A very wise person once told me that “successful people get results and unsuccessful people get excuses”. Since then I have tried to live life with no excuses. It is a constant challenge to keep that promise, and the “age” excuse is the one the keeps boiling to the top; it’s the easiest one to indulge….

No matter where I travel, when the topic of technology/change comes up, I hear “I’m too old to change” and they are usually younger than I am.

Don’t become Blockbuster

The sad reality is, if you don’t welcome change you could become the next Blockbuster Video. 10 years ago they had it all until the small upstart Netflix made the conversion from warehousing to online downloadable movies. Blockbuster watched their market share shrink and their stores close. Is that the business model that you would like to follow? Is that the life model that will guide your future? Are you ready to retire?

Today’s toys are tomorrow’s tools: The iPad launched in April 2010, the modern day cell phone in the early 1980’s, smart phones in 2000, the modern car is just over 100 years old, yet very few homes are without them today.

When change confronts us, lines in the sand are drawn but you would be aghast today if someone told you they did not drive a car, or have a phone number. We adapted and we learned.

Does age force that adaptation to stop or do we just feel overwhelmed and tired? There is no doubt that the amount of change has increased but is slowing it down the answer or is engaging new technology the solution…why not bring back that child’s sense of wonder?

Nobody in today’s working world was born into technology…we have all had to adapt. Each one of us will make our own personal decisions but we now live in a digital world and need to get used to it.

In my 50’s I found myself parenting my parents…the hardest job I undertook and was never trained for…but I did it because there were no options. Did I really believe it when I was promised that life would get easier as I got older? I was set up and fell for it!

What’s the ROI of change?

What was the ROI (return on investment) in looking after our parents and children? We do it because it had to be done…The ROI of change is engagement in the world. Not engaging is like saying you want to stop living, stop moving forward and hide…is that realistic?

Change is the only constant in our lives, no matter what age…embrace it, enjoy it, get used to it, and celebrate it. Stop using age as an excuse…

If you think you don’t like change, I know you will like irrelevance even less…

Reposted from the Trulia Pro Blog September 16, 2011

www.DowntownTorontoNews.com

Every morning I get up, head to the front door, pick up my Globe and Mail  and skip happily to the Toronto Section. What happens in the rest of the world and the world economy is important, but nothing engages me like breaking new in Toronto. Sadly, I find myself with the feeling that I am missing a lot of the Toronto goings-on, and head to the Internet going to several sources to keep up to date.

Through some very talented friends at Domus Consulting Group  we have launched a new Internet site called Downtown Toronto News.

It is described as curating the best Twitter feeds in Toronto so you can find out what’s happening – events, shopping deals, sports, even traffic, and of course, Real Estate- at this very moment.  Access Downtown Toronto News at the website, on Twitter at @TorontoDowntown and on Facebook.

I hope that you will check it out and follow us on the site, Twitter and Facebook for the latest in Downtown Toronto News as it breaks. I hope you enjoy it and if you’d like to suggest feeds that should be added just add comments below.

Over the next weeks as complaints on-board grew and my Internet bill reached over $600.00, I again posted my thoughts and was told by the responder that they would “pass it on”. What does “pass it on” mean?

My suggestions to Holland America are:

1. Don’t monitor the “spheres” unless you are prepared to deal with the good and the bad. It doesn’t ring true and Social Media expects transparency.
2. Provide the best Internet service you can at non-usurious prices. Your clients want to communicate with their families telling them what a good time they are having and sending them the photos they have taken on the way. What would be better advertising for Holland America?  Word of mouth trumps corporate TV ads these days.
3. Even though the demographic of “Cruisers” is tilted toward retirees, look at the growth potential in those who are still working and need good access to the Internet.
4. “Value” cruises are no longer a value if you have more and more add-ons. Think of the market share that “Free Internet” would add.
5. When surveying your customers on the services you provide, make sure you include all services. In the four page survey, Internet was not mentioned at all, nor was there free form space for other comments.
6. Make sure that the person running the Internet Service on-board has “people skills”. However, that being said, the poor guy was dealing with complaints every minute, in a no-win situation.
7. Closed circuit television presentations featuring the benefits of your On-Board Online Services, should be an honest representation of what you can deliver. Better to under-promise and over-perform.

Those are my suggestions for Holland America . Please note that it was a great Cruise in all other respects and the ship was filled with hardworking people. We hit some great destinations.  We’ll see in the future if “I’ll pass it on” has any currency. So far, no word.

If you are considering some travel and Internet, here are some tips from the New York Times.

Seminar leader:
Richard Silver is a Salesperson with Bosley Real Estate Ltd. and an early adopter of technology and the Internet. He presently sits as a Director-at-Large with the Toronto Real Estate Board and is a member of the MLS® and Technology Council at CREA. He has recently been named to the Advisory Council for REBAC at the National Association of REALTORS®. His website is www.RichardSilver.com, Blog is www.Torontoism.com, or you can follow him on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

Could we live in less space? Could we live in multiple locations at different times of the year by selling the larger home. Of course…but the enormity of the job ahead  hits with major depression and the reality is that Downsizing Sucks!

I thought I would give you some ideas from my home-selling experience that might help you deal with some of the challenges of this new adventure: Downsizing with grace and style.

When I start showing  smaller properties to those downsizing, I watch their faces trying to imagine their new lifestyle in terms of their existing furniture, art, entertainment options, cooking, etc….I can see that they are taking all their possessions and mentally cramming them in to tighter spaces. Don’t even try! It will never ever work.

Keep what you must but start looking at apartment-sized furniture. Most clients go wrong by not differentiating full size and apartment size furniture when they decorate. A couple of times I’ve suggested to small space Sellers that we replace existing furniture with more advantageous sized staging and to their credit, they did at great benefit to them.

The issue is the same: When downsizing, try to visualize the smaller space with smaller scale minimalistic accouterments. Start looking at Magazines, TV Shows and web sites that focus on “Living in Smaller Spaces” at HGTV.

It is amazing what you can do….visit the IKEA store or web site and look at what their designers do in managing space. I’ve been told by my friend and colleague Darcy Burkholder that IKEA now features their staged designer rooms with the square footage noted… to help you grasp the reality of smaller spaces and what can be put in them. A great idea!

Start fresh, reinvent yourself, create a new look, change styles…make it a fun project and approach the next step of your life as a challenge. Don’t focus on what you are leaving but on where you are going and the new lifestyle you can create there. You may be very surprised!

More to come but feel free to leave your thoughts and comments!

Related Posts:

Real Estate: Downsizing with Style and Grace: Post Two

Real Estate: Downsizing with Style and Grace: Part Three

So. Day One started off with Bloggers Connect:

Jim Cronin of the Real Estate Tomato started my day off with some simple tips and tricks to improve your blogs:

Search “Easter Egg” on RETomato.com or click here.  Great suggestions about links images and abbreviations. Add it in the title link. Edit Alternate text… <Abbr> add related posts to the bottom of your article…calls to action…ask the expert questions and search for homes… Read it to get the full scoop!

Widgets:

• www.vflyer.com  very cool marketing tools…
• cut and paste the code into the sidebar using widgetbox.com.  
• Diverse solutions has excellent IDX widgets for your Blog…

The WordPress Plugin:

He had great explanations of  My category Order, wordpress.org, Cforms II, Facebook Connect, Akismet, ListingPress (embeds MLS on my web site).

Facebook:

Be engaging, be conversational and add media…post on posterous.com…organizing Facebook friends for coffees! Set meetups offline, Ricardo Bueno and Craig Donato were great examples…promote other people’s content..

Promoting your listings on Facebook:

• Facebook Marketplace: housing…posting is free…fueling conversations. Comment wall…add a new tab.
• Blog.oodle.com newsfeed on Facebook. www.facebook.com/martketplace or www.oodle.com
• Make sure there is Social in Social Media…
• fish where the fish are…should I push my facebook people to my Blog or keep them on Facebook? Keep people in Facebook!

Some Thoughts from Sonia Simone (brilliant): copyblogger.com

• What is it about your brand? What is the hook? It is for relationships and trust!
• Resolve Underlying Objections! I don’t like Real Estate People! I don’t lake Salespeople!
• Write articles and content about barriers…
• Blog is part of a system. You have to be great to compete.. Personal and entertaining…friend and Authority…authority rules, 
• cookie content: content is too good to give away…that is where you want to be…
• write your blogs for your consumers not other Realtors…more content geared to your prospect.
• Specialized..communicate toward a perfect customer for your market.
• Who is your perfect customer? Write special reports: Downsizing Gracefully…Write special reports: Getting your paperwork in order to list…
• FAQ really FRO frequently asked objections…
• Email newsletter!! aweber.com, have valuable content to give…is your blog a Ginger or a Maryanne? Use the hit reality show. Read Big Red Fez. Be transparent…

The Nicholays: Twitter: Nicole and Reggie have wonderful insights!

• Closing business in 140 Characters, www.localtweeps.com
• @RealtorTed, twitter how-to’s, username, people connect with people,
• customize the background. Twitbacks.com, twitterpinch.com @cyberhomes…
• fb 140 www. Twables/fb140 : Follow your Facebook friends on Twitter
• twitterlocal.net, www.nearbytweets.com, www.twellowhood.com,
• Become the Trusted advisor: listening, responding, broadcasting.
• Be meaningful! The Tweet Plan: stay on track…make a topic list, identify resources, schedule drips , be spontaneous…google news…
• Hootsuite.comget the Hootlet (amazing)
• Farming Twitter: demandspot.com sign up for RSS feed..very cool Real-Time Lead Generation for Real Estate
• Monitoring and measuring: hootsuite, cligs (helps you understand your traffic), and bit.ly (shortens URLs), tweetbeep ( Twitter Alerts by email) and twilert 

MORE Twitter Apps: From the Nicholays

1. www.tweetdeck.com
2. www.topify.com
3. www.twittelator.com Pro(shares video)
4. www.tweetmeme.com
5. www.flickrmybackground.com
6. www.Su.pr
7. www.Blip.fm
8. www.tweetboard.com
9. www.bubbletweet.com,
10. www.wplifestream.com
11. www.business.twitter.com

Cutting Edge Tactics for the Wired Agent: Ian Watt, Vancouver BC,

• Outsources a lot of things, google Apps, google docs, Wiki,
• Amanda: altos research consumer-friendly market research. Give your business personality!
• www.chicagohomepartner.com
• Be compassionate…do what you do best and outsource the rest!

Rob Hahn (he is very smart) and Kris Berg (Blogger par excellence)…spoke of the value of independence…

Brad Inman’s Opening Session: more positive…with Morgan Brown

• “cost to rent and cost to buy is getting smaller”
• “absorption rate is going down”
• technology Trends: Trade Off by Kevin Maney (book), the middle ground is a wasteland
• travel agency service coming back… More service…
• look for new opportunities,
• unlocked information,
• social search..

Tools From Morgan Brown:

1. www.Issuu.com you are the Publisher
2. www.viralheat.com  track what people are saying about you
3. www.drop.io real-time sharing
4. www.jimdo.com create a free website
5. www.feedmingle.com create your own Google News
6. www.mailchimp.com easy and fun email marketing
7. www.screentoaster.com record whatever is on your screen
8. www.geochirp.com GeoChirp helps you search for people Twittering for specific things in a specific area
9. www.tumblr.com helps you create sites
10. www.usertesting.com gives you Feedback about your site
11. www.99designs.com allows you to have people bid to design your projects

Read Byte.snack.meal by Nick Bilton www.Bytesnackmeal.com coming out in 2010. Check it out online!

That was the end of Day one and because there was so much information….we will move on to Day Two next…

Related Posts:

What I Learned at Inman Real Estate Connect: August 2009 Day Three

What I Learned at Inman Real Estate Connect: August 2009 Day Two

Inman Real Estate Connect: August 2009 Sano Stante’s List

Social Media: REBarCamp San Francisco August 2009

REBarCamp San Francisco August 2009.

Back in 2002 I had an international award winning web site that was recognized by the Realtors in a US magazine as one of the top ten sites, however, I was surpassed on the search engine Google by a newcomer who had been in my marketplace for one year (I had been over 22 years). After doing some soul searching and speaking to some great tech minds, I came across Bruce Lamb of Avalanche Networks.

He has moved my site to the front pages of the search engines and kept me there since 2002, always innovating and working with a great team and making my web site the centre of my business. 

Recently I asked him for his thoughts about the importance of Internet Marketing for Today’s Sellers:

“There is no question that buyers are using the Internet extensively in their search for a new home. Sellers that are not taking advantage of the Internet as a marketing tool for their home are losing out.

There are two key elements to a successful Internet marketing campaign.

The first key element is the data. Is all of the information available to a potential buyer who is serious about looking at the home? Do the photos or videos show the home in its best light?

We are no longer limited to a single sheet of paper to describe the home — we can now give prospective purchasers all the information they need and in as much detail as they could ever want. We can display this information in a way that is convenient for the viewer. We don’t have to use acronyms like w/d (washer/dryer) or “ELFs” (light fixtures) — we can actually use English to “sell” the home, rather than simply list its attributes.

The second element is traffic. It doesn’t matter if you have the most compelling description in the world. If nobody can find the listing page on the Internet, it’s like having a billboard in the forest.

To build traffic, a web site either has to be promoted using traditional marketing in newspapers or magazines, or it has to be promoted on the Internet itself — usually through search engines. The more specific the search, the more qualified the buyer. So someone searching for ‘downtown Toronto real estate’ or ‘Cabbagetown real estate’ is likely more interested in actually buying a home than someone searching for a general phrase like ‘Toronto real estate’ because they have already narrowed down the general area in which they want to purchase. But the number of potential search phrases for which you want the site to be found is almost endless. We’re definitely seeing people search for neighbourhoods in their searches, even seeing people search for street names or condo building names when they are looking for homes.

In summary, both a compelling on-line listing presentation and excellent placement in the search engines are necessary elements in order to have the most effective marketing campaigns for Toronto real estate in today’s wired world.”

Last year sadly I had to sell my father’s condo out west. I knew a few Realtors from the area but as executor of my Dad’s estate, I felt it was my fiduciary duty to keep arms length from the transaction, so I did what I suggest most sellers do….

I Googled the area where the condo was, took the top three Realtors and searched their web sites. Would my Dad’s Condo be front and centre or the agent’s awards? How quick did all three respond by email or phone? Were there sales or testimonials? Were the photos on the site professional and poignant? Did I have to look at the agent’s dog photos??

We had offers from family members who had friends who would list for less because we were “family” and I was a Realtor but I truly felt that Internet visibility was crucial. I know that almost 100% of buyers are on the internet.

I found someone I was comfortable with, had a no-BS attitude and seemed to meet the bill. He suggested a price at market value, and within a week of showings and Open Houses, it sold over asking, closed quickly and was an all around good experience…

If you are moving to the Edmonton/St. Albert area contact him or Google “St. Albert, Alberta Condos” and you will find him in the top three! By the way…his name is John Carle!!