If today’s real estate market has you anxious, you might be using outdated tools.

 

Let me say this upfront and clearly: If you’re not changing with the times, and have no desire to do so, stop reading right now and go update your resume. Otherwise you’ll be wasting your time here.

 

Good. Now those who are still with me – congratulations on having the courage to accept change. But now, you have to ask yourself if you have the courage to act on change. If not, please join those who left us in the last paragraph. But if you’re willing to act, good, keep reading.

 

Specifically, I’d like to talk about a change that’s revolutionizing how people communicate and socialize: social networking. Places on the Internet that let you not only connect with others, but also promote yourself and your services by creating a profile of yourself and what you do.

 

You may have heard of some of these new online gathering places such as  RealTown.com, Facebook, LinkedIn, and MySpace are just a few. Of course, you know about RealTown if you are reading this article. In addition to RealTown, there are other social communities that specialize in real estate including ActiveRain and MyAgentBook.

 

And make no mistake, these sites are working (and can work) in real estate professioanls favor. In fact, one success story in the March 2008 issue of Realtor Magazine explained how after just three weeks, a Realtor who created a Facebook profile got a referral from another agent who saw her profile.

LinkedIn can help you, too. It lets agents connect with others in the profession to find new business opportunities and get quick answers to questions.

“But Bob, do I have to get into all this high-tech stuff to be successful?” Well, let me share a few of the benefits of social networking and you decide:

 

*   Attract new traffic to your existing Web site

*   Market directly to new clients
*   Protect and enhance your brand
*   Test marketing ideas
*   Measure your marketing’s results

 

In short, social networking is a way to put your face in front of thousands of potential customers. And it allows you to build up a network of contacts so you can reach out to more people with a more personal approach. And that, in turn, helps you build trust and show your expertise. The result: more business, more customers and more referrals.

“Yeah Bob, that’s nice, but real estate isn’t about technology, it’s about people.”

Darn right it’s about people. I couldn’t agree more. Always has been and always will be. A people business is precisely what you signed up for when you got into the business. And these sites are where people are gathering.

So this is the exact kind of change I’m talking about – using these new tools to make it easier for you to get more business. 

Industry experts say this is where real estate is headed. In fact, the National Association of Realtors (NAR) has found that 84 percent of home buyers now use the Internet to find homes. And really good news for Realtors: 82 percent of these folks ended up using a real estate agent to buy.

But if you’re not out there on these sites, promoting yourself, selling your services and making a name for yourself as a Realtor who knows how to connect in this new world, you’ll be left out in the cold.

So commit today to shed any anxiety you’re feeling about all the changes going on, and take the plunge into social networking. You won’t be sorry you did.

Best of luck to you!