Is Your Branch Office Open For Business?
		by Allen F. Hainge

First of a four part series - "Making Money With Your Web Site"

You say that you do not own your own firm, that the concept of a "branch office" does not apply to you since you are an agent for a real estate firm? If this is your thinking, perhaps it is time for you to rethink your business.

As an independent contractor, you do own your own business. Your business license (i.e. your real estate license) just happens to be held by another company, that of your broker. Top agents such as my CyberStars realize that they own their businesses. Therefore, they realize the need for the tools that any business needs in order to prosper and grow: a business plan, a budget, the right business tools, up-to-date technology and an exit strategy for when they decide to leave the business behind.

They also know they need to expand their business if they are to grow. They know that their easiest, most cost effective and most profitable expansion tool is a "branch office," one that serves a worldwide clientele twenty-four hours a day, 365 days a year.

This branch office is, of course, their personal Web site. Last year, the CyberStars' Web sites alone earned them from $20,000 closed gross commissions in a small market to over $700,000 in a large market. A number of these top producers earned over of their income from their sites. In short, each CyberStar's branch office made a substantial contribution to his or her gross income.

Properly planned, constructed and promoted, your "branch office" can generate similar results. The purpose of this series of articles is to show you how to get the results the CyberStars do.

If you want to make a lot of money from your site, your first task is to completely buy in to a concept I coined called "Web Centric Marketing". Web Centric Marketing consists of two parts:

• Your primary marketing vehicle is a deep, consumer-oriented Web site
• All of your other marketing materials and efforts are designed with one purpose: to get the consumer to your Web site.

Let me repeat: if you want to make good money from your site, you must be totally convinced that these two principles can lead to success, and you must be totally committed to implementing both parts of the concept! I know from my work with my Web site evaluation clients that most agents who have a Web site want to make money from their sites. The problem is that very few want this enough to really work at it, to make it a priority. Therefore, 85-90% of agents do not make money from their sites.

If you truly believe that Web Centric Marketing can make you a lot of money and if you totally commit to the concept, you are half way to Web success. Your next task is to decide what kind of site you need. You have three choices:

• A "real estate organization" site (Realtor.com, a franchise site, a company site, etc.)
• A template site (Number1Expert, Advanced Access, Homes.com, etc.)
• A custom site created just for you by a site designer

Each type of site has its advantages. A custom site, one designed to your specifications, will make you the most money. If you are not at the point where you can afford a good custom site ($3,000 - $8,000 for an effective one) a template site ($200 - $1,000) will do for now, with one caveat: you must customize your template site extensively, i.e. add your own information and inject your "personality" into it. Template sites come with a wealth of information, hundreds of pages, but they are by definition "sterile." They will make you money out of the box if you publicize them: they will make you much more money if you take the time to personalize and customize.

To see what you can do to customize a template site, visit CyberStar Marlow Harris's site at www.SeattleDreamHomes.com. Marlow has taken a standard Advanced Access site and customized it extensively. She has improved her main link list by adding such links as "Seattle Architecture," "Artist's Homes," "Novelty Architecture," "Staging & Decorating," "Special Events" and many more to it. She has extensively customized her main page. She has added an effective video presentation about herself and her services under her "About Us" link. The time and money she has invested in customizing her template site has certainly paid off, as it will for you if you have a template site.

For an example of the marketing power custom sites can provide, click on "Marketing" at www.SherryDavis.com. You will find that she has posted samples of her dynamic marketing tools, something that surely gives her an edge with sellers who are "interviewing" agents on the Web before contacting the agent.

CyberStar Ira Serkes provides another example of effective customization with his neighborhood and area tours. Visit his www.BerkeleyHomes.com and click on "Neighborhoods" to see outstanding examples of neighborhood information. Our Australian CyberStar, Helen South, is totally committed to the role her custom site plays in her business, and her site shows this commitment. Visit www.lanerealty.com.au for excellent listing displays, displays that make you want to move to Australia so that you can live in one of the homes!

These few examples show you, better than words can say, how customization and innovation can make you money.

If you are going to stop with just the first type of site, by the way, a real estate organization site, you might as well not play the Web marketing game! Such sites should be included in your arsenal of Web sites, but they have not shown themselves to be moneymakers in and of themselves, with some very rare exceptions. Too many agents I meet across the country have such sites, are not making any money from them and wonder why. There are several reasons why "real estate organization sites" are, as a rule, ineffective:

• Most focus on the agent, rather than on what is important to the consumer
• Most provide little, if any, dynamic information on the area and on the buying/selling process
• Most fall short when it comes to providing complete information on a listing
• Many include advertising links that detract from the site
• Some include links that lead the site viewer to other agents

If you have bought into the Web Centric Marketing concept, and if you have decided to go with either a template or custom site depending on your budget, you are ready for your third task: deciding on content for your site.

The overriding principle when deciding on site content is this: think like a consumer, not like a real estate agent! Imagine yourself moving to your own locale for the first time: what information would you want to know about your area? Imagine that you are ready to buy a home: what information about the process would you want to know before buying? Imagine that you wanted to sell your home: how would you like to see your home displayed on the Web and what information for buyers would you like to see?

This general concept, which we will explore in detail in upcoming articles, forms the basis for a money making site. If you are looking to improve your own site, here is a suggestion: look at every one of my CyberStars' sites by clicking here before committing to a new site or upgrading your current one. Look at each with a notepad in hand and jot down features that would be of value to you if you were a consumer looking at agent sites. Then, get with your site designer and add these successful elements to your site. Don't copy the designs or exact content, which would be a copyright violation. Instead, look for content areas you can add to make your own site more effective.

As CyberStar Joe Molnar of South Bend, IN, says in my new book, Secrets Of The CyberStars: Making Money With Today's Technology:

"Do not make your site primarily about yourself or your company. People looking for community information or information on homes could care less about you or your company, your market share, your designations, how much property you have sold or what award clubs you belong to, at least at first. Web sites are all about giving consumers relevant and valuable information in a non-threatening manner, information that is important to them. Give them a reason to want to contact you because of the expertise you display on your site. Do make your resume and credentials available; just do not have your site revolve around them."

A final tip for this first article is to remember the second part of the Web Centric Marketing concept: the primary focus of every aspect of your marketing should be designed to get the consumer to your site! The world has changed, and an overwhelming majority of today's consumers go to the Web when they want to research clothes, cars, books, and more. Today's top agents realize that real estate is no exception. Therefore, they build effective Web sites and see them as their number one prospecting, money-making and time-saving tool. They promote them in every way possible, an aspect of Web marketing that we will cover in a future article.

This article is just a start towards increasing your Web site income by adopting the principle of Web Centric Marketing. Next week we will look at specific content ideas that make your site the success it can be!

Editor's Note: Be sure not to miss the recent audio interview with Allen Hainge "What Makes a Money Making Web Site".

Allen F. Hainge, of Reston, VA is a national technology speaker/trainer who shows sales associates and companies how to make money using todays technology. Allen teaches courses for 5 REALTOR Institute programs around the country and has been a featured technology speaker at ten NAR annual conventions, three RS Sell-A-Brations, and for Howard Brinton's StarPower conference. He taught the nationwide RS 206 technology course for 10 years and has been a featured technology and marketing speaker for state and local REALTOR Associations, conventions, RS Chapters, Womens Councils, companies and franchises in 42 states....always to rave reviews! He has just released his second book, Secrets of the CyberStars: Making Money With Todays Technology. Over 200 agents have benefited from his personal Web site evaluation and analysis coaching. To learn more about how Allen can help you succeed in your real estate business, please visit www.afhseminars.com.

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