The Art of Conversation is quite simple!  It is a matter of creating something worth talking about!!

So what causes a great conversation piece?  Anything that gets other people interested enough to want to have a conversation with you and anyone else who chimes in!

So you may be saying: easier said than done!  Not really.  Watch.  Let’s talk about social media, shall we?  See, I asked a question and in your reading this, you probably answered!  There you have it.  The start of a conversation!

And the point is……?  It isn’t about you writing all over your wall, say on facebook.  It is about other people commenting about or liking what you posted.  A successful post is one that has enough folks intrigued enough that they contribute to the discussion.  I say that I really like when I see more of my friends posting on my page than me!  Then I know that they came and visited and re-connected!

So here are some tips to get you on your way having fun and fulfilling conversations, especially on the internet through social media sites.

• Ask a question
• Provoke thought
• Acknowledge your friends and followers
• Touch someone’s heart
• Hang a picture or video whether serious or funny, home grown or professional

For example . . .

Asking questions:  What was the best thing that happened to you today?  Some days you just want to ….?  Anybody see the movie __________?

Provoke thought:  This week, I will …. , If you could do anything you wanted, what would you do?  What is the best thing that happened to you today?

Acknowledge people.  Hey, just look for reasons to complement someone and give them a ‘shout out’ to them on your page.  Birthdays are the easiest to acknowledge, by the way.

Touch someone’s heart:  Watch This

Hang something on your wall:

And while you are at it, just have fun with it!!  Yes it is that simple.

At a recent presentation of InstaTekkie, Course Creators two day social media certification course we taught for Beverly-Hanks agents in Asheville, North Carolina, we highlighted the online presence of Beverly-Hanks agent, Elisa Lamar.  We pointed to her as an example in class because she had a very prominent presence on social media sites such as Zillow and had over $4 million dollars of listings displayed on the site. Her properties came to the top of the list when we searched “homes for sale” in Asheville.  As a single agent she was controlling 40% of the first ten properties buyers found when they searched for homes in the Asheville area.

At Course Creators we often do this type of in depth research in markets where we teach this class so that we can help agents understand where they currently stand in social media in relationship to their peers and competition.  We applauded Elisa’s efforts.  Recognized the job she had done, even told her company’s owner that he should send her a note commending her efforts.  Elisa was not in our class.  Turns out she had a number of client appointments (Go figure!)

You can see the work Elisa has been doing and view her Zillow profile by clicking on her picture to the left!

Now for Rest of the Story

Elisa heard about our comments in class, and we had an opportunity to talk with her the next day. Here is a short transcript of our conversation:

Elisa “I’m sorry I could not be there, but I was busy working with clients.”

Course Creators “Well, you should know we were recognizing your efforts on sites such as Zillow and showing your fellow REALTORS® how they could get more business doing what you did!”

She proceeded to tell us that she attributed her presence and success with Zillow to our Social Media Keynote presentation that we did a few months before and to the training CD that we gave here for being a volunteer in our class!!

Elisa, our hat is off to you for being one of the students who Got IT! Used IT! and Became more successful because of IT! Thank you for verifying and validating all that we do and teach! We wish you continued success on your use of Zillow as you take your real estate business to the next level.

You can learn more about our video training CD’s by clicking on the Video Training CD to the right!

Just giving you a heads up!!  You Tube Downloader has a new look!

The functionality remains the same even though this is a new version!

If  you don’t currently use You Tube Downloader, search for it on Google and download the AlterVista version.  Have fun with it!

Want to know more about why you should have this really cool tool.

Check this out!

Len & Theresa are honored to have been hired by The Alabama Real Estate Commission to help their state train professional real estate instructors. We will be presenting “How to Get A Standing Ovation Everytime” as a 6 hour Instructor Development Workshop at the Commission on August 15, 2010 in Montgomery, Alabama.

We will be helping fellow instructors hone and improve their presentation skills and aspire to the Generally Accepted Principles of Education (GAPE) as defined by the national Real Estate Educators Association.

Since we are in the Alabama area we would love the opportunity to do a presentation, class, course or keynote for your brokerage, organization or company. There is no more affordable time to hire us than when we are in your area.

Course Creators cutting edge “hands-on” social media certification course makes it fun, exciting and easy to learn the technology that will bring you more clients, more business and move you to the next level. This two day “bring your laptop and click along with us” format will have you accomplishing more in two days than you ever thought possible.

• Experience the power of YouTube, create your own channel and make and edit your own real estate videos
• Create facebook business accounts and learn how to integrate facebook into your business
• Expand your sphere of influence and network like a pro on Linkedin
• Include the power of blogging and lower your marketing expenses
• Uncover new sources of business and expand your marketing on Zillow and Trulia
• Increase your Google skills and learn new tools for managing the net

Complete with 200 page “How to Click” Playbook with Step by Step SuCCess Clicks!

To learn more and register for this groundbreaking course just click on the Superior Logo to the left!

Course Creators is honored to offer this class throughout North Carolina in partnership with Superior School of Real Estate.

Course Creators is fortunate and grateful to have seen so much explosive growth and prosperity in just the first twelve months of our business. We have made our mark in the area of continued real estate education and are continually expanding outward across the United States and other businesses and professions.

We are pleased to announce that the Course Creators team has now reached double digits with the addition of three new fantastic instructors. We welcome to the team, Fawn Whitford, Mary Diaz and Kay Yokley. The amount of business and entrepreneurial knowledge of these three new instructors is absolutely amazing. They have much to share and you will learn a lot from all of them. You can read a bit more about them and see the rest of the Course Creators team on our website.

To Learn More About the Course Creators Team Click Here!

As we have said, all along. Buckle Up! We are all here to help you Get IT! Use IT! and Become More Successful Because of IT! Welcome to a whole new era of education in business growth and development. How can we help you!

There is no doubt that the real estate world is changing, but let’s face it, real estate has never been constant. One of the enduring truths of our industry is that things are always in a state of change. The most successful real estate professionals understand that succeeding in real estate requires mastering the process of change. More importantly our careers depend on both recognizing market shifts and then reinventing our services and our practices to capitalize on those shifting trends.

Gary Keller’s Shift captures this essence of the heart estate in an easy to understand manner and delivers the material in practical useful scripts that will help you gain market share. It has been a long time since I have read a book with such amazing insight into the operation of real estate markets and what we need to be doing to succeed in them.

Some of the great information that you will gain from reading Shift is:

• How to Develop the Right Mindset in Shifting Markets
• Seller Pricing Strategies to Always Be Priced Ahead of the Market
• How to Engage in Successful Internet Lead Conversion
• Mastery of the Market of the Moment
• How to Create Urgency to Overcome Buyer Reluctance

This book is stuffed full of the information we all should know. I believe the subtitle of the book probably conveys all you need to know “It’s NOT About the Market…It’s About What You Do!”

Find out what you should be doing and put Shift on your summer reading list.

In today’s business world, social media is not a passing phase.  It is here to stay.  Therefore, your future is directly tied to your understanding of what social media is, how it works, why it works and how you can use it to become more successful!  And if you are struggling with questions like: “Where do I begin?”  ” What exactly should I do?”, don’t worry!  We give you a simple 5 step plan to follow in 2010!   Don’t get left behind. The time is NOW!


Catch The Social Media Wave


Sponsored By: Fidelity National Title

Held At: 1630 E. River Rd. #120, Tucson, Arizona

9:00 PM to 12:00 PM – Monday, July 12, 2010

The subtle nuances of short sales and REO’s!  Once we understand how we “got in this mess in the first place”, we then can explore and discuss specific addenda and contract language that will help you protect your clients while removing the doubt, fear and uncertainty that distressed sales create. This class is sure to uncover some things you just didn’t know but wish you had!  Come and find out just what that might be.


Hot Contract Issues In Short Sales and REO Transactions

Sponsored By: Title Security

Held At: 6390 E. Tanque Verde Rd., Tucson AZ

9:00 AM to 12:00 PM – Thursday, July 8, 2010

So we frequently get asked about facebook badges in our Facebiz class. Thought we would just share with you the possibilities!

Here is one for your personal page!

Theresa Barnabei

Create Your Badge

If you want a personal badge right now, click on ‘create badge’ under Theresa’s badge in this post. Or, at anytime, on the bottom left column on your wall, there is a link that says Create a Profile Badge. Either way, you then will be able to edit your badge and then post it.

You can do one for your business page too!

Course Creators

Promote Your Page Too

If you want a business badge right now, click on ‘promote your page too’ under the Course Creators’  badge.   Or at anytime, go to your business page, click on ‘edit’ under your picture.  The link to create your business page badge is on the bottom of the right column.  Click on either link and you then will be able to select your business page, edit it and then post it.

As for editing either badge, personal or professional, you get to choose your layout (vertical, horizontal or columns) and then what you want displayed on it.  We selected pic and name on the personal one and pic, name and fans on the business one.  Decide how you want to show up!  When you are done editing, you will be given the opportunity to choose where to add the badge.  If you select ‘other’, you will be prompted to copy the code and add it to your website.

That’s all we did to get them to show up the way you see them here! If you want to be found on facebook, just think of the places you could promote your fb presence! Have fun!