The Value of a Swift Response
Here's another great retro article to celebrate the 4th of July. This one comes to you from Jose Parez. You finally decided that with prices still low, you are going to upgrade to that bigger house you and your husband have been talking about for years. Things are good with both your jobs and now is the time. You have heard from several people that XYZ Real Estate has a good reputation and you see a lot of their signs around town so you decide to start your search on their website one night after work. They have a nice site and you are getting excited about the listings they have in the neighborhood you have been wanting to move into. Saturday morning you decide that you want to spend Sunday looking at a few homes for sale in your dream neighborhood. You get back on XYZ’s site while you are having your morning coffee and put in a request to speak to someone about viewing homes tomorrow. It’s about 9 AM and you give them your cell phone number in case they call while you are out and about. Soccer, baseball, yard work, laundry, and grocery shopping chores are done by mid-afternoon. You and your husband finally sit down to relax before cooking dinner and wonder why you have not heard anything from XYZ Real Estate. You are both eager to look at homes tomorrow so you check your email to see if someone has gotten back to you. Nothing on email and nobody has bothered to call after several hours. Not impressed with the lack of response, you get back online and start searching for other companies. Does this happen every day in our industry? Unfortunately, it happens hundreds of thousands of times every single day!

What Does Your Website Say About You?
If you're an agent working today, then you already know the importance of a good web presence. What you may not know, however, is what constitutes 'good'. If you have a website, take a look at this list to make sure you're not falling victim to technology. After all, having a megaphone is one thing; using it wisely is another.        

Tuesday Tech Tip with Maya Paveza of HipRoof.com
Tech Tip Tuesday We’ve paired up with real estate and social media guru Maya Paveza to keep you up-to-date on all the latest tech tools. This week, Maya’s video unravels the mysteries of StumbleUpon as well as hash tags on Twitter. Do you have a question for Maya? Post a comment here and we’ll suggest the topic for future videos. Do these tech tips answer your questions? Watch and see!

Stop Advertising, Start Edutizing
Consumers simply do not want to be “sold” anymore. They have become cynical about advertising claims and “its all about me” advertising. They dont want to hear an agent's claims of greatness. They want to understand what you can do for them. They want to know that your claims are backed up by legitimate experience and insights you can bring to them. They want you to prove why you are the best agent or broker for them. Simply making promises of greatness is not enough to attract consumers anymore. Customers trust brands in the same way they trust other people. When a company performs consistently against its stated values and follows through on commitments consumers generally trust them. Those that say one thing and do another are those who are abandoned after their one chance. According to the 2009 California Home Buyers and Sellers Survey from the California Association of REALTORS®, consumers are asking REALTORS® to provide more relevant information and support throughout the real estate transaction. They dont simply want a nice marketing campaign and promises of greatness. They want true support throughout the entire process. They are looking for better information to help arm with the tools they need to make a sound real estate purchase decision. They are particularly dissatisfied with the quality of local market statistics and housing conditions. 42% of Internet buyers were dissatisfied with the information provided to them about market conditions. This provides REALTORS® with a huge opportunity to provide better insights to help a consumer more comfortable about their real estate purchase. They can use their deep local knowledge to help a consumer feel comfortable that the home they purchase will be not only a sound investment, but a joyful, satisfying experience meeting the physical needs of their whole family. Today, consumers are looking for service providers that support them and educate them about the most important elements to make an educated decision about their purchase. They will be attracted to agents who are not “selling” to them. Instead they are looking for potential vendors that demonstrate expertise, professionalism and guidance about the real estate process. Consumers are attracted to agents who seek to provide insight and information that will help better prepare them to make an educated real estate decision. Real estate professionals have a ton of interesting insider knowledge they can share. WAV Group has just published a paper called "Edutizing - Dramatically increase the effectiveness of your marketing approach." This paper will help outline some ways to deliver information to attract consumers without overtly selling to them—Edutizing. Click here to view the full report Are You Competitive with Other MLSs? Want to Secure Your Website for Under $500? Excuse Me, I Have a Question...