I had the pleasure of meeting up with some great minds in social media and technology today at The Blue Beet in Newport Beach at RE Bar Camp Orange County (#rebcoc for those Twitter folks). This was my second bar camp this year and it did not disappoint. 

First, congratulations and thanks to some of the folks I know who were involved (and my apologies for leaving out people who also contributed) - Stacey Harmon, Jim Marks, Linse Planeta, Loren Nason, Eric Stegemann, Gretchen Benes, and Devesh Khare. The venue - a REAL bar, will multiple levels and rooms, practically on the ocean in beautiful Newport Beach. What could be better for a bunch of Californians (oh, and few visitors from further away including Rob Hahn from NJ) than a day at the beach, which, after the June gloom burned off turned out to be spectacular. 

And of course it is always fun to run into good friends, and meet news one already known on-line - Stacey Harmon, Ricardo Bueno, Robin Fenchel, Elaine Hanson, Lynda Eisenmann, Vicki Lloyd, Morgan Brown, Sharon Paxson, Dustin Luther, to name just a few (I apologize for forgetting who else I met and talked to), as well as other folks there I just didn't have time to connect with.

It's hard to capture the spirit, enthusiasm, sharing and so much more that happens at these events, but those of you who have gone know well enough how terrific RE Bar Camps are for learning and networking. 

Just a few takeaways, in no particular order:

NAR announced that 100% of buyers (or someone in the family) will look on-line at some point for a home (I hadn't heard this and it may not be particularly profound, but something to keep in mind...everyone (almost) is on the Internet

Social media is where you market who you are, and demands that you invest in YOU. It will make YOUR brand 

Delicious is a terrific free site for social bookmarking. And why not set up a series of book marks to share with groups of people - first time home buyers, sellers, etc. Make sure the content you bookmark makes sense and adds value. And check out Dwellicious for real estate. 

SEO Tips (yeah, you may already know this)

• Go after the long tail
• Make sure all your pages are indexed (Drew Meyers recommends Yahoo Site Explorer)
• The title tag may be the most important - make sure it is not the same on every page of your site
• Linking out is GOOD - as Dustin Luther has said, "linkation, linkation, linkation."
• Use social networks and add your blog/website/etc. links to your profile where allowed
• Keep in mind the anchor text - don't use CLICK HERE unless you want to be indexed for click here.
• Once you hit the submit button on a post you have done 1/3 of the work - you need to promote your blog wherever and however you can

Facebook

• Ask your fans what THEY would like to se on your page then provide it
• Create "friends" lists - friends and family, real estate professionals, other categories you feel are appropriate to better organize your newsfeeds
• If you create a business page download FBML application to use to customize  

Branding

• Your brand is your logo, the look, recognition, how people can contact you and A PROMISE. Make sure you can deliver on your promise or change it. Real estate practitioners are usually weak on this
• How do you distinguish yourself?
• Social media is not a brand differentiator - who you are IS. Branding is also deciding what NOT to do, like taking a listing that absolutely does not fit with your brand. 

All in all a terrific day, great learning, and lots of fun. I couldn't stay for the REAL bar acitvity as I had a walk-through back in my neck of the woods, but you can bet it was a continuation of a great time. If you haven't been and have a chance GO. By all means. Or start one yourself.