I often get into discussions with agents who get frustrated with their blog site because they can’t think of anything to say. Actually there’s a lot that you can say and have fun with it as well. I have a video overview that you can see to get a feel for what this seminar is all about:

20 Types of Dynamic Blog Posts

Just follow any of these 20 dynamic blogging post tips and have fun with your blog site.

Today, prospects are more discerning than ever. Gone are the easy days in which a prospect would list their home with just about any agent. Now, you actually have to work for a listing. In this market, consumers are not just looking for real estate agents, they’re seeking out real estate experts.

Let’s say that you are an expert, at least relative to your local competitors. So, how then, do consumers know that you’re their best choice? The better question is how do you get their attention long enough to even have a chance to educate them about what you can do for them?

According to most studies, you have only 3-7 seconds to hook your prospect’s attention. One of the best ways to do that is to have a compelling Unique Selling Proposition, “USP” for short.

A USP is a way of explaining your position against your competition to your potential
clients. In the 1960s, marketing icon, Rosser Reeves created the idea of the USP to combat the “product puffery” that was running rampant. He advocated less “window dressing” of a product/service and, instead, advocated focus on the specific and unique benefits that the product/service would bring to the consumer.

40 some odd years later, Rosser Reeves had no way of knowing that his revolutionary
ideas would be even more important today than in the 60s…especially in this market.

What Makes a Good USP? A good USP clearly and quickly explains the chief benefit that the customer can expect to receive when choosing your particular product/service. See if you can recognize these companies by just their USP:

• Fresh, hot pizza delivered in 30 minutes or less, guaranteed
• When it absolutely, positively has to be there overnight
• The nighttime, coughing, achy, sniffling, stuffy head, fever, so you can rest medicine.

If you answered, Domino’s, FedEx and Nyquil, then you can see the power of a great USP.

How do you create an effective USP?  When I’m doing a marketing makeover for a clients, I always make sure the USP we create for them meets the at least 4 basic criteria.

4 Criteria For An Effective USP

1. They are specific and simple.
   Thirty minutes to your door. Guaranteed. Dominoes chose one powerful need that they could fill in the marketplace for delivery pizza services. They were not afraid to possibly alienate other target markets. Gourmet pizza lovers might not be compelled by Dominoes’ USP, but that’s ok…Dominoes still owns most of the market share in the pizza business.
2. They identify the needs of their specific target markets.
   FedEx didn’t mention that they also have ground shipping, bulk rates and international courier options. They created the most compelling message that was the most needed to their marketplace at the time. Notice also that their target market was not people looking for the lowest price or for the most convenient location. They targeted the people (usually business owners) that were frantic to get their important shipments delivered on time for any price.
3. They directly address a benefit-oriented solution to a need in the marketplace.
   There is no product hyping or window dressing in these USPs. Dominoes doesn’t claim that their pizza will be the most delicious pizza, only that it will be fresh, hot and at your door in 30 minutes or less. Likewise, FedEx makes no mention of convenience, availability or low cost. It simply suggests that it is the safest choice when you really need to send a package overnight.
4. They are unique.
   At least at the time that they were introduced they were unique. When you are successful, you may have a copycat come along and reduce the impact of your original marketing message. Ideally, you will have enough momentum going to stay on top of your market, but you will eventually have to continue to create and refine your USP and marketing message. The good news is that you will be a trained marketer, while your competition will be shooting in the dark. You will be “often imitated, but never equaled!”

Do you have a USP that can quickly differentiate yourself from your competition?
If you can’t quickly tell me why should I do business with you over other agents in your area, why would I take the time to sit through your listing presentation?

With a good USP, your chances of getting in front of a potential client to educate them why you’re their best choice increases dramatically.

My exploration into using videoconferencing as a marketing tool for real estate has taken me down many roads. There are many products out there, including  TokBox, DimDim, and Skype.

I like Skype. It makes me feel very “international!” Some of my clients are located overseas, and Skype is their product of choice.

In class, more and more of my students tell me they are using Skype to communicate with their clients across the country, and across the world.  But, what is Skype

According to Wikipedia, Skype (pronounced /ˈskaɪp/) is a software application that allows users to make voice calls over the Internet. Calls to other users of the service and, in some countries, to free-of-charge numbers, are free, while calls to other landlines and mobile phones can be made for a fee. Additional features include instant messaging, file transfer and video conferencing.

Speaking to some of my coaching clients, here are some business uses for Skype:
• Return long distance phone calls to clients
• Check your voicemail when you are traveling
• Make business calls from areas without cell phone coverage

What makes Skype even better is that it starts out free if the person you are calling also has a Skype account.

Video calls, like Skype-to-Skype calls are free, updating your clients is free, no matter where they are in the world. All you need is a webcam and software. You can start by downloading the software: www.Skype.com/download.

If we want to be successful with today’s buyer, we need to remember what is – and always has been – at the heart of the sale: People will only buy something from someone they trust. Only the methods have changed. If you can’t meet them face to face, webcam to webcam will have to do.

Skype options:

• Skype to Skype (free)
• Skype to Local or Long Distance
• Skype to International
• Skype with iPHONE (mobile)
• Skype with video
• Payment options: free, pay-as-you-go, or monthly

Skype-enabled audio and video are already infiltrating business settings, with users recording their Skype conversations and adding the recordings to their blogs as podcasts.

And the ultimate – the ability to see each others’ webcam, and, if necessary, to record the call. A great software at Pamela.org will enable you to do this.

A coaching client, a real estate agent, recently asked this question.  It is a common problem, and here is the solution.

The Question
I think I am missing the boat on some clients because I forget about them.  I lost contact with them and it is costing me thousands of dollars, maybe tens of thousands of dollars, every year.  I really need to improve my average in this category.  I need something to keep them in front of me.  I need some sort of physical chart to keep them in my mind.  I can probably make my own if I knew of three or four columns to use.  How should I keep track of these clients?

The Solution
I teach my clients to use their CRM (Contact Relationship Management) software to keep track of these clients.  This doesn’t work for some, in which case we pursue whatever system will work for them.  People are different from each other and need different solutions.  A good one is the whiteboard.  The board itself it is quite easy to put together; let’s go over how to do it.

Five columns
The five columns you should put on your whiteboard are:

1. Urgency, label this column with A or B, so you are aware of the urgency level at all times.  A, of course, is urgent while B is not. This will also prompt you to work on converting the B buyers to A’s.
2. The name of the buyer
3. The buyer’s price range
4. Location the buyer is interested in
5. Comments, anything specific they are looking for in a property
6. Optional information, such as phone numbers (before PDA’s agents would put contact information on their buyer whiteboard.  Now, the number may not be necessary, because you have it on your phone).

When you, your assistant, or anyone on your team hears about a new listing or you are pursuing a new listing, you can glance at the board.  Sell more, act more quickly for your buyers, and stop losing the leads that you already know are causing you to lose money.

Honesty is often interesting.  One of my coaching clients, an agent, Herb (name changed to protect the guilty) is having a mediocre year.  I thought I knew the problem so I asked him this, “Herb, what percentage of your leads do you simply not follow up on, or call once and not follow through on?”

He was honest, he said, “Sixty.”

“Sixty percent that you do follow through on or sixty percent that you don’t?” I asked.

“Sixty percent that I don’t,” he said.

Herb would double his production simply by following through on the leads that are already coming to him.  Honesty is interesting.

Another client, agent, Laurie (name changed), who hit a very slow period in the middle of the year answered the question this way.  “Well, I started out strong and then I got pretty sloppy, but now I am following up on nearly everything again.”

Considering that the period in which she “got pretty sloppy” following through on her leads was the spring and summer, she would have doubled her production as well, simply by following through on the leads already coming to her.

There are a many agents like Herb and Laurie, who have the skills and the knowledge, but they lack the motivation, focus, and commitment to follow up and follow through.

To what extent does this describe you?  What percentage of the leads that came to you this year didn’t get followed up on or followed through?

It is the perfect time of year to recognize this, and correct it with a four step process that I call “Breakdown Leads to Breakthrough.”

Breakdown Leads to Breakthrough
Step One: Acknowledge the error.  Simply admit it honestly to yourself.
Step Two: Forgive yourself.  This can be quite easy, just say to yourself, “I forgive myself.”  Can it be that easy?  Absolutely, as long as you do Step One honestly.
Step Three: Recommit.  Decide if you want to recommit to follow through on your leads more conscientiously for the rest of the year and through next year.
Step Four: Get into action immediately on your renewed commitment.  This is the critical step.

Honesty is interesting.  Self-honesty is even more interesting, because  it is the key to your personal and professional breakthrough.

1. Lines and Linework

These terms refer to borders, frames, and rules, and do not refer to pen-and-ink or pencil sketches. Yes, I am talking about actual lines here. Horizontal or vertical, thick or thin, regular or irregular, they help define and delimit spaces around various elements on your pages. Good linework increases both the readability and “directionality” (see #5, below) of the design as a whole.

2. Shape

Most people don’t think about this, but any enclosed area, form, or contour in your design is a shape. Shapes in most layouts are square or rectangular, but nothing says they must be, and circles are useful, too. You can also use images to create other, regular or irregular, shapes. In addition to shapes, I’ll include here “white space”, or the lack of shapes. White space can be just as effective as lovely graphics and shapes.

3. Texture

One thing that custom sites have over the typical template design website is the addition of texture. Texture imparts a “surface” feeling, and is tactile in printed matter, so choosing the paper stock — matte, weave, coated, etc. — is a design decision, too. Textures on layouts meant for broadcast or the Internet are visual only, but still key. Most textures do not add to the drag of drawing the website, as most textures are implemented in “chunks”, or in pieces that are fitted together.

4. Color/Branding

Color and branding go hand in hand. You need to know what your colors and thus your brand is ahead of time, before starting on your website. Color is probably the element that most designers are at least acutely aware of, if not schooled in. However, color is not a requirement in many designs, and some art educators suggest creating a design without any color first. The artist, in this view, should then add only as much color as needed to enhance or complete the design. Another school of thought holds that color should be one of the first elements determined. Experience and experimentation will help every artist develop a good color sense and strategy.

5. Direction

Effectively designed layouts, in magazines or on your computer screen, usually have a sense of motion. A good design will lead the reader’s eyes through the design deliberately, using color changes, shapes, linework, and copy placement direct viewers’ attention to what the designer wants them to see.

Here’s a good test for your website, as well as others’. Open up your website and close your eyes while it is loading. Now, open your eyes and pay attention to a couple things.

• Where did you eyes go first
• Where did they go second, third, fourth, etc.
• At which places did they not look

You’ll need to be very practiced in this as your eyes will tend to race over the website. You should only concentrate on 4 or 5 main focus points. More than this will dilute your effectiveness.

Finally, pay attention to what your competition is doing and improve upon their design. It’s amazing how many good ideas you can get from your competition, and your sites will not even look similar if you are changing up your design elements.

Do you feel like you’re suffering from “communicationitis” (which is caused when you get 467 too-many emails, 97 extraneous pieces of mail, and 47 solicitation calls – from charities, of course)?

You’re not the only one. Consumers are feeling really, really over-communicated with. Have you noticed that those emails and cards that you’ve been sending seem not to be opened or read? Maybe it’s because we all have been communicating the same old messages, in the same old way (just listed and just sold cards, anyone?)

It’s Time to Put on Some New Shoes

In his terrific book, A Whole New Mind, Daniel Pink builds a strong case for why right-brainers will rule the future. He says, that technology is easily copied, and I agree. But, creativity is not, because it uses a human brain – just one human brain at a time. In fact, as the old song says, “There will never be another you.”

Pink notes that technology jobs have moved overseas. But, those jobs where creativity counts big are the “next big thing” for Americans. It makes sense, then, that we must develop our  “right brains” to communicate more effectively – and create better value for our clients (how would you like to see your commission rates go up for a change?).

Creativity and the Real Estate Professional

In his book, Pink gives an example of a card he received welcoming the new buyers into the area. But, the agents didn’t include the selling price. They didn’t brag about themselves. They didn’t say they were “number one in service”. Instead, they told the story about how they had helped an elderly seller get her home ready to be sold. They told how much the new buyers treasured the history of the home. It was creative; it was personal; it was relational.

Building the Relationship with Creativity

Technology doesn’t build relationships, you do. In my new presentation, YOU–the Brand, I help real estate professionals see how to go from “cold communication” (Internet inquiries and emails) to warm relationships. We explore how to take your natural talents and skills and turn them creatively into real estate success. Until we can create high trust, we can’t form a relationship. The relationship blossoms into long-term business, referrals, and a solid career.

Suggestions: Read Pink’s book, study creativity, try new ways to communicate (compose new messages and explore different goals), and recognize that keyboards don’t form relationships, people do.

What Tickling the Ivories has Taught Me About Creativity

If you’ve heard me speak, you know I make many references to music – and even tickle the ivories, many times with someone from the audience. As a pianist since age four, I recognize the power of music, coupled with the performer’s creativity, to “speak” to audiences, to touch their hearts. Our jobs, as real estate professionals, is to crash through the barriers of the hardware and software, to reach past the barriers of cold communication, and have the goal of creating a long-term, trusting business relationship.

Here’s to your creativity explorations!

My best,

Carla Cross

Not everybody loves listing properties, but I surely did! I loved taking at least 10-12 a month for many years, and the reason I loved listing so much is that all of my competition literally was working for me! If a property is listed thru MLS, you’ve got a huge team out there that have more buyers than I could handle at one time, so my job was to make my listings really stand out!

So, here are a couple of tips I found to be extremely successful to helping get my listings sold no matter what the mood of the marketplace at any one time:

1. First, choose your listings well! I know, there are sometimes we feel like we just need to list about anything for any price just to have a few listings … and our strategy is HOPING that they sell! Well that’s your first mistake! Like any good professional, only take those properties that are PRICED RIGHT, and work with sellers whom you like and would enjoy a good professional relationship with. If they are high maintenance before you list, they are generally more demanding later! So, identify properties in an area where you have great confidence and expertise, and choose to work with property owners who are motivated and willing to work with you.
2. Price properties with the market! READ your marketplace! If the market shifts, you don’t want to chase the market. Studies show that overpriced properties sit longer and generally sell for less than fair market value in the end. Coach your sellers right from the get-go on this important facet of their marketing strategy. Study the market WEEKLY to report what’s happening so they are part of the decision process.
3. No matter what, the property must show well and you must provide easy access. It’s at this point you must have control of how the property can be shown. Nothing is more frustrating than investing your time and money only to have a prospective buyer not able to see the premises because it’s a bad hair day for the owner. Just remember when there are plenty of properties on the market, if your listing is hard to show, the buyers will just move on to the many other choices available.
4. Don’t insult the sellers, but insist that they make particular improvements BEFORE you begin investing your precious money and time to market their property. Who wants to buy a property that is messy, smells bad or needs fresh paint? Unless you are selling distressed properties, your listing becomes YOUR house, so if your sign is on the property it must GUARANTEE that it is in tip top shape from the curb to the kitchen! There’s simply too much competition out there and today’s market has been described as a beauty contest and a price war. So be firm about having the changes done before exposing the property to the buying public.
5. Use technology! A recent study revealed that only 10+ percent of all listings were marketed with virtual tours. And this is a GREAT way to get the new GenX/GenY buyers involved in your listings, as well as creating differentiation at the listing table with your sellers. Use the best virtual tour programs that help ENGAGE the buyer into the property. My favorite is OBEO.com virtual tours because it offers a myriad of features that allow the prospect to interact with the tour, like changing the colors of the flooring, walls, and cabinetry. It also has a great “automagic” reporting capability to your sellers.
6. Use MORE e-tools: If you aren’t using some of the latest tools to market properties why should your sellers list with you? It’s like hiring a doctor that doesn’t have the right medical equipment to make sure you are healthy! If you want to dazzle your prospective listing clients, demonstrate your incredible box of power tools to get their property sold! Are you using BLOGS that help direct search engine optimization or web traffic? Are you using a tour that helps submit your tour to major web portals? How about podcasts? Are you maximizing search engine optimization using iTunes and Technorati? What about offering your sellers their own property website, which, by the way is a feature offered by some top virtual tour services. Brochure boxes are nice to have, but what happens when a buying prospect opens the box and it’s empty?  Do you explain to your sellers that you have that covered with a call capture number that works 24/7?

It’s been said that in order to last in real estate, you need to LIST to LAST!  There are a million ways to win the listing and get it sold, so grab a few of these great ideas and take your listings to SOLD!

The most common questions an agent is asked are:

“How’s business?”

“How’s the market?”

The way you answer those questions can attract business to you or drive it away.  On our free daily webinars I often remind you (agents) to consider that half of the people that ask you those questions are either thinking of making a move in the upcoming year themselves, or they know someone who is.  They have a son or daughter moving to town; a parent or grandparent needing to sell; they are losing their job, or getting a promotion, etc.

Answer those questions with negativity, or a lack of enthusiasm, and you are communicating that you lack confidence in your ability to do the best for them. Even if the market is soft, there are easy ways to be honest and positive.

Answer those questions with complete honesty, and with the most positive spin you can find for the current market conditions; answer with modest enthusiasm, and you are communicating that you are the person to find the best way to get the job done.  On our daily webinars (which are recorded so you can listen to them anytime during the day) I share lots of ideas and scripts to communicate that enthusiastic, honest and positive response.

Right now, wherever you are reading this, imagine that you have just been asked, “How’s the market?”

Answer it quickly with the first thought that comes to your mind.  Examine that response.  Does it attract or repel?  Then consider all the ways you could answer it to make a better impression, to attract.

Make a note of those compelling, attracting answers.  Ask it of yourself again, and this time answer out loud.  Keep this up in your car, in the shower, at random until it is natural for you to use these opportunities to generate some of the easiest business you may do all year.

If you think it has been a tough year and find yourself thinking from a scarcity point of view, you might find yourself believing that there is little you can do to get more business…Think again!

Before you go with “scarcity thinking”, expert Harvey MacKay gives us 66 creative and meaningful ways to connect with even the most elusive prospects.

MacKay is the bestselling author of “Swim with the Sharks Without Being Eaten Alive.” He says, “Anyone can get the order if he’s willing to stretch the truth far enough. Whether you tell the truth or not, you don’t come out a winner just by getting the first big order. The mark of the pro is to get the RE-Order!” That said, ask yourself these questions:

1. What am I willing to do to connect with a prospective client? (Or do I quit after a few attempts?)
2. Am I just trying to get another sale, or are there ways I can make an investment in a long term relationship?
3. What can I offer that will differentiate my service offering and add more value for prospects who will do business with me?

A great lesson from MacKay’s book is found in Lesson #3 – He says, “Knowing something about your customer is just as important as knowing everything about you or your product”.

MacKay was so passionate about wanting to know all he could about his customers; he is famous for developing his MacKay “66” question profile for each of his salespeople to fill out on their customers. He is adamant that when we know more about our customer, we enjoy a huge advantage when they know we care about them, their needs and ultimately then we have earned the right to work with them.

All too often, we fail the first step many high-paid coaches, consultants and top performers know and teach: Do a deep and thorough needs analysis of what THEY want, and not what you HAVE. But first you have to get the appointment and be willing to accept the challenge of winning their business.

Asking questions and then clarifying the answers is one of the most powerful ways to establish confidence and begin building a bridge of trust between you and your prospect. They want to know that you know not only what they want, but most importantly, why they want it. It is only when you act as their sales leader that you can help them determine what the appropriate solutions to their needs will actually be.

Many times we approach our buyers and sellers with a barrage of self-serving information about our experience, tout top testimonials and are convinced that WE are the answer to their needs, when in fact, that may not be the case at all! Regardless of your outstanding sales volume, negotiating acumen and years of experience, if they need a salesperson who can speak Vietnamese, you may not be their best choice!

The battle cry for successful sales that will never go out of style – RELATIONSHIP selling is the key to more sales. Ask well thought out questions, be a skilled, active listener, and craft solutions with your prospects for best results. You may not subscribe to doing a MacKay “66”, but knowing all the facts, motivations, limitations and best solutions for your customer will pave the way to create raving fans and endless referrals.