The big NAR convention has ended and many of the participants have headed home. The industry is still amidst the slow down, the likes many have not observed in years. So one would surmise that those that did attend the Las Vegas gala, are doing pretty good or they are on their last dollar and looking for some answers on where the industry is headed or what new technological advances might help ?
If you were to listen to the NAR leadership - they like to pass blame on the media for a lot of Realtors woes. Of course there has been a lot of bad media reporting that has some effect on scaring off buyers and damping the hopes of sellers, but then again sugar coating the situation does not help either, as NAR has a propensity for doing just that. It's quite obvious that if the ranks of Realtors shrink then NAR's revenues also decrease.
So, it was interesting to digest the Blogging Communities take on the convention . There was some very notable presence by quite a few of the front runners on the Technology side.
I read a very good post by Greg Swan over at BloodHound Blog. Greg's insight into the industry is spot on. In his post he talks about those of us that are technology advocates in the industry and where, we believe the direction marketing and advertising need to be steered.
"We are called upon to challenge our own beliefs. We have this conversation, and we have something approaching consensus within it. We believe very strongly that we hold the keys to the kingdom, that marketing that is permission-based, relationship-seeking and ideally viral is the future, where interruption advertising is the shopworn if not utterly tawdry past."
While it appears that many more Realtors are taking up the challenges of working in the this New Media venue, the observations indicate that adoption by the masses is still a fair way off. In my view and that of other watchers and doers in the market, we predict that "The New Media will eventually surpass the Old Media as the dominant forms of entertainment and information. "
As a technology advocate, I really have to question the direction that NAR is currently headed. If NAR is really The Voice for Real Estate, then they need to look outside the box at what is going on around them. Their 10 year plan is notably missing the boat. It's a shame that an organization with the financial where with all that NAR has, does not listen to their constituents a little better. Or perhaps they are and that's the crux of the problem. As far to many appear to have their head stuck in the sand hoping no one will see that they are sticking to old ways of doing business, in a radically changing world and the business climate of Web 2.0
Or perhaps, it could be just a mis-judgement and the real culprit is too many options to choose from ? I think that Joe Burlselm over at the Future of Real Estate Marketing has a very valid point, from his Reflections on NAR post:
"I think most people get Web 2.0 - they understand the power of a blog or a social network, for example. They understand the value of syndicating their listings. They know they should be thinking about video tours for their listings. The what? and why? questions have, for the most part, been answered. It’s the how? that they’re wrestling with more and more now."
My thoughts are that the problem is two fold.
1. Many Realtors don't want to make the time to do it right. They are used to the old ways of doing business and up until the Mortgage bust, they were raking in the cash with very little effort.
2. During the boom time, many technology firms were rolling out new systems that made promises that were either short lived or non existent. This cost Realtors a lot of money with very little (ROI) Return on Investment.
So where does that leave us and our customers ?
Change is inevitable, embrace it. It does not mean you have to blindly accept the changes. However, you need to research the options and become better educated in what your customers want and what tools you need to use to improve your communications to them. I could not say this any better than Greg Swan.
"Consumers will find what they want. That’s a fact beyond dispute. But they will only find members of the National Association of Realtors if we prove ourselves to be worth wanting."
Related Posts:
National Association of Realtors details 10 Year Plan
NAR Paints Rosy Picture for Tampa Housing
NAR Home Sale Projections - Glass Half Empty or Half Full for Florida ?
Are Florida Realtors up for the challenging time ahead ?
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