Intersting post . I will follow to see if it all comes true

My crystal ball says that we will also see a lot more mixed media and downloadable content for the public to view later!

Very nice post Randy,

I believe that this time next year many folks (like myself) that it will be great way to market ourselves and stay in contact with our clients. Blogging vs a website provides an inner look at the author and provides much more information.

BTW, what is the best way to add a blog to a personal web site?

Happy Selling!
Tony Grego - Indiana Mortgage Broker

Randy, great post and that is the truth people are searching more and more everyday for the answers they need right here on the net.  They want to have the information without having to really communicate with anyone.  That is why text messaging is so popular amoung the teens.  They don't "Really have to Own" the words they speak.  I have a 15 year old and he will spend hours commenting back and forth with someone on myspace and I asked him one time why he didn't just pick up the phone.  he looked at me like I had lost my mind. lol

Bonnie

TheHomeInspectorsWife 

Randy - If blogging hasn't already arrived, I do believe it is the future.  In a year, my guess is that our blogs, lay-outs, tags, & SEO will be enhanced and will be more powerful and more and more a source of communication.  I believe your last sentence to be right on the button.

Randy,

I am most impressed by many here on Activerain but Brad Andersohn is the one I most want to be like in a year or so!

Charlie - It already is happening.

Ken - I am sure you are right.

Tony - I am not sure I have the best way.  I build my own web pages, so I can weave it in easily.  My first goal is a rebuild of my site first, which I am undertaking the next week or two.  The blog part will be added later.

David - You have hit on an important point.  The younger generation in particular would rather communicate electronically than on the phone or in person.

Jason - Thank you.  I am sure that there will be other enhancements to the internet and the websites that we are not even imagining yet.  Who knows what the net big update to the internet will bring?

Mike - He has made the most of Active Rain.

Well, I think we all know where it'll be in a year.....woohooooo!

Randy, I also did not have a clue about blogging when I started, but it has increased my business.  I would love to add blog sites, but right now I barely have the time to comment on this one, and right a blog from time to time.  I need to find more time to write more, but right now it is tough to find it.

Randy,

Good info and interesting to think how things will continue to progress in the next year. As a consumer myself I love the aspect of doing my homework on-line while remaining anonymous. Not everyone is ready to raise their hand and say, here I am.

Randy- I am not sure where I will be, but I do know that this blogging is working for me in more ways than one, so I will continue using this forum.

Sally -That is because we will all be there.

George - Those were my exact words until the last couple of weeks.  I am just as busy, but am rethinking some of my priorities and my business plan.

Lynda - I am on the internet daily and do a lot of my shopping there.  Even if I am buying something locally, I research the products online first.

Kathy - If it wasn't for Active Rain Sally and I would not have met you.  :)

Randy - I am a new blogger, only on Active Rain because I am starting to feel comfortable here.  I only know 3 other realtors here who blog.  I deleted several of my first blogs, without copying them, I regretted it because I lost the comments that I love.  Now I write them in Works first and copy them, so I have a bit to review them before I post.  It will be interesting to me to go back in a year and cringe.

The kids do love the texting - I have 3 daughters who text as fast as I think.  One did over 7,000 texts in a month!  The verizon guy said he had never seen that many.  She types 120 + words a minute (all day long!) Then, my phone plan was at 10 cents per text.  Now I have unlimited text on our phones and less minutes, they don't ever use up their minutes.  -Virginia

Virginia - Your daughters are typical of the younger clients that we are working with now and in the future.

The Internet is where people are finding us... it's how they research us... why not provide them more information using the tools they use.  Just makes sense. 

Jesse & Kathy - Make sense to me.

I cant wait to see what happens in a year!  I hope to be blogging about my successs stories due to AR!!!  Good luck in your year!

My goal is to give consumers as much information they want in the type of vehicle they want.  I want the consumer to think of me as their Premier Real Estate Adviser.  if they want info on anything related to real estate, I want them to think of me!

I can hardly keep up with the blogs of today--thinking out a year gives me the shivvers!  Jerry

Kim - I am sure you will be if you keep blogging.

Rick - That is the goal.  To be the source of the source. 

Jerry - I am sure that it will be smoother as we post them in multiple locations and do it more efficiently.

Thanks Randy, I needed the shot of optimism.   Jerry

Jerry - No problem

Tom - Most of us have been at this a short time.  We are now beginning to figure out how best to use blogging.

Randy, who do you use for building your site?  I'm interested to learn how to put a blog on my 1st page as I am building a new site as well.

I would like to add a blog to my web site. I am looking for tips on how to do it.

Tina - I am building it myself on Homestead.com.  I have many websites with them and have been using them and their predecessor for many years. I would not necessarily recommend that for most real estate folks.  There are several vendors that have templated sites specifically designed for real estate agents with tools like mortgage calculators and IDX search engines for your MLS already built in. I have had to add those things and am in the process of adding improved tools that I bought at the CRS convention.

A few that stand out in my mind are  AlaMode.com, iHouse2000.com, and rapidlistings.com.  There are several similar vendors out there.

Gina - The quick and simple way is the put the title and a few lines from one of your blogs posts on your website with a link to send them to the actual post on Active Rain.  I will be doing that to my website in teh next week.

The other way to do it is to set up a personal blog site with one of the blog site providers, but build it content rich to look more like a website.  I have not got mine up yet, but will have it running within the month.  

Also Active Rain is getting ready to add a third service which will be a personal blog site tied to your Active Rain posts.  That may serve some of your needs without any extra work.

Randy... I think this is right on. I have two blog pages outside of the Rain now, both through typepad. I am going to expand and have one professionally done also. AR is a great place to start, I have learned so much. But I need to be more visiable and to actually have my own platform that I can count on in case either AR or typepad disappear. 

Overall, you are correct in stating that people want good info, info that changes daily, and the public just wants something that is easy to maneuver on.  Nice job here...

Jeff - Thank you.  You have done a great job of explaining the lending process through your blog posts.  I am sure if enough people see your articles the phone and e-mails will never stop.  Good luck with the professional blog.  I look forward to seeing it when it is done.

Hey Randy...what a great post. I flagged it for feature and hope someone takes notice.

After a year of blogging I'm starting to see some great results in lead generation and web search placement.

I spend nearly all of my web marketing time on AR and now have a twitter account (twitter.com/hemethomeloans), but I can't imagine adding another blog. I'm looking for ways to get more mileage out of what I'm posting here, such as email marketing with links to articles, etc.

Keep up the great work.

Joey - Thank you and continued success.

I wrote a post a couple weeks ago about an article on mixed marriages (1951) and it was very different today and in the post I asked what will people think of our blogs in 50 years. I know my blogs in just one year have changed and if I were to look at my original blogs, I wouldn't even recognize my own writing or writing style, it has changed that much!

But, I agree our blogs are getting more and more like what we intended our websites to be and more people are looking at our blogs than our website! Should be interesting to see what happens in the next year and will I recognize myself or will I have grown even more and changed yet again.

Most will look like the screen on MSNBC with widgets, trailers pictures and dancing bears all to "attract" readers. Not to mention all of the recipes for apple pie or egg nog

What happened to this being a real estate, mortgage insurance community....

Maybe I need some throw pillows and new drapes to calm my mood while I sip tea from the 3 agent's in m office recipe file posted last week for POINTS!!!!!

2 of the 3 did not get it when I asked what would a clinet think if all they see are recipes and civic functions...What do you ladies know about real estate? (and they do know a lot) because as far as anyone moving here knows is that you will get fat...and know the dancing teddy bear will not make you look internet proficient

Todd C. - It will be interesting to even see what Active Rain looks like.

Paul M. - I have resisted the widgets and dancing bears.  I do not think I will ever have the apple pie recipes either.  My blog will probably always reflect my personality.

Randy, I think the key question for all of us in the industry whether just on Active Rain or multiple blogs, is how do we devote enough time into this media to keep the conversation going without it consuming TOO much of our time. Probably very much like prospecting we need to allocate the appropriate time to it. Above all, we need to be who we are, and our blog should reflect that.

Gary - Well said.

I have the fractured mutiple blog thing going on.  None are updated enough, however it seems difficult to predict where someone will find you so I feel it is best to have multiple channels available.

Carolyn - I am hoping to get a couple of locations going, but do want to be sure they are kept up.  To be a success a blog needs to be responded to on a timely basis.