I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving!  A little late on my blessings, but I would like to show my appreciation and offer a special thanks to my clients.

In my recent post, I featured a real estate blog written by Ken Mclachlan, Broker of RE/MAX Hallmark Realty, Ltd in Toronto Canada.  Today, I wanted to share with you another post called “Not Retail Real Estate Anymore”.

Ken states that we all live our lives based on expectations.  We expect to get certain results including our expectations of the real estate market.  He says when our lives don’t live into our expectations, frustrations occur and problems arise.

“Whatever we are experiencing at any one time is largely due to the actions we are putting in.  When we are not getting the results we expect in our real estate careers, an adjustment in our actions is needed.  Many Realtors who started their careers within the past several years have experienced a market which has been consistent with a retail market.  Put your shingle up, and people will drop by and eventually buy something.  Realtors built a productive career in that market.  For a great many Realtors, they have been expecting the same results from this market by doing the same actions exhibited for “retail” based market.  A dynamic shift has occurred in our market, and many Realtors have not adjusted their actions to deal with it.”

“For me there is only one way to get the phone to ring, and it isn’t by sitting by it and waiting for it to ring.  The days of spending thousands of dollars on flyers are left behind us.  That type of prospecting can work, but it takes years of patience and thousands and thousands of dollars.  But when it is all we rely on – the market is real tough when the phone stops ringing.”

“Want to get the phone to ring in your real estate career?  Do the following:

• Stop hiding behind the computer and your desk, get out and talk with people
• Position an uniqueness about yourself in the marketplace, become an expert and let everyone know what you are an expert at
• Follow-up on every phone call, inquiry, Internet Lead
• Know that to built your business, you must have new business – connecting with those you don’t know is a big part of it – spend more time “prospecting” for new clients than you do with past clients
• Don’t forget about your past clients, but don’t rely on them entirely
• Don’t finish your day until your goal of connecting to new people for the day has been met
• Every day start your day by dealing just with the Top Of Mind things on your To Do List
• Establish at least two or more “projects’ to work on which will drive your business
• Do something good for yourself daily – take time during the day to clear your head, go for a walk, a workout, or read something inspiring
• Start your day an hour earlier

“If you don’t know how to meet new people, consider this.  Everyday creates opportunities.  Taking a group fitness class put you in touch with new people.  Walking up to the neighborhood store to buy milk put you in contact with new people.  There are incredible opportunities out there, being aware of them is important.”

Are you a realtor caught in the middle?  Juggling the desk, the telephone, the paperwork, and simply the time needed to spend in the “field?”  You may consider hiring an assistant – but do you question on-site or off-site benefits?  Virtual real estate Business Specialties offers realtor support & services off-site.  Everything an administrative assistant can do within your office, our VA’s can handle from a remote location and the employee expenses are null and void.  Our clients pay for services only!   Hours are client specific and service rates are one cost in the form of a monthly retainer.  It’s as easy as 1,2,3! 

Whether it be custom web design, listing coordination, multiple listing service, lead generation/lead management, drip marketing, data entry/database management, graphic design, marketing, to even answering your office calls, setting up home showings, and scheduling client appointments . . . Call upon us!  Discover the difference a Virtual Assistant can make!  Sign up today. 

Check back frequently.  We will be adding new marketing to our portfolio and new services to our list of realtor support! 

Although I find it difficult to keep up with my Biz Blog, I certainly find an extra few minutes in a day to read my clients.  Today, I wanted to share with you a post written by Ken McLachlan, a Broker of Record from Re/Max Hallmark, Realty, Ltd.

Ken’s posts are very inspirational!  Harsh, some may think so, but I find his posts to be very informative and written on both a personal and professional level with one goal . . . to drive his point home! 

Ken speaks of the industry and although we can sit here and differentiate between the Canadian Market and our chaotic real estate conditions, his compiling thoughts alone can bring insight to all, near and afar! 

“I think our industry for the most part is running scared. Realtors have had it too easy for too long. For many that didn’t really have much of a success in a buoyant market, that may be hard to swallow. But the fact is this, many Realtors are not equipped with the skills needed to make it in the industry of today UNLESS drastic changes are made. Too many Realtors are just hanging their heads low, hanging out with other negatives to reinforce their beliefs that no matter what they do, they are in for tough times. Nonsense.

Nothing annoys me more than to get a call from a Realtor to tell me how bad the market is, or that they don’t have any clients, or that their simple little real estate world is coming to an end as they knew it. Frankly all of that talk disgusts me. I certainly am a realist, and I know the reality of a good and not so good market. I also know we can only control one thing in our lives. The actions we take on a day to day basis. Most Realtors of today are worrying about things they have absolutely no control over. The stock market, the rise or fall of house values, or their lack of clients. Some are even paralyzed by the current market situation.
We all need to become more aggressive in everything we do. We need to take chances. Being aggressive doesn’t give us license to be inappropriate with clients or our peers. Being aggressive simply means facing challenges head on by dedicating hours and hours of work to get the results needed. There are people out there buying and selling houses every day in our city. It is the responsibility of each and every Realtor to spend their time seeking out people who value our service and are in need of our advice. And frankly, more and more people are in need of our advice today than in any other time in the past decade. How do Realtors do that? Get up away from the computer and go out and meet people. Pick up the phone and talk to people. Make an effort by inventing ways of communicating with people that desire and need your services.

Keeping our clients informed is important and necessary. Finding clients who need our information is what we should be spending most of our days doing. Now is not the time to worry about things in the market which we can’t control but now is the time to step up, deliver and stand apart from others.”  Ken McLachlan, RE/MAX Hallmark Realty, Ltd. 

Is now the time to make a move?  Experience the difference with VreBS!  Now in our 6^th year of service, Virtual real estate Business Specialties has been helping to put Realtors® together with prospective buyers and sellers.  It’s simple . . . we take care of the grunt work while you focus on your past, current, and future customers!

There is no time to waste and no need to wait!  VreBS in combination with REVAville provides the best service for your buck.  We offer realtor support and provide services in areas such as Custom Web Design, Listing Coordination, Drip Campaigning, Database/ Lead Management  & Generation/ Marketing and much more!  Contact us with confidence!  www.VreBS.net   We look forward to hearing from you.

New!  I have added to the marketing page, new portfolio’s of websites, real estate blogs, and advertisements!  Check them out . . . (more to come!)

On another note, not to joke about the rise on foreclosed homes these days, I received an Email the other day that was rather “comical” and wanted to share with others. 

Halloween is Going to SUCK This Year!

Good Afternoon!  I’m guilty . . . As much as I would like to post on a regular basis, I spend the majority of my time blogging for agents and neglecting my readers.  I apologize.  

As we approach September (can you believe it, only 3 months away from the holiday season), we would like to offer a Special Discount to “new” agents that inquire about realtor service & support.  Sign-up now until September 15^th, to take advantage of our special rates!  Virtual real estate Business Specialties provides multiple services and our support team is available 7 days a week, 24-hours a day.  Our team members provide you with listing services, lead management & database management support including drip marketing, custom web design, just listed & just sold marketing flyers/postcards/brochures, newsletters, and oodles more!  We welcome you to tour our website for a complete list of services and support.

Phase II, Virtual real estate Business Specialties is excited to launch our new & improved call center.  Under construction, the online appointment desk will be open to agents who wish to use the system for home showings, special instructions and home feedback requests.  Stay tuned for project completion as we are extremely excited for the launch of this new service!

In the meantime, remember to take advantage of the September Discount!  Visit our website at www.vrebs.net, Email, or call directly at (419) 305-8444.  We welcome the opportunity to talk with you and come onboard to the world of Virtual Outsourcing.

It’s Monday – early morning at the office.  As I am gathering my thoughts, coordinating my work week, and blogging real estate stats for the previous week, I decided to take a short minute to blog for the biz! 

Good morning agents, fellow VA’s, and other readers!  It was a busy but wonderful weekend for our local grand lake festivities but today it is back to reality or realty rather.  Going thru emails this early am, I came across an interesting fw: from Richard F. Gaylord {NAR@newsletters.realtor.org} regarding a Housing Stimulus Bill.  “With a little more than two weeks left before Congress leaves for the August Recess, NAR is working hard to get a Housing Stimulus bill on the President’s desk”.

Housing Stimulus Video

Great Reading Material – “How to Respond to Online Leads”

Written by Michael Russer, AKA Mr. Internet, I found this article very interesting!  “Unless the inquiry explicitly asks you to call, then you respond in the way they contacted you”. . . Michael states “in any other situation, you do NOT call them first”.  In doing this, he says that you are more likely to drive your prospect away.  

“When to Respond to Online Leads” Michael states that there is no such thing as “too fast”  Individuals do expect a very fast response to their inquiries, and it would be ideal for you to respond within minutes of receiving the lead.  How???  We all know that real estate professionals have extremely hectic schedules and without sitting in front of the computer 24/7, answering leads in a timely manner is next to impossible, but there is a solution.  Hire a Virtual Assistant that specializes in lead management.  Myself, as a Real Estate VA, I do sit in front of my computer all day, and am in the position, as Michael Russer describes, to respond immediately to leads on the agents behalf.

“Staying in Touch with Online Leads”  A large percentage of online real estate inquires are by individuals that are in the beginning stage or rather the “information gathering stage” and it may be sometime down the road before they are ready to take action.  On this note, that inquiry is indeed a lead – a lead is a potential prospect!  It is important to stay in touch with the individual, and Drip Marketing is a proven strategy.  Michael provides some great tips for Drip Marketing including:  Give them value, Stay in touch, don’t overwhelm, and Make it easy for them to say “no thanks”.

The best advice I found throughout this article – “Online Consumers are Human Beings Too”.  Click here to read the entire article found in Mr. Internet Blog, Helping You Earn More, Work Less, & Enjoy Life!

WoW, what a weekend!  I hope everyone had as much fun as I over the fourth of July holiday.  A vacation long coming, the family and I packed our bags and headed out on a 2-hour  - 2 day adventure to kings island!  Amusement park attractions, entertainment, and great food! 

Back to reality . . . it’s Monday!  Aside from unpacking, doing laundry, and just simply unwinding, it is gonna be a long day at the office with lots and lots of work to do.

Prior to this post, you may have noticed the fourth of july special offered to new agents.  There’s still time!  You have until the 10^th of July to take advantage of the Virtual real estate Business Specialties discounted rate.  Sign-up and remain at the same rate throughout . . . Check us out on the web at www.vrebs.net, email Cassandra@vrebs.net, or call us directly at (419) 305-8444. 

All for one special rate, Virtual real estate Business Specialties provides listing coordination, marketing flyers/brochures/just listed-just sold postcards, visual/virtual tours, lead management/database mgmt, drip marketing, and more plus we are excited about phase II of our new listing/showing appointment desk.

Come on board – we are looking forward to assisting you!

It’s Friday I did not realize how long it has really been since my last post especially since I was blogging on a weekly basis. This only means one thing – the black cloud lingering over the real estate market is finally dissipating. Yep, that’s right! We have been extremely busy over the last month.

Here it is almost July, can you believe it . . . we are only five months away from Christmas, Yikes! With the Fourth of July festivities springing into action, here at VreBS, we wanted to offer a Holiday Special to those agents looking to outsource. Take advantage of our discounted rate starting today and ending July 10th. Email today and request a free consultation with NO OBLIGATION, check us out on the web, or call us directly at (419) 305-8444.

So who are we? We are individuals excited about helping you! We have a passion for real estate, but do we sell – NO . . . we are simply your administrative assistants working to minimize your workload and maximize your business. If you are tired of wasting valuable time and energy, get started today. It’s as easy as 1-2-3!

Raise Your Comfort Level . . . There are literally thousands of virtual assistants from around the world who are making a huge difference for business people in every industry imaginable. There are times, however, when you need a VA who really understands the nuances of the real estate business. Hiring a VA who specializes in helping real estate professionals typically lets you gain productivity almost immediately since little or no training is required on your part. By: Michael Russer, AKA Mr. Internet – Read More > > >

Let’s get down to business! The next best thing for Virtual Assistant/Client Correspondence . . . I was introduced to two of the neatest features this past week and have implemented both into my business.

Airset – the neatest gadget used for contact management, file uploading, appointment scheduling, and more! Read more at www.airset.com! Free of charge, upgrade capability for a minimal fee, and organization. This system has allowed me to organize all my client’s contact information, files, etc. into one database (but still kept individualized) and have it available at the click of the mouse!

Packet8 - A Virtual Office “Must Have”! With this telephone system, I can answer (all) incoming office calls from across the states. That’s right, I’m doing it now! Are you a sales representative that is out of the office often, too busy to answer a telephone that rings non-stop, missed calls frequently? Packet8 features a Virtual Office system that is neater than sliced bread! Find out more at http://www.packet8.comor contact me for details

I can’t take the credit for these awesome new gadgets . . . My newest client with VreBS introduced me to these cool systems which proves that even Virtual Assistants can learn from real estate professionals, after all our openness to learn new things is what allows us to offer others even better real estate support & services.

If you are thinking of hiring a real estate virtual assistant, contact me at http://www.vrebs.netor call direct to (419) 305-8444. Get your questions answered, get started today, and get the service you deserve. Request help with Listing Coordination, Lead Management, Website(s), Buyer/Seller Reports, Drip Marketing, Database Management, & more.