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They just don't get it!

By Maureen Francis

Real Estate Agent with Coldwell Banker Weir Manuel

May 25, 2007 12:12 AM

A few weeks ago another Realtor in the Birmingham MI real estate market referred to me derogatorily as a “blogger”, somehow implying that blogging is not something that a real estate agent does to sell homes. Oh, how wrong he is. And I am OK that he does not know better. Another victim of “Old School” thinking that traps many agents into using ineffective marketing tools. Great for me.

Yes, I write about real estate on miOaklandCounty.com and on ActiveRain. Is that a bad thing? I write about the local market, a bit about our business practices, and I closely track the newest trends from across the nation in real estate technology and marketing. I don’t care if the people who read my blog actually buy or sell a home from me, though that is certainly appreciated. When we go on a listing appointment I always tell the prospective client that they can interview us on-line at miOaklandCounty.com. Most of our “secrets” can be found here.

How does blogging impact our business?

It has given us great “Google Juice.” We listed a home on Poppleton Park in Birmingham on Monday this week. It is right on the park, which is a great selling feature. We put up a post about the house on Monday night on our ActiveRain blog, and a day later we were on page one of Google (more than once) for the term "Poppleton Park". Kind of cool. If a prospective buyer were to google Poppleton Park, there is no way they would miss our listing. Compare that to using the term Poppleton Park in the newspaper. Not so effective, right?

Google loves us for some big time key words like "Birmingham, MI real estate" and "Bloomfield Hills real estate". There are hundreds of agents and brokerages competing to be on page one of google for those extremely competitive terms.

This blog has introduced us to a wonderful network of agents across the US. We have an outstanding referral database.

We are frequently testing out the latest real estate technology products. That helps us to expand and improve our services.

After two years of engaging in this activity, I know it is not for everyone. It is hard work and it has taken more hours of effort than I could begin to count to get the results we have gotten.

Long story short, I hope some day that gentleman will see that blogging is something that Realtors do as part of their business activities. It keeps clients informed about the market. It helps prospects understand the process of buying and selling a home. And it gives those interested in the process a place to ask questions and get answers.

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Esko Kiuru

Bethesda, MD

Maureen,

You can laugh all the way to the bank with your blogging results, and how's the old-school co-worker in the office doing? Blogging can be a huge marketing tool, but it requires work. Lots of work, like you said. Nothing comes for free.

May 25, 2007 12:18 PM

Diane Bell, Hilton Head Real Estate, Bluffton

Charter 1 Real Estate, Hilton Head, Bluffton, SC - Hilton Head Island, SC

I guess there's no reason to educate the enemy. Keep up the good work and forget about the likes of that agent.

May 25, 2007 12:32 PM

Christy Powers

Keller Williams Coastal Area Partners - Pooler, GA

Pooler, Savannah Real Estate Agent

There are so many out there like that. It's so weird. I can't believe that they don't see that blogging is great. It not only helps with placements, it's great for clients.

May 25, 2007 12:42 PM

Lola Audu

Lola Audu~Audu Real Estate~Grand Rapids, MI Real Estate - Grand Rapids, MI

Audu Real Estate~Grand Rapids, MI ~Welcome Home!

Maureen, things are changing so fast...the old way of thinking not only blinds an individual's perspective but also limits future opportunities. With real estate being the leading Internet related search for business, it continues to amaze me that so many agents believe that blogging is just a passing phenomenon. This process has made me a far more informed educator & communicator. This result of my blogging efforts is definitely very good for my clients.

May 25, 2007 01:25 PM

Anonymous

I am sure that people who blog are on a different frequency from the norm - whether that be in writing skills, perhaps tending towards introversion, more in touch with their creativity, etc. Since I am in this group, I think it is on the cutting edge side, as opposed to the status-quo, business-as-usual side of things.

May 25, 2007 01:53 PM

#51

Carol Spengel

Prudential Rubloff - Wheaton, IL

Wheaton IL

Jealousy will always bring about attacks. You know you are doing a good job when people take cheap pot shots. The cutting edge is where to be. Sherry

May 25, 2007 02:53 PM

Sharon Simms

Coastal Properties Group International - Christie's International - Saint Petersburg, FL

St. Petersburg FL - CRS CIPS CLHMS RSPS

Maureen, blogs today are where websites were twenty years ago. I remember back then that many agents thought I was crazy to have a website and waste my time and money on it. Don't worry about convincing the world - just keep on doing those things YOU know bring results.

May 25, 2007 03:28 PM

Jay Beckingham

Christensen Financial Mortgage - Port St Lucie, FL

Seniors ROCK!

i didn't get it at first. i had heard about blogs but didn't realyy know what they were, how they would work, or what you could do.

a frind and excellent realtor named jay lagace told me i should be looking at active rain, but i didn't listen at first.

then finally i paid attention.

your just ahead of the pack. that's a good thing.

May 25, 2007 04:02 PM

Jeff Fulgham

T.U.P. Realty - Tupelo, MS

Broker E-Pro ABR

Blogging to me is a very effective tool. It has already paid off for me here on active rain. I wrote a pretty good post about being told I was wasting time blogging.

May 25, 2007 05:59 PM

Anonymous

Christine Frazier, Pensacola Fl

I am a relatively new rain maker and still a little unsure exactly how everything works. I would love some advice as to how to post listings so that they appear on the search engines other than through our mls locally, which is internet based through Supra. We have good exposure there, but I would like to place all my listings through active rain as well. Can anyone tell me, does this happen if I write a blog and post it to all the links , mentioning the listing as Maureen says? Thanks for info.

Christine Frazier 850-304-7773 Pensacola, Fl.

May 26, 2007 10:09 AM

#56

Kelly Sibilsky

Licensed Through Referral Connection, LTD. - Lake Zurich, IL

Hello Michigan! I was born and raised in Michigan and used to live in Clarkston. I miss Somerset!

Anyway, I think those that blog show a commitment to their business and a commitment to growth and development. I also get the "eye roll" from others in my office. Oh well. What they aren't willing to do is what sets us apart. It's been great for me and great for my business!

Keep up the good work!

May 26, 2007 01:40 PM

Ryan Hukill - Edmond

405home @ ERA Courtyard - Edmond, OK

Realtor, Team Lead

Maureen, great post! It's amazing to me that "old school" agents trash-talk technology so much. I wonder what they'll be thinking in 5 years when technology has driven them out of business and the agents who have embraced it are doing 2 to 3 times as much business as the top-producers of today.

May 26, 2007 04:36 PM

Maureen Francis

Coldwell Banker Weir Manuel - Bloomfield Hills, MI

Coldwell Banker Weir Manuel

Christine,

Look through my blog. I am using vflyers to post my listings on ActiveRain, and other places. Try out their service.

May 27, 2007 01:19 AM

Siha Top

TOP MORTGAGE COMPANY - Everett, WA

Their loss - our gains. I feel the same about your post.

Jun 01, 2007 08:55 PM

Angie Ridley

Complete Realty, LLC - Flint, MI

Broker, ABR, CRS, PMN, WCR, At Home With Diversity

I am new to activerain. I must say i am amazed at the support and knowledge I get from members. I can shoot out a questions and have 15 responses in 10 minutes.

I love this, and does ithelp with business, heck yes!!!

Many people say to me, I don't have time for that. I don't have time not to!!

Jun 03, 2007 05:08 AM

Missy Caulk

Missy Caulk TEAM - Ann Arbor, MI

Savvy Realtor - Ann Arbor Real Estate

Angie, I agree. I hear the same things and I don't have time NOT to do it either. Sorry for responding here, Maureen, couldn't resist. Is this what hijacking means ?

Jun 03, 2007 05:12 AM

Maureen Francis

Coldwell Banker Weir Manuel - Bloomfield Hills, MI

Coldwell Banker Weir Manuel

Missy, no, I think that is called participating in the conversation. I welcome your thoughts on my posts.

Jun 03, 2007 05:21 AM

Missy Caulk

Missy Caulk TEAM - Ann Arbor, MI

Savvy Realtor - Ann Arbor Real Estate

Thanks !

Jun 03, 2007 05:35 AM

Erin Keating Dewald

SKBK Sotheby's International Realty - Royal Oak, MI

Blog On Maureen....

The dinosaurs will catch up and if not they to will become extinct!

Jul 08, 2007 11:18 AM

Greg Zaccagni

The Federal Savings Bank - Wheaton, IL

Illinois Mortgage Lender

I have read statistics that over 75% of consumers begin their real estate search on the Internet. Active rain gets a higher ranking than our individual websites because google takes into account the number of links as part of their prioritization.

Greg Z @ www.MortgageAdvisor.info

Jul 11, 2007 03:08 PM