Active Rain is fun

Yes it is fun, and here are some points for you and me.

When you figure out the whole "point" thing, let me know.  Figuring it out is a "pointless" use of my time for now ... hee hee.  I agree, this is a fun and interesting way to see what others in the industry are thinking and doing and if points come along with it (and it helps drive business), that's a bonus!

I'm not near the top of the point list (and I'm just an attorney) but I have received a few referrals.  Points seem to be one way to get noticed, but so is posting a bang-up eye catching (and perhaps controversial) blog posting that makes its way onto the "featured" page (never done that myself).  Just an idea.

Watch out....... this place is adictive!!!

Happy Blogging.

Brad Snyder
www.BradSnyder.com

Dan, just have fun with it. Learn some new stuff, share some insights and make some comments. Before long, the points add up and you'll be where you want to be.

Dan - Don't fret about the points, it can drive you crazy.  Just use AR and blogging to promote your business in your area.  Choose to do posts to the "Public" so they appear on Localism.   When internet searchers start "google-ing" hopefully they will find your blogs on AR.   It works!  I have spend time reading other realtors blogs on Localism, and it helps guide me for ideas to do about my area.   Happy Learning! OH....and it is addictive :)

If you blog anything and everything that comes to your mind in a day, you'll soon find that you have loads of points.

I agree with the notion that posting to Localism will really get you noticed in your local area. My post about our local county fair ranked higher than the local newspapers article about it. Also, post some pictures in localism and you will also get some points.

I'm tagging along with you on your post trying to figure out the same things! Good luck on your quest to be#2!

I have been at the top of my market for a few months. The points are pretty basic.

Do every one of your ten blogs in a week. Try to make them interesting enough that people will comment because those points add to yours.

Every day put time aside to make at least ten comments about other blogs at AR. They must be at least 12 words in length, or you will get no points.

If you have good photos of your region, post them at localism. You get points for these. But, to get the points, you cannot post through AR. You must go to localism.com and sign in an post.

Those are your means for getting points and if you try hard, they will add up.

Steve

Try to sign up everybody in your office. That way you can get a lot of points quickly. You could even post the link on your site so when somebody clicks on it and they decide to subscribe...you can get points for them too. :-)

-Keith

RE/MAX Olympic, Manassas VA

www.MyRealtorKeith.com

It is also a great place to learn!!!

It is a lot of fun (and it can be addictive as well).  Here's my understanding of the points system:

You get 200 points for each blog post (up to ten per week, and the week starts at 12:01 AM Sunday).  You also get 25 for commenting on someone else's posts (10 of these are scored each day).  I think you get 2 points for each comment posted on YOUR blog posts by someone else.  For Localism.com photos, you get 100 points for the first photo, 50 points for photos 2-10, then 25 points for each one after that.  If someone rates your posts well, you get additional points, and if you manage to get a "featured" post on the main page, you get a lot more (I got 250 for mine).

I hope this helps!

Dan - here are the points that you can control.  Comment on other peoples' blogs at least 10 times each day.  I do much more, but if you just did 10, you would hit the maximum allowed.  It must be at least 10 words though, so people can't quickly go on and write things like "great post" and expect credit.  You can get credit for up to 10 blogs each week.  They don't all have to be long blogs (I believe it is a 50 or 100 word minimum - not exactly sure).  Your blogs can be for the AR community or for the consumer (post it to localism).  This is in your control.  The bonus points awarded are done mysteriously through the Active Rain Gods.  No one really knows how the points are determined, but you will get a bump if you post is featured.  The other way to get points that you can somewhat control is to invite others to join.  The difficult part is getting them to accept and then be active (you get 10% of the value of their points).  Hope this helps.