Marketing | Active Website Enterprise Network Blog

A Changing Culture

December 8, 2009

Filed under: Active Enterprise Network,Content,Marketing,Real Estate Technology,Search Engine Optimization,Social Networking

Continuing with our discussion on SEO and ways your company can increase your standing, we’d like to point out another crucial element to your success. Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past few years, the concept of social networking has not gone unnoticed. More than likely you’ve experimented with some form or another, whether it be Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn or YouTube, there is no denying the impact it’s had on our culture. As we all know, social networking is not just a fad, so it’s important for the Enterprise Network to keep up with these changing trends and evolve to meet the needs of our customers.

In the real estate industry, there is this notion that we don’t need to adapt to these trends because of the current demographics of homebuyers. Well, we’re here to say that’s not true anymore. Besides the fact that even my grandma has a Facebook account, keep in mind that by 2010, the number of Gen Y-ers will outnumber Baby Boomers. This new age customer is highly tech savvy, so we shouldn’t be afraid to experiment. By taking advantage of these free sites, you’re able to stay in front of the customer and help build your business- with no cost to you except your time and effort.

Earlier this year The Nielsen Company reported that time spent on Facebook increased 700% in the span of a year. Statistics also show that if Facebook alone were its own country, it’d be the 8^th most populated country in the world. Imagine what that would be if we were to combine statistics from all outlets! To see a more comprehensive breakdown of social networking statistics, check out this article Nielsen posted online.

Still not convinced that social networking is an important aspect of a company’s success? Below is a video on YouTube created by Socialnomics that reiterates the importance of social media and ROI.

There are many opportunities that await us if we open ourselves up to social networking, so we’ve come up with a few simple ways your company can use 4 of the most popular social networking sites.

Post Twitter updates! The retweets, video tagging and other features are new ways to market your company. By including keyword terms, people who use Twitter search are more likely to find you as well.
Create a Facebook profile for your company. Include information about your company and update your account with new property listings, events you’re hosting, press releases and more. You can also syndicate your blog to Facebook which is yet another way to bring traffic to your website!
A great social networking site for professionals is LinkedIn. Your network consists of your connections, your connections’ connections, and the people they know- which helps you connect to others in the same line of business as well as potential clients. Not to mention, if others make recommendations on your business, you’re appeal to customers will increase.
Posting engaging videos to YouTube is very useful to real estate professionals. Create a channel and customize it to feature properties currently for sale.

Think of social marketing as a way to setup your own content distribution plan. Using social platforms helps increase the circulation of quality content you’re producing and is a great way to increase readership and link bait. When you build the bridge to these sites and develop a following, you establish a distribution network that circulates your content to thousands of potential clients. Thus increases your chances that someone will comment or link to your site.

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The Importance of Telling a Story

November 16, 2009

Filed under: Blogging,Content,Marketing,Real Estate Community,Search Engine Optimization

As we’ve stated in the past couple weeks, it’s important to find new ways to reach our consumers and one aspect of this is focusing on our content. The most powerful item we have as marketers is the ability to tell a story and is there a more compelling story to tell then of home ownership. Last week we focused on sustainability and how to market this to our consumers, but it’s only effective if our content is relevant.

As I think about the importance of relevant content, it makes me think of the house I grew up in as a kid. The family dinners, Christmas morning, and all the other memories over the years give me a sense of home. Yet when I go online to read about a potential home purchase, I get a dry description that doesn’t give me any emotional connection. Here is one example of a million dollar home for sale in Denver with a description that doesn’t even begin to tell a story.

“ABSOLUTELY AMAZING HOME. EVERY AMENITY YOU COULD EVER HOPE FOR. MASTER BDRM IS A DREAM. 500K DOLLAR ADDITION TO THE HOUSE WITH POOL ENCLOSED RV STORAGE ON THE PROPERTY. UNBELIEVABLE MOUNTAIN VIEW FROM THE UPPER LEVEL PATIO DECK. A MUST SEE!”

What about the neighborhood? What makes having this indoor pool so amazing? There are so many different directions this company could have gone to tell a compelling story, but it requires more than just a couple vague sentences.

This reminds me of one of my favorite movies, Rounders, when Teddy so elegantly describes what it’s like to play poker with Mike McDermott. “Just like a young man, coming in for a quickie. I feel so unsatisfied…” This is how I feel after reading some of the dry property descriptions.

After thinking about this for some time, I found a link for a blog that did an incredible job telling a story about a home and the story behind a zero energy home. Check out the blog article here.

Notice when you read this post that there are over 33 comments at the time I posted this blog. That’s over thirty people engaging in a discussion over this property listing. I am sure any seller would love to see this kind of activity. As I dug further, it wasn’t just one post but a series of posts that left me with a feeling that, as marketers, we need to work with our agents and sellers to capture more of the essence of the homes we represent.

I think it’s time that, as an industry, we think more about the conversation we can build around the property. With a good story we can engage our potential customers and get them talking which is so important in online marketing.
So let’s all get creative and think how we can create good content that people are much more likely to read, link to, and share with friends and family. If we do this, we can create a true viral effect which is where the real search engine magic is found.

Here are a couple blog links I follow. Each of these blog’s focus is different, but you’ll notice the content is alive and engaging.

www.apartmenttherapy.com
www.littlediggs.com

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People in the Network Making a Difference, Rob Ewing at Charles Reinhart Company Realtors

November 14, 2009

Filed under: Agent Training & Education,Charles Reinhart Company Realtors,Marketing,Real Estate Community,Real Estate Trends,Sustainability

We’d like to end the week with a Q and A session featuring Rob Ewing, a realtor at Charles Reinhart Company Realtors, for our next installment of People in the Network Making a Difference. With over a decade worth of experience under his belt, Rob, an innovator in the real estate industry, has found a new way to educate consumers on the importance of living a sustainable lifestyle.

Driven by his environmental background, Rob made the decision a couple years ago to become eco-broker certified. This program was established to provide environmental education to real estate professionals so they are better equipped to inform their communities of the advantages of energy efficiency and environmentally sensitive design. This is the first green real estate training program and will help agents spread the word on how to reduce your carbon footprint. Completing this program required Rob to take a 60 hour course, but the results were worth it- he found a new way to market himself to potential clients. To find out how you can become eco-broker certified visit www.ecobroker.com.

Read the Q and A session below to find out more about this inspiring realtor and what he’s doing to increase awareness to consumers.

Name: Rob Ewing
Title: Eco-broker
Company: Charles Reinhart Company Realtors
Website: www.robertewing.com

Why did you want to become eco-broker certified?
I originally came from working in the outdoor industry and have an environmental background. I wanted to follow both a philosophical bent/belief by promoting it and further my background in how construction get’s done. In this case, “Green.”

What impact does this have on your clients?
I am able to help educate them in the advantages of energy efficiency, indoor environmental quality in their home and ultimately to save them money (and maybe make the earth a better place to live in is always a perk). I might add that it dovetails well with the extensive knowledge that I have in home construction.

How are you using this certification to market yourself to potential clients?
I use the eco-broker logo in my ads and offer my buyers an energy audit after closing at no charge to them. This is a $425 value that comes out of my pocket, but if I can help bring awareness to the importance of living a sustainable lifestyle, then the benefits outweigh the cost. And while it’s still early in the process for me to know just how it’s changing my client base, those who are aware of what I’m doing are usually very appreciative.

What are some misconceptions customers have about buying an eco- friendly home?
Cost is still an issue for a lot of people, although most homes that my customers purchase do not require a lot of money to make them more efficient. New homes & full remodels are a different subject. For the moment, that business is subdued to a great extent although I am working with people in the industry to jump start it. The more demand there is for these products, the more the prices will decrease over time.

How can agents address these concerns?
First, get educated. That’s where eco-broker type programs come in. Also, get to know others in your community who are focused on this same goal. Whether it be construction companies or home re-modelers in the area, you can work together to continue to learn and educate others.

Why do you feel it’s important for customers to become more aware of sustainability efforts?
Money is number one. It’s the difference between driving a car that gets 50 mpg and a Hummer that gets 8 mpg. The fact that we are now leaving more resources for future generations by building & improving existing homes in terms of maximizing energy efficiency & sustainability makes good sense to me.

Can you give us some examples of how to make your home more energy efficient?
Start with the basics, caulk, insulation etc. But most important is a home energy audit which should yield a report prioritizing where you are losing the most & what it is costing you on an annual basis. It creates a road map for home owners of the quickest way to greater energy efficiency.

How are consumers saving money by turning to these green initiatives?
Here is a great example. A builder that I represent built a 1950 square ft. ranch to LEED Platinum standards and the Energy Star report showed a heating & cooling estimate of $142 per year. When a person can easily have a bill that costs this much a month, this is a substantial saving and shows the benefits of green living.

By becoming eco-broker certified, you’re setting a great example of how the real estate industry can meet the demands of this new age consumer. What future plans do you have to continue the growth of this market?
I am moderating a panel of local experts specializing in wind/solar, insulation, energy rating, green building techniques, & more at a local high school physics program which will reach 400 students. Part of their homework assignment will require interaction with their parents and is yet another way I make a difference in educating my local community.

Rob is setting a great example of how the Real Estate Industry can make a difference in their community. To visit Rob’s website, go to www.robertewing.com.

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Sustainability and the LOHAS Consumer

November 10, 2009

Filed under: Active Enterprise Network,Active Website,Marketing,Real Estate Community,Real Estate Trends,Sustainability

Following up on last week’s discussion about the importance of a customer centric business model, we’d like to emphasize how a shift toward sustainability can be marketed to a growing number of consumers. Jim Hall, Managing Director for Waste Management’s Green Squad, gave us a great example at our conference of how we can incorporate a green message into our business practices.

More than ever before, customers are actively seeking companies that implement these green initiatives. Sustainability is a cultural transformation and is the next big thing to drive business. Below is a chart Jim presented that shows the progression of innovation over the past 3 centuries.

By becoming a more environmentally conscious business, you become more desirable to the LOHAS consumer. LOHAS stands for Lifestyles of Health and Sustainability and focuses on health, the environment, social justice, personal development and sustainable living.

The LOHAS consumer makes up 30% of the population and accounts for $230 billion in annual purchases. They are interested in green building supplies, socially responsible investing, alternative healthcare, organic clothing and food, and energy efficient products – just to name a few. The environment is at the core of a LOHAS consumer’s belief system and their purchase decisions are made with these criteria in mind. More importantly for us, they want to work with companies who share the same values.

This eco-friendly customer is here to stay and it’s time we start meeting their demands. LOHAS leaders are always looking for new and innovative products and techniques to improve their global viewpoint. There are a lot of things you can do to market yourself to a LOHAS consumer, but here are 5 easy steps towards becoming a more eco-friendly company (and can help you cut costs too!):

Change Your Light Bulbs: This is one of the easiest and quickest ways you can save energy. By installing compact florescent bulbs (CFL) you can cut down on electricity use by 75%.
Unplug Your Electronics: Computers, TVs, and other everyday electronics still use energy even when they are powered off. Unplug these devices from the wall at the end of the day and reduce energy by 25%.
Go Paperless: While it’s probably not realistic to never use paper again, there are ways you can cut back. Use email and electronic documents whenever possible to cut down on paper use and when you do have to print, make sure to print on both sides of the paper. Decreasing the amount of paper used is a great way to save money in your budget.
Recycle, Reduce, Reuse: Promote the use of recycled paper because it takes 64% less energy to produce. Another way to reduce your carbon footprint is to refill your ink cartridges and find alternative uses for old equipment. By donating old computers to your local schools or nonprofit, you become a more active member in the community and save yourself a trip to the landfill.
Walk the Talk: In other words, practice what you preach. Make an effort to train your staff about the importance of sustainability. Remember, it’s about aligning these values with the both the company and the brand.

To find out more about LOHAS check out www.lohas.com.

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June is Social Networking Month at Active Website

June 1, 2009

Filed under: Active Enterprise Network,Active Website,Marketing,Real Estate Technology

Social Networking happens in many forms today. There are multiple venues online for social networking. Trying to keep up with all of the tools, and creating a presence can be overwhelming. There is just 1 key to social networking that we want you to remember:

You must be consistent. (more…)

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