Adapt Or Die

Adapt or DIE. If you have taken high school science you have heard this famous quote referring to Charles Darwin’s Theory Of Evolution.

Charles Darwin of course was a scientist who argued for the theory of evolution through natural selection. To make a long story, short, Darwin believed it was through natural selection that when members of a population die off, they are replaced by parents that were better adapted to survive and reproduce in the environment in which natural selection took place. It was this natural selection that forced species to Adapt or Die.

Natural Selection In Marketing

I see examples of Natural Selection everywhere.  I am not talking about the evolution from primates to humans, no –  I am talking more about Yellow Pages, The US Mail, television, radio, newspapers, music, software, books.

When is the last time you looked for a business in the Yellow Pages, mailed a letter to someone, rushed home to catch your favorite TV show, read the newspaper [hard copy], bought a actual/physical record/CD, bought a software in hard copy or even bought a {real} book?

The industries above are just some of the industries have been drastically changed forever by the Internet, more specifically –  by the shift in consumer behavior towards the Internet.  These industries have been forced to adapt to consumer behavior or DIE.

Why look at the Yellow Pages when you have Google? Why mail a letter to someone when you have email. Why run home to watch your favorite show when you have Tivo/DVR, why listen to the radio when you have ipod and satellite radio or Pandora. Why buy a hard copy of software when you can download it instantly, why buy a book when we have iPad and Kindle?

Some Adapt Some Will DIE

I was reading an article [on the Internet] the other day about electronics retailer, Best Buy titled;  Best Buy closing 50 stores after missing revenue goals. I remember when I did most of my electronics shopping at Best Buy. Need a new PC – Best Buy, new TV – Best Buy, camera – Best Buy.  Have a question about an item or its compatibility with another product – Best Buy. Notice I said “I did most of my electronics shopping at Best Buy” as in past tense? Not anymore and not for some time.

Over the last year I have spent [easily] $10,000 on video equipment. DSLR cameras, lenses, editing software, wireless microphones and receivers, camera bags etc. I did not buy any of them at Best Buy. I bought them all at Amazon.com. That is $10,000 that I didn’t spend at Best Buy. I simply Google a product, based upon the name of the product or the problem it solves: “Canon 60D” or “best DSLR camera for video”, then head over to Amazon.

At Amazon I can compare one product to another, read the consumer reviews [of people that actually own said product - social proof] to discover what they like and what they would change, I can see pictures and often, watch a video of the product in action. After all of my research is done, [that is what I am doing by the way] I can click a button to buy and have it shipped to me next day.

Convenience

When it comes to products, price, comparison shopping, convenience, information, reviews and avoiding crowds, it’s hard to beat Amazon.com. Judging from the growth chart below, obviously I am not the only one that feels this way.

Best Buy and other retailers are going to have to ADAPT or DIE to compete with online retailers like Amazon. Closer to home, there is another industry that will need to ADAPT or DIE.

Real Estate

Going back to Best Buy; losing market share to Amazon and other online retailers, it did not happen over night. When it comes to change, nothing really ever does. There is a slow progression that some notice and take advantage of and others ignore, neglect and fall behind.

Consumer behavior in regards to real estate has shifted and been shifting for some time towards the Internet. Today over 94% of consumers start their home search on the Internet. Not only is it convenient, the Internet provides the information about products [homes for sale] that consumers are looking for. That product [contrary to what some are told] is not you the real estate agent. Consumers are looking for a home or information about a home, HELP with avoiding foreclosure or completing a short sale. In fact, most consumers [80%] will choose the first real estate agent they find.

DIE

I received a postcard in the mail yesterday from a Top Producer, at least that is what he said he was. He showed up in the last place I would ever look for a real estate agent – my mailbox. His message? Typical. That he’s a top producer, and not just a top producer TODAY but in 2005 and 2006! He wanted to help me with all of my real estate needs, whether I was buying or selling. He also wanted me to refer him anyone I might know considering buying or selling AND he also wanted me to know that a referral of my friends or family is the highest compliment he could ever receive.

Uh, WHO THE HELL ARE YOU AGAIN?

I don’t even know this dude, and he doesn’t know me and I don’t care about him either, or his designations or his production AND I have absolutely NO use for his services at this time. And YET. . . he is telling me all about him and how awesome he is and for the icing on the cake. . . .he is asking me to refer anyone I might know, including my cherished friends and family to – him.

Really?

While I appreciate his offer I [and most consumers] will respectfully decline.

Adapt or DIE

We deal with something called immediate gratification. We want what we want AND we want it NOW. Got kids below 6 years old? Tell them

“you have been good, and because you have been good, I am going to take you to a movie TOMORROW”.

Watch what happens. Kids are not very good at delaying gratification. Neither are adults.

When that need finally arises for a bigger house, smaller house, condo, short sale, REO, when any need finally arises, they are not going to root around the “drawer of death” for a postcard or flyer from a real estate agent they ‘kind of know’, they are going to go to the Internet. They will not be looking for YOU. They will not be looking for you because they don’t even know you exist, nor do they care.

They will ask Google a question. 4 bedroom 2 bath homes under 200,000 Chandler. And 80% of them will choose the FIRST real estate agent they find. This is the new reality of real estate marketing. To many consumers YOU are a COMMODITY. They don’t know where one real estate agent ends and another begins, and [their perception] you all say the same thing anyway – don’t you? So why not choose the FIRST real estate agent if they are all the same any way?

Right?

You can continue to market yourself by talking about yourself and get nowhere or you can adapt to the shift in consumer behavior and market to consumers in the way they want to be marketed to. You can do this with WordPress, Twitter, Video, Optimization, Distribution, Creating Content, Indexable IDX’s and I can help you with all of them. Because I do them. You found me. I didn’t send you a postcard or flyer and yet – you are here. What more evidence do you need? Come to my real estate marketing classes and you will learn the HOW TO of changing your real estate marketing.

Adapt or DIE. Which one will you do? If you are in Phoenix, fill out the form below.

Walk in my house, met my 3 dogs, 2 kids and my wife – Aracely. Mail goes on the counter until I find out how everyone’s day was, no rush on the mail – it’s just bills and unwanted solicitations anyway right? Bills and solicitations are the reason I only check my mail 2 times per week. No one sends personal notes anymore so there is no rush to see what my “catch” was.

Hello’s and school stories out of the way I return to the mail. I have a specific way I read my mail, how about you? Here is what I do: I grab all of my mail in my left hand and stand over the garbage can. My left foot is on the pedal to keep the garbage lid open. Then, I start chucking!

“Junk, Junk, Junk, Stupid, Dumb, Junk, Junk, Junk”, well, you get the drift.

I was in between some ridiculously large book from my life insurance provider and the penny saver when I saw it. “It” was a postcard from a local real estate agent. I almost missed it too. It blended right in with the other junk I received for that day. Lucky for me, it was rather easy to spot. I mean, who sends laminated JUMBO postcards with a person on them anymore? REALTORS® that’s who.

This one looked expensive. Jumbo, laminated, lots of color and a picture of a woman with her arms crossed, grinning from ear to ear, leaning on a SOLD sign. We had a good laugh. I couldn’t help but to notice all the “real estate” this agent wasted on her JUMBO postcard with her picture and her SOLD sign and her LOGO. I mean, there was no VALUE for me – the consumer other than a JUST SOLD! No invitation to visit her website, no call to action, no value. This real estate agent spent some money on this postcard and it was a fail. Not just a fail, an EPIC FAIL as my 8 year Gabriella says.

There is a right way and a wrong way to market to consumers. I was looking at the wrong way. Doesn’t this real estate agent know that there are better real estate tools out there? I guess not. In the short video below I show you HOW real estate agent marketing has and continues to change and HOW you can change your real estate marketing to grow your real estate business.

Real estate marketing tools have and continue to change. There are better tools available today than the sports schedules, grocery cart ads, magnets or even JUMBO, GLOSSY postcards. I will SHOW YOU HOW to leverage them to grow your real estate business. Not WHY TO, HOW TO. These are tools that I use day in and day out to get found online by my ideal client. If you are in the Phoenix metro area, come to our real estate marketing classes. The Screencast video above is an example of HOW you can market to consumers, HOW you can present your value, HOW you can engage consumers and be different without even being on video. You just need to learn HOW.

Video is quickly becoming the preferred medium for consumers. Video says so much more about a home, its location, you and your value than text or pictures ever could. It starts with a properly set up, configured and optimized YouTube Channel. Fill out the form below and I will send you a video that SHOWS YOU HOW to set up, configure and optimize your YouTube channel.

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This story is 100% true. 

So, I’m sitting here in my office at Grand Canyon Title today [Friday] talking to a loan officer when my other line beeps. I look. It’s an out of state phone number. 562 area code – Norwalk, CA, or so my iPhone 4s says. I couldn’t help myself, I had to answer it.

“Phil, let me call you back, I got a call coming in from California, . . . .”. I said

“Hello, this is Stephen” I say. It’s a gentlemen on the other end of the phone, a real estate broker in California.

“Hi, I would like to talk about hiring you for SEO services” he said.

Interesting. I thought

I start asking questions.

“Can I ask how you found me?”

“Google” he said

“OK, which website did you find?” I asked.

“The Title Guy .com”, [he obviously meant MyTitleGuy.com]

Now, before I continue with this story let me tell you, that I love real estate agents. I love getting found online by my ideal client [real estate agents] because every time they “find” me, it validates me. In a world where so many title people say “I can help you build your business” having an agent find me, proves – that I can.

Back to my story. . .

Let’s recap. Phone rings. Real estate broker in California. Want to hire me for SEO services. Who better to call about SEO services than a guy you just found online right?

But there is a slight problem. I’m in Arizona, he is in California. So getting his title work is out of the question but I answered his questions anyway. I had a sneaking suspicion it would turn into a great article. I was right……

“You don’t need SEO services” I said.

“What? Wait a minute, you are an SEO company and you are telling me I don’t need SEO services, what kind of business plan is that?”  he said. I laughed. Literally out loud.

I explained.

“There is no shortage of SEO companies out there that will gladly throw some back links to your site and take your money, I am not one of them. I am not even an SEO company” 

“You’re not?” he said

“Nope. I’m a title guy here in Phoenix, Arizona”

“You’re a title rep?” {surprised}

“Yep”. I said.

Now, I shit you not. This is exactly what he said to me next:

“Wow, you are a title rep? The title reps out here just drop off some business cards and leave!”

Awesome!

I explained. “I help real estate agents in Arizona [Phoenix to be exact] grow their business with tools like WordPress, Video, Twitter, Screencasts, Content and that kind of stuff”.

“Well, how do you get paid?” he asked

“Escrows. They pay me with their escrows. By using the title company I work for.”

“You would give me your escrows if I showed you how to grow your business online, wouldn’t you?”

“Heck yeah!” he said

{I love that.}

I continued.

“You don’t need SEO services, you simply need to learn HOW to create great content”.

“What do you mean? he asked,  I have been playing around with Google’s keyword tool all day and there are no searches for “house Norwalk”.

“That’s because that is not how consumers search. They do not necessarily type keywords like that into Google. Instead, they ask a question. “House Norwalk, is too broad, the way they search is by telling Google EXACTLY what they want. 4-bedroom-2-bath-home-gated-community-under-400,000-Norwalk is more like it.”

He didn’t quite get it – yet. I explained further.

“Over 50% of all the searches that happen in Google are unique, as in they happen once and never happen again. The reason is, consumers ask a question. They ask Google a question or state exactly what they want and since no two people ask a question the same way, it’s unique.”

Then I gave him this advice, which I will give to you. . .

“Getting found online starts with rockstar content. Content your ideal client would look for when they have a need. Start carrying around a pad. Everywhere you go. Bring it on your buyer appointments and on your listing appointments. EVERY QUESTION a buyer or seller asks you should be written down. THEN, you take that list of questions and you start writing content around them. How is the market? Is now a good time to buy? Is there an HOA in X community? How are the schools around here? What is your commission? and on and on and on”.

I continued…

“We are not that different. One question from one buyer is not unique to that one buyer. There are other buyers and/or sellers with a similar question. Creating content around those questions will help consumers find you online. Even better, when they do find you – YOU are the expert.“ 

He understood. I could hear in his voice the excitement that he could do it himself, and that he didn’t need an SEO company to do it for him.

Tell a story

Set the stage. Don’t just talk about how the market is, tell a story about how the market is. Doing so will help consumers find you and help them understand your expertise without you having to talk about your expertise.

Keywords are important but they are not the end all be all. Focus on creating content around a question a consumer would ask Google when they have a question. When they have a problem. Be the solution to someone else’s problem and THEY WILL FIND YOU. Then take all those questions, all those blog posts and do them again – on video.

They ask a question.

But the real question is: are YOU the answer to it? You could be IF you know how to create interesting, engaging, educational and valuable content.

Are you a Phoenix REALTOR®? From Video to WordPress, Screen Capture to Indexable IDX solutions, I can help you grow your real estate business. Today 94% of consumers start their home search online and 80% will choose the FIRST real estate agent they FIND. Want to be that FIRST agent? Please fill out the form below.

Consumers Prefer Video

Close your eyes.

Imagine for a moment you are in the market to buy a home in Chandler, Arizona. You have done some research, you know that areas you would like to live in. First choice of course are those homes under $350,000 within 5 miles of the kids school or your job. Like 94% of consumers looking for a home you go to the Internet FIRST.

You do a search

Google returns 1 of 500,000 results for your search term. As you are about to click “back” on your browser and narrow your search you notice it. “It”  is something that sticks out like a sore thumb in your search results. In a field of anonymous links there is something that screams “click me”.

It’s a video.

On the 1st page of Google!

You click play. It’s a Phoenix area real estate agent talking about the housing market in Chandler, Arizona. The agent touches on home values, things to do and why his past clients chose Chandler over neighboring cities. The video is very well put together, not an electronic version of a postcard with a real estate agent talking about how many homes they sold last year or the multiple awards he and his team has won. No, this video has some value. Not just value, the agent is educating you, about Chandler, Arizona. It starts with a quick intro and then goes to a screen capture demonstration of the housing market in Chandler.

He is obviously the expert in the area, after all. . .you found him. If you are going to buy a home in Chandler you want it to be with someone familiar with the area and judging from the market statistics this real estate agent is showing you, he certainly is.

You pick up the phone and you call him.

Being Different

The best marketing is all about being different. Seth Godin calls it Purple Cow. Whatever you call it, know this: You can’t do the same old thing your competition does and expect to get noticed. When it comes to real estate marketing, eyeballs go to the best content. Everything else is vanilla and no one goes out of their way for vanilla. Do you?

Video can not only help you convey your value, experience and knowledge, it can also help you educate your ideal client. Video can also help you get found on the Internet. Less than 2% of real estate agents nationally are using video in their real estate business. This presents an opportunity for you to get your unfair share of consumers. If you were in the market for a home, would you prefer to see 25 pictures of it or a short video?

How To Use Video In Real Estate 

To help our clients grow their real estate business, Grand Canyon Title announces the “How To Use Video In Real Estate” Series. In the short video below you will learn what is covered in the How To Use Video In Real Estate series as well as how to reserve your spot. Did I mention this is FREE?

This is not one of those WHY TO real estate marketing classes. This series is all about the HOW TO. Things I do in my business day in and day out to grow my business. Today 50% of the leads I get on this website come from my videos. From the conversations I have had with those that have found me online, I have been able to gather an interesting fact: those that watch my videos do so for an average of a month. They watch one video and then another until finally contacting me via email or phone. One of the things I love about video is this: there are real estate agents out there that have already decided they are going to work with me; they just havent contacted me yet.

You have watched your neighborhood be absolutely destroyed by foreclosures. The Johnson’s, gone. The Smith’s – them too. Many of the people that lived in your Phoenix area subdivision are gone – they lost their Phoenix homes to foreclosure.

You are in the same predicament. Lately you have heard about something called a short sale. You have done your research, you saw a story on TV here and there and on your local news and the local newspapers have covered the topic as well. Through your research, you have learned that a short sale is a much better option than a foreclosure, at least it is here in Phoenix. You now know that it is better on your credit and that you can buy a home in less time than if you were to go through the “F” word – Foreclosure process.

Still, for all the information you have gathered you still long for someone to tell you that  it is going to be OK. Someone that has completed a short sale, someone that can explain the process and what is actually going to happen. So, like so many other consumers that want more information, you go to YouTube.

You ask YouTube for information about “life after short sale in Arizona” and you find what you are looking for. A very well put together video by a Phoenix area real estate agent that is talking WITH you, not AT you, about the short sale process in Arizona. The REALTOR® explains what will happen, that you are not a bad person, that this is a business decision. He even included picture-in-picture and cutaway video interviews of other Phoenix area homeowners that have completed a short sale with this REALTOR® [social proof].

His real estate video is great, it’s interesting and engaging and best of all – it’s not about how “EPICALLY awesome” he is like so many of the “other agents” do. His real estate video is on point, edited well, includes visual calls to action and even a slight undertone of music. You can tell this guy went to the “How To Use Video In Real Estate” Series taught by Stephen Garner AKA “MyTitleGuy” at Grand Canyon Title Agency. [shameless plug]

You are so engaged that you watch his video all the way to the end. Just when you are about to pick up the phone and tell him to come over and meet with you and your family about a short sale, his video ends and YouTube throws up its RECOMMENDED or SUGGESTED VIDEOS. As you hear the dial tone you see that one of the videos that YouTube is recommending is from ANOTHER Phoenix area Real Estate Agent and they too are talking about short sale.

What the hell, It couldn’t hurt right? No such thing as too much information, so you click on his video, only his video IS THE COMPLETE OPPOSITE OF THE VIDEO you just watched. In fact, this agent is talking about how only an IDIOT would short sale their home and FORECLOSURE is a much better option in Arizona and throws in the “Don’t TRUST those agents that tell you short sale is a good idea” and on and on and on.

You freeze.

What are you supposed to do? You saw this 1st video and it all made perfect sense, you had the phone in your hand and was dialing his number when YouTube threw this RECOMMENDED video at you. Should you call this 1st agent or call the 2nd?

What do you do?

While YouTube is trying to help us, often times, when you use YouTube for your video hosting,[and you certainly should] those damn recommended videos can hurt your real estate marketing message. You know how to turn off related videos when you embed a video into your WordPress real estate website but how do you stop recommended videos from diluting your message when your video is watched on YouTube? In the video below I show you HOW to do just that.

So there you have it. While YouTube’s related or recommended videos are great when you are cruising the site for entertainment purposes [who gets sick of dancing babies or singing cats?] it is not so great when YouTube recommends a competitors video to a consumer that just watched yours. Following the steps above will help you preserve your real estate marketing messaging without any interference from YouTube’s related or recommended videos.

Are you a Phoenix REALTOR®? From Video to WordPress, Screen Capture to Indexable IDX solutions, I can help you grow your real estate business. Today 94% of consumers start their home search online and 80% will choose the FIRST real estate agent they FIND. Want to be that FIRST agent? Please fill out the form below.

How would you like to design a real estate flyer, print it, distribute it and have it work? When I say “work” I mean, get a lead?

It would be Awesome!

 User Error

But why don’t real estate flyers work the way they “used” to? Could it me that it’s not the flyer’s fault but instead the problem lies with the user?

I call it user error.

In many cases it is not the marketing vehicle that is to blame but the real estate agent that created and distributed it.

So first let me TELL you how 99% of real estate agents use real estate flyers and then, SHOW YOU HOW you can use real estate flyers to improve traffic to your real estate website and therefor – leads.

Content

Most failure with real estate flyers lies in the content. In 2005 and 2006 “Just Listed!” or “Just SOLD!” was great content. Why? Because consumers cared more than ever what their homes were worth. I like to say “even a blind poodle could sell real estate back then”, It didn’t take much to get a seller off the fence when they realized their properties went up 47%, nor did it take much to get a buyer to commit at the prospect of being “Priced Out Of The Market”. 

But today?

Uh, not so much.

Creating Awesome Real Estate Content

Today you need content just as good, just as compelling as the “Just Listed!” or the “Just SOLD!”. But what kind of content is that? In 2005 and 2006 this type of messaging worked because home values in Phoenix were on the minds of everyone. Everywhere you went: the grocery store, kids soccer games, PTA meetings, Church, EVERYONE was talking about their home values.

What is on the minds of Phoenix homeowners today? Short Sale. Foreclosure. Avoiding Foreclosure. Short Sale Deficiency. Tax Liability. Home Values. HAFA, HAMO, TARP. These are just some of the things consumers care about.

So, should you just piece together a flyer with information about short sale or foreclosure, deficiency or home values and send it out?

NO.

In addition to rockstar real estate content, another way to get leads from a real estate flyer is by creating a compelling call to action. A call to action is something that encourages consumers to DO SOMETHING!

Call me! Click Here! Email Me! Subscribe! Watch The Video! Text. Tweet This. Share This. Connect With Me On Facebook. Fill Out The Form Below! 

Whatever you do, Go BIG or Go HOME. Make it BIG and IMPOSSIBLE to not notice. Make it a different color or font size and even different shapes. 

It’s not good enough to send out that same boring real estate flyer and expect consumers to TAKE ACTION. They have to be told WHAT to do, HOW to do it and the VALUE they will receive for doing it.

Where should that call to action go?

To your real estate website of course!

Create a page on your [self hosted] WordPress real estate website that is full of THE EXACT INFORMATION you promised the consumer in your real estate flyer. Nothing More, Nothing Less. Use a Gravity Form or other form of lead capture that consumers can fill out for more information. Use a Video! Video says more than text or a picture ever could.

If you have promised a way to avoid foreclosure! Have a video on that subject. Be empathetic. Identify with your audience. Tell a story.

“Ya know, In all my years of selling real estate in Phoenix, I have NEVER seen a market like this one.  I am seeing good, hard working people lose their homes to foreclosure, good people that could have avoided the “F” word if they had only known. . . ., just last week I met with John & Lisa Smith. . . .” story continues. 

Then use a URL shortener like Bit.ly or Goo.gl or Tr.im or Cli.gs one of the others that offers the ability to TRACK THE NUMBER OF CLICKS your link gets. I like Bit.ly because you can customize the link. Instead of Bit.ly/56gy36$ it could be Bit.ly/AvoidForeclosure. 

A customizable URL shortener will make your links easier to type into a browser and trackable links will tell you IF your real estate flyer is having its desired effect. If you are getting clicks and no leads, it could be a problem with your value statement or USP. After all, who has the time to type a URL into a web browser unless they are interested in learning more? Every click usually indicates INTENT.

BTW: When the consumer is on your real estate website it is not JUST the article or VIDEO that they will be reading/watching, they can also [ready for this?] SEARCH FOR HOMES, DISCOVER MORE ABOUT YOU, YOUR EXPERIENCE, KNOWLEDGE and VALUE to name a few. Now they are on your HUB – right where you want them. Did you notice where you are right now? uh yeah!

If you are going to spend your hard earned TIME and MONEY on a real estate flyer you can improve your success rate by focusing your real estate content on something your ideal client actually cares about. You can track the effect your real estate marketing is having with a URL shortener as well.  

What are some other ways that you use real estate flyers to get leads? How do you use real estate flyers in your real estate business?

Phoenix REALTORS® from Video to WordPress, Screen Capture to Indexable IDX, I can help you grow your real estate business. Today 94% of consumers start their home search online and 80% will choose the FIRST real estate agent they FIND. Want to be that FIRST agent? Please fill out the form below. [Notice the compelling call to action?]

OMG I'm Dizzy

It wasn’t that the real estate agent was using video in their real estate business that was unbelievable, it was the fact that they actually uploaded this shaky, jittery, earthquake simulation of a real estate video – for the world to see! Really?

Yes, folks, video is here to stay, it is not going anywhere, in fact – it will only get bigger. In December 2011, at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas representatives from YouTube said “90% of all web traffic will be video“. If that isn’t a wakeup call, I don’t know what is. In a reality where many consumers see real estate agents as a commodity, if you are not using video in your real estate business to differentiate yourself and convey information/value, you run the risk of being irrelevant.

ADAPT or DIE.

Consumers prefer video. Don’t believe me? Ask them. Walk up to the next person you see at a coffee shop, grocery store etc and say:

“excuse me sir/ma’am, given the choice, would you prefer to see 25 pictures of a home you were interested in or short video?”

Guaranteed the answer is video.

Content is what consumers look for online when they have a need. Content is homes for sale, short sale vs foreclosure, bank owned homes in Mesa, etc. Video is a medium for content and when it comes to content, if it is not good content, don’t waste your time, no one will see it.There are simply way to many other choices out there. When it comes to video, you can have the most amazing information to convey but if the camera shakes or the volume is poor or has an echo-echo-echo consumers will click off and likely never return. So it is important that you make the best video you can. But all real estate video is not created the same.

One of the biggest problems I see with real estate agents using video in their real estate business is not the camera, the microphone, the tripod or even the video setting or topic, it’s the shake that occurs when the real estate agent walks from room to room of their latest listing. Well, there is a way to fix that annoying, unprofessional shake that plagues your real estate videos, it’s called “Glidecam” and in the short video below I explain what it is and how it can reduce or eliminate your shaky videos thereby preserving your rockstar reputation as the savvy real estate marketer you are.

Glidecam DSLR Video Stabilizer

The Glidecam is not cheap by any stretch but you also get what you pay for. If you are going to use video in your real estate business it is important that it conveys professionalism, experience and value. Why should a consumer list their largest financial asset with you if your real estate videos, frankly, SUCK? The answer is simple – they wouldn’t. They move on to the next website, the next video, the next real estate agent.

The Glidecam is just the latest addition to my arsenal of DSLR cameras, lenses, Go Pro’s, wireless mic’s and receivers, X shots, Teleprompter’s, video tripods, WordPress real estate websites, and softwares that I use day in and day out to help my real estate clients grow their real estate business. Whether you need a professional website introduction video to give your website a personal touch or screen capture video to explain the housing market – I can help.

If you are a real estate agent in Phoenix that wants to work with a title company proficient in the marketing trends of today – WordPress, Video, Craigslist, Screen Capture, Indexable IDX’s, PPC, SEM and more – fill out the form below. 1st rule of sales and/or marketing: Go where the “fish” are. The fish are online – are you? Let’s talk. I can help.

The Best Brokerages In One Place

Sales is not easy. It can be challenging and frustrating and certainly stressful at times, it can also be exceptionally rewarding. There are not many occupations where you are in control of your own destiny, the amount of money you make hours worked etc. Real estate is one of them. Choosing a career in real estate sales starts with getting a real estate license. To get a real estate license in Phoenix an aspiring real estate agent needs to go to school. Real estate school.

Arizona Real Estate Schools

There are many real estate schools in Phoenix, Arizona but one of the best, that stands head and shoulders above many of the others is the Arizona School Of Real Estate and Business. With locations in Gilbert, Arizona and Scottsdale, Arizona the Arizona School of Real estate & Business has built an excellent reputation in the valley of the sun.

Arizona School Of Real Estate Career Event

Recently, the Arizona School Of Real Estate & Business held its Career Event at its Gilbert campus. The Career event at the Arizona School of Real Estate & Business presents an opportunity for new licensees as well as those pursuing a career in real estate sales to meet with prospective real estate brokers in the Phoenix area.

Held quarterly, April’s Career Event at the Arizona School of Real Estate & Business was held on April 17th 2012. Representatives from well known Phoenix real estate companies like Realty Executives, Coldwell Banker, American Allstar Realty, Midland Real Estate Alliance, Desert Dimensions Properties, Pacific Arizona Realty, Golba Group Property Management, Keller Williams, Arizona Elite Properties and many others stood by to educate and inform candidates and new licensees of the many value propositions their respective brokerages offer.

As I mentioned, A career in real estate can be challenging. After 11 years in title insurance I have seen more than my fair share come and go. It is very important that a real estate agent/REALTOR® start their real estate career on the right foot, with the right brokerage. A real estate brokerage that has systems and tools to help new agents grow their business. Not just training and support but marketing as well.

The MC

The MC for this years event was Fletcher Wilcox, V.P. of Business Development and well known/respected Real Estate Analyst from Grand Canyon Title Agency, Inc. In the short video below, Fletcher spent the day interviewing well known designated brokers and representatives of their respective firms like Lester F. Cox of Pacific Arizona Realty, Dominic Scappaticci; President & Designated Broker of Realty Executives, Bret Johnson, Residential Specialist; Pacific Arizona Realty, Robert Kline; President of Arizona Elite Properties, Scott Golba; co owner/Broker of Golba Group Property Management, Joseph Maggiore; Owner of Desert Dimensions Properties, Karl Tunberg; Managing Partner of Midland Real Estate Alliance, Kendra McWhirter; Vice President – East Valley of 1st Bank and of course, Elaine Miner; owner of the Arizona School or Real Estate and Business.

Choose Wisely

This years Career event at the Arizona School of Real Estate & Business was a huge success. If you are considering a career in real estate you would be hard pressed to find a better real estate school than the Arizona School of Real Estate & Business. Once you graduate from real estate school working with a strong real estate brokerage with tools and systems geared towards your success is imperative. Just like the real estate brokerage you choose, your vendors; lenders, home warranty, home inspectors and of course title company can make or break your transactions. Grand Canyon Title Agency has built a strong reputation in Phoenix for great service and the tools to help real estate agents succeed in the hyper competitive world of real estate sales. From WordPress to Video, Screen Capture to SEO we have you covered. Are you ready? Please fill out the form below to discuss how Grand Canyon Title Agency can help you.

Creating Engaging Content

I love WordPress. WordPress has changed my title business in more ways than I can count. Let’s see, uh – I get found online now, I have real estate agents around the country, title companies around the country, home buyers an sellers from around the country contact me.

WordPress allows me to create real estate content easily and efficiently, without having to call someone who calls someone to make a change [for a fee]. I can easily create engaging real estate content, include a strong call to action, and [when I write and create real estate videos on a regular basis] –  I get more leads than I can often handle.

As a real estate agent, more and more of your business will come from the Internet. This is where consumers are looking for homes for sale. This is where consumers go to learn more about the short sale process, or things to do in Phoenix, employers etc. This is where consumers go to learn more about YOU and your VALUE.

Consumers do not just magically find you online. They find you because of the CONTENT or REAL ESTATE CONTENT that you have created. Real Estate Content is to a real estate website what gas is to your car, without great content, written for a specific consumer in mind, you run the risk of getting the wrong traffic to your website or worse – NO TRAFFIC AT ALL. This is why I and others will tell you that CONTENT IS KING.

Creating Rockstar Real Estate Content

I teach real estate marketing classes here in Phoenix. All of  my classes show real estate professionals HOW TO get found on the internet. The vehicle may change [YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, email, Linkedin, WordPress, CraigsList etc] but the gas remans the same – REAL ESTATE CONTENT. I draw upon many sources when I create my real estate content, most from real life. The best content [in  y opinion] educates and informs or solves a problem for a consumer. This is what they are looking for. <pst consumers go to the internet for 2 reasons, Gather Information or Solve A Problem. You can probably see that in your won  behavior. I do not just draw on real life though, I also use a plugin for WordPress called Statpress. Statpress also helps me create awesome, targeted, valuable real estate content.

As I mentioned above, I help real estate agents get found online. This is where the “FISH” are today. Yes, you can door knock, mail postcards and fliers, mail personalized magnets, bake homemade cherry pies for your sphere of influence, advertise on billboards and grocery carts, you can do all of that but these methods of real estate marketing  are becoming less and less effective while  at the same time, becoming more and more expensive. Do you know what the cost of a 1st Class Stamp is today?

In the short video below I demonstrate how I use Statpress to create Rock Star Real Estate Content

WordPress is awesome, the Statpress Plugin For WordPress makes it even better. I find that the Statpress plugin helps me to create better real estate content for my ideal client to help them find me online. Better  real estate content means more specific visitors, more specific visitors means visitors that are ready to make a decision. That decision? “I need a title person that can help me grow my real estate business”.

Are you a Phoenix Real Estate professional that would like help with your real estate marketing? I can help. Please fill out the form below