FreeMobile411 – New Mobile Search Technology
By Reggie · April 6, 2008 · 5 Comments
If you don’t already have a free mobile option for directory search you may enjoy a new service from Free411 called FreeMobile411.com. This new WAP enabled technology is optimized for mobile browsers and lets you search business name, business type, & person’s name. Once you’ve located the desired result, users will see the corresponding address, phone number, map, directions and nearby places as available. You will see a few ads, but they do not seem to get in the way too much.
Other useful free directory searches include Google Mobile Maps, Goog-411, and Microsoft’s Tell-Me service. Google-411 and Microsoft are both call in systems. [via CNET]
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Tags: search business, search technology, mobile maps, mobile option, Free411, directory search
Have you been Blogged?
By NikNik · February 8, 2008 · 1 Comment
With over 100 million blogs on the Internet, how do you discern which ones make it to your Google Reader. Blogged.com is “better blog” directory and organizer. The authors and editors of Blogged scour the Internet and blog submissions to identify “better blogs” for different content areas and award each a score. Editor reviews are provided by professional editors who evaluate a blog based on the following criteria: Frequency of Updates, Relevance of Content, Site Design, and Writing Style. The closer you are to 10, the better the blog you have. Use keywords to search for blogs and see if your blog made the cut!
MyTechOpinion was contacted by Blogged recently because they had given us an excellent score of 9.7! When searching for “real estate” we are currently the top rated blog. For business, we rank in the top 6 just under Seth Godin and SEO of the Sea. And for technology, we are #7 right under the Google Blog!!!! Thanks Blogged….MyTechOpinion greatly appreciates your opinion!
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Tags: technology, Directory, MyTechOpinion, widget, widgets, Google
Sidebar "Bling" Cross Promotes Your Online Presence
By Reggie · December 10, 2007 · 11 Comments
These days real estate professionals are members of social sites, online communities, blogs and more. So how do we deliver a consistent brand and message over so many tools? Also how to we channel interested parties to our other communities? One way is to use a similar sidebar for each application.
Introducing the BLING Widget for Real Estate Agents
Since we have not seen the perfect sidebar bling application for you real estate agents, we developed one for you to use. You will notice in “Step 7″ I instruct you to use the full path to the icons. This is so that you can use this code on real estate networks like Activerain, Facebook and more without making further changes.
Here is an example of the buttons I have created for your use.
(Buttons from left to right: LinkedIn, Facebook, RSS, Activerain, Zolve, MyBlogLog, Google MyMaps, Friendster, Trulia Voices, Zillow and RealTown Real Estate Network.)
DOWNLOAD ZIP FILE OF BUTTONS HERE.
IMPORTANT: If you are adding this to your blog, please make a backup of your template before beginning so you can easily restore things if you need too.
Step 1:
Create a new folder on the root directory of your website or blog and title it “bling”
Step 2:
From the icons I’ve created, choose the specific icons you want to use on your sidebar widget and add them to your newly created folder titled “bling”. (Note: Choose either the .jpg files or the .png files. PNG files have a transparent background.)
Step 3:
Start by opening notepad or your HTML editor. Now you will be adding the code from each step to the blank notepad document. Please add each snippet of code to notepad in the order below. If you are advanced, the complete code is avaliable here.
Step 4
Copy the code below. Now paste into the notepad document we opened in Step 3. The code we just copied is for the header of our widget. The widget title is”Find Me Online” If you would like to use a different headline, replace those words with your own. You can also update the header and border color by replacing the hexadecimal (6 Digit) color with one from this chart.
Step 5
Copy the text below. Now paste this code after the code above. We will be editing it as follows:
Replace [Insert URL of Personal Photo] with absolute/full URL to photo. (i.e. http://www.mytechopinion.com/images/reggie.jpg) (Tip: Ideal width is 75 pixels or less)
Replace [Insert Name] with your name
Replace [Insert Company Name] with your company or blog name
Replace [Insert Your Blog or Website URL Here] with your actual URL
Step 6
Copy the code below. This is the DIV for the buttons. Please paste to our open notepade file after the previous code.
Ok, now you will start to add the buttons for your widget. 4 buttons will fit on each row. If you are using more than 4 buttons, you can add another DIV by preforming Step 6 again. This will create a 2nd row of icons.
Step 7
Earlier you added the buttons for your widget into a newly created folder. Now find the corresponding code from the options below. Then add each desired to your notepad or open editor. Look for “<!–Insert Buttons to the left of this block–>” and paste the button(s) code before it.
LinkedIn
Replace [Insert LinkedIn URL] with the link to your LinkedIn Profile.
Facebook
Replace [Insert Facebook URL] with the link to your Facebook Profile. Also replace [Full Path to Image] with your full URL to the image.
ActiveRain
Replace [Insert Activerain URL] with the link to your Activerain Profile or blog. Also replace [Full Path to Image] with your full URL to the image.
RSS
Replace [Insert RSS URL] with the link to your RSS feed URL. Also replace [Full Path to Image] with your full URL to the image.
Zolve
Replace [Insert Zolve URL] with the link to your Zolve profile or blog. Also replace [Full Path to Image] with your full URL to the image.
MyBlogLog
Replace [Insert ByBlogLog URL] with the link to your MyBlogLog Community. Also replace [Full Path to Image] with your full URL to the image.
Friendster
Replace [Insert Friendster URL] with the link to your Friendster URL. Also replace [Full Path to Image] with your full URL to the image.
MyMaps
Replace [Insert MyMaps URL] with the link to your custom Google MyMaps page. Also replace [Full Path to Image] with your full URL to the image.
Trulia Voices
Replace [Insert Trulia Voices URL] with the link to your Trulia Voices profile. Also replace [Full Path to Image] with your full URL to the image.
Zillow
Replace [Insert Zillow Profile URL] with a link to your profile on Zillow. Also replace [Full Path to Image] with your full URL to the image.
RealTown Real Estate Network
Replace [Insert RealTown Profile URL] with a link to your profile on RealTown Real Estate Network. Also replace [Full Path to Image] with your full URL to the image.
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Tags: trulia, real estate, real estate technology, colors, sidebar, widget
Ideas For Getting Readers For Your Real Estate Blog: Part 2
By NikNik · November 23, 2007 · 6 Comments
Besides writing thoughtful, innovative, resourceful and creative real estate blog posts that keep your visitors coming back for more, here are a few more ideas for gaining readership for your blog (view Part 1 of this Idea List) :
- Build your online networks: at ActiveRain, Facebook, MyBlogLog, LinkedIn and Zolve. Create and maintain a profile, add your weblog address, RSS feed, etc. Although these communities may have different features, all provide blog and blogger exposure by helping you reach out to your colleagues and client sphere—ultimately yielding a readership gain!
- Put a live link to your blog in your eStationery. Your blog address should be on all your real estate print marketing AND email marketing. So if you have eStationery or an email signature, be sure to make the most of it by including a live link to your blog. I favor custom eStationery headers like the one below. Suggestion: Don’t add more than 2 links as it may begin to trigger spam filters.
- Participate in blog writing contests: Step up your blog writing game and enter your recent posts in blog writing contests. The Carnival of Real Estate is a great place to start! You may not win but you’ll expose your crafty blog to readers who have not otherwise considered your ramblings a newsworthy source. Who knows if you raise your game enough, Lani Anglin may even award you the coveted Nacho Blogger Award! Note: Enter to win an Odysseus Medal or Black Pearl at your own risk. Apparently, my writing style is not up to par enough to be mentioned in the list of entries.
- Submit your weblog to online directories: Online directories take website/weblog links that are submitted by the author and categorize them. This strategy is easy because once you have submitted your site, there is little or no additional maintenance required. Usually directory submission is free, but a few do charge for their service or require a reciprocal link. Here are a few good ones to get you started: dmoz, Yahoo directory, Best of the Web.
- Talk about it! Whether I’m at the grocery store, a holiday party, presenting to clients, or stranded at the airport, my blog seems to work itself into the conversation every time. If you don’t already have a 3 minute elevator speech promoting your blog…work on one, and make sure you have business cards printed with your weblog address. Live it, Blog it, Promote it!
Got a helpful idea you’d like to share…tell me about.
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Tags: MyTechOpinion, suggestion, mybloglog, activerain, Directory, readership
Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle Your Real Estate Technology
By NikNik · October 15, 2007 · 5 Comments
I’m often asked about new real estate technology, but I’m rarely (if ever) asked what to do with the old technology left behind. And if you are technological enthusiast as I am, then you may be upgrading your computer and other electronic devices as often as the seasons change. So, what do you do with your old technology? My kids love adopting my old Blackberries, MP3 players and computers. But eventually even they outgrow these devices…and I’m left with quite a pile of “e-waste”.
What is e-waste?
E-waste is electronic waste that includes computers, mobile phones, entertainment electronics like TVs and VCRs, fax machines, copiers, and any other tech items that have been discarded by their original users.
How does e-waste affect our environment?
The United States generates more e-waste than any other nation, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. Electronic waste represents 2 percent of America’s trash in landfills, but it equals 70 percent of overall toxic waste. E-waste is of concern largely due to the toxicity and carcinogenicity of some of the substances if processed improperly. Toxic substances in electronic waste may include lead, mercury, and cadmium. Carcinogenic substances in electronic waste may include polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). These toxic chemicals can leach into the land over time impacting nearby communities and the environment. Incineration of e-waste releases heavy metals such as lead, cadmium and mercury into the air and ashes. Mercury released into the atmosphere can bioaccumulate in the food chain, particularly in fish - the major route of exposure for the general public. And sadly, the exportation of e-waste to poor countries is devastating to say the least. To learn more about e-waste exportation visit Greenpeace and watch this video.
So how can real estate professionals help?
- Reduce, Reuse, & Recycle
Many of these electronic products can be reused, refurbished, or recycled. You can reduce your generation of e-waste through smart procurement and good maintenance. Reuse still functioning electronics by donating or selling them to others that can use them. And recycle electronic items that cannot be repaired. You would be surprised how many local organizations will actually take your electronics for FREE if you just open your phonebook or do a little digging! In California, you can find a local organization that reuses or recycles electronics by searching the Electronic Product Management Directory (EPMD). - Support Green Technology
Some large companies like Fujitsu have developed technologies to eliminate toxic chemicals by developing lead-free products. Additionally, Sony and Waste Management have partnered recently to launch the “Sony Take Back Recycling Program” to help customers safely recycle all Sony electronics, and even non-Sony products for a market-rate fee. Visit the Sony Electronics Blog to learn more. - Support E-Waste Legislation
The United States Congress is considering a number of electronic waste bills including the National Computer Recycling Act introduced by Congressman Mike Thompson (D-CA). However, this bill has continually stalled. In the meantime, several states have passed their own laws regarding electronic waste management. California was the first state to enact such legislation, followed by Maryland, Maine, Washington and Minnesota. More recently, legislatures in Oregon and Texas passed their own laws. - Blog About It
If you have a blog you have a great opportunity to inform others. This post was inspired by Blog Action Day! But you don’t have to wait until Earth Day to write about environmental issues facing your community and real ways you can help and improve your local sustainability.
Online Resources:
Agency for Toxic Substances & Disease Registry
eWaste.com: Regional Computer Recycling & Recovery
Greener Computing
Make Me Sustainable
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Tags: technology, real estate, Directory, MyTechOpinion, real estate technology, bloggers
