Thoughts from Steve Harney’s talk at LeadingRE conference 2012

Steve is very smart. He uses some good graphs to illustrate his points.

Now, I don't have his graphs, but the one that caught my eye said the following... If you put $100,000 into each of the following investments in the year 2000, your overall return in 2012 would be:

Dow Jones :: 18%
S&P :: -3% (I forgot the actual percentage, but it was small)
Nasdaq :: -27% (Again, I forgot the actual number, but it was bad!)
Real Estate in the USA :: 38%

Ok, I get it Steve Harney. One makes more money, on average, in the past 12 years in a real estate investment. But I have a number of questions and thoughts:

First of all, these are all terrible rates of return. This is a 12 year investment. This is not ARR, it's total return! If you told me I could make an investment now and in 12 years it would be worth 38% more, I would pass. So would the rest of the intelligent investors on the planet.

Now, if you compare the 18% growth rate on the Dow to the growth rate of Real Estate values, I'm a little nervous. You can't buy a real estate index fund. I can buy a Dow index fund and I can sell it tomorrow if I want to. Most of us can buy 1 house. And selling at house is going to take months. Liquidity has value, is my first point.

My second point: There is other intangible value to buying. The investment isnt everything. I love owning my home. I just redid 2 rooms. I can't do that if I rent. I might be willing to "spend" some money (spending in the form of taking on a less liquid investment) in order to have some of the intangibles of owning.

Now, Steve Harney had another graph, 2 in fact, er, i think, that told us that rents are expected to rise fast. Well, that's not news. Forbes tells us that buying vs renting will save you money at a ratio of 54/90 rent to buy. Steve had a slide on that. Ok, a little math.

38% x 90/54 = 64.75%

Hmm, well, that's a bit better, but still not the rate of return I want. But maybe that's ok.

I have to say that unless you factor in a rise in demand, it's hard to believe in a projection of robust growth that will meet investment grade standards.

Dominate Local SEO- Watch & Learn!

In the last LogicClassroom, our senior markting expert Angela Davis shed some light on "How to Dominate Local Search". She shares some easy Search Engine Optimization tips with great practical examples for the real estate industry. The webinar also covered basics of developing a content strategy based on the geographic area you operate in.

PRESENTATION & WEBINAR

Dominate Local Search (Local SEO)

View more presentations from Boston Logic Technology Partners, Inc.

Tuesday Tip: Not Provided in Google Analytics- 2

In Part 1 of the understanding "Not Provided" in Google Analytics we learned how to calculate visits from Branded keywords. The second step is to calculate the visits from non-branded keywords. Listed below are the steps to help reach our goal:

Click on Traffic Section on the left sidebar of your Analytics dashboard. You will see the category Sources which contains the subcategory Search. Under Search is Organic Traffic where you will find the information about visits from "not provided".

REFER TO THE IMAGE BELOW FOR THE FOLLOWING STEPS

Click on “advanced” and select “Exclude” so instead of getting data for all your branded traffic, you are excluding it. Don't forget to add your branded keywords in the text box.
You also need to exclude the traffic from the non provided keywords. Click on add dimensions or metric. Under “dimensions” select “Keyword” and select "Containing" and “Exclude” in the next two tab.
In the text box enter “Not Provided”.

Non-Branded keyword research in Google Analytics

At Boston Logic non-branded keywords account for 20% of the visits ( Total Organic visits - Total Visits via Non Branded Keywords/ Total Organic Visits * 100)

You can use your percentages from your calculations to have a good idea about how much of your traffic from "not provided" is branded vs non-branded and use it as a benchmark for future reference which analyzing your data.

You can create custom reports with filters excluding and including brand keywords (Steps are similar to the ones described in Part 1 and Part 2 of Tuesday Tip)

If you are looking for a more advanced solution this article from e-consultancy is a good start.

If you want further information about how our marketing team can help you with your online campaigns get in touch !!

Featured Sequoia Additions: CMS Preview & Sold Listings

Attention Sequoia System Users: you asked, so we delivered! Check out two of the latest and greatest features added to our integrated Sequoia platform...

CMS Preview Button

We've added a "Preview" function to our LogicCMS - something we've had a lot of requests for and are excited to share! Now when you are creating or editing a page on your Sequoia website, you can get a sneak peek at how the content will appear live, without having to save the page and view it on the front end. At any time during the process of creating or editing a page, just scroll to the bottom of the editor and click the blue Preview button - a preview of the new version of the page opens in a new tab or window.

The Preview function lets you see your changes without saving your work; no more need to worry about how your formatted content will look to your customers. The Preview tool can also save you lots of time, since you no longer need to save a page and view it from the front end in order to see how your finished work will look.

Sold Listings on Agent Profiles

Sold Listings Preview for Carmella Laurella of CL Waterfront Properties

For agents who want to show off the great properties they've recently sold, we just added the ability to show your sold listings along with your active ones right on your profile page. Just check the "Display Sold Properties On Bio" box in your Profile and your sold listings from the past 90 days will be shown right below your active listings. This is a great way to show prospective seller clients your portfolio and your close rate, or just to let people browse the quality listings you've recently represented.

More Sequoia System Updates!

HTML Listing Templates

The Dev team at Boston Logic has created a tool that generates HTML listing templates for any MLS property with one click. If you want to show off a listing on Craigslist, in a sharply styled email, or anywhere you can paste HTML, you can generate these listing templates anytime you want. Just perform an MLS search on the back end of your Sequoia website and you will have the option to do so on every listing.

HTML Listings Templates

We’ve also added fields to Developments, Luxury Buildings, and Sales Exclusives to allow you to embed property videos. Just add a video of your great new listing or the hot new building in town to YouTube or any other video service that gives you embed codes, and copy that code into the Video field for the listing or building. The video will automatically be formatted on the listing page, ready to engage your prospective customers.

Be sure to stay tuned in this summer for more product enhancements- and you can keep the cooler packed!

Boston Logic Mixes and Mingles with Boston BarCampers

What Did We Discover?

The rainy June day started sleepy and a bit disheveled, as most traditional conferences do, when we arrived at the Back Bay Center to begin setting up our Exhibitor Table. BarCampers were slow to arrive, and cautious to post or host unpopular topics on the big empty whiteboard – but the afternoon turned out to be anything but traditional or underwhelming!

In fact, it was refreshingly noisy, social and unbarring. It almost seemed as if the vibe in the room was mimicking the very nature of the subject we all came to discuss: integrating social media into our businesses, relationships and accepting it as the new fabric of our lives. While the process feels messy and begs a substantial humility of sorts, the end result is one that’s honest and produces eye-opening results.

Our CEO and Founder, David Friedman, led the pack with what he called “A Realtor Wake-Up Call: You’ve Been Looking at Social Media the Wrong Way”.

This seemed to be just the caffeine everyone needed as thoughts and theories began to open up about the future path of the technology tornado. One Agent expressed his concern that the role of the realtor may soon become altogether inconsequential, as social channels bypass directly to the buyer and seller. Some participants seemed more weary than others of the trend, as Union Street Media’s Founder, Ted Adler, added his belief that social media “makes it harder to be bad at your job”- but David offered a final sentiment by expressing that “social media doesn’t have an agenda, nor does it have a conscience- it’s just a tool”- a tool that will only bypass us if we let it.

From left: David Friedman, Spencer Taylor, Sven Andersen

The following session on social media presented the question, “what’s working?”- a tag-team effort by David, Spencer Taylor of Union Street Media, and Sven Andersen of RE/MAX. Sven shared an interesting notion with the group that his most effective marketing technique was the ‘personal touch’ achieved from throwing lavish or family-friendly client parties- and that social media tools like Yelp and Facebook came in a close second.

A dialogue then began about the value and ROI of ‘community management’ techniques, such as partnering with local vendors to send out an “Angie’s List” type magnet to neighbors through direct mail – or participating in local activities and then sharing those experiences through a Facebook profile. An interesting Twitter anecdote was also offered about a realtor who was recognized at a client showing from a Twitter profile and won the client’s business as a result. The discussion soon took a turn and shifted into a panel about how much information is appropriate to share- it seemed many of the realtors were most concerned about appropriate social media etiquette and how much ‘personal touch’ to offer up online. What I heard loud and clear is that a real estate agent’s hesitancy behind social networking can be largely attributed to the very fine line that exists between personal and business life.

So what did we discover at the end of the day?

For Boston Logic, the real take-away was this: it’s not about the tool or gimmick, or even the means – it’s the matter that matters and it’s the connection that counts. Whether a magnet sent through the mail, a client party thrown with a clown, a Yelp review, a Facebook “Like” or a Tweet on Twitter- it’s the rapport that can be drawn from these frequencies that actually pushes a relationship forward and helps a business grow. There’s a sense of commonality and familiarity still at the driving center of all social networking- and this is something technology will never succeed to bypass.

Entrepreneur’s Decision Making Process

Entrepreneur’s Decision making process

First, Remember: The best decision isn’t always going to yield a successful outcome. Every action has some (albeit sometimes small) odds of yielding a bad outcome. All we can do is work with the information at hand .

Decision: a, b, or c - come to a group decision and move on.

Follow these steps in order. Discuss the options among your co-workers. If after any of these steps all but one option has been eliminated, make that your decision and move on!

1. If there are true roadblocks to any of the options, are they valid roadblocks? Or should these obstacles be ignored in making this decision or should we assume we'll be able to deal with these obstacles. If they are true roadblocks making that choice impossible or too costly, eliminate those choices first.

2. Establish decision making criteria. What are we trying to achieve? What are our goals? What is the priority order for these goals? Do these options align with our goals and priorities. If a choice or choices doesn’t meet the goals, eliminate that option.

3. Do we have any quantitative evidence to lend to this decision? If there's good, reliable, statistically significant data to suggest one option over another, rely on that, make the decision dictated by the data, move on.

4. List pros and cons for each choice. If the pros far outweigh the cons of any one choice, that is probably the best choice. If the cons far outweigh the pros, eliminate that choice.

5. Do we have overwhelming anecdotal evidence? Make sure the squeaky wheel isn't just getting the grease. Assuming we no quantitative data but have multiple experiences, hearsay, hunches, pieces of evidence, and zeitgeist to suggest a course of action, follow the overwhelming evidence.

It’s critical to remember that many decisions will yield outcomes that you didn’t intend. If the outcome is negative, take this as a new piece of evidence or data, re-evaluate, and change course. Don't think that this makes your decision wrong. It just makes the outcome poor. Many decisions are not "If a, then b." If they were, then all outcomes would be understood and decision making wouldn't be a challenge at all.

Lastly, don't get caught in analysis paralysis. You may make an imperfect choice. If you can minimize your risk, then all you'll risk missing out on is an optimized outcome. That's often ok. Most of the time, you'll probably make a great choice and you'll be happy that you're reaping the benefits sooner, rather than later.

New Sequoia Feature Launches: 4/21/2011

Boston Logic has recently unleashed a slew of amazing new features (as we always do!) designed to make your online presence ever stronger, and the process of turning leads into deals easier and faster than ever before. Here are just a few of the choicest highlights:

Mapped Search

If your search parameters for a new home can’t be defined by conventional constraints like towns, neighborhoods, ZIP codes, and the like, we now offer you the opportunity to “think outside the box” and literally define your own custom location. Using our new Mapped Search Tool, you can draw a shape – any shape, with unlimited sides and angles – on an interactive Google map. Want to live within a certain stretch of your favorite scenic drive in the country? Draw a boundary around it and click Search to see only listings right where you want to be. Longing for a view of the waterfront, but maybe not if that waterfront happens to include a freight terminal? No problem – draw a boundary around your favorite beach or lake.

The power is literally in your hands to define exactly where you want to find your dream home. No limits, no boundaries – except those you draw yourself. Not to mention, the tool itself is a pretty mean piece of eye candy! It’s also available for setting up Town Pages as well, so if you want to create just such a custom search for your clients to be able to access with one click, the sky’s the limit. We’re sure you’ll want to learn more about this great new tool – you can always feel free to contact us for more info, or for a comprehensive, step-by-step guide to using this and all of the other features of the Sequoia platform, be sure to visit our new User Guide.

Custom Lead Capture Timing

Using our Modal Lead Capture tool is perhaps the single most effective way to turn visitors to your website into viable leads. And that is a very modest use of the word “perhaps”. That said, it has often come up in conversation with our clients that it is often advantageous to offer a few property views before your users are prompted to register.

To that end, we’ve now added the ability for you to control how many listings a visitor can view before being required to register. As always, you can turn the feature on or off for sales, rentals, or for Developments if you have this component installed. Now, you can also set the number of property views a visitor is allowed before being prompted to register – the number is up to you.

You can even allow different numbers of views for sales, rentals, and Developments individually. This is great if you want to offer a “teaser” of a few listing views to get your visitors engaged further in the use of your site, which can increase the likelihood that they will be inclined to register and become a viable lead in your sales pipeline.

Those of you who are active with social media (good for you!) know that Facebook has dropped their FBML program, which allowed for custom development of integrated tools like property searches for your company’s Facebook page. Instead, they now support using iFramed tools instead, a radical departure from their previous strategy.

iFrames are like the web's version of Russian Nesting Dolls.

For those of you who don’t know the term, an iFrame is a portion of a website designed to be inserted within another web page such that it appears to be a part of the original page the visitor is viewing. It’s basically the Web’s version of those classic Russian nesting dolls – the ones you open up only to find a smaller but otherwise similar version nestled inside.

As soon as we got wind of this, we immediately developed a tool for the Sequoia platform which installs an iFramed Facebook Search Tool, themed to match your Sequoia real estate website, onto your Facebook page. This tool was tested and ready to use months in advance of Facebook’s plan to phase out FBML. Take that, Zuckerberg!

When your Facebook page visitors perform a search using this tool, they are taken to your website, captured as a lead, and tracked as having come from your Facebook iFrame to help you measure the success of your social media campaign. We can install this tool as part of our immensely popular Social Media Accelerator program for real estate agents and brokers looking to empower their business strategy with the potent fuel of social media.

Contact the Boston Logic sales team today to learn more!

Boston Logic: Stay Ahead of the Curve

It is highly important to note that real estate marketing is a verb—it never stops.
What else doesn’t stop? The internet. It’s always evolving. Never fear, Boston Logic is on the case for your brokerage.

At the recent South By South West (SXSW) conference, a swanky exposition for internet dweebs and geeks like me, Google insider Matt Cutts revealed that Google’s search algorithm—the method by which Google spider’s it’s content for search queries—is changing. Again.

The so-called Panda Algorithm is putting a renewed emphasis not only on content, but on social syndication of content. What does this mean for your brokerage?

Simple: with a website on Boston Logic’s powerful Sequoia Platform, you can easily push your original content, like blogs and listings, out to your social media site. With a few clicks of a button you can let your followers to “Like”, retweet or syndicate that content further. Boston Logic seamlessly integrates the fun experience of social networking page and takes them into the transactional experience of looking for a home on your brokerage’s website. Just like that.

Actually, we anticipated such a shift in the Google social search change. How do you know? Take a look:

Boston Logic can already put a search right into your Facebook Fan page. When performed, you have them right to your site, ready to sign in as a lead. Hello, new customer!

It’s all so seamless and easy. I’m actually one of the least tech savvy people I know, and even I can do it. But even if you still think you can't, Boston Logic has you covered. Our Social Media Accelerator can do it for you. We can syndicate your valuable content to your social media sites, so you can speak to your clients and convert Twitter hashtags into new homeowners!

To find out how to leverage this power to leave your competition behind (or below you) and stay ahead of the curve, you can request a no-pressure demo by emailing Patrick at pberzai@bostonlogic.com.

Thoughts from Steve Harney’s talk at LeadingRE conference 2012

Related Links:

Dominate Local SEO- Watch & Learn!

PRESENTATION & WEBINAR

Related Links:

Tuesday Tip: Not Provided in Google Analytics- 2

If you want further information about how our marketing team can help you with your online campaigns get in touch !!

Related Links:

Featured Sequoia Additions: CMS Preview & Sold Listings

Attention Sequoia System Users: you asked, so we delivered! Check out two of the latest and greatest features added to our integrated Sequoia platform...

CMS Preview Button

Sold Listings on Agent Profiles

Related Links:

More Sequoia System Updates!

Related Links:

HTML Listing Templates

Related Links:

Boston Logic Mixes and Mingles with Boston BarCampers

What Did We Discover?

Related Links:

Entrepreneur’s Decision Making Process

Related Links:

New Sequoia Feature Launches: 4/21/2011

Related Links:

Boston Logic: Stay Ahead of the Curve

Related Links:

Search

Archives

What is the Sequoia System

Recently Written

Categories