We also give you a choice as to where and how to display your listings within your Facebook account. You can post listings individually on your Profile page, or include all your inventory on a dedicated “My Listings” tab on your Business Page.

Now you have a third option. From the same “Social Syndication” section of the Homes & Land Control Panel, advertisers can choose to post select listings on their Business Page wall. This way your new listings are shared with everyone who “likes” your page – instantly.

Here’s How

Most of us, at one time or another, set goals. We want to lose weight or improve in a sport or make more money. So we establish a goal, such as losing weight, and we post a photo of our slimmer self on the refrigerator as motivation. Then what happens?

Usually not much. We get distracted or discouraged and our goal goes by the wayside. In fact, according to the New York Times, 80% of New Year’s resolutions go up in flames by Valentine’s Day!

The problem is that most people don’t take the proper approach to achieving goals. They fail to think through and implement the day by day steps that are necessary to be successful.

I heard an interview with Bill Gates, who has achieved so much as an entrepreneur and philanthropist. Gates said that he focused on the small steps that eventually led to huge acheivements: Microsoft and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

A useful guide to help you achieve your goals is the Pick Four manual. The ideas in the manual were originally published by the legendary Zig Ziglar. The manual has recently been updated by the equally legendary Seth Godin.

The manual outlines a 12-week program with a track for identifying and achieving four goals. You can find the Pick Four manual here. One of the nice things about the manual is that it helps you hold yourself accountable. If there are specific goals you want to achieve, Pick Four is definitely worth a look.

Our Client Contact program makes it easy for you to stay in touch. We send all of your advertised sellers a copy of the magazine and a note promoting you and your marketing efforts. We also explain how your sellers can go online and see their property featured on HomesAndLand.com.

Better communication helps keep your sellers happy – which means more repeat and referral business for you.

Homes & Land has been successfully marketing real estate listings for nearly 40 years. Here are some tips on how to create a balanced marketing plan:

1. Results (need I say more?)
2. Thrills (from over the top service or effort)
3. Ego (everyone likes to feel important)

Get really good at delivering one of them – not just the first one, and not all three. “You’d be amazed at how far you can go with the other two [thrills and ego],” says Godin. “If you commit to doing it, not merely talking about it.”

Seth’s blog

It’s tough to stay motivated in such a sluggish market. Writer and marketer Seth Godin points to where your motivation really needs to come from:

http://bit.ly/kGsa3b

You know how much you appreciate getting a referral for new business. How good are you about showing your appreciation for the referral?

About a year ago, my insurance changed and I had to find a new dentist for my daughter. I needed to find someone who was in-plan, accepted new patients, and took children – not an easy combination. I found a family dentist who could meet my criteria, and I liked this dentist and his office staff so much that I switched to him myself. Several of my friends also needed dental work, and I told them about my new dentist. Over the past year I’ve brought him three new patients, in addition to my daughter and me.

I’ve never received any acknowledgement for the referrals. (I know it shouldn’t, but this annoys me.)

I also really like my vet. I’ve referred a handful of people to her over the years too. Each time her office sent me a postcard or a personal note thanking me for the referral.

Guess which one of these professionals is more likely to get ongoing referrals from me?

Referrals don’t happen automatically. You must create a relationship that makes them happen.  

For example, there are people who care only about facts and numbers. These people are a certain personality type and often become engineers, accountants, and scientists. However, most of us aren’t like that. We prefer more than just the facts.    

We want to be engaged on a personal level. So once you’ve delivered an outstanding level of professional service to a homebuyer or seller, you need to take your relationship to the next level. Your clients need to know that you are interested in more than revenue.

I read about a very successful financial advisor. She spends less than most of her peers on client gifts, yet her clients rave about her. They also send her a lot of referrals.

What’s her secret? She regularly sends her clients books about key aspects of their lives. If the client is having a major birthday, she may send “Life Begins at 50.” If a client has an upcoming vacation to Ireland…guess what they get?  

It’s the small, personal touches that make Realtors special in the minds of their clients. And when they think you’re special, they’ll want to refer other people to you. The book idea is a good one. What else can you do to take your client relationships to the next level?

“Marketing is actually what other people are saying about you,” advises marketing guru Seth Godin. Your reputation – your brand – is built by both what you do and how your clients and prospects perceive what you do. You’ve heard “Perception is Reality?” – whoever coined the phrase must have worked in real estate.

After signing a new listing, you may work very hard to properly market the home – taking quality photos, planning for print and online exposure, scheduling open houses, etc. But if your sellers don’t see all of your efforts, they may think you’re a list-and-leave type agent. What do you think they’re going to tell their friends when someone asks about their Realtor?

Here’s where Homes & Land helps. We make it easy for you to keep in contact with your sellers and show them all the ways you’re marketing their home. This includes mailing the magazine directly to your seller with a letter endorsing you and your marketing strategy. And automatically creating EZ Tours that you can easily send to your seller from the Control Panel.

Seth says “You will never keep people from talking. But you can take actions to influence the content of what they say.” Let Homes & Land help you maintain your reputation.

Here’s How