Daily Archives: May 19, 2013

How smart photos will change real estate | Mount Kisco Real Estate

Everything around us is getting smarter.  Phones, cars, televisions, refrigerators, books, thermostats…and maybe even humans.  I find most of these advancements to be very interesting, and quite useful in the daily lives of most people around me.

Photographs, however, are something that I’m particularly interested in watching (and helping) become smarter.

Photos are everywhere; and are certainly at the crux of online real estate, which, in 2012, included 93% of people who sold a home, and 96% of people (under age 44) who bought a home.  Oh, and don’t forget the hundreds of millions of people who visit real estate websites each month.

Today

Recently, a company called ‘Stipple’ has been making some noise in the image monetization and social shopping arena.  They allow businesses to create content and messaging within an image (without widgets or code), and then analyze & track the interaction with the data inside that image.

As it pertains to real estate, I think Stipple provides a viable strategy to those professionals who are active in distributing (quality) visual content across the web.  You can share a link, or better yet, embed the photo into your social pages, blog or website.

Here is an example, using a real estate photo as the context.  Take a look at the picture…and then the tweet that I’ve embedded with the same photo after it was “Stippled”.  Stipple has actually implemented Twitter Cards (which I wrote about in a previous post) which allows you to view and interact with the photo, directly within the twitter feed.

In addition, check out some of the analytical tools that come with Stipple:

stippled-photo-49486160

Check out this beautiful home in Statesville, North Carolina (stipple.com/photos/49486160) — Jeff Nieto (@jeffnieto) Click Here to view the Stippled Tweet

stippled-photo-49514930

In The Future

While products like Stipple are innovative, and quite fascinating; they are admittedly built for e-commerce, photographers, and bloggers.

There’s no question that real estate professionals can leverage these type of tools today.  However, I think there is more to offer the industry when it comes to intelligent photographs.

In addition to what exists, here are some high points on how I think smart photos can provide additional value to real estate professionals AND consumers:

  • Determine and embed which room/view a photograph is displaying.
  • Identify and attach the “features” of a photograph (i.e. granite countertops, 10 foot ceilings, etc).
  • Embed contact information, bios, and videos from the appropriate listing agent.
  • Allow consumers to search & discover using the embedded data.
  • Compile the data within the photographs that are interacted with; and provide summary analytics and “intelligence” to the consumer and their agent.

If the data is embedded and used appropriately, consumers should be able to enjoy a more enhanced (and effective) search.  Furthermore, real estate agents would be able to market properties strategically, while learning specifics about their listings and customers.

 

How smart photos will change real estate | Inman News.

10 Tips to Create Killer Social Content that Gets You Found | North Salem Realtor

It’s no secret that in today’s business world, companies must constantly produce new content. But are you producing quality social content with a WOW factor that gets you found? The truth is it’s really not that hard to do. There are so many options to consider when it comes to creating quality content that stands out in a crowd. Blog posts, videos, eBooks, whitepapers, webinars, social media updates, Slideshare presentations…just to name a few. It just takes time, the right dedication and effort.

When done consistently and correctly, quality content will improve search engine rankings, drive new traffic to websites and nurture leads into customers for years to come. Below are 10 tips so that you can start creating killer social content with a WOW factor that gets you found!

Keep up with information relevant to your industry. Setting up RSS feeds, subscribing to industry newsletters and setting up Google Alerts on branded and non-branded keywords are all ways to keep up with news relevant to your industry. You can take these industry articles and create social content with your own spin that identifies trends your clients would be interested in reading and learning how it will affect them. For example, I might create a series of blog posts covering recent Google algorithm updates to teach potential clients about the changing needs and challenges of content marketing and SEO for their business.

Social media conversations are a reflection of your brand. Therefore, it’s important that you monitor and engage with your audience to humanize your brand and let them know you care about them and their needs. Tools such as Hootsuite and TweetDeck can help you manage, monitor and measure your social content marketing effectiveness. Below is an example of engaging social content in Twitter from Celsius, a healthy energy drink company. This is a great example of a company engaging with a customer, making this person feel important which in turn humanizes the brand.Twitter social conversation from @CelsiusOfficial

Gone are the days when content is just written by CEOs and managers. Everyone in your company can write social content around their individual areas of expertise. Create an editorial content calendar that maps out who writes what and when. An editorial calendar really keeps things organized and lays out your content strategy and plans. My area of expertise is SEO and content marketing, so I contribute blog content around topics such as how social media affects SEO results and Pinterest marketing tips. You could have your sales staff create a short video series on how best to choose the products and services you sell. You might even post Q&A with some of your customers like IT business and consulting services firm Tribridge did and how they benefit from your products and/or services.

When it comes to writing, sometimes you just feel tapped out for ideas. Or maybe you have an idea or concept but don’t know how to put it into words at the moment. Keeping a content backlog helps to save your ideas so that you can come back to them at a later time and write then. Keep bullet lists, product reviews, videos, photos, how-to guides and interviews in your backlog so you can write more social content pieces at a later date.

It’s perfectly alright to take content you’ve written in the past and republish it as a fresh, new piece. It saves time, resources and provides an updated spin on a topic. Add a short video and provide updated content to an old whitepaper. Use questions taken from a webinar or presentation to put together an eBook. Turn videos into blog posts or a blog post series. Turn one piece of social content into as many formats as possible – turn a whitepaper into a YouTube video, a shortened Slideshare presentation, a blog post series, a webinar. The possibilities are endless!

 

10 Tips to Create Killer Social Content that Gets You Found | Find and Convert.

6 ‘About Us’ Pages That Are Probably Better Than Yours | South Salem NY Realtor

When you’re building a website, it’s tempting to get distracted by all the bells and whistles of the design process and forget all about creating compelling content. But having awesome content on your website is crucial to making inbound marketing work for your business.

So how do you balance your remarkable content creation with your website design needs? Why, with your ‘About Us’ page, of course! For a remarkable ‘About Us’ page, all you need to do is figure out your company’s unique identity, and then share it with the world.

I know … easier said than done.

Still, there’s no excuse for you to neglect one of the most important pages on your website — which also happens to be one of the most commonly overlooked pages. Let’s read on to discover six companies with awesome ‘About Us’ pages and see how you can emulate them on your own website. By the end of this post, showing off how awesome your company is won’t seem like such a challenging feat.

1) Yellow Leaf Hammocks

Why the ‘About Us’ Page Rocks: It tells us a story.

Have a cool story about how your product or service was created? Put it on your ‘About Us’ page. Good stories humanize your brand and provide context and meaning for your product. What’s more, good stories are sticky — which means people are more likely to connect with them and pass them on.

Yellow Leaf Hammocks does an amazing job of telling you about its product by describing the founder’s journey to Thailand and the birth of his “big idea” for the brand. Like any good storyteller, Yellow Leaf Hammocks uses words to paint a picture, rather than simply describing the events that happened. Sentences like “the hammock wrapped around him, cocooning him in its cloudlike embrace” immediately give you a mental picture of what’s happening.

Yellow Leaf Hammocks

Our_Story_

Every company has a story to tell, so break out your storytelling skills from that random English class you took years ago and put them to work on your ‘About Us’ page. Using descriptive and emotive copy, an ‘About Us’ page with a story works harder for your business than a generic one.

2) LessFilms.com

Why the ‘About Us’ Page Rocks: It shows some personality.

You’re not like everyone else — so why should you sound the same as everyone else? Stand out with an ‘About Us’ page that shows off who you really are with witty headlines and a real brand voice.

That’s exactly what video production company LessFilms accomplished on its site using witty copy and the image of a large wrestler (yes, a wrestler). Although the wrestler dude and the funny headlines have nothing to do with LessFilms’ business model or product, they show off the founders’ sense of humor and give the brand a personality.

LessFilms

For your ‘About Us’ page, you don’t need to pretend to be a comedian if that isn’t part of your brand’s personality. Find another aspect of your brand’s personality to showcase and make a lasting impression by being yourself.

3) Eight Hour Workday

Why the ‘About Us’ Page Rocks: It’s human.

People tend to think that ‘About Us’ pages have to sound formal to gain credibility and trust. Most people find it easier to trust real human beings rather than a description that sounds like it came from an automaton. Trying to sound formal on your ‘About Us’ page results in stiff, “safe” copy and design — the perfect way to make sure your company stays invisible.

Eight Hour Day does a great job of showcasing the people behind the company to make the brand seem human. Including the founders’ names in the header of the website and featuring the photos of them on the ‘About Us’ page drives home the point that Nathan and Katie are a “couple that loves to create.” Even the picture of their dog makes you think Eight Hour Day has real people behind the brand.

Eight_Hour_Day

 

6 ‘About Us’ Pages That Are Probably Better Than Yours.

Consumer confidence hits highest index since 2007 | Cross River NY Real Estate

The University of Michigan‘s consumer confidence survey results are out.

The headline index rose to 83.7 from last month’s 76.4 reading. That’s the highest index reading since July 2007.

 

Consumer confidence hits highest index since 2007 | HousingWire.

Famous Miami Beach hotel becomes a foreclosure | Katonah NY Real Estate

It’s not just homes — foreclosure activity also is changing the face of neighborhoods with once vibrant businesses.

The Miami Herald says the famed Shore Club on Miami Beach became the subject of a final foreclosure judgment this week.

The site was once a popular celebrity hangout, but today the 309-room hotel is facing an online sale.

The sale will hit on June 25.

 

Famous Miami Beach hotel becomes a foreclosure | HousingWire.

Back to the Future: The cost of mortgage rates | Bedford Hills Real Estate

Mortgage rates have never been lower, but they most certainly have been higher.

The latest infographic provided by Loans.org takes loan rates back in time from the last decade, to the ’90s and even back to hte ’80s — these efforts that would make the Doc and Marty McFly proud.

For instance in 2013, a homeowner pays $1,347.13 a month for a four bedroom and three bathroom home.

But if you take the same home and go back to 2008 when the Great Recession begins, the average interest rate is 6.03% and your monthly payment would’ve been $1,503.70.

Click here to view the informative infographic.

 

Back to the Future: The cost of mortgage rates | HousingWire.

Tips for Commincating with Leads | Waccabuc NY Realtor

AS DISCUSSED IN THE EMAIL, HERE ARE SOME GREAT TIPS FROM THE TIGER LEAD SUMMIT.

Succeed with 8 magic words:

1. Because (“Because we haven’t had a second showing, we’re going to have to reset the price”)

2. Now

3. Imagine

4. Thank you

5. Please

6. Use their name only twice (any more than that and they won’t trust you)

7. You are in charge or in control

8. With your permission

– Sandy Raines

Make a short video to introduce yourself. “Hi, I’m Trevor Ainsworth. I just wanted to let you know I’m a real person and I hope you are too.” – Trevor Ainsworth  

I had a great conversation with Trevor on Saturday about this technique.  It’s simple, builds rapport and generates great results.  Programs like Bomb Bomb allow for quick and easy recording right on your phone.

Guide the lead on a path and they will follow you. Make sure the agents ask open-ended questions. If you’re the person asking questions, you’re in control of the conversation. – Tiffany Lachnidt

If you can’t get through to someone on the phone, immediately send them a text. For example, “Just a quick question: would you like me to send you listings from area xxx?”- Trevor Ainsworth

If you don’t get a response to someone, text them “I’m really sorry, have I done something to upset you?” Your phone will ring really fast! – Tiffany Lachnidt

“Whether you’re looking to buy in 2 months or not for 2 years, I’m ok with that.” – Unknown, but this is a great line!!!!

 

 

Tips for Commincating with Leads | Tech Savvy Agent.

Are You Receiving Leads from Realtor.com, Zillow, or Trulia? | Armonk NY Homes

When you respond to these leads with the only form of contact they usually give you, email, are they opening your responses?

Do you even know if they opened your email or clicked any links?  If not, go here first.

Now we have that out of the way, lets talk about how to increase that open rate.

I presented at the Agent Reboot conference in Seattle and had the opportunity to watchDarin Persinger from Productivity Junkies talk a bit about leads and how to respond to them.  He explained the process of how a consumer searches on Realtor.com and connects with the site.  That consumer then fills out a form and is then presented with an email from “Kelly Agent”, which might not ever get read.  Why you ask?  Watch the video below to find out and learn what to do to overcome this dilemma.

 

 

Are You Receiving Leads from Realtor.com, Zillow, or Trulia? | Tech Savvy Agent.