eight ways to get more realtors® to read

Eight waysto get moreREALTORS®

to READPresented by:Melynn Sight

nSight Marketing, Inc.

CommunicationDirector’sInstitute

Three years ago we contemplated selling the house.the electrician, is adding new lights, repairing outdoor fixtures and installing new (non-‐80's brass) ceiling fans.the painter, is sanding and painAng the woodwork and walls, filling ceiling and wall cracks we didn't know we had,and generally turning our 25year-‐old house into a work of art.Replace the ;le in our shower, seeking out new vanity and lighAng fixtures.Straw that broke the camel’s back – finally had to face what to do about the aging concrete driveway — re-‐surfaceor replace …

AssociaAons face these same quesAons. Should they look at cosmeAc changes to their markeAng efforts or shouldthey go for the wholesale change? It depends. If you have been focusing on the member in the past, then it is likelythey are somewhat in touch with their needs. Perhaps not a lot needs done.

On the other hand, if the neglected member insight, then it is likely more change is needed.

Ask yourself this quesAon: What have you changed in your business lately? Let's say in the past year? Past two years,even? Something? Anything? Are you sending out the same communicaAons you did five years ago? Same strategy?Same model? Same distribuAon strategy?

SomeAmes change seems overwhelming. But you may not need to change much to see a tremendous impact. Thechallenge is determining what needs changed. That's where your members come in.

If you've not fully engaged your members, then you're missing out on the best business insight you could possiblereceive. They are the ones who can tell you if you're on the right track. They are the ones who will shine a light onyour problems.

Today we’ll talk about eight areas you should be good at. If you aren’t, take one or two home with you and getworking on them.

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ONE SIZE FITSALL? CLOSED

PEOPLE TECHNOLOGY ECONOMICS

We have had 3 generaAons for many years.

Difference today?

3 driving forces; people, technology and economics

1.Not just People – but People’s desire to connect in new ways

2.Not just Technology – but interacAve technology (in 2006, 73% of people were online, what isit today?)

3.3rd driving force – online Economics – on the internet, traffic equals money.

One size doesn’t fit all anymore, and it’s not about giving informaAon.It’s about ACCESS TO INFORMATIONIt’s about RELATIONSHIPS (Social/InteracAve technologies)

That brings us back to Virgin Records. Used to be anything MUSIC you wanted you could get atVirgin Records. How many of you feel old?

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Who is this?“10,000 hours of

practice isrequired to

achieve the levelof mastery

associated withbeing a world-class expert”

Malcomb Gladwell – author of Outliers.

•He says every great achiever (soccer player, Mozart, Bill Gates, Bill Joy -‐ Sun) gotwhere he/she is NOT because of IQ

But because they have Ability, Opportunity, advantage and hard work.He says “10,000 hours of pracAce is required to achieve the level of mastery associatedwith being a world-‐class expert”

•How much is 10,000 hours? That’s 3.33 years dedicated to the finance, education, orcommunications business based on a 60 hour work week

•This is a fascinating book with many more lessons buried deep than what it takes tobecome an expert.

Lessons of outliers are many – for me, bottom line is that you can achieve mastery atthis (getting REALTORS to pay attention) or whatever you want to accomplish: Ability,Opportunity, advantage and hard work.

I have 3 copies of this book – pass bus cards to the left – someone pick them up. Giveaway at the end. (I’ll also give three copies of this presentation and all docs I talk abouton flash drive)

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Understandyour Goals

Create aPlan

Executethe Tactics

MeasureResults

EvaluateSuccess

Here’s what’s not right about most communicaAons (the IMBALANCE)

We all have different percepAon of what member needs and what’s most important.This is what I see when I help AssociaAons audit themselves

There’s most of the Ame a lot of info going OUT, as you can see, not much coming IN

Most of the Ame it’s the “way we’ve always done things” communicaAons plan.

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What is yourcommunicaAons

strategy?

Your listeningstrategy?

OUTGOING

FEEDBACK

Think about it this way…

Review the 3 driving forces again; people, technology and economics

1.Not just People – but People’s desire to connect

2.Not just Technology – but interacAve technology

3.3rd driving force – online Economics – on the internet, traffic equals money.

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What would amember say?

Groundswell:“A social trend in which people are usingtechnologies to get the things they need fromeach other, rather than from traditionalinstitutions.”

Charlene Li/Josh Bernoff, Forrester Research

Meet Carol – smart, savvy, busy

Meet Jane – new, distracted, 50/50 chance of making it

Meet Milt – need I explain?

Three very different audiences (generaAons) who get informaAon differently.

What’s different today?

We’re in the middle of a groundswell:

A groundswell, (if you haven’t read the book by that name, you should) is defined as:

We sAll have mulA generaAons, but in the past there were limited ways to get the wordto them. One way communica;ons.

Today there are so many ways. So many preferences.

CommunicaAons is not a “this is the way we’ve always done it” process anymore.

If you do this, you will lose them. They will not see you as valuable. YourcommunicaAons will end up somewhere you don’t want to think about.

We have a CRISIS of OPPORTUNITY before us. To balance the NEW GROUNDSWELLwith the preferences of our CIVICS. Let’s get started.

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What do they needfrom you?

If you asked them what would they say?

And you’ll reach them if they say to themselves:

•"I learned something today“ or

•They fought an issue that will help me make more money

•They help me (broker/agent) make more money

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What drives YOUcrazy?

What drives THEMcrazy?

First, as a communicaAons director, what drives you crazy?

Now, think like your member – no longer a communicaAons director…Want kind ofcommunicaAon do members want?

List of 3 reasons your members don’t read. Besides “I don’t have Ame”….

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Top 61. I like my messages short2. Don’t re-send information to me again

and again (but I do like reminders)3. Headlines with links

4. Access to the educational optionsavailable to me

5. I don’t GET RPAC

6. I want to understand designations

Here’s what they say about associaAon communicaAons:

1.let me self -‐ select what they want to read

2.Do not re-‐send informaAon again and again – I’ll get it myself if I need it

3.Headline list with links -‐ with most criAcal news at the top

4.Various educaAonal opAons available to me – tell me where to look and lay it outclearly for me!

5.RPAC – WIIFM

6.DesignaAons – I don’t understand them and how do I get started?

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Eight waysto get moreREALTORS®

to READ

OUR OBJECTIVE TODAY:

The geek geung mail

Today is about Seven acAons you should take to examine, plan and execute so you willget them to pay avenAon.

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1.ANALYZE IT

Carnegie Mellon University

Tell you story – don’t love to tell stories of my own quirks, but…

I color my own hair. Two years ago I decided I needed to save Ame, money, and start recycling.I recycle everything.

But I color my own hair. -‐ But once every six months or so, I go back to my salon and let theprofessional do it. Why? I know I’m missing a bunch of grey that’s either in the back of myhead, or where I can’t see it without my glasses. I need someone from the outside to do it right.Then I can do it from there! -‐ This is no different than your associaAon. Once in a while youneed to INVEST in bringing someone in to help you determine how you can be more efficientwith the SAME, or LESS money.

-‐ This is a con;nuum of performance for your communicaAons.

-‐ Take a snapshot of today, idenAfy areas where need to get bever, and then prioriAze how youwill avack them one by one (fast, cheap, beauAful).

-‐ For each of these 5 areas there are pracAces and standards. It goes from Unorganized toOpAmized

-‐ This chart shows the range of AD HOC (you succeed because of the competence of one ofYOU one heroic individual) To OPTIMIZED, (so important to the organizaAon that the pracAcesare conAnuously measured and improved.)

-‐ Your analysis can be simple or complicated as you want, but you have to know where you aretoday and the few (or many) thinks you want to change.

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2.PLAN IT

• Get Feedback

• Test new ideas

• Hear member concerns

• Field new member quesAons

• Answer members’ desire toconnect

• Enable members to supporteach other

• Help members collaboratewith each other

• Build relaAonships with yourmembers

• Give your members the abilityto receive content from youautomaAcally

• Show responsiveness

• Show members you arelistening

• Let members know you wanttheir feedback

• Empower staff members to beyour best advocates

Ask them… Show that you listen

Think about your communicaAons – on lew all the ways you do one-‐waycommunicaAons

By now, you ought to be able to do this really well.

I’d like you to think about the two way communicaAons, the listening part, the addingvalue part

Here’s why:

The strategy on the lew treats every member alike. But treaAng everyone alike will spellfailure – people aren't alike and won’t respond in the same way.

Your associaAon is no different than a business who wants to keep a customer. Thebever the relaAonship, the more value you offer, the higher the “switching costs”.

So when I say Plan it, I mean, how do you build that relaAonship and get theconversaAon started?

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3.ORGANIZE IT

1. Your association’sobjectives?

2. How do yourcommunications supportthose objectives?

3. Your primary audiences?

4. How will you deliver them?

5. How you will evaluatethem?

6. Capturing YPs’(a.k.a.GenNext) attention?

andDocument It

If it were me, I’d make a plan – any mktg/comm director needs a plan!A communication plan - written document that answers six key questions: (readabove)

I don’t want to talk so much about how to construct this plan (you can pull that off mywebsite, it’s in your notes). This is about the WHY. You need to begin with the end inmind.

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4.SIMPLIFY IT

How many of you are religious about readability staAsAcs?

In MS word and in MS outlook?

Here’s a Ap for you – awer your write, or when someone sends you anything, run thistest

Look for:

Passive sentences (makes arAcle more readable)

Reading ease (length of words, sentences and paragraphs)

Grade level (why younger the bever) – if you want people to read, have to keep itsimple.

If you can only do two things from what you learn today. Write this down.

Readaiblity staAsAcs, and write for the member BENEFIT.

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4.SIMPLIFY IT

Aes are very good students – (once you know what to look for, you can inspect)

How many things are published, and you see draw, and think “what were theythinking”?

Here’s a Ap for you – when someone sends you an arAcle, run this test

Then mentor them on:






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4.SIMPLIFY IT

How many things are published, and you see it, and think “what were they thinking”?

Here’s a Ap for you – when someone sends you an arAcle, run this test

Then mentor them on:






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•

5.STANDARDIZE IT

There’s so much to say about thisThere are so many reasons you need to standardize your material•It’s about branding•It’s about the comfort of leung members know what to expect•It’s about making it easier for them to read!

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STANDARDIZE IT

Super Seven:1. Logo placement

2. Start with your goals

3. Decide WIIFM first

4. Attention in 2 seconds?

5. Compelled to action in 2

minutes?

6. Gripping headlines

7. Use of testimonials as

appropriate

1. Logo placement (WIIFM!) – some assn’s forget other Educa institutions,

no logo, no recognition. Don’t let member mistake who you are!

2. What are your goals? Lots of competing info on the page

3. Benefit the reader? (give them the WIIFT), not just the facts

4. Attention in two seconds

5. Compelled to action in two minutes

6. Gripping headlines – subject lines are controversial

7. Use of testimonials

This is not only for documents – also for your website!

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STANDARDIZE IT

Super Seven:1. Logo placement

2. Start with your goals

3. Decide WIIFM first

4. Attention in 2 seconds?

5. Compelled to action in 2

minutes?

6. Gripping headlines

7. Use of testimonials as

appropriate

Google logo contests – as long as you have a strong brand, be crea5ve with your logo!

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6.PERSONALIZE IT

Here’s a tool to help you inspect if you are focusing on your member? Versus YOU?

We-‐We Calculator -‐ Customer Focus Calculator -‐ scans web pages and scores how customer-‐focused your copy is. Great tool to illustrate whether your site is focusing on the members’needs…or just loves the sound of its own voice.

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6.PERSONALIZE ITBY THE MEMBERSEGMENT

On the subject of YoungProfessionals:

1. Media snacking2. Give them a way to

comment3. Go viral4. Short subject lines and

information5. Network on-line and off-

line6. Catalog shopping

experience7. RSS feeds (market

stats), blogs, videos

One size doesn’t fit all anymore -‐ Can’t leave this topic w out talking aboutpersonalizing for the YP AND other technology-‐savvy members

Geung their avenAon is about ACCESS to INFORMATION

1.Media Snacking - Post information in many sources

2.They don’t like the member services director to write an article about theinaugural – instead of the formal story, they want to hear if from anothermember!

3.Info from orientation - It’s the same information, just a different vehicle to get itout there!

4.Go viral

5.Short subject lines and information (these are controversial)

6.Socialize on-line and off-line

7.Catalog shopping experience (on line education, on line registration, on-linepurchase)

8.RSS feeds from your website.

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7.WEBIFY IT(EVERYTHING)

The final issue of the Seavle Post-‐Intelligencer was delivered to homes this morning. The Hearstnewspaper group had been looking for a buyer, but none could be found. The paper will conAnue online.

While many bemoan the loss of another newspaper, please don't mistake the demise of the newspaperindustry with the state of the economy. Newspapers are struggling for the same reason the Yellow Pagesare in trouble — adverAsing revenue is moving to an online model, and media channels are following it.In the coming months, we will witness the demise of many more newspapers. Newspapers were introuble ten years ago. The current economy is simply exacerbaAng the situaAon and hastening theprocess.

There are always at least two ways to look at an issue. Some will miss their daily paper delivered to theirdoorstep. Others will wonder what took so long since they've been geung their news online for the lastdecade.

While the transiAon away from newsprint is coming faster than most expected, there are plenty ofreputable news outlets who are figuring out how to deliver the news people want within a revenuemodel that works. Their staff will be smaller, more nimble and reader focused. Which, if you think aboutit, is how newspapers began in the first place.

Your magazine is only the beginning… (next page)

BUT! Don’t bury everything in the web! Marry it with other means of communicaAons:

If forms are a member value, talk about forms wherever you can, & don’t make members dig way downto find them.

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6.WEBIFY IT(EVERYTHING)

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7.WEBIFY IT

Your magazine is only the beginning…

If you are interested in keeping your YP interested you need to do things like:

1.InteracAve web portals

2.Real-‐Ame e-‐commerce

3.Video email

BUT! Don’t bury everything in the web!

If forms are a member value, talk about forms wherever you can, & don’t makemembers dig way down to find them.

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8.LIFE SIZE IT

Curious headlines getattention

Subject line: Don’t Vote…

Un5l you read this message

Subject line: Sorry you weren’tnominated…But it’s not too late, here’s theform

Subject line: Drink no winebefore it’s ;me…And the Ame is this Thursday atour annual wine tasAng

Compelling headlines get avenAonBecause Tom O’Rourke is here, I want to show some of his LIFE SIZE examples of hismail to members.

Be honest, wouldn’t you prefer a headline like this versusXYZ REALTORS Update?

Difference between a standard happy birthday card, and one that is funny,heartwarming, connects to your year of birth – that YOU relate to.

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8.LIFE SIZE IT

SUBJECT: Capitol Hill Day

Whether email, flyers, or any communicaAons – subject lines get avenAon. 2 seconds is all youget.2 minutes to get someone to do something with the informaAon

Ask this quesAon. What does it do for their LIVELIHOOD? LIFE SIZE it for them

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8.LIFE SIZE ITSUBJECT: Capitol Hill Day

www.ASSN.org/LegAffairs.html

SUBJECT: What can a visit to the hill can do for me?

CCIM MEMBER

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Analyze itPlan it

Organize itSimplify it

Standardize itPersonalize It

Web-ify itLife Size It

Restate the crisisA blind boy sat on the steps of a building with a hat by his feet. He held up a sign whichsaid: 'I am blind, please help.' There were only a few coins in the hat.

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A man was walking by. He took a few coins from his pocket and dropped them into thehat. He then took the sign, turned it around, and wrote some words. He put the signback so that everyone who walked by would see the new words.

Soon the hat began to fill up. A lot more people were giving money to the blind boy.That awernoon the man who had changed the sign came to see how things were. Theboy recognized his footsteps and asked, 'Were you the one who changed my sign thismorning? What did you write?'

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The man said, 'I only wrote the truth. I said what you said but in a different way.'What he had wriven was: 'Today is a beauAful day and I cannot see it.'

Do you think the first sign and the second sign were saying the same thing?

Of course both signs told people the boy was blind. But the first sign simply said theboy was blind. The second sign told people they were so lucky that they were not blind.Should we be surprised that the second sign was more effecAve?

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MORAL OF THE STORY? Great communicators are MADE, not born Look at things as they are, not as YOU are Slow down and take time to learn, innovate & reinvent

Moral of the story…

Great communicators are MADE, not born.Molded, crafted by people like you.

Don’t empower them too much.You can both ooch them and make it easier for people to find their way.For that, they will appreciate you.

Learn from each other.You nor I know everything. We see the world, the association from a differentset of eyes.While you teach them how to do their jobs better,They will keep you relevant.

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You can reach Melynn @

[email protected]

or 913.261.9100

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