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Smart Agents Use Technology and Internet to Extend Reach, Stay in Touch - 2007-06-02 |
Real estate professionals are facing a tough road in the year ahead.
Many agents are still geared up for the full throttle market they experienced over the last half decade, but find they no longer have the demand or the volume they once did.
And to make matters worse, literally thousands of new agents are crowding a field of seasoned veterans who are all in search of today's elusive quarry: the serious buyer.
The fact is that any agent who has been licensed and active for less than seven years has never seen a "normal" Atlanta real estate market. By normal, I mean one that responds to the traditional ups and downs of the seasons we so gratefully experience. Instead, recent year sales volumes have led some agents to believe that a slowdown could never happen, at least not here.
They were wrong.
Today we find our residential real estate market good, but not great. It is overpopulated with sellers who hope to get record prices in minimal marketing periods, and buyers who have been trained by experience to wait until they get the house they want at the price they seek.
One of the ways that smart agents are surviving is through the use of technology. It helps them extend their reach, stay in touch, and allows them to generally use their time more efficiently. That's what technology is best at.
Here are some of the tech tools and internet sites that agents are using today to reach more potential customers and get more done in less time:
MARKETING SITES: According to research from the National Association of Realtors, as many as 4 out of 5 home shoppers begin their research on the internet, long before they even think of talking to any agent. Thus a presence on the world wide web for listings is critically important.
Sites such as ajchomefinder.com, realtor.com and craigslist.com are viewed by literally millions of pairs of eyes daily. In fact, craigslist is now the seventh most visited site worldwide, if you can believe the statistics.
High tech web listings like ajcclassifieds.com have completely replaced the old multiple listing books, which were already out of date by the time they were published twice each month. As a humorous reminder of how things have changed, the listing books always were printed with a warning on the cover that the listing information contained therein was "confidential."
UNIQUE DOMAIN WEB SITES: Agents are now using private domains to set up an individual web site for each property they list. This can be done on a house-by-house basis for maximum impact for each property, such as the agent did with 51delmar.com.
This site was created by a service at agencylogic.com for about fifty dollars per property, or you can create your own simple site using a service like domains.yahoo.com or godaddy.com. These and other hosts allow you to select your own domain name, like 135peachtree.com, for less than two bucks for the first year, pointing all visitors to another site you have posted with photos and information.
PHOTO WEB SITES: While there are many photo management sites, my favorite is picasa.com, which not only allows me to view and manage my digital photos for free, but then allows me to select the best pics I have taken and export them to a free photo web album for the world to see. The application to real estate is obvious.
If a prospective buyer from Chicago thinks he might want to learn more about my house, I want to let him see as much of the property as I possibly can. The more information I provide, the more the buyer likes it. Setting up a photo web page at picasa is remarkably easy, and effectively delivers a visual tour of the property.
SHOWING RESPONSE SITES: such as HomeFeedBack.com get the seller involved in the selling process by having him input information about every showing of the home by a selling agent. The website then automatically emails the showing agent requesting feedback about the condition of the property as well as the appropriateness of the asking price.
So if a house has a pet odor in the carpet and is priced well above current market conditions (a typical stance of listings in Atlanta), the website provides that direct information to a seller. The result is a seller more in touch with price and condition reality. And a listing agent who isn't the messenger of bad news.
Getting feedback from showing agents isn't a new idea, but using the internet for scheduling and follow-up is, and agents tell me they get a much better response from agents when a request arrives promptly in their email (maybe 60%) than they do from a phone call requesting a call back (around 15%). And the seller is more likely to pay attention because he is involved in the process.
NEXT WEEK: More websites and tech tips being used by great agents today.
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Upcoming Events
"EPA CERTIFIED RENOVATOR" TRAINING
Do You Work with Real Estate? You Must Be LEAD SAFE CERTIFIED as of April 22nd.
To all owners, realtors, investors, property managers, contractors, electricians, plumbers and painters. Do you ever engage in any level of renovation? If so, read this:
Any renovator, from owners to contractors, from plumbers to electricians to painters, who disturbs lead paint while working in a pre-1978 home, school or day care center, now must be Lead-Safe Certified. If you’re not, you can face tens of thousands of dollars in fines. Plus, you put the health of yourself, your workers and your customers at risk, which could result in lawsuits. One simple 8 hour class certifies you for five years. It’s that easy.
Since April 22, 2010, there are new Federal rules regarding how you perform any work that disturbs lead-based paint in homes, child-care facilities and schools built before 1978. You now must be EPA certified and follow specific work practices to prevent lead contamination.
Failure to follow the new rules can result in federal fines of up to $32,500 per day or up to 5 years in federal prison, or both. Don’t take a chance - it’s not worth it.
How To Become an EPA Certified Renovator:
In just one day, John Adams will teach you how to meet all EPA requirements and become an “EPA Certified Renovator.”
Don’t wait - register now! Click on “Seminars” and choose your day!
- Friday, September 10th at Suburban Plaza, 2643 North Decatur Road
and Church Street, Decatur , Lower Level, beneath Hancock Fabrics
8:30 A.M. to 5:30 P.M.
- Friday, September 17th at Suburban Plaza, 2643 North Decatur Road
and Church Street, Decatur , Lower Level, beneath Hancock Fabrics
8:30 A.M. to 5:30 P.M.
- Friday, September 24th at Suburban Plaza, 2643 North Decatur Road
and Church Street, Decatur , Lower Level, beneath Hancock Fabrics
8:30 A.M. to 5:30 P.M.
- Friday, October 1st at Suburban Plaza, 2643 North Decatur Road
and Church Street, Decatur , Lower Level, beneath Hancock Fabrics
8:30 A.M. to 5:30 P.M.
- Friday, October 8th at Suburban Plaza, 2643 North Decatur Road
and Church Street, Decatur , Lower Level, beneath Hancock Fabrics
8:30 A.M. to 5:30 P.M.
Total Course Cost: $295, includes exam and EPA-HUD 400 page manual
Space is limited to 20 participants.
Training services provided by Seagull Environmental Management Co, Inc.
Courses are approved for purposed of certification under Section 402 of TSCA for the Certified Renovator.
This course has been approved by the Georgia Real Estate Commission for 7 hours of Real Estate Continuing Education
For more information, call toll-free 888-373-0029
Click above on the "Seminars" button to register
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