lifestyle
December: the "tenth" month and end of a long year
It is so incredibly fitting that the holiday season comes at the end of the year.Think about it? Wouldn’t you want to end the year on a high note? Celebrating with family and friends?
If the world isn’t weird enough with all this talk of such strange words such as iPads, Nexus’ and... Read More
December: the “tenth” month and end of a long year
It is so incredibly fitting that the holiday season comes at the end of the year.Think about it? Wouldn’t you want to end the year on a high note? Celebrating with family and friends?
If the world isn’t weird enough with all this talk of such strange words such as iPads, Nexus’ and... Read More
How to market properties in today's coupon economy
It’s no secret this country has gone through some tough economic times and is on the slow road to recovery.
A few years ago, jobs disappeared. Housing dropped. Wallets and pocketbooks shrunk.
Things appear to be getting better – the unemployment rate is declining and the demand for real estate listings in... Read More
How to market properties in today’s coupon economy
It’s no secret this country has gone through some tough economic times and is on the slow road to recovery.
A few years ago, jobs disappeared. Housing dropped. Wallets and pocketbooks shrunk.
Things appear to be getting better – the unemployment rate is declining and the demand for real estate listings in... Read More
What’s the “tipping point” when it comes to hyper-local real estate?
It’s not often you are credited with creating a new or popular phrase in the English language.
Writer Malcolm Gladwell took the term “tipping point” to a whole new level with his book of the same name published in 2000.
He pointed out there are three characteristics of a tipping point – one... Read More
What's the "tipping point" when it comes to hyper-local real estate?
It’s not often you are credited with creating a new or popular phrase in the English language.
Writer Malcolm Gladwell took the term “tipping point” to a whole new level with his book of the same name published in 2000.
He pointed out there are three characteristics of a tipping point – one... Read More
Location is more important today than ever in terms of a home as an investment
You may have noticed the headlines recently about how in 2010 the net worth of the American family dropped by nearly 40%.
Of course, it’s not surprising considering we were coming off the Great Recession.
But you can imagine how this has changed the mindset of most Americans.
When it comes to buying a house, more than any time in history, Americans are very concerned about the value of their home as an investment.
And you know how location plays an enormous role in that investment.
There’s an interesting article in... Read More
Data is “lighter these days” so load it up on your real estate website
While there is always the usual amount of bad news going around, there was one major bit of great news recently that few people seemed to notice.
And this bit of news has implications for anybody who owns a website.
IBM just announced the launch of their Sequoia BlueGene Q supercomputer and its stature as the fastest... Read More
Data is "lighter these days" so load it up on your real estate website
While there is always the usual amount of bad news going around, there was one major bit of great news recently that few people seemed to notice.
And this bit of news has implications for anybody who owns a website.
IBM just announced the launch of their Sequoia BlueGene Q supercomputer and its stature as the fastest... Read More
Agents on “Million Dollar Listing” emphasize “lifestyle” and you should too
Have you ever watched Million Dollar Listing? It’s a show on the Bravo network where three 30-somethings sell real estate in Malibu and Hollywood.
With their luxury cars, weird haircuts, and super-wealthy clients, this almost seems like a fantasy reality show.
Their names are even trendy – Madison, Chad and Josh (what, no Biff?).
I watched it the other day and almost fell off the couch when one of the young men proudly declared, “I don’t sell just real estate. I sell a lifestyle.”
Like nobody, including the rich, has ever... Read More
Agents on "Million Dollar Listing" emphasize "lifestyle" and you should too
Have you ever watched Million Dollar Listing? It’s a show on the Bravo network where three 30-somethings sell real estate in Malibu and Hollywood.
With their luxury cars, weird haircuts, and super-wealthy clients, this almost seems like a fantasy reality show.
Their names are even trendy – Madison, Chad and Josh (what, no Biff?).
I watched it the other day and almost fell off the couch when one of the young men proudly declared, “I don’t sell just real estate. I sell a lifestyle.”
Like nobody, including the rich, has ever... Read More
Some say give sellers a reality-check to secure listings
Real estate professionals Liz and Bill Spear have a point about getting real when it comes to prospective listing clients.
Basically they say, don’t necessarily count on us, or any one listing agent to get you the right buyer, Mr. and Mrs. Home Seller. The reality is, they will probably... Read More
There are winning features for your site and then there are truly WINNING features
I read a few words the other day in an article on Realtor magazine that just popped out at me like a geyser gushing from a broken water main on a seller’s front yard.
The title of the article was “Winning Features For Any Real Estate Website.”
Now, I know the writer used the words in a broad sense to make a point about how to improve your web pages.
But as Mark Twain said, the difference between the right word and the almost right word is like the difference between lightning and lightning bug.
Before I tell you the... Read More
How promoting local business will get you business
I don’t know if you noticed lately, but there seems to be this new obsession with an old commodity.
I’m not talking about oil or gold. I’m talking about bacon.
People are crazy over this pork delicacy. There’s bacon ice cream, bacon wrapping paper, bacon-flavored candy necklaces.
So how would a savvy Realtor take advantage of this trend? Or any trend for that matter? Or any subject of intense interest?
Put a local spin on it. Tie it into your blog.
Follow me here.
For example, say you found a local restaurant that just makes the best bacon,... Read More
Win the battle for buyers and sellers with the latest real estate technology
If you watch the History channel about famous battles, you might notice that many times it isn’t who has the most troops who wins, but it’s some form of new technology that actually makes the difference.
Crossbows could fire an arrow 350-400 yards, better than a conventional arrow.
Chain mail could lessen a deadly blow from a... Read More
Retirees make shorter-distance moves; want services close by
The American Dream used to be: find a decent job, raise some kids, support your community, fix up your house and then when you retired, dump it all and move to Florida.
Retirees are still moving to Florida, but surprisingly not so much.
According to US Census data, in 1990 one of... Read More
Turnquist Partners shows high-tech commitment to agents and clients
Some real estate companies say they support their agents with the latest technology and some real estate companies put it right in their mission statement.
And right on the home page of their web site.
Turnquist Partners, based in Austin, TX., is one of those real estate companies that walks the talk.
“Our business philosophy embodies a commitment from our associates to provide the highest degree of knowledge and expertise needs to meet our clients’ real estate needs,” states their web site. “Sales associates are provided with state-of-the art computer... Read More
When selling real estate, are you obeying the “law of geography?”
There seem to be a bunch of very unique laws out there. I’m not talking about regulations against speeding or stealing.
But laws concerning big ticket items – Newton’s Law of Universal Gravitation, or the Law of Large Numbers.
There’s one law that everybody in the real estate profession should be familiar with: The Law of Geography.
It was developed by a brilliant American-Swiss doctor of geography, Waldo Tobler (not that other Waldo, although, you could make a connection because it does involve places).
The First Law of Geography states:... Read More
When selling real estate, are you obeying the "law of geography?"
There seem to be a bunch of very unique laws out there. I’m not talking about regulations against speeding or stealing.
But laws concerning big ticket items – Newton’s Law of Universal Gravitation, or the Law of Large Numbers.
There’s one law that everybody in the real estate profession should be familiar with: The Law of Geography.
It was developed by a brilliant American-Swiss doctor of geography, Waldo Tobler (not that other Waldo, although, you could make a connection because it does involve places).
The First Law of Geography states:... Read More
This year’s top real estate movie award goes to….
Isn’t great to see a low-budget film make it big?
Independent movies like “Little Miss Sunshine” or “Sideways.”
Movies that don’t have overpaid movies stars and cost a gazillion to make and make you wonder after two hours, wouldn’t all that money have been better spent, say, rebuilding a country.
Our nomination for independent Real Estate Movie of the Year has to go Mark Richert’s film titled “I Want to Live Near a Starbucks.”
It’s only 2:13 minutes long. But it touches the lives of nearly every... Read More
This year's top real estate movie award goes to….
Isn’t great to see a low-budget film make it big?
Independent movies like “Little Miss Sunshine” or “Sideways.”
Movies that don’t have overpaid movies stars and cost a gazillion to make and make you wonder after two hours, wouldn’t all that money have been better spent, say, rebuilding a country.
Our nomination for independent Real Estate Movie of the Year has to go Mark Richert’s film titled “I Want to Live Near a Starbucks.”
It’s only 2:13 minutes long. But it touches the lives of nearly every... Read More
"Farming" techniques are changing. Do you have the right tools?
It used to be that America’s farmland was made up of small farmers with moderate acreage. Today, the small farmer is complaining that they are being put out of business by the mega-farm corporations.
How did that happen? The simple answer is that efficiencies were made to the... Read More
“Farming” techniques are changing. Do you have the right tools?
It used to be that America’s farmland was made up of small farmers with moderate acreage. Today, the small farmer is complaining that they are being put out of business by the mega-farm corporations.
How did that happen? The simple answer is that efficiencies were made to the... Read More
Realtors now have a tool to effectively use the persuasive technique of “scarcity” in any market
By now most of you are familiar with Groupon. It’s a company that cuts a deal with a local advertiser, say a restaurant, to offer a sizable discount of 50% or more.
The catch is, consumers have ONE day to buy the deal.
Does this work? Well, Groupon had $750 million in sales last year... Read More
Realtors now have a tool to effectively use the persuasive technique of "scarcity" in any market
By now most of you are familiar with Groupon. It’s a company that cuts a deal with a local advertiser, say a restaurant, to offer a sizable discount of 50% or more.
The catch is, consumers have ONE day to buy the deal.
Does this work? Well, Groupon had $750 million in sales last year... Read More
Tips on how brokers and agents can effectively use SpatialMatch to give them an edge in their markets
(Note: This the second part of an article which recently featured SpatialMatch, the Lifestyle and IDX search engine technology for broker and agent web sites).
Here are some of the ways brokers and agents can promote the SpatialMatch map-based platform on their web sites:
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How to use a lifestyle search engine to impress home sellers
Marte Cliff is an expert on real estate. She instructs home sellers on how to grill real estate agents to find the right one to sell their most valuable possession.
She tells them to ask “Does the agent just take your MLS information and stick it on a flyer?”
Or does the agent go the extra mile and write descriptions and take photos that “make prospective buyers dream at the thought of living in your home?”
Okay, reasonable old school but necessary advice. We know you’ve heard it before.
Now, let’s fast forward this approach into the modern age of... Read More
SpatialMatch featured in major US newspaper
You know the feeling you get when your name is mentioned (for positive reasons) in the newspaper?
Maybe the local paper wrote a story on you. Or printed your letter to the editor. Or took a photo of you.
Come on, admit it. That recognition is sort of... Read More
SpatialMatch IDX feature results in dozens of new clients
Comey and Shepherd Realtors
Now that we added our IDX real estate listing technology, dozens of brokers and agents are embedding the SpatialMatch neighborhood and search engine tool into their web sites to offer consumers... Read More
How Realtors can provide their own customized search engine
Few people know this story.
In the mid-1990s, two bright young men from Stanford University approached the founders of Yahoo and offered to sell them this cool new Internet search program they had created working late at... Read More
Successful Realtor who built his reputation as a hyperlocal expert adds SpatialMatch to site
David Dion of Solutions Real Estate knows all about hyperlocal. He built his real estate career on it.
Dion is one of the latest Realtor clients to incorporate SpatialMatch’s lifestyle search engine into his web site – appropriately named – Read More
Video: New SpatialMatch Lifestyle Search Features “Facebook Share”
Watch Grant video demo on the powerful new lifestyle features including a Facebook share now available in Wednesday’s release of SpatialMatch. These include enhanced Lifestyle Search and Share with Facebook friends. After you watch the video, go to http://www.spatialmatch.net/beta/beta.html to give it a... Read More
Specific strategies on how you can use SpatialMatch to retain early-stage home buyers
Last week we talked about some hyperlocal strategies to keep control of those early-stage buyers and avoid the horror of them traipsing off somewhere else and ending up with another company …and you lose the sale.
In today’s market, we highly recommend you put added emphasis on keeping in contact with the early-stage buyers. There’s so much competition out there, not just from other agents, but on the national level.
Now you have popular real estate sites including Google, Zillow, Trulia, and even Realtor.com which can pull those buyers away from you.
This is one... Read More
The great debate – how Realtors should promote themselves on Facebook. Got ideas?
Last week we ran a blog with some tips for Realtors on how they should use Facebook to promote their business. It elicited quite a few comments, many of which were posted on Linkedin groups.
There are a few items up for debate concerning the use of Facebook and we thought we would continue the conversation.
First, we’re still hearing from some in the biz that Facebook is useless. Well, we hope to change the mind of those folks y saying... Read More
Realtors: Use Facebook to establish yourself as the hyperlocal expert
I have to laugh. I recently saw an old comment from a Realtor complaining about Facebook.
It went something like this: “Facebook is useless. “It’s just a bunch of 18-22 year olds looking for the next hot party.”
That... Read More
One of our customers nominated by Inman for Innovator Award
Wow. One of our customers is up for a major tech award.
Home Junction Inc., the creators of SpatialMatch, is proud to be one of the technology partners of The GoodLife Team, an Austin real estate brokerage selected as a finalist for one of the real estate industry’s most coveted awards, the 2010 Inman Innovator Award.
Since its beginning, the Inman Innovator Award has been recognized as the real estate industry’s most prestigious mark of excellence when it comes to the application of technology to the real... Read More
Inman News features the benefits of SpatialMatch and "hyperlocalism"
Geez, we couldn’t have said it better ourselves.
The popular real estate technology web site, Inman News, recently posted an article by columnist Bernice Ross touting SpatialMatch and the importance of “hyperlocalism.”
Bernice is no neophyte to the real estate profession. She has more than 30 years experience, is a Certified Master Coach, and is the author of two books. Including her latest one – “Real Estate Dough: Your Recipe for Real Estate Success.”
When it comes to marketing an entire lifestyle, rather than just a home, Bernice sees the pixels on the... Read More
Inman News features the benefits of SpatialMatch and “hyperlocalism”
Geez, we couldn’t have said it better ourselves.
The popular real estate technology web site, Inman News, recently posted an article by columnist Bernice Ross touting SpatialMatch and the importance of “hyperlocalism.”
Bernice is no neophyte to the real estate profession. She has more than 30 years experience, is a Certified Master Coach, and is the author... Read More
How to use the ‘Scarcity Rule’ and ‘Lifestyle Amenities’ to sell more homes
Would you pay $1.5 million for five cents? Someone did. In 1996, a coin collector paid that amount for a 1913 Liberty Head Nickel.
Real estate agents continually use the same principle which created the high purchase for this coin. It’s called the principle of scarcity. Expert Dr. Robert Cialdini calls it “the rule of the few.” To define this phenomena in simple terms, he says “the idea of potential loss plays a large role in human decision making.”
Sure, if you’re selling a unique house or... Read More
How to use the ‘Scarcity Rule’ and ‘Lifestyle Amenities’ to sell more homes
Would you pay $1.5 million for five cents? Someone did. In 1996, a coin collector paid that amount for a 1913 Liberty Head Nickel.
Real estate agents continually use the same principle which created the high purchase for this coin. It’s called the principle of scarcity. Expert
How much data is too much?
A loaded question – how much data is too much?
What relevant data do you need? Do your families look for the same information when searching? Does that set of data follow a common thread? How many websites do your customers need to visit to satisfy their data search? What data could your site offer to set you apart from your competitors? If your clients could access this data in one location, and save it for future use, would that further your ability to serve your clients?
Read More
I’m A Lifestyle Relocation Specialist
I don’t know if you’d put “Lifestyle Relocation Specialist” on your business card, but you’d definitely want to incorporate this marketing message into your brand image. The fact is; if you just sell homes, then you are a data-commodity and your unique selling proposition is getting harder to convey, unless of course, you have the bragging rights to say; 100% market share, 100% sold rate at 100% asking price in just 0 days!
I doubt it!
There are other ways to set yourself apart from the commodity elements of the industry. You... Read More
I’m A Lifestyle Relocation Specialist
I don’t know if you’d put “Lifestyle Relocation Specialist” on your business card, but you’d definitely want to incorporate this marketing message into your brand image. The fact is; if you just sell homes, then you are a data-commodity and your... Read More
