Yesterday I had the opportunity of being a guest on #RTB on the Radio. Many of you may be familiar with this crew, but if you’re not…you’re really missing out! Really! So jump in and join the conversation. Michael McClure, Todd Waller, and Maya Paveza are hitting the #RTB nail on the head with each and every guest on their show, as well as just by being their uber-professional selves out there in the RE.net. Lead by example folks, woohoo!

I told them this already, but I’ll put it in writing again…I could have spent all day chatting about life, liberty and the pursuit of professionalism. But we all have day jobs (some of us more than one) so we had to keep it to an hour. Anyway, as our conversation unfolded the topic of the noise and particularly signal to noise ratio was raised (thank you Marc Davison). Anyway, we had so much to talk about yesterday, that we didn’t have much time to dive into this issue. And lately…it’s all I can think about…so I thought I’d ring out a few of my own thoughts here.

The REAL Issue as I See It

Real estate professionals are being mis-advised. Broadcasting what you THINK may be relevant information again and again, without pre-screening the source and considering the context is a waste of your time. Sure you might get “a hit” or heck, even a lead. But it won’t work consistently and it won’t be successful over the long haul.

So, while some “experts” may be leading you down their automated paths or filling you up with hope of launching a comprehensive social media marketing plan in 5, 10 or 12 days….my advice is “think for yourself”. There are no quick fixes with social media, it takes work and it takes drive….just like with any successful marketing or business plan. Most importantly, it begins with content. The tools and strategies for sharing good content with your sphere can be learned. But, creating and sharing good content takes skill.

So, what’s next?

Identify, Recognize, & Organize

Identify your role in obtaining good, relevant content. Are you a content creator a content curator? Or perhaps you’re both.

A content creator is someone who identifies the “needs” within their audience and seeks to help by creating original and highly relevant content. This content is most often in the form of articles, videos, or a mixture of media shared usually via your own blog…as well as on social outposts.

A content curator is someone who sifts through the Web to find and deliver the most relevant content for their intended audience. Sort of a Hunter-Gatherer 2.0! I know many of you might be saying, “Yeah, yeah…I’ve been doing this for awhile!” And it’s true, we have! We share links to helpful media in our tweets, status updates and even within our blog posts.  But a thoughtful content curator is more than just a broadcaster of good info.  It’s someone who understands their brand and their audience well enough to identify the relevancy of the content, as well as the best context for sharing.

Recognize the sources that deliver consistently rockin’ content. You probably have your favorite news and resource sites that you visit on a regular basis. If not, you need to recognize both local and national sites that can assist your content delivery efforts.  And if you ROCK a niche, be sure to recognize those sites as well. If you’re not sure where to go to find sites based on relevancy…start at Regator and Alltop and search by category or keywords.

Organize your sources in a dashboard or reader format for easy access. Once you’ve recognized the sites that provide highly relevant content, organize them into a personalized news dashboard. Now I’m lucky because I have a “Reggie”…and “Reggies” are hard to come by. But my Reggie rocks at splicing and dicing feeds which can be displayed in my own personal resource dashboard. If you don’t have a Reggie, other DIY favorites for content organization include: Alltop, Regator, and Google Reader.

Your Challenge

Balance & Frequency

Balance the type of content you share. The content you share represents you, and your brand. So be sure to really check out what you share with your network. If you share an article, read it first. If you share a video, watch it first. Don’t let fancy titles rule your sharing. And don’t let poor tips and products be a reflection on your brand.  Your goal should be to find and share content that REALLY helps your audience…or is REALLY interesting.

Don’t ask me to give you a personal to professional ratio…but I will tell you this much…your consumers don’t gain anything from a constant stream of commentless Foursquare checkins…and the same could be said about listing tweets that are not framed in a social context.  If it doesn’t add value or create conversation….don’t share it! Local market trends and charts, interesting events, homeowner tips, niche resources….those add value! And yes, I know that my son changing his spelling test grade doesn’t add value, but it surely creates conversation.

Moderate your frequency level and improve your quality of life. For those of us that love our spouse, and enjoy spending time with our kids, family, and friends…..this is for you! I know I’m not the only one who feels that their attention has been diverted far too many times by the compelling feeling to tweet, post, snap, and share on a regular basis. The feeling is important…you need to be motivated to deliver consistency with social media. That being said, I’m far more concerned with delivering better quality content than quantity. And so should you if your strategy is to become your network’s trusted advisor.

And in order to do that, you need to listen, share, and respond. I see a lot of sharing out there….but far less listening and responding. Social media is about creating opportunities to engage with others.  So rather than auto-posting  20 articles a day….try scheduling 3-5 REALLY GOOD shares…and then focus on listening and responding, as well as interacting with others’ shared content.

Now I have much more to say on this topic…but I gotta run…I’m off to get a mani-pedi with my munchkin! But if you have any thoughts or ideas about content creation and curation, I’d love to hear them!

Apparently, Facebook users are also commitment phobes and “becoming a fan” equates to saying “I DO” in front of your entire online network! I can see their point, but then again, I usually jump in with both feet blindfolded to swim around and explore before coming up for air.

Anyway, at first glance you may think you can no longer send updates to fans….I mean friends….or “people”. But you can, you just have to edit your page. However, I’m guessing there are more changes to come since the term “fans” still remains in some areas on the editing dashboard. But I don’t think it will be long before Facebook eradicates that term completely!

Another interesting change associated with this update is that the interests you share on your Facebook Profile will be linked to similar interest based Pages. So for example, if you list “No Doubt” as one of your favorite bands in the music section of your profile, Facebook will suggest you join the No Doubt Facebook Page. Facebook explains their new focus in detail on it’s own blog here.

One not so noticeable feature you may have missed today is the ability to create a Facebook Ad for a particular status update. Friend and RE rockstar, Dustin Luther, explains the “Promote a Post” feature on his blog!

Now if you’ve been playing around inside Facebook and have a few thoughts, questions or comments….I hope you’ll share them with me here! And be sure to tell me, “How do you LIKE Facebook’s latest update?”

ENTER: Smarter Agent, a real estate marketing company that has solved the fragmentation of mobile with a listing search application that is now available on virtually every cell phone.

Smarter Agent works with all major wireless carriers and mobile devices. It uses GPS to locate a user’s location and find real estate listings in their area. Search results include: price, square footage, estimated mortgage, taxes, features, interactive map, beds/baths, pictures. Consumers can also search by address, community name, city or zip code.

The Smarter Agent application can be downloaded from SmarterAgent.com, a consumer’s cell phone via the carrier’s application store, or from application stores maintained by iPhone, Android (July 2009), and BlackBerry.

Once downloaded, the following options are available from the Main Menu:

(1)    Quick Search GPS: Receive a list of properties that are closest to your location.

(2)    Advanced / Refine Search: Receive a list of properties that are closest to your location and fit your specific search criteria.

(3)    Map Me & Homes/ Apartments: See your location and the ten properties that are closest to you on an interactive map.

(4)    Address Search: Enter your desired location and receive a list of properties that are closest to that location.

(5)    Saved Favorites: Search favorite locations you have saved.

(6)    Find A Realtor: Speak to a qualified real estate agent about your specified area.

(7)    Get a Mortgage: Speak to a qualified mortgage specialist to see what you can afford.

(8)    Hot Picks: Receive a list of featured properties in the neighborhood.

(9)    Coupons: See offers from local retailers.

The Smarter Agent app can also be branded for an agent or broker, displaying their logo and picture. The app can be distributed directly from the agent/broker blog as well.  And when a client using the branded app is interested in a listing, he/she can simply select the “call to see” button and the agent/broker is notified (regardless of who listed the property). Thousands of real estate agents across the country are already using Smarter Agent, including major brands: Prudential, Keller Williams, Century 21, Coldwell Banker, ERA, Better Homes & Gardens Real Estate and Realty Executives. Smarter Agent is also an Inman Innovator Finalist in the Most Innovative Web Technology category.

Pricing for customizing your own Smarter Agent application varies depending upon your device and your contract. Generally, there is a one time setup fee of $250, and a monthly fee of $39.95-$49.95. However, MTO is working with Smarter Agent to bring you special pricing that will reduce the setup fee to $50 as well as the monthly fee, saving you 40%. To learn more, contact Denise Boyer (Smarter Agent Sales) at 925.584.4249 and mention this article. If you call or email Smarter Agent from their Website, be sure to mention MTO and the promo code: BOYER.

After previewing the site, I found many great ideas of how real estate agents have used ZingDing to promote their listings and rentals. Many have elected to include additional design elements like holiday themes-sure to get your sphere excited by your creativeness!

What does it take to build a ZingDing eCard?

Start by gathering all necessary photos and logos, then choose your desired music from the ZingDing library, add any desired effects (i.e. burning fireplace, snowfall, etc.), then input your properties details!

For distribution, the ZingDing eCards can be emailed out or embedded into a website/blog or even sites like Craigslist or Realtor.com.  If you choose email, ZingDing has a few ways to get your email list into their system.  To start you can upload lists from Outlook, or add one by one. Although you might also try sending yourself the eCard, and then forwarding it out to your contacts from your email client!

So what’s this going to cost me?

The ZingDing pricing is very attractive; a single eCard is only $9.95. Although if you expect to be sending these eCards throughout out the year, I would recommend subscribing to the annual package for $49.95. That includes unlimited use of all ZingDing eCards.

If you still have questions about ZingDing, try reviewing their forum.

• Los Angeles on March 6th
• San Diego on March 19th
• Orange County on March 31st

The type of material they plan to cover in the full-day course includes (1) quality website features and design, (2) engaging in existing social networks, (3) building an online community with blogs and (4) tracking and conversion to maximize return-on-investment.

The seminar costs $149 for a full-day course. This includes a light breakfast , full lunch, and 8 solid hours of valuable real estate marketing advice! Click here to register and check it out for yourself!

Actually, my goal was to uncover real obstacles facing agents in this market and the strategies being used to get a leg up! A special thanks to Dan Green, Brian Wilson, Sara Bonert, Diane Cohn, Jay Thompson, Christian Sterner and Reggie. They not only provided me with great real estate insight and perspective, but also professional wisdom from the heart! Thanks for sharing your expert knowledge and for getting “deep inside real estate” with me!

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Tune in next time, as I sit down and get “deep inside real estate” with Max the HomeGain Monkey for an in-depth interview on boosting buyer traffic to your Website.

Reggie’s Picks

Garmin Nuvi 660
The Garmin Nuvi 660 is the perfect portable GPS Technology with a sleek 4.3 inch display. This state-of-the-art navigation system provides 2D or 3D maps and turn-by-turn voice directions. It also offers a complete “points of interest” database for local restaurants, gas, ATM’s and more. Also stop getting surprised by accidents and road conditions with an optional traffic package from XM NavTraffic® or MSN® Direct. Even use the Nuvi 600 to play MP3’s or display JPG’s of that next listing you’re visiting on buyers tour. (also checkout the Nuvi 770) [see specs]

Wireless Broadband: USB727 or U727 Modem
Two pieces of technology every mobile real estate agent should have is wireless broadband internet and a sleek flash drive. So why not combine them. The Verizon Wireless USB727 and Sprint U727 both do exactly that. Now get a 4BG of microSD™ memory, combined with a next generation mobile broadband on the EV-DO Rev. A network. Also note, this little device comes with out-of-box support for Windows XP, Vista, Mac, and Linux.

MII Flashcam
Open houses and other real estate activities often mean you may be alone for periods of time. Your safety is of top importance! Carry the MII Flashlight, and video/audio recorder. The MII Flashcam comes with one gigabyte of RAM capable of storing 1 hour of quality audio and video. The MII also supports night vision technology, allowing you to convert evening into daytime on the 1.5” TFT-LCD color Display. The MII is water resistant and provides 3 ½ hours of continuous operation. [Sold Here].

Photoshop Elements 6.0
Do you have the right software for organizing and editing your real estate photos? Photoshop Elements provides many powerful tools in an easy to use software package. Tag your photos with keywords, use touch-up tools to enhance your photos color and contrast. Easily resize, crop and more. Even find the best photos for the MLS and print marketing by using the side-by-side viewing feature. [see features]

NikNik’s Picks

Acme Made Laptop Cases

Blue Tooth Headset
I can’t leave home and be expected to multi-task to my greatest potential without my Bluetooth headset. Driving and other real estate tasks become “hands-free” via wireless connection to your headset. I’m a fan of the Jabra Bluetooth Headsets, the BT2020 in particular. The BT2020 has the latest Bluetooth 2.0 technology. [see specs]

Microsoft Streets & Trips 2008
Load it onto your laptop, attach the small GPS locator and you’re good to go. Get to know a new market area, create informative brochures based on your neighborhood analysis, or create mashups of your sold properties—perfect for prelisting presentations. [take a tour]

Mobile Office
This item is so popular that it’s often sold out. Keeping your car clean when it’s used as your daily office is easier said than done. But with the Lewis N. Clark Travel Business Center, you can keep your notepads, pens, files, digital camera, flyers, snacks, etc. secure and organized. And when showing property, just fold, zip and place in your trunk.

iHome Portable Speaker for Nano
The Bose Sounddock provides great sound with minimal setup. My good friend (Sarah) even brings it on our business trips. But at $300, it’s an item you won’t want to lose or leave at an open house. Another great option for real estate agents is the iHome Portable Speaker for your Nano. At only $30, you can set the mood with quiet background tunes at your next broker’s tour/open house for a bargain!

Chad’s Picks

Dell XPS M1330
The technology driven real estate agent needs a laptop that includes the latest multimedia functionality while remaining portable. The Dell XPS M1330 is just that. Only 0.87” thick, the XPS M1330 is a 13.3” widescreen laptop that can be configured with a hi-def LED screen, a 320 GB hard drive for ample storage space or a 64GB solid state drive for performance and reliability, up to 4GB of RAM and a slot-load DVD burner. There is also a choice between AT&T, Sprint, and Verizon for mobile broadband. [see specs]

Dell XPS 420
Thought about incorporating video and audio files into your real estate marketing plan? You’ll need a computer with tons and storage and serious power to handle file editing and conversion. The Dell XPS 420 is ready to incorporate the 45nm next generation processors. A fully configured XPS 420 includes an integrated LCD to access songs, pictures, video and system settings without using the keyboard, Adobe Elements Studio, video and audio inputs on the front panel, a remarkable 2TB of storage, a Blu-Ray drive, an eSATA connector, 10 USB ports, and a deck-top device storage area with cable routing. [see specs]

HP Officejet Pro L7680 Color All-in-One
Upgrade the printing, copying and faxing capabilities of the real estate agent in your life this holiday with HP Officejet Pro L7680 Color All-in-One. This device is fast, touting laser printer speeds from an inkjet printer. The built-in Ethernet connection allows for easy sharing of this all-in-one with multiple computers. The unusual feature of standard duplex printing makes double sided printing a breeze. [see specs]

Lexar ExpressCardTM SSD
The more multimedia based real estate technology becomes, the more storage space we need. To increase the storage capacity of your laptop computer without messing with a hard drive upgrade, look to a solid state express card drive. The Lexar Expresscard SSD can quickly add up to 16GB of extra storage to your laptop. Just slide the card into the express card slot on your machine and it is ready to use. [see specs]

Seagate FreeAgent Pro
Need to back up your real estate business? The Seagate FreeAgent Pro 750GB drive is a cutting-edge backup and storage device. The forward thinking design of the FreeAgent includes the latest and fastest external connection, eSATA, for blazing transfer speeds. For those without eSATA, a USB 2.0 and 2 Firewire ports are also available. The included software makes for simple system backups, “goof-up” safe version storage and automatic data duplication and transfers to email, an iPod or Shutterfly. [see specs]

Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ3
A good wide-angle lens will improve real estate listing photos by including more of a room in a single shot. Without investing in a digital SLR, choices for cameras with strong wide-angle functionality are limited. The Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ3 includes a 28mm equivalent wide-angle lens that extends to a 10X optical zoom. Optical image stabilizer aids a shaky hand, a high sensitivity mode makes shooting fast moving objects easier and the new SDHC memory cards are compatible, providing 8GB of storage on a single card. [see specs]

With Domain Plus, you can search for and then purchase the domain name for your vFlyer listing ad or gallery. For example, a listing at 1731 Chanson Place in GA, would have the domain: http://www.1731chansonplace.com/. (Thanks Brad) Now you can spotlight your listings on the Web by giving them their own URL. Show your clients just how dedicated you are to featuring their listing in a variety of mediums…single property sites being one of them. This is a great feature to highlight in your prelisting presentation as well.

vFlyer can save you more time than ever now by giving you an additional marketing option with minimal set up time. Even the best multi-taskers will appreciate the ability to create listing ads, distribute them to leading online marketplaces, and purchase custom domains all in one visit to vFlyer.

vFlyer is offering competitive pricing for their single property sites. You do need to sign up for an annual subscription to take advantage of Domain Plus. For example, a vFlyer starter subscription has an annual fee of $99.50 a year, monthly fee of $9.95 and each domain name can be purchased for $9.95 each. (Total cost $149.25) Also, the more you purchase the more you get. vFlyer is currently promoting their “FREE Domain Name Offer” until August 31st. Anyone who signs up or upgrades to an annual subscription will get one or more free domain names, as well as 2 months free service.

BTW-vFlyer is not the only one is town offering these bundled services. RealBird provides a similar tool with their Listing Publisher. Both are great offerings depending on your specific Website wants.

Thanks to the Blog Swap RSS Pieces put together, Stephen Jagger of Ubertor is our guest today. Ubertor serves the real estate industry with agent and broker software. I would like to thank Stephen! Here is his post:

Stephen Jagger, Ubertor – Many of real estate website providers supply prewritten canned content on the web sites they sell to real estate agents. This canned content comes in many forms:

• Free Reports
• Top Tips
• Buying Tips
• Selling Tips
• plus much more…

Google says “we try hard to index and show pages with distinct information“.

What does that mean?

Canned content, generic content and content provided to you is not helping you… but actually hurting you.

Write your own Free Reports, Top 10 Tips, Sellers Bonus Material, etc… be courageous, be opinionated, take a risk, tell people what you think and be UNIQUE.

Google, Yahoo and MSN are looking for unique, quality content that they can provide to their users. Someone searching for Vancouver Real Estate is looking to find the best website about that topic. The search engines are looking to find that website (actually the top 10 under than term). To get your website to come up under the keyword term you are trying to target start by reviewing these points:

1. Start Blogging
2. Google likes sites of at least 100 pages and pages of 300-500 words/page
3. Get rid of your canned content and write your own
4. Write about the term you want to be found under
5. Write about the term you want to be found under again
6. Comment on other blogs that compliment your industry
7. Use WordTracker.com or a service like it to view actual searchers searching for that term
8. Engage your visitors, request comments, feedback, questions
9. Keep your solds within your website – never delete or hide them
10. Blog, Blog, Blog and then do it again

Blogging has proven to be the most effective way to gain exposure within the search engines.

The real key: Write for your readers – then review for the search engines! – not the other way around. Google’s mantra is “Be Good Not Evil” Bloggers’ mantra is “Write for your Reader, Good will follow”

Take a look at what the other real estate bloggers had to say that participated?

Transparent Real Estate’s Pat Kitano vs. Zillow’s Drew Meyers

RSS Pieces’ Mary McKnight vs. Future of Real Estate Marketing’s Joel Burslem

St Paul Real Estate Blog’s Teresa Boardman vs. Phoenix Real Estate Guy’s Jay Thompson

3 Ocean Real Estate’s Kevin Boer vs. SLC Real Estate’s Nigel Swaby

Issaquah Undressed’s Larry Cragun vs. Maury Properties’ Andrew Maury

Chicago Home Weblog’s Geno Petroche vs. NY Houses 4 Sales’ Christine Forgione

Jonathan Dalton’s Phoenix Arizona Real Estate Blog Jonathan Dalton vs. Bonnie Erickson’s Real Estate Snippets Bonnie Erickson

The boys of Sellsius vs. Real Estate Tomato’s Jim Cronin

ML Podcast’s Michael Price vs. FamousAgents.com’s Elise Wright

My Tech Opinion’s Reggie Nicolay vs. Ubertor’s Steve Jagger

Redfin’s Glenn Kelman vs Rain City’s Ardell DellaLoggia

CondoDomain’s Anthony Longo vs. miOaklandCounty’s Maureen Francis

The San Diego Home Blog’s Kris Berg vs. Urban Dig’s Noah Rosenblatt