RealBlogging.com Sees Spirited Debate on Contentious Issues Industry leaders, agents & consumers exchange fire
RISMEDIA, July 19, 2006—RealBlogging.com has risen rapidly through the Internet blogosphere to claim a routine “Top 20” position as a favorite site of real estate bloggers. 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 40 formidable individuals whose authoritative voices echo through the site 24/7.
Bubbling high on the minds of many real estate professionals is the ongoing controversy surrounding listings and MLS. Recent debates included the dearth and death of branding, the fabrication of a new agency to police sensitive online real estate content, and the gross misappropriation of real estate marketing dollars by well-intentioned agents. Verl Workman discussed the visual appeal of online listings, while suggestions were even made about a new agency to police online real estate content and even the formation of a national listing management agency (NORED), whose purpose would be to monitor the theft of online listings, approve technological devices for the industry, and maintain the integrity of the commission structure.
In a blog penned by Jim Remley, the topic of branding finds itself on the chopping block, as he writes, “A study found that 96% of consumers would dump their favorite brand if a competing product offered more value at the same price.” Remley discusses four tips to help agents with ailing brands to revive the influence of their products and services. As a real estate auction pioneer and CEO of the J.P. King Auction company, Craig King discusses the power of words in the sale of homes on the auction block. Bloggers also chuckled at the misappropriation by Stuart Wolff of millions of Realtor.com and HomeStore dollars. His guilty finding and subsequent 165-year sentencing seemed fitting to the saga.
Of our nation’s growing oil addiction and its burden on the average American pocketbook, John Tuccillo quips, “I’m old enough to remember when $3 was the price of a tank of gas,” and lays out an earnest plea for the exploitation of all reliable domestic energy resources, including alternative and renewable opportunities. One blogger in particular compares the addiction of some brokers to new agents as commensurate with a crack addict’s obsessive habit for the drug – strong words for a regional office VP who has seen years of rookies pass through his office.
The large group of industry leaders already blogging on this site has again been expanded with the addition of Stu Seigel, Dirk Zeller, Verl Workman, Craig King, John Greer and Valleri Crabtree. They join a cadre of contributors who continue to spearhead and pioneer change in the industry – like Stefan Swanepoel, John Tuccillo, Jeremy Conaway, Terri Murphy, Ralph Roberts and Michael Russer – to provide a place where agents, buyers, sellers, and anyone else interested in joining the fray can stop by and engage the topic cloud. |
