Real Estate Marketing Blog

Why I hate Microsoft

Now, I am the first one to complain and curse Sir Bill Gates every time my laptop with 1 gig of ram sloooows.

Nevermind that I have 15 Internet Explorer windows up, 7 tabs in Firefox, not to mention Photoshop and a couple Excel sheets running. And can I mention all those nasty backgound programs that keep finding their ways to chew up crucial memory?

Well, today , I had an epiphany. The PC gods have bestowed clarity upon me, and it all is very clear to now.

You see Microsoft with all its poor customer service. In its monopolistic endeavors and its crappy products has created the digital age.

As much as I love my Mac, I have to use MS. In fact, I have to use them in order to use many commercial applications that just are not available to the MAC or Linux operating systems. Like English is used begrudgingly worldwide in order to do business, MS has created the digital language of business. Mac may be my favorite language. But I use my PC when I wish to do business. In fact, Apple has had to create applications that easily "translate" to the MS PC.

Oh, sure Microsoft has created apps that can work on a Mac, but it is akin to we Americans showing our hospitality by our weak attempt at the metric system.

Uncle Bill has given us the consistent standard by which to operate in the digital era.

All mediums need a standard. Recordable DVD's are still grappling with a standard. Digital Video is dealing with the same issue. You would think if I have a purely digital video camera I could lay it down immediately onto a DVD for my family viewing, and just as easily upload it to the web. Nope.

The company that creates that standard will be rewarded handsomely.However, like with Microsoft,the fight is often bitter. The standard bearers always are rewarded for their efforts.

In real estate sales, it seems online companies are fighting to create the standard. However, the Realtor organizations already have a standard called the MLS.

The problem is the industry gets an "F" for its efforts to claim its birthright. A birthright that was built on the backs of generations of members throughout the years.

The MLS has been the industries consistent platform. The Realtor version of the stock market if you will.

An industry will always be inneficient until a standard is followed. Mess with the markets consistency and there is disruption and confusion.

Integration Key to Lead Generation..

That is the point of a study outlined on the front page of BtoB.

"Excelling at lead generation takes more than putting in a new CRM system. It takes integration throughout the organization".

This is sage advice that is seldom followed in the many real estate brokerages across America. Although this study dealt in areas outside of Real Estate, it is still true in our industry nonetheless..

Their loss should be your gain.

Now I am a Dinasore

Well, I have been called Fred Flintstone, and now a "dinosaur mentality on steroids".

Seems Joe Zekas over at postingforleads.com has me figured as a modern day Buddy Holly trying to sing Nirvana. It seems that the internet is too sophisticated for selling. (are you tired of the metaphors already?)

Its a nice dialogue where even a self professed investor chimes in with his opinions.

MySpace Beats Google for Number One

So turns out that Social Networking website MySpace, )you know  that real easy to navigate and real easy on the eye website) just kicked the tail of the God Of Search Google.And Yahoo, and MSN and well, every website on the web to become the number one internet website in terms of traffic.

The most popular U.S. website, according to research from Hitwise, writes the Globe and Mail (Reg. required). In the week ended July 8, 4.5 percent of all U.S. visits to the web were to MySpace.com, and traffic to the social-networking site has soared 132 percent in the last year alone, Hitwise said.

This is interesting for a number of reasons including:

1. How does a non search site be number one in popularity?
2. The portal is a mess and for the most part purposeless.
3. It proves again that the web is about fragmantation and if you are not capturing these visitors to you website, they may never come back.

The point being this ain't Television. The current state of affairs last about a couple years and game over.Meaning, you can't just say yah I have the search engine thing down, and call it a day.

I have said it before, I will say it again, the money is in your list. If you do not have an extensive list, you do not have an online business.

Increase Your National Real Estate Reach

I just received an email and it may be a great opportunity for you if you are a major producer and...

The Wall Street Journal and REAL Trends, Inc. are asking for your assistance with an important national project. We are working with leading national real estate organizations, state and local Associations of Realtors, leading regional and local real estate brokerage firms and leading sales professional coaching and training firms to identify the leading individual real estate sales professionals and professional teams in America .  Some of the qualifications are only those individuals who closed more than 75 sides or $30 million in closed sales volume should be submitted. We believe that only those sales team with more than 125 sides or $50 million in closed sales volume should be submitted. Why should you care? You have the opportunity to get your name into a national stage which can only lead to good things. The rankings are planned to appear in The Wall Street Journal, Saturday November 11, 2006, at the time of the National Association of Realtors (NAR) convention in New Orleans .

These top sales professionals will also be featured in lore Magazine in the issue to be released at the NAR convention. Should you have any questions or would like an application sent via e-mail please contact realtrends at 303-741-1000 or dstufft@realtrends.com When you fill out an ap and send it in to realtrends, please copy it to us at tim@spiderjuicetechnologies.com, and we will seriously consider interviewing and putting you on a forthcoming site soon to launch called Interview with Real Estate Experts.

Finding Wifi Hotspots

So you are cruising cross town to your next appointment and you see a house that you know your buyer will want.

No time to get back to the office to check the MLS. So what do you do?

Tap into a WIFI hotspot. But what if you are in the only area of town (if not the country ) that does not have a Starbucks on every corner? Well, I guess you can slowly go down neighborhood streets looking for a signal. But I don't think thats legal.

Actually the answer is a directory I just discovered at CNET.

Type in your area and zip code and you get a large list of paid and free WIFI hotspots.

I found the usual players like Starbucks on the list. But also Hotels and even "Mini"-hotels. I was mostly shocked to find MCDonalds on my list.

It also lists the Top Ten WIFI Cities. Who is number one? I would have never guessed it to be New York, then San Francisco, followed by Seattle, Austin, Washington DC, Atlanta, San Diego, then Dallas.

And I was proud to see the good ole USA is the most WIFI'ed in the world.