Communications

It’s always amazing to me to read quotes, like the one below, from ancient geniuses like Aristotle and to realize how many ideas remain true throughout all of time. Over 2,000 years ago, Aristotle already understood that systems inherently help groups of people to reach their goals more quickly, more easily and with less stress. He wrote:

“Systems are inherently more efficient than non systems” – Aristotle

As a real estate leader, think about all of the systems that you employ on a daily basis.

a.    Recruiting
b.    Interviewing
c.    Retention
d.    Marketing
e.    Finance
f.     Online services
g.    Lead generation
h.    Referrals
i.     Legal
j.     Advertising
k.    Communications
l.     Public relations
m.   Seller services
n.    Buyer services
o.    Coaching

This list goes on forever, so complete it for yourself as it relates to your specific situation.

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Posted by Nicolai Kolding

In trying to decide how to respond to the Merrill Lynch, Lehman Brothers, and AIG debacles, I’ve concluded that the best answer is to remind all of us to focus locally, where real estate really matters.  This isn’t to say that the news isn’t important but (a) this shall pass, and (b) I believe the men and women who are on the front lines each and every day are better served focusing on the forces that they have some control over.

The basic question that everyone is asking is, “Where is the market headed?”  Any broker or agent who tries to answer that one had better know his or her market inside and out.  And if you believe that real estate is cyclical, then understanding what phase of the cycle you’re in is critical.

There are a number of different takes on this, but here is one version of the phases of a typical real estate cycle:

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Posted by Kevin Doell

This morning I was listening to the August 18^th “For Immediate Release” podcast and heard about an interesting UMASS Dartmouth study on the uptake of social media. I thought it was pretty timely considering Sherry’s recent post on “Building a Brand Using the Power of Social Media.”

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When a blog post about sending handwritten notes gets 26 comments, it tells me that the blogger has hit a nerve. Rudy’s post last week did just that. When I read it, an image came to mind of the letter being passed around the open office space at Trulia with people marveling at what a stamp actually looks like, and commenting on the penmanship of the writer. One person posted a comment on the blog saying he hadn’t sent a letter in over 10 years! Another commented on how difficult it is to get people’s actual mailing addresses. It got me thinking about the power of personalization in a transparent yet impersonal world.

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Posted by Kevin Doell

I found a great web site called “TechPresident.com” where I read that “the Internet is the dial tone of the 21st Century.” (not sure who gets credit for that gem of a quote: either Andrew Rasiej and Micah L. Sifry, or David Weinberger. Read platform.) This site outlines a platform of all the good things that can arise if the U.S. develops a top tier Internet infrastructure.The site’s outstanding little hook is to provide a dazzling array of social media tracking charts and graphs on the narrowing field of presidential candidates. For example:

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