Use of AR Blogs To Promote Business and Develop Relationships

By Brian Madigan LL.B.

There are several important aspects of the blog post. First, of course, is the challenge to write the post in the first place.

I have a variety of topics and generally stick to markets, finance, economics and law related to real estate.

I receive at least 25 questions weekly from new people who have found a blog post on the internet. So, I never really run out of new topics. I try to post somewhere between 10 and 15 per week. I find that if I'm always writing during downtime (which is usually when I'm waiting for someone to return a phone call), I will have something to post when the time is ready.

Some of the posts are recurring, in the sense that I report frequently, but on a regular basis concerning performance statistics, other market indicators and I have developed my own Real Estate Index. That also means that I have developed a group of followers who look for this information. Oddly enough, because of the internet, I'm popular in Australia.

Law is however the main topic. Often it will focus on the role of the seller, buyer or real estate agent in a transaction.

At the point I have over 1,000 articles posted on these topics, so that generates some recurring inquiries.

The next step after writing and posting, is to move some of the posts to a "pdf" format. I then transfer them to my website where there is at least some topical order, something better than a chronological format.

The "pdf" allows me to send copies of the posts to individuals who have posed a question. Very often, a quick e-mail response with the "pdf" article is enough, or even a copy of the AR link.

For presentations, the "pdf" article is a must. These same blogs and posts are being recycled as handouts and they can look quite professional.

The next step is newsletter. Here I have to select about 8 articles for the four page newsletter.

Then comes another two or three articles for the monthly written magazine, the Business Exchange. The same thing goes for the Commercial Investor, a rival publication, but they take a maximum of two.

Then, I have the local newspaper which takes one per week, one for the Board of Trade, that's monthly, as is a Law Journal.

And, I'm making a speech at the Business and Franchise show this month. So, if I string four together, and "ad lib" a bit that will carry me through the one hour program.

Bob Hayward said write a series, so I did. I have 40 to 50 just on the law of disclosure, and the Real Estate Council has just approved me as an education provider and the course as a 3 hour continuing education credit course.

However, that's really not the end of it. Larry Easto wrote a blog to the effect that if you have 100 blogs then you have written a book. Actually, I now have over 1,000 articles, so that's 10 books. Obviously, since we are both in Toronto, I met with Larry to discuss this opportunity.

There are several groupings of blogs that will constitute the basis for other continuing education programs. At my last count, at least seven other programs.

And, now with so many postings I find that I'm on a radio talk show at least once per week, and quoted in one of the newspapers about every second week.

The best item that you can send along is a copy of a post. They probably found one, that's how they came to contact me in the first place, but, there are others, and that adds depth to the field.

All in all, that's the "life cycle" of my AR blog posts.

Brian Madigan LL.B., Realtor is an author and commentator on real estate matters, Royal LePage Innovators Realty
905-796-8888
www.OntarioRealEstateSource.com