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Say Cheese! One Reason Your Brand Isn’t a Thing (Yet)

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By Sharon Vornholt

A lot of people would rather have a root canal than actually have a professional photoshoot, but it is one of the top reasons your brand isn’t a thing (yet).  It’s time to schedule that professional photoshoot.

Remember that your brand is the way people feel about you. Pictures tell a story.

Good or bad, they tell a story.  Pictures are one of the most powerful things of all when it comes to telling your story and building your brand. People get to experience how it would feel to work with you through those images.

Before someone makes the decision to work with you, they first want to get to know you.  Great photos on your website and other marketing materials give these folks some insight into who you are. They also help set you apart from your competition.

Quality branding photos are essential for building your brand and the market perception that you are the authority in your marketplace. Perception is almost 100% responsible for how people view you, and it’s up to you to create your brand and that perception.

Remember that your brand is the way people feel about you.

Be Authentic When Creating your Brand

Pictures should always be authentic and show the real you when it comes your brand.  You’ve heard the saying, “You need to be yourself; everyone else is already taken”.

Here’s an example.

Let’s imagine for just a minute you are a laid back, jeans and boots type of guy (or gal).  You might put a jacket on for a meeting or event, but your “MO” is casual 100% of the time. You might put your “dress boots” on for the Christmas party, but that’s about as dressed up as you’re going to get.  Let’s call this person Jordan.

Jordan always shows up as this laid back, casual, very approachable person.  Imagine if Jordan suddenly shows with branding photographs in a suit and tie (or suit and heels). Can you imagine the reaction of everyone that sees those photographs?

They would be saying, “Who the heck is that”?

So just be yourself in all of your branding efforts.

Why Hire a Pro?

This one is easy.  Because you’ll look so much better than if you try to do it yourself.

You’re not just hiring someone with a better camera, but you’re hiring someone that can make you look awesome.  A good branding photographer also has the ability to take your version of you and mold it into something that speaks to your brand.  They will edit and retouch your photos and in most cases, they will be able to shoot you so your flaws are less obvious.  (We all worry about our flaws don’t we?)

Your New Look

Once you have your new photos, it time for a “makeover” of all your sites.  Add your new photos to your website and your social media sites as well as any marketing materials. When done properly, these new branding photo’s will help show people what it feels like to work with you.

Great branding photos will help you be seen.  

Here are Some Tips for the Photoshoot

Wear clothes that you feel comfortable in. This is really important.  You just can’t be relaxed for your photoshoot if you’re wearing something that doesn’t feel good.

Wear solid colors.  Black works well on the bottom. They style of your clothes should your brand personality.

You might want to use an interesting backdrop.  I love brick walls. (Go figure)

This one is for the gals.  Always show up in “daytime” hair and make-up.   (Think back to those old glamour shots). Yuck! No one really looks like that.

Do you have a prop that would make people say “Yes, that’s him or her”?

Think coffee cup, wine glass, golf club, or maybe your signature book.

What about your dog you talk about all the time on social media and always take with you?  Grab a shot with your pooch.

You get the idea.  Props are great for building a solid brand when they are part of who you are.  The most important thing is just to get it done.

 

 

Feeling a Little Lost? How to Get Your Groove Back

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By Sharon Vornholt

Do you ever feel a little lost? Like you just can’t get your groove back?

That’s not too surprising. The world is full of amazing opportunities. There are so many ways to make money in real estate investing, it’s easy for us to jump from one thing to another. Generally speaking, shiny object syndrome is not your friend when it comes to business.

However, know that you’re not expected to have it all figured out right out of the gate.

If you’re like most people, you will go down a lot of different paths before you figure out your investing strategy, and how to be your best and most authentic “you” and that’s OK. It’s all part of the process. When you’re finally in the place where you belong; the place that’s right for you, you will know it. That’s when you get your groove back, and you’re ready to rock and roll.

How to Get Your Groove Back

So how do you find the right balance between jumping from one thing to another while you’re finding your way, and staying on your predetermined path? (The path you decided was right for you.)

You slow down a look at the big picture as you begin the adventure of building a business.  This is a little like following a map to get from place A to B.   When we take a trip, we almost always take little side trips along the way.  When we look back when the trip is finished, there’s rarely any regret over these detours and unplanned stops.  It’s all part of the process in travel and in business, and it makes for a much more interesting trip when it’s all said and done.

Building a Business and a Brand that Stands Out

You’re probably wondering, “What does this have to do with building your business and your brand”? 

A lot more than you think. 

It’s important for your potential customers AKA motivated sellers, to see authenticity in your brand.  All of these little detours and side trips you make along the way while you’re growing your business, influence who you ultimately become. That person you become will be the face of your business going forward.

This is the time that the collection of experiences you had along the way begin to pay off. It’s also one of the ways you become different from your competition.

Be Bold

My advice to you is to be bold when it comes to chasing your dreams.  Take risks along the way.  Dare to be different.  Go out on a limb when you need to take a stand.

Remember the movie, “How Stella Got Her Groove Back”? Let’s just say Stella had to really go out on a limb to find it.  She had to get way out of her comfort zone.

What will happen when you do this, is you will start to build your tribe. People will be attracted to your authentic self. These are the people that will follow you along on your journey. They will be your best cheerleaders, and they will refer people to your business.

Remember, you won’t be a fit for everybody.

This confidence you’ve gained will shine through when you talk to motivated sellers, and people will trust you to help them get where they need to be. They will feel confident that you are the one to help them with their problem.  When you can’t seem get your groove back, it’s almost always because you aren’t being your authentic self.

I love this line from the book Fascinate by Sally Hogshead.

“Different is better than better”. – Sally Hogshead.

Dare to be different.

How Will You Be Remembered?

According to Brendan Burchard, there are only 3 things anyone will ultimately be remembered for:

Character, relationships and contribution, so let’s talk about these a little bit.

Character

There is little to say about character that hasn’t already been sad a million times.  Your character will determine your long term failure or success in this business. You will be quickly found out if you’re not an ethical business person. You will become invisible to people that should be part of your tribe.

Relationships

Real estate is a relationship business. Whether we are taking about other investors, contractors or motivated sellers, this business is all about relationships. It’s about having conversations that build rapport with people you do business with.

If you’re one of those folks that struggle with this particular thing, contrary to what you may believe, this is something that you can get better at with practice.  Full disclosure here: you’re going to need to be prepared to spend a lot of time outside your comfort zone in the beginning.

Contribution

When I think about contribution I immediately think about giving back. How can we make the world a better place? There are so many ways.

  • We can do volunteer work for someone like Habitat for Humanity or other charity
  • I know an investor that wrote a book and donated the proceeds to charity
  • If you are a rehabber, maybe your mission is to revitalize neighborhoods
  • How about sharing your expertise with others?

Contribution isn’t just about money.  It’s finding a way to leave the world a better place when you’re gone.  It’s how you will be remembered, and it’s up to you to decide how you will be remembered.

Giving back could be as simple as mentoring folks just getting started in this business. Be bold, get involved, take a stand and get your groove back in the process!

 

Don’t Stop Marketing when Times are Tough (and the Going Gets Rough)

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By Sharon Vornholt

If there is one piece of advice I could give every struggling investor who is trying to stay afloat in today’s challenging market, it would be “don’t stop marketing”.

I know that’s what most people do. But it’s during these times you need to actually step up your marketing. You can’t stay in the game, if you don’t play.

Let’s put it another way.

When you can’t seem to get a deal no matter what, most investors stop marketing to conserve cash. But I can tell you that your business will die a quick and painful death if you do this. You may have to change the way you’re marketing, but whatever you do, don’t stop marketing when times are tough.

So What Can You do If Your Business is starved for Cash?

There are a lot of things you can do but here are some suggestions:

  • Networking is free (or almost free). Get out every day and talk to people. Be sure you have business cards. You can get affordable business cards at Vista Print.
  • What can you cut out to have money for marketing over the next couple of months for direct mail and other things that have a cost associated with them? Do as much marketing as you possibly can.
  • Can you partner with someone? Offer to go look at houses and make offers for someone that has cash for marketing, but maybe has small children and little time.
  • What about spending the day in eviction court? You’re sure to find some tired landlords there.
  • Get a list and call prospects. You’re already paying for your phone, so why not put it to good use?
  • Go driving for dollars. Do some door-knocking to find out who lives in that vacant house.

There are a lot of marketing strategies that cost nothing more than your time.

I can tell you this for sure; it’s these times when “average” investors close up shop. Just keep plugging away. Don’t stop marketing and you will come out way ahead of your competitors over time.

Spend Your Cash Wisely when Money is Tight

This is a time when you need to be smart with your money and your resources.

Here are some more tips for you:

  • Make sure your lists are laser focused. Don’t get too broad. You want to make each mail piece count since they are costing you money.
  • Don’t forget about follow up. Go back through all your leads in the past 12 months. Look at all those who said no. Maybe they are ready to say yes now at the end of the year.
  • Get to work on that stack of direct mail. Do you know someone that has TLO or another similar service that might split the cost for one month to check all of those returned mail pieces?
  • Are there additional real estate niches where you look for opportunities? Think tired landlords, pre-foreclosures, houses with code citations, etc.
  • Remember time and circumstances change all things. This is certainly true of motivated sellers. Just because a seller told you no before, they might just have meant “not now”.

Don’t Stop Marketing During the Holidays

This is probably the biggest mistake investors make. They stop marketing during the holidays. You can take advantage of that, but doing the opposite of what everyone else is doing. This is a good time to look for opportunities where other investors dropped the ball.

Final Thoughts

It’s great to do a marketing brain dump every now and then. Maybe there is something you used to do that you stopped doing. Do whatever it takes to stay in the game.

Get creative and see what you can come up with.

Sharon Vornholt

Sharon Vornholt is the owner of Innovative Property Solutions, LLC in Louisville, KY.

Sharon owned and operated a successful home inspection company for 17 years. She began investing in real estate in 1998 and became a full time real estate investor in January of 2008.

Sharon specializes in wholesaling, and is also an experienced landlord and rehabber.

In addition, Sharon is an internet marketer and also writes articles for several national real estate sites. Sharon is the author of a popular real estate blog called the “Louisville Gals Real Estate Blog”. For your FREE REPORT “Probates and Absentee Owners: Your Fast Track to Real Estate Riches”, stop by her blog at: http://LouisvilleGalsRealEstateBlog.com.

Investigate 6 New Lead Sources for Your Real Estate Business

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By Leon McKenzie, CEO, US Probate Leads

According to Forisk Research, US Housing starts are projected to continue at 1.5 million a year all the way to the year 2024. This tremendous growth is great for the overall economy of the country. However, it will likely increase the competition for the stakeholders within the real estate industry. If you are a realtor or real estate investor, this is something that you need to be prepared for. Everyone wants a share of the profitable real estate pie.

But you shouldn’t fear. Increased competition does not mean that you have to lose money. You just have to find new ways to get better real estate leads for your business. The higher the quality of these leads, the more revenues you are likely to generate when they pan out.

So, where do you even begin? How should you go about investigating new lead sources for your real estate business?

As it turns out, there are plenty of options if you look in the right place.

Possible New Leads Sources for Your Real Estate Business

  1. Your Local Attorneys

Whenever any major legal life changes occur, people tend to consult attorneys for help. We are talking about major issues such as bankruptcy, divorce, death and the like. And while these life changes may not be good for the clients of the attorneys, they can be very good news for your business.

Think about it: when someone declares bankruptcy for example, that person will need to get rid of some properties in order to comply with the legal conditions that arise from being in such a difficult situation. Some of those conditions may require one to sell a home in order for the creditors to be paid.

As a realtor or real estate investor, attorneys who handle major life issues for their clients can provide a steady source of leads for your business. Your business presents attorneys with the opportunity to further help their clients to sort out their financial problems in the easiest way possible.

It’s therefore in your best interest to take the time to establish a connection with the attorneys in your locale. Let them know what you do for a living, and then make it clear that you are available to do business with them and their clients. If you establish a good rapport with your local attorneys, you will become the go-to person when they need to help their clients get rid of their properties.

  1. Home Cleaning Companies

Some people hire home cleaning companies simply because they are not in the mood to clean their homes. But do you know who else likes to hire professional cleaners?

Sellers, that’s who!

When people are set to put up their homes on the market, they are more likely to hire professional home cleaning companies. Professionals are in a better position to clean the homes properly.

Once a home is put up for sale, then the chance for you to sell that home on behalf of a client as the lead realtor, is gone. If you are a real estate investor, then you need to be prepared for the competition from other potential buyers who may also be interested in the property.

Home cleaning companies are a good source of real estate leads because they will help you discover which homes may possibly be up for sale before the sign or listing goes up. This gives you the time to contact the homeowners and offer to either represent them or to buy the property off them quickly.

So, the next time you come across a professional home cleaning company in your area, pay them a visit, and start talking to the relevant parties. Leave your business card too. The casual chats you initiate may end up leading to a sale or two for you.

  1. Property Managers

Some homeowners are absentee landlords/ landladies. They want all the benefits of leasing out their properties without the headaches. For that reason, they hire property managers to manage their additional homes.

If you are a realtor or real estate investor, then property managers are good professionals to have in your corner – especially if you live in an area with lots of investment proprties. At some point, some of the homeowners will get tired of owning the additional properties and may end up selling them to recover their monies.

If you did your due diligence and established a good relationship with the property managers in your locale, when their clients need to sell their homes, you will be the first person to know. This will ensure that you get your pick of prime properties that will enable you to get the best value for your money.

  1. Consumer Loan Companies

When people are denied loans by banks, they tend to go for loans from consumer loan companies. In such cases, it is safe to assume that the clients of these companies have a high debt load, poor credit, and are possibly in financial distress. This assumption isn’t far-fetched at all. After all, according to the 2015 NerdWallet survey, the average American household has a debt of $130,922!

So, when someone in financial distress cannot qualify for a regular loan, it is safe to say that the person in question may be looking to make lifestyle changes. In the event that such a person has a home, he or she may be very eager to downsize in order to reduce the overall debt.

When you run a real estate business, consumer loan companies can be a good source of information on potential sellers or clients of homes, depending on whether you are a realtor or investor.

Take time to talk to the company administrators and inquire on the list of their clients. The worst that could happen is that you get a “no” because the company does not divulge information on their clients. Alternatively, someone working there may mention that they have clients desperate to sell their properties and want some help. Either way, it never hurts to ask.

  1. Nursing Homes and Retirement Communities

As of 2014, there were at least 15,600 nursing homes in the U.S. All these homes had a total of about 1.7 million licensed beds.

It’s important for you to consider senior citizens when you are investigating new lead sources for your real estate business. Many of the retirees living in nursing homes and retirement communities may have some property that they acquired during their working life.

When you consider that the average 55-64 year old only has $45,447 saved up for retirement, you can see why it would make sense for senior citizens to sell their homes to boost their savings. And this is where you come in.

As a realtor or real estate investor, you could take the time to talk to the members of the retirement communities within your area and create awareness of your services. Let them know how you can be of service to help them improve their financial situation. Leave a business card to anyone who’s interested and then adopt a wait-and-see attitude.

Do not be surprised to see multiple people contacting you to help them get rid of their properties. Many of them could have been waiting for someone helpful to come along and help them sell a home they had invested their time, money, and emotions in.

The Trouble with Investigating New Lead Sources…

Your local attorneys, home cleaning and consumer loan companies, property managers, and retirement homes and communities are all great sources of new leads for your real estate business. Most industry players who just happen to be your competition would probably not think of them. That said they do have their fair share of challenges:

  • Not every lead source will be willing or have the time to share the information that you seek. Some will cite client confidentiality issues while others just can’t be bothered. In such situations, all your attempts to find the best leads will be fruitless.

  • It takes a certain amount of social skills to network and form mutually-beneficial relationships with other professionals who can provide leads for your business. If you have social anxiety, prolonged contact to keep the relationships going can be a hassle. There is also the fact that it takes a lot of effort to establish the business relationships in the first place. If you have neither the time nor the energy, these lead sources won’t work out.

Probate Leads Mining Offer the New Real Estate Lead Source to Beat!

Have you ever taken the time to consider how many people actually die and leave their properties behind?

A lot as it turns out!

There are at least 2.6 million deaths annually in the USA.

And by 2018, there will be $15 trillion worth of real estate settlements that will run through the Superior courts. And 70% of them will be in form of real estate.

It’s also worth noting that 50% of executors live out of the county where the probate process takes place.

Think of the possibilities!

Probate lead mining companies offer you the chance to explore a new lead source that not many real estate industry stake holders consider. But unlike the other lead sources, you don’t have to deal with the hassle that goes into getting the information that you want. All you have to do is buy the already-qualified leads and you will find highly motivated executors at the other end of the line.

So, when looking for new lead sources, definitely consider probate leads. Probate lead mining companies like US Probate Leads offer the best solution if you are looking for new lead sources for your real estate business.

US Probate Leads

Leon McKenzie

Chief Executive Officer

Leon cofounded US Probate Leads more than 12 years ago and has witnessed its growth during that period from a one city lead provider in the probate space to the only national provider of probate leads for virtually every county in the country.

Leon likes to point out that US Probate Leads is the only company providing Probate-related Real Estate-related leads to Investors and Realtors based on data collected directly from individual probate courts in virtually every state. This has been achieved by building a National Network of Researchers that visit each county one time each month. Leon’s team processes this incoming data and makes it available to individual subscribers for their use in reaching out to highly motivated property sellers.

Email: [email protected]

Web Site: www.usprobateleads.com

Contact Details: Leon McKenzie
8108 Penobscot Ln

McKinney, TX 75071

(877) 470-9751

Best Kept Secrets To Get More Motivated Sellers Contacting You

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By: Kathy Kennebrook, The Marketing Magic Lady

Getting motivated sellers to contact you first is essential to any successful Real Estate Investor’s business. A truly motivated seller is the key to a good deal; the more motivated the seller, the better the deal. You will find very quickly, as I did, that you will be able to buy a lot more houses at much better prices if you target the right sellers. You will also get the terms you want when the seller contacts you first, especially in some of today’s really hot real estate markets. You’ll want to target the kind of sellers who truly need to sell as opposed to those who just want to sell, including those sellers in pre-foreclosure.

Marketing to sellers is also a numbers’ game. The more motivated sellers you are able to locate, the more motivated sellers you will have contacting you, and the more opportunities you’ll have to make good deals. The secret is in learning how to find the truly motivated sellers.

Whom exactly are you going to be marketing to? Motivation comes in many forms. Sellers need to sell for a variety of reasons. Some reasons have to do with the sellers themselves, such as age, health status, job situations, personal situations, financial difficulties, change in family size or change in marital status.

Other reasons might have to do with the property itself, such as an estate, a property that needs too much work, or a property that has been vacant for a significant period of time. This would also include land lords who have simply had enough of tenants damaging their properties over and over again.

So how do you find these sellers and how should you market to them? The best way I’ve found to do this is by using at least three to five different marketing strategies at all times. One of the multi-pronged marketing approaches is the proper use of direct mail to reach these very motivated sellers. You always want to be reaching your market in a variety of different ways to draw the highest number of motivated sellers to you.

The BIG secret to effective direct mail campaigns is to use them over and over to the same potential sellers. As you will quickly discover, given time, almost every potential sellers’ circumstances change and make them more ready to sell.

I also find that these mailings are very residual. These potential sellers will hold onto your direct mail pieces until their circumstances dictate that they contact you, especially since they probably have not had any contact from anyone else, because usually their properties are not being actively marketed.

Since they are not being actively marketed, there is virtually no competition for these deals. And… if you take the time to actively follow up with your direct mail campaigns and with your sellers, these sellers will contact you first when they need to sell, even if they have been contacted by someone else in the meantime.

This makes it even easier for you to make a good deal. In addition, during the time you have been mailing sequentially to these potential sellers, you continue to build credibility with them. This will give you a significant advantage over your competition, since these sellers feel they already have a “relationship” with you.

The biggest part of the secret is to find the sellers who really want to sell. I use different direct mail campaigns to successfully locate several types of motivated sellers depending on what kind of deals I am specifically looking for in my business. The best way for you to build your business quickly is to use a number of different methods to draw motivated sellers simultaneously.

This can best be done by locating mailing lists and refining them to meet your specific criteria, and then mail to them over and over, cleaning your lists as you go. I find that I get the best results by mailing to my lists at least every sixty to ninety days. This is very easy to do if you implement a follow up system which will help you to track your mailings and your deals.

You’ll also quickly discover that different types of direct mail pieces and lists work better in some parts of the country than in others. Some of these lists might include mailings to out of state property owners, burned out land lords, quit claim deeds, military transfers, estates or pre-foreclosures. These are all sources of highly motivated sellers.

Be sure to give your potential sellers several different ways to contact you such as mail, e-mail, fax, phone and a website. The more ways you give these sellers to contact you, the more of them will contact you, especially when you make it more convenient for them by giving them several ways to reach you. This way they can contact you in the way that is the most comfortable for them and at their convenience.

When you learn how to get motivated sellers contacting you and then learn how to purchase properties using a number of different methods, the possibilities become almost endless. If you use several different methods to get motivated sellers contacting you, you will have more opportunities than you can even imagine. You get to pick and choose the deals that you want to do! Because you get to pick and choose the deals you want to do, you can also pick the exit strategy that most suits your needs, such as wholesaling, renting, selling or lease/options. There is no other marketing strategy that gives you this much control over your deals.

In addition, in today’s market, since so many folks are focused on pre-foreclosures, there is a whole other market of sellers who need our help as well, like divorces, estates and probate, military transfers, burned out landlords and Spanish Speaking homeowners. These are just a few of the types of sellers we need to be concentrating on to create great deals, including those that come with owner financing.

Using direct mail campaigns to market to motivated sellers and developing a “cookie cutter” system to accomplish this is one of most affordable, reliable, and effective ways that I know to build your business quickly and have more qualified motivated sellers contacting you than you will be able to handle.

For more information on Kathy Kennebrook’s marketing tools to find all the motivated sellers and lenders you need for your real estate investing business go to Kathy’s website at www.marketingmagiclady.com. While you are there be sure and sign up for her monthly newsletter and receive $149.00 of real estate tools absolutely FREE!!

Kathy Kennebrook

Contact Info:

Kathy Kennebrook
Dagger LLC
P.O. Box 14343
Bradenton Fl 34280

941-792-5390
941-795-6887 (fax)
[email protected]

Kathy Kennebrook is the ultimate success story. She spent several years in the banking industry before discovering the world of real estate. After attending some real estate seminars this 4 foot 11 mother of two got really excited and before you know it she’d bought and sold hundreds of properties using none of her own money or credit.

Kathy holds a degree in accounting and has co-authored the books- The Venus Approach to Real Estate Investing, Walking With the Wise Real Estate Investor, and Walking With the Wise Entrepreneur which also includes real estate experts Donald Trump, Suze Orman, Robert Kiyosaki, and Dr. Wayne Dyer. She is the nation’s leading expert at finding highly qualified, motivated sellers, buyers and lenders using many types of direct mail marketing. She is known throughout the United States and Canada as the Marketing Magic Lady. She has put together a simple step-by-step system that anyone can follow to duplicate her success.

Kathy has been speaking throughout the country and across Canada for over 14 years and has shared the stage with Ron LeGrand, Donald Trump, Dr. Phil., Dan Kennedy, Mark Victor Hansen, Ted Thomas and Suze Orman to name a few.

Kathy is going to share with you how she generates a seven figure income by mailing a handful of letters throughout the year to highly selected targets by knowing exactly what to send them, who to send them to and exactly how to deliver her message. She will teach you the secrets of pre-screening and automating your marketing and follow up systems to put your entire Real Estate business on auto-pilot.