I'm a real estate broker in Charlotte NC, and have made my living online for 5 years. Not counting referrals, better than 90% of my business has come from online sources. I've been involved in all the major waves- Pay Per Click, Blogging, Video, and now Social Media. 2009 saw my entrance into Twitter in a big way. Reflecting on 2009 I realized my life is completely different than most brokers, because of the tools and technology I rely on. I use these every day, and even though I am an "elder" techie, it is hard to remember how we did some things before the digital age. This might be a little late but thankfully real estate kep me busy the week btween Christmas and New Years.
Tech and Tools A Digital Realtor Can't Live Without
1. Google's Picassa and other Great Tools-Picassa is still the best photo-management and sharing software in the PC world, there is so much to love here. I take thousands of photos a year and Picassa's batch editing of photos, the "I'm Feeling Lucky" mode, perfects 10 to 100 pictures at a time; this feature alone is worth the program. But it downsizes pictures en masse, and lets you create collages, turn them into video or embeddable slide shows, one button Upload to Flickr and with a couple of clicks, geo-tagging, print and buy your photos locally. The latest versions include simple video movie makers. All Free, Tutorials are on You Tube.
Other Google: I-Google, Google Docs This suite of online software rivals MS Office, and duplicates their main programs, allowing you to run your office in the ether of the Internet. There is very simple document sharing, it keeps my team together, and offers widget-friendly options and docs I love. I-Google lets me have my own daily newspaper, see more about that in RSS.
2. RSS- Real Simple Syndication, stay in touch with the world. RSS lets you pick and choos your sites of interest, and then have those sites deliver their stories to you every time they write a new one. So hoe do you not suffer from information overload? You use RSS and a Reader, and if like me, I use I-Google to manage all the info. Using my Google Reader and I- Google, I've created a newspaper of my own, with Real Estate News from MSNBC, the WSJ, and Inman, with news headlines from CNN and the New York Times, Sports from ESPN, plus a few RSS mash ups on environmental stories, politics, humor , weather-- it is my own newspaper. How long doe it take to create one? You'll create your first in under 10 minutes. Then, like so many things on the web, you can make it better with time.
It is simply impossible to keep up with all the changes in technology and the world without RSS. If there is one takeaway, make RSS your friend.
3. WordPress is the blogging platform I live on outside of AR. Wordpress is an easy to use, open-source, SEO friendly blogging platform that has taken over the beginner and intermediate blogs because of its flexibility and adaptability. I've converted all my old websites to Wordpress blogs, I love the support and you don't have to know a stitch of HTML or CSS to "drive" it, though it helps if you do. That too is the beauty of Wordpress, it allows you to learn as you go.
Your blog is your office and anchor in the digital world. If you don't have one, now is the time. You can start today with a free one from wordpress.org, but you'll want your own domain
4. Firefox and it's Add-Ons I love that it is open source and there are so many add-ons from SEO tools like Rank Checker, password managment like Robo Form to Google, Delicious and Stumble Upon. Too bad our backwards MLS only works with IE... they say it will in the next version.
5. The I-Phone- A terrific handheld computer, it has unlocked the mobile phone industry. Kudos for that. It is a decent phone made worse by ATT network, but it makes up for its limitations as a powerful computer that's let me leave my laptop at home on most days. 3G is fast, and the Safari web browser is almost the same as a laptop. It multi-tasks, you can be online and take calls, work the address book, etc. I take my laptop only for extended absences, or specific work projects. Real estate apps pop up daily, but so far the best and easiest is Smarter Agent. Warning, all house apps are limited by local MLS and how well they share their data. Daily the big "I" is all I need. Smarter Agent is my favorite for finding quick prices of nearby homes for sale. But can anyone say Verizon? And Apple really should have avoided a fight with Google too.
6. Pandora- If like me music is a major source of creativity, then Pandora is a business tool. But is is just plain fun too! You create your own personal radio stations. The music is streamed live when ever you turn it on. You tell it what you like by creating radio stations compsed fof your favorites, Pandora plays what you told it you liked- then, it feeds you music Pandora thinks you'd like, based on your tastes and preferences. It is called The Music Genome Project by Pandora. They've broken it down in their software like Amazon has done for books. People who like the S and T, probably also like X, Y and Z. If you hear a new song, give it a Thumbs Up or Thumbs Down, and you hear more of it or less. Your stations get better and better, hearing long lost tunes from your past. I haven't it taken it mobile yet, but here is to 2010, there is an app for that. Create as many stations as you have moods. The cost? Free. Amazing, and so few ad's you'll barely notice. Music is still a source for my creativity and concentration.
7. Video- TheFlip HD Pocket Video Camera. Video Has become easier every day. I am taking wonderful HD video with the Flip, an easy to use camera, with easier to use software. There are tons of cameras that offer a better production value, however none have a shorter learning curve, none have the ability to post directly to You Tube like Flip. This is definitely a "Good Enough" camera for us non-video professionals.
8. Canon digital Elph camera. The venerable digital Elp. I have owned about 5 of of these pocket-sized cameras. My family gets the older versions, as they have steadily improved, added video, and provide "Good Enough" quality for every day needs. Their compact size means they are ALWAYS with me easily fitting into a shirt pocket. They do NOT replace the SLR, but, they make up for it by always being nearby, seldom do you miss a shot. The SD memeory card is not tonly the most affordable, it is becoming the standard, and large cards are cheaper all the time.
However, my love affair with the Elph may be dwindling. I expect my next phone's camera's to capture the "Good Enough" category. I take a lot of photos with my 1st generation IPhone now- and for the web, in most cases they are good enough.
9. Skype- I Skype with my son and daughter-in-law regularly in Guam. Skype is the fulfillment of those many Phone-video ads we saw in the 1960's, 70's and 80's- except it is more computer and less phone. Two wireless connections, two computers with cameras and you are in business, again the software has litle to no learning curve, and away you go. It is good to see our grand daughter up close. it is good to see their smiles. WE do this about once per week, and it makes staying in touch that much easier. They got a new computer and new video so now their images are crystal clear. This is The way to communicate with friends and loved ones over seas, cross country, even a few cities over. No I don't yet use Skype in my real estate business
10 Twitter- Twitter allows me to reach more people every day, across the country, around the world. I'm still a newbieon Twitter, but Twitter offers the ability of instant communications to thousands, and as it becomes more a part of the general digital landscape, it will play a bigger role still. Today I can drive more traffic to my website or a blog post with a handful of "Tweets" than Google sends. I 've gotten my first clients from Twitter this year. Follow me @TerryMcDonaldRE, or for pure Charlotte Real Estate @LiveInCharlotte
What Tech will make the list in 2010? I love the cpabilities of Facebook pages and the social community capabiliteis of Posterous. I'm watching Google and their growing portfolio of RealEstate capabilities, and in 2010 we'll see more and more on our handheld computers (smart phones and tablets)... I'm especially looking forward to Tablets, the "Cross-over" of the laptop and handlheld devices.
So- what tech tool did I miss, what can't you live with out?
Terry
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