Any market that changes and offers new challenges separates the men from the boys so to speak and this is when one can see the real difference in skill.
It is easy to make money hand over fist as many did in 2005 and this does not mean a Realtor can survive when the market changes. The real difference comes when one has to work for every potential buyer that is qualified to purchase real estate now.
I see some rookie and many experienced Realtors doing the same thing. Most are still waiting for the phone to ring and are asking the office to give them more "floor time" in an attempt to land the next qualified buyer. Many are also still spending their last dime on news paper and other types of print advertising. Many of these agents have no website or have a site that is mediocre or poor at best. They are just hoping and praying the market will change without doing anything different.
On the other end of the coin there are not even a handful of agents that have realized the power of "Networking" and are involved in many of their cities organizations like Optimist, Rotary, Toastmasters, etc. Some of these Realtors have also spent some serious money and created powerful websites that not only rank high on the search engines but are constantly adding new and interesting information. These agents are more likely to land any local referral and land anyone searching for real estate in their hometown and surrounding areas.
What many don't realize is that the young buyers that have entered the market over the past 7+ years are very computer savvy and the last thing they are going to do is look at a newspaper or real estate magazine to look for real estate. I have predicted the death of real estate and magazine advertising for some time now and I really believe it is a matter of time before the funeral services are conducted.
The buyers of the future will have smaller and more powerful computers that will do things that would amaze us today. Every high school and college student does EVERYTHING with a computer and relies on it like we all rely on the air we breathe.
Many of these young guns will be professionals entering the business world and will be involved in the community in one way or another.
Being involved and visible in the community and having a power site or sites that rank high on the search engines and are constantly changing is the ticket for more sales not only in this real estate market but in markets to come.
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George,
Nice to hear from you again. I have been forcasting the demise of several things for several years. One major one is the Demise of Real Estate Agents not willing to embrace technology.
Certainly they can continue to hang on, but eventually technologies advancements will the only medium where one can do business.
George,
All good points.
I find the difficult thing is to show my level of tech savvy by making good decisions.
See, I'm thinking my BetaMax might be a mistake....
Not to mention the Commodore 64.
;)
Good to see you pop up to the top of the Subscribed Blogs list...
Kelly - Thank you my friend and I hope you are doing well.
Mike - Thank you so much. Boy, the Commodore 64 brings back some memories!
George - I work with an agent that CAPS LOCKS all his listing info. He thinks it is easier to read. I have tried to explain that the majority of home buyers in the area are under 35 and will perceive this as YELLING. He politely dismissed my concerns and continues to market his listings the same way - so sad. You just gotta change with the times and be willing to learn new technology as it emerges.
Glad to see you back!
Maureen - Thank you my dear, dear friend. I really appreciate you and so glad to hear from you.
Steve - Thank you and I hope all is well.
Karen - Very true and thanks
Lisa - So very true. Unfortunately many die hard print supporters are hard to convince.
Hi George!
I just read Maureens comment. Wow. How powerful that minor detail is to the sector that looks at all caps as screaming. That deserves another "wow".
Hi George,
You are so right. Instead of resisting, people just need to embrace what is and forget about what use to be or what they want it to be. Just about every time we make a change it is a little frustrating but sooner or later we can't imagine doing things the "old" way.
Here's to continued change and the will to embrace it.
Cheers,
Kathleen
George,
You are very insightful and inspiring. Reading your posts keeps me on track!
Tina - Thank you so much and have a wonderful weekend!