Coastal Real Estate and Lifestyles

Old way:  Don’t worry this will be short…  Newspapers and magazines sell advertising to Brokers and individual agents to promote advertiser’s company… and agent… and listings.  Said Brokers and agents pay a lot of money to buy limited space.  No tracking mechanism…it’s just the way it is.  Exclusively, it’s a dying breed.  It does look pretty if it’s in color.

New way:  This is a huge subject…  I’m barely making a dent here…  A tremendous shift is taking place.  Most Brokers and agents do what it takes to sell their clients’ properties.  We can’t rely on print advertising when we’ve known for years now that the buyers are online.  As brokers slowly reduce their print advertising budgets and increase online advertising budgets, they expect a global reach.

Readers may still be perusing the RE section, but serious buyers are tapping into multiple sites  (Zillow, Trulia, Redfin, PropertyShark, plus their agent’s business website) to get the most up-to-date listing and market information. (side bar…even though the data on some public search sites may not be accurate and can cause confusion, I look at it as an opportunity to clear up the confusion and get a little face, or ear, time.)

Agent example:  advertises online with property websites, includes proper linking to various real estate, media, networking, and news sites, leveraged by the agent’s own dynamic business site.  Property interest can be tracked with analytics tools.  Now there are real estate market news feeds…more on that to come.

Another example:  Zillow recently announced its Advertising Network.  “The network goes beyond classified listings to allow Zillow.com and the newspapers to sell each other’s premium online advertising inventory for display advertising.  National and regional advertisers will be able to deliver targeted, relevant display ads to visitors of Zillow.com and the newspapers’ Web sites.” as Sarah at Zillow comments on The San Francisco Real Estate Blog.

Another idea for newspapers (just thinking out loud here):  Wouldn’t it be great if local newspapers offered a live news or listings feed of broker, FSBO, and bank-owned listings that are automatically posted when an agent or broker purchases an advertising account with the newspaper, and then allows a link back to the advertiser’s website?   Buyers want to see everything in one site.  It makes sense for newspapers whose model is to bring news via advertising dollars.  So how do you get more advertising dollars?  Offer a solution to your advertisers.  And right now, measurable solutions are what I’m buying.  It’s a complete win-win because it will bring the search engine ranking up for the newspaper and bring additional exposure to the listing.  Too far-fetched?

Or what about a map-based property map that, when clicked on, takes you to the appropriate agent’s contact info?  It needs to be dynamic/interactive.  Newspaper readers have been and still are buyers of real estate, but newspapers have not kept up with the changes in reader habits.

In order for this to work, newspapers should bring on a real estate liaison who understands the industry.  Typical newspaper advertising reps won’t be able to expand this area of revenue.  They have to understand the industry, where it’s going, and at the speed at which it’s moving.

These are just my thoughts and opinions.  I’m no media expert, just a media advertiser and user.  What do you think?  Also, should I add a new category called “Media”?

These are the newspapers where San Mateo County coastal homes and properties may be advertised:

 New York Times

San Francisco Chronicle (Hearst Communications)

San Jose Mercury News & Contra Costa Times (Bay Area News Group)

Half Moon Bay Review

I found this on, where else, Twitter.

Local applications?  Pumpkin Festival comes to mind.  The high school grad night?, which I will be working.  School administrators and teachers?  Police?  Park rangers?  Sometimes I tweet on Tuesday tour day when I see noteworthy houses to share.

SEOmoz Whiteboard Friday - Adopting Twitter from Scott Willoughby on Vimeo.

SEOmoz Whiteboard Friday - Adopting Twitter from Scott Willoughby on Vimeo.

I managed to get in RE BarCamp for a few hours on Tuesday.  It was an informal gathering of social media/technology thought leaders… and those interested in learning about real estate technology trends.  A tremendous networking opportunity…and it was free!

I met a lot of people, here’s a couple to share with you now:

Alex Neth of cribQ.comcompiled a mashup of Craigslist rentals with Google mapping, neighborhood info, and Walk Scores for each rental.  He developed this site to manage his own rental search.

I’m fortunate to already know Kevin.  Kevin Boer of Domus Consulting Group and 3 Oceans Real Estate lead a discussion about whether there was business value in the use of Twitter.  That was one of the largest groups.  What does that tell you?  If you’re on Twitter also, you can follow me at @mariansbennett.

Theresa Boardman of St. Paul Real Estate lead a conversation about photos, Flikr and photo management for websites.  Because of the open and casual nature, discussions veered into cameras, lens choices, other online photo filing systems, how to get the best interior shots, and more.

Looking for home in New Zealand or north Lake Tahoe?…I met Alistair Helm of realestate.co.nz from Auckland, New Zealand.  His company provides one of the largest (or did he say the largest?) real estate web portals in his country.  Also Tracy Saunders, Sotheby’s came to SF from Incline Village, NV. 

Yesterday was the first day of Connect. More about that and last Sunday’s web-cam experiment in Healdsburg to come.  In addition to my clients and family…the priorities!… I’m fitting in these activities this week. 

A few days ago Pam Buda announced in our Homescopes meeting that her Healdsburg listing will be featured LIVE on Trulia’s Blog via webcam.  When our Sonoma County colleague and owner of wine country real estate blog, WineCountryandHorses.com, invited me to join her at her Open House this Sunday, July 20th, I jumped at the opportunity to witness this cutting edge listing tool in action.  As with any listing, most agents will plan a marketing strategy to maximize exposure to the most likely potential buyers.  When an opportunity like this . . . Trulia offering to do a live webcam of your open house . . . is added to the marketing of the home, it opens up even more possibilities to powerful online exposure.  WOW.

Pam has taken another terrific step by involving her Homescopes associates.  When I write a blog post about an Associate’s listing, my readers are exposed to new information they may not know about otherwise.  For example, my readers span San Mateo County, all of California, and beyond.  My Google Analytics report shows the top worldwide visitors to my site:  United States, United Kingdom, Norway, India and Canada.  Pam’s Analytics report may show her readers come from other places.  In any case, it’s additional exposure for her listing - more exposure means greater chances of the right buyer.

The perfect buyer for this adorable vintage craftsman bungalow in the heart of the wine country may come from anywhere.  If you have ever thought of exploring Sonoma County, or Healdsburg in particular, for either a second home, a vacation rental property, a legacy home, or a ’downsize’ home, what better way to attend an open house if you can’t physically be in Healdsburg?!  Check out this online open house tomorrow, Sunday, July 20 between 1-3;30 on Trulia’s Blog.  The home is located at 414 Piper Street, Healdsburg, CA and will be physically open from1-4 p.m.

The use of these 2.0 real estate technology and social media tools are at the heart of an exciting and transparent trend for our industry that will benefit buyers and sellers.

Just learned about this very handy tool yesterday from our Advertising Coordinator, Gene Wilkins.  She was the first to broadcast that Highway 92 had been closed yesterday afternoon within seconds of its happening.  She had gotten a notice from SMCAlert, a system that broadcasts road, earthquake, weather, and other emergency situations.  Here’s a snippet from the FAQ…

Emergency Situations:

• Notify employees, and/or citizens of the location of the nearest emergency shelter, available bed space, hours of operation during a crisis;
• Notify employees/citizens of available evacuation routes during an emergency;
• Activate special teams within the community, based upon an event

Precautionary Warnings:

• Severe weather warnings;
• Change in the Homeland Security Advisory System terror alert level
• Pre-cautionary evacuation order if on high alert  

So I signed up too.  You can activate your notices on up to two cell phones and two email addresses.  It’s free, however, standard text messaging rates apply here.

This can be a huge time saver for those of us who travel Highways 92 & 1 on a regular basis - especially in our line of work!  Up until now I would turn on KCBS AM radio to wait for the traffic report “on the eights”.  You can configure how you receive these notices, but I set it up so that I received them on my Treo since I’m in the car so much.

Meeting someone for dinner or a property showing?  Picking up kids from school?  Medical or other appointment over the hill?  Now you can get the quick “heads up” to take another route if necessary.  For client meetings that may be delayed, this is a very useful, professional tool.

Note:  Just added this link to my website under “Emergency Preparedness”.

Since the new cell phone laws go into effect on July 1, I’ve been keeping new technology, Twitter, on the horizon ready to jump on - at least in some minor capacity - at some point.  Now may be that time.  However, I guess I’m not alone…as I tried to log in a minute ago, here’s the message I received…

Now I know why, having just scanned one of my favorite sites, Transparent Real Estate.  I can usually find what’s really going on at TransparentRE.  Here’s apparently why Twitter may be down now from Pat Kitano’s post of 5/26/08:

“Twitter.com isn’t actually the primary recipient of its web traffic, Larry Dignan @ ZDNet says 90% of Twitter traffic are its API calls. On the negative side, Twitter now has famous network down times because too many users are accessing Tweeter via those applications.”

I keep up to date on new technologies from my internet marketing gurus, Pat Kitano and Kevin Boer at 3 Oceans Real Estate.  Thanks to you both for helping us stay at the top of our game!  I plan on joining the Real Estate Connect 2008 Twitter group - which will be my first experience with real-time communication with colleagues while at a conference.  Talk about being connected.  Here’s some specifics from the Inman site:

Hope to connect with you at the Inman event next month.

CHP Wireless Telephone Laws FAQ - Effective July 1, 2008

I’m just switching automatic email listing alert vendors to ad more search features and incorporate Google Maps.  Sitting here next to a warm fire in the fireplace, my Christmas tree lights twinkling, both adding more light to the room already aglow from my large computer screen, I’m testing, testing…and oops, an inaccuracy from a Google Map!

My husband chimes in, “I really like this house…”.  I check it out…I am familiar with it and share what I know.  I’ve met this very nice Agent, Genella, as we networked with each other while I worked on another listing in the same area last year.  As I’m talking about it and commenting on its location, he says, “No, it’s on the west side.”  Looking back to the screen to the Google Map and, sure enough, the pointer says it’s west of Highway 1.  The listing is actually on the east side of Highway 1.  This is not good.  I expect accuracy from the tools upon which my clients and visitors rely.

Picture this scenario:  You’re searching online - over 90% of us in the Bay Area do - and you think this house is worth a trip to Half Moon Bay, or to a nearby neighborhood, to visit.  If you’ve already decided that you want to be on the east side, you may quickly move to the next house on your screen because of location.  Because….Google Maps are always correct, aren’t they?

As data becomes more and more available, it’s natural to assume accuracy.  It isn’t always so.  You still need to do your homework - beyond the internet - and have a resource on the ground who does the same.  The inaccuracy may be from Google, but it also may be from any one of the technology providers involved that come together to make this product available to us for its intended purpose:  search real estate listings online.  Our role as real estate professionals does not allow us to assume as accurate everything that our tools deliver to us.

Reil, now MLS Listings Pro, has recently allowed Sold Listings to show on an Agent’s site.  While there are many opinions on both sides of the table about Multiple Listing Service (MLS) management, this is a good thing for agents, clients, and online searchers using the data, either from the agent’s website or from MLSlistings.com.  As we continue to move forward into the “mega-information” age, holding back information isn’t going to benefit anyone.  We gave a proper burial to the MLS Book “ages” ago.  The real estate world is online and MLS systems need to get on board…or someone else will do it instead (hmmm, like Zillow?!).  We are quickly moving from 2.0 and now into 3.0 (don’t ask me to explain that one yet!). 

Even though a one-on-one meeting with a client will include Sold Listings, why shouldn’t consumers doing their own research - all 90+% percent of us - be privey to the same information without having to register or log-in.

A sold listing is not a commodity - yet it has been treated as such.  The board to which agents pay a fee for membership includes MLS privileges.  Displaying MLS data on an agent website for the benefit of their online visitors, including Sold listings, is part of the package.