Welcome to the world of video making!!   You have this wonderful idea for a video!  And you just don’t know where to begin.  We know that feeling so let us help you.  As you visualize your finished product, think about what steps you can take one at a time to get you there!  Everything is made easier when the steps are clearly defined and laid out.  Then, of course, you would start with step one and then proceed with step two, step 3, etc..  Easier said than done, huh?  Here, we will make it easier for you.

Since we produce an extensive amount of training CD’s, we realized the need for a tool that would keep us on track during the creation process.  So we developed one, and we would like to share it with you.  It is the Course Creators Video Storyboard!

Here is an example of how we used it to produce our National Association of Realtors® promotional piece, where we set out to cover 6 specific points that we wanted to make in the video, and we determined how we would make those points through the use of  slides, photos and videos.  As a matter of fact, here is exactly what that looked like.If you want to see how this really works, here is a link to the finished video product.

Is there more to creating a video than just using the storyboard.  Sure.  But this tool, if used properly, will force you to clarify the production steps in your mind, then lay the flow out on paper.  Try it and see how it works for you.

For More Information And To Order, Click Here!

And if you want to know more on creating videos, we have produced a CD training video, VideoBiz, that walks you through, step by step, everything you need to know to shoot, edit, create and ultimately hang your video on You Tube!!  Have fun creating!!

Real Estate CE 3 Hrs. Commissioner's Standards

Do you want to save $40 the next time you renew your license? Do you know consumers can see which classes you have taken? Do you know why agents are loosing their licenses over subdivision issues? You will be amazed at what you are able to do through the ADRE website. You could be receiving automated updates from the Department, have your education posted to your registration card, renew on line at substantial savings and be on top of what is happening in your industry. This is a class full of information you will actually use to save time and money!

The Virtual Commissioner

Sponsored By: Title Security

Held At: The Conference Room At Oro Valley, 10445 N. Oracle Rd., #121, Tucson, Arizona

1:00 PM to 4:00 PM – Thursday, February 17, 2010

Real Estate CE 3 Hrs. RE Legal Issues

It’s amazing what we don’t know about real estate closings at least when it comes to how to turning them into marketing opportunities. These are practical issues from the real world of real estate closings. Find out what  escrow officers have to say about streamlining your transaction, removing roadblocks and informing your clients.  Understand the changes surrounding the new HUD-1 Settlement Statement and avoid the most common issues that delay and frustrate the closing of a real estate transaction.

Sponsored By: Southeast Arizona Association of Realtors

Held At:  Association Offices, 125 South Second Street, Sierra Vista, Arizona

1:30 PM to 4:30 PM – Tuesday, February 16, 2010

No doubt about it we live in a relocation market. The Arizona Office of Tourism reports that $18.5 billion dollars is spent every year by Arizona visitors and that our state sees roughly 102 visitors every day

No doubt many of those visitors are planning on relocating to Arizona and from them will come your next available pool of buyers as an Arizona real estate agent. We will be well advised to have on our websites relocation information and resources for those potential buyers. We did some research and came up with the following internet links that you may want to link to from your blog site, website or social media pages. What a great way to get buyers interested in the State of Arizona, connect with them early and begin building the relationships which will turn into transactions.

erelocation professionals is a website offering free relocation information and relocation packages for those considering the move to Arizona.

Phoenix & Tucson Relocation Guide is a source for relocation information in Arizona two major cities.

Destination Arizona is a YouTube video created and produced by the Arizona Office of Tourism.

Tucson AZ Tourism is a YouTube video promoting Tucson.

Vibrant Variety. Endless Possibilities is a a YouTube video jointly created by the Arizona Office of Tourism and the Arizona Department of Commerce.

Including links such as these to your internet sites just makes good sense to us as practitioners in a relocation market.

Real Estate CE 3 Hrs. Contract Law

Know how to successfully handle the most challenging contractual issues that are encountered in short sale and REO transactions. We will be discussing and sharing specific addenda and contract language that will help you protect your clients and remove the doubt, fear and uncertainty that distressed sales create. Find out what the agents and brokers who have closed REO and short sale transactions had to learn the hard way. 

Sponsored By: Southeast Arizona Association of Realtors, American Guardian, WJ Bradley Mortgage

Held At: Association Offices – 125 S. Second Street, Sierra Vista, Arizona

1:30 PM to 4:30 PM – Thursday, February 11, 2010

Real Estate CE 3 Hrs. Fair Housing

No theory. No preaching. No 1960’s Fair Housing discussions. This class is straight talk about what you need to know about diversity in your neighborhood in order to be successful. Since all real estate is local wouldn’t you really like to know what diversity means in your ‘hood ‘and how it is affecting the day to day practice of your profession. This is the real world Fair Housing class you have been waiting for.

We will change the way you look at fair housing forever!

Diversity In Your Hood

Sponsored By: Southeast Arizona Association of Realtors, American Home Guardian, WJ Bradley Mortgage

Held At: Association Offices, 125 S. 2nd Street, Sierra Vista, Arizona

9:00 AM to 12:00 PM – Thursday, February 11, 2010

Real Estate CE 3 Hrs. Agency Law

What if you could find the FSBO’s in your area or neighborhood with just a few clicks? What if you had the right script and detailed information to convert FSBO’s into “Just Listed” with you? Did you know that sellers who hire agents end up with more money than those who sell their home on their own (even after commissions are deducted)? There are lots of FSBO’s out there who actually want to be your client if you know what to say, how to say it and where to find them.

How To Find FSBO’s and Capture Their Business

Sponsored By: Stewart Title & Trust of Tucson

Held At: 1050 E. River Road, # 200, Tucson, Arizona

1:00 PM to 4:00 PM – Friday, February 5, 2010

Real Estate CE 3 Hrs. Commissioner's Standards

Do you want to save $40 the next time you renew your license? Do you know consumers can see which classes you have taken? Do you know why agents are loosing their licenses over subdivision issues? You will be amazed at what you are able to do through the ADRE website. You could be receiving automated updates from the Department, have your education posted to your registration card, renew on line at substantial savings and be on top of what is happening in your industry. This is a class full of information you will actually use to save time and money

The Virtual Commissioner

Sponsored By:  Southeast Arizona Association of Realtors

Held At:  125 S. Second Street, Sierra Vista, Arizona

1:00 PM to  4:00 PM – Thursday, February 4, 2010

Real Estate CE 3 Hrs. Agency Law

In today’s real estate world social media has become King. Are you struggling with questions like where do I begin? What exactly should I do? We all need to go where our clients went in the world of social media. This course will help you understand how much social media can advance your business. Learn what other top producing professionals already know. Your future is directly tied to your understanding of what social media is, how it works and how you can use it. Don’t get left behind. The time is NOW!

Catch The Wave

Sponsored By: Southeast Arizona Association of Realtors

Held At:  125 S. Second Street, Sierra Vista, Arizona

9:00 PM to 12:00 PM – Thursday, February 4, 2010

We know that the greatest power to build your business lies in the form of testimonials. Unfortunately for many of us those testimonials are in the form of thank you cards, letters and notes and we have secretly tucked them away in a desk drawer or a folder. There they occasionally make us feel better about ourselves when we take them out and read them, but we are not leveraging them to get more business in a real estate transaction. So here are the Course Creators’ tips for leveraging the power of testimonials:

1. Get the testimonials in writing. Their value increases 1000 fold if they are in a format that we can use in our marketing and solicitation of business.

2. Get written permission to use the testimonials. Create a simple form that clients and customers can sign to authorize you to use their name in your advertising and marketing.

3. Use the testimonials in your sales presentations. Get them all on a brochure or a piece that you can hand to potential future clients. The best answer when someone ask you why they should hire you should always be, “Why don’t I let my past clients tell you!”

4. Make the testimonials public. Most of the internet sites that are utilized today to create business require you to complete a personal profile. Find somewhere in that profile to post your testimonials. Even if there is not a specific category for testimonials on the profile, get creative. We often put ours under the “About Me” section or under the “Credentials” section. Due to the magic of “cut and paste” if you keep them in a centralized place in your computer then this becomes a much easier task when you create a profile and it is a step that you should keep on your profile checklist.

5. Use the Notes feature in facebook. You can use facebook’s notes feature to capture the good comments that get posted on your wall. Within facebook people often post comments and thank you notes on your facebook wall. Left unattended they pass down your wall as new comments are added and eventually fade into oblivion. We are of the opinion that the fact the testimonial was made in public on your wall mitigates the need for you to get signed permission to reuse the testimonial. Open the notes feature in facebook and cut and paste the testimonials that appear on your wall into a testimonial note for future reference. The note feature makes it easy for you to add additional testimonials. This is a technique that we teach in our FaceBiz courses and if you do not know how to do this we will teach you in the FaceBiz course. You can also learn more about using facebook for business from our FaceBiz training video which has over 3 hours of solid information about what facebook can do for your business.

6. Solicit recommendations on Linkedin. One of the greatest features of Linkedin is its ability to generate and help you collect recommendations. Those recommendations show directly on your linkedin profile. What’s the easiest way to get a Linkedin recommendation? Well of course you can ask for one, but we have found that the easiest way to get a recommendation is to give one. You can learn more about Linkedin in our Linkedin course or from our Linkedin training video.

7. Consider converting testimonials into references. You do this by having the person include their name, phone number or website at the bottom of the testimonial. It gives additional assurance to a potential reader that the testimonial is valid and in fact they could follow up and use that testimonial as a reference. We recommend that when you are writing testimonials and recommendations for other people that you include this information at the bottom of your testimonial.

Nothing you say can sell you or your services better than written verification from other people. Get IT! Use IT! Become More Successful Because of IT!