RealTown's RealTalk

I will have to say that I have sent e-flyers when I have a difficult property, maybe high dollar or unique I do believe that the e-flyer can put information into the hands of agents that paper flyers and the local MLS may not. With the cost of advertising being what it is I do believe that the cost to expand direct contact to the entire state is cost effective. If someone has a client looking for a property around the state that may be hard to find or unique I would like to have my listing in front of them. It only takes one buyer, the good agent has his eye open for that property that is right for that client.

I am thinking that long distance buying and selling is most certainly here and will be a bigger item in the future. A question for thought would be - why do we put properties on the World Wide Web, why are we marketing to the world with all of this domain & website stuff, is it possible that there are buyers beyond our local area?

Web marketing is one of the reasons I had to complete the e-pro course. e-Flyers in my opinion are just another means of promoting web presence. One person's spam may be another person's informative lead to a new client or closed sale.

Ryan Siegmeth, Prudential Almon Realty, Yakima, WA - ryan@siegmeth.com

509-961-3754 - www.siegmeth.com

Ryan addresses (cost effective) advertising and marketing in one in-expensive click of the mouse.  I couldn't agree more, E-Flyers are "cost effective" over Junk Mail.  If there was an EBA out there looking out for the best interest of their client and they got your E-Flyer in the E-Mail, “batta-bing you gotta deal going”.  What makes more logical since than that! Further more who could deny that electronic mail and web presents has made us a smaller world.  When you think about it who needs TV.  So I guess it's safe to assume the future of commerce would best be served in the virtual world of electronic communications.  Ok I can agree with that, more exposure in front of the right people should produce higher volume of sales equating into higher profits for the agent and consumer.  So explain why it's not working?  As I see it, Ebay resolves the issue of garage sales, “people ridding themselves of what they don't want”.  Right?  Why spend the gas traveling sale to sale looking for that allusive brass ring when all that's required is a mouse clic away to Ebay?  Why go to your local travel agent or even the airline direct to get a ticket when you can go to Expedia for that cheaper ticket.  I guess cheaper is better after all.  Right?  Why invest in a broker to manage your portfolio or your IRA or 401k when you can do it yourself and save the commission?  And if things don't work out we can always depend on the Government to come in and bail out all the risky business.  Last week it was Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac this weeks it will probably be Lehman Bros.  Who will it be next week? If it’s not “eminent danger” from natural courses of nature, what will it be? The price of fuel the monthly obligation? What will common since of the future really entail? I guess your right Ryan after all the WWW is much cheaper.  And isn't cheaper a better deal?  So explain, WHY IS IT NOT WORKING? Haven’t we been loyal to the cause long enough? Do we have the courage to actually look at the evidence or do we just maintain status quo and accept change because we are told that’s what to accept? At what point in time, do we exchange commons since for virtual reality?

I am replying to Ryan concerning E-Flyers, etc. I am on my final assignment for the ePro course. I have sent E-Flyers out beyond my state boundaries on occasion because we have so many people that see Asheville, NC as a destination. We get many people moving here from the Atlanta-Metro, Florida, NY, etc. so it only made good sense to me to send out flyers to these areas. I do not think it is feasible, cost wise, for all my listings but I am the co-broker on a high end property with acreage and we felt that it needed to be in the hands of agents in other locals. I know that there are some who will see it as SPAM but as has been stated in this conversation...it only takes that one buyer.

Thanks for reading. I am looking forward to being a part of the online community on a regular basis.

Carol Ball

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I don't unsubscribe from spam mail. Ever.   I hit the gmail spam button so that the next time it goes where it belongs.  I believe google uses these in the aggragate to determine automatically which to send directly to spam.  Spam email comes from thousands of sources.  It is not realistic to 'unsubscribe' from all the mail you never should have been sent in the first place.

The only exception to this is if I actually remember 'subscribing' in the first place.  An extremely rare event. But then, that would not be spam anyway since I requrested it.

Widen your thoughts of boundaries.  The internet is your perfect vehicle to send out flyers to everyone in your database.  Use your email as your best friend, whether it's keeping in touch locally or across the pond.

Eflyers can be simply informing your client and visitor base about a great new home that has come on the market, or a price reduction.  Perhaps you can talk about a new employer that has moved into the area.  A great example would be a client we are working with in Chattanooga.  VW has just agreed to bring it's business there, stimulating the economy.  Another good reason to move to Chattanooga!

If you are blogging, be sure to include the blog address in your flyer so that they can keep up with the locals :)

Look at this email that was created for Patrick Canavan.  Part of the Amazing Website Makeover!

http://preview.onletterhead.com/canavan ~ this will be used in eflyers/newsletters as well.

It's branded to his site and his flyers will be beautifully delivered to the recipients, ensuring a higher deliverability rate because the information will be valuable and pleasing to look at.

I encourage you to use the eflyer as part of your marketing.  You can always improve how it looks and the message.  Just start doing it and the thoughts will flow.

Good luck!

Cherie Young, ePRO, REALTOR®
Online Marketing Strategies
www.CherieYoung.com
Become an Eco Broker
760.782.0103

Paul:  Be careful.  You really shouldn't even use the Google Spam button.  A lot of spam could actually be coming from YOU, attached to YOUR email address, unbeknownst to you!  If you report it as spam, you are actually reporting YOURSELF as a spammer, and can get your email blacklisted by some ISPs as a major spammer.

I had a client recently who evidently had an email address that was sending 10,000 spam messages PER DAY through various ISPs - and she had no clue.  (and they weren't coming from her address per se, but they actually were!).  Her email was banned by Yahoo and Comcast, and she basically had to get a brand new email address and start over - and notify all of her customers, etc.

I was told by people at Comcast, Yahoo and several other places that it's best to just DELETE spam.  Google's spam filter is the best out there, so most of your spam will most likely be filtered out.  The few that get through - just DELETE them - don't mark them as SPAM or you could actually be hurting yourself and not even know it.

SPAM sucks...   it really does.

 I don't unsubscribe from spam mail. Ever.   I hit the gmail spam button so that the next time it goes where it belongs.  I believe google uses these in the aggragate to determine automatically which to send directly to spam.  Spam email comes from thousands of sources.  It is not realistic to 'unsubscribe' from all the mail you never should have been sent in the first place.