We tell them to:

• Set goals.
• Have a prospecting plan.
• Practice your value proposition elevator speech.
• Pick up the phone and call expired listing owners and for sale by owners.
• Create contact campaigns with follow up and tracking.
• Utilize social media networking for visibility.
• Be visible in the community and talk to people every day about real estate.
• Include both proactive and passive prospecting activities every week.

We tell them when they do these things, they will get more listings, have more sales and make more money.

Talent attraction is prospecting for broker and managers. How do you approach talent attraction? The competition is stronger than ever to attract and retain good talent in real estate companies if we are to grow and prosper. The best way to accomplish the goal is to practice what we preach.

There was plenty of good news regionally this week. In Maine, home sales jumped a whopping 63 percent last month. Sales of existing homes in Boston rose 41.8 percent, in Pittsburgh 42.2 percent, in Portland 49.2 percent, and in New York and its surrounding suburbs 39.6 percent. Wow! Also, in California house prices rose 21 percent in April from a year earlier as forecloses fell. Folks in the Midwest and South, are you seeing similar trends?

A report from Zillow found that foreclosed homes typically sell for an average 20 to 30 percent discount. It’s no wonder, then, that auctions have increased by about 10 percent a year since the early 2000s.

On another note, the FHA guaranteed 1.9 million loans last year, beating out competitors Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. They’ve been working overtime!

Finally, just a little reminder of what our job is all about: finding people a home. Enjoy the holiday!

Need another tool for social media marketing campaigns? Check out Sendible, a social media marketing platform that allows users to engage with their audience and track results across multiple channels at any time. Anything to make life a little easier!

Sponsorships seem to be everywhere, from celebrities tweeting (a $46 million business last year) to cable television shows. Last week, SelecTV, a new interactive advertising/programming initiative – in which an on-screen icons alert viewers to interactive programming or advertising capabilities – was revealed. It will be interesting to see how seamless the integration is and its reaction from viewers. What are your thoughts on this?

Showing just how important social media has become, Gateway has launched a new laptop with a one-touch social networking button to allow users easy access to sites like Facebook, YouTube and more. In less than ten years we have seen a shift from social media channels using the power of the computer to now computers using the power of social media. Incredible. In perhaps more shocking news, YouTube announced, shortly after its 5^th birthday, that it has exceeded 2 billion video views per day. What an impressive growth!

A new survey out this week shows that women especially respond to positive reviews on community message boards. You should encourage your happy customers to write about you on influential websites in your community! What a great way to gain referrals.

As many of you know it is important to distinguish between your personal and company Twitter accounts. For those of you with company accounts, here are some easy-to-follow tips on how to effectively align your tweets with what your followers (i.e. consumers) are expecting.

In other news, if you feel like everything is centered on your community these days, you’re not alone. In addition to some recent localized advertising and marketing offerings, which we’ve mentioned in previous blogs, a new partnership between CNN and Outside.in, an aggregator of local blogs, is providing hyper-local news and weather information on the media giant’s website. We should expect to see other partnerships arise with Outside.in in the near future. Just think of what a service like this could do to your own website or blog!

Looking for a way to keep folks engaged? Encourage the adoption of iPhones. Although the percentage of users may be small as compared to smart phones in general, iPhone users tend to be much more engaged on mobile platforms, including news outlets. What a great way to ensure your agents are “in the know.”

Speaking of engagement, a reporter from AdWeek recently noticed a sharp decrease in the use of taglines from major brands, which he thinks is a disgrace to the industry because consumers become less engaged in brands. We agree it’s important to define a brand with specific words and communicate these with your consumers, whether that means a tagline or not. You should think about what those words are for your brand and how consumers can know what you stand for.

We have talked a lot about greening the home over the past weeks, but what about greening the things you already have in your home by creatively recycling them? Mashable offers eight ways to repurpose technologies. My personal favorite: turning an old computer into an aquarium. These tips could also work in the office!

Lastly, for all of those who doubted the success of the iPad, Apple this week announced it has sold 1 million devices so far. Not bad for just a month on the market!

Perhaps it is because Twitter has become a part of my life. It runs in the background on my computer screen each day for hours, Tweetdeck pop ups interrupt my concentration every minute or so, Twextme text messages notify me whenever someone mentions me in a Tweet. and my email inbox contains emails notifying me of new followers seemingly every time I look at it. The reality is Twitter has managed to intertwine himself into my day to day routine when just four years ago he didn’t even exist.  Amazing.

And I’m not alone. Twitter is averaging over 50 million Tweets per day and last summer the word “Twitter” was entered into the Collins English Dictionary. Not bad for a toddler.

Do you remember your first Tweet? Remember that mixture of excitement and fear. Will I look silly? Who cares? What am I doing?

What about the first time someone retweeted you or mentioned you in a Tweet? Did you let out a little squeal of joy?

For me, Twitter has become a communication vehicle. I engage, build and maintain relationships every day in 140 characters. I would rather get a DM (direct message) on Twitter from you then an email. I would rather send you a DM then type you an email. I’d be quite happy if 140 characters became the new email limit actually.

I can engage in conversations with multiple people and follow along with multiple conversations easily and quickly on Twitter. This is much easier then arranging a conference call or sending out a mass communication. A simple Twitter search can bring me up to speed on what a person is doing or what the community is thinking on a particular topic. This type of real time knowledge is powerful and extremely important.

I also absorb the majority of my current events and pop culture on Twitter. My entire life I’ve heard people reflect on remembering where they were when they heard JFK had died. I’ll tell the story of reading about Michael Jackson’s death in a Tweet for decades to come, as well as Britney Murphy or most recently John Forsythe (who was no relation, but a great actor).

So Twitter, now that you are 4 years old, what do you have planned for us next? You’ve got millions of us hooked, we can’t seem to go an hour without you, every new kid on the block wants to play with you, and you’ve developed a powerful personaility. The question is, how will you manage to further entrance yourself in our lives?

In other news, even those looking to get out of their homes by defaulting on their home loans are having difficulty due to a backlog in the system. Others, who once thought they could count on equity in their homes as a financial safety net, are finding their home may no longer be worth enough. It’s no wonder, then, that some are “strategically defaulting” on their homes because it can be difficult to see the value in times like these. We’ve got our work cut out for us.

With all the turmoil in the mortgage financing world, there has been an increase in people buying homes with cash. Many believe the transactions highlight the sentiment among investors that real estate prices have nowhere to go but up. For those looking for a foreclosure, with cash or without, there are new quick-and-easy auction Web sites. Might be worth checking out?

Moving on… it’s not surprising, given the falling February construction of new homes and apartments, that sales on new homes fell to the lowest level on record in February. The good news is, though, the rate of decline has slowed since February 2009 and sales of existing homes, although down, are 7 percent higher than a year ago. Many are blaming the ferocious weather that swept many parts of the county. If this is true, we can all celebrate the sun finally coming out. Hopefully home buyers will find it as inspiring as agents do!

Mortgage rates near record lows and the government tax credit have not made a big difference in the housing market, some argue. It raises the question: how do we convince nervous home buyers that things will get better? One way is to share the news that, according to bond firms, the market is now stable enough to prevent a big jump in mortgage rates. Any other advice out there?

Still, as we’ve said before, we should expect to see a surge of home sales in April as the home buyer tax credit comes to a close. Some states and other organizations are doing what they can to help the market, before and after this deadline. California is chief among them, with the Golden State launching a $200 million tax credit on May 1^st to further incentivize home buyers in the state to stay active when the federal tax credit ends. We look forward to seeing how it works!

Like so many things, the housing market is all about how you look at the situation. A city’s recent downfall could be for the better, as two recent rankings found. Memphis, for instance, ranks eighth in underwater housing markets, but also ranks first in a list of cities for real estate steals. Similarly, some may look at an “as-is” property and see only run-down, but others could see a beautiful fixer-upper. For those interested in investing in “as-is” properties, there are programs, including the Federal Housing Administration’s 203k loan program, which are designed to help you make the most of it.

Due to the recession, 10 percent of 25-to-34-year-olds have moved back home with their parents. In a few years, this group has the potential to make a big splash in the real estate market as they look to move out and buy their own homes. When you are ready to make the move, we are here for you! But let’s hope you get out there soon and take advantage of the market, as new numbers out this week suggest that by mid-2012 the market will once again become a sellers’ market. Do you think it will be sooner?

One sight that spring has sprung: homeowners are starting to invest in their yards by planting gardens and installing decorative elements, getting ready for outdoor entertaining. Another group making the most of the times are 55+ communities, many of which recently relaxed age constrictions and opened the floodgates to “young blood” (that is, 45 and older). Well, party on!

On to other news, Facebook is playing a growing role in how people get news, according to a Web measurement firm. I say, there is no reason why we in the real estate industry can’t share in this dissemination of news. Start sharing interesting local and real estate articles on your pages. And, while we are talking about communication, these days more people are texting rather than calling on mobile phones. We need to make sure we’re communicating how our clients communicate and, now, that means texting. What communication tools are you finding most important?

In marketing news this week, once again there is evidence that the right strategy targeted at the right audience is the best marketing plan. Whether it’s a marketing campaign like Skittles’ high-tech and high-impact social media campaign or as simple as a man in a chicken suit clucking around at a St. Patty’s Day parade, the first step is knowing your audience. The same philosophy goes for email versus social media marketing. Turns out both are effective and complementary.

If you’re planning your trip to NAR Midyear and haven’t yet booked your hotel, Google is testing a new feature within Google Maps that displays specific hotel prices. What an easy way to shop around! Or, if you recently had an unpleasant hotel stay, the hotel industry is now reportedly listening and reading customer reviews and complaints. We can learn from this strategy too. As I’ve said before, listening to feedback – bad or good – from clients is paramount to success.

In perhaps surprising news, it was reported this week that Honolulu and Green Bay, Wisc., are the leading cities for green appliance households. Way to go! Please share your secrets for widespread adoption!

And finally, starting this week you can now gift iPhone applications. I know what is on my birthday wish list…

• Training Programs
• Self Study/Office Based Training
• Online Training
• Management Training
• Networking Opportunities
• Recognition
• Marketing
• Core Products/Services
• Technology Resources
• Lead Generation
• Relocation and Referral Networks
• Public Relations
• Company Image
• Commercial Services
• Advertising
• Other Company – Specific Support Structures

There are two skills needed in order to leverage the power of your value proposition:

1. The ability to identify an effective value proposition, and
2. The ability to express an effective value proposition

Identifying the Value proposition require the 4 following concepts to be employed:

1. Differentiate your offer from competitors
2. You may match a competitor on every dimension of value, except in one key area
3. In at least one element of value you need to excel above your competitors
4. In this way you become the best choice for your optimum “customer”

Expressing the value proposition effectively can be achieved in four simple steps. The answer to step #4 is your Value Proposition:

1. Ask yourself: “Why should my ideal prospect (the group you intend to serve) use our services instead of a competitor?”
2. Compare your answer with the claims of your main competitors
3. Refine your value proposition and articulate it in a single, instantly credible, sentence
4. If you had just 10 words with which to describe why people should buy from your company instead of someone else, what would you communicate?

What about you? Do you process information in pictures, words, or feelings? Although we all use a combination of learning styles to process information, we lean toward one as our primary source. Take a look at the characteristics of the three learning styles below.  Which most depicts your learning style?

Were you surprised at the results?  I sure was the first time I took this assessment. For years I thought I was a visual person and learned I lean much more heavily toward the kinesthetic style.

What does this have to do with real estate? A lot … because we process information in a particular way, it also becomes our main method of communicating which can be detrimental unless we always communicate with people who process information in the same manner. Think about the times you knew you were getting through to one seller at a listing appointment and watching blank stares from the other. That could easily have been because two of you communicated in the same manner and the third person did not. In some cases, it could cost you the listing. Other situations might include:

• Sales meetings
• Interviews
• Buyer appointments
• Negotiating

We can’t go around asking people their learning style or to take an assessment before we begin working with them. There is a more simple solution, and that is to utilize all three methods in your communication whether it’s a one-on-one interview or a group presentation.

We know images and graphs appeal to visual communicators. Incorporate these methods to be sure to appeal to the other 40% of people:

• Ask for volunteers to help introduce a new concept or idea at a sales meeting (Kinesthetic).
• Let prospects flip through your presentation prior to your meeting (Kinesthetic).
• Tell a story about a personal experience to demonstrate a point (Auditory).

When asking questions, ask three ways:

• Do you want to see the living room again? (Visual)
• How do you feel about this home? (Kinesthetic)
• What else can I tell you about the company? (Auditory)

When you adapt a multi-communication strategy you’re sure to appeal to everyone regardless of their learning style.

We have all heard or read the statistics from various reliable sources sharing the value of one-stop-shopping (93%+ of future home buyers would prefer and select sales associates who offer one-stop-shopping over those that do not and that buyers who are provided these services are more likely to be satisfied than other customers.)  For me, what I find intriguing is that various surveys still say that nearly 70% of consumers are still only somewhat familiar with the concept of getting everything they need to buy and sell a home from their realtor.

One-stop-shopping is not new.  One-stop-shopping has a lot of benefits for all parties.  One-stop -shopping is available for nearly everyone nearly everywhere.  So, why haven’t the numbers and customers comments improved?

My thought:…….Because one-stop -shopping is hard……sometimes very hard!

Ask anyone who has implemented a true one-stop-shopping strategy and you’ll find folks who realize that proper implementation takes a lot of time, effort and energy- three things that aren’t easy to come by these days.

So, while we at BH&G RE can’t change the effort required, what we can do is help with proven best practices to make the time and effort spent more immediately effective for all our franchisees.

The first step of how we can help is by taking a more active role in assimilating our personal experiences and successes with those lessons learned from relevant industry practioners who are committed to the virtues of one-stop-shopping for all parties (customers, sales associates and broker owners.)   We are therefore attending this year’s Real Estate Services Providers Council (RESPRO) annual conference as a new member of RESPRO.

The Real Estate Services Providers Council, Inc. (RESPRO^®) is a national non-profit trade association that unites providers from across the home buying and financing industry towards one common goal: A business and regulatory environment that better enables all of our members to efficiently offer affiliated services through subsidiaries, joint ventures, and strategic partnerships (www.respro.org).

RESPRO’s members include Real estate broker-owners, Real estate franchisors, Mortgage lenders/brokers, Title insurers/agents, Home builders, Home warranty companies and other settlement service providers throughout North America.

In the weeks and months to come, we will be providing the information gathered at this year’s event to our franchisees so that we all can continue providing all of the products and services customers want in the manner that they want them.

Stay tuned to this blog space and other communications.  In the mean time, if there is anything you would like for us to learn or validate while at the RESPRO conference this March, please write me.  Thank you.

By the way, below are some more interesting stats for one-stop-shopping from a Harris Interactive Survey done slightly over a year ago:

The biggest perceived advantages of using one-stop shopping, according to consumers, are:

• Saving money because of discounted prices (77%)
• Increased efficiency and manageability (73%)
• Convenience (73%)
• Things not falling through the cracks (73%)

Protection of Personal Identifiable Information – Paraphrased from the US Department of Labor web site http://www.dol.gov/dol/ppii.htm, Personal Identifiable Information (PII) is defined as:

“Any representation of information that permits the identity of an individual to whom the information applies to be reasonably inferred by either direct or indirect means. Further, PII is defined as information: (i) that directly identifies an individual (e.g., name, address, social security number or other identifying number or code, telephone number, email address, etc.) or (ii) by which an agency intends to identify specific individuals in conjunction with other data elements, i.e., indirect identification…Additionally, information permitting the physical or online contacting of a specific individual is the same as personally identifiable information. This information can be maintained in either paper, electronic or other media.

The loss of PII can result in substantial harm to individuals, including identity theft or other fraudulent use of the information. Because employees and contractors may have access to personal identifiable information concerning individuals and other sensitive data, we have a special responsibility to protect that information from loss and misuse.”

According to the ‘Swanepoel TRENDS Report’, the following eleven considerations are specifically key in the protection of data in a real estate business environment.

1. Location of any paper information
2. Mail and special delivery procedures
3. Mortgage and pre-qualification information
4. Access to office and home computers including staff and encryption
5. Paperless transactions and encryption
6. Archived data on backup tapes
7. Natural disaster and terrorist attacks
8. Employee access
9. Vendor access and sharing of information
10. Virus protection and unauthorized use
11. Notification systems

The Swanepoel Report goes on to cite several points to consider when reassessing risk. If you feel that your company needs to revisit the area of risk mitigation, the points that follow are recommended by the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (acfe.org).

1. Only hold the personal data that you need
2. Keep all personal data secure
3. Don’t over promise, but adhere to the customer security program you commit to
4. Make data security a priority with your employees
5. Require vendors to sign nondisclosure agreements
6. Test your plan periodically
7. Plan for the worst-case scenario!

There is no question that identity theft has become rampant in our society. As real estate professionals, we must recognize the enormous body of sensitive consumer information held within our data collection systems. Since protecting personal information is of great concern to consumers and with issues of proper business ethics at play, it is clear that every professional real estate organization must have a strong risk mitigation plan in effect.