Improving Your Business

Stories, articles and advice aimed at improving your business

The 4 Key Traits of Today’s First-Time Homebuyers

First-time homebuyers represent a hugely important swath of the homebuying public, and a new study has pinpointed some of their key characteristics. First-time homebuyers serve an integral role in the U.S. housing market. Along with comprising between 30 and

3 Reasons To Not Count Out Direct Mail

The marketing world is becoming more tech-savvy and mobile-ready by the day, but you should not completely count out direct mail. Real estate is an industry in a constant state of flux, but there is one trend that analysts

What a 67-Year-Old Grandma Can Teach You About SEO

Gloria Valvasori with Better Homes & Gardens is 67 years old, raising three grandchildren, a full-time Realtor and a whiz at SEO and social media marketing! Now before you say she must have been a computer geek all along,

Five Tips for Working Effectively With Appraisers, Even When You Can’t Select Them

Getting an appraisal done can be compared to a blind date. First, there is the phone call from someone you’ve never met; the one thing you have in common is a listing under contract. The call concludes with a

How to Deal with Difficult Agents

Though we’d like to think that everyone is real estate is wonderful, there are undeniably some bad apples out there; here’s how you can deal with them. Real estate is a buzzing, active industry with a wonderfully diverse group

What Home Remodeling Projects Are Best For Your Clients?

Home remodeling projects have a certain romanticism to them, and though some are worth the time and effort, others do not recoup their expenses. Who doesn’t love home remodeling? After all, remodeling is one of the defining reasons for

5 Reasons to Take M-commerce Seriously

M-commerce, or commerce via mobile devices, is the future of business in America, and a new eMarketer survey hammers home that fact. M-commerce, short hand for shopping via mobile devices, used to be a fledgling component of the American

How to Respond to a Social Media Faux Pas

Social media faux pas happen, but it’s important that you understand the rules of the game and respond to any mistakes in a thoughtful manner. You’re sharing a cool link on Twitter, but the link is incorrect; you’re posting

3 Ways to Improve Your Listing Copy

With syndication sites and IDX feeds now a permanent fixture on the real estate landscape, well-written listing copy is a necessity. Once upon a time, real estate listings were a closely-held secret, with the information and facets of all

Let The Light In, Improve Your Listing’s Value

Cleanliness and organization are certainly important factors when showing a home, but effective use of lighting can be equally valuable. When agents go through their check-lists before showing a property, they often focus on the most immediate needs of

4 Ways to Deal with Difficult Clients

Difficult clients are one of the necessary evils of working in real estate, though there are methods and strategies you can employ to deal with them. We’re sure the above image is one many of you can relate to

Convert Buyers Through Pinterest

While Facebook may dominate in terms of number of users, Pinterest wins the battle when it comes to converting online pins into real life sales. According to Bizrate, 69 percent of online consumers have purchased an item they found

4 Steps to Being an Effective Communicator

The benefits of good communication are obvious, but how can you ensure that your message is being communicated effectively? Effective communication is among the most important qualities for a successful career in real estate. From initial consultations, to listing presentations,

Luxury Insights – What Tools Are Necessary For Selling Luxury Homes?

The Institute of Luxury Home Marketing (ILHM) has so many tools that can help luxury agents. One valuable tool is the weekly ILHM National Luxury Market Report. I recently spoke with an ILHM member who was using this report

What Keywords Should You Optimize Your Real Estate Website For?

We often hear the term “Search Engine Optimization,” but what real estate terms should agents actually optimize on their websites? Alyssa Mattero explains. Choosing the right keywords to target on your website can be tricky. You have to get

Smoking Damages a Property’s Value by 29 Percent

A new study by Pfizer Canada has uncovered the true cost of smoking – its monetary damages to your real estate listings! Anti-smoking campaigns typically focus on the negative health effects of tobacco, but a new study by Pfizer

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