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#REBCOHIO 10 things I learned

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#REBCOHIO -10 things I learned

Lots of what was said at REBarCamp Ohio can apply to our ActiveRain blogs
Debra Drummond ActiveRain member, who Twitters as @Michigan Moves is a forgiving person. She made me cry at lunch at REBarCamp I was laughing so hard at how we met on ActiveRain.
Toby Boyce @TCar coined the term "Law of 2 feet" *
Photoblogging is good. @SaraWV and @rewebcoach said so...
ActiveRain is not good**
What Whuffie is ... I know I have Googled "Whuffie" a bunch of times hopefully after the session with @BillLublin and @HalLublin I will remember what Whuffie. I really oughta read the book.
Some folks don't think Ohio is in the Mid-West
It's mid-western thing needing to see the itinerary in writing
It can be OK to meet real estate folks in person and talk to them...
no one knows it all

* Thanks to @RealtorToby and all crew for all the hard work and perseverance. Who coined "Law of 2 feet"? Thanks to @tcar and the REBarCamp for introducing the whole idea of an unconference and all that goes with it to our industry. I don't believe @tcar coined "Law of 2 feet" .... it's been around a long time. Really.

** Heard it more than once. As an ActiveRain ambassador I was proud that I never once did a flying head kick...

Not a member of ActiveRain but reading this? Join ActiveRain really it can be a great place to learn. REBarCamp Ohio is on the calendar for August 2010... REBarCamp OHio is August 18, 2010. IMHO don't wait until then to find out what social media is all about.

Really I got a lot out of it. Some of my list #REBCOHIO - 10 things I learned is facetious. I learned a lot about FaceBook, photoblogging, a lot that applies to my WordPress blog. If you went to REBarCamp Ohio in 2009 what did you learn? What did you get out of it?

We got the T-shirt too...

On Twitter and at #REBCOHIO I am/was @MoInColumbusOH

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Posted by Maureen McCabe Central OH Homes on 08/22/2009 10:13 AM

Comments (17)

Rebarcamp in the Networking Channel

rebarcamp ohio, social media, columbus

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17 Comments on #REBCOHIO 10 things I learned

AUG

Love the Ohio connection (Centerville Ohio here), my son recently moved from Columbus to DC. You know I'll be googling Whuffie now! Thanks Maureen.

Hi Maureen... As a fellow ambassador, I would like to know who said anything about #5. Surely these people must have missed the pantyhose poll, otherwise, how could they say such a thing? :)

Susan and you will be better for it... (Googling Whuffie) maybe you will remember. You are in Centerville now? I started at in Dayton, at Coldwell Banker near Dayton Mall... long, long ago. Pre CB Heritage. We were CB owned. Had been Parchman and Oyler out of Cinci?

NO Susan is in TX now...

Steve is there any talk of REBarCamp Dallas? Someone who works for your board said something about there had NOT been one there which surprised me...

Oooooh one who asked "What about ActiveRain?" in one of the sessions was from Centerville OH. A response "AR is icky poopy*" came from someone from Cinci and a Columbus agent who I really like chimed in.... Not that I noticed much... or paid attention to who is not a fan.

I hang out with folks who believe AR is wrong... most are respectful of my loyalty to AR. Really did NOT hear a lot of AR bashing up close and personal.

Really no one used "icky poopy" but there were discouraging words... no mention of the pantyhose polls. If they only knew...

Hi Maureen - awesome meeting you at REBC Ohio! Appearantly I wasn't in the same sessions as you if someone got "wee-wee'd up" over AR. If I had I would have probably asked if they were an AR member or simply making "uneducated" comments.

Thanks for the kind comment about the photo blogging session. I trust you walked away with something "meaty" you can implement in your world.

My "Ah-Ha" moment from Real Estate Barcamp OHIO? Social media strategies are evolving as is social media itself. The primary point to remember when using social media tools is all about not forgetting that it needs to begin with being real, having fun (social) and feeling good about how far "out there" you get with your personal "lifestream" online.

Bobby Carroll - @rewebcoach

Bobby nice meeting you.

I hate taking photos so had to go to your session. I also hate video and podcasts personally... but know someday I will have to add those to my repertoire or NOT.

As an ambassador I am probably more tuned into hearing discouraging words about ActiveRain than the average bear. I still think it is a great place for our industry to learn about social media on a day to day basis. Outgrow it and move onto something better does not necessarily mean it is not just what someone else needs.

Someone (I don't remember who) told me at lunch that someone talked about what the new place that has replaced ActiveRain is. She (I think it was a she....) told me she could not remember what it was.

For some of my "friends" slamming AR or even Twitter has/was become a sport. Can you imagine people who would taunt you for tweeting?

I am a pretty private person, in the session you and @SarahWV did I was sitting by the woman who was concerned about other people sharing their kids photos and I talked to her just a bit after we were done. I should have recommend the @respres video about grass cutting. I know where she is coming from about it is diffferent for us older women.

Hi Maureen, it was so nice to meet the Number 1 AR Ambassador in Ohio IRL! You are nicer and brighter in person than even on your blogs.

Someone in the blogging class said something about AR and how THEY preferred Word Press or other platforms. I checked their site out (not impressed) and googled their area and COULD not find them!!!! Try akron ohio homes etc and my AR blog almost always shows high on page 1, thats how I have been getting clients lately, esp from out of town. We should have had a session on AR actually, don't you think?

Bobby. I really love the way you talk and present, (Esp. with that pay-per-click fellow) you are so real, no wonder you are so successful!

AUG

You are the number one AR Ambassador in Ohio. I got in a snit and have not made calls in two weeks.

Who is the pay-per-click guy? What was the conversation? What session?

First session I attended Thursday there were two hijackers... I kinda recognized one but could NOT place him until his second hijack attempt. My TWO feet headed for the door when I realized who he was and what he was selling. Had a conversation via DM yesterday with the REBCOHIO presenter about the hijackers. She had just stepped in at the last minute to present. She did fine. She did great.

I have a WordPress.org blog. WordPress.org blogs are great but WordPress.org blogs there is a whole new learning curve thing. Unless you buy a Dakno blog or a Tomato Blog or an RSS Pieces blog (? still around?) or whatever Mary McKnight sells instead of RSS Pieces blogs. Or unless you are Jay Thompson or Greg Swann or ...

ActiveRain Outside blogs are wonderful and getting wonderfuller.

Going to REBCINDY in November?

Hey Maureen....Agreed...AR outside blogs are great...and any educational session is like Church...you take what you can use/believe and leave the rest...blog on !

Maureen, so sorry I couldn't make it. Just too much going on. Most of the folks who bash AR, started here. LOL

I've heard it at other ReBar Camps even when AR was a sponsor. Oh well, to each his own.

I love the fact you can walk out of any session that is not what you thought it was.I have yet to hear Bobby and Sarah on Photo blogs, so that will be a session I will attend in the future.

My photo blog created by Dakno is doing really well in SERPS after a few months.

When is the November thing in Cindy? Maybe life will be a little more manageable in November.

Sally like the Church reference....

Missed you Missy.

#rebcIndy (helps me not to see it as a rebel girl named Cindy.... )

"The Unconference is coming to the Sheraton Downtown Indy on Nov. 2, 2009! RSVP Today!!!"

I walked in looking for you and @SaraWV, David from Akron, I made a list Wednesday night mostly folks I know originally from AR.

Did you go to Chicago?

I think people who have an established WordPress.org blog do newbies a disservice when they pooh pooh AR. I have always thought so...

Maureen,

Thanks for coming to REBCOHIO and I'm glad to see you picked up some insight, though I have to admit that No. 5 bothers me. Especially, when you later say "Really did NOT hear a lot of AR bashing up close and personal."

With 160 people -- many that probably barely know what Active Rain is -- it would have been a great opportunity to teach them about Active Rain. Heck, I got away from it when business got busy and I barely understand what it going on here.

The key to remember about real estate is that everyone "poo-poo" the other guy. I've laughed many times at agents that shredded company "x" and six months later joined them. What changed? Same thing with the Rain.

I would never suggest a WP.org blog over AR ... now a WP.com maybe depending on the person.

Sorry if I somehow failed as an attendent at your fabulous event Toby but I would have FELT kinda like a hijacker if I had stood up and screamed a commercial for ActiveRain when others stated "ActiveRain not so great" speaking of their personal experience.

I am not into hijacking.

I think there are a lot of people who got a start on ActiveRain and moved onto bigger and better things. You and I were both blogging b4 ActiveRain.

People who got their start on AR but are too good for AR are a turn off to me. Fine for them but someone new might benefit from ActiveRain.

I have thought since 2006 the anti ActiveRain message is to keep the newbies down. Big RE network blogs want the newbies lapping up every words they post and don't want competition from upstarts. Or to sell them a WP.org RE blog and build up their network... lotsa networks lots of choices.

I think there are people in our industry who use ActiveRain when they need it but don't give back. That's OK if it works for them, more power to them! We did not have to make a loyalty oath.

Thanks it was a great event!

You didn't fail as an attendent Maureen. What I don't want though is a few people that don't like playing in the rain to change your thought on the whole experience.

Active Rain is a great tool if used properly and you put your time into it. Just like all the other tools. But too many don't get it -- I hear the same thing about twitter everyday -- and I have to try to defend my involvement.

I guess I mis-read and thought the discussion leader took the conversation that direction.

"change your thought on the whole experience"

Sorry you read that into it. I got a lot out of the day, much more than I ever expected and met some wonderful people in person. I listed 10 observations of MY day. I did NOT think that #5 was a big deal. I got a lot out of the session where I personally heard a conversation that ActiveRain was not such a good thing... I could have done the flying head kicks defending AR's honor ... but chose not to. May have had some entertainment value.

I remain a fan of the discussion leader (AR member) who agreed with the AR member who questioned the value of AR and the AR member who chimed in. I hung out with one of the three for a good part of the day. NO it was not Teri L. who has no use for ActiveRain and makes no pretense that she does.

Gosh I don't think Teri and I were in any of the same sessions other than the round table now that I think about it.

AUG

I was one of those people! :)

I'm personally not a huge fan of Active Rain since the infamous switchover to paid public blogging. It has seriously kept newbies at bay. I think Active Rain could be an exponentially larger network if they didn't do this. Once they did this I deleted many of my blog posts and started a WP blog, which now has great SEO and constantly getting better. Now, I have to do this SEO work myself and I'll never get the search benefits of AR.

While I can't deny the usefulness and large SEO potential of AR, I don't feel comfortable about other people having a say of where MY content can be viewed unless I pay a premium. They should be happy to host more content as it only adds to their traffic and SEO. I understand the monetizing, but they could have done something else.

Also, in my opinion, outside blogs are becoming a huge advantage and I should suck it up and jump on board here. :)

As far as new sites go, I think www.RealSeekr.com @realseekr has a good chance of doing well if they get the same kind of community active rain has now. They haven't released the blog yet, but I believe it's coming up very soon and I'll be interested to see how they handle their blog content.

Joey

Welcome to ActiveRain.

You were NOT one of the people I was referring to but thanks for the comment. I am NOT naming names but they were people (at least 2 of the 3 were member in 2006, never big participants) You seem to be someone who joined much later, so no YOU are not one of those people.

This is about the Kool Kids saying your own WordPress.org blog is the only place to blog. Or maybe you are one of the Kool Kids and have a WordPress.org blog. I do have a WordPress.org blog I need to spend some more money on my free WordPress.org blog.

We each have to make a decision where to spend our time and money. If you decide ActiveRain is not the place for you that is YOUR decision. In 2006 I made a decision to put my time to building something on ActiveRain. You obviously did not make that decision. Not in RE? Not aware of social media? Not ready to blog? You made your decision. I made mine and I want ActiveRain to continue and they need money to do so. Your money each month? Or someones.

ActiveRain made decisions about how to monetize the site in 2009, it went into effect on February 16, 2009.

If you want to go to that site or the next big thing that's your decision about your time. Plenty of places to blog. I'll give you a whole set of sites to try. And remember if they are new sites you don't know what the future holds. Great site? Lots of traffic? Always free? No ads on YOUR content? If you have a crystal ball that shows you the future for that site that is wonderful.

No you were NOT one of the people in number 5 but again welcome to ActiveRain, I'd encourage you to stay and best of luck wherever you choose for your time and money.

EDIT Reread Joey's comment missed that he's started a WordPress blog..

hopefully WordPress.org so it can do all the magical things for SEO.

It is right on his website.

More about it ActiveRain's heir apparent... "if"