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Agent Pet Peeves: "Just Because ET phoned Home, doesn't mean You should!"

By
Real Estate Agent with Fathom Realty West Sound WA State 52404

 Okay, I'll make this short and sweet (well, depending on whether or not you're guilty, maybe 'not-so-sweet')

Allow me to be direct and to the point.

Is there a phone in your profile picture? You know, one of those shots where you're sitting there 'yakkin' away, as though you're deeply engaged in some kind of high level conference call with the President or helping to negotiate peace in the Middle East?

Is it just me, or do others of you find this kind of promotional picture really annoying and outdated?

 "Hey! It's me, Agent Bob Smith. And I talk on the phone!" Wow! Isn't that cool?"

"You can try to call me right now, but the line will probably be busy, cuz' "HEY!" I'm on it!"

And it's even more hilarious if the phone has a cord (who the heck uses a phone with a cord anymore!), or if it's one of those HUGE dinosaur mobile phones. You know, the ones that look like a field radio set from an old WWII movie?

What say you, my fellow Rainers? Down with the Phonies? Or allow ET to phone Home?

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Rich Jacobson is a REALTOR® and licensed Broker with Fathom Realty. He's a Crab Hunter, Clam Digger, and Oyster Shucker, skilffuly vanquishing anything in a shell! He is the Social Media Evangelist for Life on the Kitsap Peninsula & The Western Puget Sound in scenic WA State.

Brett Tousley
Keller Williams Realty - Richland, WA
Tri Cities Real Estate | (509) 420-0013
I love, love, love the phone shots!  Second place is the glamour shots obviously taken in the mid 90's! 
Oct 08, 2007 04:59 PM
Laurie Manny
Long Beach CA Real Estate - Long Beach, CA
Very funny, lose the phone please, you just look like an infomercial. 
Oct 08, 2007 07:07 PM
Randy L. Prothero
eXp Realty - Hollister, MO
Missouri REALTOR, (808) 384-5645

I also find them annoying and funny.  The only thing funnier would be sun glasses and a cigar.

Oct 08, 2007 07:53 PM
Rich Jacobson
Fathom Realty West Sound - Poulsbo, WA
Your Kitsap County WA Real Estate Broker
Brett - Nice to have you back in the Rain, man! Where ya been?
Oct 08, 2007 08:36 PM
Brad Andersohn
Retired Executive Director of Education at eXp - Boulder Creek, CA
ActiveBrad - 707.646.1876
I actually through one in the lake once!  Shortly after, my sunglasses fell in there too!  LOL!  :-)
Oct 08, 2007 09:21 PM
James Lowenstern
Castles Unlimited® - Newton, MA
Castles Unlimited. Newton MA Real Estate
I love watching a movie from 15 years ago and seeing Tom Cruise or Nick Nolte speaking into one of those Motorola Flip Phones the size of a toaster oven...technology has moved very quickly the last few years...my Blackberry has more memory than my first desk top...and to answer your question...those photos people post holding the phone are just silly.
Oct 08, 2007 09:32 PM
M. Suzi Woods (Gravenstuk)
NOW Sharing the life and spice of the GC one day at a time - Grand Canyon, AZ
Suzi Woods, Prior Independent REBroker in MS
My vote is get rid of the phones and leaning on a sold yard sign.
Oct 08, 2007 09:46 PM
Allison Stewart
St.Cloud Homes - Saint Cloud, FL
St. Cloud Fl Realtor, Osceola County Real Estate 407-616-9904

"Operators are standing by"  is what first came to mind.  Rich love your keen wit. WWII field phone..LOL  you are so funny!

Oct 08, 2007 10:01 PM
Karen Rice Keller Williams Real Est
Keller Williams Real Estate - Hawley, PA
Northeast PA & Lake Wallenpaupack Home Sales

AMEN, RICH!!

I hate these photos. I hate "cheese" in marketing and they are just ooozing with cheese! 

 LOL@ WW2 phone.  I too get a kick out of the old movies from the 80's with those gigantic phones. 

Hey, I used to have a corded CAR PHONE!

 

Oct 08, 2007 10:34 PM
Linda Davis
RE/MAX Home Team - Gales Ferry, CT
I like the ones where they are in their expensive car on the phone.  I guess we are supposed to be impressed they have one?  Or maybe that they can drive and talk at the same time.  Ambidexterity is a marvelous trait in a realtor.
Oct 08, 2007 11:34 PM
Rich Jacobson
Fathom Realty West Sound - Poulsbo, WA
Your Kitsap County WA Real Estate Broker
Multi-tasking, Linda, multi-tasking!
Oct 09, 2007 12:22 AM
Lisa Heindel
Crescent City Living LLC - New Orleans, LA
New Orleans Real Estate Broker
LOL, Rich.  Thanks for the laugh to start my day...I'm with Brett on the Glamour Shots as well.  There are still a couple of agents in my office who haven't changed their business card picture in YEARS!  The only thing that would be worse would be the glamour shot while holding the WWII phone while leaning on the sold sign that is sticking out of the back of their expensive car :)
Oct 09, 2007 02:49 AM
Robert Hammerstein -
Christie's International Real Estate - Hillsdale, NJ
Bergen County NJ Real Estate

Hey Rich,

You are too funny!  Don't know of any of our "fellow" real estate agents that are doing this but you may be on to something.  Perhaps it's the next fad that we should all watch for?

Oct 09, 2007 05:32 AM
Karen Villa Schweinfurth
RE/MAX Northwest Realtors, Inc. 425-308-3669 - Everett, WA
ABR, CRS, SRES, CyberStar
OH Rich, my laugh for the day -- by the way, I still have my old "brick" phone as you showed right her. When I moved I showed it to my son's friends and they were wowed! Gave them a good laugh. Could you see texting on that dinasour.
Oct 10, 2007 11:45 AM
Rich Jacobson
Fathom Realty West Sound - Poulsbo, WA
Your Kitsap County WA Real Estate Broker
Karen - how nice to see your smiling comment here! And here we thought those monster phones were the "cat's meow!"
Oct 10, 2007 12:39 PM
Bill Sauneuf
John L. Scott Real Estate / Yelm - Mount Vernon, WA

They are the only real estate agents with those neat portable phones! No one else in the business has one... You should call one of them because they'll ignore the client they are with to speak to you! 

They are important people... They are just trying to convince the public and themselves....

 

 

Anyway, too funny Rich!!

-Bill

 

Oct 10, 2007 07:24 PM
Sarah Nopp
South Sound, WA

LOL

How do you really feel???

I used to have a picture of me and my doglet... I may do that again. I like my dog a heck of a lot better than my phone. And so do other people!

Oct 11, 2007 03:05 AM
Rich Jacobson
Fathom Realty West Sound - Poulsbo, WA
Your Kitsap County WA Real Estate Broker
Sarah - yeah, there's a lot of animals lovers who use their pets to promote their business. That makes more sense to me than the whole phone thingy.
Oct 11, 2007 06:21 AM
Maureen McCabe
HER Realtors - Columbus, OH
Columbus Ohio Real Estate

don't fool yourself.  Dogs don't make a lot of sense in real estate advertising either.  The lady with the great dane did a great job, someone talked about and lots of real-a-tors thought it was cute.

My dog had a page on my website long ago,  Cheesy Cheesy Cheesy.

The photos with the phone are the worst.  They are so staged looking but not in the way a good professional head shot is staged either.

We should have phone in Friday.  Pose with your phone to your ear and have someone take a photo, then return the favor...  a whole gallery of cheesy realtor photos with phones.

Jan 10, 2010 10:57 PM
Rich Jacobson
Fathom Realty West Sound - Poulsbo, WA
Your Kitsap County WA Real Estate Broker

YIKES!  Whatever possessed you to dredge up this post?

Jan 11, 2010 02:42 AM