R TEAM

Facebook's Timeline

My first reaction: I LOVE IT!  I think it's visually appealing and it feels like reading a newspaper with plenty of eye catching photos.

This is scheduled to be released to Facebook members in a few weeks and only fellow "developers" have the ability to view those who have set up timelines.  YOU can do this in about 9 quick steps via Mashable, if you don't want to wait until October. 

HAT TIP: NAR's Speaking of Real Estate: New Opportunities for Connections, Branding with Facebook Timeline

To Follow or Not to Follow, That is the Question

I participate in a real estate tech group on Facebook where questions, opinions and answers are bounced around.  Recently someone asked if you automatically follow someone who starts following you.  I think there is no right answer...however, I do have "my" answer which I'll share with you. 

I have been using Twitter since 2007 (July 14, 2007 to be exact per Hootsuite).  I think before you decide who or how you're going to follow, it's important to consider "why" you're using Twitter. If you want to connect with as many people as possible, then go ahead and follow everyone back who follows you. If you're goal is to connect or have conversations with a certain segment of the Twitterverse, then you may want to be more selective. It's entirely up to you!

As of writing this post, I'm fortunate to have over 4,034 followers and I'm currently following 2,390 peeps.  When I began to use Twitter, I was so tickled to have someone actually follow me, unless they were an obvious spammer, I'd follow them back. Now I've found that I really want to fine tune who I'm following or your Twitter stream can become kind of noisy. Tools like Hootsuite and Tweetdeck do help cut down the noise and allow you to zero in on certain groups or topics you're interested in following.

I receive emails throughout the day when I receive a new follower on Twitter...and I save these emails until I have a moment of free time to go through them and determine who I'm going to add to my Twitter stream by following back.  I'm often quickly sorting through 50 - 100 emails with this process (right now I have 62).  Here are things I look for (based on what's important to me and how I use Twitter):

• are they local? I'm looking to connect with folks who are in Washington State.
• do I know them? I love to follow people who I actually know.
• is their profile complete? I'm trying to learn as much about them as possible.  
• do they have a photo or are they still an "egg"?
• are they a spammer? An obvious "no follow", block and report.
• do they engage with conversations or is every tweet "broadcasting" their message? I don't need to be sold to...I may make an exception and follow if they're local or if it's something I'm interested in.
• do they have multiple accounts where they're te-tweeting info (if so, I'm going to pick one to follow).
• are they actually the person behind their tweets or have they hired someone to "auto-tweet" for them. (This is a "no-follow" for me...don't bother with social media unless YOU are the person being "social")

You can see it's important to have a complete profile on Twitter or any social media platform you decide to participate in.  People are deciding quickly whether or not they want to follow or "friend" and they need as much information as possible.  Again, this isn't the "right way"...it's only "my way".

What is your method for deciding if you're going to follow someone on Twitter?

Yes... I followed @DavidHStevens back! 

How to stay in touch with R TEAM

It was decided to postpone last week's R TEAM meeting in Federal Way when Marie Callendars needed to bump us out of their conference room. Historically, R TEAM has taken the summer months off and it looks like this may happen unless we decide otherwise. Just because we're not seeing each eye-ball to eye-ball, doesn't mean that we have to lose touch with each other...quite the contrary! Here are some tips on how to continue to receive and share information via R TEAM:

• Subscribe to this blog.  You'll receive updates in your email box or RSS feeder.  Just enter your email address in the upper right corner.  You can unsubscribe anytime.  www.rteamblog.com
• "Like" us on Facebook.  I write occaissionally on the blog... I'm more active on Facebook where I will also share links and tidbits that I beleive you might find informative or useful for your business.   When you "like" a page on Facebook, the updates will appear in your stream.  R TEAM members are also welcome to share links and write on our "wall"...just remember that what ever you post on this Facebook page is public.  Anyone can like this page.  www.facebook.com/rteamnetwork
• Join our Secret Facebook Group.   Our group is for active members only and it's "private".   This means that only members of the group will see the posts and what we share.  You can tell that it's private because a lock box appears at the top of the page stating:  "Secret Group".   No lock box means it's not private.  

I hope we can continue to build on what we've re-started with R TEAM.

Let's not say good bye for the summer!

Spam is only (maybe) good on a sandwich...it does not belong on Facebook

I've been noticing more and more spam on Facebook and it's starting to make me a little cranky.  I don't know if this is being taught by some (pathetic) social media coach or if it's ignorance or a total lack of caring...I do know it's bad form.  

I wish I had a screenshot...and believe, the next person who spams my Facebook profile or biz page will have the honor of being used as lesson and published here.   I delete spammy post so quickly, it's like a knee JERK reaction.   Earlier this week, someone whom I've never met, decided that she should post a link to her national title insurance agency (no one I've heard of locally) on my Facebook page.  What the ??  I don't know her.  I don't know her company.  I certain don't endorse her or her company... and in my opinion, allowing her spam on my page appears to be an endorsement.  Pure spam.  This time I deleted her. Next time, I'll add block and report her.  Even if I knew her, I would not appreciate her posting her company for sake of promotion on my page...especially without my permission.

I have had some folks invite me to post on their Facebook profiles...quite frankly, I'm afraid that it could appear spammy for all the reasons noted above.  A better option would be for the someone who sees something, like one of my blog posts on mortgage programs or current rates, to post a link on their Facebook page...taking it a notch up would be to tag me in the comments (using "@" before my name so that my name is highlighted and linked back to my Facebook page). 

I'm pretty protective of my Facebook profile and biz page because I do feel that it is a reflection of me.  Games are deleted immediately, in addition to spam... Nothing personal, I don't want your farm animal or to know who you think is prettier.

I guess bottom line, if you're not sure if you're committing spam...you probably are...but you can always ask before you potentially spam.

R TEAM is coming to Kent in May

It was suggested that we have the next R TEAM meeting at my office on the Kent East Hill so that we can use our conference room and projector...which should help make discussing our topics a little easier for all to hear and absorb.

The only downside with our office is that we do not have free wi-fi...however with that said, I think just a couple of us brought our lap tops to the last meeting at Panera Bread in Federal Way.  So if you do want to have internet access and you have personal means, please bring it!   I do have wi-fi available for a couple connections via my DriodX, however it can be pretty slow...you'll want to bring your own if this is important to you. 

 RSVP by clicking here.  SPACE IS LIMITED.

When:  Wednesday, May 4, 2011 beginning at 9:30 a.m.

Where:  Mortgage Master Service Corporation's recently remodeled office located at 24909 - 104th Avenue SE, Suite 100, Kent, WA 98030

Please be prepared to discuss one buyers need and one listing - you'll have 60 seconds for both!   And bring your personal wi-fi, if you want it.

By the way, here's a quick poll on Facebook:  What would you like your next topic to be at R TEAM  if your desired topic is missing from the poll, add it!

Should you link Facebook Page updates to Twitter?

 
At yesterday's R TEAM meeting, someone asked how to stop having their Facebook  Page status automatically post a Twitter update.   Someone had helped them set up their Facebook and Twitter platforms and thought this would be a great time saver...kind of an "easy button".

Sometimes automating your Facebook status updates to Twitter may be helpful.  Before you do this, I suggest you consider a few things.

• What is your message, profile or image on Twitter and on Facebook?
• Who are your audiances on each platform?  Who are you trying to reach and connect with?
• Will the same people be seeing the same updates (duplicate content)?
• Will your Facebook Page update make sense on Twitter? 

I have a couple Facebook pages and Twitter accounts.  Sometimes I think it CAN make sense to do this - but it may not all the time.   On the FB pages where I'm not super active on or where I'm not posting as "me", I might consider automating...for example, I've done this with my neighborhood blog's Facebook page.   And since I tweet so much, I'm going to add the Twitter feed option to my Mortgage Porter Facebook page...it should blend with all the additional tweets that I manually do and I'm hoping to reach more of my Twitter followers and bring them to my Facebook business page.  If my Twitter followers were the same as my business followers, I wouldn't do this since it would be too redundant for them.

The good news is that connecting and disconnect your Facebook pages from Twitter is super easy...just go here:   http://www.facebook.com/twitter/

 

 

 

I am SO EXCITED! R TEAM meets in Federal Way this Wednesday!

We will be having an R TEAM networking this Wednesday, April 6, 2011 at 9:30 a.m. in Federal Way at Panera Bread.  This no-host event is free to attend.   Please bring  your lap top or iPad and join us for coffee, networking, learning and sharing.

Please click this link to RSVP so we know how many to expect.   Feel free to spread the word to fellow real estate agents you would like to network with!  Post on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, etc. ...the more the merrier!

Happy Birthday, Twitter!

I discovered (via Twitter of course) that Twitter was created five years ago with the first tweet happening March 21, 2006 from @jack (Jack Dorsey, Creator, Co-Founder & Chairman of Twitter).

 
I started using Twitter about a year later on July 14, 2007 and have since "tweeted" 21,684 times and have 3,510 followers.    Each time you "tweet" you create a "url"...thanks to Twitter, I have 21,864 urls containing 140 characters or less...think about that!  In 2009, Seattle Weekly named me Seattle Best Tweeting Mortgage Brokers for "takes questions, drops knowledge and provides bits of clarity..."   Twitter is amazing and yes, I have been fortunate to actually receive business from my Twitter "peeps".  

I'd like to share a few quick tips regarding Twitter that you may find helpful:

• Please take 5 minutes to complete your bio.  It doesn't have to be perfect -- you can always change it.   If you want to increase your odds of having someone follow you (this is something you actually want with Twitter); have a photo and include where you're from, what you do...just something quick.
• Remember that anyone can read  your tweets once they're published--unless you "protect them"...I scratch my head when I see folks in the real estate biz shielding their tweets...if you are trying to attract new clients, friends and followes, don't protect your tweets.  If this makes you feel uncomfortable, Twitter may not be for you and that's okay.   I've seen some interesting tweets over the years....
• I don't recommend auto-anything.   Please try to not "auto-dm" (send an automatic direct message when you have new follwoers)....it's tempting, it seems techy...but it comes across as insincere.   In my opinion, you're better off not thanking a new follower than sending something that is automatically generated in the social media areana. 
• Twitter is about having a conversation.  It's really not about constantly broadcasting your message or product.  I do use it for broadcasting rates that I'm quoting at the moment--but it's not the only thing I do on Twitter.  If you check out my "twitter stream" you'll see that I'm having conversations with many folks.
• Retweet things you like... it's kind of a compliment and you may start a conversation with someone.   Twitter is viral because of the re-tweeting feature.  If I tweet a rate or something that someone finds useful, and they "re-tweet" it, it's displayed in their Twitter stream (think mini-blog posts) for all their followers to see...and possibly retweet to all their followers too.
• Follow people you find interesting.
• Do check your "@" messages to you (which are public) and your DM's (which are private).   It's unfortunate when someone sets up a Twitter profile because they've just been to some seminar, and they don't know that people are trying to converse with them.
• Have fun!  At 140 characters, sending Tweets can be a bit like writing a short poem.  There are many aps to help you manage your twitter stream (Tweetdeck, Hootsuite, etc).

Questions?  I'm happy to help.

 

 

 

On the Way to Seattle reBarCamp

On the way to Seattle reBarCamp last week, my husband grabbed the Flip video camera and interviewed yours truly.

 

The planning committee for the 2011 Seattle reBarCamp started meeting months in advance to prepare for this event. 

 

What happens when you show up at Seattle reBarCamp?

Considering the volumes of people, I think this years reBarCamp in Seattle was a huge success!

 

 

My Notes from Seattle's Agent Reboot

 
Yesterday I left my lap top at home and brought my Livescribe Pulse Pen (which I love!!) to take notes.  I will write a follow up post on all the reasons why I love this pen soon... meanwhile, if you would like to read my notes from Seattle Agent Reboot, click here.

photo credit:  Stephanie Baldwin

R = Revamped, Refreshed and Reunited

It seems like following almost every Seattle reBarCamp, real estate friends reach out to see if we can meet for coffee or lunch to discuss some of what they learned at REBC.   I think this is a perfect opportunity to re-launch "R TEAM".

Those who knew me before I became a mortgage originator, probably are familiar with R TEAM.  It's a  network group that I started back in 1992 so that real estate agents could share and network outside of their offices.  I picture the "refreshed" version of R TEAM including a lot of discussion on various social media trends and of course what's new in the mortgage world and real estate. 

To kick off R TEAM, I've created a Facebook Page.   I would be flattered if you would visit the page and "Like" it.

My next step is to determine where our first meeting will be.  I think we need:

• free wi-fi
• neutral space (not someone's real estate office)
• possibly a place where we can have coffee or  lunch (or brown bag it)
• possibly around Southcenter

Suggestions?

 

 

A Live Lesson in Branding

If you're in the real estate industry and social media, you may be aware of a lawsuit that has been filed by a local (Washington State) marketing company against a nationally known blogger for trademark infringement.   This is over a zebra.  Even if the Denise Lones of The Lones Group is victorious in court, bloggers from across the country and outside of the real estate sphere are talking about this case.  

I don't know Denise and I have just barely met Daniel (the defendent) and know of him though social media venues.  From what I know of  Daniel, I highly doubt he intentionally did anything to Denise nor did he cause her damages.  I'm sure that in this climate, her business marketing to real estate agents must be challenging--it is for all of us in the real estate field.  

Darin Persinger of Productivity Junkies recently posted an interesting video about this case and branding.  If you think your brand is a fancy logo...think again and watch this video.

Click here to make a donation for the Daniel Rothamel Legal Defense Fund

Here's One Reason Why You May Want to Reconsider Contibuting to a Panel Blog

Yesterday I received this email...fortunately, I only wrote one post there as I quickly realized that writing my blogs plus at Rain City Guide was enough to satisfy my writing needs.

Mortgages Unzipped Authors

I'm writing to let all current MU authors know about some changes coming
up with Zillow's blogging efforts. Effective March 4th we will no longer
be accepting new content in Mortgages Unzipped. Soon after, Zillow will
be launching a new primary blog that encompasses mortgage and personal
finance content as a category. The content submitted in this category
going forward will be done with internal Zillow resources.

The content you have submitted thus far will still remain in Zillow's
blog. Permalinks will remain the same to any previously published
content.

Zillow greatly appreciates your efforts with MU and hope that we have
been able to help support your overall blogging endeavors.

We wish you continued success. Please respond if you have any questions.

Whenever you contribute to someone else's blog or platform, your content is at their mercy.   In most cases, you have no control over what happens with your work.   This is one reason why I have really scaled back on where I write.   A majority of my content is on my blog which is currently a typepad platform...and that's no guarantee that my work is "protected" so I do back up my content since I have years of articles.

Your thoughts? 

What Defines Social Media Success for Real Estate Professionals?

I've been wondering how someone defines success in terms of their social media efforts.  Is it how many friends you have on Facebook?  How many followers on Twitter or tweet's you've tweeted?  Is success defined by the list you're included on of Top This or Top That?   Is it how many blog posts you can pop out in a week?  Maybe others view you as an expert and now you're even contemplating becoming a social media coach to take advantage of your "success".

I believe that before you can define what determines success with your use of social media, you need to decide what your primary goal is.  Why are you using social media?   What do you hope to accomplish? 

I'll admit that when I started blogging in late 2006, I really didn't have a goal.  It was really just a need.  I had to vent (or blow up!) about the mis-reporting regarding loan officer licensing which was brand new to Washington state at that time.   I never dreamed anyone would read my blog or follow me on Twitter...or that I would still be writing The Mortgage Porter.   It did take me some time to realize that I do have (and need) goals with regards to my social media efforts.  

My blog has been a great resource to allow consumers to find me when they google search terms.   Facebook has been a wonderful way to stay connected with my past clients, friends and family.  Twitter has been a "fish finder" for me by tweeting out useful tidbits of information and having great dialogues with my "followers".

I've discovered it's not important to me how many friends or followers I have on the internet, what is important is the "who" - not the "how many".    I've also accepted that I don't have to know or be on the newest social media platform...I believe that we can only do so much...and I'm NOT one who will ever pay for content or outsource my status updates on Facebook or Twitter.   I do have limited time because social media is not my career; originating mortgage loans is.

If your goal is to increase your real estate or mortgage business, do you know where your business is coming from?

I know in a few weeks, I'll be seeing hundreds of real estate and mortgage professionals at the 2011 Seattle reBarCamp at the Seattle Center on March 3, 2011.  I hope those who are newer to this medium have a chance to really focus on what's important to them and what their goals are before this fantastic event.  There's so much social media out there and only so much time.

If you've been considering adding video blogging to your marketing efforts, you'll want to come a day early to the NW Video Marketing Summit on March 2, 2011.   For more information or to rsvp, visit www.videomarketingsummit.tv.

5 Question Survey for Real Estate Pros who are Newer to Social Media

This survey is intended to help plan the "Newbie Sessions" that will take place at the Seattle reBarCamp on March 3, 2011. If you are in the real estate biz (real estate agent, mortgage, title, escrow, etc.) and are newer to social media and considering attending Seattle reBarCamp, please take a minute to answer 5 questions on this survey.

Create your free online surveys with SurveyMonkey, the world's leading questionnaire tool.