One Stop Shopping for Brokers and Agents
(Part 1 of 2)

by Bernice Ross, Ph.D. MCC
Owner, Teleclass4U.com, LLC and RealEstateCoach.com

Copyright © 2007
RealEstateCoach.com and Teleclass4U.com
All rights reserved in all media.

Consolidation is one of key trends occurring in the real estate industry today. Are you ready to capitalize on this trend in your business?

Will there be a single Multiple Listing Service for the entire country? While there has been a heated discussion about this topic, few people have noted the parallel consolidation of the vendor services that agents and brokers use. Integrated, single platforms of services are rapidly replacing the piecemeal approach that required agents and brokers to go to multiple vendors to obtain the services they need. What’s even more surprising is that many of these new platforms are available at no charge.

I was conducting a new agent training class last week and wanted to illustrate how easy it is to set up a website to the class. Several years ago, you would have to invest several thousand dollars to have a quality website. Today, agents can create a website in just a few minutes and have an amazing array of services available from that site, all at no charge. Before you say, “I already have a website,” remember that searching the web is akin to searching for a needle in a haystack. The more places that you and your listings appear the more likely you will be to generate and convert leads.

Sadly, most agent and broker websites lack landing pages. The reason to have a landing page is to motivate leads to give you their contact information. The strategy works by offering your web visitor a free report or some other offer of service such as a complimentary CMA. Since your web visitor must supply a valid Email address to receive the information, you are now engaging in “give to get marketing.” In other words, you offer a service and then allow your web visitors to determine whether they want the service. In exchange, you obtain their contact information.

An important part of your strategy in working with a landing page is to offer additional services each time that someone requests information. For example, if a buyer clicks through from your report, “How to Save Money on Your Mortgage,” you could follow up with “Five Inspection Tips Most Buyers Miss.” The idea is to continue to offer services until your web visitors decide to work with you.

The challenge for agents and brokers alike is that doing this process manually takes a great deal of time. New integrated technology solutions now allow you to do this quickly and easily. For example, when you sign up for one of the Point2Agent websites, you can create a website that is packed with landing pages, all of which offer services to your client. Once web visitors click on a report, the system automatically sends it them and  then adds the data to your contact manager.

Point2’s technology does much more. Once you post a listing on your Point2 site, it is syndicated to over 20 different websites including Yahoo Classifieds, CraigsList, Google, Oodle, Trulia, Live Deal, and PropertySmart. You can also elect through their “Handshake” program to syndicate to any of the other 140,000+ agents who are already in their system. Their “NLS” or National Listing Service, allows you to display your listings to the public as well. In addition to these resources, they also have a blogging product included in the package. The most exciting part of this package, however, is their new service that integrates into Facebook.

If you’re not familiar with Facebook, it’s a social networking site much like MySpace.com. Visitors post pictures, videos, and other information on their “wall.” Social networking sites are similar to a town hall meeting where like-minded people can gather to share information about common interests. Facebook.com is well on the road to becoming more popular than MySpace.com because it allows users to control access to their network. What Point2 has done is to integrate a new application into their current website product that posts your listings on Facebook in the appropriate neighborhood. It also allows you to establish yourself as the expert Realtor® in the area by answering questions and participating in the Facebook community.

To establish yourself as an expert in today’s Web 2.0 environment, follow these three easy steps:

1.  Participate in a social networking site that is specific to your geographical location or neighborhood

2.  Be a strong resource for community information

3.  Post plenty of photos and videos about your location as well as relevant and interesting content.

Taking advantage of Web 2.0 is now easier than ever. If you haven’t joined in, now’s the time to do so!

Want to learn more about more web innovations that can boost your business? If so, don’t miss next week’s column, “Become a High Flyer with VFlyer.”