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TRANSPARENT REAL ESTATE

Using Twitter Direct Messages like Email can be scary

Happens to me all the time while dishing off replies/Direct Messages on Twitter... a DM gets sent out as a public tweet because the D is somehow misplaced or not there at all. It happened to one of Tim O'Reilly's handlers and disclosed Tim's speaking fee:



(c/o Valleywag)

The mistake is worse than the old "Reply All" email mistake for the very obvious eternity-based reasons. Solution? Remember not to tweet contract details! Email will continue to live on...

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Our New Credo - Creating more "Zappos"

We're receiving assignments that help corporations reposition themselves as "Zappos" of their industry. This is the mission we've been aiming for with our consulting business. I think we're reaching a tipping point for the adoption of social media by society where companies and organizations now must understand that reaching the customer through conversational means instead of through a commercial has become the status quo.

In this light, we've changed our mission statement on our Domus Consulting Group website:


Domus Consulting Group’s mission as management consultants is to work with corporations and organizations in developing social media sales and marketing strategies that extend to every employee and business partner. Since 2007, we have been leaders in developing new social media constructs that have been put into practical and successful use by the technology, the real estate and the media industries.

We achieve the following objectives with our clients, the first four steps often within the span of 1-2 months:

1) PLANNING: Strategy development on how best to position company within both traditional industrial media and the new social media worlds.
2) MISSION: Brand client company as the “Zappos ” of its industry by developing a systematic focus on customer support and interaction via the social media.
3) EXECUTION: Develop a massive referral-based networking system within the organization and extend that to the customer base for business development.
4) ADOPTION: Train large teams of employees live and via webinars to systematically and efficiently build their social networks, and learn 2.0 marketing protocols.
5) LEVERAGE: Develop unique applications that distribute and share essential real time information to corporate clients. (Example: Real time local advertising - a new business model)

Our Management Philosophy ( a slideshow we originally posted summer 2008)

View more presentations from Pat Kitano.

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Breaking REO News

I discussed Breaking REO News at REBarCamp Los Angeles last week (Kudos to Ricardo and all the organizers for a great event). We'll soon be launching various Breaking REO News sites in cities across the US. If you're interested in participating, and you already have experience with Twitter, we have a Social Media Marketing and Referral System webinar series that just started on Wednesdays at 9:00am Pacific time. We explain in our webinars how to systematically develop a social media presence and then leverage it through the participation in and development of breaking news sites focused on your community. You may register for the course at http://domusconsultinggroup.com/101g. More information on our webinars can be found on Active Rain.

In addition to Breaking REO News, we've also introduced the same breaking news concept applied to local advertising with Breaking Shopping News.com. You can read more about Breaking Shopping News at Media Transparent.

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RateWindow for Mortgage Brokers

RateWindow, the wholesale mortgage rate engine, can now be embedded into mortgage broker blogs and websites, as well as on Realtor blogs. You can see how we've positioned RateWindow as a consumer focused mortgage application at Mortgage Transparent.

Sign up now and try out RateWindow free for two months.

Here's one way to use RateWindow and HomeGain to create co-marketing and branding opportunities between the mortgage broker and the Realtor:


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Skype for iPhone - Down with the Cellular Hegemony

iPhone has just become de rigueur. Skype for iPhone has just allowed me to reduce the minutes on my family plan because I can use Skype whenever I'm home on my wifi network. I'll also be able to Skype Japan or overseas from my cell phone at .05c per minute. Skype, along with Facebook for iPhone has made the iPhone the most automated and thrifty communication device.


Review: my first iPhone calls to Japan sounded like Skype through a PC headset. It did cut off after 8 minutes and I had to recall.

The cellular companies must see the writing on the wall that the public demands wifi-enabled calling and will eventually move to unlimited minutes plan to give what their customers want.

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Facebook for iPhone - Automatic Contact Database



The Facebook for iPhone app has become my iPhone contact database of choice based on accessibility to the most basic contact info like phone # and email address. It's handy and I don't need to manually input data or keep it updated. Linkedin for iPhone should do the same thing, but Linkedin's users don't normally expose their phone # and email address to the public like Facebook users.

With over 200 million members, Facebook is evolving into today's "White Pages" and is positioned to be a similar indispensable contact tool. Now all it needs a simple CRM system to track and/or record phone calls, email & Facebook communications.



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Geithner Plan - Praised or Panned? Depends whether you're an Optimist or a Pessimist.


Geithner unveiled the Treasury's plan to deal with toxic assets met mixed economists' reviews, but received Wall Street support with a 7% jump in the Dow. Simply put, the arguments about whether the plan will pull America and the world out of its slump are dependent upon whether you believe the toxic assets will perform better or worse than its current (and depressed) marked-to-market value.

Those who believe toxic assets are pessimistically valued to pennies on the dollar and note that 85% of all mortgages are still in normal service (and therefore can't be all that bad) will also believe that investors will be buying at a depressed bottom (including the taxpayer via the TARP funds) and will benefit from future appreciation when the economy stabilizes. Bringing institutional investors into the game could turn the markets around if they start gobbling up REO properties en masse (I bring up this scenario at Mortgage Transparent) and create enough buyer demand to stabilize real estate prices.

Those who believe toxic assets are indeed worthless are saying taxpayers are being conned into buying these assets at inflated prices. If Treasury Plan then fails to correct the credit markets, the Treasury is left with worthless assets, Obama/Washington with no more political capital, and the global economy facing an even deeper cliff to dive off. The NY Times' Nobel laureate Paul Krugman calls it "cash for trash".

I will also be commenting on the credit markets and the stimulus plan at the new Mortgage Transparent blog.

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RETechSouth Online Resources


RETechSouth is a winner... Matt and Brad have put together a winning formula - a technology conference where the most cutting edge discussions happen with folks who practice what they preach. I was honored to participate, and look forward to future RETechs which, according to talk, may clone itself to other cities.

Conferences are so well documented in real time these days with Twitter and other social media commentary... the best I could do is compile the links for use by anyone wanting to relive RETechSouth or find out what happened in Atlanta last Friday:

Website
RETechSouth.com
RETechSouth Social Network (Crowdvine)
RETechSouth Social Network
Twitter
@RETechSouth
Twitter stream for #RETS
#RETS
Facebook - RETechSouth Network
ReTechSouth Network
Flickr
RETechSouth Flickr account
Facebook picture galleries
NikNik Mara Video Stacie LaneJeff Teresa Andy Bobby Ines + to name a few (FB should make it easier to search across #RETS pictures)
Session videos by Dakno.TV
Dakno.TV (I assume to be uploaded soon)


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Fed says "Lend Banks Lend!"



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The Shrinking Local Advertising Dollar


The masses are quite aware that print newspapers are dying (Does the Seattle P-I going 100% Web Signal the End of Newspapers). Fewer realize that radio stations (The Death of Radio Advertising) and TV stations (The Death of Local TV Stations) are also downsizing dramatically with the decimation of advertising revenues. In particular, it's the local advertising dollar that is not getting spent on newspapers, TV and radio (Kelsey Group Perspective on Local Advertising from Viral Housing Fix - "the Outlook is Grim")

What newspapers, TV and radio have in common is their dependence upon the old Madison Avenue "advertising as branding machine" model. From Sandy Weaver Carmen - Death of Radio Advertising:

Internet advertising is instant gratification for the person buying and the person selling. In the short time it takes to click through from one site to another, a buying decision can be made and the seller has their money.

Radio advertising has never been about instant gratification. Repeated airing of a commercial is needed before the listener really gains focus and awareness of the advertisers, and then they still have to physically travel somewhere
Returns on investment on this old branding model are now being questioned. For the real estate professional, the traditional Sunday print ad is becoming extinct (TV and radio were too expensive an option anyway), so it seems we're now at or past the inflection point where online advertising, or even the "free" social media is replacing traditional advertising.

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