Published by the CIPS Network of the National Association of REALTORS®
Third Quarter 2009
Bring the World to you
By Tim Kinzler, CIPS
In 1979,I entered the world of real estate.There was no fax machine, no personal computer, and no cell phone. Most real estate was local in nature. In Boca Raton, where I began,outreach was the local newspaper,a telephone,and ringing door bells to see who wanted to buy, sell, or lease real estate.
Today, I serve as the NAR President’s Liaison to the Bahamas. I communicate with my contacts through email and text messaging using a gadget that fits in my shirt pocket. The same gadget allows me to view websites worldwide.
Social Media Circles the Globe
Technology has enabled me,as a REALTOR®, to cultivate and transform relationships.In just the last three or four years, the use of social media has allowed me to connect virtually with clients and potential clients—at a very affordable price.
Facebook, Twitter, Linked-in, RealEstateConnections.tv, and other social media sites allow modern real estate professionals to interact 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Time zones are no longer an issue.Travel expense can be eliminated.The information age has dawned.
I can create a group at any number of sites or join groups that reflect interests I have or seek. For example, if I identify the UK as a country of interest for prospecting, I can go to www.facebook.com, enter “UK Real Estate” or “UK business,” and identify groups that might be of value to me. If one doesn’t exist I can create one, inviting others to interact.
Specialized Sites
There are sites that specialize in vacation destinations like www.viscape.com, a site designed to allow like-minded vacationers to share insights on holiday travels and exchange information in a social chat or forum.
If I plan to travel to a destination for a trade mission or business trip or expect to work with a client from a specific country, I can tap into a site, a group, a blog, or a person and interact online, becoming savvy about the market place, the customs, and the culture from experts.
It’s possible to enter into a country and/or culture of choice and communicate in the language of a specific area. I can seek out those in that country that speak my language and interact, or I can interact with someone who might help me learn a new language online.
A very important element of successful social media networking is creation and upkeep of your profile—an expanded business card with personality, where you can share points of interest about yourself and your business. Creativity and transparency are beneficial here, while being sensitive to the culture in which you are networking—what is acceptable in one country can be offensive in another.
Virtual Property Tours
Video marketing on the Internet is hot. Posting video clips of your listings and for information sharing has become simple, thanks to gadgets like the Flip Video camcorder, or the simple video recording features found on most smart phones. Uploading product information to sites like www.facebook.com, www.youtube.com, www.wellcomemat.com , www.realtor.org and/or your own website is now easy.
The advent of the hand held computer like the iPhone, BlackBerry, Treo, and other video friendly cell phones have created a new consumer who watches four hours of video a month, in one to two minute sequences, on his hand held device.This new form of information gathering is becoming as common as drawing breath.
My $800 HP laptop has a built in camera and microphone that allows me to talk to clients around the world with the new communications system software called Skype ( www.skype.com). On a recent visit to the Bahamas, I witnessed world travelers mooring their boats and coming ashore to an Internet café to use its free Wi-Fi connection to make calls around the world via the Internet, a sight that confirmed for me that the world is shrinking by linking up.
Today, technology allows you to expand into global communities without leaving our home. You literally have the whole world at your fingertips.Think beyond your neighborhood, your city, your state, your country. The possibilities are endless.
 Tim Kinzler, CIPS, Coldwell Banker Residential Real Estate, Delray Beach, FL, specializes in residential real estate, vacation properties, investment and primary residences, luxury waterfront sales, and relocation, serving clients from Canada, Germany, United Kingdom, Bahamas, The Americas, France, China, Australia and more. Visit his website: www.PalmBeachCountryRelo.com.
Reach him at +1.561.573.0557 or at tim@timkinzler.com.
Look for Tim's blog at www.RealEstateConnections.tv
, the first global online community that helps professionals learn, share and connect with global peers.
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