Business vs. Personal Blogging

Hi Ginger,

I think that you should post your blogs with confidence. Just raising the question tells me that you would never cross the line of personal | business in an inappropriate or unprofessional manner. 

That's my two-cents! 

All the Best,

Sean Alvarez

Watch My Listings

 

Ginger, Great question, and welcome to AR

 It makes it easier to join the groups you are likely to post to then:

Amy, on your home page, on the LHS there is the word Blog, and next to it POST. click there and you can type away. 

Then you will have to send the blog to where you want it to go.  If you have joined the group that group will appear to check.

Hope this helps.

Your Real Estate Guy in Madison wi

That is a question I've been dealing with since I'm a new AR person. Thanks for bringing it up. Is it okay for me to put blog articles that I write for consumers on AR? My posts are a mixture and I wonder if I'm doing the right thing by adding them in this community. By the way, I've only been active for a couple of weeks and this is a great place to learn. Welcome aboard. I'm sending all my RE friends this way so they can get in on the fun and friendship.

I have a MySpace that I use more for my personal "ranting" than anything else.  I am thinking of linking my Active Rain blog to it...but I don't know if I want the people on MySpace to know where I work and live.  LOL

I plan on mixing a bit if both in my Active Rain blog but will be particular about where I post it if it's too far off topic from work.

I can ramble on over any subject, so I say - just do what you FEEL like doing.  :)   

Personal comments give people in-site to who you are and what you believe in.  I think this is important, just remember to not make it too Personal.  I guess it is a common sense approach to talk about what make you comfortable.

 Dave in Ct.

I struggled with that same issue myself, after reading comments and blogs I just decided to write what I think, feel and believe.  I agree that adding a bit of personal thoughts not only makes us better Real Estate Professionals but also keeps us human.  Good luck and welcome!

 My first blog was related to business and yet intensly personal.  It was the story of how I got into the business but in telling it, I revealed a great deal of my personal life.  Let me tell you, it was cathartic! If it's all just business, then we might as well be robots.  Be real, be yourself, write what you feel and have fun!  Welcome...

I like to focus on business first and foremost. I think if you get personal then people can relate and will connect. My clients love to feel that are a part of my big family! I tell all my clients, I want you to be a client and friend for life. I let them know that they are not just another number. Keep up the good work!

Ginger,

Be true to yourself!  We run across business as we carry on our day to day lives.  Don't be afraid to let be known, what you like, or what you do, because there is someone out there that does those same things too!  People like doing business with people that can relate to them.  Use this forum to let them know who you are and what you enjoy and prospecting becomes a lot less like work!

One of the things I am confused about is that I have a blog already on my website and now here's another one.  Is it "bad" to put the same articles here if I think people will enjoy them?  Or is there someway to link them so I don't have to go through all that?  What would be the benefit of both?  I do enjoy writing the blogs on my website -- it lets me vent a little at some of the things some clients do that frustrate me but the challenge is writing it in a nice enough way that they can't tell I'm venting (or at least they can't be sure it was them I meant!) :->

The old adage is, never mix business with pleasure. I think that holds true of blogs especially. That is, if you're using it as a marketing tool. Marketing blogs need to be very niche-specific. That way, they make more sense to Google. That's not to say you can't occasionally introduce a personal post into the mix. However, writing about anything and everything isn't helpful. I opt to keep two blogs, one business and one personal. You can offer reciprocal links between the two so that consumers can see both sides of you. 

My purpose is strictly business.

I wouldn't post to much about personal life, But enough to let the people reading the blog get to know a little bit about you, generally neutral types of things, nothing too personal, it IS completely public. 

I am so glad you posted this question!  I was wondering the same thing as I have been doing my first couple of entries.  It seems like the personal stuff is a little easier to start with as I am learning how to blog and what I can do, but I will be moving to more content related stuff later on.  I'm as new as you, so don't take my word for it, but I feel good about taking this approach so far.  Happy raining!

Great question Ginger!

I asked the same thing of myself when I joined a month ago. And you know what?

Business= PEOPLE. No business is transacted with out a personality facilitating it.  Even when doing business on the internet, there is a human being sitting behind a computer making sure things go the way they should!

Growing up, I couldn't STAND stuffy, stiff-necked, "SUPER SERIOUS" adults---like they never make mistakes, get embarrassed, or feel any emotion!   I swore that I would NEVER be that person.  I have nothing to really hide from people that I encounter and I share what I feel inspired to share. Life is a bundle of lessons learned by the many people,places and situations we've faced.  i believe we all have something to share that others can benefit from, whether it be on the business or personal side. To uplift and inspire others, is to rise to a higher level of consciousness & well-BEING. I have loooong since FREED myself from the bonds of being liked or disliked by others, you know? I make no apologies for being ME, and as I continue to better myself, I influence others around me to do the same.  

Take a look at my profile I mixed the two. And in my first  and second blog  I shared some personal things about my life that some people may have felt ashamed to reveal. But I am a sum total of my life experiences and people are attracted to that. For the most part, we only tell people what WE WANT THEM TO KNOW anyway, right? That power is in your hands....so don't be shy!! FLY!

Ginger schnnap, FREE YOURSELF

& BE YOURSELF! No one is going to condemn you for sharing a few personal things about you. Take a look at other Rainers profiles and blogs, see what they did, then DO YOUR THANG!

 

I tend to be more personal in my blog.  Although it is on a professional site, anyone who is interested in my business side can go to my website.  This business is a "people" business so I like other professionals to see there is more to me/us then listing and selling!  Great post.

Hi Ginger  --  Welcome to ActiveRain (AR).  That is a great question and has brought up a lot of great comments.  I think you may want to keep your two blogs separate, however I feel that you might want to put a little bit of each in the other, and maybe you already have.  Remember that before you sell a house you have to sell yourself.  I am a REALTOR in Central Texas, and I look forward to networking with you and reading your future post.  Have a great day!!!

I thnk you should just share whatever you feel comfortable sharing.