A Real Estate Discussion Blog

Today Chrysler announced that next year their vehicles will come with the option of becoming a mini wireless Internet hotspot. 

So now you can get Internet in your car, Virgin has Ethernet ports on their planes, and I still can't pick up a cell signal in my basement.....but I digress. 

The Internet will be a dealer installed option that will work over cellular telephone links. Chrylser's uconnect system can link telephones and personal music players to the car's onboard electronics, so imagine controlling your Apple iPod with radio and steering wheel controls.  It will also includes the company's in-car 30-gigabyte hard drive, with options for three-channel satellite television service and satellite radio.  The system will work while the car is in motion and can be utilized by passengers. 

Cost is expected to be about $449 for the wireless router, $35-$50 for dealer installation, with service fees at about $29/month with a onetime activation fee of $35. 

My mind is spinning with the implications this can have on real estate as this type of technology becomes more commonplace, as I am sure it will- and fast. 

Can you imagine the turning the computer screen in your car to "real estate" mode.  As you drive around a neighborhood, listings are being feed to your car.  Maybe you told your car your search criteria and it is mashing listing data with maps to spit out GPS directions to see your home matches in the most efficient route. 

When you drive by a home that is actually for sale, the home and car could basically "talk" feeding multiple photos, podcasts, video, descriptions, and vital data about the home to your dashboard.  Because the information is coming through the phone lines, there could be a push to talk to the Realtor on the same device.  And all this could then be downlaoded to your iPod for future review with the push of a button.

I think the value of the website in a marketing strategy is already diminishing with the advent of Web 2.0 media.  People can get tons of information from so many sources today, however, they need help deciphering it.  This is why sites that allow dialogue in the form of question and answers and blogging are so valuable. 

I believe this type of mobile technology is going to make the website even less important, and the need for a mobile marketing strategy CRITICAL.  People aren't going to be sitting in their cars surfing websites.  They are going to want customized information feed directly to them. 

It won't happen today or tomorrow, but it is coming.  Each purchase of another iPhone and now cars with mobile technology, puts us that much closer to what I imagine Web 3.0 to be- when computers become antiquated technology replaced by personal, handheld technology that is always accessible and customized to feed directly to the end user, verses the end user going out and searching for it. 

And we thought talking on the phone while driving was dangerous...  I can only imagine my husband driving down the road talking on his phone, listening to his mp3 player while trying to pull up the latest Cubs score and having a conversation on IM.  The next step is going to have to be cars that will drive for us, to free us up for other activities that are now becoming more important than steering while driving! 

If you live in Chicago, you know street festivals in the summer are HUGE here.  Almost every weekend you can visit a different neighborhood's festival, hear good music, drink cold beverages and just enjoy being outside. 

This weekend (June 14^th) is Wrigleyville Summerfest, the festival that my church puts on every year.  The weather can really determine the attendance and this year it looks like we are again are going to blessed with great weather.  So for all you Chicagoans that have cabin fever from the long winter we had, come out and enjoy the activities, which can all be found on the website here.  I am especially excited to hear Too White Crew, one my favorite local Chicago cover bands. 

For the last 3 years, since joining the church, I have headed up the marketing efforts for the festival.  It is amazing how the festival is marketed has changed in such a short period of time. 

The first year, we hardly had a website worth promoting.  I sat at a fax machine for an hour and sent out all of the press releases, who knows if the right people ever got them?  We made flyers and distributed them door-to-door in the neighborhood.  And we took an ad in the newspaper (a paper targeted at our audience).  We had a large sign up sheet posted in hall for volunteers. 

The second year, the website got better, we actually starting referencing it on the press release.  I sent all of the press releases via email or submissions through a website.  I believe we got a little better pick up because the editors could just cut and paste want they needed verses having to retype everything.  We still ran the newspaper ad, but not so much for the ad but also because by doing the ad, we got better exposure on their website. 

This year, the marketing plan has seen the most dramatic changes with the advent of social networking and web 2.0 principles.  Facebook was a big play for us this year, where we created an event profile and had people post this to their personal profiles and from there their entire network could see an event they were endorsing.  We also created a widget you could include on our Facebook page as a way to virally get people to sign up for events and know who was coming.  A similar strategy was applied on Yelp.com, where an event record was created and community members could talk about it or let others know they would be attending.  Our website also continued to advance, although it still stands for improvement, to include transactional functions such as now being able to sign up for events like the bags tournament.  The website will also serve as a follow up mechanism when we post the results and party pics.  This year, the volunteer sign up is still in the hall, but the master copy resides in a folder in a Yahoo groups page that anyone can edit.  The sign up was also sent via an Evite. 

I am thinking next year about doing a blog describing the progress as planning for this starts months out.  It obviously would be a big boost in SEO for us. 

So if you are in the Chicago area this weekend, please stop by!  It will be a great time! 

For more information about this event, please visit www.WrigleyvilleSummerfest.com.

Click HERE to find out about other festival happening in the city the rest of the summer. 

My heart is going out to the people in Iowa right now!  I just watched a CNN video on the river flooding that is occurring in Cedar Rapids.  I grew up in Iowa about three hours north of there, where my parents still live. 

My parents just finished laying new carpet and putting down hardwood floors a few months ago, and 5 days ago water starting seeping into their basement.  They don't have a sump pump, so they have been running shop vacs around the clock to try to pick up as much as they can.  They called their insurance company and this is considered "flood damage", which most people aren't insured for in the area.  So nothing is covered.  The town isn't totally flooded like other areas, but the ground is just so saturated. 

Obviously this is a pain for them to keep getting up at all hours of the night to go empty the shop vacs, but now seeing what is happening in Cedar Rapids, it is just an inconvenience compared to the fact that a lot of people are going to lose their homes. 

I remember the last flood like this that happened in Iowa right before I went to college at Iowa State.  Ames got flooded.  I remember seeing on the news how water had come into the basketball stadium all the way to the top of the basketball rims.  The farmers really suffered immensely, as they will this year.  Unfortunately we are already far enough into the growing season that it will be hard for them to replant much.  Corn and soybeans will be hit hard, as these are the main crops planted in Iowa.  

My prayers go out to all Iowan dealing with the water issues right now!  I hope the weather starts cooperating.  The forecast looks better, but they could still see some more rain over the next week.  What crazy weather we have had over the last year.  From fires in the West, to flooding and tornados in the Central, and now heat waves in the East- not to mention the terrible winter we had here in Chicago.  No one has been safe from Mother Nature. 

CNN VIDEO

Three women for whom I have a lot of respect for in the industry are coming together next week to bring you a free Webinar as part of their eight week No Blogger Left Behind webinar series.  Next week's topic will discuss content ideas for your blog. 

The two organizers of the event are Joeann Fossland and Frances Flynn Thorsen, with special guest, Blanche Evans (bios below). 

Register HERE for the event. 

Tuesday, June 17th, 2:00-3:00 am EDT

These three woman represent a wealth of knowledge and I am sure they won't disappoint!

Description of the Webinar:

Tired of Negative Headlines? Write Your Own!  Real estate news is LOCAL! News articles about a national real estate market are as relevant as a national weather forecast! This is what Web 2.0 is really all about! Blogs and online publishing tools give real estate agents a chance to tell consumers the REAL story as it applies to local markets.

• What online publishing tools are available?
• Learn how to write a powerful headline.
• Learn how to write a NEWS story.
• Learn how to write a FEATURE story.
• Conduct (wo)man-on-the-street interviews.
• Build your business at the same time that you build your brand and build your repuation.
• Learn how to attract the press.

Blanche Evans is Editor-In-Chief of Realty Times, Dallas. A perennial favorite real estate journalist among the REALTOR ranks, Blanche provides informed analysis on the latest trends in real estate to some 500,000 consumers and practitioners each month. Author of numerous best-selling books on real estate, an award-winning journalist, and an industry expert whose opinion is sought by CNN, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, and the Associated Press, Blanche Evans has that rare ability to break down complex topics into understandable prose. As the editor of an independent online real estate news service, which she says reaches the industry’s influencers, Evans is a staunch, often feisty, defender of organized real estate. She doesn’t pull any punches in poking holes in what she deems agenda-laden, spurious attacks by outsiders. (courtesy, Realtor.org.)

Joeann Fossland, e-PRO, GRI, SRS, PMN, is a Master Certified Coach and and award-winning real estate journalist and blogger. She was winner of the 2007 Women's Council of REALTORS' Connection Magazine Article of the Year. She has written numerous articles for Realty Times, RealTown, BrokerAgent News, and she publishes several blogs, including Relaxed Real Estate for Magnificent Agents. Joeann is the co-creator of the No Blogger Left Behind blog coaching Webinar program. She is a national speaker, a Certified e-PRO Trainer, and the senior GRI tech instructor in Arizona.

Frances Flynn Thorsen, e-PRO, SRS, is Managing Editor of RealTown.com. She has been a licensed REALTOR for more than 22 years, following a career as newspaper report and magazine editor. She publishes numerous blogs and was the winning Blog Coach in the national Project Blogger competition sponsored by Inman News and ActiveRain. She has been featured in Investors' Business Daily, BusinessWeekOnline, Inman News, The Philadephia Inquirer and The Orlando Sentinel. She is a member of the National Assn. of Real Estate Editors and the co-creator of No Blogger Left Behind.

Does newspaper advertising work?  I know what I overwhelming hear at conference after conference, NO.  The Philadelphia Inquirer recently tried to prove that the people who are saying this may have their heads in the clouds and that yes, it does indeed work. 

Last Friday newspaper subscribers saw ads for a new airline in their paper, Derrie-Air.  The concept behind this new airline was that it takes more fuel to fly heavier things, so therefore heavier people should pay more than lighter people, so the airline would be charging by pound.  They advertised sample rates from $1.40 per pound to go from Philly to Chicago and $2.25 per pound to go from Philly to LA.  More over Southwest, there is a new airline in town touting, "The more you weigh, the more you pay".  The ads for this new airline ran throughout the paper, as well as banner advertising on Philly.com. 

If this sounds like an April Fools joke, it was... sort of.  The airline was fake.  However, the ad was there to serve a purpose.  Philadelphia Media Holdings spokesman Jay Devine said the goal is to "demonstrate the power of our brands in generating awareness and generating traffic for our advertisers, and put a smile on people's faces."

No traffic numbers have been released yet, but Devine is already saying that there has been a lot of buzz for the campaign, especially on blogs.   

So are we to believe that because this campaign driving a lot of traffic to a fake airline that the Philadelphia Media Holdings is advertising, that advertising in their media does indeed work as a marketing vehicle? 

I say no and that this test is invalid. 

The concept was too gimmicky for it to be applied to everyday standards.  How many people saw the ad and were legitimately interested in booking a flight and went to the website- maybe a few.  How many were totally appalled and went to the website to complain- probably a lot more.  And how many saw the ad in a news story or on a blog, exposure that a typical ad would not receive, and went to the website- my guess is an overwhelming majority. 

Another bad message this idea sends is the idea of repetition in advertising is not important.  This ad ran for one day last Friday, and look at the buzz it generated.  I have been in advertising for 10 years, even worked at a print company for 5 of them.  I know our reps talked about the value of repetition, and I am sure you all have heard from your newspaper reps as well.  Branding ads typically need to be seen over and over in order to create awareness and action.  So I guess the next time you reps visits you and wants you to sign a long term contract, you can whip out this experiment and show them how effective a one-day run can be? 

I think the idea to run a test campaign and measure the effectiveness is a great idea on the part of this newspaper.  We should all be monitoring and testing our products and services like this to some degree.  But in order for the experiment to provide real results, I think they should have used a real product.  Would the results have been the same if they made up a fake car dealership and ran ads in the auto section?  What about if they would have created a fake real estate brokerage ad and ran it in the real estate section.  Of course the results would differ, but they would have been applicable to the current set of advertisers and usable data for the newspaper.  I don't believe any results they generate from this ad are usable.  Funny, perhaps.  Valid, no. 

There are two things we can take away from this experiment.  1) Creativity works in your favor.  This ad was definitely creative and it got people's attention.  What aspect of your business can you turn into an interesting marketing tool?  2) Viral works.  While they were intially trying to use their media assets to generate a campaign, I believe it was the virual effect that really took it to the next level.  They got some random like me to write about them on my little blog.  How can you get people talking about you.  Web 2.0 is huge tool in trying to accomplish this. 

So don't worry.  Have another doughnut for breakfast this morning.  Your next airline ticket is still going to cost the same as the guy who only has a small cup of coffee! 

Got to hand to some folks for the creativity they are expending when trying to sell a home these days.  Here are some of the more creative methods I have seen lately:

An Upside Down Auction - The owner is calling it the "Bothell Countdown".  Each week the price on this home goes down in increments of $5-10K.  As a potential buyer, you can sign up for email updates to keep track of price reductions and other updates. 

Win A Home For $200 - All you have to do is write a 100 word or less essay about your dream of owning a beach home on the Oregon Coast, pay a $200 entry fee, and the home could be yours! 

Buy One House, Get One Free - A developer in the San Diego area recently offered home buyers a free, 2,000 square foot home in Escondido if they purchased a home in the Royal View Estates development in the San Pasqual Valley of San Diego.

Jump On The Foreclosure Tour Bus - Spend the day on bus looking at Foreclosed properties.  This tour operator currently covers five states.  For a limited time they have reduced the cost of admission from $297 to $97.  Looks like you can not only get a bargain on a home, but on ticket prices as well. 

Go Green, Get A Prius - If you buy a green home in Encanterra (AZ), from Shea Homes, you get a free hybrid Toyota.  Hurry, this offer only good thru June 15th!

Finally, my personal favorite...

Stake Your Life On Your Home - The buyer of this home will be the named beneficiary to a 10-year, $500,000 term life insurance policy.  If the home owner dies in the next 10 years, the price of the home ($498,900) is covered.  In case you are a betting person and wondering about odds, the owner is 69.

Then of course, there are the incentives.  While this isn't anything new for, particularly for builders, home owners are now also testing this technique.  An article ran in the Boston Globe a few months ago quoting an agent who has sellers giving away things like: four sixth-row tickets facing the Lakers bench, VIP parking, and use of the "Royal Room" private lounge; a Harley-Davidson; a year's pool service; and association dues for a year.

I wonder if any of these homeowners considered the crazy marketing idea of pricing their home right with accordance to market conditions?  :)

This morning I was reading a script that the Chicago Assn of Realtors  released about what to say on a listing presentation if you coming in at a lower listing price than another agent.  It brought me back a year ago, when I hired a Realtor to sell a home in Florida.  I interviewed three people and all three had very different ideas as to what they thought my home was worth.  Their range in listing prices varied $150,000 from the lowest price to highest (about 30% of the value)!  In their defense, there weren't a lot of comps available, as there aren't a lot of buyers in the area and price point right now. 

So now, the million dollar question, who did we go with?  The person who was being the most realistic and coming in the lowest?  The one in the middle?  Or the one who was recommending the highest price (yes, I knew he was overpricing)? 

Yes, I admit, we went with the highest.  But not because of the list price!  We went with him because he exuded so much confidence in what he said to us.  He sold us on himself.  He was very articulate.  He sold us on that price.  We thought, if he can sell US on that price, surely he will be able to sell others!  His enthusiasm for the house and the area will be infectious.  He painted a full vision of what the area would become over the next 10 years and how lucky someone would be to get in right now, while prices were still affordable.  He not only sold us on our home, he sold us on the future of the community.  He got us so excited about our house again.  He got us excited about Hudson, FL.  He got us excited about the lifestyle a future owner could have while living in our home. 

I honestly don't remember anything about the middle person.  Not memorable, not good. 

The lowest bid was probably the most realistic.  I am sure the agent was a good agent, he had a sales history to prove it.  He was the most technologically savvy and had a great eMarketing campaign, which is why I initially interviewed him.  But he just didn't come off as a sales person to me.  He used language in his presentation that was so unmotivating and depressing.  His efforts to sell himself to me fell short.  I wasn't confident that his language or demeanor would get any more upbeat when talking to a buyer.  He just phrases like "I'll try to, but" and "yes, it could maybe one day be a lively community, but it was going to take 10 years". 

One person's "ONLY 10 years" is another person's "it is going to take TEN years". 

Two agents had good marketing plans, but it was the difference in language, attitude and specifically confidence that made one agent stand out from another, not price.  Yes, it was nice to hear that higher number (we actually ended up listing a little lower than he recommended).  I am sure the scripts are a nice technique to have in your back pocket and can be a good guide post when talking to a seller.  But whether you come in high or low, being confident in your presentation can mean so much more than the number.  At least it did for me!