Special offer

What is Localism?

By
Real Estate Technology with ActiveRain

 For several months we've been talking about how we are going to construct a consumer facing side to ActiveRain.  There has been a lot of speculation on what form this would take, so we decided to give our members a sneak peak into the ongoing development efforts at Localism.com  We are still several months away from an "official" launch of the site.

In the same way in which we launched ActiveRain about half a year ago, it will start off very rough but we will continuously improve on it and add functionality.  Localism is essentially a sister site of ActiveRain, displaying a much more consumer friendly view of the content written by our members.  As development efforts continue we will add several very powerful tools for creating connections and interactions between our members and the consumer.  Ultimately it will be able to compete for consumer eyeballs with other portals such as Realtor.com, Trulia and Zillow but in a much more agent centric fashion.

What is localism?

Or more appriately, what will localism be? Localism will be the premier spot on the Internet for accessing local real estate information provided by those who understand local markets the best, real estate professionals.

  • Find meaningful real estate information, not just demographics and listings.
  • Get perspective on local real estate markets from the experts.
  • Interact 1 on 1 with agents to get your questions answered (without providing personal info).

How will Localism make money?

We might as well address this straight out of the gate because this question has already come up.  Localism will NOT be a lead aggregation site, it is built to send free traffic back to contributing members.  We will provide some premium sponsorship opportunities and run some additional advertising that doesn't create conflicts with our members interests. 

I'm sure you will see Localism morph on a weekly basis over the next several months in the same way ActiveRain has.  We welcome any feedback you have, as it will help us in developing the direction for this site. 

If you live in the Western Washington area, Kirkland ActiveRain Get Together December 19, 2006 at the Wild Rover

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Comments (71)

Chris Tesch
RE/MAX Bryan-College Station - College Station, TX
College Station, Texas Real Estate
WOW!!!  Kudos to you guys!!  I hope that AR members have first shot at advertising opportunities!
Dec 23, 2006 03:00 AM
Sam Chapman
Lakeway, TX
A consumer facing side to ActiveRain - this will be interesting to follow.
Dec 23, 2006 07:40 AM
ARDELL DellaLoggia
Better Properties Seattle - Kirkland, WA
I think restructuring the point system would be necessary.  In the short time I've been here, it appears that you get more points by talking about things that will get an agent's attention than writing about local real estate, which would be of value to consumers.
Dec 30, 2006 03:17 AM
Jim & Maria Hart
Brand Name Real Estate - Charleston, SC
Charleston, SC Real Estate
Great idea to go reach out to the consumers now.
Dec 30, 2006 03:55 AM
Cheryl Johnson
Highland Park, CA
So Matt,  Just how does one submit posts to localism?
Dec 30, 2006 10:38 AM
Ken Spencer
Buckeye, AZ
for Verrado, Buckeye, Sundance

This is going to be a fantastic site for clients and consumers.  I personally will like it and use it.

Ken

Dec 30, 2006 03:34 PM
ARDELL DellaLoggia
Better Properties Seattle - Kirkland, WA

I like the concept of Localism.com, but not the name.  Reminds me of WA's MetroNatural...someone got it but it's a bit too "insider". 

Is there time to change the name before it goes public?  How would someone find it if they are looking at real estate?

Jan 02, 2007 03:34 AM
ActiveRain Real Estate Network
ActiveRain - Kirkland, WA

Cheryl: To get posts on localism make them on ActiveRain and make sure to mark them as "For Consumers".  If they are "About a Region", "News and Events", "Market Reports", "Listings", they will feed into that area of localism automatically.  Write now General real estate articles are being hand choosen by use, but that will change to being automated shortly.

Ardell: We can change the name before launch if a better one came up and we could get the domain but it's fairly unlikely.  It will be promoted to consumers through a combination of SEO (will take a few months to start showing) and buzz were going to create at a national level leading up to the official launch.  We've got some big plans around that, but those are top secret at this point.

Jan 02, 2007 06:56 AM
Heidi Hovatter - Sonora & Twain Harte
Century 21 Wildwood - Selling Homes and Cabins in Tuolumne County - Sonora, CA
Heidi The Home Hunter
Great idea, but my county is NOT listed.  Please add Tuolumne County to California.  Thanks
Jan 04, 2007 11:02 AM
Kengo Ueno
Prudential Locations LLC - Honolulu, HI
(R)
I just started learning about this and I can't wait to see the end product!!!  It's exciting to be able to see this take off.  Congratulations!!!
Jan 09, 2007 08:46 PM
Gary Urich
Elliott Costal Living / Better Homes & Garden Real Estate - North Myrtle Beach, SC
North Myrtle Beach Real Estate
just a great idea
Jan 12, 2007 07:43 AM
John Occhi
AZ Veteran Notary Services - Marana, AZ
Mobile Notary Public/Certified Loan Signing Agent

I have just created a new "group" on ActiveRain for anyone who is interested in Localism.  I have called the group Localism Beta for lack of a better term.

I have seen a number of different blog posts on the topic recently, including yours and yet there is no central place to locate articles that are written on such an important topic.

I would like to invite you to join the group and the edit your post and include the group as part of the distribution for others to easily find.  I would then encourage you to look and see what others have posted on the topic and share your thoughts and insights.  I am sure most of what we will see is support for the site as well as a tip or technique to best leverage it's potential to our benefit.

I am also certain that there will be some lively debate over the direction that Localism should go.  Now, I do not know what the ultimate business plan is and how much tweaking management will do on behalf of the users who have their own ideas on the site and how much is already set in stone - but certainly a debate is good for all.

So please, post your article and join us.

Now Have a Blessed Day,

John Occhi. Hemet CA REALTOR®
www.JohnOcchi.Com

PS - All who read this post are more than welcome to join as well.  Please get involved and learn how to make this your most valuable internet resource.

Jan 13, 2007 12:33 PM
Gary Urich
Elliott Costal Living / Better Homes & Garden Real Estate - North Myrtle Beach, SC
North Myrtle Beach Real Estate
Nothing but good things
Jan 17, 2007 01:14 AM
Georgie Hunter R(S) 58089
Hawai'i Life Real Estate Brokers - Haiku, HI
Maui Real Estate sales and lifestyle info
So what's the update on Localism now?  Has it met expectations?  What's next?
Oct 27, 2007 10:41 PM
Alex Greb
(Portland MLS) - Portland, OR

A good site for Buyers and Sellers to find good agents and info.

May 21, 2008 07:17 PM
Aida Pinto
Independent Real Estate Broker - Los Angeles, CA
Real Estate Broker (562) 884-6196

Wow--I have been mean to find out what is "Localism"  glad I found this post

Jun 13, 2008 07:21 PM
Jeremiah Wean
Lakewood Lending Group, LLC (NMLS#132141) - Indianapolis, IN
NMLS#132221

I still don't understand localism.  Do you post there. or post here and it gets moved over, or automatically shows up there?

Jun 17, 2008 07:47 AM
Rich Jacobson
Fathom Realty West Sound - Poulsbo, WA
Your Kitsap County WA Real Estate Broker

Jeremiah (Ace Mortgage):  Think of a two-sided coin. Heads is ActiveRain, the Network for Real Estate Professionals. Localism is Tails. Much of what we publish on ActiveRain is automatically transferred over to Localism. It depends on how you categorize it. Anything for "Consumers" finds its way over to Localism. However, Localism is currently undergoing a complete facelift, and things are going to be changing soon. You should see an annoncement coming shortly.

Jun 17, 2008 07:52 AM
"The Lovely Wife" The One And Only TLW.
President-Tutas Towne Realty, Inc. - Kissimmee, FL

Gracious Rich...

We are sitting on pins and needles waiting on the release.

See...Now there are advantages to NEVER unchecking the teeny tiny boxes :)

Pointless comment? You bet :)

TLW...ROAR!

Jun 18, 2008 11:01 AM
Anonymous
Anonymous

Localism is a great Idea, and I hope to get all my desired properties for Chicago.

Jul 31, 2008 09:30 AM
#72