Business Development - August 1, 2006 At the Turning Point Buffini & Company’s flagship event evolves to meet the changing needs of today’s real estate professionals By Maria Patterson If you’ve never been to a Turning Point RetreatTM it’s difficult to capture the experience in words. The Turning Point is really not a seminar—at least not like any seminar you’re accustomed to. The two-day program, created by Buffini & Company Founder and Chairman Brian Buffini, is more of a multi-faceted experience—systematically teaching the referral systems that led to Buffini’s real estate success, but building off of that foundation to reach attendees on a much deeper level. Turning Point veterans attest to not only the dramatic effect the program has had on their profitability, but on their personal lives as well. Back in March of 1996 when the first Turning Point was born to 62 people in Long Beach, California, Brian Buffini probably couldn’t have imagined what it would become today. While attendance hovered around 300 during the Turning Point’s second year, today it averages 1,500. In 2006, the number of Turning Points—taking place in major metropolitan venues across the country—increased to 15. And don’t expect to find an empty seat at any one of them. Advocates of Buffini’s programs will agree that the number-one reason for the success of the Turning Point Retreat, as well as Buffini & Company’s other programs—such as Peak Performers and MasterMind—is Buffini himself. A gifted and passionate speaker, those who have spent time with him will tell you that the man you see on stage is exactly the same man you’ll see off stage. The sincerity and genuineness of both Buffini’s message and personal character are largely responsible for creating upward of 12,000 loyal Buffini & Company clients. The Turning Point Fundamentals: Selling by Referral In 2000, Marsha Waddelow, who heads an agent team at RE/MAX Associates of Arlington and Mansfield, Texas, was referred to a Turning Point Retreat by her broker at the time. “It’s probably the best thing she could have done for me,” says Waddelow. “I had lived in Arlington and Mansfield all my life and had always done business by referral. But I didn’t know how to use that to fuel the potential of my business.” Waddelow speaks of the fundamental message of the Turning Point: systematically building a referral-based business by developing strong client relationships. There’s even scripted dialogues to help implement the system: “Oh, by the wayTM…I’m never too busy for any of your referrals,” the now-classic mantra that every Turning Point attendee utilizes in one fashion or another. The goal of the Turning Point is to teach attendees specific systems, which if practiced consistently, are virtually guaranteed to yield financial results. This is not just advice, either—it’s a step-by-step, clear-cut program that almost anyone in a service profession can follow. When combined with Buffini & Company’s ClubNet Coaching program—which provides regular, individualized training and accountability—the systems taught at the Turning Point are reportedly surefire. Buffini & Company feels so strongly about the need for Coaching, that Turning Point Retreat attendance fees are waived for ClubNet members. While asking for referrals may sound obvious, it’s really a fine point that even the best real estate professionals, like Waddelow, can miss. “The last thing I wanted was for people to think that I needed business,” she explains. “I was successful and thought I didn’t need to ask for business. One of the most important things Brian has taught me, however, is that it’s ok to ask for the business.” Waddelow put the concept to the test upon returning from her first Turning Point Retreat several years ago. “We were with close friends that evening having cocktails and they asked me how business was. I said, ‘Business is great, but I’ve sold every listing this week and I need more.’ My friend said, ‘You need business?’ and I said, ‘Yes, I always need business!’ They told me about a friend who was selling her home and I got a listing that night. It’s a give, ask and receive concept.” Beyond Referrals While the message of the Turning Point revolves around achieving success through implementing the Buffini system of selling by referral, the program reaches much further in order to connect with the audience on a deeper level. “Fundamentally, the core referral system hasn’t changed since the very first Turning Point Retreat. While it has been polished and refined, the system stands the test of time,” says Buffini. “Though it may look simple on the surface, as you peel back the layers, you realize the depth there. The evolution of the content has been in response to the needs of attendees and ultimately the members we coach.” While the Turning Point covers a wide array of topics, from specific lead-generating activities like writing Personal Notes and in-person client visits, or “Pop-Bys,” to achieving balance in the five circles of life—financial, business, personal, family and spiritual—it connects back to the overall goal of creating clients for life. “What does personal growth, time management, goal-setting or budgeting have to do with generating leads? Everything, it turns out,” Buffini explains. “While the fundamentals still revolve around building relationships and applying a system so you’re consistently generating referrals and building trust with your clients, attendees walk away with a whole range of powerful tools to impact their business and their life.” “According to NAR, 87 percent of all transactions are a result of repeat or referred business,” Buffini continues. “At the Turning Point Retreat, we show people how to fish where the fish are. Attendees learn a proven system for quickly building business, maintaining relationships and generating a predictable stream of referred leads. They will also leave with a written business and life plan, while being empowered to take control of their finances. It is a life-changing event; that’s why we call it the Turning Point.” Turning Point 2006 The 2006 Turning Point Retreat emphasizes the increased importance of building a referral business in the face of a slowing real estate market. “With the changes in the market, and leads drying up, I find it critical to point out that the referral systems are based on the philosophy that people like doing business with people they trust,” says Buffini. “With that in mind, we sent a film crew onto the streets throughout America to hear what consumers think about Realtors and how they want to be treated. This year, we are also taking the referral systems even deeper with three methodologies: contact, care and community. It’s easy to understand, easy to remember and it’s communicated in such a way that people are able to immediately assimilate it into their business.” Playing a greater role in the 2006 Turning Point is Buffini’s friend of 17 years and self-described “lab partner,” Joe Niego. From his “Joe on the Street” interviews—described above by Buffini—to his program on how character impacts business success, Niego brings an important perspective to attendees—that of an on-the-job, veteran real estate professional. As the owner of Chicago-based Niego Real Estate, he can connect to the audience in many relevant ways. “Joe lends a practitioner’s perspective as to what is currently happening in the market,” says Jeff Schween with Coldwell Banker in Santa Rosa, California. “He’s actively involved in the trenches. Joe has these great metaphors, analogies and insights that are really valuable.” “I’ve met a lot of clients and have seen how their lives have been impacted and improved by the Turning Point,” says Niego. “I wanted to be more involved, and Brian saw my excitement and energy and wanted me to be a part of the event. For 17 years we worked on the systems that Brian teaches now in our own real estate lab. When I see now how others are using these systems, it gets me fired up.” “I’m a real estate agent and I’ve been selling for 17 years,” Niego adds. “I have a productive business back home. The only thing that would pull me out on the road is to be part of something bigger than myself.” Niego has been speaking at Turning Point Retreats for about three years now, but is taking on a greater role in 2006 through presenting “The Ultimate Client Sequence,” a system for demonstrating contact, care and community during the course of your relationship with clients. Niego also helps to round out the event with a discussion of the importance of building character by developing discipline, increasing endurance, and working and living courageously. “The Ultimate Client Sequence was designed to let real estate agents know that if they handled this sequence properly from beginning to end, that their clients would become walking, talking billboards for them,” says Niego. “They would have someone who would be an advocate for them. If they miss any part of this sequence, they miss an opportunity to create a valuable asset for their business.” In Niego’s second presentation at The Turning Point, he imparts to the audience a system for building an “unshakeable” character. “We hear how important character is to building trust, which is vitally important for building success,” Niego explains. “Someone could be skilled at what they do, but if they don’t have the discipline, or are not able to overcome obstacles or not willing to get out of their comfort zone—all things that build character—then their skills are useless.” In addition to Niego’s presentations, this year’s Turning Point Retreats feature special breakout sessions designed exclusively for brokers and managers. These sessions are hosted by veteran brokers and Buffini & Company trainers Rick DeLuca and J’aime Sans Souci and cover managerial topics from effective leadership to recruiting and retention, and how to build a winning culture inside an office. Why the Turning Point Works Even the strongest Buffini advocate will tell you that prior to their first encounter with a Turning Point Retreat, they may have had some degree of resistance or skepticism. What they immediately walk away with, however, is a plan for bettering their business. Jeff and ShaSha Schween, with Coldwell Banker in Santa Rosa, California, attended their first Turning Point in 1996. “Everything Brian talked about made sense,” recalls ShaSha Schween. “I never cared much for the traditional aspects of real estate—the door knocking and the cold calling. I had been doing all my business by referral anyway, so when Brian spoke locally, it made sense to go. Three of us from the office went and we came back raving about it.” “You hone in on what you like to do and what you don’t like being done to you, like cold callers contacting you at night,” says Jeff Schween. “When you look at your business from the dinosaur perspective, you feel like you must do certain things. But when you have to do those things 10,000 times to be successful once, you realize that this is not what having a good life is all about. Brian’s method of doing business by referral was in line with how we function and live fundamentally as people.” Many people gravitate to the Turning Point Retreat because it offers them a new way to approach the real estate business—a way that feels right and comfortable. For Darryl Day, owner of Day Real Estate in Hurst, Texas, Buffini and the Turning Point Retreat struck a deep chord. “The Turning Point was right in line with the way we feel God designed us to work. The principle of serving other people gets to the core of being other-centric,” he explains. “I had tried a bunch of stuff like cold calling where you just beat people down until they do something. With Brian, the message is about caring for people and breaking it down to the most common thing that we all want—to be respected and appreciated. I knew that was a concept I could align myself with.” Attendees take away a very different array of benefits from The Turning Point.
For ShaSha Schween, it’s the goal setting. “The goal writing always brings us back to the question, ‘What do you really, really, really want?’ It’s usually not what you think you want,” she says. The Dollars-and-Cents Results Generally speaking, attendees see positive financial results shortly after attending a Turning Point Retreat, especially when followed by membership in ClubNet Coaching.
Waddelow, for example, reports that her business doubled within six months of attending her first Turning Point. “I hired a full-time assistant and started putting the systems in place. I joined ClubNet Coaching. My first year in Brian’s program I almost doubled my business from July to January.” The pattern continues for Waddelow, whose team closed $20 million last year, increasing from $13 million the year prior. Day’s business has gone from about 40% to 100% by referral. Formerly with a large real estate firm, Day opened his own office four years ago. “The investment is so minimal compared to the return,” says ShaSha Schween. When the Schweens first began attending Turning Points, their earnings were in the neighborhood of $120,000. They closed out last year with $500,000 in earnings. “There’s a growth pattern there,” she adds; “it’s not always straight up. We learned that in growing our business by referral and creating deeper relationships with people, you get better quality referrals and people tend to continue with you. As they grow, the dollar volumes grow. Our average sales price used to be $200,000 and now our average sales price is $612,000.” Going Back Again and Again…and Again Turning Point aficionados gladly return to the event several times a year, every year. Most consider it central to their continued business success and personal development.
“It’s kind of like a shot in the arm,” says Waddelow. “Last year I had gone to a Turning Point in March, to Peak Performers in Maui in June, and to MasterMind in August. I told my coach that I was on this high and I couldn’t come down. Then in November, the bubble burst and I couldn’t figure out what was going on. I was listening to a coaching call with Brian where he said you have to do something with the program every 90 days to keep you motivated. So I got to a Turning Point immediately. It keeps everything in focus.” What’s more, attending the Turning Points regularly ensures that attendees will stay on track with the program and thereby achieve their goals. “We all tend to drift and need to stay focused on what’s important in life,” says Day. “You have to go back and examine why you do what you do. When you go back to a Turning Point you realize that you’ve started slacking in a couple of areas. The things that are easy to do are also easy not to do. It’s like a refresher course that shows you why you have to go back and focus on the systems.” What’s also different year over year for attendees is Buffini himself. As Buffini tackles various areas of his own business and personal development, he incorporates it into the Turning Point program. This is a natural occurrence for Buffini who has stuck to the premise of teaching only what he himself has experienced in business and in life. “I always try to put myself in the position of my audience and what they are going through. I’ve been in the trenches in a difficult market, so I understand the worries agents face today,” Buffini explains. “One of the core values we have at Buffini & Company is to live what we teach. Applying this content to my own life has produced great benefits, changes and enhancements. Therefore, as my own growth and development has occurred, it becomes reflected in the content and presentation style. People not only enjoy the refinements to the program over the years, they also get to witness the growth live on stage in front of them. We work very hard to both motivate and inspire people at the Turning Point Retreat.” A Continuous Path While the Turning Point’s core message of strengthening relationships and building a referral-based business will continue, the program will regularly evolve in response to the changing market and the changing needs of ClubNet members, says Buffini. “As we speak, we’re developing next year’s Turning Point,” he explains, “creating segmented pieces with additional presenters to specifically hit the highest needs and toughest issues that people in the market face today.” For Buffini, it’s all about reaching people and sharing the strategies that have brought him success and enriched his life, a goal that he is achieving with countless Turning Point attendees every month. “If you really break it down, is it a two-day seminar?” asks Day. “Yes. But the ripple effect of that two-day event is huge.” RE
Commentary
By Sue Barber and Richard Trosko Helping Protect Those Who Help Protect Us Chase has launched a carefully designed Military Mortgage Program that gives special attention to Guard and Reserve servicemembers at the time of loan origination, during their mobilization and for more than a year after demobilization. “We know military men and women have many, many issues on their minds when they are alerted that their unit may be mobilized,” says Kim Ryan, who manages the Military Mortgage Program. “So we go above and beyond the requirements of the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act.” As soon as they take out a Chase Military Mortgage, qualified Guard and Reserve personnel receive a $300 loan discount at closing. Other benefits of the Chase Military Mortgage Program include: The ability to apply for a Military Mortgage program loan after mobilization alert The choice to defer part or all of the mortgage payments during Title 10 or 32 mobilization lasting 30 consecutive days or longer, with •No late payment fees
•No negative credit report sent to credit bureaus Access to the full range of Chase fixed-rate and adjustable-rate
mortgages Toll-free telephone customer service by calling 866-313-4192 Consistency of service, with Chase’s commitment to continue servicing the loans Application of the program to vacation homes and investment properties as well as primary homes To take advantage of the program, borrowers must: Notify Chase when they receive their mobilization order Be in good standing on their existing mortgage, with no payments more than 30 days late in the past 12 months (or life of loan, if less than 12 months) Remain current on all other loans and lines of credit Have qualified and closed on the mortgage under civilian income Servicemembers who receive mobilization orders before applying for a loan are not eligible for the Military Mortgage program. When servicemembers are demobilized, the program offers many different options, including doubling up on the payment, modifying the loan to stretch out the payments, and refinancing the loan at the current market rate. RE For further information, please visit www.chasemilitaryhomeloan.com. Sue Barber is the SVP Strategic Alliances and Corporate Relationships executive and Richard Trosko is the VP National Corporate and Affinity Sales manager for Chase.
Reply! Readies for Massive Re-launch of Web Site By Beth McGuire Reply!, the online performance-based e-marketing solution company for the real estate industry, is scheduled in late August to re-launch its Web site, www.reply.com, with a combination of unmatched information, tools and services to make life’s big decisions easier for consumers. “We will be improving the content and decision-making tools and building a leading site for both the real estate and automotive categories [Phase II of the re-launch],” says Payam Zamani, chairman and CEO of Reply! Inc. “The new site will be interactive and will help the consumer go through the home-buying process more efficiently. We will have a one-stop shop with several unique aspects that our competitors don’t offer.” Reply!’s new site will also have a sophisticated aerial-mapping home valuation tool with data overlays containing relevant information, including information on school districts, crime rates, climate, neighborhood demographics and detailed graphing of market trends for a given home, zip code, city, state or county. Over the last two years, Zamani has been growing a local Realtor network to support his online segment by offering the “human touch” that is so needed in real estate transactions. Currently, the company has a network of over 17,000 local Realtors around the nation who Reply! consumers can contact for real estate assistance. “The idea is not to bypass the agent, but bring consumers back in touch with agents,” says Zamani. “We’re using the great consumer hook to generate more traffic.” Reply! recently celebrated the benchmark of attracting over 2 million consumers that have requested Realtor referrals to complete their real estate transactions. “We now have a footprint that extends to almost every neighborhood in the U.S. We believe it’s incredibly important to have a highly consumer-centric Web site,” says Zamani. “From our perspective, the business that will win will build relationships with the consumer.” Over the last year, Reply! has grown considerably, having closed $17 million in financing led by Bank of America nine months ago and acquiring Connecting Neighbors back in January. The company has put the money to work quickly, building a large sales force and the management team necessary to build a large organization, create a national footprint, and provide services to every neighborhood. Since acquiring its financing, Reply! has grown its workforce to currently employ over 300 people. RE
Catching the Wave
Making a splash in the surging second-home market By Beth McGuire Ironic as it seems in the media glare of a slowing real estate market, there is no question that the second home market is hot and getting hotter. According to the National Association of Realtors, nearly 40% of all home sales last year were for second homes and, in spite of increasing prices, rising interest rates and a mixed economic outlook, busy upper-tier real estate sales professionals think it’s a trend that is likely to continue. “For one thing,” says Bob Norris, owner of Prudential Northeast Properties in Bangor, Maine, “the second and vacation home markets are not as affected by the general economic climate. These buyers can afford what they want, and what they want are getaways in attractive resort areas where they and their families can play.” According to the Maine Real Estate Information System, Norris explains, sales in his state increased more than 5% this May compared with the same time last year, and property—especially oceanfront property—is selling briskly. “We’ll always have a market for that,” he explains, “as well as for luxury lakeshore homes along Maine’s desirable lake areas.” To a great extent, the thirst for second—and even third homes nationwide—is led by the nation’s 77 million Baby Boomers, many of whom are in their peak earning years and looking forward to retirement. “Every seven seconds in this country, someone is turning 50,” says Earl Lee, president of Prudential Real Estate Affiliates, Inc. “Throughout their lifetimes, this generation of Boomers has shaped the nation’s taste for SUVs, healthy snacks and technology. Today, they are out there looking for luxury properties and the opportunity for us to meet those needs is significant and growing every day.” Several factors, Lee notes, are helping to drive the unprecedented search for second homes. Years of hefty home-price appreciation have left many Boomers equity-rich. Others are inheriting wealth from their more conservative parents. Finally, federal tax law changes in 1997 have altered the rules governing capital gains—in some situations allowing primary home sellers to use part of their tax-sheltered gain toward the purchase of a second home. “Many of those sellers are now downsizing to a luxury condo in the city center as their primary residence and using some of their hefty equity to buy a vacation home as well,” notes Norris. In fact, a recent poll by Harris Interactive shows that Baby Boomers—those born between 1946 and 1964—own 57% of all vacation/seasonal homes. In the year-round California/ Nevada vacationland of Lake Tahoe, where 75% of properties are second or vacation homes, “$1 million may buy you a property with a lake peek, but a lake view with all the amenities may cost $4 million plus,” says George Koster of Prudential California Realty’s South Lake Tahoe office. “But locale and amenities are what these migrating Baby Boomers are looking for.” In New Hampshire’s pastoral Lake Winnipesauke region, which served as the setting for “On Golden Pond,” privacy is a natural attribute and lakefront ‘trophy homes’ are always in demand. “In the lakeside communities around Winnipesauke, celebrities can count on anonymity,” says Rick Mazzerella of Prudential Spencer Hughes Real Estate in New Hampshire. “Nobody bothers them at the post office or the grocery store, and that’s a plus they are willing to pay for.” For reasons that vary with each locale, second and vacation homes remain a hot ticket in resort areas throughout the country. “In Santa Fe, we’re drawing record numbers of people who want to buy now and retire here in two to five years,” says Philippe Jacquot, a resort and recreation specialist (RRS) with Prudential Santa Fe Real Estate. “New Mexico has great scenery, perfect weather, low crime, low traffic, and every cultural venue from art galleries to the opera. Who wouldn’t want to live here?” So great is the draw, Jacquot explains, that buyers in the historic district of Santa Fe are paying $1 million or more for a 1,200-square-foot adobe casita with one tiny bath and no garage—and up to $15 million for larger homes with many luxury amenities. Like the Fine Homes Specialist designation, the Fine Homes designation Jacquot has earned is available to Prudential Real Estate affiliate members who have met the brand’s professional quality standards as well as the educational and experience requirements set by the Worldwide Recreation and Resort Council. The RRS and Fine Homes Specialist Directories provide contact information for affiliate members who have successfully earned these designations. So as Jon Clark, a relocation director with Prudential California Realty in San Diego points out, a broker or sales professional need not live in a resort area to benefit from the vacation home boom. “There’s great benefit in being with a quality brand that has an effective networking system,” Clark says. “Prudential Real Estate’s broker-to-broker and agent-to-agent referral programs make it easy to ensure that your clients receive meticulous service no matter where they wish to buy a home.” He cites a recent transaction involving a buyer referred by a broker in San Francisco. The buyer purchased property in Loreto Bay, Mexico through a Mexican affiliate of Prudential California Realty, Southern California. Prudential Real Estate has offered training classes for the Fine Homes Specialist and RRS designations since 2001, and drew more than 180 active professionals to a recent networking retreat in Beverly Hills, California. Broker Cathie Daniel and six sales professionals at Prudential Water-front Properties in Smith Mountain Lake, Virginia, recently earned their RRS designations. “Smith Mountain Lake is secluded and lovely, and more in demand every day,” Daniel says. “As resort-area professionals, we plan to take advantage of the referral network Prudential Real Estate has in place.” RE
PROFESSIONAL GROWTH Summer Stock
By Mark Leader Summer is the perfect time to catch a live theatre performance put on by a local theatre company. Besides summer stock, however, there are other things we should be taking stock of at this time of year. Real estate tends to slow down during August. In a market that is already slowing, the additional malaise affords us all with the time we need to look carefully and honestly at where we are relative to our annual goals: What additional prospecting opportunities are available? Who is due for a “touch” from you? How is the database management going? Is it up to date? Is the data accurate? Do you need to add more contacts to grow your opportunities?’ What new avenues of business should be pursued that have not been taken advantage of previously? If your business is limited to working buyers, then add FSBOs. If you’re comfortable with FSBOs but have not tackled expireds, the time is now. August is a great time to study, listen to educational CDs and take advanced real estate training. Wouldn’t this be a great time to start working on your Accredited Buyer Representative or Certified Residential Specialist designations? There is compelling evidence presented by the National Association of Realtors showing that agents who have acquired designations earn far more than those who never move to the next level. If the game is scheduled and you’re going to play, you may as well win! How are you feeling physically? Is this the time to work on getting healthy? This is not about a diet. It’s about taking stock of your health and recognizing that to be successful in any pursuits you have a far easier time when you are fit from the inside out. With the challenges in the market, only the strong will thrive. When you feel better, you’re more productive. And, it is productivity, not activity, that generates success. How’s your work area? Do you go to your home or work office (or car) and feel trapped in a disaster zone…clutter, confusion and mayhem abound. That’s no way to stay focused. While we may not all subscribe to the premise that cleanliness is next to godliness, a well-organized work environment is conducive to effective use of time. When your time is money and life (no salary here), even a few hours spent hunting things down are wasted. What is your value per hour? How could you redeploy that time to increase business opportunities? Take stock and see where the revelations take you! RE Mark Leader is the president of Mark Leader Courses. For more information, please visit www.leaderschoice.com, or e-mail
mail@leaderschoice.com.
BEST PRACTICES Prioritization for Today’s Economic Environment By Jeff Mandel With the market now softening, many broker/owners who have become more familiar with five-star amenities and services—and the excess spending associated with them—are now challenged with trying to preserve the sales volume and profits they achieved during the last few years. The question they are faced with is, “how?” Managing Day-To-Day Responsibilities It is easy to become overwhelmed with the number of tasks that need to be accomplished on any given day. One of the best practices in managing those tasks is great planning on a daily, weekly, monthly and yearly basis. The key is to not become overwhelmed. When this occurs, follow these steps, which are similar to solving a puzzle: - Build the foundation or outer edge so that you have boundaries and a frame. - Break the puzzle into segments of similar colors and patterns so you can more effectively solve for segments of the bigger picture. - Look for the interconnectivity between the completed segments and bridge the gaps, using historical learnings, prospective insight and analysis to complete your final picture. This formula sounds simple, but if executed with focus and precision, it produces amazingly effective results. Utilization of Resources In far too many organizations, a disconnect exists between management and the team responsible for execution. Management often intuitively “knows” what it wants to accomplish, but the team is left to infer the strategy because it is rarely disseminated or communicated effectively. This is a classic case of a lack of effective prioritization. To create effective prioritization, you must start by developing a great strategic plan for what you want your organization to accomplish over the next one to three years.
Narrow your focus to the top three initiatives that will provide the highest probability of delivering world-class service levels, along with increased profits and profit margins to your core business. Celebrate your successes but remain focused on your strategy, business prioritization and resource allocations. Doing so will allow you to not only maintain, but to also grow your volume and profit margins. RE Jeff Mandel is the founder and president of Prism Professional Solutions (Prism). For more information, please e-mail jmandel@prismprosolutions.com(www.prismprosolutions.com).
TRAINING The Agent’s Newest Indispensable Tool Blogging: Why it’s here to stay By Jeff Szolomayer Until recently, Weblogs were viewed as nothing more than a curiosity, a kind of quasi-voyeuristic method of online journaling—a cult-like phenomenon or faintly odd hobby. This is evidenced by the fact that even the most recent version of Microsoft Word fails to recognize new buzzwords like “blog,” “Weblog” and “bloggers.” Make no doubt, though, that blogging is the newest darling of the Internet, not a passing fad. It’s here to stay, and will only continue to grow with time, therefore demanding our attention. Why? Simply put, blogging affords the agent and consumer both the right and the platform to provide an unfettered, unbiased exchange of ideas and free debate in an anonymous, yet public environment. Blogging is rapidly developing into an instrument whose purpose, among others, is to establish an online presence, improve visibility, build a sense of community, maintain an open dialogue for clients and prospects, and offer valuable information—all of which is accomplished in a facade-less, unfiltered, more candid way. The blog is also an untapped, powerful tool for the tech-savvy agent, another high-tech weapon in the real estate sales arsenal that should be used in tandem with the myriad of innovations such as Web sites, search engine optimization, and video and audio broadcasting to strengthen the agent’s overall marketing package. As more and more blogs sprout up online, sprawl has become an issue. Bloggers don’t just want any old platform, but a meaningful and far-reaching one. As a growing number of agents and consumers congregate to share opinions on a trusted blog site, so the cumulative discussion between parties is stimulated and enhanced. Value in action occurs, creating a direct, 100% unpolluted, totally closed pipeline of consensual information flow between a potential or current customer and that customer’s provider of choice. One real estate blog site in particular, Realblogging.com, has risen rapidly through the Internet blogosphere. Launched in April 2006 and billed as “The Official Real Estate Industry Blog,” the site continues to gather momentum with an eclectic mix of industry visionaries, leaders and new paradigm thinkers—over 30 formidable individuals whose authoritative voices echo throughout the site 24/7. The name “RealBlogging” is a slight play on words: “real” defines both its industry and its authenticity. Folks who continue to spearhead and pioneer change in the industry—John Tuccillo, Stefan Swanepoel, Michael Russer, Jeremy Conaway and Stu Siegel, for example—represent just a small fraction of the industry leaders who have already signed on as contributors to provide a place where agents, buyers, sellers, and anyone else interested in joining the fray can stop by and engage the topic cloud. Frankly, it is refreshing to witness the real estate industry gathering together to take bold leadership in talking, sharing and blogging in an open and honest manner about issues central to its participants. As more traditional advertising vehicles continue to lose market share to their digital cousins, the real estate industry would be wise to gain as much understanding as we can about all of the potential advantages inherent in blogging. It’s a fascinating, organic thing to behold. RE Jeff Szolomayer is in corporate communications for The RealtyU Group. For more information, visit www.realblogging.com.
TOOLS OF THE TRADE Outsourcing Ad Management Empowers Sales AdWriter AdVantage allows agents to put their efforts toward selling Having a marketing and advertising platform that adjusts and changes is essential for Coldwell Banker Colorado, according to Director of Marketing-Colorado Todd Moir. The company’s more than 2,000 sales associates need to be able to put their energy toward what matters most—their clients; not worrying about whether or not they’ve made another ad deadline. Enter AdWriter, whose AdVantage advertising management system automatically writes real estate ad copy directly from the listing’s raw data. The company also created Coldwell Banker Colorado’s unique online property search—Externet®. Coldwell Banker Colorado has been working with AdWriter for about four years; over that time, the company—like the rest of the industry—has seen a shift in consumers’ demands, leading the company to abandon its print version of a buyer’s guide and to create an online buyer’s guide—www.coloradohomes.com. “With our online buyer’s guide, AdWriter has really helped us step it up a notch; it shows we’re on the cutting edge,” Moir says. “Our buyer’s guide is live and dynamic. During the search, consumers can get in touch with any of our agents and the entire site is available with a click of a button in either English or Spanish.” What’s more, Moir says the ability to automatically write ads for each property is an important timesaver for agents. However, if an agent wants to write his or her own ad copy, he or she can do so—“The program can be stopped for something as small as a single word,” he says. “What’s great about that is that our agents can have the program write the ad copy and then make minor changes if they wish. It allows agents to be more in tune with ad copy and marketing.” Because it’s all Web-based, agents can upload photos, add features of the home and approve their ads from anywhere at anytime. These features, Moir says, are invaluable.
“It’s all at their fingertips,” he says. “The system allows them to do what they’re best at—selling—instead of having to deal with the intricacies of placing ads. “It used to be that you would cross your fingers that you would get the ad to the newspaper on time,” he adds. “Now, we can program when to place the ads. You can do it from your PDA—whether you’re on the golf course, at the beach or just at home.”
But even after the ads are placed and the listings are online, Moir says AdWriter is still working for his group. “The reporting is outstanding,” he says. “Agents can go in and see how often a property ad has run, the number of clicks on the Web site—it’s all very helpful. It gives agents the ammunition and information to go back to their clients and say, ‘You’ve had only X number of hits and this is why’.” Besides the program itself, Moir says AdWriter’s flexibility and willingness also makes it easy to work with the company. “They are always so open to enhancing the program for us,” he says. “They’ve never said, ‘no, we can’t do that.’ They adapt quickly to our needs and quickly enhance the system accordingly. “The program is designed in a way that has made things more efficient and has cut the time spent on everything in half,” he adds. “Our lives in this business are already so fast-paced and complicated. Having a full ad management system like this is invaluable as a complement to our comprehensive brokerage services offering.” —Stephanie Andre
Worth Its Weight in Gold
AmeriSpec helps first-time buyer avoid health hazards First-time buyer Gail DeBiak was this close to buying a home full of health hazards earlier this year. Relocating from Boston to the Chicago suburbs, she had already put down a deposit and was ready to pack up the moving truck. All that remained was the home inspection, which she’d scheduled with AmeriSpec after receiving a recommendation to use the company. While she didn’t know what to expect, she asked her inspector, Bob Tasso, to “look for the big-cost items.” Quickly she discovered that beyond those “big-cost items” was a house full of harmful substances: carbon monoxide leaking from the furnace and fuzzy mold growing in the attic. As DeBiak says, “Bob called me over while in the crawl space in the attic and showed me that it was just covered in mold. He said, ‘This is still growing. This is more than a little problem.’ I was so grateful to him because it prevented me from buying the property.” What’s more, the sellers were thankful as well—“The woman in the home was pregnant,” she explains. “They were just stunned. In fact, they asked me if it was OK to get a copy of the home inspection report.” A short time later, DeBiak found a second home (which she requested Tasso to inspect) that she purchased. “He was just so thorough and very straightforward; he never rushed through anything,” she explains. “There’s no question he couldn’t answer—whether it was about changing the filters in a furnace or about cracks in a wall. He would also give me his opinion on whether things were or were not worth bringing up to the sellers. He’d say, ‘you can fix this at little cost’ or ‘all this takes is a little caulking’.” Kathy Bourdage, co-owner of AmeriSpec Bourdage Property Inspections Inc., says Tasso and his fellow inspectors provide the thoroughness and attention to detail that they would want if they were the customer. “What’s great about our guys is that no matter how many inspections they go on, they still go through it like it’s their first time—that’s why they do such a great job,” she says. “They understand that our clients are excited and that it’s really important. “AmeriSpec gives us the tools, such as a yearly inspector training and education, and additional marketing materials, but our inspectors will make or break our business,” Bourdage adds. “They understand how important it is to warn home buyers of the potential problems with a home.” To that end, on the home that DeBiak purchased, Tasso warned her of a potential block-up in the sewer, which she decided not to bring up to the sellers. Two days after moving in, the sewer backed up. “I ended up calling Bob for the name of a plumber,” she explains. “I knew if I called him that the plumber would be someone I could trust and be very professional.”
But despite her rough journey to homeownership, DeBiak says working with AmeriSpec and Tasso put her mind at ease. “I can’t say enough how much stress the inspection took off of me and my decision,” she says. “When you move from place to place and don’t know the area, you feel like you’re standing in a baseball field waiting to be hit. Working with people I could trust really made me feel much less vulnerable. “The investment in a home inspection is so worth it,” she adds. “As a buyer, you already have a lot of issues to worry about. Let the inspector make sure this is a good home for you to purchase.”
— Stephanie Andre Making Marketing Easy FreePrinters.com simplifies Realtor printing needs Dana Au, a Realtor with Prudential California in the Danville/Pleasanton area outside San Francisco, says she is so busy selling houses that a 70-hour work week is the norm for her. In the last year, she has had only one day off. She figures one of the reasons she and the five other agents on the Bayhill Team do so much business is that they put out “lots of really high-quality marketing materials. “We do everything in-house. I mean everything. I bet we make as many as 75,000 prints a month,” says Au, explaining that the bulk of the team’s printed materials are postcards and brochures. The busy agent says one of the reasons her team is able to print so many color postcards and brochures is because of its relationship with Flower Mound, Texas-based FreePrinters.com. The Texas company supplies businesses with free color printers and in return, that company is obligated to buy all of its ink from FreePrinters.com. “We use FreePrinters because of the savings,” says Au. “If we went to a printing company to put out our marketing materials it would cost us at least three times as much.” What’s more, Au says she is able to put out very high quality copies with the work center. FreePrinters.com President Dennis Walthers agrees with Au’s assessment and says he believes that is one of the reasons busy real estate offices have been turning to his firm. “Copying, scanning and printing all present their printing challenges for growing offices,” he says. “A common concern I encounter in dealing with design firms and graphic artists is the worry that the higher the volume, the lower the quality. Our printers and copiers work around those problems.” Au adds that FreePrinters.com is always responsive when the Realtor team has a problem. “Really, the inconvenience is not great and so we will gladly spend the money on their ink because the customer service is good and the price is unbeatable.” Going forward, although the Bayhill Team’s contract with the printing company is almost up, Au is certain that they will renew: “As long as we have a warranty and they continue to fix any problems, there is just no other way to put out the amount and quality of brochures and postcards at such a low cost.” — Lesley Geary
Raising the Bar Savannah Realtor relies on WIN Home Inspection for superior service Savannah, Georgia-based Realtor Claudia Armbrister has a golden roster of clients that includes buyers from all over the world. While the RE/MAX Savannah agent says meeting and helping people from places like Australia and London is very satisfying, she says the worldwide clients also bring with them an unusual set of problems: “I figure 50 percent of the time my clients are not even there for the closing,” she says. “They may be moving from Australia to Savannah and cannot possibly make the closing.” To that end, Armbrister depends heavily on Seattle-based WIN Home Inspection, a national inspection company servicing 32 states across the country. Thanks to WIN’s “top inspection process,” the Realtor enjoys peace of mind knowing that the house is in top-notch shape for her clients. “I have clients coming to me from all over the world and the typical inspectors writing inspections on their clipboards just don’t provide the level of service I require for my clients,” says Armbrister emphatically. On the contrary, she explains, WIN Home Inspection is setting a new standard of service in Savannah by delivering exactly the type of home inspections she needs. “WIN Home Inspection provides very professional, very personal service right from the get-go,” she continues. “John Underwood, the WIN home inspector in Savannah to whom I refer my clients, is very well qualified to do inspections. Home buyers are encouraged to attend the inspection so he can explain any potential issues the house might have. While this isn’t possible for some of my out-of-town clients, WIN Home Inspection sends out e-mailed reports and reviews findings with my clients via phone to keep them involved in the inspection process. “John is totally computer savvy—he walks every part of the house and types into his computer room by room by room. He doesn’t miss a thing,” says Armbrister. Another important reason for using an inspector from WIN, explains Armbrister, is the remarkable patience WIN home inspectors have with buyers and sellers; they are very willing to educate clients about the inner workings of the house. “Because so many of my clients are from other countries, many of them don’t speak English as a first language and don’t fully understand the different components of the home. The inspector from WIN Home Inspection just walks them through it all and explains very patiently how everything works. I had one client the inspector spent four hours with—and that was after the inspection was already finished!” Perhaps most importantly, says Armbrister, is the high level of customer satisfaction she experiences by using WIN Home Inspection. The company sends out detailed surveys to every home buyer/seller and real estate professional associated with the transaction and Armbrister reports consistent high rankings from her clients for WIN. Concludes Armbrister: “WIN Home Inspection is so thorough and so well respected that if a home seller has WIN conduct an inspection before putting his or her home on the market and the seller advertises that WIN has inspected the property, that’s a selling point worth its weight in gold.” — Lesley Geary | 
