From the “Are You Really That Out of Touch?” Files
Author: Jay T. - The EditorPosted on June 13, 2008
Filed Under NAR - General
You’ve got to be kidding me.
From the “Daily Real Estate NEWS” of Realtor Magazine:
Is it time to rethink the traditional open house?
Practitioner Craig Proctor, of RE/MAX Worldwide, advocates a new approach. Rather than do an open house, which take up lots of time and hundreds of dollars in advertising costs, he says it’s better to team up with other agents and do a “Tour of Homes.”
These marketing events feature approximately six homes in the same price range, and typically are scheduled for a few hours on a Sunday afternoon. Each dwelling is open at a particular time, and buyers can speak with the agent in any property at the time listed.
Proctor says a Tour of Homes takes up less of the practitioners’ and sellers’ time, draws more motivated buyers, and generates “an auction-like atmosphere” that creates greater buyer urgency.
As a result, homes on the tour tend to sell quicker and for top dollar. Practitioners with a limited inventory should ask other agents in their office if their listings could be featured in the tour, which benefits both parties by attracting buyers and enhancing listing exposure, according to Proctor.
My emphasis on the “new approach”…
New???? Please, agents have been doing this for a long time.
I’ve never been a Proctorologist. Personally, I find his “SuccessWebsites” to be horribly cluttered and “old school”. And if this is his idea of something new, well. . .
There’s no arguing that the guy sells a ton of real estate (and web sites, and tapes, and seminars). He’s supposedly one of the top 10 RE/MAX agents in the world.
Which is why is so flipping hard to believe he thinks a Tour of Homes is a new approach.
And Realtor Magazine just reprints this drivel?
Hat Tip to @cwaterhouse
.
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10 Responses to “From the “Are You Really That Out of Touch?” Files”
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Nice writing style. Looking forward to reading more from you.
Chris Moran
Jay - I couldn’t have said it better myself
Although I’m a new agent, I’ve been in the industry for a while … I thought, perhaps, I had lost my mind - it is summer you know.
Calie - thanks for Twittering the article!
Good Golly! I saw the article this morning and thought “Albuquerque is not that cutting-edge, this is NOT a new idea”. They (Realtor Mag)really need to get current and up-to-date on the topics some of them are just stale.
Yes, they are that out of touch. I saw a video recently from NAR about “Technology for Today’s Modern Real Estate Office” or something like that. I was expecting to learn about pod casting or vlogging, etc.
Instead, they were telling us a modern office has a color printer, computer, and fax machine.
GMAB!!!!!
In defense of the magazine, the video that you’re referring to had nothing to do with us.
On the other topic, a tour of homes may be new idea to some folks, but you’re absolutely right that it isn’t new to anyone with some experience under their belt. Your input will be foremost in our minds as we plan our upcoming editorial.
Stacey -
Once again, thanks for stopping by and commenting. It is appreciated.
In defense of the commentator that mentioned the NAR video, realize that MANY people lump “NAR” into one entity — be that realtor.org, realtor.com, Realtor Magazine or whatever. We see continued sillyness from whatever division, section or part of the NAR it may be. It’s difficult not to think of “the NAR” as one thing.
Certainly a tour of homes may be new to some, and sharing the idea is fine. But for Realtor Magazine to quote someone of the stature and reputation of a Craig Proctor calling it a “new approach” is just downright silly. It’s nowhere near a new approach. When people with any experience read something like that, it tends to discredit anything else published in the magazine.
Point well taken.
As for that video, the first one was to show the current state of Pat’s office. As we go on in the video series, we’ll see Pat upgrading her technology to be more modern.
Unfortunately, in editing, that fact ended up towards the tail end of the video and most people missed it. Its a learning process as we learn how to best produce video in-house. The goal is to do more in-house producing with the ultimate effect of being better stewards of NAR’s funds.
Yes, the words “New Approach” probably should not have been used in an article read by Realtors® or agents in general.
…but the Tour of Homes concept is still not widespread among the general public, at least in my experience. We used a “Tour of Homes” type open house system last year, so I can attest to that fact.
As for Consulnet and Success Websites, they have the best “back end” software out there for tracking ads, ad campaigns, and associated URLS, and that’s why I use them among others.