How to drive traffic and gain more solid leads

May 4, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Yesterday I asked a question on our Tech Savvy Agent Facebook Page, about how you are using Facebook’s ad space to maximize your online business lead generation. Some of you responded by saying that it was working for you really well, and some asked how to do it. The response, as in many things, was pretty diverse.

When it comes to advertising online, one thing remains the same: How you use your words. Now, I’m not referring to how your mother brought you up to use your manners. On the contrary. What I am referring to is the choice of words which you use to get the attention you are seeking, and moreover, the results you are desiring.

This is not just about Facebook Ads, of course. This is about all your communications – whether it is in your marketing materials online or offline, you will either make it or break it. Your choice in the words you use to advertise you, your services, or your properties is really important and should be given more than just a fleeting thought.

Here’s a breakdown of how to correctly drive traffic and gain more solid leads through your online marketing by using your words:

1. Who is your customer? Determining what traffic you want to attract is the first step to success.

2. What is the purpose of your marketing? Do you have a solid call to action – are you giving them something they really WANT?

3. Determine the main idea of your marketing and shorten it to be your title too (see the title of this blog?)

4. Think before you write. Kinda like the saying “think before you speak”, this is just as true within your online marketing endeavors too!

This post was inspired by the short video below which I saw earlier this week. I hope it inspires you to choose your words carefully too.


Filed Under: Coaching Tips Tagged With: , , , , ,

Investment – It’s not just about the money

May 2, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Investment – It’s not just about the money

Have you ever noticed how you put a lot of effort, or at least what you think is a lot of effort, into something and the results don’t come quick enough?

Does this question resonate with you?

This is what I hear time and time again from agents – they expect instant gratification from their online marketing (or anything for that matter within their life or business) and when it doesn’t happen, they get extremely frustrated and give up and move on to another attempt of instant gratification. And so the insanity cycle begins.

Investment - Its more than moneyLet’s be realistic here. What you put in, you’ll get out. If you are putting little to no effort into something, then you’ll likely get little to no return from it. Think about it: ROI means Return On Investment. This isn’t just monetarily speaking! To invest in something is (per Dictionary.com) to use, give, or devote (time, talent, etc.), as for a purpose or to achieve something. So, really, be truthful, how much investment have YOU put into your latest attempt at online marketing?

People hire other people to do their work – hence, why I am, and have been, in business for almost 10 years. But at some point there has to be some personal responsibility for your own business’ success (or failure), wouldn’t you agree? Hiring others to help you with your business is a given – I mean there’s a reason why there is such a thing as a “TEAM“. Zuckerberg didn’t create Facebook single-handedly and Gates didn’t create Microsoft solo either. But they certainly did have their hand in the work, right?

One of the recurring questions I am asked from my clients is “What works“?  Or they simply will say, “Tell me what I need to do to make money from my online business (quickly!)“. The truth is, what you put in, is what you will get out. As with anything in life, if you truly put your heart and soul into something, rarely will it fail. If you try something for a few weeks, or months, and feel that it simply isn’t working, you stop. Well, what’s the chances that it will work better when you stop!? I would have to say… ZERO PERCENT!

Insanity - doing the same thing over and over again expecting a different resultSo, when we put this heart and soul mentality into practice within our online marketing, WE must TRULY do that and give it our all. I would urge everyone, whether you are a client or not, that when you are contemplating to stop trying something after a short period of time, DON’T! Do the opposite – put MORE effort into it! Think, ‘what can I do better? What can I do differently? How much INVESTMENT have I truly put into this up until now?’ Chances are, not as much as you need to.

The word “insanity” is defined as doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result. Don’t be insane! Stay consistent, stay on course, stay focused, and keep your goals in the forefront of your mind. Rome wasn’t built in a day!

Filed Under: Coaching Tips Tagged With: , , , ,

How To Easily Customize Your Facebook Avatar Image

March 16, 2011 By 1 Comment

First things first. What is your Facebook Avatar Image?

This avatar is the image that shows up alongside each of your posts and comments within facebook, kind of like what shows up on the Disqus comment system that thousands of the highest trafficked sites use (outside of Facebook that is).

Tell me, how does this look to you? (Names have been distorted to protect the innocent!)?
How to Customize your Facebook Avatar Image

Not so hot right?

Here’s a quick and really easy way to fix this so your image is front and centered!

Filed Under: Education, Social Networking Tagged With: , ,

How To Customize Your Facebook Business Page Links

February 25, 2011 By Leave a Comment

How to Customize your Facebook Business Page Links

As you are all aware by now, earlier this month Facebook put into place their new layout of Facebook Pages (to look a whole lot more like our Facebook Profiles).  With this change came the demise of the Tabs at the top of the page to Links on the left hand column (located underneath our Page’s image).

I think it is really important to utilize these links to the maximum, just as we did with the Tabs – we only have so many spots to fill in the links, so let’s make sure that we have the most important ones front and center (well, side…).

Here’s a quick video on how you can customize your Facebook Business Page links by modifying their order and removing those that are not necessary.


The moral of this story is we need to utilize the tools that Facebook graces us with and make the most of them as best we can. The chances that someone is going to click on the “More..” link to see what else you have to offer is slim to none, so it just makes sense to make sure that the top 6 links are the MOST important ones to show up on your Facebook Page.

Filed Under: Education, Savvy Agents, Social Networking Tagged With: , ,

Talk WITH Not AT Your Audience!

February 22, 2011 By Leave a Comment

talk with not at your audienceHere’s a quick tip:

We, at V.A. Work, don’t always talk about real estate and nor should you!   Imagine you are at a party and you walk up to someone and start a conversation by saying…

“21 homes sold in Baltimore last week and the percentage of those that sold under market value was 73%”

Do you think that you would get a warm response or a confused look?  I would say the latter of the two.  Would you start a conversation like this in real life?  Then why would you do it on the Internet?

Instead, I would bet that a more normal way to start a conversation would be…

“Did you hear about the Home and Garden Show they are having in Baltimore next weekend?   Last year’s was great!  Have you ever been?”

Now, the response that you would get to this conversation starter would more likely have a positive response, right?

The same can be said for your online social networking.    Don’t talk AT people, talk WITH people!

Go give it a try and see what kind of responses you get and let me know how it goes!

Filed Under: Coaching Tips, Savvy Agents, Social Networking Tagged With: , ,
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