Category: Help-U-Sell

Internet Marketing Help

So the Tech Summits are done.  Everyone is very excited about the new sites and the ease at which they can be customized, localized and optimized.  Attendees went home with a document entitled, ’11 Days to a Great Website’ that outlines, step-by-step, what they need to do to get the most out of their new online identity.  Still there will be some who won’t get to the task or won’t be able to maintain their focus over time.  This doesn’t make them bad, slow, or less-than in any way.  Some have their hands absolutely full maintaining their current operations.  A new set of tasks, no matter how simple, will be overwhelming.  Others are lacking in computer skills (beyond MLS), so that managing their own sites will be like learning Swahili.  For these brokers there is help.

Meet Kirk Eisele.  He was a Help-U-Sell broker and owner of two offices in the early 2000’s.  His business partner was more the real estate guy; Kirk’s focus was on systems and automation.  He’s offered to assist any member in doing the initial legwork involved in optimizing their website and in maintaining/enhancing the site over time.  Specifically, Kirk will help:

  • Analyze your website data to discover who and where your audience is and what motivates them to look for you
  • Identify keywords and phrases that will draw customers to your website
  • Help meld those words and phrases into your content so that search engines will find you
  • Work to develop quality links to your site to enhance your online credibility
  • Set you up and teach you how to easily manage your Social Networking program
  • Help you develop a leads capture and incubation process that will increase your conversion rates
  • Function as a hands-on Internet marketing consultant and coach
  • And more . . .

I know Kirk.  He’s a quality guy and he knows his stuff.  His fee is reasonable ($350 per month plus any add-ons you may choose, with a six month commitment).  If you are wrestling with how to manage your online presence, I can think of no one better able to help.  A full description of Kirk’s service and contact information is located HERE.

Population Explosion

At the Summit in Las Vegas, on the first day, John Powell answered a question.  ‘How many offices do we have?’ someone asked.  ‘140,’ John answered.  There was no particular reaction at that moment and the conversation went on to the next question.  That surprised me.

After all, in 2006 we had over 800 offices.  a drop of 660 is significant to say the least.  And though I think everyone knew there would be fewer offices I don’t think most were prepared for a number as low as 140.  At the next pause, I stepped in from the back of the room and asked:  ‘John just reported that we are now 140 offices . . . how do you feel about that?’

The response was immediate.  ‘Good!’ they said, ‘Great!’ said some, ‘It’s about time!’ said others.  Julie Wright looked over her shoulder and said, ‘I’d rather be 100 great, strong offices than 1,000 teetering on the edge!’  I didn’t hear one word of concern, not at that moment or for the rest of the two day event.  What a surprise.

The headquarters team has been very clear about this.  We agreed in early 2009 that we weren’t interested in moving forward with anyone who couldn’t get on board, who couldn’t resurrect their attitude and their passion for what we do and who we are.  We spent 2009 ‘weeding the garden,’ so to speak, saying goodbuy to dozens of Help-U-Sell members who just didn’t have the heart to continue.  What I never suspected was that the survivors, the ones who were able to put the past behind and get on board were with us in this paring down process.

That moment at the Vegas meeting was very gratifying for me and I think for all of us.  It’s validation that we are on the right track, that we do have the guts and the grit to take this thing and make it better than it’s ever been.  I know we have the team, we have the smarts and we have the commitment.  And we have the smiles.

Every good gardener knows if you want to nurture new growth you have to prune from time to time.  For Help-U-Sell, the pruning is over and our branches are already full of new buds, pushing up toward the sun, getting ready for a glorious flowering.   It’s a great garden.

PS:  As the Vegas meeting wrapped, a small man with a cane and a Subway sandwich in a plastic bag wandered into our room.  Ron McCoy and I looked at one another.  Who was this guy?  He obviously didn’t belong here, but the meeting was ending so we just left him alone.  He sat for a moment, and then, when John Powell made his final comment, he stood and walked back to me.  ‘Can I help?’ I asked.  ‘Yes,’ he replied.  ‘I have a house I need to sell.’

Now it can be told: the Truth about the new Help-U-Sell office websites

Tech Summit 2010 is history.  Well, the event is history; the process of ushering in the new Help-U-Sell office websites and tweaking them to produce maximum results will be ongoing.

By all reviews, it was a smashing success.  Brokers are amazed at what we’ve accomplished in such a short time, fascinated by the care and planning that went into these new websites, and excited to discover that they can actually do much of what it will take to make their new websites attractive to search engines (and therefore, consumers).

Robert Stevens at Las Vegas Help-U-Sell Tech Summit

It is no longer acceptable to contract with a website vendor, write them a check every month, then sit back and wonder why the leads aren’t flooding in.  Now we understand.  If our websites are going to produce results, WE are going to have to be continually involved in their customization, localization and optimization.  The good news is that Robert Stevens and his crack team of developers have made it easy for Help-U-Sell brokers to do just that.  This is so significant.

We are coming out of the toughest real estate market in history.  There’s a lot of pain and suffering in the street, but things are starting to move.  It’s at times like this that consumers re-evaluate our industry.  Almost subconsciously they look around and identify the rising stars, the next big thing in real estate.  The new Help-U-Sell web presence speaks volumes to these hyper-critical consumers.

My favorite moment at the Vegas Summit came when Gene Manners came up and said,Robert Stevens at Las Vegas Help-U-Sell Tech Summit ‘You’ve invested time, money and effort to create this wonderful platform . . . and it’s all built on your confidence that we can make it work . . . and you know what?  I believe we can!’

So, Help-U-Sell brokers:  you left the meeting with a binder.  In it is a document entitled ’11 Days to a Great Website.’  Each day has an activity that you can accomplish in 30 minutes to an hour.  If you work through all 11 days in order, you will have done the lion’s share of the work you need to do to make your new website Hummmmm.  Make the completion of the 11 day assignment your top priority for the next couple of weeks.  Your ever-expanding client base will thank you for it!

Oh . . . the truth about the new Help-U-Sell office websites?  They rock!

 

The Willing Suspension of Disbelief

It’s what makes movies and plays work.  It’s what enables us to follow charismatic leaders.  It’s what keeps Christmas morning fresh and new every year.  Sometimes, when hope collides with faith, we allow ourselves to believe.  It’s quite a leap across a chasm of doubt, a risky act of defiance against the power of cynicism.  And sometimes it happens in business.

Tech Summits in Sarasota and Las Vegas have been a gas.  Dozens of Help-U-Sell brokers have come into the room ready to have their worst suspicions confirmed, but hoping for confirmation that the hope and faith they’ve invested in this company over the past year have not been without merit.  Usually, about 20 minutes in, there is an almost audible sigh of relief:  what has been promised is delivered . . . and more.

Whether on the harbor cruise or at the B of A reception, the first day ends with the dreamy smiles of a united team, excited and ready to take the new tools to market and upset the competition.  Then it’s on to day two:  hands on with Robbie and the guys from South Africa as we learn how easy it is to take this new monster of a tool by the horns and make it work for us.  It doesn’t get any better than this.

Thank goodness for faith, hope and Help-U-Sell, for people driven as much by the mission as they are by the money.

News from the Tech Summit

Day one of the Sarasota Summit is history and Day 2 has just begun.  I’m breathing a sigh of relief because our attendees seem to be just as fascinated by what’s being presented as I am.  They were just as into the material yesterday afternoon at 4 as they were at noon and this morning they are so focused it’s been hard to get them to take a break.

Yesterday, Robbie gave them a broadbrush overview of the power and features of the new Help-U-Sell broker websites.  Ooos and Ahhhs were common, particularly when mapping and editorial control features were presented.  I continue to be amazed at Robbie’s ability to communicate the technology in ways that real estate brokers understand.   It’s a rare talent and has meant so much to us as we take this giant leap forward in our Internet presence.

Today is the hands on day and we have 15 users tapped into the Internet, learning about Google Insights, customization, synching profiles and all of the other things that will make their new Help-U-Sell websites draw.  One of the things I am most excited about is a section in the manual that Tami Patzer created, called ’11 Days to a Productive Website.’  Shes taken the key tasks from this meeting’s content and broken them down into simple steps that can be accomplished in an hour a less over a two week period.  The idea is:  now that you’ve seen and heard what to do to make your website KICK, here is your roadmap to use back in the office to make sure you get it done.

John and I head to Las Vegas this evening and the tech team follows early tomorrow.  We have a much larger group scheduled for the Palace Station meeting — currently 50 and counting — and I anticipate just as much excitement and positive energy there as here.

I’ve been thinking about the significance of what we’re doing this week and I’m very clear that this is all about being in the real estate business.  Our new web capabilities are focused on finding more buyers and sellers, listing and selling more real estate.  That’s not just our brokers’ goal, it’s OUR goal here at corporate as well.  We share the same objective, the same target customer; and the new websites will help us reach more and more of them.

I posted photos from the Summit at Photobucket and you can view them HERE.

Accessibility Toolbar