Aug 10
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Okay, Real Estate Agents, it’s officially time to start taking Facebook seriously.
Aug 04
Bobby and I arrived in the city by the Bay for a big week of RE BarCamp San Francisco, Beer for Bloggers, Blogger’s Connect and Inman Connect! If 
you can’t be here for these incredible events you can experience much of what this week has to offer at Dakno’s new Facebook resource! If you aren’t a Dakno Fan, please consider becoming connected to one of the most dynamic groups of peeps in real estate.
Jul 07
Can you say traffic, traffic and more traffic to your blog/website. I’ll never forget sitting in the NYC real estate bar camp and hearing 
the Phoenix Real Estate Guy, Jay Thompson offer a presentation on his Google Analytics and say how many visitors (big numbers!!) went to his blog as a result of his fireworks post he wrote.
Jun 19
Photo blogging can be a great way to quickly and easily build credibility with both site visitors and search engines. With this in mind, we wanted to give you a few options for photo blogging and show you step by step how to setup your own photo blog. Read the rest of this entry
Jun 10
If you are in fact building a real estate website for first time home buyers, I’m sure you will find the following resources helpful. Remember, your new real estate web site will need to be centered around the “wants, needs and fears” of a first time home buyer. Your first time home buyer website should offer helpful articles, financial tools, engaging videos, detailed neighborhood information with maps and property search tools that focus on these sensitive areas.
May 26
I know this will come as a shocker, but video for real estate is a pretty hot commodity! With so many low-cost cameras (like the Flip) and video 
editing tools available to agents and brokers, video can be easily integrated into most real estate blogs and website platforms. There are a couple of real estate brokers and mortgage brokers who really get video and know how to use it very effectively. I highly recommend everyone checkout:
May 21
One of the most important aspects of a successful real estate website is solid hyperlocal content. You would be amazed at how many people search for homes in specific neighborhoods or condo buildings
The neighborhood entrance
I know it’s cliché but it’s an important shot. This will help home buyers more easily find the location of the neighborhood should they later want to venture out and take a drive through that neighborhood.
Homes
It’s important to photograph a few homes but don’t go overboard. Let’s face it, showing the fronts of a dozen homes that all look the same doesn’t sell the neighborhood. Mix things up by showing the various architecture types and styles of homes. Keep things interesting by photographing the different homes from various angles.
Common Area
Walking trails, bike paths, play grounds, etc. Remember to sell the “lifestyle” that comes with living in that particular neighborhood.
Amenities / Clubhouse
Many people choose neighborhoods based off of its amenities. With this in mind, make sure you feature all of the various “extras” that are available to people living in the neighborhood.
Neighborhood Site Plan
Site Plans help provide potential home buyers with an overview of the neighborhood. Typically a quick phone call to the builder is all it takes as they will be happy to receive the “free advertising” in exchange for the Site Plan. While your at it, ask if they have any additional photographs that you could use on your web site.
Capture Photographs, Not Snapshots
Now that you have a good idea as to what to photograph, here are a few tips to help move your photos from “snapshots” to professional looking photography.
Get There Early or Arrive Late
The time of day plays a big part in how your photos turn out. Evenings produce long shadows and warm colors helping to add character to the photograph. Early morning also has great diffused lighting and helps capture those still moments just after the sun rises.
Frame and Perspective
It’s often difficult to truly capture the perspective in a flat photo. With this in mind, place something in the foreground to add depth to the shot. A simple low hanging tree branch may be all you need to do the trick.
Photoshop Is Your Friend
Even those less than stellar photos can come to life with a little help from a photo editing software such as Photoshop. Just remember, you want to accurately depict the neighborhood so don’t go overboard. Adding a little extra green to the grass is fine, but removing unsightly telephone poles and powerlines is another!
Peak Season
Spring and summer are a great time for photographing the great outdoors. Flowers are blooming, the grass is green and the neighbors just finished their spring cleaning! With this in mind, there is no time like the present to get out and photograph a few neighborhoods!
Bonus Tip
Like so many blog posts that I write, this topic came from a my inbox. Kari Mullins of Peoria Home Office asked me for a few tips on photographing neighborhoods. Instead of simply emailing her back, I decided to write this blog post. So the next time you’re faced with writer’s block, just take a look in your inbox. It’s likely overflowing with blog post ideas!
May 05
This is a commonly asked question among real estate agents and brokerages. Social media sites are great tools to grow your SOI (sphere of influence), to connect, show value, and get to know others in your community. Notice I never mentioned offering your services. Be guilty of that and you’ll develop a less than favorable reputation in the community. You’ll be marked with the scarlet “S” as a “spammer”! Unfortunately, it’s happening all too often-asking for business on social media sites.
Welcome to the Big Cocktail Party Called Social Media!
Apr 14
What a privilege it was to be invited on the Tamara Dorris Blog Talk Radio Show on Wednesday, March 24th. Over the next 2 post I will share 
with you my notes from Tamara’s show. I thought it would be helpful for you to have access to this Neighborhood Marketing Plan for your little corner of the world.
- While it’s awesome to get those great keywords like city name real estate (example-Dallas real estate), too many real estate agents overlook neighborhood keywords (long-tail searches). And the reality is that people who are searching with those neighborhood-centric keywords actually make stronger, more qualified consumers. Why? Someone searching for “Dallas real estate” is just browsing (tire-kickers) in broad generalities while someone searching for homes for sale in the Dallas neighborhood of Preston Hollow are looking for – well, homes for sale in Preston Hollow. There’s a strong probability they may be 30-60 days out instead of 18 months.
- If a RE Pro will provide this unique, SEO keyword-rich indexable content it will offer so much search power for the site owner
Read the rest of this entry
Mar 28
Before I go into the details of where all the “known” RE Bar Camp events are being held, maybe I should back this bus up and explain the 
definition of a RE Bar Camp. The best definition I’ve heard is that a RE Bar Camp is a one-day “unconference” organized by local RE.net volunteers and sponsors.
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