naperville: Personal marketing pieces that I've used in the past... (part 3... last one for a bit)
- 09/26/06 03:10 PM
Alrighty then...So I've been happily sharing some of my bovine inspired marketing materials over the past week... I saved this one for last because it caused some controversy in the office.,.. a couple of agents in my office thought that the udders might be crossing the line... :) so of course I sent the same card again the following year...
Hope you've enjoyed them…
Moo! (the guy, not the steer)
… (11 comments)
naperville: That's the FAX Jack!
- 09/26/06 02:52 PM
Do you have an online FAX service that you like? I’ve been happily using ExtremeFAX for the last year, it’s very reasonably priced at less than $7.00 a month and outgoing FAXes are part of the package. My basic package allows me to send/receive 300 pages per month for $6.77. I haven’t gone over yet, but DO use e-mail whenever possible. I also have FAX machines for most outgoing FAXes. ExtremeFAX works great for when I’m on the road, I can fax from my cell phone, tablet, etc… Prior to this I was using a separate all in one service (accessline, myonlyone) but … (6 comments)
naperville: High Octane center of operations...
- 09/26/06 07:33 AM
OK, so I do the bulk of my computing from my home office, where I have a big desk, big monitor and a really comfortable chair..... and a most excellent Jura Capresso coffee maker. I do some of my work from my office too, but in the morning Erin is there, so I try to find another place, around town in Naperville..
I've been trying on various coffee shops for size, with the aircard I can go anywhere...but I like coffee (a lot) and seem to gravitate towards a couple depending on whether I want a cushy seat or to get bunch … (8 comments)
naperville: WooHoo - geekfest! New phone takes the cake!
- 09/25/06 01:20 PM
This is a quick snapshot in poor lighting with my new HTC TyTn Windows based phone and swiss army knife (well, it does do almost everything) If you'l remember I discussed my poor impulse controls last week and that made it inevitable that I would act... *sigh* The phone has two cameras, one on the back (2 megapixel) and one on the front 640X480 for video conferencing. The camera is breeze to use, I'm not sure that I am too interested in video conferencing... everyone will know that I'm still in my PJ's. The phone is almost exactly the same size as the Treo … (8 comments)
naperville: Personal Marketing examples part 2
- 09/23/06 07:40 AM
More... just having fun... OK, so... day 2... here are a couple more direct mail (Jumbo) postcards that I've done in the past.
See... I do on occasion use real Angus cattle...
So... maybe the three "cow" garage was a little "over the top"...
It's funny that people think Angus is a great name for marketing... growing up I always thought it would be easier to be Bob. Of course your personal branding doesn't need to have anything to do with your name.
I think that it's more important to "embrace" your concept and run with it.
It's … (14 comments)
naperville: Low offers.....
- 09/22/06 05:20 PM
How do you feel about really low offers? I welcome them. I try to prepare my sellers for low offers, I let them know that it doesn't matter where you start... it's where you finish, I also tell them not to be insulted... the buyer could have picked someone elses property to make the offer on, but they liked their house best. I always try to put the agent at ease and thank them for the offer.... even though it may not work out. Most agents are embarassed about presenting low offers. Also, if I write one... I'm suprised when the agent takes it personally... … (14 comments)
naperville: Here are a couple personal marketing pieces that I've used in the past...
- 09/22/06 04:55 PM
These were both Jumbo postcard mailings that I sent out to my farm area... I also sent them to my sphere... It's a great way to get some attention and start some dialog... but mostly it's an "awareness campaign" designed to get people to think about me. (hopefully in a positive manner) I have more examples like these if folks want to see them... just let me know... I like to share "becows" I care For just listed and just sold I tried to carry the theme over, you can tell by the prices that these are old postcards: Personally, I prefer the … (9 comments)
naperville: Personal marketing - making a name for yourself
- 09/22/06 10:52 AM
I was asked in another thread why I use spotted cows (holsteins) instead of Black Angus steers.... I had my original logo done in 1991 by a now defunct company called Jungle Solutions. At the time very few people were doing any kind of personal branding, but it was something that I wanted to do and was struggling with coming up with my own solution.. here were the losers.. "List with Angus... he's full of bull" "Angus will "steer" you right!" "With Angus, you're not just another pie in the pasture" "Not calling Angus would be udderly ridiculous" Instead I settled on the rather mundane "your best mooove!" … (31 comments)
naperville: Farm your neighborhood?
- 09/22/06 01:29 AM
When I got into the business, my broker told me to go knock on doors and call people in the neighborhood where I lived. So, being new and desperate... I did. There are about 400 single family homes in that neighborhood and over the years, I've sold over 200 of them (well, not quite... one house I've sold 5 times, a bunch 3 or 4) There was a dominant agent in the area, but I was determined... I remember one day I was knocking on a door and the lady that answered (later sold their house too) told me that an agent … (8 comments)
naperville: e-mail..e-mail...e-mail...everywhere...
- 09/21/06 03:48 PM
Some of you people will be way ahead of me on this... most will not. Over the years I've used Pegasus, Gold Mine, many versions of Outlook (Outlook express too) and Eudora, to get the e-mail via POP (post office protocol) from the server hosting my yourbestmooove.com domain. Because I am the way that I am... I get my e-mail all over the place ...two desktops, laptop in the past (now Tablet) and assistants PC. You figure out that "leave a copy on the server" thing if you want to get the e-mail in all those places. The problem with that is that … (9 comments)
naperville: Photo Psy"cow"logy & The MLS
- 09/21/06 12:45 PM
I was talking to another agent about our MLS system and the way agents use pictures in the system. I told Ron that when I search through the MLS and there is only a picture of the front of the house, I think " it may be a bad agent... or it may be a bad house... I'm not really sure. We are allowed to use up to 7 photos, if the agent puts in two or three and they are all of the outside... I automatically assume the inside of the home is bad. In fact, if the agent only uses a couple … (20 comments)
naperville: Wide angle shots -
- 09/21/06 09:21 AM
What a difference a lens makes... In the early summer I purchased the Kodak V570 wide angle lens camera (this was so that my Nikon & Sony cameras would have some company.. as many of you know I suffer from too-little-toy-aphobia...) and I love it! They now sell in the mid $200's because there is a 6 megapixel version coming out. One of the benefits is that you can shoot a small room and get so much more of it in the photo, so unlike many of the photos where you only get a small corner of the bedroom, you can get … (26 comments)
naperville: The Riverwalk is a huge attraction!
- 09/19/06 12:11 PM
This is a post with some pictures because it is difficult to describe the beauty of Naperville's Riverwalk. Built almost entirely with donated funds and time, the Riverwalk is the crown jewel of Naperville's thriving downtown area. Folks just love to have dinner at one of the many outstanding restaurants and then enjoy a nice, safe, serene walk... Original artwork dots the landscape. Covered bridges welcome you! Small plazas for gathering, and a labyrinth to keep one occupied. Centennial beach offeres recreation in an old quarry along the path.... and a myriad of parks to stop and enjoy a few minutes of nature
Meandering through town ... I … (4 comments)
naperville: Not just your regular Über Burb!
- 09/19/06 02:11 AM
For a long time, Naperville was known as the rapidly growing suburb west of Chicago. As the growth has slowed (running out of room) many of Naperville's other attributes are somtimes misssed by those that haven't been here. There's more to those high rankings than just great schools, excellent libraries, high income and safety.... Naperville also has a rich history, some of which has been preserved at the Naper Settlement... The Naper Settlement (Naperville was named after an early settler:Joseph Naper) is a museum village set on 13 acres of land next to our (fabulous) downtown.
… (3 comments)
naperville: What kind of signs do you use?
- 09/18/06 09:50 AM
I've been using picture signs since 1995 (always need to carry a small can of goof off for the things that are drawn on my face) It seems to create some awareness as I am frequently approached by people asking me if I am who I am... :) The picture is my original RE/MAX sign, Fortunately, in Illinois they changed the law and I can now leave the main office # off of the sign and use my direct line instead, I also put my website on the sign as well. I haven't yet gone to the post and beam style of sign, I … (17 comments)
naperville: Casual in 1995
- 09/18/06 06:07 AM
I started in the business in February of 1989... I was fortunate enough to pick a really great company to work for.. the broker/owner (Charlie Doss) is a top quality guy and runs his company in a very professional manner. I was also fortunate to have a great manager (Dave Chally) in the office, and while he was also a high producing agent he always took the time to help me and offer guidance. I credit them for contributing to my strong work ethic and moral business compass. It was an old fashioned kind of company (for this area) we had a (not legally) … (11 comments)
naperville: When a buyer tells you their price range... what do you do?
- 09/16/06 12:18 PM
I had some transferees out today (all day...) they were trying to decide if they like our area and if they wanted to work with me overall. They've purchased 6 homes over the years... when they gave me their criteria I knew that we had a problem... But I did the best I could following their lead on the pricing and area. I also had a huge amount of back up plans ready to go (I knew that I would need them) At the end of the day he expressed his appreciation at finding me (WooHoo!) His wife said that I was the … (8 comments)
naperville: Broadband Wireless in Naperville
- 09/15/06 02:47 AM
Last year when Cingular announced that it was turning on it's new 3g service (UMTS) in the Chicago area, I was very excited... until I saw the map. The whole Chicago area (blue) was getting the service except the western suburbs and Naperville (orange) They couldn't have honed in any better on my specific market area if they had tried. To say that I was disappointed would be an understatement! Here I am, a guy that revels in his geekdom... and I've been excluded from this great freedom! (I know that I could have switched to Verizon but their service is lousy here (doesn't work in … (5 comments)
naperville: OK, now that Ribfest is over...
- 07/23/06 02:09 PM
It's time to start thinking about Naperville's next big party: Last Fling! Opening night is September 1st and the band will be ".38 Special" The Jaycee's always do a great job on this four day festival and donate lots of money to so many great causes. (For those that don't know/remember .38 Special is a 70's Country/Rock band started by one of the original members of Lynyrd Skynyrd) … (1 comments)
naperville: Marsh foods.. we hardly knew yee....
- 07/23/06 01:58 PM
Marsh Foods is leaving town after their brief foray into the Naperville market. Marsh was known for their quality items and their strange wheel-like floor plan. It appears that Marsh was not paying some bills and was taken over by creditors who decide to sell off their lone Northern Illinois asset. The Marsh location at 111th and RT59 will become a Caputo's Fresh Market... a nice replacement known for their quality meat and produce. … (0 comments)
Alrighty then...So I've been happily sharing some of my bovine inspired marketing materials over the past week... I saved this one for last because it caused some controversy in the office.,.. a couple of agents in my office thought that the udders might be crossing the line... :) so of course I sent the same card again the following year...
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