This year’s faciliators and panelists not to be missed, include:

Facilitators
John Featherston, President & CEO, RISMedia; Chairman & Co-founder, RISMedia’s Top 5 in Real Estate Network
Allan Dalton, President & Co-founder, RISMedia’s Top 5 in Real Estate Network

Panelists
Gino Blefari, Founder, President & CEO, Intero Real Estate Services
Tami Bonnell, President, U.S. Organization, EXIT Realty Corp.
Jon Cook, President & CEO, Prudential California Realty
Jeff Davi, Real Estate Commissioner, State of California
Lawrence Lobpries, Marketing Director for Specialty Sales, Lowe’s Companies, Inc.
Rei Mesa, President & COO, Prudential Florida Real Estate Services
Spencer Rascoff, COO, Zillow
Rick Sharga, SVP, RealtyTrac
Mark Stark, Broker/Owner, Prudential Americana Group
Dennis Walsh, Founder, REbuildUSA™ Membership Network

All NAR full-conference and day-conference attendees are encouraged to attend this important discussion Friday, Nov. 13 from 12:30-2 p.m. at the San Diego Convention Center during the NAR conference.

Why should you attend? Each year, attendees walk away from the Power Broker Forum with tremendous insight into the best practices that have made our panelists the Power Brokers industry leaders they are today. In addition, you will have an opportunity to pose a question or two to these industry power players so make sure you’re prepared.

This year, the Forum will focus on how industry professionals can form strategies and excel in working with distressed properties, such as foreclosures, REOs and short sales.

RISMedia has an additional session on “Staying Up in a Down Market: Short Sales, Expireds & Price Reductions,” on Saturday, November 14 from 1:30-3 p.m. at the San Diego Convention Center during the NAR Conference. Once again, all NAR full-conference and day-conference attendees are encouraged to attend, however, the subject matter is geared toward agents.

This session will help Realtors clearly identify and explain short sales, expireds and price reductions to their clients, while also explaining their own understanding of the subject matter and how they will assist those clients. Realtors will also learn how they can use various marketing techniques to acquire more listings and how to implement a marketing strategy that benefits their own business, while also educating consumers on the nuances of today’s market.

Here is the breakdown of speakers at the Saturday session:

Facilitator
Allan Dalton, President & Co-founder, RISMedia’s Top 5 in Real Estate Network

Panelists
Becky Boomsma, Realtor, Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage
Valerie Fitzgerald, Realtor, The Valerie Fitzgerald Group, Coldwell Banker Beverly Hills
Julie Vanderblue, President, The Higgins Group
Rosemary West, Team Leader, The Rosemary West Team, RE/MAX of Joliet

For more information contact Stephanie Andre at Stephanie@rismedia.com or 203-855-1234 ext. 141 or visit http://rismedia.com/events/power-broker-forum-annual/.

RISMedia welcomes your questions and comments. Send your e-mail to: realestatemagazinefeedback@rismedia.com. 

For more real estate related headlines on RISMedia.com, be sure to see:
Jumpstarting Job Creation…Let Housing Lead the Way
Creating Efficiencies Keeps Business Running Smoothly

When the market is flying high and sticking a sign in the yard brings in multiple offers it can be easy to think you’re doing better than you necessarily are. The harsh reality is, however, a tougher market always exposes the real truth behind how you’re actually doing. And some of us have gotten off track. Below, I detail “The Five Detours on the Road to Success.” 

1. Lack of Accountability 

Every human being does better with accountability because we truly cannot see our own shortcomings; outside perspective is the best way to gain clarity on our patterns. 

2. Loss of Motivation 

Motivation, by its very nature, is designed to dissipate so we need to seek it out continually. As my friend and mentor, Zig Ziglar, says: “Motivation is like bathing. You have to do it on a daily basis!” 

3. In Need of Direction 

Once you get things moving and gain some momentum you actually need more direction than you did when you were just starting out. This is borne out by countless people who work their whole life and have nothing to show for it. 

4. Isolation 

All you have to do is watch the “Animal Planet” documentary on predators in the wild to know how detrimental isolation can be: Predators never attack the pack; they always look for the isolated, hurt, wounded, and lost, the ones who’ve stopped moving forward. Self-employed people are more predisposed to this isolation than anyone else. 

5. Drift 

While “isolation” is a predator, “drift” is a killer; it’s the “silent assassin” because we don’t know how far and how fast we’ve drifted until something catastrophic happens. 

As you can see, the “Five Detours” are things we all face and it can be easy to get off track in both business and our personal lives. But let’s examine the solution side of things. If there are detours, then rest assured there are also rules of the road to get you back on track. 

Stay on Track with These Rules of the Road 

1. Stay Accountable 

While it may not be natural to seek out accountability, let’s just have a look at what happens in its absence. Tiger Woods – the greatest golfer in the world – recently missed the cut at the British Open. Just so happens it was the first time in five years he didn’t bring his coach to a tournament. 

2. Brainstorm and Network with Others 

We humans do much better when we mastermind together, which is why we facilitate networking at our events, as well as in our Coaching programs and Small Groups. Surround yourself with positive, resourceful, successful people, because they’ll lift you up rather than drag you down. 

3. Plan Daily Doses of Motivation 

Just think of your daily motivation like an essential vitamin, with nothing but positive, good-for-you side effects. Plan daily doses by listening to affirming CDs in your car or by reading good books – just a few lines here or there will go a long way. 

4. Follow the System 

You know you’re in need of direction – everybody is. And we’ve developed a system that works. Now, I know that few people ever follow the system 100%, but what if that means you’re missing out on a 30% jump in your income?! Would that be worth increasing your commitment to the lead-generation activities by just 10%? The Referral Systems work; but only if you do! 

5. Work with a Coach 

A Coach has the expertise, tools and strategies to help you get your business cranking. That accountability and direction will help you avoid drift – the deadly killer. 

This much I do know…there’s a reason our Coaching Members averaged $192,000 in income in one of the worst markets we’ve seen… 

The fact that you’re still in business means you have weathered the storm and, as I’ve said before, a recession is a terrible thing to waste. Follow the rules of the road and you’ll be launching a great new year. Buffini & Company will be here to help. 

Brian Buffini is CEO and Founder of Buffini & Company. 

For more information, visit www.buffiniandcompany.com. 

RISMedia welcomes your questions and comments. Send your e-mail to: realestatemagazinefeedback@rismedia.com. 

Don’t miss these headlines on RISMedia.com:
Plenty of Stimulus Money Available for Energy Improvements
Credit Woes to Threaten Housing Recovery?

The extension is part of a $24 billion economic stimulus bill that will extend the $8,000 tax credit for homebuyers who are purchasing their first home from the current November 30 deadline and expands the program to offer a credit of $6,500 to homeowners who have lived in their current home for at least five years and are seeking to relocate. 

The following details apply to the homebuyer tax credit expansion: 

Who is Eligible
-First-time homebuyers, who are defined by the law as buyers who have not owned a principal residence during the three-year period prior to the purchase, may be eligible for up to an $8,000 tax credit.
-Existing homeowners who have been residing in their principal residence for five consecutive years out of the last eight and are purchasing a home to be their principal residence (“repeat buyer”), may be eligible for up to a $6,500 tax credit.
-All U.S. citizens who file taxes are eligible to participate in the program. 

Income Limits
Homebuyers who file as single or head-of-household taxpayers can claim the full credit ($8,000 for first-time buyers and $6,500 for repeat buyers) if their modified adjusted gross income (MAGI) is less than $125,000.
-For married couples filing a joint return, the combined income limit is $225,000.
-Single or head-of-household taxpayers who earn between $125,000 and $145,000, and married couples who earn between $225,000 and $245,000 are eligible to receive a partial credit.
-The credit is not available for single taxpayers whose MAGI is greater than $145,000 and married couples with a MAGI that exceeds $245,000. 

Effective Dates
-The eligibility period for the tax credit is for homes purchased after Nov. 6, 2009, and before May 1, 2010. However, home purchases subject to a binding sales contract signed by April 30, 2010, will qualify for the tax credit provided closing occurs prior to July 1, 2010. 

Types of Homes that Qualify
-All homes with a purchase price of less than $800,000 qualify, including newly-constructed or resale, and single-family detached, townhomes or condominiums, provided that the home will be used as their principal residence. Vacation home and rental property purchases do NOT qualify. 

Tax Credit is Refundable
-A refundable credit means that if the amount of income taxes you owe is less than the credit amount you qualify for, the government will send you a check for the difference.

-For example:
-A first-time buyer who qualifies for the full $8,000 credit who owes $5,000 in federal income taxes would pay nothing to the IRS and receive a $3,000 payment from the government. If you are due to receive a $1,000 refund, you would receive $9,000 ($1,000 plus the $8,000 first-time homebuyer tax credit).
-A repeat buyer who owes $5,000 would pay nothing to the IRS and receive $1,500 back from the government. If you are due to get a $1,000 refund, you would get $7,500 ($1,000 plus the $6,500 repeat buyer tax credit).
-All qualified homebuyers can take the tax credit on their 2009 or 2010 income tax return. 

Payback Provisions
The tax credit is a true credit. It does not have to be repaid unless the home owner sells or stops using the home as their principal residence within three years after the purchase. 

The www.federalhousingtaxcredit.com site is being updated. Check the site next week for more detailed information on the new tax credit. 

For more information, visit www.nahb.org. 

RISMedia welcomes your questions and comments. Send your e-mail to: realestatemagazinefeedback@rismedia.com. 

Don’t miss these top headlines on RISMedia.com:
Where Are All the REOs?
15 Billion in Credit Card Fees Charged! …and the New “Credit Card Act”

Special Session FAQs: 

What Is This Session About?
Staying Up in a Down Market–led by Top 5 in Real Estate President & Co-founder Allan Dalton–will delve into making the most and becoming the most successful in dealing with short sales, expireds and price reductions. 

Who Can Attend?
All NAR full-conference and day-conference attendees are encouraged to attend, however, the subject matter is geared toward agents. 

Why Should I Attend?
For these reasons:
1. This session will help Realtors clearly identify and explain short sales, expireds and price reductions to their clients, while also explaining their own understanding of the subject matter and how they will assist those clients.
2. Realtors will learn how they can use various marketing techniques to acquire more listings.
3. Attendees will learn how to implement a marketing strategy that benefits their own business, while also educating consumers on the nuances of today’s market. 

When/Where Is Staying Up in a Down Market?
This session will be held on Saturday, November 14 from 1:30-3 p.m. at the San Diego Convention Center during the NAR Conference. This session will be held in Room 29 A on the Upper Level. 

Who Is On the Panel?
Here is the breakdown of speakers: 

Facilitator–
Allan Dalton, President & Co-founder, RISMedia’s Top 5 in Real Estate Network 

Panelists–
Becky Boomsma, Realtor, Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage
Valerie Fitzgerald, Realtor, The Valerie Fitzgerald Group, Coldwell Banker Beverly Hills
Julie Vanderblue, President, The Higgins Group
Rosemary West, Team Leader, The Rosemary West Team, RE/MAX of Joliet 

Do I Need to Register?
No, registration is not required. As long as you are an NAR day-conference or full-conference attendee, there is open seating and no additional information is needed. 

What If I Have More Questions?
Contact Stephanie Andre at stephanie@rismedia.com or 203-855-1234 x141. 

For more information on all RISMedia events during NAR, visit http://rismedia.com/events/power-broker-forum-annual/power-broker-forum-whats-it-all-about/

RISMedia welcomes your questions and comments. Send your e-mail to: realestatemagazinefeedback@rismedia.com. 

For more real estate tips and topics on RISMedia.com, don’t miss:
Overcoming Fear of Foreclosure Critical for Many People to Keep Their Homes
Bad Economy Turns Renters into Roommates

Jim Dohr
President
Coldwell Banker Gundaker
St. Louis, Missouri 

Region served: Saint Louis metropolitan area
Years in real estate: 32
Number of offices: 27
Number of agents: 2,100
Average sales price: $200,000
Average time on market: 100 days
Best tip for dealing with difficult customers: Practice the Golden Rule and put yourself in the other person’s position. Always treat the customer right and everything else will take care of itself.
Keep meetings productive by…Starting and ending on time. Also, have an agenda and stick to it.
Key to staying profitable: You have to be willing to make tough decisions and do the right thing no matter what. When making these decisions, remain objective and remove emotion from the process as much as possible. 

What is your biggest challenge in today’s market and how is your company taking it on? Our biggest challenge is staying profitable in today’s declining market. We are coping with this challenge in that we are willing to look hard decisions in the eye and make them, but at the same time, remain sensitive to maintaining the company culture. With each decision we make, we focus on how it will affect our agents’ attitudes and employee morale. Keeping our company culture intact is crucial in today’s market. 

What’s your best strategy to get buyers to see a listed home? Our three best strategies to get buyers to see listed homes are to price it correctly, increase the commission payout that goes to the cooperating broker and have a comprehensive Internet marketing strategy. 

What are your best marketing techniques? Everything we do drives traffic to our website. Whether we use print advertising, billboards or TV, we direct everyone to our website because that is where the action is. 

How are you keeping consumers educated about today’s buying opportunities? We have a very interactive PR campaign taking place at the moment in which we are conducting interviews on radio, TV and through print. In addition, we spend a lot of time educating our agents and providing them with the tools they need, such as statistics and hard data so they can educate consumers from their end. 

How do you keep your agents motivated? Keeping our agents motivated starts with communication. We are always in touch with our agents, providing them with hard data and statistics and then using the data to find positive stories about the current market. We also conduct numerous workshops and hands-on training to help our agents focus on what is in their control. The workshops focus on relationships and basics like selling 101. We present ideas to enable our agents to work harder and smarter. 

What are the advantages to being able to offer your customers home warranties? The home warranties that we provide through American Home Shield have been a great tool for us. Statistics show that when a home has a warranty, it sells 23 days faster, on average, in addition to the price being 4% higher, on average, as well as the final price being closer to the listing price. Home warranties give our buyers peace of mind especially in today’s market, and they have been a huge advantage for us. 

RISMedia welcomes your questions and comments. Send your e-mail to: realestatemagazinefeedback@rismedia.com. 

For more headlines on RISMedia.com, be sure not to miss:
Business Lessons for Agents: Zero to Billionaire in 22 Years
Looking Ahead – California Association of Realtors Releases 2010 Housing Market Forecast

Kevin Faherty
Vice President of Operations and Sales
Centralized Showing Service
www.feedbackcentral.com 

Almost universally, sellers are instructed by their listing agents to make sure their house is clean and “showable.” Many sellers go to great efforts to pick up dirty clothes, organize, put the dogs in the car, turn on all the lights and bake cookies before the next showing in hopes that this showing will sell their home. 

The seller leaves their home with all the common fears of having strangers inside their home—evaluating them, seeing how they live, and judging whether their home is “worthy.” When the showing is over and the seller comes home, they wait. And wait. And then they wait some more. 

After going through all that trouble, sellers invariably want to know how the showing went. What did the buyer like? What didn’t they like? They’re usually willing to do whatever is necessary to make a sale happen—whether with the current buyer or a future buyer—but in order to make these changes, the seller needs feedback provided in a professional way. 

Many listing agents dutifully try to get feedback from the showing agent, but the showing agent doesn’t respond, even after repeated e-mails and calls. Some listing agents don’t even try. 

As an industry that promotes its professionalism—nay, sells its professionalism—to the public, it is crucial that agents make an attempt to provide feedback on showings. Not only will this improve the Realtor image, it will also assist sellers in upgrading their properties and changing their behavior. The combination of these factors can result in a faster sale. Everyone benefits. 

Some agents fear that providing feedback may someday come back to haunt them. After scheduling close to 50 million showing appointments, Centralized Showing Service, Inc. (CSS) has never had an instance where professionally provided feedback, positive or negative, has caused the showing agent to regret providing it or the listing agent from passing it along. 

RISMedia welcomes your questions and comments. Send your e-mail to: realestatemagazinefeedback@rismedia.com.

Regardless of the causes, the real estate market is going through some fundamental changes, and the real estate agents who will survive, are the ones most able to adapt to the new paradigm. The credit bubble distorted the market for some time, with so-called “luxury” mansions and condominium developments sprouting like weeds all across the world, making the term “luxury” all but useless to describe a property, spawning new improved, better-than-before superlatives like ultra-luxury. 

Many luxury real estate agents are discovering that they are not luxury real estate agents after all, and it takes more than granite counter tops and gourmet appliances to distinguish a luxury property from any other. This distortion in the marketplace means that amongst the vast array of property for sale, it is necessary to become more focused on a specific niche to be found. Zillow.com claims to have over 3 million homes for sale listed on their website, and rather like being faced with too many choices in a grocery store, this is probably off-putting to many potential buyers. Another aspect of the changing marketplace is the amount of foreclosure and bank properties for sale, with some estimates that around 50% of all sales currently are of financially distressed property. With sales volumes slowly picking up and prices still falling, it becomes necessary to specialize to attract potential buyers. 

The Internet is often the first place many buyers start their search for a property, and getting found for your particular geographic area is becoming more and more difficult. The competition is strong, and another approach is to specialize in small niches, which is proving a successful strategy for some agents. One example that comes to mind is Glenn Plantone at Viewpoint equity, who currently specializes in foreclosed condominiums in Las Vegas after seeing a opportunity and educating himself on this micro-market or niche. 

Buyers know that it is not possible to be an expert in all markets and for all property types, and are now expecting to find an expert in the niche that interests them. But how to create Web traffic to a particular niche is an interesting dilemma. The first step in any Web-based promotional campaign is to begin with the URL, or Web address of a particular property. Bank properties as an example. The term “bank properties” or a derivative using both of these words is searched for on Google approximately 14,000 times a month and is far less competitive than a broader search term which will have hundreds of thousands – perhaps millions of websites competing to be found higher up the search engine results. So, creating a URL such as http://bankproperties.com/listing-crestmoor-park-colorado-reo-81.html will have automatic authority over some thing such as http://joebloggsrealty/bankproperties/listing-crestmoor-park-colorado-reo-81.html because the search term is at the beginning of the URL and matches the term used. 

Thus, the first step in dominating a niche market online is here – using a niche property portal that matches your niche as closely as possible. Obviously, this is just the first step, but using this approach give obvious advantages over using a large “jack of all trades” portal where your property is listed with 3 million other properties. 

Mark Knowles is a long time professional real estate investor and analyst who now concentrates on online real estate. He currently writes the luxury property blog as the executive blogger for niche properties. He can be reached at mknowles@lux.com. 

RISMedia welcomes your questions and comments. Send your e-mail to: realestatemagazinefeedback@rismedia.com. 

For more real estate tips and topics on RISMedia.com, be sure to see:
1.4 Million Families Have Taken Advantage of First-Time Home Buyer Tax Credit, More Claims Expected
Freddie Mac Takes Its Home Affordable Modification Program to the Streets

RISMedia’s 14th Annual Power Broker Reception & Dinner—an invitation-only gala—recognizes the outstanding achievements of residential real estate’s most influential and charismatic leaders. The by-invitation-only event will be held on Friday, November 13 at the Hilton San Diego Bayfront Hotel.

‘Father Guido Sarducci’ is a fictional character made famous by comedian Don Novello. A chain-smoking priest with tinted eyeglasses, Sarducci worked in the U.S. as gossip columnist and rock critic for the Vatican newspaper L’Osservatore Romano and, later, as assistant managing editor for The Vatican Enquirer. 

Novello created the Sarducci character in the early ’70s, with several notable TV appearances on the Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour. Father Sarducci soon became widely recognized and loved as a result of his many appearances on Saturday Night Live in the late 70s, during which time Novello was also a writer for the show. 

Most of Father Sarducci’s appearances on SNL were on Weekend Update. But he also was featured in some memorable commercial parodies such as “Bocce Ball My Way.” 

For more information, please visit http://rismedia.com/events/power-broker-forum-annual/ or contact Stephanie Andre at stephanie@rismedia.com. To RSVP to this year’s event, please contact Paris Cheffer at paris@top5inrealestate.com. 

Don’t miss these top headlines on RISMedia.com:
Treasury Says Millions More in Foreclosures are Coming; Are You Ready?
Finding Your Dream Foreclosure: What to Know When You’re Buying an REO Property

Companies can deliberately infuse their cultures, from top to bottom, with the proverbial “attitude of gratitude.” In fact, those who don’t put gratitude on a pedestal, especially in today’s high-stress work environments, are shooting themselves in the foot. “Too many people leave work every day thinking, My boss doesn’t appreciate me,” says Liz Jazwiec, author of Eat That Cookie!: Make Workplace Positivity Pay Off…For Individuals, Teams and Organizations. “When you feel that your boss doesn’t fully value your work, you start to care a little less. You don’t provide the kind of service you would if you felt appreciated. You don’t make an effort to help your coworkers. “And when the majority of the people in a workplace feel this way, the overall environment is hugely impacted,” she adds. “Productivity decreases, turnover increases, and it can become very difficult to stay afloat, especially in a tough economy.” 

Jazwiec stresses that workplace gratitude isn’t something that is passed only from the boss to the employee. To have a real impact on workplace positivity, employees should show it to one another and to their bosses. And leaders and employees should show it to their customers. “It’s obvious when you are in a workplace where people value gratitude and graciousness,” says Jazwiec. “There is a really great vibe in those places. And when gratitude and graciousness are missing, it is equally evident. People in those environments seem to have a sense of entitlement. Coworkers who come into contact with them might say, ‘There is just no pleasing those people!’ Customers might say, ‘They just don’t care about me!’ Neither reaction is good for business.” 

The great thing about infusing gratitude into the workplace is that it can come from anyone, regardless of position. “If you are a leader, you can infuse gratitude from the top down, perhaps by making it a required standard of behavior for employees,” says Jazwiec. “And if you are an employee, you can start your own grassroots gratitude movement by expressing gratitude yourself and encouraging your coworkers to do so as well. Everyone—and I mean everyone—can show gratitude in a workplace and influence others to do so.” 

If you want to make this the season of gratitude at your organization, the following tips will help you hardwire workplace gratitude from the ground up. 

Say thanks. When someone does something kind for you, whether it’s your boss, your coworker, or a stranger, recognize it. A simple “thanks” will do. “You can’t expect people to appreciate you if you don’t receive their kindnesses and compliments with thankfulness,” says Jazwiec. “Sure, you might be skeptical if your boss goes to a leadership conference, and upon his return starts handing out compliments left and right. But just stop and think. Are those compliments making people happy? When you are recognized, does it give you even just the tiniest little twinge of happiness? 

Adopt an “it’s the thought that counts” attitude. Consider this scenario: A new VP at a hospital wants to do something special for her hardworking, overworked staff. It’s decided that pizza will be provided for the entire hospital staff, rolling out over a Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday to ensure that every person on every shift can take a pizza break. The pizza plan goes into effect and the VP, who arranged everything, walks around the departments, expecting to be welcomed with open arms by an appreciative staff. Instead she finds that many of the teams taking care of patients are upset because they can’t leave their patients to go down to the cafeteria where the pizzas are located. Meanwhile they complain, the business office and IT staffs are able to go to the cafeteria as they please. 

“Sometimes you have to take into account the intentions of your boss or your coworkers. If it is clear that they meant for something to be a way of thanking you or helping you, don’t complain about how they missed the mark. Thank them for thinking of you and move on.” 

Communicate openly and honestly. If it’s gratitude you need, tell someone. Often your leaders or coworkers can be so tied up in their own tasks that they forget about those working around them. The natural reaction when this happens is to either hold in your negative feelings or complain to another coworker. But a more proactive stance might be to opt for open and honest communication. 

Be prepared for some kind words. If you are unaccustomed to getting compliments, it may take some time for you to feel comfortable receiving them. Just practice and be prepared for some kind words. 

Thank those you serve. Once you have mastered the gratitude thing with your bosses and your coworkers, you need to move on to the people you serve. “When I first told my staff that we ought to be thanking our patients, one of them replied, ‘What are we supposed to say? Thank you for breaking your leg?’” relates Jazwiec. “Obviously not. I suggested they say, ‘Thank you for putting your trust in us today.’ Regardless of your line of work, there is no better time to start showing your customers you appreciate them than in a slow economy. 

Know that gratitude encourages repeat performances. Leaders, remember the behavior you recognize will be repeated. If you think an employee handled a disgruntled customer well or showed great proficiency in managing a group project, let him or her know about it and they’ll work hard to do the same, or even better, next time. And employees, if you acknowledge your boss’s efforts to show gratitude, they will keep doing it. Thank your boss for going to bat for you and your coworkers over a new piece of equipment you need or a pay raise dispute, and he or she will be more likely to do it again in the future. 

About the Author
Liz Jazwiec is a nationally renowned speaker, strategist, and consultant who has shared her passion for leadership, engagement, and service with audiences across the country. 

RISMedia welcomes your questions and comments. Send your e-mail to: realestatemagazinefeedback@rismedia.com. 

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Seniors Increasingly Realizing Nest Egg in Life Insurance Policies
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In my 30 years of coaching people to be successful, I have found that at the core of everything is confidence. Call it a belief in yourself or whatever you want, there is no sense in creating a marketing plan without it. Confidence is not necessarily something you are born with, rather, like a muscle, it is developed over time with practice. This article will give you some key tips on how you can gain more confidence. 

Tip 1: Focus on What You Want - Where do you put your focus most of the time? Here’s a hint: if you feel happy, grateful and hopeful, then you’re probably putting your attention on what you want. If you’re feeling discouraged, depressed or anxious, then you’re focusing on what you don’t want. 

One of my clients recently discussed her increasing feelings of anxiety as she was working with her clients in selling their house. When I asked her what she was focusing on, she admitted that she had been thinking about the possible failure of the transaction. When she changed her perspective and focused on the transaction closing, her feelings immediately changed into hope. 

Here’s a tip: Whenever you find yourself focusing on what you don’t want, simply ask yourself, “what do I want?” Most likely you’ll choose positive thoughts, images and feelings as you focus on your desired outcome. Not only will this brighten your mood and give you more confidence, but also, it will increase your chances of the deal closing. 

Tip 2: Tame your Inner Gremlin - Have you ever noticed that there is a part of you that picks on you, beats you up, expects you to be perfect and is very hard on you if you make a mistake? That voice is called your Inner Gremlin, also known as your Inner Critic, or Inner Judge. We all have one. The question is whether it’s running you or whether you are running it. Does it have power over you? Guess what? It only has the power that you give it. Stop listening to it and over time, it will be tamed. 

How do you take your Inner Gremlin? Here’s a simple technique: When you notice that there is a voice in your head either putting you down, or berating you in any way, use a simple stop technique. First, interrupt the pattern of thoughts by saying to yourself, stop. Next, take a deep breath. Finally, use this opportunity to put in a positive new thought. For example, if your old thought was, “I don’t have what it takes to succeed”, stop it, breathe, and put in your new thought, “I have all the resources I need to succeed.” 

Tip 3: Clear your Inner Conflicts – How do you know if you have an inner conflict? Most of my clients aren’t immediately aware of their inner conflicts, but it becomes revealed through resistance. How many times have you told yourself “I need to get on the phone and call my sphere of influence,” and then you don’t do it? 

That’s a typical example of how an inner conflict would be noticed. You’ll notice resistance to what you told yourself you should do. In this example, one part of you is saying, “Make the calls” and the other part of you is saying, “I don’t want to intrude. I don’t want them to think I am soliciting.” The reasons could go on and on. 

Whenever you find yourself in resistance and you just can’t force yourself to do something no matter how hard you try, do a little introspection, and identify the voices in your head that are in conflict. Then assume the role of the mediator. Just as you mediate in your business between two or more people, do the same within yourself and find a solution that pleases both parts. 

Tip 4: Create a Successful Future Self – Often when I work with a client who needs more confidence, I help them create a successful future self. They visualize what they are going to look like in the future, having accomplished their goals. Then they practice feeling what it feels like to be that future self. As they sink deeply into the feelings of accomplishment, contentment and confidence, they are creating a vision that inspires them. 

You can be in business either pushing yourself to succeed, which creates “burn out” or you can allow yourself to be pulled towards success by a vision. Creating your future self is one way to have a vision. Perhaps you can picture your future self on a vacation, lying on the beach. 

Here’s a tip: to reinforce this idea of a successful future self, make a collage. Get several magazines and take out photos that inspire you. Photos that you’d like to see happen in your future. See yourself having outlets for all that money that you’ll be making. 

Tip 5: Only engage in interactions that are win/win - How many times have you gone into a situation with a prospective client while at the same time a voice in your head was saying something like, “Don’t do it. This doesn’t feel right?”

Here’s a tip—trust your hunches. If you have doubts about a client or a situation, most likely you’re right. 

I’ve had dozens of clients who are recovering from burn out because they forgot to ask themselves, one thing, “Is this going to be a win/win?” According to Dr. Steven Covey, it’s either win/win or no deal. Next time your gut feelings are telling you to back out, listen to them. It’s better to back out in the beginning than to get involved in a situation where you can’t back out later. 

Tip 6: Practice extreme self care and self maintenance - Think about it for a moment. What is your most valuable asset? Is it your home or your car? No, it’s your health. Yet I see so many people who try to be successful but then neglect their basic physical needs for rest, for sleep and for healthy foods. 

Remember, you are your business. Your most important asset is you, your health and your personal production capacity. The healthier you are, the more energy you’ll have and the more you’ll produce. What are the areas you need to improve in self maintenance? 

Dr. Steven Covey talks about “sharpening the saw.” He recommends taking an hour a day for making sure that your physical, emotional, mental and spiritual needs are met. Maybe taking an hour a day is beyond your reach at the moment. What small steps can you take to improve your energy level and vitality? 

Tip 7: Know that what you have to offer is valuable - Effective marketing is based on the idea that you know your services are valuable and you are willing to communicate that in the marketplace on a consistent basis. How valuable are your services? What is your unique selling point? What do people get when they work with you that they can’t get anywhere else? 

When someone asks you what you do, what do you say? Let me demonstrate a “so-so” response compared to a response that will get someone’s attention. Suppose you’re a real estate agent and someone says, “So, what do you do?” A “so-so” answer would be, “I am a real estate agent with _____ company. “ 

Compare that to this. Someone asks you what you do and you say, “Well, you know how people get stressed out when they are buying or selling a home? Well, I take care of all the details and make sure that the process goes smoothly so that my clients can relax. I am a real estate agent with _____ company.” Which real estate agent would you like to work with? Here’s a tip—this kind of answer will only work if you totally believe in yourself and know your services are valuable. 

There are many aspects to becoming more successful. These seven powerful tips are just the beginning. Before you create your next marketing plan, check inside and take a reading of your confidence level. If it needs a boost, be sure to take care of that before you do anything else. When you are overflowing with confidence, that’s the time to get out there and start marketing. 

Dr. Maya Bailey, author of Law of Attraction for Real Estate Professionals, integrates 20 years of experience as a psychologist and 12 years as a business coach with her expertise in the Law of Attraction. Get Bailey’s free report, 7 Simple Strategies For More Clients in 90 Days, by visiting www.90DaystoMoreClients.com. 

RISMedia welcomes your questions and comments. Send your e-mail to: realestatemagazinefeedback@rismedia.com. 

For more real estate headlines on RISMedia.com, be sure not to miss:
‘Teal Is the New Green’: How One Company’s Focus on the Environment Is Creating New Marketing Strategy for Agents
Make the Home Buyer Tax Credit More Easily Available at Closing

1. Remember, It’s Not About You…It’s About Them
When buyers or sellers want information on moving, it’s what’s on their mind that is going to cause them to spend time on your site. 

2. Have Highly Visible Buttons and Calls to Action
Have specific sections on your site that showcase your expertise in certain areas. See www.Kristan-Cole.com to see how quickly you can get information without the hassle. 

3. Sprinkle Specific Property Searches – Increase Quality Lead Generation
On targeted pages of your website, add the ability for a site visitor to search for specific kinds of properties and in specific price ranges. Every page should creatively showcase listings. Think about even setting searches by farm area or neighborhood…now that’s creative. See www.LindaHall.com/fort_mill to get an idea. 

4. Generate Leads with a Strong IDX system
There can be huge differences between an IDX that just shows houses for sale and an IDX that has “clickable components” that generate high-quality leads. Visitors to your website who are searching for homes through your IDX will be prompted to register after viewing listing details, leading to more quality leads for you. Also, adding features such as “schedule an appointment,” “e-mail listing,” and “save” are key elements to consider. 

5. Cultivate Leads and Stay in Front of Them
There is a big difference in lead inquiries and actual leads. You want to incubate the lead and keep them in front of you. Have automated letters go out to specific niches. For example, buyers looking for REOs or foreclosures should get specialized letters on those subjects, not information on general buying. 

Tricia Andreassen is CEO/founder of Pro Step Marketing. She has 19+ years experience in real estate and as a Web marketing and branding coach. 

For more information, please visit www.prostepmarketing.com. 

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“We’ve done the keyword technology thing, we’ve done the sponsored links thing, we tried reciprocal linking and we hired a website company to build us a real estate site (because—they said—‘that’s all we do’ and they said they’d market it for us, too). It was nothing but a complete disaster. 

“We have spent thousands and thousands of dollars that we have basically flushed. We spent all that money and had nothing to show for it. Worse, we had no idea of the huge amount of problems we would have establishing our site again after our Web designer pulled our site down and handed us a disc with our files on it because we cancelled our $400/month ‘keyword technology’ agreement with him that we had pre-paid for 16 months. His ‘technology’ didn’t work, we never sold a home from it, we had prepaid 16 months of it, and–boom! We were on our own.” 

Ready to Dump Online Marketing
It wasn’t always that way for Willard Morris. When he started selling new construction almost 30 years ago, he didn’t even need a license. People delivered, generally, on what they said they would deliver, and vendors tried to provide useful service to clients. When the Internet started to be known for its impact on real estate sales, Willard was quick to try to seize the opportunity to tap into the vast resource it promises to be. 

The only problem was that he needed professional assistance to help him, and for the longest time, he couldn’t seem to find effective solutions that actually would help him sell houses to Internet buyers. He was so disgusted, he said, that he was thinking of just leaving ‘Internet success’ to someone else. (His story sounds like a nightmare thousands of agents have also had). 

But—even a seasoned pro like Willard Smith has a limit of patience and after the debacle with his webmaster; he was ready to give up on the Internet. “When someone asked me if I were receiving leads from my efforts, I replied ‘A website generates leads? Really? (Insert sarcasm here). We thought it was just a business card for people with computers.” To say Willard was fed up doesn’t begin to cover how he felt. “The ‘net is something we have struggled with for 10 years,” Willard continued. “Getting a reliable site built is harder than you think. We have been taken to the cleaners more times than we care to admit. Even when we think we have ourselves covered it turns out we just don’t know enough about how it all works. We finally started to reverse that by having a company that specializes in online marketing services for Realtors evaluate our website through an offer we found on a real estate online newsletter. 

“We were so impressed with the person that called us back and the report that was presented as well as the plain English explanation given to us on what it all meant. We were looking for something new at that time because we knew what we had wasn’t working. We liked the guarantees offered with the product and we liked the price; it turned out that changing from what we were doing then would actually save us money even if it did nothing. We signed up, expecting very little. When our webmaster found out, our website then became a nightmare and everything started to go wrong. Our Web host was also the webmaster and site designer and when we opted out of his keyword marketing program he refused to maintain the site anymore. He was forthright enough to admit the reason: without his ‘special programs’ there was no money to be made for him in simply maintaining the site. He told us that we could keep paying him for a “keywords program” that didn’t work, or we could find another webmaster. We were lost and knew nothing about choosing a website company. We phoned our rep at our new online marketing services company and told them the problem. They referred us to an approved website vendor and introduced us to them. We sold our first home from the website in May of 2009, just 60 days later.” 

10 Times His Money Back in Six Months
“That first sale earned us a $9,600 commission, and before the summer was out, we had closed on two others—one that earned us $5,400 and one that earned us $20,300. We were very pleased that our $3,400 investment brought us $35,300 in commissions we would have never made in just a few months—especially after all we went through for all those years attempting to make the Internet work for us. But, our pleasure at our program comes from more than only making money: it comes from being better at what we do because we are now effective online. 

“For example: We were approached by an out-of-area Realtor because his brother wanted to sell his lakeside home. We convinced the Realtor it would be to his advantage to work with us and not against us. We already agreed on the price for the home but had to convince the city Realtor that even though he lived close (only 90 minutes away) we were the logical choice because Sylvan Lake is our market; after all, we had great marketing, our website was in first page positions on Google and the others, we lived right there to accommodate viewings—plus we had an impressive list of buyers just waiting for the right product. The homeowner agreed to a joint listing. We put the home up on the website on a Friday afternoon and we got the call Friday night from an out-of-town buyer who found us on the ‘net and had created a listing alert for lakeside homes. When he got home from work, he saw the notification in his e-mail, logged in and viewed the details. He called and made an appointment to see the home Saturday. We had the offer in-hand by Monday. This property was exactly what the buyer was looking for. We closed that deal in 12 days, got the seller 98% of his list price ($747,500) and did it all in a nearly dead market place, all because of the power of the Web and our ability to sell homes there because of our ability to be found there.” 

Buyers and Sellers from Anywhere
Since being able to be found online, Willard has sold homes to people from England and sold one for people in Thailand. Willard’s marketplace is a town called Sylvan Lake in the province of Alberta, which is situated in close proximity to two of Alberta’s largest cities, Edmonton and Calgary. It’s a small town with a cosmopolitan atmosphere. You can feel the energy coursing through this town. Sylvan Lake has become a residential hub for people working in the oil and gas industries, commuters working in the City of Red Deer, people who work and service the town itself and recreational users who inhabit the town and summer villages year round or on a seasonal basis. In the past, Willard would sell between 80 and 85 units annually. Despite the economic slowdown worldwide, he continues to sell properties at a rate that assures that he won’t be hurting anytime soon. 

From a Complete Skeptic to a Believer
“You have no idea how skeptical we were when we made the decision to give online marketing one more try. Now, we feel like it should be our best kept secret,” Willard continued. “We are so pleased by all the levels of service and the fact that this vendor did everything they said they were going to do. Not only that, anytime I had a question or a problem the support team has been able to answer it or solve it. Their IT guys are amazing, our CSR and our lead generation specialist tells it like it is. If he thinks an idea won’t work or won’t benefit us he says so- and we appreciate that. Some companies just say, ‘sure, if you want to do that it’ll cost you this’ and they don’t care if it works or not. All they care about is their revenue. Our online marketing services company not only cares about our success, no one in service or IT ever tries to sell you anything because there’s nothing else to buy. There are no “extras” or “upgrades.” Our subscription has one cost and we can’t buy anything else—everything is included.” 

“My subscription brought me 10 times my annual investment in the first six months I subscribed. We are very pleased and we are hoping it continues to do that and better for a very long time. Other than my great assistant, Patti, my online marketing service is the most valuable tool I possess and I now have the confidence that we will become even better Internet Realtors as time goes on. That’s a pretty huge turnaround and believe me, it’s a pleasure to feel that way in these times.” 

Mike Parker has written more than 200 published articles about online marketing services for Realtors. For help in making your Internet marketing successful even if you’ve had experiences like Willard Morris or to request a free review of your website to determine if it can be found by internet buyers and if it is set up to be effective for you, click here and we’ll review it for you at no cost or obligation. 

RISMedia welcomes your questions and comments. Send your e-mail to: realestatemagazinefeedback@rismedia.com. 

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Robb Murry
Chief Marketing Officer
The Personal Marketing Company
www.tpmco.com 

Building an effective personal brand goes beyond an elaborate personal logo and catchy tagline; it lies within how consumers in your market perceive you. Whether you are managing it, or even aware of it, every contact with a consumer defines and reinforces your personal brand. From your personal website and e-mail marketing, to your Facebook page and the way you answer your phone, all of the marketing communications you distribute work together to define your personal brand. 

Your brand personality is how customers perceive you, for better or worse. Managing that perception across every contact with consumers is critical in today’s market where consumers increasingly perceive all real estate agents to be the same. To set yourself apart, you must differentiate your personal brand from your competitor’s. 

Over the years, many agents have gotten away with selling or providing great service alone without truly managing a personal brand. Changes in the market and how agents are marketing themselves have made it clear that achieving long-term success in real estate requires an effective personal brand. 

How well do you manage your personal brand? Do your customers’ perceptions match the personality you want them to see? How well do you manage these perceptions? Here’s a great way to grade yourself on how well you’re managing your personal brand. 

1. Do you treat clients like real people? Your commission check might come from a company, but people are choosing to work with you. Your marketing should speak directly to the person about things that are important to them. Hint: All good marketing makes an emotional connection with consumers, not a factual one. Make sure your marketing message communicates the answer to the old advertising idiom WIFM (What’s in it for me?) 

2. What’s different? Are you really any different from the other agents in your market? Trying to differentiate on great service is a common mistake. The customer expects it rather than viewing it as an added benefit—every other agent in your market can promise great service. You must find the benefit to the consumer that only you provide. Your “one big thing” must be relevant to your customer as well as to you. 

3. How does your brand make them feel? What’s the emotional takeaway that your clients receive when they do business with your brand? In marketing, it’s called your “higher order” benefit. Do they feel comfort knowing you are minding the details in their best interest? Or maybe they feel empowered because of your strong negotiating skills on their behalf? Make sure you are communicating how they feel when they do business with your brand. 

4. Does every touchpoint build your brand? Make sure that your one-of-a-kind personal brand is reinforced in every exposure people have with you. Your e-mails, direct mail, your personal website, the message on your voicemail, even your latest tweet on Twitter. Your goal is that if your name was covered up on your marketing pieces, someone familiar with your brand would still know it was from you. 

5. Do you deliver your marketing message in a memorable and appealing way? Defining your personal brand in today’s market is not optional, it’s necessary. Your brand should be constantly re-evaluated to make sure the message is consistent and the right message for your audience. Agents who do not maintain the brand experience in today’s competitive market will not survive.

Always remember that your clients are people with real lives, dealing with daily challenges. Your well-rounded brand message should be targeted and communicated across all marketing channels. The key to managing your personal brand is to have a marketing plan in place for your business. 

Define your message and develop an effective plan for getting that message out to consumers in a clear and consistent way. Otherwise, you’re leaving it up to the customer to decide your personal brand…without input from you. It’s then that you find you’re just another real estate agent among thousands of choices. 

RISMedia welcomes your questions and comments. Send your e-mail to: realestatemagazinefeedback@rismedia.com. 

For more real estate tips and topics on RISMedia.com, be sure to check out:
First-Time Homebuyers Buoy Real Estate Market
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Kelly Roark
Vice President, Interactive Sales & Development
HGTV – FrontDoor.com, Scripps Networks
www.frontdoor.com 

Thanks to the $8,000 First-Time Home Buyer tax credit, first-time home buyers (FTHBs) currently account for more than half of U.S. home sales per month (NAR). Nearly 80% of them use the Web to narrow their home search or find answers to specific home purchase questions, according to real estate coach Howard Brinton. With the November 30 deadline approaching to exercise the credit, there is still time to connect with this group online and close more business. So, what’s the trick? 

1). Know your audience. A range of new buyers are coming into the market, but increasingly, they include unmarried women and minorities who are more likely to be influenced by family and friends, according to Jack Haynes, SVP of Countrywide’s National Builder Division. Is this the case in your area? 

2). Send the right message. When communicating online, focus on the simplicity of the sale and share step-by-step tactics to avoid common purchase pitfalls (e.g., responding too slowly in competitive situations, not asking a lender enough questions, etc.). Also, demystify what “affordability” means and customize your mortgage calculator for “rent” vs. “buy” and/or what someone can afford. 

3). Optimize yourself for FTHBs. Focus search-engine optimization and marketing campaigns on specialized topics in your neighborhood, first-time buying, short sales and/or foreclosures included. Develop a vanity URL (e.g., myneighborhoodfirsttimebuying.com or myneighborhoodshortsaleexpert.com). 

4). Target transition points. If your marketing includes online banners, advertise on non-home sale sites where FTHBs may look (e.g., salary.com, indeed.com, rentals.com and hotpads.com). 

5). Hold a sweepstakes. Get more FTHB leads quickly by offering prize money for a down payment or cash to fix up a first home. 

6). Help FTHBs visualize their new home. If an FTHB is considering a fixer-upper or vacant property, use online tools, such as UnitedLane.com, to electronically stage a home so they can see its true potential. 

7). Start an online dialogue. Use Facebook and Twitter to share listings ideal for your FTHBs, a how-to article on first-time buying or a rent-vs.-buy guide. HGTV’s FrontDoor.com has 5,000+ how-to articles and 500 videos, which you can share via Facebook—plus a dedicated URL to access FTHB information at (frontdoor.com/first). 

8). Get FTHBs involved. Participate in an online home community where consumers share their best home renovations or favorite architectural style. An example of this would be the My First Place Gallery, which contains 27 pages of first homes users are sharing with others via frontdoor.com/myfirstplace. Or, create an area on your own site, blog or Facebook page where FTHBs can share their favorite neighborhood photo or best tip for other buyers. 

Most importantly, take advantage of this unique time in the market to develop more FTHB business. 

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Bruce Zipf
President & CEO
NRT LLC
www.nrtllc.com 

For the 12th straight year, NRT was ranked the top brokerage in the nation. However, the real secret behind our success is not our large national footprint or unparalleled investment in marketing and technology; it is our presence in more than 30 top markets and our ability to distinguish ourselves at the most local level—the individual office. Here, our branch managers leverage their own personal brand of leadership to oversee their teams, tapping into their individual relationships with their agents as well as their in-depth knowledge of the local market. 

It’s a known fact that great performers always try to get better; our managers are no exception. To support our managers’ and sales associates’ competitive spirits, we invest through our Business Leadership Development Series a great deal of time and effort to improving our managers’ productivity and management skill levels, which in turn will further enhance our sales associates’ production and efficiency levels. NRT’s Business Leadership Development Series includes scripting/dialogue sessions, business development strategies to increase production, recruiting, coaching techniques to build a stronger team of agents, methods for conducting effective office meetings, articulating value to clients and pricing properties to sell. Managers then become a source of education, motivation and inspiration to their agents, building both loyalty and business at the same time…not to mention value. 

We feel this is a critical differentiator for our company and are so committed to the development of our team that we created a senior level position devoted to this initiative. And did I mention that all of this training—much of it conducted in a one-on-one setting—is provided in-house at no cost to our managers or sales associates? 

Our efforts in this organic-growth initiative are reflective of our deep commitment to each and every one of our offices across the country. We know that our continued success as the nation’s largest residential real estate brokerage is dependent on the individual success of our managers and sales associates, and we remain confident in their abilities to continually distinguish themselves and NRT in their respective markets. Real estate is local, and for us, so is leadership. 

RISMedia welcomes your questions and comments. Send your e-mail to: realestatemagazinefeedback@rismedia.com.

Joyce Bytoff
Owner
Coldwell Banker The Real Estate Group, Inc.
Appleton, Wisconsin 

Region served: Northern Wisconsin
Years in real estate: Since 1964
Number of offices: 16. We also have a number of satellite offices in various small towns throughout Northern Wisconsin.
Number of agents: 450
Average listing: $137,000
Average time on market: about 90 days
The best way to stay in touch with agents…We have several ways in which we stay in touch with our agents. Our internal, Web-based communication system is updated every three hours and provides our agents with new listings in addition to when a home has been sold or is in the closing stages. In addition, our voicemail system allows me to stay in close communication with my agents and keeps the community feel of the company intact.
Key to staying profitable…Stay in front of the market. We have decreased our print advertising considerably and turned to the Internet and have embraced social marketing so that we are always in front of our clients.
Best strategy for dealing with difficult customers? We have a reputation in our community of always doing the right thing for our customers and this has enabled us to gain over 50% market share within our primary market. Not only do we honor what we say, but we are heavily involved in the community. 

How are you reaching out to first-time home buyers?
The $8,000 Federal Tax Credit has been a huge marketing point for our company. I have TV spots that are shown twice a day within the area that talk about the credit and its advantage for first-time buyers. In addition, we have a countdown to when the tax credit ends within our local newspaper as well as on our website. We are doing everything we can to get the word out to potential buyers about the tax credit and to show that now is the time to buy a home. 

What’s your best strategy to get buyers to see a listed home?
Last year we partnered with the Green Bay Packers and ran a promotion in which we held a drawing and gave away tickets to a game. With a wait list of 78,000 people to buy a ticket, whoever came to our open house had the opportunity to be entered into a drawing to win a ticket. 

How are you keeping consumers in your marketplace educated about the buying opportunities available today?
We work hard to keep our consumers informed and reach out to them through various mediums. Not only do we take advantage of radio, TV, word of mouth and our website, we also include teaser ads in the newspaper. This way, we can grab their attention and then lead them back to our website where they can find additional information about the property as well as our mapping tool, which allows consumers to be able to look at the area surrounding the property. 

RISMedia welcomes your questions and comments. Send your e-mail to: realestatemagazinefeedback@rismedia.com. 

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Let me give you a couple of examples illustrating my point. I recently had a former client call and tell me that he had a rehab property to sell. I had sold several of his properties for him in the past and so I was the first person he called. We came to terms and the very first thing I did, before even getting the property on the MLS, was send it to my own in-house buyers list. Here are the results: I had nine people respond to the email in less than 12 hours; three of them saw the property the very next day; one came to see the property the day after that and the rest viewed the property that very weekend. This is all before even putting the property into the MLS. 

Here is another illustration of how valuable this asset can be to your business. Do you think having a strong and active buyers list could make a difference in a listing presentation? You’d better believe it. How many other Realtors in your market do you think would be able to make that same claim? This immediately makes it a no brainer for that seller to work with you. In fact, I recently had a seller call me to come take a look at his house. I went out, took a look and went through a presentation. At the end. I asked why he called me. He said: “Well, I am on your buyers list and get your emails and I figured you have a big list of buyers already, so it would only make sense to work with you versus someone else without a buyers list.” 

Let me give you one last reason why a buyers list is a cash machine. Do you think there are other products and/or services that you have access to that might be of interest to your list? Find something that is a fit for your list and offer it out to them. In fact, with this strategy, you can make money with your list without even selling them a home. Of course you need to take into account any rules, stipulations or disclosures you must make, but this is a great way to add revenue streams to your business and make money from an asset that you have already built. Some examples would be home warranties, lawn care, pest removal, radon, contractor services, credit repair services, etc. 

If you aren’t building a buyers list, what are you waiting for? Start building one today. If you have one, keep building your list and your relationship with the list as well as trying to add some revenue streams. 

Josh Schoenly has “cracked the code” to lead generation on Craigslist. Over the last three-plus years, he has generated over 7,000 leads using his own system. For a limited time you can download Josh’s Craigslist Marketing “Cheat Sheet” and accompanying 30 minute video explaining his system at www.CraigslistMarketingMatrix.com. 

RISMedia welcomes your questions and comments. Send your e-mail to: realestatemagazinefeedback@rismedia.com. 

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Here are seven tips you can use to actively create your own success: 

Tip 1: Build a strong foundation. What do I mean by a strong foundation? Would you consider putting a roof on a house unless it had a strong foundation? Of course not. Yet you would be surprised at how many people try to market their services without believing in themselves. 

Tip 2: Identify and reprogram your self-limiting beliefs. Here are some typical examples of actual self-limiting beliefs I have heard over the years: 

-“Life is a struggle”
-“It’s selfish to want more money”
-“It’s not safe to toot my own horn” 

Can you see why any of these beliefs would stop a person from succeeding? What are your own self-limiting beliefs? 

Tip 3: Reverse your self-sabotaging strategies. Did you know that we all have a saboteur? We all have our dreams and we all have a part that tries to sabotage them, for our “own good”. For example, I was working with a client recently who realized that even though she had a good business plan, she was never able to work her plan because of the resistance form her self saboteur. What are your self sabotaging patterns? How do they show up in your life? 

Tip 4: Use your mind and emotions to create your empire. How many times do you find yourself focusing on what you don’t want? There is something called The Law of Attraction which teaches that like energy attracts like energy and you get what you focus on. Do you usually focus on the lack of clients, the lack of income or the lack of time? Focusing on the things you lack will bring in more of the same. Instead of focusing on what you don’t have, step back and ask yourself, “what do I want?” 

Tip 5: Learn ways to release your fears. Fear is not real. It is False Evidence Appearing Real (F.E.A.R.). To create success from the inside out, use a powerful tool like the STOP Technique. Once you have noticed that your mind has gone into a fear thought, take a deep breath and replace your fear thought with an Empowering Thought such as: ”I have all I need to succeed.” What positive new thoughts are you needing to hear? Keep a journal and note how many times a day you use the STOP Technique. Congratulate yourself for your vigilance. 

Tip 6: Know the value you offer. This may seem hard to believe, but in my coaching of coaches, real estate agents and other professionals, I have seen time after time how people fumble with this concept. Instead, identify your value, i.e. your unique selling point. What are you really good at? Write a list of what makes you stand out among the competition. 

Tip 7: View marketing as “giving” not “taking”. I suspect a lot of us are giving and generous and because of that we don’t want to impose on anyone. However, you will experience a big shift when you realize that what you have to offer is a gift. Spreading the word about yourself is not “selfish” or “taking”. It would actually be selfish to deprive humanity of your gift. So what are you here to give humanity? 

Dr. Maya Bailey, author of Law of Attraction for Real Estate Professionals, integrates 20 years of experience as a psychologist and 12 years as a business coach with her expertise in the Law of Attraction. Get Bailey’s free report, 7 Simple Strategies For More Clients in 90 Days, by visiting www.90DaystoMoreClients.com. 

RISMedia welcomes your questions and comments. Send your e-mail to: realestatemagazinefeedback@rismedia.com. 

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A personal pattern of Innovation

Beckman has always been known as an innovator and an aggressive marketer of his client’s properties. For example, he combined direct mail and Internet presence to positively dominate an affluent section of suburban Seattle for many years—home to many prominent Seattle families—listing about 80% of all homes sold there. Today, on what many would call a truly basic website, prospects can sign up for his daily “Just listed” e-mail, for foreclosure listings bulletins, for first-time home buyers classes and much more. His website produces 75% of his leads for his team and, in September, originated 7 of the 11 closes his team had.

He has diversified into Property Management in order to have a core business immune from real estate slowdowns and he uses his base of renters to supply his first-time homebuyer classes with folks eager to learn the “8,000 reasons you should buy your first home now.” Beckman has practically owned the first pages of the search engines for years for his specialties and was one of the first agents to realize the tremendous benefits associated with being found on the first pages of every search engine. In sum, he is not a “rest on your laurels” kind of agent—he’s always looking to stay ahead of what is moving the market.

His innovation in 2006 helped save him in 2008

“When I realized I needed to increase my property management business (in early 2008) we had about 20 properties under management. Today, we have over 80 properties under management. It was a great help that when one enters Mason County Property Management on Google, our company comes up number one—even though I never subscribed nor optimized my site for that phrase. My CompassSearch subscription made it possible for Google to bring me people looking for property management. Lots of companies can manage properties, but we can fill them with renters because we attract renters from all over the United States online. That same subscription has me on page one of Google for Mason County Rental Properties, too, so I have plenty of renters looking for a home contact me, too. Of course, I am also on page one of every major search engine for Mason County Real Estate, one of my key phrases I chose back in 2006. The people at Compass tell me that this is what is meant by “long tail search;” evidently, a properly optimized website is found under many different searches relating to the geographic target an agent chooses. Whatever it is, I am grateful that my Internet power enabled me to expand a facet of my business I hadn’t even really thought about in 2006, but that helped save me in 2008. Without a doubt, if I had not made the $3,400 investment in 2006 to be found in organic search placement through Compass, I could not have expanded my business online in these new areas in time to avert potential catastrophe. I am extremely glad that I made the decision to move to the Internet then and that I am so dominant there, now.”

Would you like to have a whole new source of business?

Beckman mentioned being on page one of Google for the above phrases; fact is, he is found on the first pages of the search engines on over 1,000 different search phrases. Since he subscribed to CompassSearch, over 62,000 people have come to his website because of his subscription. About 20,000 Web visitors annually go to Beckman’s website, a solid base of traffic that enabled him to branch into property management and rental properties without missing a beat. Chances are, if Beckman wanted to start selling boats, cars, airplanes or widgets, he would dominate the search engines for those, too. Once you dominate your geographic identifier—your hometown marketplace or any marketplace you choose—you are found under so many different iterations that it almost defies belief. Being found will not sell homes all by itself, however. There are two other major steps to be taken, but if you cannot be found on page one of Google, Yahoo and bing! for your marketplace, you don’t need to worry about those other steps because no one will contact you. If you are waiting for the big time corporate site to bail you out, it’s been nice knowing you. You must take your Internet destiny into your own hands. Take control of your marketplace and take control of your own income and success, for good.

His sure fire method of closing all listing presentations

“I always ask them if their home could be found on the first page of Google when a homebuyer types in Mason County Real Estate, do they think their home would sell faster? They always answer ‘Yes.’ I then pop open my position report from Compass, show them my search engine positions and guarantee them that they will be on the first page of Google when they list with me, because I am on the first page of Google, Yahoo, MSN and all the rest, too. If there are any doubters at this stage, I turn my laptop around and say “go ahead. Go to Google and enter Mason County Real Estate (or any of the other terms I dominate). When I pop up, they are amazed and impressed. Every consumer today recognizes the selling power of the Internet and the advantage of being on the first page of the search engines. They get it. Once I prove to them that they can have that tremendous advantage, they are sold on listing with me and with West Realty Shelton.”

Richard’s lesson is just as vital today as it was then

There will be lots of closings in November, due to the First-time Homebuyer program (odds are it will be continued in some form) deadline. Many agents will make lots of commissions. There won’t ever be a better time to do now what Beckman did then: Establish yourself online. Maybe it won’t “save you” if another monster comes to our doors, but it certainly will broaden your client base, bring new prospects to you and enable you to earn a good living, regardless of what the markets are doing. Take a few of those commission dollars that flow now and get established where people can find you- online.

“2008 was a tough year,” Beckman told me. “Ninety percent of my property management marketing and expansion was done online. Had I not shown up on the first page of Google under Mason County property management I don’t believe I would be here today. Now that we made it through the bad times, it feels really good to get back to our real business—helping people buy and sell real estate. Also, I must say that I can’t speak highly enough about the CompassSearch service. Not only are they responsible for the internet buyers we’ve picked up, but they are also responsible for the listings, property management, and rentals. That’s a pretty remarkable return on a $3,400 investment and that’s one reason that I love the service.

Mike Parker has written more than 200 published articles about online marketing services for realtors. For help in making your Internet marketing as successful as Richard Beckman’s or to you or to request a free review of your website to determine if it can be found by internet buyers and if it is set up to be effective for you, click here and we’ll review it for you at no cost or obligation.

RISMedia welcomes your questions and comments. Send your e-mail to: realestatemagazinefeedback@rismedia.com.

Don’t miss these top headlines on RISMedia.com:

• Single-Family Starts Ease as Credit Deadline Looms
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Reviewing some of the literature and resources on the subject reveals information such as the following:

-Generation X, also referred to as the Baby Busters, number 48 million in the United States population. They are the original “Latchkey” kids—independent, skeptical and techno-literate individuals. They are the MTV generation.

-Generation Y, the Echo Boomers, numbers 80 million and is larger than the Baby Boom in size. It’s the Generation Me, confident, collaborative and bathed in bits crowd.

Knowing about and understanding the desires and preferences of these generations will better arm those looking to be of service to them.

These population groups:

-Own computers

-Use a cell phone

-Use instant messaging and social networking sites—and they log on regularly

-Use websites as their primary source of news

-Author and read blogs

-Download music and other media using peer-to-peer file sharing

-Own some type of portable music and/or video device, such as an iPod

These folks are also the young and future real estate professionals. MLS 5.0 is built to fulfill the expectations of the Realtor and consumer of today, as well as the Realtor and consumer of tomorrow.

Being at the Center of the Conversation

This is a key component to success in real estate sales in the future. It is no longer sufficient to be at the “center of the transaction.” If a Realtor waits until the transaction, it is too late. To be at the center of the transaction, the Realtor must be at the center of the conversation about real property, participating with consumers far in advance of the actual listing or sale. This has always been the case, and is now more and more taking place through visibility and participation on the Internet, through social networking and social influence marketing. MLS 5.0 on its public-facing side will give consumers and Realtors the ability to engage and discuss.

Web 2.0 concepts and philosophies, sharing and collaborating, must be built into the MLS structure and mindset. Transparency will become more important and if the industry is not ready to give the consumer what they want, the consumer will get what they want from someone else.

Tell us what you think or request the full article series to date at: thefutureofmls@point2.com.

Saul Klein is CEO of InternetCrusade and Point2 Technologies Inc.

For more information, please visit www.point2agent.com.

RISMedia welcomes your questions and comments. Send your e-mail to: realestatemagazinefeedback@rismedia.com.

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