Geoff's Gibberish

What's Wrong with This Picture?

Date: Sep. 10, 2008
Tags: Events, Outreach, Committees

ECAR’s Golf Tournament is ready to roll. I heard Lisa Norton and Sam Kinkaid going down the checklist just today.

“Date?”

“Check – September 19”

“Location?”

“Check – Indian Bayou Golf & Country Club in Destin”

“That’s good; it’s easy for everyone to get to and we haven’t played there before.

“Sponsors?”

“Check – we’ve been blessed with generous sponsors!”

“Contests, prizes, raffles?”

“Check… check… check!”

“Players?” …

“Players???” …

“Sam!? Do we HAVE PLAYERS!!?”

At this point the scene got crazy. Tears were flowing, hair was pulled (their own, not each other’s), and papers were tossed around trying to find any lost registration sheets.

After they calmed down, they did what anyone would do in that situation. They got on the phone and called ECAR.

“Pat,” they sobbed, “do we have any players signed up for the golf tournament?”

I couldn’t hear Pat’s answer, but it must not have been good because the sobs got worse. That’s when I snuck away saying I had to go break a computer or something.

The fact is, with just over a week left before the ECAR Annual Charity Golf Tournament, only a few teams have signed up to play. The Realtor Outreach Committee is bewildered, and frankly, so am I.

ROC lowered the cost from $100 to $85. It’s tax deductable (although, I’m not a tax accountant, so consult your local tax attorney… oops, there goes the eighty-five bucks). Members can even charge the $85 to their accounts.

In years past this was the event of the season. As I write this, I can hear a voice echoing in my head (it kind of sounds like Don Dineen). “Why, in my day we used to challenge other offices to try to beat us … the sissies.” Has everyone lost their sense of camaraderie? Their sense of community? Their sense of “let’s kick their butts?”

But, I think I might have the answer as to why people aren’t signing up to play. I’ve heard a lot of talk. Let me share with you what I’ve heard, although keep in mind that my hearing may not be very good.

THE TOP TEN REASONS REALTORS AREN’T SIGNING UP FOR THE ECAR GOLF TOURNAMENT:

#10… It’s too cold in September to play golf; nobody wants to attend an ECAR event where you might need to bring a sweater.

#9… Indian Bayou’s course doesn’t have a windmill hole and they make you use all of the clubs. Not only that, but the balls aren’t pretty colors. I’ll sign up when they have one at Goofy Golf.

#8… ECAR staff always cheats so that they can win the duffer’s award. That can’t possibly be that bad every year!

#7… There is too much free beer, wine, soda, and food. I would hate to take advantage of the generous sponsors by eating their food and drinking their beer

#6… I live in Niceville and it’s not convenient to – oh wait… Niceville is close to Destin… um, I live in Seagrove Beach, and Fort Walton Beach is so far – oh wait… the tournament isn’t in Fort Walton Beach this year… um, I live in Destin and I don’t know how to get there! [Okay, that’s one I’ll buy, because we all know that Realtors sit at their desks all day long and never travel the streets.]

#5… I was saving the $85 to pay the IRS at the end of the year.

#4… It’s not the last minute yet and I only sign up for things at the last minute.

#3 …I was going to sign up, but then I saw the video of Lisa and Sam and got scared.

#2… Golf tournament? What golf tournament?

AND THE #1 REASON WHY MEMBERS AREN’T SIGNING UP FOR THE GOLF TOURNAMENT…

#1… I don’t want to donate to a charity that I may have to use next year if the market doesn’t pick up!

Please. Don’t make excuses. Sign up and play. It is a ton of fun. There’s food, and drinks, and prizes, and entertainment (especially if you follow the ECAR staff around… we are that bad!). And it’s for an excellent cause.

Please, fill out a form. You don’t have to know how to play. You don’t have to set up your own team. You get to spend four hours on a lovely golf course (longer if you’re behind us). And you don’t even have to have the money (in the words of Jeff Foxworthy: “a check, oh I thought you wanted real money!”)

Click here to get a registration form. Thanks and see you on the field!

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Scam Alert - Pay Attention or Pay a Lot

Date: Sep. 2, 2008
Tags: Marketing, Scams, Selfpromotion

I would not want to be a Realtor. Not because I don’t respect the profession, but because I don’t like to work that hard. I’d be preaching to the choir if I described in detail everything involved in what you do for a living, but there is one aspect of your business that I do want to talk about – selling yourself. In my mind, it’s the hardest part of your job and one that takes the greatest amount of energy.

A major part of any salesperson’s job is getting his or her name in front as many people as possible. It takes creativity to find ways to get through people’s “someone is trying to sell me something” filter. Some Realtors are better at it than others, and sometimes it comes down to being in the right place at the right time.

Many times successful promotions involve working with people you don’t know or have never done business with. This is not only unsettling, but it can also be costly.

I received a letter from member the other day that described a situation that he (or she) would like me to share with others. I’m not going to disclose the people involved, but anyone interested in finding out more may contact me at geoff@ecaor.com. For the sake of the story, I’ll refer to the Realtor as “Bill.”

Bill connected with someone we will call “Pam” who represented herself as the general manager of a local hotel/motel, the “ECAR Inn.” Pam met with Bill at the ECAR Inn and presented him with a promotional opportunity to advertise on the hotel’s keycard holders – the folders the hotel gives to its guests with the keys in it. Bill agreed and paid $3,000 for the advertising - $1,500 when the order was placed and $1,500 when the proof was approved.

The proof came in within a week, and delivery was to be made the following month. When the product didn’t arrive as promised Bill called and was told there were complications. So things continued to drag on. After six months the keycards still have not arrived and Bill has not been able to get a satisfactory resolution.

As it turns out, Pam misrepresented herself when she said she was the ECAR Inn general manager. The actual manager only met Pam when she presented the promotion to him. The people involved in the production of the piece were available on occasion, but eventually their tone became one of threats and intimidation.

Whatever the outcome may be, Bill feels like the whole thing was a scam. He paid good money for an opportunity he believed would put him in front of many thousands of visitors to our area. $3,000 doesn’t seem like a lot to get results like that, but it’s a lot of money when you end up with nothing!

As Bill continued to look for answers, he noticed a couple of things that may help you avoid a similar experience:

In the initial correspondence with Pam, she said not to call the ECAR Inn office because “the employees would not be able to help him.” She only wanted to communicate by email.
The agreement did not include a product delivery date. This has made it difficult to claim that there was a breach of contract for non-delivery.
The ECAR Inn was not a party to the agreement, so there is nothing that compels the hotel to actually use the holders. As it turns out, the ECAR Inn is not going to use the holders – although seemingly they were going to originally, So even if Bill gets the product, they aren’t going to do him any good.

While it may be easy to spot a scam after the fact, it’s not always easy to know who is offering a legitimate opportunity and who isn’t. Here are other suggestions that may help:

Get references when working with a new company or individual, especially if you have to pay money up front.
Be skeptical of individuals who encourage you to move quickly so as not to lose the opportunity being offered.
Talk to someone else about the idea, someone who does not have a stake in the deal.
Step back and consider the worst-case scenarios. Be sure that you do everything possible to minimize the potential for problems.

Maybe you’ve had an experience similar to Bill’s. If you want to publicly share information, I would only say that you may want to avoid divulging the people or companies involved. I’m not an attorney, but it’s one thing to know something about someone else and it’s another thing to say something about someone else publically no matter how true it might turn out to be.

You’ll notice I never have mentioned my Dad’s name. By the way, he spent his whole life in sales. Maybe that’s why I hide behind a computer.

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