If there’s one thing everyone in real estate knows it’s that social media and online connections don’t take the place of face-to-face meetings. But, says Janie Coffey, a broker associate with One Sotheby’s International Realty in Miami, Fla., virtual meetings can have a real and positive impact on your business. Here are some ways Coffey connects both online and in person:
1. Tech Brainstorming with Peers. Each week, Coffey and three other Florida real estate professionals meet virtually “to brainstorm, share ideas about real estate and offer tips for using technology,” says Coffey. “We use Fuze Meeting to conference online. It’s like a webinar where we can screen share and chat,” she says. “We use a lot of different technology such as Google Docs and Evernote to share ideas and make our technology learning curve shorter.” Since each agent is from a different area of the state, passing referral business to each other is a natural.
2. Start a Networking Club. As a true techy, two years ago, Coffey started Miami Real Estate Tech Forum to both get ideas for using tech and network with like-minded peers. “We meet once a month in real life for cocktails,” she says. “It’s very competitive, who can bring the best tech tip!” Check out #CompetitiveTechTipping. Coffey says referrals are common as the group is countywide. “I have a deal right now from this group,” says Coffey. “We’re trying to make our August meet up at the Florida Realtors Convention and Trade Show.”
3. Twitter Talk. “Once a week, the Miami Real Estate Tech Forum uses Twitter for tech talk,” says Coffey. “It’s for the consumer and that goes on for an hour. We’ve all gotten business from it,” she says. “You’d be surprised how many clients follow this and chat. Then, they start quoting your stats and data while you’re out with them,” she says. Check out the Facebook page here.
4. Explore new apps. “I’m loving Instgram right now, an iPhone app,” says Coffey. “You take random pictures and there is a lively community where people share those pictures. They basically lifestream their lives. You can build a whole community featuring beautiful properties and life in and around your communnity,” she says. “It’s like Flickr but for iPhone.” In fact, via Twitter and Instagram, Coffey has built a relationship with a seller who will be using her to list his property in the fall. “We bonded over this app. His property is here in Miami but he lives out of the country.”
Tracey C. Velt is a writer, blogger and editorial strategist who specializes
in the business of real estate. For the past six years, she's been writing
and editing for REAL Trends. Prior to that, she served as an editor for
Florida Realtor magazine and continues to contribute to multiple real estate
publications, both in print and online.
