These points are true not only for SN, but life. I was just talking to someone at the dinner I hosted yesterday about how he uses Match.com and he said, "it's a numbers game" and my response was that he was too busy looking for quantity over quality. If he sends out a bunch of "winks" (he said 50) but then doesn't follow up with any of them, then it's an ego based situation that he's created and not one where he is really serious about finding a good match.

In my business, real estate, people almost always assume we're going to go for the hard sell, which isn't true. We do use a tool called "From Your Friends" that is our freebie - each month a coupon for local restaurants or events are sent out that our clients and contacts can use. These have nothing to do with real estate and they stand out among the magnets, calendars and recipe cards that other agents use.

Our business is all about relationships so if I didn't already put each of your points into play in my own workday it would fail. Like I said earlier, these all fit into more than just SN, for sure.

I am excited about this meeting although nervous about timing. I've just begun a new biz relationship with a builder that is "green" who does infill projects and we have a meeting for my 1st listing that day and I have to stage a house for a photo shoot on Tuesday. May only be able to stay for an hour, but will try to come anyway. Guess goals for working with this builder will be on my agenda! :)

Nice article that fits all types of businesses. As a Realtor, I found when I got into the field that most agents had no plan whatsoever so just by having a business plan I was already ahead of the game. Most people thought they were coming in this line of work to be a salesperson and didn't realize they'd become a small business owner. With over 5300 fewer agents this year, we're seeing how lack of preparation and the lack of rainy day funds has weeded out many.

Would love to come to the November versions of this event but am afraid next week is already booked and I may be gone out of town for mid-month. Will RSVP for early December and look forward to meeting all of you!

Cheers, Reba

Thanks, Bob, for hosting, it was a nice event! For any of the attendees that want to connect on Biznik in the network, please feel free to send a request.

I hope you all get a chance to take advantage of the coupons for $15 off at Armondo's that I passed out. The restaurant has been a mainstay in Renton for about 20 years and it would be great to have you support them with another visit soon!

Cheers, Reba

ok, Mark, that explains why you're so slim, and I'm not - at least not like I used to be. ;)

Looking forward to tomorrow's meeting!

Hi Mark!

It's great to have you join Biznik, I appreciate you accepting my invitation. Don't forget to tell people why I specifically thought you'd be a good fit here; 1) your great personal customer service, 2) ability to do international moves, and 3) offering both residential as well as business moving services!

Looking forward to seeing you at the SoCo Connectors lunch on Wednesday!

Cheers, Reba

I love Armondo's and I live in Renton so this seems like an easy networking event to attend. I look forward to meeting more folks from around this area. This will be my first Biznik event too, so I'm looking forward to hearing what others have to say about their experiences in using it for their businesses.

Since you are a stager and you're curious what a homeowner's concerns are, I'll try to specifically address your questions from the comments we've heard from clients...

1) why should I stage, my house looks fine as it is... - well, of course it looks fine to you, seller, because you live in it and decorated it yourself. Note - decorated and not merchandised or staged. Decorating is to meet a specific taste of style - staging and/or merchandising is to appeal to a broad audience.

2) Why should I paint when the paint on the wall/exterior is in perfectly good condition? - yes, it might be excellent teal colored paint, and that is part of the problem. It's teal and not a universally accepted color. Unacceptable colors result in lower or no offers. Buyers will see the work they'll need to put in and price accordingly. Very few people want a cosmetic fixer anymore. They want value for their money and that either means move-in ready (no painting/carpet/otherwise) at a good price or a great deal on the one that does need cosmetic work. Since the majority of buyers don't do this kind of work regularly they don't know the actual costs, so, in their heads they will make the figures much larger.

3) My house is in better condition than anyone else's house in the neighborhood and we've had many people in the past walk up and tell us they'd like to buy the home. - I'm sure you did and that was also during the years that houses sold quickly. And, as the owner, you're not always sufficiently removed emotionally from your house to see the flaws. Believe me, ALL houses have flaws. Staging helps to offset some of them - repairing or replacing other issues deals with others. Some problems you just can't do anything about.

4) As a seller, I'm afraid we won't be able to sell and we've already made the move to a new town for the new job our largest income earner accepted. - Time to really consider what you'll sell your home for. Motivation is a big factor and value of a home is never a fixed dollar amount. You might feel that you don't want to give anything up on the value of your home, but value is only determined when you actually sell it. Just because a house is listed at one price doesn't mean it's worth it - as many people are now finding out.

Price it right to begin with. Plenty of studies have shown that pricing a house in the mid-range of values, while making sure it is in very good condition to sell, is what moves properties. Overpricing or putting an inferior product on the market will only bite you in the backside.

Hi John,

I have a question about blogging and the use of images in the posts written. I do a lot of writing about local companies in the form of promoting these businesses. I make no money from it but rather write about these places to inform my clients and online readers about local places to go, etc. In the end, it is free advertising for these companies. If I use an image that is a link to their website while describing who they are am I likely to run into an infringement problem?

Thanks, Reba Team Reba of RE/MAX Metro Realty

We like to send an evaluation out after every one of our clients completes a real estate transaction with us. I just recently asked that we update the form to include a question about "what do you think we could have done better?" We give a rating system on certain items and then allow free form on open ended questions. We also have clients who give us permission to use their good comments about us as testimonials in our marketing.

I also learned early on in my real estate career to ask clients that has used other agents in the past why they had decided to work with another agent. Asking this simple question opened up a good course of conversation about expectations, and was instrumental in helping me learn what did/didn't work with clients, without making the mistake myself. INVALUABLE information or as the credit card ad says, "priceless."

do they really need a CPA for the application? I am a co-founder of a non-profit outside of my real estate business and we were able to make our application without the assistance of one.