Greetings from the "friendly skies"

If you follow me on twitter you know I am taking a few days away from the office to participate in the mandatory ritual of capitalist parenthood...taking the kid to Disney World. Perhaps I'll post some thoughts from there as they relate to our lives in the real estate business...perhaps not (after it is supposed to be vacation, right?)

What I couldn't resist doing today, however, is writing this post from 30,000 feet. Air travel has changed so much in the past 12-18 months - certainly in response to the changing technology needs of frequent travelers. It is amazing how different flights are now from the "buy your headsets for $1" days of just a few years ago.

So here I am in my seat, cell phone on, working on my blog. I can turn the cellular functionality off so that it doesn't interfere with the important flight functions (which of course seems odd since the flight attendants are using a cellular device to ping my credit card for the drinks). When I get on the ground I will publish this with one push of a button. I can answer all the email I avoided today, can review the spreadsheet Jamie sent about office production and also generate the press releases related to the Coldwell Banker buyer bonus that launches when I get back.

Have I mentioned somewhere in the last few sentences that my laptop is still securely stowed under the seat in front of me? Yep, doing all this from my phone.

Even better, some airlines are starting to offer wireless internet on their longer flights; it will only be a matter of time before it's on all of them. Imagine how productive I could be right now with internet access? (especially now that the red bull just came off the beverage cart?) Certainly ends the need for the lame in-flight movie.

So you might be saying "who cares". After all real estate agents aren't exactly the corporate types they used to develop George Clooney's Up in the Air caracter. The truth is that while we don't travel much, isn't it one of the oldest real estate rules that deals always happen (or explode) while you're away? Well, were my deal going south at the same time I was chances are good I could have it fixed before I hit the ground (especially if I used Skype or GoogleVoice to make calls without a cellular signal).

Also remember that many of our clients fly...a lot. Perhaps before you best client takes off for his/her next big trip you offer them something to read other than John Grisham.

OK, red bull in full effect now - back to those spreadsheets! Hope you have a great weekend!

(note: because I didn't have wirless access on this flight I used an application called AndroBlogger to write this offline. It is a free app for Android users, and I am sure a similar one exists for the iPhone)

Happy FourSquare Day!

Chances are good you don't know it, but Friday is "FourSquare Day" and I want to be the first to wish you a happy one. You can learn more about this event, which is being billed as "the first global social media holiday" by clicking this link.

Before I get too deep...know that Friday is the holiday because of the play on words. FourSquare = Four, Squared = 4/16 = April 16.

So are you confused yet? I think it is a pretty safe bet that most of you have not had any interaction with FourSquare, which is a new social media tool based on the idea of location-based connection. I have been using it for about six months, and I know there is one agent (maybe two) who are experimenting with it too. The idea is simple; when you are in a location you do a "check-in" on your handheld device that records your location and shares it with other FourSquare users. Additionally you can force your FourSquare updates to twitter, extending the network even further. If you believe the FourSquare hype, the tool allows people to see where you are, offer you tips & suggestions while you are there, and perhaps encourage "meetups" based on your location - the ideal social networking concept.

So should you FourSquare yet? Probably not. Keep maximizing the tools you have been working with first. Get twitter figured out first, start up and run your fan page with efficiency. More importantly, learn the elements of your handheld device so that when the time comes you can manage an application like FourSquare with ease.

Why is FourSquare important? Well, many reports have targeted the mobile social media (that being done with your handheld device) as next area of social media to have major impact. There are a number of ramifications for real estate but none of them have been fully worked out just yet. Every company out there, including our brand and the others you know, are trying to come up with the "cool thing" that is powered by mobile social media. I know someone will figure it out, and within two years I am pretty confident tools like FourSquare will have a major impact in our industry.

For now, just remember that you knew about the first ever "FourSquare Day". Use it as an opportunity to visit the FourSquare site, maybe as a chance to add the FourSquare app to your mobile device...perhaps even to get your "newbie" badge! If you do, be sure to friend me...as I'll be out tomorrow checking in around our towns.

It's supposed to hit 90 degrees today!

If you have been following along for a while now you may know about my infatuation with TV weather personality Cecily Tynan...but this is not a post about the weather or those who deliver it with aplomb.

This is a real estate blog. We are real estate professionals.

So how is it, that on a day when the thermometer is approaching 90 degrees we are showing this many houses on our web site with snow?

Yes, I grabbed all these from CBHearthside.com TODAY. Since CBHearthside.com is fed by the three MLS services we utilize, that means they are still in the MLS. Since the MLS also sends all our listing info to many other brokers, some of our syndication partners and to Realtor.com - you guessed it. Snow is falling everywhere.

Worst of all, as we head into this National Open House Weekend event, some of these photos have open house balloons right next to them...yikes!

I started this post with the idea that I would find one or two and post them. Then I found a few more, and a few more, and a few more. Believe it or not I could have kept going. There is one from every office in here except one. Congratulations to our Northampton office for not having any snow photos.

Think of the message this is sending to your sellers who are expecting to pay you a lot of money for your skill and marketing savvy. Think of the money you are spending on promotion driving people to your web site or Realtor.com to see these houses. Think of how embarrassed you would be right now if one of these photos were yours.

C'mon team...let's see if we can't do a little better.

Social Media to the Rescue?

Wow, took a few weeks off from the blog...blame it on the good weather. Sorry about that. But I had an interesting situation remind me that about the importance of sharing and of social media. Hopefully you'll indulge me in a little family news.

Day after Easter, wife decides to take my 3-y.o. on an adventure to the Limerick outlets (now to the Cville folks that may not be an adventure, but remember I live in Doylestown). Anyway, just before King of Prussia on the turnpike the car hits something rather large and blows a hole in the tire. Darn...trip in jeopardy.

The trouble is that my wife has never changed a tire, and when she called me on the telephone I decided that wasn't the time to teach her how. Not owning a AAA membership, I hop into my car to run to the rescue.

Here is where it gets interesting. Not wanting the two of them to have to sit on the highway for the half hour or so it is going to take me to get to K of P, I put a message on twitter and facebook asking anyone in the area to reach out to me as I needed a favor. On facebook I even took the unheard of step of publishing my cell phone number right in the status update.

Wouldn't you know that within five minutes I had one text and two phone calls all offering to lend a hand? People in their offices, people in their cars (not that I endorse such behavior). It was really cool to see how much social media has become a part of our daily lives.

Good news is that I got to K of P, got the tire fixed and everyone got to the outlets (well except me, I had to go back to work). The social media messages continued to flow for the remainder of the day - it was a pretty interesting experience.

Don't give up on social media just because someone doesn't contact you right away..they're out there, listening. When the time is right - either in your world or in theirs - they'll reach out to you.

You're an award winner...now what?

Congratulations...you achieved special recognition for sales achievement in 2009!

Now that the announcement is out and your agent website has been updated with your video from Jamie you may be wondering how you can leverage this tool to expand your business. After all, you earned the recognition so why not make it work for you?

Here are some ideas for maximizing your award:

1. Attach the video to your facebook page - I think Stefanie covered this one already; but I wanted to stress it because it is so important. I know ten seconds of a video with Jamie standing in front of a blue backdrop may not seem too exciting to you, your clients and friends will find it interesting (and will be thrilled to hear you being recognized for your accomplishments). Don't take my word for it...give it a shot!

2. Take the time to thank everyone, even those who aren't on facebook - Thankfully not all your clients/prospects are sharing their lives with you via some social media channel, so you may need to reach out to them where they live. Thankfully, the Emarketing center of Coldwell Banker Works allows you to send ecards to anyone for whom you have an email address AND put in the video from Jamie. Look at the example I put together in about three minutes online (which I then emailed to myself just to test). Imagine if you sent this to all your clients with a quick thank you to them for making you successful? Referral city...

3. Use the press release to your advantage (or better yet create your own)- As promised, Coldwell Banker Hearthside issued a press release naming everyone who achieved sales awards in 2009. Check it out here. The release is built using a site called PRLog.org; and guess what...it's free! Releases submitted through the PRLog site are indexed for Google, and get great placement. So why not create one (or 100) releases about your award? Use the quote from Jamie (which you have proof he said) congratulating you for your achievement, or talk to your manager(s) and get them to add some verbiage that you could use in your release. Then talk about the areas where you do business (Google will pick them up too) and any specialties you have. While admittedly this one is not awards-specific (anyone can write a press release online) you have a leg up on the competition!

So don't just think of that award as "something I did last year"...rather look at it as something you can leverage to do it again this year.

Here's to seeing you achieve an even higher level of success in 2010!

3G, 4G, #GG - what gives?

Since most of my posts lately have been about web and software solutions I thought I would take a little time in this post to talk about a hardware option you may been seeing on the TV.

Before I go into the techie-geeky details let's have a quick refresher course. If you have a computer and you want it on the internet you have to have it connected somehow. Usually if you are in a building (like our offices) you are using something called "wi-fi" wireless. All that does is connect you to a cable somewhere in the building that then connects you to the internet.

Your cell phone on the other hand uses "cellular wireless" (hence the name) to connect to the internet and the phone network as well. There are no wires anywhere. The towers we are all familiar with relay that signal to satellites which bounce it around until it lands where it needs to go.

But cellular wireless can also power your computer, connecting you to the internet anywhere you want to go. This post will analyze the basics of how and evaluate whether you need to go that route or skip it altogether.

Cellular wireless is divided (for the basis of this conversation anyway) into 3G and 4G signals. 4G is newer and faster....think of it as the 2010 Mustang Supersport. 3G is the standard that powers all of our cell phones, reliable and pretty darn quick....think of it as my 2008 Honda Accord.

All the commercials you see right now are selling you the Mustang. New companies like Clear Wireless have sprung up to offer 4G "Wimax" service, while existing companies like Comcast have ramped up marketing for their 4G "Xfinity" service. Verizon Wireless still has their 4G service in long-term-evaluation. The service area for Clear only covers part of our Hearthside footprint; from what I can tell the Xfinity map is pretty similar. So if you aren't in the green area on that map to the left you're going to have to wait anyway.

The good news is you probably don't need the Mustang just yet anyway. For what we do at CBH, 3G speeds are still more than sufficient, and the costs for 3G cards (the thing you have to stick into your computer to make it work) have dropped dramatically in the wake of the 4G launch(es).

I have personally had a 3G cellular card for the better part of 5 years. I got it when I was out of town at a beach rental and found out the idea of transferring files on a dial-up connection just wasn't going to cut it anymore (by the way, if you are still connecting to the internet via dial up connection stop reading this now and buy a 2010 calendar). I went to Verizon Wireless, got a card and was up and running again within an hour. I pay $39 for an unlimited amount of data, which I frequently use to get on the internet from anywhere, anytime. I love my 3G card and am never caught without it in my computer.

If you like to meet your clients out of the office, or if you do a large number of listing presentations I highly encourage you to make the 3G (if not 4G) commitment. Since all of the real estate applications are web based these days (MLS, Realfast, Toolkit, Email, etc) you won't be disappointed.

All that said, however, there is also no need to get the Accord OR the Mustang. If you have a smartphone (like a blackberry, iPhone or Droid) you are carrying the internet with you already. While I woudln't recommend working up your ToolKit presentation on your iPhone, if you are looking for a quick way to check email or the MLS these phones will work just fine (actually, I am not positive GSMLS supports mobile browsing just yet). To top that off, with some phones and services you can now tie your phone to your laptop (called "tethering") for a quick wireless hit.

At the end of all this you may be wondering what I am suggesting you do. Truth is, I can't say - because it really depends on how much data you download and upload each day. I just wanted you to know what a 4G service is (and what companies like Clear and Xfinity offer) and also remind you just how important it is in our business to have a connection to the internet when you need one.

It is the hottest thing out there...but am I over it?

Hi, I'm Chris....and I am commitment-phobic.

I thought I was in this terrific relationship with facebook, but now that I have introduced it to all my family and friends I don't know if I can go on seeing it like I used to. After all, there is this hot number called twitter that is competing for my attention...and more and more I find myself taking the bait.

Don't get me wrong - I am not ending my facebook relationship. I can't. Facebook is like the electric company now - it is a utility - we have to have it if we want to be in the "real world" of business. There are more than 400 Million people using it now, including almost everyone I need to communicate with on a regular basis. I think I am just cutting back on how often we see each other.

So why the discontent? I think a lot of it has to do with just how much content streams through my news feed anymore. Yes, I know I can filter that down (and trust me, I do) but seeing my friends drone on about the flyers game or their kids isn't as as exciting as it used to be. Maybe I just need better friends...or maybe I need a medium where droning on is not encouraged.

Being honest, however, there is one more cause of my discontent - and it has to do with your fan pages. Yes, I am thrilled that you are all setting them up and working to brand yourself online, but if I am going to have to see all of your stuff in my news feed then please, please, please give me something more than your listings (apparently I am not the only one who feels this way). Fan pages are like newspapers - if the only thing you have in them is advertisements, eventually nobody wants to use them for anything other than bird cages.

So with all that in mind enter twitter - my new flame - sashaying in with all sorts of pizazz and hype. While I have had this fantastic 140-character microblogging tool for close to three years (actually if you include the ones for CBH I have close to 100 accounts) only recently has my tweet-stream picked up the sort of critical mass that makes it fun to read. Because I receive all sorts of fun (and useful) info there - real estate news, CNN, Phillies beat writers, tech geeks and just some plain ol' witty people - I get the kind of value I want from my social media, even if I do wish once in a while more of my local friends were on there. When I have a moment these days it is my tweet-stream I am reading on my phone, not my news feed.

So where do I go with all this relationship angst? Nowhere I guess. Facebook is my faithful old friend - twitter is my ever-present muse. Now that we have added the twitter icons & links to the intranet, I invite you to follow along.