Lesley Lambert, High Tech Realtor® » marketing

QR Code Marketing for REALTORS

Lesley Lambert — Tue, 10 May 2011 14:17:08 +0000

If you are a member of the Greater New Haven Association of Realtors and are curious about QR Codes and how real estate agents can use them, you need to come to my presentation at the Greater New Haven Association of Realtors on May 19, 2011.

QR Codes (Quick Read) are dimensional bar codes that can be scanned with a smart phone and enable print materials to go mobile on your mobile browser.

REALTORS can use this in a number of inventive ways and the best part is they are FREE and easy to implement and trackable!

Be sure to register for my power lunch and learn session at the Greater New Haven Association of Realtors.

Would you like me to speak about QR Codes or other social media marketing for REALTORS? Contact me through the green contact button to the left.

QR Code Marketing in the Wild…How Can REALTORS use them?

Lesley Lambert — Mon, 18 Apr 2011 21:06:58 +0000

Yesterday I bought a plant at Home Depot and I noticed something different about their tags. A QR Code!

I got excited and scanned the code and found information on the plant, how to plant it and what other plants would go well with it. Very cool and interactive…what can REALTORS learn from that? Well…make sure your QR Code has good value. What audience is your code directed at? Is it on a sign rider? Then your audience are buyers who will want a lot of information at their fingertips about the home in question, as well as an easy way to get in touch with you.

The biggest argument against QR Codes that I keep hearing is that people won’t make the effort to download a QR Scan Reader program and then actually scan the codes. I agreed that it would be a fringe audience when I first began using QR Codes, but with major retail outfits like Home Depot, Target and Best Buy using them prominently, I think the time is ripe for trying QR Codes in your marketing.

QR Codes for Real Estate and Marketing

Lesley Lambert — Wed, 02 Feb 2011 03:50:48 +0000

It was about a year ago when I first decided to try using QR Codes (also known as 2D codes or tags) in my real estate marketing.

I didn’t know of anyone else that was using these in their marketing so with an adventurous spirit I set forth creating my own plan.

During the course of the last year the use of QR Codes picked up a lot of attention in the real estate space and a lot of nay sayers, too.

Many people don’t see a reason for QR Codes or the hype that they have picked up. I have quietly continued with my use of them and about once a week someone (a programmer or another agent) will reach out to ask me how things are going.

Since people (at least some people) seem interested in knowing how it is going for me, I thought I would write a post.

The first thing that other agents want to know is how many leads I have picked up or have I had any sales directly from a QR Code. The answer is none and no. But I didn’t expect that to happen, not for some time. I also think that question is sort of like asking how many leads you have gotten from having a smart phone.

QR Codes are bleeding edge stuff and I live in a very suburban area. I figure it will still be a year before consumers really start to “get it”.

Which usually brings the next question, “Well then, why are you doing it?” Answer:

I am intrigued. I like the fact that they turn print materials into mobile ready information and that they are a green friendly solution to flyers and other printables. They are more trackable than a regular print ad and they are notable in their uniqueness. Staying abreast of mobile marketing is a big part of my business plan and I want to be a leader in my business space.

Also, they are becoming more mainstream. In the course of the last year I have seen major department stores using them in ads, sports stores using them in displays and most of my bills have one printed on it, too.

The sales of smart phones is on the rise and with that, mobile smart technology is bound to become more popular.

As to what I have learned over the last year:

#1- I was doing a specific property code and web url on a rider for each listing. This is not only not cost effective, it is wasteful as the metal rider is useless after that home is sold. I have switched that to create a url and code that will deliver the buyer to an easy to navigate general listings page and I can keep using the riders over again.

#2- There are a LOT of ways to generate and track and promote your codes. I have tried Clikbrix and am just now trying Toor.me

While I like both sites and appreciate that they are very easy to use, one thing that keeps me from using them more is that I have to fill in another page of information. I am already filling in an MLS form, ad forms, web page information, blog posts, etc. I find that I often put these mobile sites to the back burner because of form burnout.

#3- You want some kind of tracking. Sure, you can’t reach out and contact the people that scan your codes (but I think that would be creepy anyways), but you can see which codes are working and re-think your strategies. There are lots of ways to track: via a company like the ones mentioned above or by tracking the url with a service like bit.ly or my preference goo.gl.

#4- Be creative. Anyone can create a code for their listing, but what ELSE can you do with them? I put one on my business card that opens up my online business card so clients can easily save me to their smartphone without having to type. I also put one on this year’s business holiday card that opened a video with a holiday greeting from me…thereby making my holiday card an interactive multi-media experience.

Well, I have work to do so I will wrap this up, but I will finish by saying that I know I have yet to scratch the surface of how a QR code can be used for real estate and plan to keep experimenting. I will keep you posted!

QR Codes for Real Estate and Generation Y

Lesley Lambert — Thu, 18 Nov 2010 14:00:31 +0000

Last week I was sharing my new real estate business cards with some teenage dance students of mine. I give them an annual speech on driving while impaired or getting in the car with anyone who isn’t fit to drive and always hand out my card for them to keep in their wallet for an emergency.

As they were admiring my cute new Mini Moo Cards which feature photography of Western Massachusetts scenery, several of them exclaimed, “Cool! You have a QR Code on here!”. Another said, “If I scan it where does it take me?”. Still another announced she was off to try scanning it that very moment.

This was so refreshing, as I usually have to do a lot of teaching when people in Western Massachusetts encounter my QR Codes on promotional materials. I was thrilled to see that the young generation has embraced this technology because it says to me that it will reach mainstream use eventually.

With large companies like Target using codes in their holiday catalogues and local vendors featuring them on display racks, I believe that soon most average consumers will have at least a working understanding of what QR Codes are and how they work. They may not use the technology, but if they understand why other people want to use it then they will see the benefits in using a real estate agent in Western Massachusetts who is integrating QR Codes into her marketing.

Does your Western MA Realtor do this? QR Codes for Real Estate

Lesley Lambert — Wed, 29 Sep 2010 01:16:34 +0000

What is a QR Code, you ask? Watch this QR Code video for a quick explanation of what a QR Code is and how it can be used to help sell your Western MA home.

It is an exciting time in the world of real estate marketing. Old school advertising campaigns don’t work and the internet is bringing fresh new ideas to the forefront. I am always learning and trying new media marketing techniques to help my sellers to sell their Western MA home.

Here are some ways that I use QR Codes to help market and sell homes in Western MA:

Sign riders.
I purchase a custom sign attachment for every listing with their individual property web page and a QR code prominently displayed to make it easy for buyers on the go to get information about a property they drove past.

Video.
Each of my properties gets a virtual tour video. I include the QR code as a slide at the end of the video.

My blog.
I have my QR Code badge displayed on the home page of my blog so that visitors can scan and go directly to a feed of all of my listings.

Print advertising.
I include the QR code on my “Just Listed” and “Just Sold” postcards.

Direct mail.
I am sending everyone in my sphere a mailing with a QR code and an invitation to try it out.

Flyers.
Your property flyer will have a QR Code displayed to make that flat piece of paper a multi-media experience.

Does your Western MA REALTOR do that? I do!

If you want an innovative real estate agent who is moving ahead with the times to make the home buying and home selling process easier, then call Lesley Lambert of Park Square Realty in Westfield, MA 01085. 413.575.3611

Does Your Western MA REALTOR do this? 5 Facebook Marketing Tips to Sell Your Home

Lesley Lambert — Wed, 22 Sep 2010 19:57:05 +0000

Did you know that Facebook statistics show they have:

* More than 500 million active users
* 50% of our active users log on to Facebook in any given day
* Average user has 130 friends
* People spend over 700 billion minutes per month on Facebook

Perhaps you are even one of these growing numbers!

With this information at hand, doesn’t it make sense that you would want your home for sale presented to this vast audience/pool of prospective buyers?

With that in mind, I have techniques that I use to market the houses I represent for sale in Western MA on Facebook.

#1- My Fanpage has a tab that features my listings

#2- Every home gets a unique web site that has photos, videos, descriptions, open house dates, maps, area information and much more which is posted to my Facebook Fanpage wall

#3- Every property web page has a “Like” button on it. When clicked the property’s web page is pushed through to the users Facebook wall and seen by all of their friends in the newsfeed, allowing more exposure.

#4- Every property’s web page also has a “Share It” option (shown in the picture above) which allows the reader to send the listing to a number of places, including Facebook.

#5- My profile has a tab that features my current listings allowing people who are my friends, but not necessarily subscribers to my real estate fanpage access to view your property.

To meet with me to discuss my innovative internet based marketing plan you can call 413.575.3611 or reach out with this card:

A day in the life of a REALTOR

Lesley Lambert — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 14:01:07 +0000

You know what? Being a REALTOR isn’t easy and it demands a lot of time and attention that most people might not think about. A lot of people that I chat with have an impression that real estate isn’t a “real job” because we don’t work traditional hours.

I happen to know first hand that a full time real estate agent works a lot more hours than most people realize. In addition to going on showing and listing appointments we have a lot of running around, phone calls and computer time that can absorb a day. I thought I might use my day today as an example of what a full time, hard-working real estate agent goes through.

8:30 am – coffee while reading emails and real estate news
9:00 am – gather up my kids (it is school vacation) and head to the office. Thankful that Park Square Realty in Westfield is family friendly!
11 am – drop kids at play date and head out to deliver purchase and sale agreements to listing in Chicopee for signature
1 pm – present marketing and pricing plan to potential listing client in Westfield, MA
3 pm – back to Park Square Realty’s office to check messages, emails and prepare for evening showings
4 pm – pick up my kids and work from home for an hour. Work on website marketing for listings and start editing video for a virtual tour.
5:30 pm – head back to Chicopee to show three properties to some first time home buyers
8 pm – home to research recent comparable sales because buyer is considering making an offer, write this blog post, write a blog post for my column at Masslive and another for Agent Genius Magazine.
10:30 pm – finish emails and blog posts – ran out of steam and will have to finish that virtual tour tomorrow.

During the course of the day I am answering calls and emails on the go…thank goodness for smart phones!

All of this costs my household something though, and I know other agents pay the same toll….

The laundry is piled up, the dishes need doing, dinner is late and sometimes not so healthy and don’t even get me started on the garden!

Ah well, it is all worth it when a buyer signs for a house that they love and a family selling their home is able to make their next move!

photo courtesy of Robbert van der Steeg on flickr

The Real Estate For Sale Sign of The Future

Lesley Lambert — Wed, 24 Mar 2010 07:36:59 +0000

Real estate is said to be the second oldest profession in the world (no jokes please) and for much of its history the standard operating procedure didn’t change a whole lot.

When I began my real estate career in 1988 (again, hold the humor) there was no internet. We collected a book of postage stamp sized, grainy, black & white photographs on crappy newsprint paper every two weeks: that was the multiple listing book. You carried that book with you to meet buyers and sellers and tried to fathom which properties might be of interest from these lackluster and teeny tiny descriptions. Fast forward to the advent of the internet. Many real estate agents feared that by making home information available on the internet our function would be obsolete and we would be out of work. I never understood this fear. The very LEAST of what I do as an agent is giving buyer clients lists of homes for sale. I don’t actually sell anything, I facilitate the real estate transaction, but I have no actual goods to sell. For me, I thought the internet was a great way of saving me loads of time driving that stupid MLS book around (I was right).

So, over the years, as technology advances and real estate agents wring their hands in fear and confusion, I step ahead with my adventurous geek girl spirit and try some new “stuff”. Over the last few years I have created blogs, utilized my love of social media to grow my business, learned Search Engine Optimization and even some basic web site coding, all to advance my real estate services (and feed my nerd gene).

Recently I attended PodCamp Western MA 2 where we got t-shirts with this new thingymabob on the front. Called a QR Code, it looked like a square Rorschach test and I was curious as to why it was on our shirts. Event organizer, Morriss Partee explained that our friend Jaclyn Stevenson had added this code to the shirt and with a special application to your smartphone you can scan this code and it will automatically open the website for the event. Cool! Days later I got to thinking…”I think I can use this in my real estate marketing.”

I did some research and found this article by my friend (and editor at Agent Genius) Lani Rosales. I had seen her post this blog, but had no concept what a QR code was at that time. Now I re-read her post with new interest and started plotting out a marketing strategy.

First off: What the Hey Diddle Diddle IS a QR Code?

A QR Code is a matrix code (or two-dimensional bar code) created by Japanese corporation Denso-Wave in 1994. They are currently used for a wide array of purposes including: drivers licenses, paperless coupons, on bills and other publications. A QR code, when scanned by a smartphone (ie: BlackBerry, iPhone, Android) will take the scanner to a website.

For Example above is the QR Code for one of my listings. This code is placed on a sign rider on the yard sign. Let’s say a potential buyer with a smart phone drives by the house and is curious. They stop to write down information and then notice my sign rider. They take a scan of the QR code and ZIP! they are delivered to a webpage dedicated to information on that property. A website that is rich in information and content like video, photos and important documents…all available instantly by scanning the code. I also include the QR code in my mailings to the neighborhood, on the home flyers and in print advertising. The next door neighbor opens a just listed letter and is curious what the house next door is going for and uses the QR code to get all their questions answered in a minute. I am rolling this new tool out on every listing that I take from now on. I hope that this will be a fun new gadget for people to try at first and later will set me apart as being the area innovator in real estate marketing.

I recognize that this isn’t something that many people are using in their day to day lives (yet), but I have a feeling that this is the for sale sign of the future. A sign that answers the buyers questions, that represents the seller’s property and that demonstrates my skills as a marketing professional. If you have a smartphone you can find a QR Reader application in your application store. Go download the application and give the code above a try….I am holding a contest for a $25 Starbucks giftcard for all the souls brave enough to experience this groovy new tool!

What Does A High Tech Realtor Do?

Lesley Lambert — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 03:55:09 +0000

A high tech realtor takes the marketing goodies that the internet has to offer and turns it into purposeful tools to get her listings in front of the most people possible. Exposure to a larger audience means a larger pool of potential buyers and potentially a faster sale for a higher price. I use the new media (internet marketing, social media sites, etc) to optimize the exposure for the homes I represent in Western Massachusetts. Using new media like customized web sites, blogs, Twitter, Facebook, Linkedin and others, I reach out through my computer to get in touch with buyers.

My New Media Marketing plan takes a traditional marketing plan that includes mailings, signage and print advertising and puts rocket boosters on it! ZOOM….your home is exposed to thousands of buyers!

For example my listings are marketed to a large arena of websites including:

Point2Homes.com Free Syndication
point2homes.com

GoogleBase Free Syndication (Beta)
maps.google.com

HotPads.com Free Syndication
hotpads.com

Yahoo! Classifieds Free Syndication (Beta)
realestate.yahoo.com

Cyberhomes.com Free Syndication (Beta)
cyberhomes.com

The Real Estate Book Free Syndication (Beta)
www.therealestatebook.com

SecondSpace Free Syndication
secondspace.com

FrontDoor Free Syndication (Beta)
www.frontdoor.com

Trulia Free Syndication (Beta)
trulia.com

Zillow Free Syndication (Beta)
www.zillow.com

Oodle Free Syndication (Beta)
oodle.com

Homescape Free Syndication (Beta)
www.homefinder.com

vast.com Free Syndication
www.vast.com

CLR Search Free Syndication
www.clrsearch.com

Clickable Directories, Inc. Free Syndication
clickablecitydirectory.com

HomeHippo Free Syndication

HouseLocator.com Free Syndication
www.houselocator.com

The Housing Pages Free Syndication
www.thehousingpages.com

Kazork Free Syndication
www.kazork.com

PropertyShark.com Free Syndication

HomesZ Free Syndication
www.homesz.com

Bilingual Marketing Group Free Syndication
www.vivareal.us

RepeatProperty.com Free Syndication
www.repeatproperty.com

campushomesonline.com Free Syndication (Beta)
www.campushomesonline.com

HomeAway Free Syndication (Beta)
HomeAwayRealEstate.com

kneedl Free Syndication
www.kneedl.com

Realty Showcase Free Syndication (Beta)
www.realtyshowcase.tv

Real Bird
www.realbird.com

Facebook
www.facebook.com/lesleylambert.realestate

You Tube
www.youtube.com/user/LesleyLambert

Park Square Realty
www.parksquarerealty.com

Masslive
www.masslive.com

Craigslist
www.craigslist.com

and this is just a partial list!

In addition my listings are featured with their own website. Visit the page for this listing to see for yourself. These sites feature video, lots of pictures, maps, flyers, open house information, contact information and details of the home. There is also a text code available for mobile phone users to obtain the information via text. Each home has a specialty sign rider with this information making it easy for buyers to view pictures, documents and other information on the property.

Another page that I host allows potential buyers to contact me by live chat! I take tons of pictures of my listings and every property has a video “virtual tour” posted so that buyers can preview the home before they make an appointment.

My listings are optimized for internet searches. Today’s buyers start at the internet. They may drive by a home and instead of calling the phone number on the sign, they will put the home’s address into Google. This is what they will see for one of my listings. Buyers from around the world can find listings this way, not just the local Western Massachusetts ones!

So, if you are considering listing your home in Western Massachusetts for sale, I hope you will let me visit to show you my plan in person. I enjoy being the High Tech Realtor with Old Fashioned Service for over 20 years in Westfield and surrounding Western MA towns!