Yesterday, I led a CyberStar(tm) panel for RE/MAX of Northern Illinois in Chicago.  Our main aim was to share what we, the CyberStars(tm) do to implement technology in our businesses in order to make money, save money and save time.  It was a tremendous session….the three panelists left the audience with a lot of ideas, techniques & strategies.

Spotting a row of "30 Something" agents early in the seminar, I made a point.  Knowing what their answer would be, I asked them to imagine that I needed to get in touch with them.  Would they prefer I call them?  All shook their heads "no."  How ’bout my emailing them?  Again, "no."  Well, what about my text messaging you?  This time, all heads nodded "yes."

Today’s buyers and sellers see their time as more valuable than most of us ever did.  Returning voice mails (with its inherent "telephone tag") takes too much time; replying to email takes too much time.  They want to text message….instant communication.

Part of our mission, as it is with all of my seminars, was to impress upon real estate agents the need to think differently when it comes to servicing today’s consumer.  The Internet has changed everything, and the successful agent needs to take this change into account…..even in the way he/she communicates with most consumers.

I previously outlined here a new way of structuring your real estate magazine ads, i.e. making a pitch for something on your Web site on the top 1/3 of the page rather than an overall emphasis on the reader calling you.  Again, the consumer’s needs lie behind this strategy.  They would much rather surf the Web for information than contact an agent.

Here’s your action item for today: if you don’t know how to text message, get a 14 year old to show you how on your phone!  That’s the way I learned, and you can, too.  Without the ability to text, we are handicapped when it comes to meeting the needs of most of today’s consumers!

(P.S.  Texting is the most effective way to communicate with those teenage grandkids of yours, too!)

It’s a great day here on the lake in Reston…hope it’s a great day wherever you are, too!

You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.