Max the HomeGain gorilla arrived by mail over the weekend and we had a long discussion about lead management.

He carried on and on about orange being consumers’ favorite color, even tried to talk me into using an orange font color to write this, but one thing he said that really hit home is that consumers don’t like to be pushed.

It might seem odd that a gorilla is concerned about pushing, but he has a point.
I don’t like to be pushed.

From what I’ve learned about “systems” if you push the system to get what you want, the system pushes back, until you find the right leverage to get results. In this case, if an agent pushes his lead management system to get immediate results, the system pushes back.

Leads are set up to receive information and then, in their own time, act on that information and hopefully use your services. I believe consumers look at a company like HomeGain as Continue reading this post

Max the HomeGain gorilla arrived by mail over the weekend and we had a long discussion about lead management.

He carried on and on about orange being consumers’ favorite color, even tried to talk me into using an orange font color to write this, but one thing he said that really hit home is that consumers don’t like to be pushed.

It might seem odd that a gorilla is concerned about pushing, but he has a point.
I don’t like to be pushed.

From what I’ve learned about “systems” if you push the system to get what you want, the system pushes back, until you find the right leverage to get results. In this case, if an agent pushes his lead management system to get immediate results, the system pushes back.

Leads are set up to receive information and then, in their own time, act on that information and hopefully use your services. I believe consumers look at a company like HomeGain as Continue reading this post

Mary Lou Skowronski is a real estate agent in Southern California with Coldwell Banker Platinum Properties.

She’s been a HomeGain AgentView agent for a few years now. She told me a great story about how she came about working with a new client – a client which was a lead that she received through AgentView, and was able to lock up 3 TRANSACTIONS out of one initial lead – through perseverance, patience and good customer service.

For the past years she’s been committed to investing in marketing and lead generating systems and felt that it would be a long time commitment in order to prove positive results.

When she signed up for AgentView in 2005, she felt like it would be the best shot in the arm that she could get, to reinforce her belief in Internet marketing and client prospecting.

With the efficient use of technology, she is able to market globally on the Internet, to successfully reach home buyers and promote home sellers properties. She feels that working online saves her clients time and money and it enables her to earn a full service commission.

Even in the more challenging situations when it looks like the odds are against you … which brings me to Mary Lou’s story: Continue reading this post

Whether you are asked to speak before a large group or to a husband and wife at a listing presentation, it is important that you communicate effectively.

Here are some tips to improve your public speaking, as well as helping you eliminate those distracting “ums” “ahs” and “like you knows”. You know?

1. Speak on topics you know well.

If you know the subject matter, you will tend to be less anxious about speaking. There is also a comfort in knowing you know more than most of your audience. Always come prepared with reliable facts, especially those which get people’s attention.

Part of a good speech is to inform. But be careful with facts. You don’t want to overdo it. You want to take a fact and work off it—the implications and effects—what that fact means to your audience. If you don’t know the subject matter well, you will need to do serious homework —- so make sure you have enough time to learn it.

2. Practice, practice, and more practice.

Most of us are not naturals in front of a crowd. The more you speak, the easier it gets. Try a few dry runs at home with your significant other or family members—but not your mom (she will always say you’re just great). Be careful you don’t overdo it. An overly rehearsed speech does not usually play well and if you hit a blank spot, you’ll be dropping ums and ahs like greased watermelons. Continue reading this post

Ann Marie Clements of RE/MAX Realty Group in Maryland was the Featured Real Estate Agent of the Month in our March Agent Success Newsletter.

Here’s the story:

If you ask Ann Marie what she thinks of today’s conditions, she’ll tell you that it’s great market for a Realtor®. After 20 years in the business, Ann Marie’s business is growing every year – it’s already up 40% from last year!

Ann Marie Clements was also just featured on the March 2008 cover of REALTOR® Magazine in which she discussed her success with finding new clients on Facebook.

How is Ann Marie able to be so productive?

She relies on two main things: referrals and HomeGain.
“I just sold one house for $700k and another one for $480k, both as a result of HomeGain leads,” said Ann Marie. Continue reading this post

Just about any writer writing about the future of the internet and vertical search, and companies like HomeGain providing online services to consumers, emphasizes the problem of personalization and context.

The recent HomeGain survey seems to confirm that consumers will demand personalization and context more and more.

Until the semantic web can create the ability to understand personal intent much better, it’ll be up to humans to provide these missing links.

Home buyers and sellers want a personalized response that provides context to their search for homes and service.

They want to know what the area is like, is it urban-flavored or rural-flavored, friendly to kids, friendly to singles, near hospitals, near good restaurants, a walking community, is golf nearby, is it appreciating or depreciating, are the school systems rated high, is water nearby with boat access—a hundred different questions that can help narrow the process and save time and frustration. Continue reading this post