NEW KW Placester Sites – Eventually Replacing KW eAgentc Sites

Big changes, great changes, coming for KW agents. Check the video below.

July ’15 Technology Tidbits from Michael Tritthart

Tools to Improve Your Marketing

Getting the right marketing materials can make a world of difference for the better…or for the worse.  Let’s start with your photo.  This is one of the first impressions for potential clients.  If you haven’t updated your photo since that ’91 “Glamor Shot” it’s time to update.  If your photo still has hair and your don’t (I can relate) it’s time to update.  If you walked into a listing presentation and the seller asked “Are you the grandmother of the agent on the card?” then it’s time to update. Photo Touch-Ups You go out and get a new photo.  You look great, but the photo has that boring portrait sitting background.  Or worse it was a great photo of you at an event, but the background is horrible.  That can be fixed.  Go to this MichaelTritthart.com link and scroll down to Photo Touch-ups.  For a $50 fee this company will touch up your photo, but more importantly, you can choose a professional looking background.  An office building, interior of a home, etc.  Well worth the $50 one time investment.   Google Photos This brand new free app is still being figured out by the masses, but the results so far have been amazing.  The app will allow you to store your photos and very easily create a slideshow, photo album, movie and more.  All from your phone.  Pretty amazing and super easy.  Check out more Google Photo details and samples on MichaelTritthart.com.

May ’15 Technology Tidbits

Google’s Algorithum Change – Two Weeks later

Google Mobile-Friendly Test UPDATE Mobile geddon-2015.  Much like the news hype about the next huge winter storm, the hype was worse than the actually effect.  No fireballs from the sky and your site has not been banished to the nether regions. Yes, Google changed it’s search algorithm on April 21st.  If your site is mobile optimized all is good.  If not, the Search Engine Optimization is being affected.  But it can be corrected.  Fear not, once you pass the test, you will be back in Google’s good graces.  Test your site by going to the Google Mobile-Friendly test on MichaelTritthart.com. TIP – KW agents – you can have your eAgentc site pass the test by watching and following the steps in my Google Mobile Friendly video. Here are some things to keep in mind as we all move into this new territory. Common Sense  Use it.  Whenever there is a major change the jackals move in to take advantage.  I have seen multiple ads, heard radio spots promoting mobile enhanced sites.  Many of which start at $4,000-5,000 a site.  That is insane. Know What You Get  Don’t just fall for a pretty home page that is mobile responsive.  Make sure your site has content and lead capture throughout. Many Mobile Options Abound  WordPress.org, WebsiteBox.com and Market Leader sites for all agents.  KW agents can get their eAgentc sites enhanced as well. Before deciding what path to take, contact my design team and we will offer you a free consult to help you decide; whether you use our design team or not.  However, you will see that our design options/content and pricing will be hard to beat.

April 2015 Technology Tidbits

No Foolin’ – The Big Boys Are Making Some Major Changes

Google Mobile-Friendly Test – Google is bringing a major change to it’s search algorithm on April 21st.  If your site is mobile optimized all is good.  If not, the Search Engine Optimization could be affected.  Fear not, once you pass the test, you will be back in Google’s good graces.  Test your site by going to the Google Mobile-Friendly test on MichaelTritthart.com.  KW agents – you can have your eAgentc pass the test by watching and following the steps in my Google Mobile Friendly video. Facebook Embed Video – Facebook is taking a major shot at YouTube’s market share.  The next evolution of this is Facebook embed videos.  Now, you can take a publicly shared video and add that to your website/blog with code.  Videos about your community, ones you have posted.  Or better yet, think of how many kitten videos you can now easily add to your blog!  More information about what this is and install directions can be found on MichaelTritthart.com. DuckDuckGo  Not one of the big boys, but an up-and-comer for a major reason.  Tracking and the lack there of.  Predictive data is huge in 2015.  It is a major factor in the marketing and structure of many companies and real estate businesses.  But sometimes, the little guy gets tired of every move online being tracked and ads popping up, tailored to those searches.  That is where DuckDuckGo comes into play.  No ads.  Just clean natural results.  It’s actually kind of refreshing to use.  Go check it out for yourself.  It can be found, along with more useful sites on MichaelTritthart.com.

February, 2015 Tech Tidbits Newsletter

3 Ways to Kickstart Your Business in 2015!

2015 is shaping up to be another great year in real estate.  Here are 3 items to help get you the online edge you need to be successful.

Google Domains – Great timing for Google on this recently announced offering and really, really bad timing by Godaddy.  Godaddy just released an offensive Super Bowl commercial (quickly pulled) that has animal lovers up in arms.  Just a few weeks ago, Google announced that it was getting into the domain name business.  Need to get a new domain name?  You may want to check out what Google offers.   See this and other value adds from Google on MichaelTritthart.com.

TalkWalker –  Now that you have a domain name for your site, you need content.  Struggling to think of something to write?  You can always use Google Alerts.  But add TalkWalker to the mix for free.  This site allows you to view blog posts and other social media platforms, in addition to the many of the same sites Google Alerts provides.  Remember, do not just copy/paste.  Copy, modify and then paste.  Use the data to help create your own custom content; which Google (and your potential clients) will love. View TalkWalker and other sites on my Useful Websites resource page on MichaelTritthart.com.

Pop Up Tools for Leads – Domain name?  Check.  Content?  Check.  Now you  need the lead capture.  Though controversial to some, pop up boxes may be just what you need.  Check out 5 pop up tools that you can add to your website to encourage registration.  They can be modified and adjusted as you wish to maximize effectiveness.   This great article from Inman can be found here on MichaelTritthart.com.

eAgentc Home Page Restyle Offer EXPIRES At The End of February, 2015!

December ’14 Technology Tidbits

4 Gifts That Keep on Giving

Tis’ the season….for client testimonials!  Client testimonials/reviews are some of the best (and free!) ways to improve your SEO and generate more leads.  Think about how many times you check reviews before going to a restaurant, movie, event, etc.  More and more potential real estate clients are doing the same thing.  But where should real estate agents ask for/post reviews?  Here are just a few. 1.  Zillow – Zillow alters how agents are ranked and viewed on their site; partially based on agent reviews.  Go to Facebook.com/technology tidbits for 19 tips on how to get more reviews. 2.  Market Leader Websites – The Market Leader (now owned by Trulia, soon to be purchased by Zillow) websites have a spot to load reviews. Agents: share the link to the About page on your website with clients.  There is a recommend button on that page where clients can type reviews.  Agents – if you have some testimonials from previous clients and need a place to showcase them, you can load them (with your client’s approval of course) on this page as well.  View an example of this at the bottom of our list of website designs. 3. YouTube then Facebook – The hardest thing to do is to get a testimonial after the fact.  Get that testimonial at the closing table.  Use your smart phone or tablet and video tape your clients sharing “One Thing” that you did to help the closing happen.  They will then share more than one thing and create a great video that you can post on your YouTube channel and add to your website.  You can then post on Facebook and tag your clients as well.  That is a great way to generate more leads from their friends and family.  Just make sure and ask for your client’s approval first.  Heck, you can even it post these to your LinkedIn page!  Log into LinkedIn and view my testimonials at LinkedIn.com/in/technologytraining 4.  Google – The BEST SEO site by far.  Create a profile at Google My Business.  Clients who then have a Google account can write a review about your business.  A review that will show up in Google results and actually help your clients show up more in Google searches.  A win-win all around. I Need You – To Write a Review! In fact, if my training, newsletter or design team has helped to improve your business, I would like you to write a Google review of MTritt Inc.

Underestimate Keller Williams at Your Own Risk – INMAN NEWS

Transparency, Sharing & Peer Teaching Core to Company’s Success

By Brad Inman of Inman News –  In 2005, two years before the U.S. housing market collapsed, Keller Williams co-founder and company guru and evangelist Gary Keller sent an email to his troops with the warning that “storm clouds are coming.”

In 2006, at the annual KW family reunion gathering, he urged agents to prepare for a downturn. Action followed words as the company pushed cost-cutting tactics and other practical strategies for surviving what became a six-year housing depression. At the time, the rest of the industry was wallowing in the last days of a propped-up housing market with insane excess.

The evidence is in: After two decades of real estate industry innuendo, gossip and cheap shots, real estate giant Keller Williams has not only defied the critics but has begun to dust many of its competitors, growing at warp speed with a strong mix of culture and a business model that is winning.

In the past two years, Keller Williams has grown its agent count from 78,303 to 110,447, an increase of 41 percent. During that time, it became the largest real estate franchise in North America. Keller Williams is growing at approximately four times the rate of membership as the National Association of Realtors.

Keller Williams is demonstrating that it is a very smart company, hiding behind its humble and sometimes folksy corporate imagery, and it is executing on its vision with deliberateness and on its plan that does not waver too much, including its unapologetic commitment to the agent.

“KW provides agents with lead generation, team building and economic models necessary to build a successful business, with the brand being the agent or team, NOT KW,” said top producing agent Sue Adler, who also is the founder of Hear it Direct. She credits Keller with spawning a spirit of entrepreneurship at the company that encouraged her very successful HID initiative.

Around KW headquarters, feel-good slogans are common, but harder-nose axioms like lead with revenue are also part of the firms results-driven culture. It is that artful mix of a fanciful vision with repeatable business tactics that has suddenly made the company the real estate franchise to watch, emulate and catch up with.

Poised for growth

KW’s actions during the Great Recession put in place a foundation for industry-leading growth when the housing market began to recover two years ago.

“Through its efforts, Keller Williams emerged from the recession in a strong competitive position,” reads a case study from the Stanford Business School from 2011. “While its top three competitors (Coldwell Banker, Century 21 and Re/Max) closed a combined 160 offices, Keller Williams grew its office count from 660 in 2007 to 680 by 2010. While Keller Williams boosted its agent count, these competitors shed 38,000 agents.”

These impressive results also are changing how the company maps outs its future and its image. Company leaders emphasize their systems and a unique business model and less on the touchy-feely messages that the firm has been known for. They have also toned down their profit-sharing mantra that sometimes was described by its most cynical detractors as at best a multilevel marketing promise and at worse a pyramid scheme.

“Regarding profit sharing, people who are not in KW really don’t understand it. At other real estate companies you are only as good as your last sale,” said Adler. “Not here.”

KW President Worldwide Chris Heller added, “Profit sharing creates a dynamic where everyone is on the same footing. Instead of people sitting across from each other fighting over commissions, we are all on the same page.”

In the past 12 months, the company shared $91.8 million with its agents through its Profit Share and Growth Share programs. Since the Profit Share program’s inception in 1996, the company has distributed $500 million through its equity-sharing program.

The Keller Williams operating model relies on economies of scale and a cultural model that relies on, “the principles of profit sharing, interdependence and success through the efforts of others,” according to the Stanford Case.

How it works

In mid-1980s, Gary Keller operated his small real estate company in Austin,Texas. At the time, he discovered that he was losing his top agents to a rapidly growing Re/Max franchise in the area. Re/Max was offering 100 percent commission, which made Keller Williams’ 50 percent splits look meager. Keller then created a system that would encourage people to stay, but more importantly it provided a sustainable competitive advantage in the real estate brokerage industry.

Disciplined splits are a big part of the KW formula, not 100 percent agents wandering around, say company officials.

From the Stanford case:
The commission split that Keller Williams offered agents is a hybrid of that offered by traditional franchises and 100 percent commission organizations. The Keller Williams agent/Keller Williams Realty receives a 70/30 commission split from the first dollar of gross commission income (GCI) generated. The agent was responsible for paying a franchise fee to the international office each year, which was capped at $3,000. The agent was also responsible for paying a fee to the market center, referred to as company dollar. The company dollar was also capped, at a level that varied by region, with areas with high average home prices having a higher cap to account for the general higher cost of doing business in such areas.

Keller Williams offers a second source of income — profit share — to its agents. The formula is based on: each agent recruited to the company, the productivity of those agents, and the cash profits generated by each market center. This formula gives agents credit not only for the productivity of agents they directly recruited but also agents that those agents recruited in an elaborate step function that extends seven levels. All market centers used the same profit share calculation:

• 25 percent of the first $2,990 in market center profit is contributed to the profit share pool
• 35 percent of the next $8,250 is then contributed to the pool
• 50 percent of any profit above $11,240 is also contributed to the pool

Importantly, a Keller Williams agent who retired from the company would continue to receive profit share so long as the agents they recruited remained with the company. This policy represented a rare form of residual income in an industry where agents typically saw their income stop entirely upon retirement.

Guru, motivator with cult-like following

In 2002, Gary Keller delivered a speech at the Inman Real Estate Connect conference.

The procedure for speakers was to enter from behind the stage in a formal, somewhat typical way for professional events. I explained the protocol to Gary, but he said he preferred to enter from the back of the room. “Egads,” I thought, “like a prizefighter before a boxing match.”

He ignored my direction and entered from the back.

That moment gave me pause about Gary Keller — was he some sort of evangelist or egomaniac, or was this episode instead symbolic of his true feelings about the industry, come up from the ranks (in this case the agents in the audience) not making a grand entrance from behind the stage like some big shot?

“Gary has an incredible mind,” said longtime business associate Paul Wylie, co-manager of Wystein Opportunity Fund LLC, a residential real estate investment fund. “He understands the importance of continually improving, is a natural teacher and has a long-term horizon that is unparalleled in real estate.”

Despite hero worship inside KW, Keller is also known for being a tough taskmaster and a tad awkward in social settings. He occupies an office in the basement of KW headquarters in Austin, again reinforcing his contrarian style.

Keller is treated like a guru inside the KW “family,” which is why some cynical outsiders whisper the word cult. But that is a cheap shot — the company has built an enviable culture and a seemingly bulletproof business model that many smart people believe in. Unlike a pyramid scheme or even a shaky multilevel marketing operation, KW is a business machine that is driven by a strong and passionate culture, which accounts for its staggering growth in shaky times.

Agent adulation

“I am with Keller Williams because Gary Keller wrote the millionaire real estate agent book,” said KW top producer Ben Kinney, who won the Inman Innovator Award in 2014. “After reading the MREA book I learned that Gary didn’t mean to name it millionaire real estate agent — what he meant was MRE Business. “KW s the only company that talks to, trains, and promotes the individual agents business and brand — most other brands believe they are the brand that give agents validity. Not Keller Williams,” he said.

From the outside, KW appears insulated and admittedly private about its affairs and therefore somewhat of an enigma. When I asked Keller Williams President Chris Heller about the private nature of the company, he said, “People first, results follow, and they speak for themselves.”

Though known for its humility in the industry — never being too loud or to full of itself — Keller Williams seems a little more anxious to tell its story, something it does well internally.

Inside the company, transparency, sharing and peer teaching is core to the company’s success and culture.

“KW’s sharing culture expands my mind on a daily basis,” said Adler. “The top agents in the country willingly share their secrets — the learning never stops.”

The words for me that may best describe Keller Williams is earnest enthusiasm. That helps any strategy become a winning plan.

Article by Brad Inman of Inman News and can be viewed in it’s original format at: Underestimate Keller Williams at Your Own Risk

KW Megacamp 2014 Design Special. Request a FREE quote.

Ready to Get ALL of your KW website platforms and social media sites set up correctly? How about saving some money along the way? Use this MEGACAMP coupon code until the end of September.  Request a FREE quote here.  View various samples from the MichaelTritthart.com Design Team.

June 2014 Technology Tidbits

Google Doesn’t Play Fair – And You Don’t Have To Either

If you have been to my workshops before, you have probably heard me say “Google owns the world and we just happen to live in it.”  That is very true with SEO.  They set the rules and they play favorites to their programs.  If you are not using Google+ then you are missing out on one the easiest ways to get ranked higher.

• Take your free Google+ account and enhance it.  Here is the one I have developed for my training and social media design business.
• Post content about your relevant topics and include the keywords in the title and body of the post.  Ex. subdivisions, niche topics, listings, your name, etc.  Lots of different options.  You choose.
• That’s it!  Pretty simple and you will start to see immediate results.  Need proof?  Check out the example of increased SEO under Google+ on this link.   The update that I did for Susan in the example showed in less than 10 SECONDS!
• Do you have a problem of your listings not showing up first in the search results?  Create a blog post about your new listing, publish it, add it to Google+, THEN add the listing to MLS and push it out.  Go back and add the MLS ID number to your Blog and Google+ post.  Extra work but you should like the results!

Google+ also has other treasure troves.  Such as Google+ Stories and Movies.  You can create marketing pieces for your listings, neighborhoods, etc. in a matter of minutes.  Google provides the blueprint to better SEO, you just have to follow it.  Need some help?  Attend my sessions and/or have my team help build the online platforms you need.

April ’14 Technology Tidbits

CHA CHA CHANGES – GOOD AND BAD

There have been quite a few changes lately.  Some of which have greatly altered the business practice of many agents.  Let’s discuss the biggest change first. Craigslist – The King is dead, long live the king.  Right or wrong, Craigslist has made major changes to restrict what can be advertised in real estate ads.  Check out the new Craigslist updates, via this great graphic from MyOutDesk.com.  These changes will open up the door to other alternatives for online advertising.  Google+, in my opinion, will see more activity.  Another is Backpage.com; which has a very similar Craigslist feel to it and I bet will see a surge in activity. Blogging – Years ago when blogging first came out it was greatly suggested.  The it faded away and now blogging is back with a vengeance.  Mainly because blogging has such great SEO.  But the biggest problem remains for many agents – actually sitting down and blogging.  Here are 16 Blogging Resources to make that process easier. Zapier – Now, here is the really good change (great one actually!)  Zapier allows you to automate over 250 web apps.  Such as adding an RSS feed to your Facebook page and more.  It works very similar to one my favorite sites, IFTTT.com.  Many of the action items from each site compliment each other.  Check out what Zapier and can do for you.

BIG Improvements for KW Products

Keller Williams is constantly improving the tools provided to their agents.  Here are two big changes. KW Mobile App Seamless Branding.  The mobile app for each agent now offers seamless branding.  No need for your clients to download a code.  Market your mobile app URL.  Clients tap the open or view button and they can download YOUR app without the need for an install code.  Additionally, use the AppShare option to text your app to clients.  This will enable them to receive the app, install and open it, again without an install code.  Do you and your office need more training on the app and all of the KW Tech Tools?  Contact me to inquire about available training dates. Here is a BIG, BIG, BIG one.  A common complaint has been the inability to forward the Market Leader email.  Thanks to Katrina Benton, here are steps on how to forward the email to your Gmail account or your KW email (now checked within Google.)  My TIP:  Copy/paste the email AND the password when inputting into the correct spots, instead of typing in the data.  Doing this setup will ensure that you are not missing any business and will streamline your business process.

How We Can Help Your Business

Do you need some assistance with your online presence?  We are here to help.  Click any of the links or images below to start the process of improving your business. Custom Blog Site – Need a custom look for your main site, a new community resource or a niche topic blog?  We can do that!  These services are open to EVERYONE.  Enhanced KW Sites – eAgentc and eEdge for KW agents.  Maximize the look, Search Engine Optimization and lead capture capabilities of sites that you already pay for each month!  We offer discount pricing on the website/social media combo package.   Social Media Enhancements – Do you need to create a stronger social media platform designed to funnel to your lead capture sites?  We have your covered! eEdge Database Full Service – Does this look like you trying to organize your database?  We can make your life a whole lot easier.  We will upload your database into eEdge, create the groups, activate your marketing and more.  Basically we will flip on all the switches and get your going!

The Most Underused Keller Williams Tech Tool Out There

At Keller Williams many of the marketing/lead generation tools are agent focused; and rightly so.  However, the Market Center website can be a powerful lead generation tool for all of the agents in the Market Center.  With some work, custom community searches, focused map searches, indexable listings and more can be created on the site.  The site can end up looking and working like the site to the right.    Does you Market Center need help in the enhancement?  I have a designer on my team that focuses exclusively on the Market Center sites.  Get the look enhanced and leads coming in for your office.  Contact us to start the Market Center website enhancement process.