effective marketing: First Impression-ist Masterpieces Now Hang in the Active Rain Gallery - 04/14/08 04:05 AM
Last week something new began to be seen in the great hallowed halls of Active Rain. Beautiful blog masterpieces started to appear. Active Rain gave to us all another great new improvement to help us all better differentiate and further brand ourselves through our blogs. We now all have the access to a FREE tool, the ActiveRain Customizer, that allows us to easily create a visual masterpiece of our own blogs. I have scoured Active Rain's walls to find 15 fine examples of blogs that have a new and improved branded" look. I encourage you to click and open the examples below, to see in detail what others have already done. You … (58 comments)

effective marketing: I FINALLY Gots Me a Purdy Puddle... in the Rain - 04/11/08 08:09 AM
The ONLY problem I have EVER had about Active Rain was it is UGLY. YUP UGLY and I have not been afraid to let the Rain Gods (Matt Heaton and Johnathon Washburn) know how I felt.
But there is a saying, "you only get to complain if you are willing to provide a solution." So not only did I register a complaint, I also tried my best to get them over to the "pretty side". I sent them mock-up ideas JUST to get this site LOOKING better.
But the AR guys could only move so fast on all the improvements they were providing us. I could no … (32 comments)

effective marketing: Is Your Ignorance Bliss or a Missed Opportunity? - 04/08/08 02:39 AM
I have been writing here on Active Rain for nearly 2 years now and have seen the presence of home stagers explode here. Even though we share much of ourselves to this great community, in general it AMAZES me how ignored, snubbed and misunderstood our message has been by the overall Realtor community here on AR... and, to be honest, out there in markets we serve. So many Realtors seem to have shut down ANY possibility to understand ANY opportunity staging offers. There has to be a message that will finally alter the perception the general Realtor community has of who we are and what … (47 comments)

effective marketing: Chipping Away at the "PRICE IS KING" Myth Too Many Realtors Rely On - 03/31/08 09:22 AM
I hate to break some Realtor's chips... but for many of you the belief you have, regarding the role pricing plays in real estate sales, is not cracked up to what it could be. Believe it or not there is a simple yet profound parallel lesson that can be learned from how Lay's potato chips are packaged, priced, marketed and sold and how real estate is packaged, priced, marketed and sold.
Let me be clear... when it comes to selling anything, be it real estate or potatoe chips, Price IS King. It is a fact that the seller (market) will only get the price the buyer (market) is willing to … (27 comments)

effective marketing: Successful Selling in an Ugly Market Ain’t Always Pretty! - 03/27/08 04:34 AM
Even though we live in a consumer society, it's an odd fact that home sellers typically do not view their property as a product for sale in a marketplace. Because this is so, a home's sale often languishes. But this need not be the case. Basic marketing teaches us that how a product is perceived and received within the market can be altered and impacted.
More then just being decorators or designers, good home stagers are more focused in applying a full array of strategic marketing principles and practices which positively influence the consumer about a product in a market.
So even … (30 comments)

effective marketing: Why Are Realtors in the Biz... if this is What They Do? - 03/11/08 03:49 AM

Yesterday I received a call from a desperate home seller looking to home staging as marketing solution that would help finally sell his $499,000 town home which has been on the market for months and months now. The buyer was quite frank about the fact that when compared to similar units for sale in the development, his townhouse was the most expensive. But he justified the price difference saying it was because his property had been extensivley remodeled with new finishes, fixtures and updates.
Intrigued... I wanted to take a "sneak peak" as I was talking to the seller on the phone. So I asked … (137 comments)

effective marketing: Are You and Your Seller's Thoughts in the Gutter? - 10/15/07 02:15 AM
Until recently, it was always true that what a homebuyer saw when they first drove up a property could either make or break its sale. For if the home was appealing, from the gutter, it was said to have "Curb Appeal". Which was a good thing.But times have quickly changed, and while "Curb Appeal" still matters... today it matters in a different place and way.
Below is a 30 second "Curb Appeal Quiz Show" I created to show just where Curb Appeal ACTUALLY now begins... the final conclusion might challenge your way of thinking. (In fact I hope it does.)CURB APPEAL QUIZ SHOW … (40 comments)

effective marketing: "What, How-N-Why?" This was How Our Day Flew By... - 10/04/07 11:51 AM
Blogging was QUITE a popular topic yesterday at Emagine 2007 Expo... and educational event Coldwell Banker held for its agents in Chicago.
I'm happy to report back that the day FLEW BY as ActiveRain's Caleb Mardini and I answered questions about blogging in the "Blooger's Lounge" set up at the Expo. I gotta admit it was very clever and forward thinking of Coldwell Banker to devote an area to where its agents could come and inquire about blogging. The Blogger's Lounge was very, very popular. (See Photo - Left) In fact, at one point I actually thought I was going to loose my voice as we answered over and over again the same 3 questions about blogging, … (20 comments)

effective marketing: SELL the TOUR to Sell the House! - 09/10/07 12:55 PM
Whether it is in our work life or in our personal life, each day we are all hit with a ton of advertising messages.  Because this is so, the trick for those of us in sales is to find new ways to cut through the all the noise and get our message out to our respective markets... which is not always easy.
However, I have found, in this age of constant "screaming" advertising messages, I have a knack for creating ways that help others to cut through the noise. Typically I do this by taking some approach/medium people are familiar with and change it up a bit. … (24 comments)

effective marketing: One Blog Post on "Emptiness" Sure Did Fill Up the Blogosphere! - 08/13/07 12:07 PM
Who says blogging on Real Estate industry topics does NOT get you noticed?
This is a tale that stresses the importance of and reason for finding your own blog voice and sharing your own voice.
Recently, I was approached by Design Talk, an amazingly popular on-line consumer oriented design site, with an idea they had for me to guest write a blog on why vacant homes are harder to sell then furnished homes.
Well, after doing a bit of research and learning that Design Talk gets approximately 7000 hits a day, I decided it would be a VERY good idea to write the post. My only … (36 comments)

effective marketing: Getting MORE RETURN for your Blogging Dollar - 04/03/07 11:59 PM
If you have blogged, for ANY amount of time, you know it is an investment IN time. However, one of the "PERKS" I have found in blogging is it gives me a means to capture and articulate, in a concise manner, just what I do want to communicate to my clients. So now instead of saying someday I SHOULD write something about XYZ topic... I find I HAVE written about that topic.
Which is all fine and good.
But... did you ever notice that ONCE you posted your blog it quickly becomes "yesterday's news?"  And all that investment seems a little lost. I have... and that bothered … (54 comments)

effective marketing: POWER of the RAIN... AR's Group Feature GIVES VOICE to Our Industry - 03/26/07 11:43 PM
 I know there are MANY milestones that are now taking place, almost daily, here on Active Rain. So with so many wonderful stories of success being shared, the power of just what this site is capable of has definitely been proven. AND, considering Active Rain is REALLY only just in its infancy, it is mind boggling to think what is possible in the future. I can personally attest to just what impact Active Rain can do to legitimize and move forward an entire industry.  You see, the very day Active Rain added the "Group" functionality... the Stage It Forward group was born. This past Saturday, that small group hit its own milestone...  the 300th … (42 comments)

effective marketing: Real-Time Networking Event in the Spirit of Active Rain! - 02/07/07 11:16 AM
I know I have been kinda quiet in the rain... but it has been VERY busy here at Real Estaging.
However... for all my Chicago-land Active Rain collogues I am VERY proud to announce a very cool event that I am co-sponsoring along with 2 other Active Rain Members. (Tripti Kasal of Real Living Infinity and Joe Zekus of YoChicago.)
The event embodies the SPIRIT of what Active Rain makes possible... in REAL TIME. AND... the cool thing about the seminar is that it is a networking event that teaches real time networking skills!
After attending a SIMILAR event, geared to the general business … (23 comments)

effective marketing: Set Your Sites Low... to Raise Your Standards - 01/15/07 04:49 AM

The brilliance of Active Rain and Localism is that they can work together to everyone's benefit. As Active Rain provides a forum to share ideas and information amongst peers, Localism provides a place to apply this knowledge and better reach clients... immediately. Here is an example to make my point...
As a home stager I believe what a home buyer sees, regardless of where, when or how they see it, matters greatly. (I believe in the importance of this so much that I am ongoingly investing in and building an entire company devoted exclusively to improve what buyers see and visually exprience.)
So to keep … (42 comments)

effective marketing: Home Staging = Sweat Equity ON STEROIDS! - 01/09/07 11:25 AM
Realtors, with the spring selling season just around the corner I think now is the time to FLEX YOUR MINDS to make a very GOOD point! While home staging does not raise the appraised value of a property, IT STILL CAN BE A VERY PROFITABLE VENTURE!
Here's why... As every realtor knows, a home that goes to market has a possible low/high list price point range.  This low/high price is primarily based on location, condition, features, and finishes.
But you might not know is that if staging is done correctly, and at the right time, the asking price can be raised toward the high side … (33 comments)

effective marketing: Tic-Toc !Tic-Toc! How much ACTIVE TIME do you clock? - 12/06/06 10:20 AM
While ActiveRain has proven to be a down pour of good and insightful information to and for the real estate community... it is not free.
Well, actually the information is "free" in the fact that it costs nothing to be a member, post a blog, read a blog, or write a comment. But being an ACTIVE participant in the rain can be a huge INVESTMENT in time.
Lately. searching for images, researching and writing original blog material, inserting links, and reading other's blogs seems to be taking more and more time.THEN on top of that... I feel a bit obligated to comment on other's … (26 comments)

effective marketing: A BUBBLY WAY... to share your thanks & your message - 12/03/06 11:19 AM

I know I talk a lot about staging. But my REAL passion is advertising and marketing. I LOVE to find new ways to break through the typical "advertising noise" and connect with people. (Staging just happens to be an amazing marketing tool that does this too... that is why I am so adamant about it.)
Anyway, a few years back we decide to divert some of our advertising dollars away from print and find a ways to connect to our clients and potential clients in more creative and effectiveways. So what did we do? We throw a party!
Well, actually we always had a personal holiday party... we … (13 comments)

effective marketing: What Every Realtor Should Know About Home Staging - 07/22/06 09:28 AM
Because real estate staging is still relatively new in the Midwest we still get a lot of questions from Realtors about our services. 
Many Realtors say they  already "do their own staging"... which I think is great.  But in this world were time is money, my question back to Realtors often is: "Is staging the BEST use of your time?"  Is chasing a dust bunny, scheleping a coffee table, or arraging nic-nacs really what you want to do? Just something to think about...
Anyway to help Realtors understand and work with our staff better, we actually have a brochure directed right to the … (15 comments)

 
These are the creative writings of Craig Schiller, a home staging professional, passionate real estate marketing professional and founder of the Real Estaging, one of the nation's leading home staging companies.


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