The change brought about by social media can easily be defined in one sentence:
“Social media allows the little people to have a big voice”
Initially led by blogging but now augmented by twitter and a host of other social tools all people are talking about all things. And you can’t keep all the people happy all the time which means some of the commentary might not be particularly complimentary. If the negative statements are about a competitor then great! But what if it’s about you?
Sticking your fingers in your ears will only make matters worse, you have to head these comments off as soon as possible and that’s where “Google Alerts” helps. A simple tool (go to google.com and search for ‘google alerts’ or click here) it allows you to setup and receive email notifications anytime a specific keyword is mentioned online.
The most common use is to have an alert on your own name but Google Alerts can also be used to send notifications about any topic including market conditions (e.g. setup a Google Alert for ‘Miami Real Estate’) competitor news or more valuable subject matter like ‘Britney Spears Latest Outburst’. Seriously though Google Alerts is a great (and free) tool that acts as your online ears, a must have for any Realtor.
