For those of us who have been around for several years, we've learned change is inevitable. I can remember each time we were purchased by a new entity, we were subjected to change. Each change met with some disgruntled members, including myself.
The only constant during these changes was my commitment to blogging. No matter who owned us or what changes they made, my blogging continued to bring me business. Because of this I hung in there.
During yesterday's webinar on the State of ActiveRain, I was so encouraged. Even more than that, I am genuinely excited. For the first time in years, I'm so happy with the direction that Ben Kinney and Bob Stewart are going and the positive impact it can have on my business.
For those who may not have seen the webinar I encourage you to listen. Below is a short recap.
Plans for the future of ActiveRain include three very distinct functions:
- AR - Posts related to industry information among real estate agents and their ancillary businesses. These posts are meant for agents to share their ideas with other agents and related businesses. For example, Ask an Ambassador posts, open house ideas, marketing ideas, blogging ideas, etc. Anything we might want to share to help fellow agents but NOT with the public.
- Localism.com - These posts would be meant for public consumption. They would include listings, market reports, city events, local area news, restaurant reviews, open house notifications, etc. Information that buyers and sellers are looking for related to a hyper-local area.
- ARU - This will be the area dedicated to educating our members so they have the tools necessary to grow their business. These will be produced by the staff and would included webinars and video trainings.
Shortly after the webinar, Bob Stewart posted a question about the AR point system. Be sure to read that. You'll find many varying responses. Additionally, there have been other questions posted about the validity of posts not directly related to real estate. As you can imagine, there's been a very emotional discourse surrounding points and the content that should receive points.
Just because a post includes personal information doesn't mean that it can't apply to real estate. For example, several years ago my daughter auditioned for The Governor's School. This is a summer program offered to high school students who are looking for intensified training in specific areas. Only an elite group of students are selected. The qualifications are very rigorous.
While I wrote about my daughter's personal experience, much of the information included was very applicable to residents in our state and those who might be considering moving here. Given the new framework, I would have posted that in Localism.com, even though, it was a very personal account of our experience. My point...just because a post is informational doesn't mean, it can't be interesting as well.
I am here to get business. If I want to attract dog owner's, you'll probably see me use a photo of my dog to do it. Once again, just because an animal photo is used doesn't mean the content is poor. I strive to provide information that will benefit buyers, sellers and 
agents. If your recipe meets those requirements, then I say post away in the appropriate area directed to your target market.
These changes will take time to implement but I'm excited about the future of ActiveRain. However, I suspect that just like before, there will be some things I'm not as crazy about.
The fact is, it won't change much that I'm doing here. I'll continue to post no matter what changes occur; points or no points, recipes or no recipes. The fact is as long as I continue to receive business, I'll continue to be here. After all, that's why I joined ActiveRain in the first place.
I'm excited about the future of ActiveRain. I applaud both Ben and Bob keeping us in the loop. If there is any man in this country who can bring us more business, it's Ben Kinney. He has gained national and international recognition for his contributions to our industry. I give the ActiveRain State of the Company a big thumbs up!
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