Foursquare: Have you checked in?

Foursquare hit the social media scene in 2009 and has gained popularity ever since. With over 25 million users world wide and over 2.5 billion check ins, Foursquare allows users to check in at businesses and public places. Foursquare is a fun social media app but it isn't all fun and games when you consider its business applications

Become the Mayor of your favorite spots
When you check in to a place more times than anyone else you are deemed the mayor of that place. Being the Mayor can give you special things and general notoriety.

Register your office
Setting up your office as a place on Foursquare not only allows you and others to check in at your office giving it online exposure, but allows you to write about your activities like preparing a new listing. It also gives you the opportunity to write tips like preparing your home to sell.

Open House Buzz
Foursquare is a good way to post information about open houses. Sellers and other office agents can comment about open houses and the neighborhood.With Foursquare's ability to forward to Facebook and Twitter, more of your social community can view open house activities.

Connect with your Sphere
Checking in at local stores gives you the ability to see which of your friends are there. Imagine "bumping into" an old friend while shopping! Knowing that they're there gives the savvy real estate agent time to prepare for the casual conversation.

Take a few minutes to sign up for Foursquare if you aren't already using it. The online social community is blending into our face to face contacts making prospecting much easier.

Ready, Set, JUMP!

Being cautious and looking at a problem from all sides is a great business practice. Business plans should include intricate details about marketing and product development. After careful analysis, however, sometimes you just have to take a running start and jump in! Don't forget to make as big of a splash as you can!

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How do we interact in 2011?

To reach consumers it is necessary to understand how people interact today. More than likely, people meet online with 1 in 5 marriages originating from an online introduction. With the likelihood of personal interaction initiating online, a strong, widespread, dynamic, and planned online presence is a must for a real estate professional to grow a successful and productive business.
An online prospecting campaign must include a substantial amount of Facebook. Successful campaigns that create a measureable return on time and dollar investment usually include use of both the personal profile and a business page along with facebook ads.

Recently Facebook incorporated Facebook generated lists to help organize friends into manageable groups. Lists allow individuals to post status updates to specific groups of people allowing a great opportunity to target market. It would be beneficial to post an open house for friends in a specific geographic area. But it may be considered spam to others who live far away from the open house. Lists also allow facebookers to review or watch posts from specific groups of people. Many people today have more Facebook friends than they can interact with. Lists allow people to streamline friends into smaller lists. The smaller groups let posts move slower down the wall so it is easier to pay attention and interact with friends.

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Prospecting for a New Consumer

Statistics continue to point that the trend of using the internet to learn about literally any topic and to interact is not only not going away but is getting greater. We continue to see individuals reaching toward their peers to get information about products and services instead of relying on advertisements to help them identify brands and make purchases.

Real estate consumers are always becoming more adept at researching without the assistance of a real estate agent. They easily obtain information on communities, researching schools, proximity to amenities, prices, and more before reaching out for the services of a real estate professional. This new consumer is a confident researcher able to make choices based on the availability of endless information.

Though stated many times in the previous decade, real estate agents are no longer the gateway to the information. The role of the agent is changing rapidly as much of the control of the real estate transaction is moved into the hands of the consumer. The availability of information is only paled by the ease of communication. The new consumer is relying on peer recommendations, referrals,
and independent rating systems to aid in choosing a real estate professional. This savvy consumer bases service provider selection on relationship over advertising. Simply stated, the consumer demands a relationship based on trust. This trust relationship must be earned by the
agent and cannot be underdeveloped.

Looking positively at the new consumer, the agent can now truly focus on providing superior service and invaluable intricate knowledge about the real estate transaction. Agents can focus more on providing a singular place to gather information regarding specific communities and the transaction. Agents can once again truly specialize and provide develop a niche market.

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Seven things you need to do to engage your Facebook followers

This is a no-brainer, but were you aware that people buy more when they are engaged? Though I can't source this, some statistics show that consumers spend 20-40% more when they are actively engaged with the salesperson or company.

Do you know why? ...Because buying and selling is emotional

We must move away from one-sided tightly scripted messages to a free form of dialogue with consumers. Creating dialogue and engaging your consumers means you have to know who you’re attracting.

• Ask Questions - Brainstorm a list of questions your followers will find engaging
• Keep it simple and fun - Use videos and photos to attract followers
• Keep an editorial calendar - Plan your posts around themes.
• Create a content grid – Organize your posts into categories: Real Estate, Local Interests,
• Personal Interest, Your website
• Reply to every Like or Comment - Simply, “Thanks for the likes” will suffice.
• Reply to every Share - People want to know that you’ve seen them.
• Measure your success with analytics - Use the basic Facebook analytics or more detailed Hootsuite or Google Analytics to measure your traffic.
  

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Prospect to Urgent Consumers

The key to prospect identification is URGENCY:

• TIME is the key criteria for determining who is a prospect
  
• Categorize your prospects by WHEN they want to move
  
• Question for motivation using time based questions:

1. How soon do you plan on moving?
2. How much longer will your home meet your needs?
3. At what point would you consider seeking the services of a sales person?
   

Bring information to customers who you know want to move. Focus on using active propsecting methods attracting those with an urgency in the buying or selling desires.

FSBOS

Expired Listings

Open House attendees

Referrals

Good News Bads News

Cold calling this group can be more difficult because they don't know who you are. - Bad News

Cold calling this group can be lucrative because they are ready to make a move. - Good News

Key Concept - If you need business right now then you’ll need to take the initiative to actively prospect the groups that are urgent now and develop relationships by making cold calls and make them warm.
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A Brand Called You

When selling residential real estate, many individual agents spend more time trying to sell specific properties than they spend trying to sell themselves. Sadly their focus is misplaced. Selling residential real estate is more about reaching a specific group of customers and helping them understand the value of having you (the product) help them buy or sell real estate. To win the loyalties of the consumer, the individual sales person must understand the unique set of qualities and level of service they offer to their target group of consumers. Communicating that set of qualities and level of service to the group becomes the paramount activity in generating income within the real estate business.

Reflecting on other products to understand brand awareness is an important step in creating a personal brand. Many products target groups of consumers by identifying the characteristics of the group and then explain why their product is needed to reach the completeness of the personality of the group. A nearly ridiculous example of this can be found in the individual who has decided they need to exercise more perhaps by riding a bike, walking, or running. Even though all that is truly needed is the time to do the activity, many people first look at the specific clothing they feel is necessary to do the activity. Specifically, they buy new clothes to become more active. This happens because they have identified a certain set of characteristics with people who exercise. False or true, to become fit, you have to look the part.
The underlying question then is what are the characteristics of the personality or brand that you want to portray? This can be answered in many ways. In doing so creates the niche and target of the sales person. A niche is a specific defined set of characteristics that define a group of people, holding it separate from the whole. This can be determined by many different parameters including socio-economic or geographic location. The group may also be defined by hobbies or lifestyles.

The easiest group to define is a geographic area, set specifically by a boundary around an area like a subdivision but not limited to that at all. Instead, major streets may create boundaries. Target areas may also be defined by the groups of people an individual socializes or recreates with including children activity groups.
What activities do you do that define you as an individual? What are the characteristics of people who do this type of activity? Spend a few minutes outlining these characteristics. Be specific. In looking at the example above of the well dressed runner, why do runners run? As far as I can tell, when I see people running, they always appear to be in pain and near the point of exhaustion. The very characteristics that drive the runner to keep running are exactly what enable the sales person to be effective. In other words, how do these traits enable the runner to help others buy or sell real estate?

By answering these questions based truly on your niche or target group, you are beginning to create a set of features that you possess and the benefits the consumer receives when they buy you the product.

Simplify and Package the Sale

Revising a wordy article this morning I took a break to read Chris Brogan's blog post this morning titled, Simplify and Package the Sale. After reading it I simply deleted better than half the words in my post. I looked to simplify my message so the consumer could hear what I had to offer. Thanks Chris. I can save a lot of typing and words now.

Does Twitter Really Work in a Social Media Marketing Plan?

I hear a lot of skepticism about the return on investment in using social media sites to prospect for new customers and market real estate for sale. Let's face it, unless you see actual dollars coming from the use of any marketing tool then it's useless, right?

Well, what if you used Twitter as a messaging device? I mean, use it to tell and show people what you are really doing so they could see what your likes are. Maybe they could begin to get to know you and even like you by following you on Twitter. Couldn't this happen on Facebook too?

Interestingly enough, my son and I were out this morning putting flags out for his boy scout troop. The troop raises money by charging people to put an American flag in their yard on national holidays. Unfortunately, this morning one of the flags was missed. Thankfully, it wasn't me and my son although it completely sounds like something I could very possibly do. I know the flag was missed because the woman whose flag was not placed in her yard called me. After a pleasant conversation I asked how she came across my name associated with the flags. She replied that she hadn't, but couldn't remember the name and contact information for the person in charge of the event so she googled searched the troop number. A twitter post I made about a recent campout showed up which is why she called me.

I love Twitter.

What’s your Social Marketing Plan?

I’ve got a Facebook account with two different business pages, a Twitter account that I use every day, a LinkedIn account that with a network that is growing in size literally every day, my own Youtube channel, two blogs, and a Flick’r account. How am I using this amass of social media sites to make money? Does any of this sound familiar?

I talk to a lot of people who were told they could generate income for their business if they had a Facebook account. Now, granted they have had a bunch of fun playing games and getting caught up with people they have talked to since college but the only thing they really have to show for it is a lot of nostalgia. Friends are great, don’t get me wrong, but most of the people I’ve talked to about this say the same thing, “I haven’t gained any business from all this. In fact, I’ve used a lot of time with nothing to show for it.”

Emily Soares Proctor in Social Media Examiner gives 5 easy steps to a winning social media plan including Find your Audience. Let's look at how to create a social media marketing plan strating with finding our audience.

Find Your Target Audience
Before venturing any further into social media marketing, you’ll have to identify your brand. Jeremiah Owyang details two types of brand: personal brand and career brand. Emily Soares Proctor asks, in personal branding, “what unique aspect of your product or service attracts your target population?” She follows up with a great career branding question too. “What do your readers want from you?” Emily recommends writing out a basic profile of your most common customer.
Specifically, look at the geographic or spherical group from which you want to draw business. What are the characteristics of that group? Include income level, education, hobbies, and even their ability to navigate the internet.

Become a Trusted Advisor
Use your social media sites to help people learn about their shared concerns. For example, one of my blogs is titled Quail Valley Real Estate. I have recently written several articles about the Quail Valley Golf Course. In the past year I have included reports on the Turtle Creek Drive construction project. Currently I am reporting on the road construction project on FM 1092. These are items that concern all the residents I Quail Valley. Brainstorm a list of topics that are of interest to all your readers. Research the topics and start writing. By writing on shared concerns and providing current information, your readers will begin to rely on your site for the information they need. You’ll become their “go to” person.

Mix it Up
Write on a variety of topics and in a variety of forms. Do lists, post videos, interview local experts, write personal interest stories, and include controversial topics. Don’t forget to have fun and let your personality to shine through. To get someone to reach out to you first you have to get them to know, like, and trust you.
Post Consistently
To me, this point is the toughest part, consistently providing information so the reader will know when to expect information from you. I know, for example, if I turn the television on at 7:00 in the morning on weekdays I can watch Good Morning America on ABC. It’s always there. I can count on it. Get the point?
In order to have that consistency I have to schedule a lot of my posts to go out at times different than when I write them. I can’t seem to write everyday and produce quality information. Instead, I write a lot on the weekends or at night. I can then break my articles into smaller pieces to be posted at regularly scheduled times. Some blogs allow for posts to be published at scheduled times. There are also sites that can automatically publish posts at scheduled times. Check out SocialOomph, HootSuite, and even to some extent TweetDeck. There are others as well.

All this writing, researching, planning, and posting takes time. It's just like any active marketing activity. You've got to schedule the time and do the work. The greatest reason I can see for including a good dose of social media in my marketing plan is that most real estate customers are beginning their buying and selling experience online. If they have already made a connection with a real estate, their trusted advisor, they will turn to that agent for help.

Jerry Rossi's summary of the 2009 buyer

Watch this video by Jerry Rossi. He has a solid view of the characteristics of the 2009 buyer. Many of his points are about the characteristics we have been discussing but his overall message points out the need to provide pertinent information to capture the buyer lead. Pay close attention to his first listing video.