I’ve been somewhat heavily involved in social media marketing for several years, and involved in internet marketing for our company since 1997. I began my own online consulting business in 2009. As such, I’ve seen a lot of changes take place over time.
Here are a few potential surprises, depending on how long you’ve been active online:
When I first started optimizing our website for the search engines, Yahoo was absolutely dominant, with something on the order of 65% market share. If you weren’t being found on Yahoo, you weren’t getting a whole lot of traffic.
Was Google in second place? Nope – it didn’t even exist. Other search engines that were important back then included Excite, Lycos, and Altavista. Have you heard much about those lately? Me, neither.
When I began blogging for business in 2007, MySpace was the dominant social network platform. Facebook existed, but it was sort of a non-factor for marketing. Twitter also existed, but it hadn’t gained much traction. Now, MySpace seems like a giant abandoned playground.
Statistically, people are spending less and less time watching television, or reading traditional (meaning not online) newspapers. Those who do watch TV shows watch a good-sized percentage on sites like Hulu.com and Fancast.
I haven’t looked anything up in an actual Yellow Pages in many years, and I would wager that you haven’t either.
Despite Facebook’s recent privacy concerns, they have edged out Google as the most-visited site online for the past couple of months. Let that really sink in for a second.
Can you guess what the second-place search tool online for raw traffic is today after Google? It’s YouTube.
So, what does all of this mean for the future of your own marketing efforts?
- First, don’t focus on the tools and platforms themselves. Instead, focus on having a strategy for engaging people on your own turf and terms somehow. (i.e. Don’t depend on Facebook to always be there for you. It may be a distant memory in 10 years.)
- If you don't have a social media strategy, the time is absolutely NOW (or more accurately, yesterday) to figure this out.
In the next several years, if your business doesn’t have a social component that allows your clients to share their experiences about you along with some type of strategy on your part to “listen” to their needs/concerns/praise, two things will happen:
1. They will be talking about you anyway.
2. You won’t hear them.
The bottom line here is that I wouldn’t waste any time or effort on “snail mail”, TV, radio, or print advertising UNLESS you are planning to tie it into your website/blog/online presence somehow. After all, as marketing becomes one big conversation, you don’t want to be the shy wallflower in the corner.
Photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/webtreatsetc/4305344218/in/set-72157623226308089/
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If you're looking for a home in the Austin area, you can also visit my primary Austin real estate website at www.austintexashomes.com. If you're interested in social media training, visit 210 Consulting. Thanks!
Jason,
Well one thing is for sure! You are the man when it comes to this arena... ;)
Nicely said Jason.
P.S. That pic reminds me of the hitchhiking ghosts in the Haunted Mansion at Disneyland.
Hi Jason ~ One thing that's changed for sure - is that memories are way too short. This is a superb reminder of how much can change and how quickly. Gotta watch the baskets where you put your eggs.
Liz
Hi Jason...The changes come at such a quick pace. The older I get the faster they come. It's a challenge to stay afloat but it's exciting too.
Kate
I'm finding all of this rapid change exciting. There is joy and exercising the brain cells and learning al of the ways we now communicate. My print snail mail now is mostly about advertising my online activities.
Hey Jason..I am old school and live in an area where the internet, although gaining ground, is still not the dominate force. So some print ads are still used. I even had a new client thank me for using print...that is how they found me.
Oh and yea, I still use the yellow pages all the time. I am not good on teh computor and I can look it up in the pages faster.
You win, I can't remember the last time I used the yellow or white pages! Very interesting reminder on how fast things change.
Perfect where you say "don't think about the tools and platforms"...For example, being on Facebook isn't the goal, being visible to a wide range of people is the goal. All marketing needs to be lined up in a marketing communications plan. Classic marketing structure is needed to keep people from spinning away in techno world. People in any industry need to ask every day "what do we want to say, who do we want to say it to, and how do we want to say it". Technology is a devlivery vehicle, albeit a seductive one. The loose structure of many brokerages and franchises leaves much to be desired around necessary cycle of planning, implementing, measuring, and correcting. So on the one hand, I have the yellow pages out in front of me -- a good way to look for an attorney who's name I didn't know how to spell. On the other hand, I'm playing with video editing software tonight. (PS, I'm not advocating print, which we'e virtually dropped, just sayin' that consumers get info in many different ways).
Jason -oh yes, on-line marketing is changing and print has definitely shifted, but I still see a fair amount of it happening. Is it dead? Depends on your perspective. Does it work? Maybe? Depends on what you do with it and where, your market, etc.
It has been interesting to see how rapidlt the shfits have occurred, especially with YouTube, Google and Facebook. Where will we be in 1 year? Who knows. It's clear, though, that unless you have a very substantial referral business, and maybe even if you do, the Internet IS the place to be. But that ain't all IMO.
Jeff
All right already I'm gonna get on Facebook. My concern was when I started to a while back their privacy issues surfaced and I had been invited to Facebook by people I didn't know from the man in the moon.
Snail mail and print are pretty much dead for marketing. I did check and lycos and altavista are still around. I cannot imagine what their market share is these days. aol is another early internet product that is pretty much gone. As for snail mail. I only send it when I cannot reach a potential client any other way. So little, I don't qualify for bulk pricing.
The more things chang the more they stay the same. Funny how huge MySpace was, and now it's old and tired. I actually met my wife on MySpace. Neither of us are on there now. Never did any marketing on it. It was just a social site.
You are so right. By the time I make up my mind what to use next, it will be something else.
Hi Jason -- It's mind-boggling when you think at how fast things can change. There are even some innovative upstarts that may end up giving Facebook a run for their money, and while not focusing on a specific tool and/or technology but focusing on strategy is a good idea, if one were to devote a lot of time and effort into Facebook per se, and it fades quickly (may not happen, but suppose it does for a moment), I bet it would cause a lot of panic for any business that does get business and engages their readers without reinventing the apple cart -- knowing that other tools, platforms will still be there.
It is amazing how things have changed. The only thing that is a bit troubling is that people believe everything they read on the internet is true... often it is not!
It's amazing how fast Google came on the scene (like gang busters!) with the intention of taking over ther world! I have a love/hate relationship with them, so I won't bore you with a long Google diatribe =P Unfortunately, we cant' live without them if we expect to succeed online! >=I Oh, and I have a bookmark on my top toolbar for an online phone directory with reverse-referencing too. It's SO much easier than a bulky book that only applies to your own area!
BTW, I like your little hieroglyphics-looking social networking images. =)
Jason: I like your points here, especially:
"First, don’t focus on the tools and platforms themselves. Instead, focus on having a strategy for engaging people on your own turf and terms somehow."
That makes a lot of sense! If we concentrate on our strategies for getting in front of people -- and we do it successfully -- we can always adapt our message to whatever medium is in the middle of its 15 minutes.
It's amazing to me how much things have changed in just a short decade. The change is now more than exponential. Thanks for all of your advice and tutorials that help so many of us with this social media thing!
Jason after Katrina I was more excited to get Internet back than the cable TV.
Hi Jason! You know, I can't seem to find the right holes to put all of these pegs in! I've done everything that I can possibly do but, just don't have any more minutes in the day--muchless hours in the day! My business has come from AR and my websites so, I'm really trying to put the focus there while trying to avoid being that wallflower in the corner! It's a CHORE, let me tell you! And, as some have said, it just KEEPS changing. I'm just trying to find the sweet spots and go with the flow...
Jason, I'm constantly looking for the next thing and where the visionaries are ~ that's where I want to be because that's where the next platform will surface.
Jason ~ that is very solid advice. I'm a late bloomer when it comes to social media, but I'm catching on quickly.
Hey Jason, thanks for posting your insight on social media. With you being "The Man" in Austin when it comes to social networking, I had to check out your Youtube site. Since you mentioned that Youtube is number 2 on search traffic, I figured you would have a big Youtube presence as well. While the videos of you and the kids (and Mighty Burger) were great, I couldn't help but notice that you didn't have any real estate content on Youtube. Do you see that changing? That is on my to-do list after I get better a blogging and get some more polish on my website. Any thoughts you would like to share would be most appreciated.
It is funny, as I used the same scenario and cliche of a crystal ball on a previous post. It is so relative on many occasions. Thanks for the post. See http://activerain.com/blogsview/1608530/fortune-teller-or-magician-
Jason- I agree with most of what you are saying but you are speaking for your market and more so this holds true in Austin and the west coast.
Direct mail is still our biggest ROI, in terms of time and money spent for the rate of return.
Every single Million $ listing and over we get from our Expired Mailing Package, those commissions dwarf the ROI from our internet leads.
70% of our short sale listing come from our Active Rain blog, direct from sellers who find us through organic search or referrals from other agents. In the last month we received 5 listings that were short sale listing referrals from other agents who know us from Active Rain. But all of these listings are low end compared to our direct mail.
The rest of our short sale listings come from past clients and attorneys, who we stay in contact with through snail mail:)
I can not tell you still today, how many times we have to show a seller how to search online and sometimes direct them to open up their email! And this is not an age thing either.
Oh, and unless I move out of my town, I predict with my crystal ball that this will still be the case for the next 8 years and after that, well, I don't really care because I am retiring to write all my books:)
Katerina - I found it interesting that you directed your response to that one sentence in my post:
The bottom line here is that I wouldn’t waste any time or effort on “snail mail”, TV, radio, or print advertising UNLESS you are planning to tie it into your website/blog/online presence somehow.
Does that mean that your direct mail pieces don't reference your website or blog at all? Either way, I applaud your results - just curious. :-)
This is a great article Jason. I ate it up. Am I reading between the lines that I should circle the wagons and reach out to my friends with the best in social networking?
What do you think about posting to all the "secondary sites" like postlets, epropertysites, wordpress, etc...? Is it worth the time I spend doing it?
What about Craigslist, Yelp and Angie's List?
Jason,
That really puts things in perspective. We, as business owners have to be much more engaged in our marketing (blogging, social media). It is much more time consuming than popping a print ad in the paper. But I guess it is another way to really set yourself apart from the competition.
We have to keep adapting otherwise we become irrelevant, that's what I see from all of these changes.
Funny to remember how everyone "yahooed:" first!
Jason, this is a succinct summary of the short Internet history timeline. I started using email when it was just for universities, on a DOS platform. No GUI - ugly as ugly could be. Netscape was my first browser. Now we have all these wonderful programs for marketing, and I l-o-v-e it. It will be interesting to see where this all stands in two years.
Jason, I know that there are many agents like me who sell to an upscale market of retirees and they think their clients are not on FB and other social networking sites. Well, think again. The first person who friended me was nearly eighty! :-)
I haven't looked at printed matter (newspapers, telephone books etc) for a few years now and I market online...cost effective and bigger audience!
Great post.
Jason It's amazing how everything becomes "so yesterday" when yesterday is still there - you gotta' keep looking forward
Hi Jason. I remember designing websites from home when it was "prestigious" to have a website because they were so expensive to have. Using long-tailed keywords not knowing that was the term. Yahoo stock went soaring during the .com stock buying and selling frenzy. My office still does print advertising because it works. Things change before you know it and I've been wondering for months now if Facebook will be around in 5 to 10 years. Food for thought!
Jason, great food for thought. Print advertising here is hit or miss, many are not using it. There are those that are doing direct mail, few and far between. I can't find many that are blogging, don't know who besides me is on Facebook. I can tell you for my area, with the town name, I can't find any on Facebook. Youtube I need to explore. I am good with my camera, videos scare the heck out of me. I know I can put a slide show on Youtube though.
That's that, I am really trying!
Good morning Jason,
Great post..with much to consider. You are right things are changing..and is important to keep up with what is new. I've found my niche and I incorporate as much new as I have time for.... Real estate is a people business and to keep up my current production level I have to stay current. It always comes back to providing top notch service..if you can achieve that and you will always have business!
Jason...
I am surprised to hear that YouTube is so dominant. As a still photographer I have resisted video but you can't argue with those kind of numbers.
Jason, We gave up print in all aspects but the monthly newsletter, which continues to produce great leads. The Internet gives us our bang for our buck...in 1994, our MLS was still delivering 2 phone book sized MLS listing books to our office-every 2 weeks...and our MLS was just coming on line. That is just 16 years ago....and fax was the cool tool of the day-but not everyone had one...now it is pdf it!
Hello Jason. Who moved my cheese? I'm still surprised occasionally when a prospective seller says, "Why would I list with you? You don't even advertise in the (fill in the blank, newspaper, HOMES magazine, etc.) Ho Hum. I may lose a few but the cheese has not only been moved, it moves daily and I can't be looking back over my shoulder. If I do, we'll starve. Love this post.
Jason,
Thanks so much for taking the time to share your thoughts and provide this great information.
I haven't used print advertising in years, and my online business is booming. Who says you can't teach an old dog new tricks?
Jason, when you walk into the local coffee house or chicken joint and see signs and flyers urging you to follow them on Facebook and Twitter, it has become apparent that social media marketing has become marketing. This has happened already. As you say, no crystal ball needed.
Jason,
We are excited to be using social media including YouTube at my office. I think we will have a chance to shine cause so many are not interested in doing it. Thanks for sharing.
Strategy is a key component in all we do to keep on top of the market.
Jason: I have thought about some of the books written in the past about the way our world is changing and will change, from Tofler's "Third Wave" to Gladwell's "Tipping Point" and I think we have been fore-warned. We are not a static organism, we humans; the marvel of our humanity is that not only do we change but we can examine how and why we do it!!! In other words, I love your article and appreciate your analysis of this thing we call "marketing" ourselves. The fact that it is so current is the real value in your much needed post. Thank goodness you have the history and experience that most of us do not! In reading "Blink" (Gladwell again) and "Shift"(Keller) more recently, I can see we as RE professionals have to be prepared for even faster and more "out of the box" ways to reach the public. I also LOVED your Wall Flower analogy; what a powerful way to make your point!!!
Even when I do watch the TV, I click through the commercials.
In Real Estate or any profession you have to be where the people are. Too much evidense to not be on social networks site.
Jason, I often wonder what the next latest and greatest is gonna be, at some point we are going to look at facebook like we now look at the yellow pages. Change is inevitable...you either roll with it or get left behind
This is so true. Technology and the internet is always evolving. We must stay ahead of the evolution.
This is so well said! As I was reading it, I realized that I haven't read a paper(other than online) since I can remember or seen a phonebook!
If you are not evolving your business with the new changes . .you will be left out in the cold. Marketing is a big part for the success in any business. . . specially in real estate
Great post
Jason- You are right on point regarding the ever changing life of online marketing & just marketing in general. As I mentioned in my post yesterday we see a huge amount of business come from our Facebook page. Something that 2 years ago NOBODY even had heard of. The key to hitting the moving target is to stay informed, keep trained & up to date from those that eat, sleep, & breathe this kind of stuff.
Like you said though regarding the old practices of snail mail etc... Those who still are using it have definitely changed the way they are doing it. They are referencing now their websites, their social media presence & more. Not just sending a postcard saying "Just Sold 1234 ABC ST!" Everyone can do that kind of stuff. The things that secure the listing are the web presence over all their competitors. Not the quality of their postcard or letter mailed.
Very interesting insights....trying to wade through it all can be overwhelming for sure!!
Jason: We definitely need to be proactive and forward-thinking if we want to stay ontop of our game. Great points about social networking.
Jason, as usual you are SPOT ON! It would help to have a few 14 - 17 year olds on staff to keep me current on all the latest!(LOL)
Great snapshot of where we've been , are and could be going !!!!!!! Earns a LIKE !!!!
Jason,
Great info! Makes sense. I have teenagers, so they keep telling we what is HOT! Also, when my youngest uses my laptop, I invariably find YouTube up and running when I come back to my screen.
Good perspective, this is now, things will continue to change.
All the best, Michelle
Jason,
Great blog. On an unrelated topic, what is your opinion, if any, on RE Tomato?
Paul
This is so true. Where once radio and TV dominate the market, Social Media will now take over.
Remember when the search engine of choice for me was Altavista and how you ranked on a search there gave you satisfaction or pointed out where you need to dig in, work harder in your early SEO efforts and the ROI you approached it with. Ever changing, fast paced. That's real estate. Keep up and get left behind. Great post.
Jason, I have to echo William #6 -too few realtors in my area are actually on line. Andrea Swidler is in another area of my state, and besides her, myself, and a few other regular bloggers here on AR, there are not many using SM as a tool. Paul Slaybaugh and some other bloggers have been warning us about overemphasizing the importance of SM as opposed to more traditional methods of marketing, such as direct mail. I think that a healthy mix of both would be in order until one clearly trumps another, as Katerina has pointed out in her market - she does better with traditional methods because they bring a greater ROI for her.
Great post! I barely watch tv, and when I do, I usually just stream it or download episodes. I can watch it on MY Time...
Yep, things are moving ever faster. Seems to me that strategy is linked to the tools and platforms in such a way that we've got to modify the strategy to acount for the changing platforms. For example, one wouldn't have even considered video marketing as part of their strategy until YouTube came along and became a dominate force in platforms/technogy.
I think I'm going to create a blog post on this question/issue/concern as I'm very interested in getting feedback on the idea but not hijacking Jason's excellent post.
Great post as always. I've gotta start doing videos ASAP. Seems like that's been a big black cloud that I've avoided, but I don't want to be left in the dust! And, I can only imagine what my ancient MySpace page looks like now!
It seems to me that the people want information, as complete, concise, and real time, and real world as they can get it. Facebook is good because you can interface very quickly with a lot of people you know or are acquainted with, but even better would be a video platform that does this sort of thing. What's next, video Facebook? Real time, multiple source, and authentic-real world (video, at least 3-D presentation) information that is a Cliff's notes version.
Ramblings in future-ology!
Jason, great post and advice. Since I started with Active Rain in 2008, I have joined so many Social media networks and is hard to keep up. Hardly advertise in newspapers. And, only one magazine. It is just so amazing to see how fast and far social media marketing has come in less than two years.
Jason,
Great post... Thank you for the information, and reminders!
When are you coming back to D/FW? I would like to meet you. I have relatives in Austin, also, so maybe the next time I'm down your way, we could meet up. It's always nice to have someone to refer.
Thanks again, Jason.
Jason, I agree 100%.
Marian #44, to those who won't list with you due to that you don't waste your time on newspapers, I say move on, stick to your guns and concentrate on the future and not waste time with those stuck in the past. It's not their fault, they're just locked into the old and brush it off and chalk it up to "you can't teach an old dog new tricks". Move on to the next. Newspaper advertising is a complete waste of money in my book, a complete waste of time.
Claude #45, I agree with you on Twitter and Facebook and I use social media almost exclusively in building my businesses. I use twitter only for business and only as an online billboard attached to my websites for strictly marketing purposes. Facebook for business I can take it or leave it (FB for personal I dont have the time), and remind myself that Facebook COULD become the Myspace of tomorrow very easily. Use them as add ons to your online presence but don't rely on them 100%.
Google organic search is number one for me and the only thing that matters. What I want in my business life for people to find, I want it all on page one in Google in the regular organic search. I don't want to pay one dime for anything if I don't have to, and so far it works. Everything else is almost pointless.
PS Jason ,back in 1996 and 1997 when I was the guy who started, built, and maintained the website for the company I worked for at the time, I built an impressive, yet old fashioned for today's standards, strictly html, static website with over 100 pages, and I concentrated on Altavista for my search engine rankings. Altavista was the king in my opinion for awhile there. Now where are they?
PSS Paying for Yellow page ads in 2010, hahahahahahahahahahahaha
hahahahahahahahahaha hahahahahahahahahahaha
hahahahahahahahahahah hahahahahahahahah My coffee just came out my noise for laughing so hard!
Jason, I too got sucked up by the graphic and ... lost my train of thought ... :-)
You've invested a great deal of human capital into the emerging dynamic. We still get a fair amount of traction with print mail when targeted to the S.O.I.
Postcards, newsletters -- there are still a lot of people who resist reading the screen. The Kindle may recruit those folks over to the "light" side.
Your advice: "don't focus on the tools and platforms themselves. Instead, focus on having a strategy for engaging people on your own turf and terms somehow."
That's interesting and challenging for many of us. What would first part of a good strategy for engaging people on our own turf? Just wondering. Thanks.
I do think it is fascinating to look back at the companies that were huge and that have faded - & I wonder if facebook is going to go that route both because now the concerns over their privacy controls are an issue with many - & just the sheer fact that now that so many of us "Grandmas" are on there it's probably time for the kids to move onto something new! I totally agree though that the actual platform isn't the point but being ready & willing to be flexible & jump onto the platform where people are engaging each other. And when my prospective sellers ask why I don't advertise in the print media I ask them if they realize that the 30 & under crowd no longer READ the paper newpaper - gotta go where the eyes are!
As technology changes, it is interesting to note human nature stays the same. Technology is really just a means of delivering a message.
Jason, I agree with you about engaging more with people. I've seen my business pick up with a few changes in the last few months. One major one is my former employer moved their office about one hour further from my home so I was driving at least two hours to and from work. Dumb move on their behalf because why move from a market that you have been promoting for years, if you really don't need too. I made this long and boring drive for two years which it took away to much time out of the day when I could be more proactive on meeting with my clients and working on active loan files. Less than sixty days ago I transferred back to the area I always market to and live in and cut my drive down to ten minutes and my business has really picked up because I am once again engaging in my community. This makes a difference. I am now able to assist my clients on their loan along with building a true long lasting rapport with them.
It's refreshing to see someone who's been through the whole evolution of marketing from offline to the beginning of online to where we are now! I'm a first generation internet marketer meaning I learned to sell online before I learned to sell offline. Strange and backwards, I know! Thanks again! And yes, may Myspace R.I.P! Cheers,
-Briddick
Very interesting, and valuable. observations about the history of social media. I'm trying to keep up, doing better than most I think, at least in my market, but there is always so much more to learn!
THANK YOU for all of your comments here. There were a lot of good ones in this group! I wanted to take time to respond individually to some questions from the thread, as well as a couple of disagreements. Believe me, I know that I am not always right. :-)
Allen - With regard to your question, your timing is impeccable. I am actually planning to add one to that channel over the weekend for a new listing of mine. I have a TON of good ideas on how to use YouTube for RE marketing, but the implementation is the hard part. This is part of the reason that I have started consulting, so that someone can make use of my ideas. :) Thanks very much for your comment and question.
Vic - None of your efforts are in vain, no matter what form of marketing you use. Just about any form of marketing will work if done consistently (or better yet, "persistently" - got that idea from Chris Brogan). Keep doing what you're doing - one of the keys is exposure.
Claude - First of all, I thank you for taking the time to leave your remarks here. Since you dismissed my second point, I would encourage you to seriously consider what you said. If you think having a social media strategy is valueless, why are you a member of ActiveRain? After all, this is a social media platform, too. As for the uselessness of Twitter, it has result in lots of real world dollars for me personally. I am an "open connector" on Facebook (meaning I don't typically turn down friend requests, although I am fast approaching the limit there). Facebook, too, has led to a good number of closings for me over the past couple of years. My point was not to ignore Facebook, Twitter, etc. but not to put all of your eggs in one basket, since the platforms themselves are always changing. I don't say this in order to open a debate with you, but rather to get you to give them some sincere thought before dismissing them out of hand. Honestly, I used to dismiss them too, until I understood them better.
Sonny - The notes you requested are spread all over my blog over the past three years, I promise you. :)
Paul Smith - I think RE Tomato does a terrific job with design and implementation of custom WordPress products. They also offer training on how to use WP once you have your site up and running. One of my agents has an RE Tomato blog and he loves it. The only "downside" with them is the cost of their product, as they are certainly not the cheapest option. I would be happy to talk to you about some of our experiences with various WP providers sometime via phone or email.
William - My point here was not to suggest that you abandon all other forms of marketing. However, I will state that I haven't spent a dime on marketing for myself in years. The fact that you mentioned that few agents are online in your area makes me think that you have a phenomenal opportunity to be among the first to use online marketing effectively. Here's some food for thought - there may be few agents online, but I can GUARANTEE you that buyers looking to move to your area ARE online. Why not be one of the first smiling faces that they see? :)
Shawn - The closest thing to video Facebook that I know of is Seesmic's video platform. Of course, Facebook itself makes video implementation pretty darn easy, too.
Gina - Interesting that you asked that - I'll probably be in the Dallas area with my family sometime in June. I will try to remember to let you know the actual dates.
Michael - While I agree with you that Google is currently king, please check out my response to Claude above. Don't be too quick to dismiss the other tools as irrelevant, especially as younger buyers enter the marketplace. There may be gold in those tweets. :)
Lenza - I never meant for anyone to think that I am advocating abandoning the use of direct mail. My primary point was to couple this with your online efforts in order to get even more bang for your buck. Also, anything targeted to your SOI consistently will work, in my humble opinion. Although there are definitely those who "resist the screen", there are a whole lot of folks who don't, right? Thanks for your comment, my friend.
Harrison - By "your own turf", I was referring to building something that you truly control (website, blog, even a niche community). Basically, if your entire database of contacts is on LinkedIn, or Facebook, what do you do if those disappear or fail? It's a long shot, but I also don't think anyone who was using MySpace to network ever figured it would eventually turn into a haven for musicians and kids.
Jason- Of course we reference our website and our blog in our direct mail marketing pieces :) I know that some of the direct mail recipients do go and check us out online and I continue to educate people to do that. My point was more that there are tons of people who still don't use the internet the way that we do. I have friends who won't do facebook, never heard of Twitter, still have dial up and care more about their horses than anything online:) They network at the Equestrian Center and on the riding paths. As much as I am online, I have discovered that this is all very regional and cultural. For instance, in South America, where a lot of our clients come from- they have 3 trusted advisors- their attorney, their accountant and their travel agent. While the travel agency business is pretty much dead here in the states and much of our population goes on line to Expedia etc to look for deals, that is not so in South America. Their travel agent is very instrumental in their business and life. This comes with them when they move here. So to work with them, you need an introduction not a website:) But of course, one can make the argument that the person making the introduction may have found us online, though in that niche, I highly doubt it. :) Katerina
Katerina - Fair enough. Clearly, you would have a better handle on what will work in your local market than I would. I have received the vast majority of our business for the past decade from our online efforts, to the point that I no longer pay a dime for marketing for our company. This comes with a different price, however - time.
Jason, I agree totally with your post. Most of my business is online and one thing is for sure.
The way we do things today will be different a couple of years from now.
it would be wonderful to have a cystal ball. I'm hopeful that Localism becomes a major player.
it would be wonderful to have a cystal ball. I'm hopeful that Localism becomes a major player.
Wow, it is unbelievable to think of FaceBook having higher traffic than Google! I must use Google 20 times a day and am never on FaceBook. Guess its time to make some changes. Thank youfor the advice.
Jason,
Excellent post, as always! I'm wondering what the "next" social media platform will be. Perhaps focusing on YouTube might be beneficial for a while.
Jason, well stated! It is amazing how quickly things change & I commend you on being on the cutting edge! 2010 will mark the highest percentage of my business from on-line marketing!
This is becoming fun!
I dropped yellow page advertising with ZERO problems. And am almost 100% out of the newspaper too.
Some print must remain, and I do direct mailings (postcards). I am the only agent doing this so it makes an impact on the developments I target.
Having been in the business for over 20 years I have found that I have to change my ways. I have been going to a lot of class on social media. It has not been easy for me, however I am working through all this social media marketing and I am making some head way.
Having been in the business for over 20 years I have found that I have to change my ways. I have been going to a lot of class on social media. It has not been easy for me, however I am working through all this social media marketing and I am making some head way.
I love Facebook! What I need from you Jason is a dictionary that translates Tweets! I can't understand a thing that is tweeted. Like @mark#>4806860520 just wtf does it mean?
Though I'm reasonably new to Social Media one thing seems to stand out when I'm there. Be Your Self. I hate folks that use a profile picture that is from 10 years ago and talk about having just ran a 5K and when you meet them you don't even recognize them.
BTW Jason I've been waiting 2 weeks for you to friend me on FB. Whatz with that!
Thanks for the heads up!
Secret to social marketing, being the big fish in a small pond. When the pond gets too big, you get lost. That is why if you can create your own followers on your site, you win bigger more often.
Brilliant as usual. I live in an area where social media is not understood. It's too bad. Smart marketers understand the long lasting effect of the internet and social media. If you put it all together, television, radio, print and tie it to your web/social media foundation you will win. It's not that difficult to understand. Thanks for sharing.
Bryant - You aren't disagreeing with me. I never said that direct mail doesn't work. I simply think it's a better use of that particular medium if you tie it to something online. :)
Jason ... I have the most current phone books in my book shelf and I always think "why am I keeping these, I have not opened one up in years!". Everything is online!
Jason- when I get a yellow pages delivered to the front door it goes immediately into the recycle bin - I cannot imagine life without the internet!
Good evening Jason,
This is another one of your powerful posts. I'm with you 100%. I tell my clients: In this business, the only constant is change.
I need an extra hour in the day to keep up with all the social sites---got to work on streamlining my efforts...
Good perspective in an ever-changing media economy. Thanks for sharing!
Jason, I think it's whatever works, for the market we are in. I agree that print advertising is nearly extinct, while mailers do work for many. I am 100% online, but I"ve been blessed to have such a genius of a husband that built me an awesome website that I pump full of seo...so, it's whatever works. You are Mr. Social! :)
I introduced my Niece and Nephew to Facebook when I asked them to figure it out and teach me. Now they hang out there instead of myspace.com.
Jason, as usual, a well written post that is spot on! I hope to follow your example!
Will you dance with me. A lay out suggestion for the Activerain pages would be to move the like and share button to the same line as the enter a comment tag so that it is easier to ask others to dance and not be a wallflower.
Jason - Congratulations on your success. Like you, my Frisco TX market is also very technologically advanced. So, it works in my market.
As a matter of fact, I too find it easier to communicate, keep in touch with my sphere through SM rather than email.
I'm never an early adopter of technology. I'm just the "earlier" crowd.
Thanks for sharing the stats. It gave me more insights and more thinking to do.
Excite, Lycos, and Altavista...... LOL! I haven't heard of those since "web crawlers!" There was another... NETSCAPE! Ha!
I like how you tied in the traditional methods with social media.
Jason, it's very good advice. Change is happening so far, it's sometimes difficult to keep up. Always glad to read our posts and learn.
I remember the world did exist in the pre google era. Amazing how much one site has intertwined itself into our lives.
Things do change fast and I'm wondering what is the next new "shining object" coming along. I am on Facebook, LinkedIn, and Plaxo; however, we live in a society that seems to always be looking for the next new innovation. Who knows where these platforms will be on 3-5 years. I say, be flexible and willing to change.
With todays technology it is so much easier to engage and communicate with people, with print ads you had better have some great call to action, usually a discounted service, which means you are paying twice for the ad, and then you beat your head against the wall with these clients. not to mention you have no idea how many clicks you are getting on a yellow page ad.
Jason,
Wow! I am late to the party with this. Quite a big world out there. Every day is a tech adventure.
Jason - Very true ! Thank you for sharing your experiences and insight. It is amazing how quickly the changes have been from year to year ! We try to stay ahead of the curve but it is not easy !
Jason,
I'm not completely on board yet; I can't keep up with it. Everything changes on a daily basis.
I agree. Who knows where the internet will take us tomorrow, let alone in a couple of years. The tools it's brought us so far are awesome. I look forward to the future.
These things change so quickly, it completely blows my mind. Good thing we have people like you at our easy technological reach to help us keep up :-)
Facebook threw me into the social media atmosphere. Having a wild ride. AR has been a huge motivater.
Thanks Jason. Yes, the technology is constantly changing, and things come and go!!! Sometimesit seems hard to keep up with it all.
Jason,
Interesting numbers. I do wonder what the next big thing is going to be. Interesting comparison of Facebook and MySpace.
I just attended a roundtable at the NY Times building and a great number of sessions addressed this topic ofsocial networking. Facebook ,Twitter and Google Juice seemed to be the main focus
Good points Jason. I watch a "little" tv, but will usually record them so I don't have to watch commercials.
Normally, I wouldn't have commented with this many responses already in place but Jason, you've said so much in that small space above that I am compelled to do so. The breakfast discussion today was exactly this and you couldn't have expressed my sentiment any better. Excellent!
Great post Jason!
This is an ever evolving industry. If you don't keep up with the technological advances, you might as well be out of business because surely in a few years you will be.
Jason - I was not that into Yahoo... but I remember the YAAAHOOOOOO commercials back in the day. Now its all about google. Its funny but I dont remember making the choice to 'google' instead of 'yahoo'.
Jason things change so rapidly but it is oh so important to to be online using various media to connect with potential clients.
Jason things change so rapidly but it is oh so important to to be online using various media to connect with potential clients.
This is good advice.
You definitely got my attention with the statement "Yahoo was dominant.....and Google didn't exist." Nor did Facebook or YouTube. Amazing how fast change occurs.
Hi Jason,
Great post as always, I love reading your stuff. It's so easy to read!
Yeah Jason, like myspace, things can be huge today and gone tomorrow. People want their relationships current and mobile.
Great Post Jason, While I consider my self a novice at this I am surprised at the number of folks who haven't even started.
I love posts like this. There are so many opinions and differences in our individual markets that one thing doesn't fit all situations. I barely do listing marketing in print, but I do print to advertise my newly and continually updated local website. I hope to gain some email addresses and implement the online newsletter, but I am way to early for that. Great post!