Hi Pat
Thanks for exposing some of the urban myths about blogging.
I don’t contend that blogging is not effective, just massively overhyped as a business tool.
We still can call out by NAME, not NUMBER the bloggers who actually sell real estate through blogging.
I would contend that more people make money selling blogging services and software than do using blogging to sell real estate.
I’ll be posting “The Failed Promise of Re.Net” in the coming days, so I’m sure I’ll be hearing from you.

Pat,
This can across the feed this morning. Knew this topic would come to a post soon. Why agents don’t get blogging , or don’t even know what it is, is because they don’t get Web 2.0, they’ve been so burned by Web 1.0 – RE vendors, (and you do need to be approved for access into the club). Basically, they think blogging is another come on, when the real truth is transparancy to agents and most importantly the consumer. Agents can’t believe there really is a cost effective marketing tool that gets results, just by putting yourself out there. They are afraid and don’t get the net.

Thank Louis. Someone asked me why I’m writing on the HomeGain blog… here’s my answer: http://transparentre.com/2008/02/21/why-im-writing-on-the-homegain-blog.aspx

Pat:

I’ve heard these urban myths as well. They are excuses agents use for not taking action. It’s just like another myth I hear from agents all the time. That’s the one where agents believe they shouldn’t call people who register on their website because online consumers want to be “anonymous”. This one always puzzles me because if someone is on your site and they give you their phone number chance are they want to hear from you – quickly.

I don’t think the myths you described are necessarily “a way to halt the spread of blogging in the real estate industry.” I believe market forces are taking care of that. In short, if Realtor® blogging was really an effective way to generate closed transactions more agents would do it. As Luis pointed out, some agents are fantastic bloggers and they generate business as a result. But, they are the exception. If “only about 5% of agents seem capable of bogging”, they won’t and shouldn’t blog.

If agents want to blog for the sake of gaining recognition among peers or getting speaking gigs and they enjoy it, that’s great. However, if they want to spend their time and expect to earn income as a result of blogging, they will likely be disappointed.

Pat:

I’ve read this a few times. You kind of telegraphed my restraint with:

“Bloggers by and large are a civil lot and won’t be provoked into this futile argument vis-a-vis the presumption that blogging is a waste of time”

My thought is: Look, blogging isn’t for everyone and it’s in its infancy. Nobody thought television was a cost-effective way to advertise real estate in the 70s but look at the success Russell Shaw has had.

Blogging is a new medium. Interactive marketing is a new medium. It’s one more way to fillet a fish. I would think people would be more interested in asking “How” rather than “How come?”

There will be more bloggers sued as they have continued to write about topics and/or people they shouldn’t. More important I think we will see multiple cases of ethics violations against different agents based on their lack of thought before posting something on their blogs. Also have seen multiple blogs that clearly have some fair housing issues.

I hope everyone takes your advise and uses some common sense before blogging. Think about what you are saying before hitting the publish button.

I think blogging is still “new” as were agent websites 10-15 years ago. I think that at the least, blogging links will help your web site and your blog rank higher in the search engine, which provides Realtors with more exposure – how can that be bad?

Phyllis
You are correct that blogging can be a produtive endeavor. But in order to do it I would think you would have to determine how much time you could spend on it and you have to make sure you do it right.

See also
http://blog.homegain.com/using-blog-successful-realtor
http://blog.homegain.com/case-against-blogging

As a Technical Support Provider for Just Snooping.com, I am often times asked by Agents and Brokers how they can make their online marketing more productive. I have to tell them each time that organic website traffic is the most powerful and productive type of traffic a website can get. Providing services and information pertinent to the the visitor and their interests relative to the community products or services they are searching for. The real estate industry has changed very little over time with the exception of technology. Print media advertising is quickly becoming a waste of your marketing dollars while an investment in powerful Internet marketing tools is very often more cost effective and has a greater impact. I may be slightly predigest, as I do work for a Virtual Tour provider. I have to agree with author of this article. There is too many times an agent or Broker has given in to the false rumors and fears generated by those afraid to dive into or invest recourses into online marketing. My suggestion is to dive in, start a blog of you own or blog on others sites like this one. Don’t be afraid to share your opinions as a professional in the real estate industry.

I completely agree with Brian. Blogging is not for everyone. Not for everyone at all. What you really have to look at is: Is it for you? That is the question.

I just started blogging a couple of months back. I found out…it is for me. It does bring me leads, yes. Also, it brings me opportunity. I get in front of people, and lets not forget the SERPS.

I greatly enjoy, and think it is very smart, the bullet points laid out.