the Belk Store at the FORUM in Peachtree Corners. 
Members of the board dressed up as models and showed off latest fashions at the Belk.
It was educational, funny, entertaining and a blast.

I have met so many different people from all walks of life.  Photographers, Financial
Planners, Gourmet Chefs, Hairstylists, Chiropractors, Advertising Magazine Owners,
Realtors and many others.

When I walked away I felt inspired, excited to do business in Johns Creek, GA.

I am proud to be a member of the Johns Creek Chamber of Commerce in Johns Creek,
Georgia. 

I have always looked at things in a different light.  I was given a God given talent
to see things not for what they are but what they can be.  That is why my success
in selling real estate for 30 years is directly related to this talent.  I have SOLD
homes that other Realtors could not sell because I marketed them in a unique way.
I created POWERHOUSE plan when things were slow and were not selling.  I joined
organizations and networked so that my sellers would get exposure to their listings
not just locally but nationally and internationally.

I have SOLD churches when other agents laughed at me when I told them I was
a "Church Specialist". I resold a Romanian Baptist church to a Japanese School. I
knew that the school needed large room and the sanctuary was perfect for graduation
services.  Sunday School classrooms became school classrooms.  It all worked out
perfectly. I have turned old car lots into church parking lots.

I have SOLD land and lots to huge developers and it all started because I was willing
to start with a small lot which led to larger tracts of land.  I went overseas to represent
US seller to make sure his closing went smoothly and money was transferred to his
account without delays or problems.

When I tell my story at conferences I have been told to write it all down.  That is why
I started writing my book called "How I became a Purple Snowflake in Real Estate".
It's a book sharing unique approach to selling real estate.

It's funny - I have posted a brief note on Facebook about it and I have already
PRESOLD copies.  This has inspired me more to finish the book and share it with
my colleagues, my friends and my clients.  So be on a lookout for it! 

Thanks, Dagmar Sands - Real Estate International, Inc.