Experiments & Expressions

Is the question really about money? I say no. When 60 minutes aired a segment on RedFin.com, an online discount brokerage, the endless debate of full-service vs “no-service” was refueled.

More than marketing

Truthfully, I think the founders of RedFin.com and other innovative business plans should be commended… for their innovation. It brings about good ol’ competition. Beyond that, I have no desire to enter the debate of whether they’re good or not. However, as a non-real estate agent, I’d like to point out the real issue at hand is not money, it’s representation.

The big issue that people tend to point out is broker/agent fees, a.k.a. commission. But as with any business, all have the unregulated right to set their own fees. Consumers should be made aware of their options and choose intelligently. Discussions of marketing and other value-added services happen at this level.

To serve and protect

The bigger issue for discussion is representation. Most consumers don’t understand the power of representation that an experienced agent can provide. Representation takes a person beyond property marketing and into the deeper realm of protection.

I think good agents recognize the power of protection that they can provide for their clients. Unfortunately, I rarely see it leveraged. If someone considers themselves a full-service agent, they must discuss protection with their clients.

Good agents

I took the classes. I took the tests. And I’ve been in the real estate industry long enough to know that good agents stand as a shield of defense for their clients. Good agents negotiate powerfully. Good agents protect confidential information. Good agents do things in the best interest of their clients.

Whether a consumer pays 8%, 6%, $2995, or $500, it’s their prerogative. It’s the responsibility of the consumer to know their options. It is ALSO the duty of agents to let them know what they’re getting.

What say you?

In blogging, your sidebar is a great place to provide a list of links. Here’s a quick tip: keep it relevant.

Think about it. Are links to every real estate agent or mortgage broker really helpful to your potential clients? Probably not.

You have to give your visitors what they need. Don’t devalue your site with meaningless link exchanges no matter how beneficial the email cover letter was.

Seal of Approval

Give your visitors what they’re looking for. Here are a few kinds of links that are beneficial to your visitors:

1. Links to mortgage brokers that you trust and would recommend.
2. Links to insurance companies that you trust and would recommend.
3. Links to real estate agents in local markets that you don’t service (that you trust and would recommend).

You don’t have to limit your links to this list. You can also do other businesses, official city websites, etc. The point is only add links to websites that “you trust and recommend”. After all, each link is considered your seal of approval.

…And for you Blogger.com’ers! Uh… What’s “Link 1″?

Thanks all for the emails of support while I was away. So what’s happened the last few months? Let’s see…

• Adobe’s Creative Suite 3 released
• Sellsius Launched
• Active Rain membership grows to over 23,000 members
• Localismis in beta
• Jim Kimmons is now the Real Estate Business Guide
• Mozy can backup Macs

I know a lot more has happened! Let me know what you think is worth noting.

Did you know that bad DOCTYPEs are killing good websites. Use the right DOCTYPE to fix your site.

Nowadays, just about everyone knows something about HTML–especially my wife’s cousin’s uncle’s third son, a.k.a. Little Johnny. But do you know about one of the most common HTML errors? It’s an improperly written DOCTYPE tag.

Jeffrey Zeldman has a short article that will help you to Fix Your Site With the Right DOCTYPE!

It’s been said many times that CSS is great for markup (vs. layout). This brings up a good point about going overboard with CSS. And I’ve done it many times…

You have a certain design in your head and start applying new divs, spans, and class to fit that look. Although CSS is capable of doing lots of neat stuff, adding new tags or classes can quickly nullify the efficiencies of CSS.

Minimize the number of custom classes by sticking with standard HTML tags. It’s not only good practice, but you also can quickly stay compatible with screen readers and cell phones. You will also provide nice structured content for SEO and non-CSS capable browsers.

Finding the perfect free font for a flyer or newsletter can sometimes be arduous. There are many free fonts sites out there, but usually they’re very difficult to browse. Check out Better Fonts for a nice user-friendly solution.

Better Fonts has built a clean interface that allows you to quickly choose the font you like. It displays legible thumbnails of fonts categorized by name. It also allows you to change the preview text. That way you can see exactly what your headline will look like.

A few other free font sites:

• Abstract Fonts: Their forums are a great place for font identification.
• 1001 Free Fonts
• Identifont: Excellent self-serve font identification/
• Dingbat Depot: Just dingbats.

Rather have desktop font software?

• ClickArt Fonts
• 2500 TrueType Fonts
• 2500 ProType Fonts

Do you like to draw? Okay, even if you don’t… Try Sketch Swap.

Sketch Swap is a site dedicated to pure drawing fun. Sketch a picture on their site and submit your drawing. In return you’ll get to see someone else’s sketch. What’s cool about this is that you get to see every sequential stroke. You’ll have to try it out to see what I mean.

So if you need a break from your busy life, sketch!

Is your email host too restrictive when it comes to large file attachments? Most of us have been there. You send the email, but the attachment isn’t received. It could be a result of file sending limits imposed by your email provider. Or it could be mailbox size restrictions on the receiving end. Whatever the case, check out Pando.

Pando is a desktop application that lets you email (send and receive) large files and folders. They even have a plugin for Outlook. Do you need to how many times a files was downloaded? Send your files via Pando and you’ll be able to know that too.

One downside is that the receiving party needs to install Pando. But if you’re in a workgroup or small office, this is a great way to share files. Go ahead. Use Pando.

Even for the creative, visually oriented folk, choosing the right colors can be difficult at times. It may be colors for a new listing flyer or postcard. Or maybe you’re trying to redesign your whole look. Whatever the case, and especially if you’re ever feeling uninspired, try predefined color schemes.

A great concept that is soon to be launched is Daily Color Scheme. Once launched, the website will offer a daily dosage of coordinated color schemes.

I’ve tried their beta and it looks good. As of today there are about 19 schemes released since July 2006. The different schemes aren’t distributed daily yet, but it’s still a valuable resource.

If you want more choices and rather flip through paper, get Color Index. Color Index touts over 1100 color combinations that include formulas for both web (RGB) and print
(CMYK).

Looking for more info on color? Here are a few excellent resources.

• Color Matters: Great info on understanding color theory, emotional effects, symbolism, etc.
• Color Wheel Pro: Although commercial software, their site provides good information on properly coordinating colors.
• Visibone: Color charts galore; If you’re designing for the web be sure to check out their free Color Scheme Lab.
• Color Schemer: I really like this one. It’s a simple yet flexible online color schemer (free).

I just returned from sunny Orlando, Florida, home of Disney World. One thing I learned (in addition to how to make my dreams come true) is the importance of globalized real estate terms. As I drove around, I noticed a lot of billboards for “home sites”. I knew exactly what it meant, but we don’t use that term in our area. We say “lots”.

Shoes or Kicks?

For “athletic shoes”, there are regional synonyms such as:

• tennies
• sneakers
• tennis shoes
• kicks

In a global marketplace (i.e. the world-wide web), you need to be aware of which terms are the most effective term to market. Will your target audience search for “kicks” or “running shoes”?

Real Estate Synonyms

Now for real estate… If you sell land that people can build on, which would you advertise?

• Lots
• Land
• Buildable lots
• Home sites

Your answer should be based on three questions:

1. What do people search?
2. How often do they search it?
3. What’s my competition?

Your regional language will probably determine proper usage. However, when you’re dealing with people from out of town (like the freeway near Disney or the Internet) be sure to pick what works. Do some research to find the best terms to market. Don’t assume you know what people are looking for. Get the hard facts. Wordtracker is a good place to start.

And by the way, I don’t think that castle is really for sale.