A couple weeks ago I went to a conference in Dallas for the National Association of Real Estate Editors (NAREE).  It was a great opportunity to meet journalists who cover the real estate industry and to hear about the things they are covering.  As I was listening to the various speakers, I feverishly wrote down things that would make great posts on a real estate blog.

Here are some things that you (the real estate professional) can write about on your blog:

• Recent developments.  While in Dallas, we had the opportunity to learn about some really exciting projects, including the Trinity River Project and Victory Park.  If the City, developers, builders, retailers, etc. are doing something new in your town, do a series of blog posts reporting on it.  Who and what is involved?  How will it affect the local real estate market?  What do residents think about it?  Be sure to include pictures and maps and other visuals.
• HGTV's impact on the real estate market. How have your customers been affected by the real estate and home and garden shows they watch on HGTV or TLC? (Read House Lust by Daniel McGinn for a look at this topic at a national level.)
• Home Loan 101. Help homeowners and potential home buyers understand the various types of mortgages that are available to them. Point out some of the fine print they may overlook. What are some of the pros and cons of each loan type? Comment on the jumbo loan rule changes and the delay in implementation.
• Opportunistic home buyers. Look at the people who are going after bargains in the form of foreclosures and short sales. What should people consider before buying these types of real estate?
• Demographics of the various neighborhoods in your area. For example, who is living in your downtown? Families? Single professionals? Use a separate post for each area.
• Data overload. Each month, various organizations report on a variety of different data points. What does "existing home sales mean"? What about "median home price"? Help people understand what is being reported and how it can be translated locally.
• Soaring gas prices. What effect are increasing gas prices having on your local real estate market? Are fewer people moving to the suburbs because they want to avoid the commute? Point out some local resources that may help, including information about public transportation, etc.
• The tax man. Explain how real estate taxes in your area work.
• Buyers' Market. Go beyond "it's a good time to buy." Tell people who should be buying a home in this market and why. What do they need to do to prepare for buying a house?
• Trends. What types of things are home buyers in your area looking for? Talk about trends in terms of the features and amenities that are currently appealing to local home buyers.
• Baby Boomers. According to one of the speakers, more than 91 million people will retire over the next 21 years. Baby boomers are a huge market. What's going on in your area as far as this segment is concerned? What do baby boomers need to know about moving to your area? Warm weather and golf courses are no longer enough to appeal to retirees. (If you have a lot of baby boomers in your area, make sure you learn more about this very important audience!)
• Favorites. What Web sites would you recommend to your readers? Focus on Web sites that would be most useful to your target audiences. A great example is a Web site that allows people to hook up utilities in their new home.
• What is a REALTOR® anyway? The answer may seem obvious but a lot of people don't really know what a Realtor is. What makes a real estate agent a REALTOR®? Explain what you did to become a REALTOR®. Spend one post explaining what you do for your buyer customers and another directed at sellers. Make sure you point out the fact that you provide all of the services that "traditional" real estate companies provide, but for a lot less money-just make sure you're not too sales-y. This is a conversation, not an advertisement.

These are just a few ideas.  I've posted some other blog post ideas in my "Blogging" section (listed on the right hand side of the screen).  For more inspiration, look no further than the Internet, TV, radio, newspapers and magazines.  If you hear or read something that gets you thinking, take it to your blog.  (Hint: Look at the articles online that receive the most comments.  Oftentimes, these are hot topics that would make a great blog post!)

If you have some ideas of your own, please send them to me in a comment.

Then head on over to The Real Estate Tomato.  This blog is full of juicy tips written especially for real estate bloggers.  Sign up for their RSS feed or read posts via e-mail.  And make sure you read the older posts that are listed on the left and right columns.  There is a lot of great information on blog writing, organization, marketing, SEO... everything you need to know to get started.

If you work in the real estate industry and you blog or are thinking about blogging, you really should be reading The Real Estate Tomato. 

Like any Web site address, your blog's URL can make a big difference in how you are ranked with search engines like Google and Yahoo.  It can also peak people's curiosity and draw visitors to your site. 

Your blog's name should convey what the site is all about.  What are you going to write about?  Who is your target audience?  Make a list of relevant keywords and see how you can weave them into a Web site address.  But don't go crazy with keywords.  You want the name of your blog to be short, simple and easy to remember.

Assist-2-Sell franchise owners should consider using keywords related to their local market, real estate, buying and selling a home, and/or Assist-2-Sell.  Think narrow.  If you practice real estate in Carlsbad, for example, you should use "Carlsbad" and "Real Estate" in the name of your blog, not "San Diego" or "California."

When you sign up for an A2S Talk account, your user name automatically becomes your blog's name.  Your user name probably isn't relevant to search engines or to your target audience, so spend a few minutes and change the name of your blog.  Just follow these steps:

1. Login at www.a2stalk.com.
2. Scroll down and click on "Edit weblog."
3. Run your cursor over "Weblog" in the top left and scroll down to "More options."
4. Click on "Title and description of this blog" and change the name of your blog.  You should also enter a brief, keyword rich description so readers know what your blog is all about.  Click "Save."
5. Once again, run your cursor over "Weblog" in the top left and scroll down to "More options."
6. Click "URL for your blog."  Your URL should be the same as the title of your blog.  Click "Save."  All A2S Talk blogs will have www.a2stalk.com in their URL, followed by the name of their blog.  For example, the name of my blog is "Assist-2-Sell Publicist" so my blog's URL is www.a2stalk.com/Assist2SellPublicist. 
7. Congratulations!  You've renamed your blog!

For the last few months, we've been encouraging Assist-2-Sell franchisees to jump into the blogging arena.  I'm happy to see the A2S Talk "blog list" growing but there are still only a few franchisees who are actually blogging. 

I understand.  It's intimidating.  I thought about it for a long time before I actually did anything, and I still hesitate before posting anything online... "Will anyone care about what I have to say?"  If you're experiencing some of the same anxieties, all I can say is, go for it.  Just get started.  If you post something less than stellar today, you'll make up for it tomorrow.  If you're consistent, you'll get into a groove and each post will be better than the last.  

Here are some resources to help inspire you:

• The Real Estate Tomato is a great blog with "juicy blogging advice for REALTORS."

o A recent post by Jim Cronin actually prompted me to write this post. Read "Real Estate Blogging Business Plan For 2008" to learn what you should be thinking about when you blog.

o Spend some time on Jim's site. I could give you a list of posts to read but that would take up too much space. Just start by reading the posts he's listed on the left and right sidebars.

• I've posted some ideas on my blog in a category aptly named "Blogging" - http://www.a2stalk.com/Assist2SellPublicist/weblogCategory/1rq65ztz0x5nt.
• Realty Blogging is a book for REALTORS who want to build their brand and find new customers using blogs. It's pretty short but has some good information.
• Read other blogs. Get ideas that you can apply to your own blog and stay in the loop with trends and industry gossip. Here are some categories to help get you started:

o Advice: Blogs like The Real Estate Tomato and RSS Pieces offer blogging advice to REALTORS.

o Consumer-Oriented: These blogs are trying to capture the attention of home buyers and sellers in their respective areas. If that's what you're trying to accomplish - and I think it is - think about how you can apply what they're doing to your area. Some blogs that stood out as I was looking for examples: up2date, DallasA2S, renorealtyblog, Greenville SC Real Estate, Curbed Los Angeles and Boise Real Estate Blog. You can see plenty of examples at ActiveRain and REALTOR.com's "Let's Talk."

** Don't get discouraged by the numbers. There's plenty of room for you! There are millions and millions of people searching for millions and millions of different things. What you write about may appeal to just the right people.

o Trends: Blogs like The Future of Real Estate Marketing offer insight into, well, the future of real estate marketing.

o Professional: There are a lot of blogs (ActiveRain comes to mind) that have REALTORS getting together to talk to and about each other. Kind of a virtual water cooler.  I wouldn't get too caught up in the discussion because you want to spend your time blogging for buyers and sellers, but you should know what the industry is talking about. 

There are a lot of resources available to you, but don't wait until you have a blogging degree.  Get started today and learn along the way.  You have nothing to lose-except a little time-and you have a lot to gain.

By now you know that I think blogs are an important way for real estate pros to promote themselves with would-be homebuyers and sellers.  I wanted to share a blog posting I recently found from RSS Pieces.  This real estate blog knows that one of the biggest challenges is finding something to write about.  Not anymore!  They've taken care of it for you with "A Years Worth of Real Estate Blog Ideas."  (The link takes you to the bottom of the page, so scroll up to the top of the screen.)  The great thing about these ideas is that RSS Pieces gives real-world examples so you know what they're talking about.  Here are just a few ideas:

• Cover a high dollar home sale in your area
• Give 10 tips for getting more money on the sale of a home
• Explain local market conditions using data from the MLS
• Review restaurants and other local things to do
• Guide consumers through specific elements of the home buying or selling process (like closings, open houses, staging, etc.)
• Dispel rumors spread by the media, your competitors, TV, etc.
• Find relevant videos on YouTube and embed them on your blog
• Offer tips for choosing a REALTOR
• Take a hot topic (like the subprime mortgage market) and offer your opinion
• There are many more ideas at http://www.rsspieces.com/a-yearrs-worth-of-real-estate-blog-ideas

No more excuses for not getting started today!

We're already a month into the New Year.  Why not use the rest of '08 to build your online presence and position yourself as a local real estate expert?