Two years ago, just after my first book “Magnetic Real Estate Photography” came out, Quentin D’Souza invited me to speak at his monthly Durham Real Estate Investors (DREI) meeting. It was a nice evening in May and the group met in the back room of a great pub. It was a very relaxed intimate space and about 25 people were out.
Tonight I return again and this time the group has really grown and has moved to bigger digs. I’m also looking forward to seeing Erik & Kevin Mitchell of Strategic Real Estate Investing again. They will also be presenting.
I’ll be sharing some of the key points from my book. Originally I wrote it as a “how-to” for RE professional who are amateur photographers taking their own ad photos, yet I have found the more important message is “why.”
Too many RE professionals have no idea how important their photos are.
They post this…
Don't do this! This sends buyers and renters AWAY!
When they need to post this…
Do this! This attracts buyers & renters like a magnet!
Recently I had a conversation with a young woman looking for an apartment in Barrie. She was surprised that a lot of landlords didn’t post photos. She said, “If they don’t post photos I assume they are hiding something.” Real estate property photos are the front line of marketing in this business, but far too many businesses post dreadful photos that send potential buyers and renters to other sites.
Here is a peak inside my book:
Want to know where your site really ranks in Google? Don’t waste your time googling it. Search engines are now personalized, so your site will rank deceivingly high in your search. And yes, I’m using google as a verb.
Instead you will need to get someone in another part of the world to google it – someone you have never met, someone who leads a very different lifestyle & has never been on your site before. While their search will give you a better indication, it still won’t be accurate.
There are other more accurate methods, but it still takes quite an effort to find your natural, unpaid ranking. And with tens of thousands of new sites popping up every day, it is constantly changing. Your bigger and more important job is to make sure your site is doing all it can to get noticed.
Not sure where to begin? Here are the basic things you need to understand and navigate.
Pinner alert!
Early in the day, on Friday May 4th, Adam Yauch aka MCA of the Beastie Boys passed away. He was a revolutionary musician and passionate humanitarian. He was only 47. That night Coldplay whipped up an especially poignant tribute to him at their concert.
Enjoy the original Beastie Boys video from 1986.
As I watched these two videos today, it struck me that when we are young we fight our authority figures “For the Right to Party”, but when we get older, we only have to fight ourselves. That’s a bigger battle. How often do we fight off stresses & pressures so we can make time to celebrate and cut loose? Probably not enough. It’s an anthem for all time.
Thank you Adam. Rest in Peace.
Adam Yauch "MCA" (1964-2012)
In just over a week, on Thursday, May 10th, I’ll be sharing my insights and tips from my book “Magnetic Real Estate Photography” at Landlord WEBCON 2012. I’ll be following the first keynote of the day, Mitch Joel. Here’s a peek at what Mitch is going to be sharing.
This Friday at 7:00 pm I’ll be on the Cooking Stage at Kitchener’s Food & Drink Show. Joining me will be the most awesome Brian Witteveen, aka “Big Sid” owner of Brantford’s Strode’s BBQ & Deli. Andrew Coppolino of Waterloo Region Eats will be MCing, trying to make heads or tails of the “Variations on Pulled Pork” that Brian and I will be tossing around. We’re cooking with Rickard’s Red and pairing the samples with Rickard’s White. Smart, eh?!
One of the variations will be the chili recipe in Cooking With Sin. Here is the link to the blog post “Canadian Pub” Blackbeard’s Chili con Carne.
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Mike Gillespie has spent years developing his real estate investment portfolio. Along the way he has learned an enormous amount and because he has such a warm heart, he happily shares what he has learned so others can benefit.
This week I am really proud to see Mike featured in Canadian Real Estate Wealth magazine. It’s also Mike’s birthday today, so it’s wonderful to see such a great guy have nice things come his way. Way to go Mike!
Mike and his business partner Joey Ragona have a real estate coaching business called “Real Estate Authority Business Coach.“
Join me, Thursday, May 10th at Landlord WEBCON 2012 at Toronto’s Pearson Convention Centre. I’ll be speaking along with Mitch Joel of Twist Image, Mike Wall of comScore Inc. & Trish MacPherson of CAP REIT.
Five days ago I was fortunate to attend the unforgettable TEDxWaterloo. In a few days the videos will be up and I’ll post the link, but in the meantime, enjoy this TedxHouston video. It resonates deeply with me and my “Cooking With Sin” project because my project is not just about recipes, but it is about peoples’ stories and their stories are full of vulnerable moments. Their stories have changed me.
Brené Brown’s talk on vulnerability resonated so deeply with people that it went viral – 4.5 million viewers. If you haven’t seen it before, you will know why.
Brené Brown: The Power of Vulnerability
This has been all over the Internet and many attribute it to Andy Rooney, but I don’t think it’s his. It doesn’t matter to me who said it. I really like it anyway. Thank you Unknown Author!
A few days ago my 15 year old daughter came home and almost lost her breath telling about the Kony 2012 video and her desire to get involved. My initial reaction was 3-fold.
Inspiration. I was inspired to see her so passionate to make a change. Young people are idealists and they galvanize. I can’t blame her for wanting to step in to solve something that adults have failed to do. I want to support her in her growing awareness.
Awe. While I have seen the power of social media, I have never seen it sweep this far and this wide and create such momentum.
Uneasiness. Would my daughter be safe taping up posters all night? Could we really solve this severely complex problem with a video & posters? Often when we focus on something it grows. If Kony is captured, could 50 more rise up? If this doesn’t “work” would Kony’s bravado and power increase? This is vigilante justice on an international scale. Much could go wrong.
Dr. Anna-Marie Ball
My amazing friend Anna-Marie Ball has spent most of her life living and working in many parts of Africa. Right now she lives in Kampala, Uganda. I like to say that while Anna is pale on the outside, she is African on the inside. We have had many interesting conversations about her deep concerns regarding North Americans intervening in Africa.
Anna has seen too many times how good intentions bring unintended consequences. Africa is littered with abandoned buildings and equipment, gifts outsiders thought were needed, but with no infrastructure to maintain, they are unusable. Infrastructure is the key to sustainability and requires a lot more time than most outsiders can give.
This article in the September/October 2010 issue of “Engineering Dimensions” (pages 40-44) explains it well.
Click to enlarge this excerpt from the article
When the Kony 2012 video went viral, I looked to Anna for some perspective. Here is what she had to say.
What struck me in viewing the Invisible Children’s (IC) video were two things:
1) Holy crap! The power of social media to mobilize so effectively – I’m in awe. I want to use that for my work!
2) Lord have mercy! Besides the gazillion more well meaning people that will descend onto Uganda to solve the Kony problem, see the disfigured people in the north – and save the prostitutes in Gulu, and go to the game parks – they have NO IDEA that Museveni does NOT WANT KONY CAPTURED! Kony has made it patently clear that if he goes to the ICC, he will tell what brutal things Museveni did in the bush as a rebel fighter so that he too can be prosecuted by the ICC. Museveni clearly does not want that. It does not take 20 years for the armed forces to find Kony. (Ok there are a few more nuances about this – but it would require a bottle or two of Carla’s well stocked alcohol!)
That Kony needs to be stopped? Absolutely! His movement into DRC (Democratic Republic of the Congo), CAR (Central African Republic) and South Sudan – although his numbers are down – is tragedy beyond what we can comprehend because he has moved into areas of those 3 countries that are far away from the capitals and in areas where those governments will not defend at all – so those people are being terrorized without the world bearing witness. That has to break your heart.
But the naivety of IC is that they are not taking into account the local politics and situation. Sometimes leaders don’t want to be “saved or assisted” because they have their own agendas … that the local population needs help – for sure – but IC is not the only movement – and they plus the people that started the Gulu Walk should be humble enough to know that it was the religious leaders of the north (Gulu) that brought the world’s attention to the children sleeping in Gulu. The Anglican Bishop took his sleeping mat and slept with the children and the Ugandan government was so shamed and embarrassed by his actions … and then something started to happen.
Here are excellent links sent by Anna and others:
An MCC worker who spent a lot of time in northern Uganda. A very thorough analysis: Kiss the Joy As it Flies: Responding to Kony 2012
An African woman working in social justice. Look at all 5 pages: Innovate Africa: Before you Give, Think.
Joseph Kony is not in Uganda (and other complicated things)
An African perspective. The west hasn’t paid attention to Africans calling for help with Kony. We only listen to our own hype. LRA Leader Joseph Kony and Western Hegemony
My final thoughts. As I watched the Kony 2012 video it bothered me that the videographer’s charming pale son got more camera time than any African children. The insight and “heroic” actions of pale people were the focus. It may be kinder, gentler and much more well-intentioned, but it still looks like colonialism. (Plus, I’m just being caustic here, but me thinks his son will get an agent from this.)
A call to action. I’m going to let my daughter put Kony 2012 posters up, but I want to redirect the focus. Free The Children, a phenomenally well respected group (and truly youth-based) is organizing Five Days of Freedom from April 16-20 (The IC day of action is April 20). I would like to see this enormous wave of energy channeled toward Free The Children as they truly understand change starts within.
Following our hearts takes a lot more work than we want it to sometimes.
