Embracing Technology – Will It Really Help You Sell More?

I was at the NAR conference last month.  I am a newbie to the real estate space so it was a great opportunity for me to learn more about the service providers in this industry and to chat with agents and brokers.  My background is in technology so I spent a lot of time learning more about the latest and greatest tools that are out there for real estate professionals.

I’ll bet if I walked the show floor some 10 years ago, I would not be seeing the number of vendors promoting some type of computer technology, hardware, online databases and multimedia products.   And looking at the session topics, I’m sure the whole idea of social media would have made most brokers and agents heads spin back then.  But welcome to 2008 and the onslaught of technology – where the NAR session on Blogging 101 was packed and had to be repeated the next day because of all the interest.  And like Carrie in Sex in the City writes – “Will technology really help you sell more?”

If you ask the more seasoned top producers (like I did), the answer would be “No”.   They know how to sell, they know how to reach the buyers and sellers, and they don’t need all these fancy tools that are out there now to help them do any more business.  It’s all about the relationships they tell me.

If you ask those that have less experience, the answer is “If you don’t embrace technology, you won’t survive in this business.”

I guess there is no right or wrong answer here – but after attending many sessions and talking to many people, my conclusion is – “It certainly can’t hurt”.

Do you need a Web site in this day and age?  Probably.  It just makes sense given that the highest majority of buyers now are Gen X and Gen Y and guess what, they know what a computer is and they know how to surf the Internet.  You know the number – 84% of home buyers begin their search on the Internet.

Do you need all this social media stuff?  Blogging, twittering, Facebook-ing?  It may help you get exposure to more people, but like the more seasoned pros would tell me, it doesn’t necessarily help you build that one-on-one relationship that will help you get referrals and gain repeat business.  If you have the time, go for it – but I wouldn’t expect to measure the return on your efforts.

Do you need more ways to expose your listings to more people – Yes.  Because it will help you sell more?  Maybe, but primarily because you are demonstrating  to your seller that you are doing all you can to actively promote their property.    YouTube, GoogleBase, Trulia, Zillow, Oodle, Yahoo, Homescape and the list goes on.

You can do it yourself or certainly go the free route – it’s all about putting a dollar value on your time.

Photography and videos – Yes.   The stats are out there – 12% increase in perceived value with photography and almost a 6% increase in perceived value by using a video.  There are so many inexpensive options out there that can give you a quality product – and quite frankly, your sellers should be demanding it.

Lead management systems, contact management systems?   In this market, would be a luxury to have.  I wonder how well these particular vendors did at this year’s show.

All in all, embracing technology is probably a good thing.    And if you invest your time and efforts wisely in the right technologies, chances are that you will become more efficient and more effective over the long haul – and yes, that will probably translate for more sales.

Using Facebook Targeted Ads to Better Market Your Business

Facebook’s ad targeting system is among the best targeting system out there in terms of deliverability and cost effectiveness.  Through Facebook Pages, Real Estate professionals can directly market to their target demographic by placing ads within their prospective client’s Facebook interface.  With 80% of home buying interest today starting online, it would seem reasonable to make an effort to get to the word out on your property through a platform that has become respected among all social circles and walks of life.  It is for this reason that Facebook is the reasonable choice above other social networks.

Though Facebook is technically the second largest social networking site with 100 million active users (News Corporation’s MySpace still holds the first place title), it has become the cleaner alternative to the corporate-backed, ad-ridden, unprofessional landscape of MySpace.  This puts Facebook in a position to learn from MySpace’s mistakes – let everyone market on the platform instead of just larger companies.
Everyone from photographers to real estate professionals to vendors have started to use Facebook’s easy-to-use ad developer to place ads directly into a desired user’s homepage.

The site allows for advance targeting – target by age, gender, location, interests, whatever you want.  It also allows for you to attach friend-to-friend interactions about your ads; friends of the target will show up as referring your business to them through your ad, which helps attract attention and credibility.
Facebook is also flexible on how your purchase ads.  Their system allows for both CPC (purchase clicks) or CPM (purchase impressions) styles of payment.  Their CPC method allows you to bid on a cost-per-click, with the higher the bid equaling more impressions on the site.  They also let you set a limit per day on each ad, allowing you to increase and decrease the ad rate according to your budget.

A great feature of this ad system is Facebook’s “trusted referral” option.

From Facebook.com: “The ads can also be shown to users whose friends have recently engaged with your Facebook Page or engaged with your application. Facebook Ads are more likely to influence users when they appear next to a story about a friend’s interaction with your business.”

This is great if you want to start building within a network of friends who have shared interests.  So say you’re a photographer and you have a business selling real estate photography.  If you tell your clients to become fans of your business on Facebook, you can advertise directly to their associates, using your clients as referrals.
The end result of these targeted ads is delivering your message directly onto a prospect’s facebook homepage, which means (depending on your bidding settings) that your prospects can see your ad every time they refresh their homepage.  This is a great way to advertise yourself as a professional in your field.

Facebook Advertising Info