Tag Archives: Frances Flynn Thorsen

The FIRST HUD Homes Industry Partner Summit – Join The Webinar Today!

Posted on by
Reply

Aimed at real estate agents, lenders, asset managers and government agencies join Government Home Sale Professional™ Founders Frances Flynn Thorsen and Denise Lones who will introduce the summit agenda, speakers, and sponsors starting at 7am today.

What is a “HUD home”? HUD is actually an acronym for United States Department of Housing and Urban Development. When a residence is backed by a Federal Housing Administration (FHA)-insured mortgage ends in foreclosure, HUD acquires the home and takes on the role of property owner. The organization then puts the property up for sale in an attempt to recover losses incurred via the foreclosure claim.

Frances and Denise

Frances and Denise

The day starts with a demo on how the live chat room works, Twitter hashtags, and how you can position yourself to win free prizes donated by generous sponsors. The day’s agenda is:

7:00 to 7:30 am – Welcome Address
7:30 to 8:00 am – Pick Your Sessions and Grab a Seat
8:00 to 8:45 am – What’s on the Drawing Board at HUD?
9:00 to 9:45 am – Keynote: Today a Home, Tomorrow a Foreclosure
10:00 to 10:45 am – 5 Most Important Qualities of a HUD Listing Agent
11:00 to 11:45 am – HUDHomeStore – What’s New on the Shelves of the HUD Homes Superstore?
12:00 to 12:45 pm – Lunch Keynote: FHA Financing Update

Three Breakouts 1:00 to 1:45 pm:

  • 10 Ways to Advertise HUD Homes When You Are NOT the Listing Agent
  • Use a Blog to Drive Traffic and Create Lots of Leads!
  • Create Your Own HUD Homes Facebook Page

Three Breakouts 2:00 to 2:45 pm:

  • The Emerging Role of the HUD Housing Counselor in HUD Home Sales
  • HUD Marketing Showcase
  • Selling HUD Homes on Trulia Even if You Are NOT the Listing Agent

Three Breakouts 3:00 to 3:45 pm:

  • Sales Agent Roundtable: Best Practices
  • How to Sell HUD Homes on Zillow When You Are NOT the Listing Agent
  • Using MLS and IDX to Sell HUD Homes

Three Breakouts 4:00 to 4:45 pm:

  • 5 Secrets to Craft a Winning Bid
  • What Investors Need to Know about HUD Homes
  • First Look – Nonprofits Have a Competitive Edge

And AgencyLogic is involved! During the webinar you will learn how you can get unlimited single property Websites for $1!

To register click here!

4 Tips to Choose a Domain Name with Google Juice

Posted on by
Reply

Contributor: Frances Flynn Thorsen, SRS, e-PRO

(Editor Note: Also consider the tips in this post when picking a single property Website URL)

Choosing a domain name is the first step in creating a new real estate blog. Best naming practices have changed since the advent of real estate websites. Homeseekers was a pre-Millennium pioneer real estate website developer that delivered real estate template sites to tens of thousands of real estate agents who staked their claim on the Internet with dot coms using their given names. My first real estate website was a Homeseekers site wearing a not-so-catchy URL, “www.FrancesFlynnThorsen.com.”

The meta title on my website was better (and smarter) – Bethlehem PA Real Estate and Homes for Sale. The meta title drew visitors. The URL followed the naming convention of the time but it offered nothing in terms of SEO (search engine optimization) support. Agent URLs are not recommended unless you are received as a market superstar. Kevin Tomlinson’s blog, KevinTomlinson.com is an excellent example. Kevin is the leading luxury real estate blogger and a real estate powerhouse in the Miami real estate market. His online press room includes articles and kudos from The New York Times, “New York Magazine,” The Miami Herald, and numerous national real estate news outlets. He is a stark exception to the don’t-use-your-name-as-your-domain-name rule.

There are four things to consider when you choose a domain name

1. Traffic: Keywords are the ticket to traffic. Take some time to do some keyword analysis to find. What is your niche? Learn how to use the Google Keyword Tool for more insight.

2. Relevance: What is the likelihood that people searching for a particular keyword? The keyword tool will offer alternatives and additions based on the words you select. Search engine rankings that are anything less than page one on Google are worthless. The following chart shows an average percentage of click throughs to sites that are ranked on page one of Google.

3. Commerciality: The value of a keywords is tied to the value of keywords in a Google Pay-Per-Click (PPC) campaign.

4. Competition: Check your competition closely. If you are working in the HUD Homes market, the chances of securing a first-page ranking on Google is slim, with 360,000 ,monthly global searches and firmly established websites hold a strong lead in the search engin results pages (SERPs). “HUD Homes for Sale” offers a better chance, with about 60,000 global searches each month. If you are working in a local market you may see several hundred search engine results, but a high ranking on page one of Google SERPs will enhance your blog’s click attraction.

Here are some of the top real estate blogs in the country. Note the keywords in each domain name. Some point to market area, some focus on a niche.

BestBuffaloHomes.com
LiveInLosGatos.com
HauntedRealEstate.com
ValleyOfHeartsDelight.com (A poetic, pretty name that is easy to remember also works!)
PasadenaViews.com
AtHomeInScottsdale.com
HomeBuysBlog.com

The following video is part of a multi-video series about blogging that precedes the launch of ‘No Blogger Left Behind’ with Denise Lones and Frances Flynn Thorsen. Click here for more information.

Finally! Paint Your Social Media Portrait With A Business Card

Posted on by
1

Written by: Frances Flynn Thorsen, SRS, e-PRO

Ten years ago, when agents told sellers, “Your listings are on the Internet,” most agents referred to the multiple listing service and their Web sites for proof of their claim. … and that was enough in 2000. It’ not enough any longer.

Real estate sellers are smarter now. They want more.

Now, a real estate agent displays a listing syndication map illustrating dozens of destinations where the seller’s property is displayed and a social business card containing all her listings and links to her profiles on the social Web. (Shown below, Nashville agent Laurie Sheinkopf)

“Your listings are everywhere, and I’m there, too, exposing your property to real estate buyers in every corner of the Web,” says today’s smart agent. Real estate consumers are catching on to a new breed of real estate agent, an agent who is truly a caretaker for her property listings, who has a measureable presence in social media. The agent engages consumers where they play and where they are looking for homes.

This new breed agent knows that search engine spiders are increasingly seduced by social engagement. The agent knows how to leverage multi-media platforms and geo tagging, real estate search giants, and blogs.

Until now, keeping it all straight has been cumbersome.

Enter Follr.com from Social Gears, LLC. Agents can list all their social profiles, with links, giving consumers easy access to their online world, contact information, and listings. A free version of the card lets a user share six social sites, full contact and profile information (including a video embed), activity streams and custom links.

A paid version of Follr ups the ante to 100 social sites and increased personalization, SEO control, and traffic analytics.

My Follr card (shown at bottom) has 35 social sites (Disclosure: I am a beta tester for Follr.com. I am a wildly enthusiastic beta tester.)

Brokers Manage Big Social Picture

A brokerage based social business card is the secret ingredient for brokers wanting to blend risk and reward with more emphasis on the reward side of the equation.

A Follr brokerage account includes social business cards for all the agents in the firm. Every agent has a personal card to showcase her social media presence.

A broker’s Follr dashboard is the single most important technological advance in years aiding brokers’ recruiting and retention campaigns, and supporting risk management initiatives.

A broker can see at a glance where agents are engaging, blogging, and claiming their listings.

How many brokers today have a spreadsheet or any other list of every social site where every agent engages? Imagine a social media device that makes it easy to check agents’ latest blog feeds, chime in with comments and kudos, share their links in-house and with the public, and join their conversations with area agents who appear on their recruiting prospect list. A quick glance at an agent’s profiles at Trulia and Zillow may catch unclaimed listings where leads are escaping to other agents in town. Live engagement feeds and occasional monitoring may offer a heads up when intervention is necessary to safeguard a company’s legal posture.

If I was a broker, I would be the first in my market area with a Follr social business card in the online billfold of every agent in my office.
Here’s my card, check it out!