June 23rd, 2009
It really isn’t about you!
OK this is what I’m talking about. Some overflow from my last post talking about how the Real Estate industry needs to get out of the image marketing and get real about what the customer perceives to be of value. This blog had some real funny ones that you have to take a look at.
The Official Real”ad”tor Awards
Sorry for the short post today I’m getting ready to get on a plane and come home from Vegas and my idea engine is running low. 
June 18th, 2009
It is all about Micro interactions and embracing change.
I recently saw a great slide show by David Armano called Micro interactions in a 2.0 world. After looking at his presentation it hit me that currently today we struggle to get into the Web 2.0 world and we have to figure out how to get there.
Think about what we still do. We still advertise in news papers, we have meetings to talk about how we are going to divide up add space in a newspaper, we still have agents that want to have their pictures on their business cards, or buy banners that talk all about how great the agent is. We use acronyms that even today the customer still does not have a clue what they mean.
I say all this because we have to be open to change and understand that the way we did business 5 years ago isn’t going to continue to work. David makes some powerful statements in his presentation such as. ” The consumer is changing form a passive consumption to active participation.” This means that they want to be apart of our business and contribute so I ask you, should we have to allow that to happen? Unfortunately the consumer experience varies so much from deal to deal that we would say “no we can’t let them talk about us and make that viewable to the public.” I ask why not? Remember “A brand is not what you say it is, it is what they say it is.” according to David.
We have to start looking at how we interact in small micro interactions in many different places. Social networking, websites that currently attrack large amounts of eyeballs to real estate information. How do we make sure in these environments we show up consistently, professionally, and with integrity. As there are more and more places to interact on line it allows for further fragmentation of our brand and creates even more confusion for our customer.
It is important that we think like business people and make sure that we understand our customer better. We also have to be aware of all our touch points with the customer and remember that all of them add up. David says this..
I do believe that we are at a crossroad and we have to begin to think differently about how we interact with our customers. We need to embrace social networking, we need to understand blogging and begin to engage the customer not as a transaction but as a person that can help to enrich our consumer experience by allowing them to give us useful feedback that will enhance our processes. David has a slide that really shows what this shift should look like.
to see all his slide refer to the link at the top of this post.
June 15th, 2009
How is our web traffic doing?
As I’m out in offices on a weekly basis I do get a ton of feedback from agents on what they like and don’t like about Windermere.com.
In the NW we are always compared to John L Scott who also has a great site for searching for homes. After we made some significant changes to Windermere we did see our traffic fall due to the new map search that customers weren’t totally use to. We did say however that this was a work in progress and we would monitor it weekly and make sure we kept tweaking it until traffic began to grow again. I’m happy to say that Windermere’s traffic is doing great in fact with the addition of the new list search tool we have really spiked our traffic in the last few weeks. See the graph below from compete.com showing what we have done in the last 3 months, compared to John L. Scott.
As you can see we have had a 15% increase with unique visits and we will continue to tweak the site to gain even more users.
I do want to point out that as a company you always have to be moving forward. If we had waited to launch a new site that everyone liked we would still be waiting to launch a new site. My point is we will never satisfy everyone, but we will try to make a tool that the public finds to be useful and easy to navigate. The best indicator to see if we have achieved this is traffic and time spent on our website. Keep the feedback coming as we are always looking for ways to make the site even more user friendly.
June 11th, 2009
Don’t under estimate Craigslist when it comes to Real Estate.
Again Windermere is leading the industry when it comes to online marketing. Recently we ventured into a partnership with an amazing company called ubadoo. Ubadoo unlike companies like postlets and others has a unique value proposition when it comes to listing aggregation.
As real estate professionals it is our responsibility to represent each property as best as we possible can. In many cases listing aggregators do not understand this part of our business and tend to sale the agent on the idea that taking a listing and pushing it out to every possible real estate portal on the Internet seems to be a good idea. That would be similar to 5 years ago trying to advertise your listing in every news paper that existed. It may sound appealing but with the Internet today we know where the real estate audience is located and so lets be calculated and smart about how we advertise. Ubadoo gets this and so it seems to be a good fit between the two companies, Ubadoo and Windermere.
Ubadoo has the most sophisticated listing push tools for craiglist. What I have found amazing in the short time we have been working with ubadoo is the traffic that craigslist generates above and beyond large real estate portals like Google and Yahoo, and Trulia. Not to discount these sites at all they are truly important to the whole online marketing campaign but none the less I’m just amazed at the concentrated traffic generated by Craigslist.
here are some interesting numbers you that might surprise you.
Daily we feed Trulia, Google, and Yahoo around 37,000 listing of which the click through traffic is as follows (time frame 6/5 to 6/11)
Google base is about 19,000 click trough’s
Trulia is at 3,410
Yahoo real estate is 6,320
Now craigslist is an opt in tool so we do not send all listing there. The listing count on Craigslist of Windermere listings is 10,482 yet our click through traffic is 23,461,
over 4000 more click troughs than google with less listings.
For those of you who are more visual here is a graph to show what I’m talking about
Windermere is always looking at how we can do the best job of marketing our listings to the world. Google, Trulia, Yahoo Real Estate are all important and now we add craigslist to that mix. Stay tuned as we are looking to bring on some more great portals in the very near future.
This tool is just another advantage that a seller would have by working with a Windermere agent.
May 29th, 2009
Customer services isn’t rocket science.
Why do some companies just not get it when it comes to customer services? I mean really it isn’t rocket Science. Here is my story.
I’m in the process of building a shed and a play house for my kids and I have an extensive lumber order that needs to be ordered and delivered. Wanting to get a good prices I called two lumber yards to get a quote. Lets call them yard A and yard B.
Here is my experience with Yard A. I call the number on their website and ask for sales. Sales answerer’s and I explain that I need a quote. The person on the other line says how big is the order? Meaning how many items. I say about 14 items. He then asks me if I can fax to him the order. Ok you know I’m a tech person so I say “well I don’t have a fax, can I e-mail it to you”? Who uses faxes today anyways?
He says “umm I think so hang on a sec”. Comes back on the line and then says if I e-mail it they can’t retrieve it right away so a quote would take a few days it would be faster if I could get to a fax. Ok how is this convenient for me? So I tell them I will just e-mail it and wait the two days. End of conversation.
Yard B. I get their number from their website. Call the sales dept and get a very nice man by the name of Jim. Jim says to me “Why did you wait so long to call”. Humor I love that. He then says “how can I help you”. I explain to him I need a quote and ask how should I send him the info. He said “well what works best for you? I say I can e-mail it to you? Jim says “great e-mail it is”. I send him the e-mail. 10 mins after I send the e-mail a confirmation comes back to me saying we got your list and are working on it right now. I had my work phone number on the order e-mail when I sent it. About 1/2 hour later I get a phone call and it is Jim. Jim tells me that the quote is ready but their Internet is down so is there a fax number that he can send it to? I tell him I have a fax at work but I do not know the fax number. Jim is a smart guy and realizes he called my work and got transferred to me so he says, “Mike why don’t I just call your work number back and I’ll ask for the fax number myself, would that work for you”? Absolutely Jim thank you. This guy gets it. I have to believe that in this day and age with our economy where it is even a lumber yard is hungry to get a sizable order?
I get my quote same day and at the bottom of the quote it says thank you Michael Fanning if there are any question you have on this quote don’t hesitate to call us, and they give me a 1 800 number.
Ok back to Yard A. It is now 3 days later. No quote so I call Yard A. I tell them my name and how I sent a order via e-mail. 10 mins on hold only to tell me they can’t find my order. “Oh wait here it is” they say. They didn’t process it because they had a few questions. Why didn’t you call me? I ask. “Oh we didn’t have your number”. You mean my number on the bottom of the order I e-mailed to you. “Oh yeah there is a number there”. So I answer their questions and then they tell me I should have a quote by the end of the day. Ok now it is day 4, no quote! Well guess what? Yard B got my order. Even if Yard A came back today with a quote for less money it wouldn’t matter. They DON’T GET It.
There wasn’t anything that was over the top special or super impressive that Yard B did, other than the fact that Yard B took care of the customer and at the end of the day that is really all the matters. Keep in mind customer services doesn’t have to be some super special event, you just need to listen and deliver and make sure the customer feels like they were taken care of in a timely manner. You will be surprised how well it works.
May 27th, 2009
The Gen Y can why can’t we?
I was with my nephew on a ski trip not to long ago and witnessed how the Y generation is so different then the previous generations and I’ll explain.
The Y generation is not afraid of technology in anyway shape or form. In fact they have with them at all times some type of smart phone device, maybe an I-phone or a blackberry that is connected to the world no matter where they might be, they are never very far from a connection, meaning they can text to their hearts content and there is always someone there for them to talk with. As I watch my nephew play his x-box and frequently hit pause then very quickly (Faster then the human eye) text a friend then go right back to his game without missing a beat. I started to think “wow” what was I doing when I was that age. Lets see I didn’t have a cell phone, the only phone I had was the kind that stayed in the house and plugged into the wall. I did have a bike and usually I would wake up in the morning and get on the bike and ride it till the sun went down. Most of the time I was physically with my friends talking and getting into some sort of trouble but what ever it was we were having fun and interacting in a face to face world. I was never proven wrong with a link form wikipedia and my group of friends were between 3 and 4 not 300 and 1000. I don’t believe that this new way of the Y generation is wrong or there is something not right about it but the reality of it is that the majority of their time is spent in an online world in some capacity.
I wanted to write about this because as we get older and have to deal with this younger generation it can become overwhelming because we tend to think we have to be like them and I don’t believe that to be true. I know I teach a class on social networking, and a class on how to twitter but I also try to explain that this stuff should not dominate your personal or business world. This article was sent to me the other day form our CMO Jan Edmondson and I think it gets to the point of what I’m trying to say. I still strongly believe that the business of real estate is and will continue to be a relationship business. That said we will have to embrace technology to enhance the way we interact with each other but at the end of the day having a face to face conversation is still far more satisfying no matter what generation you are. You have to be smart about how you go about it and make sure that you have a good understanding of technology but it does not have to consume you 24/7. If it does I guarantee you, if you are not a Gen Y, it will create frustration and diminish your relationships not enhance them. So take some time to decompress, turn off the phone, and the computer and just see how that feels. It’s OK your facebook friends aren’t going anywhere.
May 15th, 2009
Social Networking resources 101.
Question: If a conversation takes place online and you’re not there to hear or see it, did it actually happen?
Indeed. Conversations are taking place with or without you.
“If you’re not part of the conversation, then you’re leaving it to others to answer questions and provide information, whether it’s accurate or incorrect. Or, even worse, you may be leaving it up to your competition to jump in to become there source for the community. ”
For many of you reading this article you may say ok this is just way to basic, however after teaching some Social Network classes I realized that many people are still a bit fuzzy on what Social Networking is all about. For starters I would recommend you watch this video that is short and sweet but to the point when it comes to Social Networking
Now that you have some understanding about Social Networks there are two that I feel are important to start with . Facebook and Linkedin. Facebook is where you can grow your personal network, and Linkedin is where you can grow your professional network.
When using facebook there are some basic rules to follow and this article does a great job in explaining what they are. Get out of my Face(book).
In addition to the basic profile of facebook you also might want to explore how to successfully use the page function of facebook. Dustin Luther does a great job explaining pages in this article. Face book Pages.
Social networking is a process that you have to participate with on a very consistent basis. It isn’t a sprint but rather a long distance run. You have to crawl walk run. This image gives you a good idea of what I’m talking about. It starts with building a profile, that’s the crawl. Then to walk you have to ad rich content that others are interested in, then to run you have to engage individuals on a regular basis, then you can embrace the community, now you are flying
Last but not least remember this as you begin to enguage in your social networks.
It starts with respect.
Participate as a person, not as a marketer, sales person or
message factory.
Be real!
Be helpful and bring value to the conversation.
During this entire process, you’re contributing to the personality and the perception of the brand you represent.
Don’t be an advertiser be a person.
Be consistent.
April 21st, 2009
Get scared or get busy!
As I’m out in the field with all the different agents who are trying to survive in these tough times I realized that there is definitely a commonality with the ones who are being successful vs the agents that are running scared.
The biggest difference that I see is based on the attitude they have and how they make that attidude work for them or against them. Being a Realtor is not an easy job but if you work smart and look forward instead of looking behind you things tend to be easier.
Many agents I talk to today say they are overwhelmed, can’t keep up, don’t have the time to learn all the new stuff that is coming at them. I get it, but that is an excuse. Show me any profession today where you can just take what you know and survive on just that knowledge for an indefinite period of time. One of the responsibilities of any professional is to maintain expertise by always increasing your knowledge of the tools you use to enhance your business. The medical field is a good example of this, I recently read a study that stated many physicians spend equal time if not more time learning new concepts in medicine in order to offer the best health care possible to their clients. I would ask how much time do you spend learning new ways to interact with your clients and keep your business fresh and on the cutting edge?
The customers today are so demanding, and it can really be difficult as you try to keep up with them and make sure you are showing up different than anyone else. What I would ask however is to have an open mind and not a closed mind. I’m always out there pushing the envelope on new things to try and it requires some effort and learning but none the less if you do it and succeed you win.
What I run into over and over again is the agent that would rather just dismiss the idea all together and then say something along these lines. ” Well that may be how you do business but my clients are different and I don’t need that stuff” What your really saying is “Hey I’m scared and it is a bit overwhelming and I want to keep up but I just can’t get my arms around it!” Why don’t you just say that then, and let us try to help you and began to learn how to use the new tools and concepts. I recently read an article from the Denise Lones Blog called. The two types of agents. It is the heart of what I’m talking about here. The agents who have the positive attitude and then look forward and charge full speed into new ideas and concepts with out trepidation are going to be the agents who will absolutely thrive. The agent who wants to hang on to the way it use to be and walk very slowly and moan and grown all the way may still do business but it will be a painful road and eventually that road will end.
I would ask you to examine you attitude, check the negativity at the door, open your mind and began to think out of the box. You will be surprised what that might do for you business.
April 7th, 2009
A good hanydman is hard to come by.
So being a home owner, having a full time job and two kids under the age of 6 can make it hard to take care of the little maintenance items that crop up in your home. I grew up with a Dad that pretty much knew how to do everything, in fact he built the home I grew up in and still lives there today. So being able to do the work myself isn’t the concern. The concern is finding the time to do it. Well as luck would have it I happen to luck out and find a great handyman by the name of Rob St. John. Rob has done everything from electrical, to dry wall to repairing leaks in walls and windows. I would highly recommend Rob to any one who is in need of a great reliable handyman. His prices are reasonable and he is on time and very neat and always has something nice to say. You can reach rob at 425-343-2202 or e-mail him at betterbuild@hotmail.com.
April 1st, 2009
Sign the Washington Kids Can’t Wait Petition today.
Will you sign the Washington Kids Can’t Wait Petition. With your help, we have surpassed 6,000 signatures from parents, educators and students.
Now more than ever, we need to speak up in support of public schools and for re-defining basic education to include all the essential programs our children need to succeed in school and life.
This week, our state lawmakers released budget proposals that would make devastating cuts to public schools. We need your help to show Senate and House leaders and the Governor that minimizing cuts to public education is a top priority for Washingtonians.
Please ask two friends to sign the Washington Kids Can’t Wait Petition today. Our goal is to reach 10,000 signatures by this Friday.
Reaching our goal will send a loud and clear message that we want our lawmakers to protect education programs that are essential to children and schools, such as:
• Initiative 728, which provides funding for up to 5,000 teachers statewide;
• Levy equalization, which help the poorest school districts in the state; and
• Early childhood education and funding to lower K-4 class sizes, which research shows is important for the success of young children.
Please help us reach 10,000 signatures by Friday. Ask two friends to sign the Washington Kids Can’t Wait Petition today.
Thank you again for your support.
Lisa Layera Brunkan and Susan McBurney, Fund Our Future Washington
Kelly Munn, League of Education Voters
Shannon Campion, Stand for Children
Laura Bay, Washington State PTA
Washington Kids Can’t Wait!
