admin Facebook Fan Page “Timeline” format has been mandated for all fan pages and will go into effect on March 30, 2012. There are mixed feelings about the overall look and engagement with timelines, but all Facebook Fan Pages have been mandated to go into Timeline format this week.
Here’s a tool that creates a standout Facebook Fan Page Timeline cover photo in just a matter of minutes for free or under $5:
Have you already converted your Facebook Fan Page to the Timeline format?
admin Nicole Dean of EasyPLR.com compares PLR (private label rights) to ghostwritten articles for those who know they need writing help, but are unsure of which way to go to meet their constant need for fresh, new content. Personally I’ve used her quality PLR and I have also had articles ghostwritten and would agree with the pros and cons to each.
Successful internet marketers would agree that there is a place for quality PLR in any online business. After you read this article, be sure to stop by EasyPLR.com to browse the PLR sale available while Nicole Dean is offering a 50% discount on EVERYTHING (no minimum) for the new few days. Just use the coupon code LIFEISGOOD for the 50% savings.
Private Label Rights (PLR) articles and ghostwritten articles are both options when you need web content. Each is unique in its qualities and each has its drawbacks.
So, when you need content, which should you choose? Let’s analyze both options to find out which option is right for you.
Ghostwritten Articles
Ghostwritten articles are written just for your use. You own the article and can do whatever you’d like to with it.
Pros:
1. The article is unique to you and you do not share the content with anyone else.
Cons:
1. Ghostwritten articles are quite a bit more expensive per article than PLR packages.
2. You have the responsibility of finding a good writer.
3. The quality can be questionable.
4. You need to check your articles to make sure your ghostwriter isn’t stealing content. Unfortunately that does happen.
PLR Articles
PLR articles are pre-written articles that are sold in packages, or as part of a monthly membership.
Pros:
1. PLR articles are much more affordable than ghostwritten ones.
2. The content is ready, so you don’t have to wait for a ghostwriter to become available or find a ghostwriter who is available.
Cons:
1. The content is not unique. You share the articles with the other people who purchased the package or membership.
2. You can’t submit the PLR articles to article directories.
3. The quality can be questionable.
4. You have to find PLR packages in your niche – or hope that the membership you signed up for sends you ones that you can use.
How can you even the odds between the two? Find a quality PLR service that allows you choose your topics. If the articles are well written, and their distribution is limited, it’s almost as good as getting ghostwritten content just for you. That way, you get the best of both worlds – quality content at a great price.
Article written by:
Nicole Dean is the owner of www.EasyPLR.com – where you’ll find high-quality PLR articles sold in very limited quantities. The PLR articles at EasyPLR are professionally written and professionally edited — top quality at an affordable price, especially while there’s a PLR sale!
admin 
Real estate lead generation means constantly looking for new business. When people are looking to consistently generate new business, one of the first questions people usually have for me, as a Lead Generation Strategist, is what’s the MOST effective way to generate leads for my business. It’s understandable that you would want to cut straight thru the BS and get to what’s going to work for YOUR business, but unfortunately there is no one MOST effective strategy. Much the same as there is no magic bullet in any industry.
Much of what will give you the biggest bang for your buck depends a lot on your current skillset and budget and even more importantly, your audience. If you’re selling products or services to everyone, there would be a million ways to reach all those people. If on the other hand your audience is targeted and you KNOW who you’re trying to reach, you will find all of your marketing and real estate lead generation efforts will automatically become more effective.
But generally speaking, I’ve put together a list of what can be the top 10 cost effective real estate lead generation strategies when targeted to a specific audience:
#1 Referrals- Why Referrals? Because as we know, people like to do business with those they know, like and trust or who come recommended by people that they know, like or trust. A recent article I wrote for those struggling on a peanut butter and jelly budget talks about how following up with contacts and clients you already have can breathe new life into your sales funnel by bringing in referral business.
#2 Live Seminars- This one is one of my favorites to generate real estate leads because in the day and age of the internet we’ve all become really comfortable in our PJ’s (myself included) and even lazy when it comes to “social” networking. But when measuring effectiveness there is NO substitute for pressing flesh. This goes back to #1 in that people like to do business with those that they know, like and trust. It’s MUCH easier for someone to feel like they know you if they’ve actually met youJ And hopefully from there they will like you and come to trust you. Live seminars can be events that you host (i.e. homebuyer workshops) or events that you attend as a guest. Either way, get OUT there and mingle.
#3 Compelling Offers- Whether you’re hiding out in your home or office or actually out there meeting people in person, you’ll need a reason for someone to want to become a lead. What do you have to offer them that they can’t get from every other person offering the same products or services? Your USP (unique selling proposition) should be translated into a compelling offer that they can’t refuse. One that your prospects would feel like they can’t afford to miss out on. This offer can be used on squeeze pages to collect email addresses, in social media to get people to “like” your stuff or even as part of a direct mail campaign.
#4 Paid Advertising- I’m sure there’s a reader or two out there who wants to skip this one because you’re freaked out by the word “Paid”. But if you’re in business and not willing to test the effectiveness of your real estate lead generation strategies, you should be freaked out by that instead of the word paid. Successful lead generation involves time AND money. That’s an article in itself, but in order to see if anyone is really interested in your compelling offer or to see if you’re using the right keywords, etc. the fastest (most effective) way to figure it out is with paid advertisements. Paid ads include banner advertisements, pay per click, solo ads on other people’s email list, FB ads, etc.)
#5 Creating Pillar Content- Whether marketing on or offline, an effective way to get new readers, subscribers, prospects, leads or whatever you want to call them, is to write content that they want to read. If you’re not a writer there are other ways to produce valuable content including podcasting and video (which can be transcribed into articles). The most important aspect of making content creation an effective real estate lead generation tool means having a super strong call to action.
#6 Establishing Expertise is directly related to creating pillar content, but is more about how you leverage and distribute content. Expertise is also about branding and other factors depending on your industry, but most important is to know that in order to build TRUST people will need to know and feel like you know what you’re talking about.
#7 Participate on related blogs with lively commentary, become active in forums that your target audience hangs out it, and answering questions on sites related to your industry where your prospects are asking questions. Simple yet effective.
#8 Social Media is not just about what your dinner plans are or projectile vomiting your content on as many networks as possible. You should share some personal information so that people know you’re a real person and not a spam robot, but real engagement comes from asking questions and sharing problems that your audience is having along with tips and advice on how to overcome those problems.
#9 Video Marketing is another substitute for pressing flesh with live seminars and events. People can actually see you when you’re in front of the camera, and even if you use different types of video like screen sharing and presentations, prospects get another sensory feel of who you are and whether or not they would want to get to know you, whether or not they might like you and whether or not they trust you. See the pattern yet?
#10 Last but certainly not least is the importance of Tracking and Measurement when determining the most cost effective way to generate leads for your business. If you don’t have tracking in place and you’re not measuring results, there is NO way in the world to guess what’s most effective. In other words, track and measure EACH of the 9 strategies above or don’t bother doing them. You’ll be wasting time AND money.
For more tips and advice on generating real estate leads for your business, click here for a complimentary “Show Me the Money, Honey!” Strategy Session TODAY!
To Your Continued Success,
Nishika
P.S. If there isn’t an available appointment for a strategy session due to the holiday break, please leave a comment or send me an email and we’ll connect soon.
Happy Holidays!
admin Believe it or not, real estate marketing and Twitter are a perfect match. I know many agents are often unsure how to best use Twitter to market their real estate business and that’s understandable considering all the possibilities. But a great place to start is in the marketing and promotion of your real estate listings.
This is Part 1 of a video I recorded on how to market your property listings on Twitter. And no, it’s not about how often to Tweet about listings.
One of the social media marketing techniques we use is to create individual Twitter accounts for each new listing. You’ll notice that I recorded this video for internal use among my team, but in the holiday spirit of sharing I wanted to get it into your hands as a way of saying thanks and in the effort of paying it forward. One day I’ll re-record them for the public and add to YouTube, etc. but for now they’re yours.
Check it out (view it fullscreen)…..
—>Here’s a link to Part 2 of the video<—
Do you market your real estate listings on Twitter?
To Your Continued Success,
P.S. I created the Single Property Websites with Realbird and HIGHLY recommend them.
admin Here’s Part Two of the videos (view fullscreen) on creating a Twitter account for individual property listings:
The first video can be found by clicking here.
Happy Holidays,
P.S. Ask me how I sell real estate in multiple states while spending my days at the beach! Schedule your FREE “Show Me the Money, Honey!” Strategy Session today===>Schedule here NOW!
admin How to get referrals is something that can be discussed without end, but there’s one simple way to get referrals that somehow we always manage to put on the back burner. If you would like to know how to get referrals and you’re ready to do something about it…..
Follow-Up. Follow-up. And Follow-up again! The importance of follow-up is so underrated that this article cannot cover the topic in great enough detail, but here’s an overview of ways to follow-up that can easily result in getting a referral even when you least expect it. 
So without further ado, here are 5 quick ways to follow-up with your friends, family, prospects and customers:
1. Call ‘em! That’s right, pick up the phone and say hello. The purpose of your call is not to sell anything or even hope that they’ll buy something. Good old fashioned one-on-one communication is a small hinge that opens big doors every day.
2. Send them a valuable email that contains information that they would want to thank you for. It could be industry news, related to business you’ve previously done together or just a humorous message but this is not, I repeat…this is NOT a sales promotional email message. You are building relationships to get referrals not trying to make a sale.
3. Stop by and see them face to face. The holidays are a great time to stop by unexpected to say hello or bring a small gift to show that you appreciate your referral sources. If they’re too many miles between you for face to face visits, record a quick webcam video with a personalized message instead. I bet your competition isn’t doing that:-)
4. You can also mail them a card, but to stand out and be different I’d suggest a handwritten card instead of a mass produced box of greeting cards that have some stock message on them. As always, make it personal instead.
5. Last but certainly not least, connect and ENGAGE with them on various social media networks. Don’t set up a spammy auto-responder that says “thanks for connecting with me, buy this and that”. Take the time (or carefully hire someone to do it for you) to READ their profile, comment on something they’re doing and you’ll be surprised how naturally they will do the same and have you at top of mind when they or someone they know has a need for your products and services.
Anyway, that’s just 5 quick ways of the top of my head….
And enough reading for you! GO Follow-Up…you’d be surprised how easily you can get referrals just by staying in touch.
To Your Continued Success,
admin Some states have more than one asset manager handling the sale of properties owned by the US Department of Housing and Urban Development. Although there are multiple asset managers, all of the properties are listed on the HUD homes for sale website.
I don’t personally sell as many HUD homes myself as I once did, but I used to look forward to working on transactions with Michaelson, Connor and Boul (MCB). They ROCK as asset managers! But unfortunately not all management companies are created alike.
Have you had good experiences working with your HUD M and M Contractors?
To Your Increased Profitability,
admin I am thankful everyday that I enjoy my work and have the awesome option of working from home. I don’t commute to a job that I don’t like, with co-workers and bosses that are unprofessional, or simply have to just “get through the day”. Each day is different, on my own schedule and most days I am truly having fun. There is that occasional “squirrely” real estate transaction, but thankfully they are rare.
The best part about my work is that the more fun I’m having translates directly to how much money I’m making.
Life is good!
Thanks for reading,
admin 
Successful real estate websites can be built in WordPress for one of 5 reasons. While it’s true that for many years you either had to learn html (who wants to do that) or hire someone to build a website for you, things have changed dramatically. Not that long ago when not as many people were familiar with html code, the cost of a custom website was out of reach to most new website owners.
The alternative was to use ready-to-use template websites where you just use an editor to change the text or add photos to customize your own website. An example would be website providers like Intuit or in the world of real estate, Point 2.
The problem with template providers is that all of the websites come with a certain amount of content and images built it. As great as that may sound, Google doesn’t like duplicate content and all of these websites are role models of duplicate content. It’s not easy to rank a template site unless you know how to and can fully customize it to remove the content that is also on thousands (or hundreds of thousands) of other websites.
Search engine optimization (SEO) can be another challenge with a template website.
Well now there is an alternative that is not only FREE and easy to learn and use, but these websites are also loved by Google and other search engines.
Successful real estate websites built in WordPress.
People still often think of WordPress as just another blogging platform, but that’s not true. Countless “regular” websites are built using WordPress.
WordPress can be hosted on your own server so that you actually own and can manage your own content. This is huge when comparing WordPress to a service like Blogger. Blogger blogs are hosted (and owned) by Google. So ultimately you have no control or ownership in the content posted.
There is a learning curve with WordPress, much the same as if you’re learning to use a template type of provider to build a site, but the return on investment by learning to use WordPress to build a successful real estate website instead is immeasurable. All you will need is a domain name which might cost you $12/year and a good web hosting account which may cost $7/month to have successful real estate websites built in WordPress.
To Your Online Profitability,
admin Someone that will show you how to get started in the business, and who will show you how to be successful in the business. Basically you need someone to show you how NOT to make all the mistakes most new agents make. 
You may have basic questions like where do you get your information for the MLS? Or how do you fill out the sales contract correctly. Many new agents find brokerages that have in-house training programs in a classroom style that overviews the “how to” of daily activities in a “Fast Start” type of program. But many new agents then go on to seek out personal real estate mentors….someone in their office that has been in the business for a number of years and has had great success.
You’re looking for the opportunity to learn by example and to shadow a successful real estate professional. Someone who will act as your personal real estate coach or mentor.
A number of offices and manager may assign mentors to new real estate agent that come into to the company. This is likely with little consideration as to whether or not there is a personality “match”. Some agents just approach a more experienced agent and ask them directly if they be their real estate mentor. These days there may be someone you follow online, a real estate professional that has a popular and engaging blog or a social network that you admire. You might ask that person to be your real estate mentor. But typically mentors work at the same real estate company or brokerage so that any compensation can be an agreed up share of commission.
If you are a new real estate agent and seek the right mentor, someone who can show you the mistakes that most new agents are making, that may be difficult. Many real estate mentors will help you with any specific questions you have on a real estate transaction but they may not offer you specific advice or tips on information that you need on so that you don’t become a statistic. You don’t want to become one of the four out of five real estate professionals who don’t make it.
So if you’re a new real estate agent looking for a good real estate mentor, you should know the difference between finding a mentor and working with a real estate coach.
A real estate coach is an investment and the fee is whatever is mutually agreed upon. It typically is not a percentage of closed sales but instead some other specific fee schedule.
The reason I have personally invested in coaching and the reason why top athletes, top actors, top performers and those who excel at their profession always hire coaches is that they always have “the best” specifically working with them personally, to help them achieve their best. That’s because coaching is an investment in experience and expertise. It takes your professional skills and talent to the next level and that’s why coaching is essential to success for new real estate agents seeking mentors.
See you at the top,
Ask Me How I Sell Real Estate in Multiple States & Spend My Days at the Beach… Schedule a FREE “Show Me the Money, Honey!” Strategy Session by leaving a comment below…
