Friday, December 28, 2007

Maximize Your Marketing--Use a Real Estate Virtual Assistant

Do you want to maximize your marketing? A real estate virtual assistant can help you do just that. Most agents do not have the time it takes to truly maximize the exposure for their listings. A virtual assistant can take your listing and provide the best exposure possible on-line. From entering it into multiple search engines and websites to creating virtual tours or single property web sites! Imagine how well your listing presentation will go when you show the seller they will have placement on up to twenty or more web sites and that their property will even have its own dedicated website! A virtual assistant can also create IVR recordings for your listing to capture leads, and design flyers or e-mail campaigns to market your listing. A real estate virtual assistant can also help promote you as a professional agent by using social media marketing, blogging, press releases and more to help you stand out from the crowd. Having a strong Internet presence is a necessity in today's market-- are you where you need to be? For more information on how Virtu-Assist can help make this happen contact us today by visiting www.virtu-assist.com.


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Thursday, December 20, 2007

Get Your Real Estate Business in Gear for the New Year

Get your business in gear for the new year! Well how can you do that?

Well for starters have a plan, success is reached by setting goals and future planning. It is an asset to your business to have a sound plan for the new year, set goals for your self as motivation to achieve greater success. Identify what level of success you would like to reach in 2008, consider some of the following, a goal to reach a certain number of transactions, to increase your conversion rate for leads, to increase commissions by a certain percentage, to increase your number of referrals, or to expand your business by building a team. What ever you desire to do, put a plan in place to achieve these goals.

Now you have a plan and you have goals you want to achieve; so how do you reach these goals?

You analyze where your business could use improvements. First I always focus on organization...an organized business is much more productive for a number of reasons. From the time saving benefits in having systems in place that run smoothly to the fact that you can easily find and retain important information which can help in making transactions close on time. Organization and systems also help convert leads. If you are organized you can receive a lead, and put a system or plan in place to follow up without having to spend a lot of your time. Set up automatic emails or a direct mail campaign based on what your leads needs are, send buyer resources, or tips for selling your home, etc. Just keep up the follow up and you will convert more leads.

What else? Are you utilizing the best marketing for your listings? Consider that proper marketing enables faster closings, and that the faster a sale the less expensive it is to you. It does cost money to maintain a listing, and it is far more effective to spend a little more effort or money up front to market the listing, than to have it sit idle for months on the market. Use free resources-syndicate to on-line websites, and add your listing to on line classifieds such as craigslist. Use social media sites, and other real estate blogs to advertise as well.

Finally, work smarter! Invest in technology that saves time and money and utilize the resources that will help increase your business. Have a solid contact manager, your contacts are your business. Utilize your website, offer valid information and resources for consumers, include lead forms to capture possible clients. Offer great customer service, use the best tools to set your self apart from the crowd.

Your business is your livelihood so treat it that way. You will achieve what you set out to accomplish if you will plan and put forth the effort; however, no one has to do this alone, it is reasonable to seek help with expanding your business and that is where we can help. We can help you get in gear and on the track to success by partnering with you to achieve your goals. We can help with planning, organization, systems, communication and marketing. If you would like more information please feel free to contact me, or visit us on-line at www.virtu-assist.com.

Business Resource Series Part Two-Free Templates for Planning

Welcome to part two of our new business resource series brought to you by Virtu-Assist, a Virtual Assistant business offering support to small business owners and real estate professionals.. This series will provide basic business forms and templates that can be customized for your business.  We even have a special series dedicated to Realtors which includes contracts, lease agreements, property flyers, brochures and more. The objective of this series is to provide resources for small business owners and independent professionals. The series began with communication in part one, as this is important to the success of any business. Now we will introduce some forms for planning. Sound planning is important for any business. So here are some forms to help you with planning for the New Year:
Throughout the series we will focus on different aspects of the business from communications, planning, employment, expenses, travel, marketing, and more. You can subscribe to the series to have the templates sent right to your inbox, or you can visit weekly to obtain the new templates here.  While these resources are basic forms and templates for businesses, we realize that often businesses need special forms to function. Form development and design is a service that Virtu-Assist can provide, so if you should need any personalized or special forms, contact us today and we would be happy to help. You can visit us online at http://www.virtu-assist.com/ or give me a call at 251-680-4079. Have a wonderful day and thank you for viewing our post!
 In case you missed it, here is Part One of the Business Resource Series.
 


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Friday, December 14, 2007

Free Marketing For Your Real Estate Listings

Here is an excerpt from our Real Biz Resource Newsletter...

FREE WEBSITES FOR ADVERTISING YOUR LISTINGS!
www.postlets.com
www.base.google.com
www.craigslist.com
www.trulia.com
www.homescout.com
www.oodle.com
www.edgeio.com
www.livedeal.com
www.secondspace.com
www.hotpads.com

BEST BLOGGING SITES FOR ADVERTISING YOUR LISTINGS!
www.activerain.com
www.widgets.trulia.com
www.sixapart.com
www.housingwidgets.com
www.livejournal.com
www.wordpress.com

QUICK TECH TIP:
Never underestimate the power of exposure. By adding your listings to many sites with a link back to your website it may actually help boost your website rankings in online Search Engines. This is just one of the many tips in our SEO series of Quick Tech Tips!

For more useful information subscribe to the REAL BIZ RESOURCE newsletter. Sign Up Now!

Tuesday, December 11, 2007

New Business Resource-Free Templates

Virtu-Assist would like to announce a new business resource series. This series will provide basic business forms and templates that can be customized for your business. We even have a special series dedicated to Realtors which includes contracts, lease agreements, property flyers, brochures and more. The objective of this series is to provide resources for small business owners and independent professionals. We will begin the series with communication, as this is important to the success of any business. A professional appearance is important and one of the best practices is to have a professional look for your communication tools including letterhead, business cards, fax cover sheets and more. If you do not have a logo generic stationary would be better than blank paper. So for this post we have included the following:

Generic Letterhead Template
Fax Cover Sheet Template

Throughout the series we will focus on different aspects of the business from communications, planning, employment, expenses, travel, marketing, and more. You can subscribe to the series to have the templates sent right to your inbox, or you can visit weekly to obtain the new templates here. While these resources are basic forms and templates for businesses, we realize that often businesses need special forms to function. Form development and design is service that Virtu-Assist can provide, so if you should need any personalized or special forms, contact us today and we would be happy to help. You can visit us online at www.virtu-assist.com or give me a call at 25-680-4079. Have a wonderful day and thank you for viewing our post!

A Virtual Assistant Is an Asset for Your Real Estate Business

A virtual assistant is a true asset for any business, especially a real estate business. Why specifically Real Estate? Because most real estate agents work independently. It can be a real challenge when an agent has the potential to obtain more business but does not have the manpower to take it on. In order to increase business you must be able to complete the workload. When an agent has to spend time completing administrative tasks it really does nothing more than cost them money. Consider that for every hour you spend on entering and marketing a listing, handling a transaction or just working on back office projects that you could be losing a sale. The more time you can spend with leads, buyers and sellers the more potential revenue you create. As an agent you are the sales person, so freeing your time to do just that is important. It is no surprise that agents with some type of assistance handle a larger volume than those who do not. It is a simple concept-one person only has the capability of producing a certain amount of work, with out assistance a person will always be limited to the number of listings or transactions that they can personally take on. This is not the mindset of a Top Producer. A top producer realizes that their time is more valuable as a salesperson than as an administrator. The other obvious conclusion is that two people can produce more than one; therefore, if you have an assistant to share the workload you can increase your volume. Another great benefit is that a Real Estate Virtual Assistant has the specialized skills to work with an agent to increase volume and maximize success by putting systems in place that save time and follow up plans to keep leads.

Now, this article may have reached you with no prior knowledge of how to work with a virtual assistant, or even what exactly a virtual assistant does. If that is the case or if you are interested in discussing your needs please feel free to contact me and I would be happy to assist you with any questions you may have. You can visit us online at www.virtu-assist.com or give me a call at 251-680-4079.

Monday, November 26, 2007

Best Business Resources

Virtu-Assist would like to announce a new series of best business resources for the real estate professional.The newsletter Real Biz Resource includes vital information for increasing efficiency in your business. From money saving ideas, time saving resources, to top notch programs for production this e-zine offers information for all to assist with the success of your business. This series also includes powerful marketing tips and a new How To Tech Section for using technology to work for you!  At Virtu-Assist we strive to help promote the real estate industry and the professionals that help it grow. This information is free and no obligation is required. We guarantee your privacy and will not share your information with any other party. Our goal is to share the resources we have found useful with others. Get Real BIZ Resource! 


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Wednesday, November 14, 2007

Send Holiday Cards. Don't Have Time? Think Again!

Holiday Cards are an excellent way to reach your clients and is a great practice for customer service. This simple yet effective card will dually benefit your business, first you get exposure i.e. marketing to your client. Second you get a stronger relationship with your client--which helps gain repeat business & maybe even more referrals. I know you are thinking I don't have to time to send out holiday cards to all my clients. Well you don't have to-Outsource the project! Virtu-Assist offers holiday & greeting card campaign services for you. Options for personalization: We can make them look handwritten by you with a simple form, then as a bonus you get to have your own handwriting font so you can use it in the future to sign letters, etc. It adds the touch that sets you apart. Add a photo to your greeting, or add a personal note. We even handle the mail out. All you have to do is fill out a form & send us your contact list. We will handle the rest.What about clients with just an email address? No problem we also offer personalized e-cards for them. For more information contact Megan Faust of Virtu-Assist, where we offer Real Solutions For Realtors! Call 251-680-4079 today or send a request for more information by Email. For a list of other real estate services we offer check out our website at www.virtu-assist.com.


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Sunday, November 11, 2007

Save Time, Money & Energy-Use a Virtual Assistant

Time, Money & Energy- Do you ever have enough of these commodities? Most people do not. From long work weeks, project deadlines, endless calls, checking and responding to emails, presentations, reports, the list just goes on. Outsourcing work can be the perfect solution to finding balance in your life, allowing you to save time.You can also save money by outsourcing to a virtual assistant. Because VA's are independent workers they do not require benefits, vacations, taxes, unemployment compensation,etc. They also offer flexibility in terms of hours, rather than the limits of hiring a full time in office assistant. With a virtual assistant you can choose the amount of time you are comfortable with, or some even work on a project basis for when you really get overloaded. You can also save energy--what would you do with an extra ten hours or more per week? Gain balance with your family or social life, maybe take some time to relax? Or you can increase your earning potential by having time to focus on your job, rather than getting bogged down with back office work. If you would like to learn more about a virtual assistant can help you & your business contact us at Virtu-Assist. You can view our website at www.virtu-assist.com or send the founder Megan Faust an email for more information at megan_s_04@yahoo.com.

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Tuesday, November 6, 2007

Personal Service-Get In Touch For The Holidays

Get in touch for the holidays! This is the perfect time of year to get in touch with your past clients or prospects. Rather than a standard solicitation letter or an offer some free information-- send a personal message in an e-card to your clients. Hallmark has a great site on line that is free to use to send cards by email (e-cards). This is a great way to connect and offer personal service. A friendly holiday greeting is a wonderful way to share the spirit of the season and may provide referrals from past clients, or it might even help convert a prospect. As a consumer a personal card is far more likely to be received & appreciated than your standard prospecting letters or emails. This way you have a personal touch and it serves the same purpose as normal prospecting by putting your name in their minds for real estate needs. If you would like help setting up a holiday e-card campaign I would be happy to help.Check out www.virtu-assist.com for more solutions for your real estate needs.   

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Thursday, November 1, 2007

Dynamic Email Campaigns-Keeping Your Leads

Today many people use the Internet to search for real estate. If you have a website it is likely that many people visit your site while searching for homes, or if looking for helpful information. One way to capture these prospects is to create a lead generating form that gets them to register with your site. You could offer valuable information like a home buyers guide, a free market valuation, or the ability to search your IDX to find homes. Whatever lead form you use, it is a good idea to respond to these leads as quickly as possible. Set up a generic auto-respond email that is personable, with a solid subject line that will spark interest-for instance use their name in the Subject line-that will more likely prompt a response if this is your first correspondence. Make sure you use plain text until they have responded to your emails, that way they do not go to spam. Also keep in mind some ways to generate a response to your email, like asking for additional details for their real estate needs so that you can best assist them, or again offer some free useful information like a newsletter, etc. Make sure you allow people to un-subscribe as well, that way they feel that you are not just spamming them. Also if they leave more information such as a phone number go ahead and call as soon as possible, be the first responder and you will more likely to keep the lead! If you need help creating a dynamic email campaign we can help at Virtu-Assist. Please feel free to contact us if we can of assistance!

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Thursday, October 18, 2007

Baldwin County Residential Sold Report

From NAR Residential Sold Report
Baldwin County-All Areas
Report Generated For: 10/01/2007 - 10/18/2007

New Listings 577

Total Homes Sold 109

Total Condos Sold 23

Median Sold Price $187,500

Average Sold Price $226,104

Average Days on Market 168

Total Sold Dollar Volume Residential $16,589,313

Total Sold Dollar Volume Condo/Multifamily $8,056,066

Total Home Sales Sold Dollar Volume $24,645,379

Wednesday, October 17, 2007

Capture Leads & Keep Them!

Many agents get leads in various ways. From a call by driving by and seeing a sign, a web site, an ad, a flier, or referral from a friend. However most agents have trouble securing those leads and making them prospects. Of course you will never keep all your leads, but tracking them and keeping in touch will help. Do you have a contact management system? If not you should. It is really important to capture as much contact information as possible and then enter these leads into a contact management system. This way you can track a person, and keep in touch with them. Develop a customer service plan, from sending cards, to informative emails, a call to check in. Whatever you do just make contact. Keeping you in their minds is important, especially for those who may just be starting to look, but that are a long way from buying. Sending Holiday cards or anything personal is a good way to stay in touch. With so many options for agents, you really must promote your self consistently. Maybe you would like to set up a contact plan that will help keep your leads, or you need training on contact management software, or maybe you just need someone to help keep up with the leads. If you need help with getting leads & keeping them consider using a virtual assistant to help you meet your goals.

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Increase Your Volume-Hire A Virtual Assistant

Increase your volume! Isn't that what all agents strive to do-more volume equals more commissions. The only problem is a single agent can only handle a limited number of transactions or listings at a time. A single agent is limited to the amount of work they alone can produce and that hinders volume. The idea behind increasing volume by hiring a virtual assistant is that the VA can reduce the agent's work load, meaning more time to acquire more listings, or more time to spend with buyers. Think of the administrative & management time spent with a listing. From entering the listings & downloading photos to MLS or websites, to developing fliers & ads, or keeping your listings updated on progress, collecting & reporting feedback, scheduling showings, the list goes on & on. What about prospects or leads? You can increase volume by keeping in contact with leads & prospects. A virtual assistant can manage those prospects for you. What about closings- a virtual assistant can schedule inspections, order surveys, work with title companies & keep your clients up to date on progress. The idea is that if you have a virtual assistant, you can outsource the administrative work to them, leaving your time in the field for more transactions.

SEO & Why It Matters To You

SEO or Search Engine Optimization is a term that describes a process to increase your rankings in search engines on-line such as Google, etc. SEO is important to any agent with a web site. More & more people are using the Internet to search for real estate everyday. The problem is that if you can not be found on search engines then you are missing these people & potential leads. Some SEO tips would be to use keyword rich content on your web sire. Terms like buying or selling a home, find homes, search for homes, real estate, your region or state, etc. Use terms that pertain to your specialty & market. Also link to sites that have high rankings. If you are part of a larger company link to the corporate web site or add links to real estate resources. Also add tags to your pages, these are similar phrases to your keywords that search engines use to determine the content your site provides. Add an RSS feed that provides real time updates with news, real estate tips, etc. Hope you enjoy the tips!

Monday, October 15, 2007

Branding-Why It's A Must For Agents

When you think of Nike, you think of the swoosh. This is a form of branding. They use the logo to sell the product and set it apart from the competition. This type of individualization is a must for Realtors. In an industry of thousands, people need to know you. As a Realtor you not only sell houses you sell your self. Develop a brand for your self. Use company logos and add your photo. Come up with a slogan that is all your own. It is important to convey your brand in all your communications that way people think of you when they think of real estate. Being memorable is key in keeping leads. If you need help with agent branding visit our site and we can help you establish an identity that will set you apart from the crowd. www.virtu-assist.com!