DotLoop Blog

If you're an agent working today, then you already know the importance of a good web presence.

What you may not know, however, is what constitutes 'good'.

If you have a website, take a look at this list to make sure you're not falling victim to technology. After all, having a megaphone is one thing; using it wisely is another.

1. I'm #1! I'm #1!

Does your website scream #1 anything? Stop it. Sure, you may be the number one agent in your market, and you may have famous clients. But your potential clients don't care. They only want to make sure that you will help them find a home or sell their existing home.

Who's the focus here anyway: your ego or the client?

2. Music.

Just...just don't play music in the background. The quickest way to lose a potential customer is to automatically play music when they log into your site.

3. Poor Picture Quality.

If you have listings on your site (which you should), be aware that the quality of the photos reflects the quality of the agent who took them (that is, you, even if an intern took them). If you have grainy images taken from your 2 mega pixel camera to show off a home, I will be clicking the red X on the top of my browser and will continue shopping for a competent agent.

4. Misspelled Words.

The descriptions are just as important as the pictures when listing a home. And glaring misspellings give a potential client the same vibe as grainy pictures - this agent doesn't care. With dictionary.com a free service, there should be no reason you should have misspelled words on your page.

5. Glamour Shot Photos.

If your picture is more than five years old, you need to replace it. And don't wear your blouse with shoulder pads in your new picture, either. Clients do not want to be surprised when they meet you. They want to be sure that you are genuine, not Photoshopped.

Of course, easy navigation, informative content, and an ability to contact you are all very important, too. And, if you're a DotLoop user, you can let them know that they will be able to negotiate more easily and quickly.

Websites, like a home, need to be maintained.

Are you maintaining yours?

Here at DotLoop, we're always tweaking our system to make it as efficient and stream-lined as possible.

But did you know how many clicks it takes to get to the finish line of a negotiation?

Mr. Owl knows.

To send a contract to a client, it takes 3 clicks.

For the client to sign the contract, it takes 2 clicks.

To add a new form to an offer, it takes 2 clicks.

To send a signed offer to the other agent, it takes 2 clicks.

And to get the bank to complete a short sale in under 60 days?

Well, I never made it without biting.

To see for yourself how many clicks it takes to create a paperless real estate transaction, visit DotLoop today and check out our Sample Contract to preview the system.

And finally...

...some good news!

No, the housing market has not returned to "normal" (if you can call the recent boom "normal") and unemployment is still dangerously high (unless you live in North Dakota).

But perhaps this recession has taught us a valuable lesson: live within your means.

For the first time since 2002, the average credit card debt per American citizen is now below $5,000 ($4,951 to be exact).

"Consumers continue to pay down their credit cards in response to economic uncertainty and high unemployment," Ezra Becker, a consulting strategist, says in the article.

Like a kid who ate too much Halloween candy, Americans gorged themselves on cheap and easy credit and are now taking a more healthy approach to spending and saving.

It took a global recession to make us realize our faulty ways, but the best lessons are always the hardest to learn.

“Gentlemen, progress has never been a bargain. You've got to pay for it.”
--Henry Drummond, Inherit the Wind

It’s been a tumultuous few years to say the least.

With the economy still stuck in the mud, despite the turning of our wheels, a recovery still appears to be a long, long way off and the good old days of 2006 are nothing more than a distant dream.

It seems like Pandora’s Box has been opened as the housing market continues to whimper on.

Later today, NAR will release what is predicted to be a decline in July home sales, and foreclosures continue to rise in certain areas in the country. It seems we're continuously mired in bad real estate news.

But it's not all doom and gloom. This weakened economy may just be the reprieve we need to buckle down, tighten up, and condition ourselves for a post-recession economy. Sure, the sales may be down right now, but never before have agents had so many advanced tools at their disposal. Never before have agents been able to openly and actively communicate with their clients.

We will most likely come out of this Great Recession a bit worn, but also a bit wiser. The proverbial cream will rise to the top and the best agents will shine through. After all, the only way to turn a lump of coal into a diamond is with time and pressure.

The question is, are you bettering yourself in this downtime, or are you still waiting next to the fax machine for the latest offer? Are you talking to your clients on Facebook to see what they feel about the local real estate market? Are you polishing your HTML skills or updating your website?

Because now's the time to regroup, rethink, and reinvigorate your business. This recession, after all, won't last forever.

So, when times are difficult in the midst of all of this bad news, don't forget what was at the bottom of Pandora's Box: hope.

It turns out that America might just be big enough to have differing versions of the American Dream.

With housing prices still plummeting and unemployment still rising, the old stigma of renting is starting to wear off.

As NPR points out, renting is now being re-examined, with a less-weary eye.

Another article in the series discusses how some renters have found "forced simplicity, [which] keeps [their] overhead very low and lifestyle very flexible."

In a world where the stock market can wipe out an entire life's work and a home's value can plummet to the point where you end up owing more than what it's worth, the younger generation is starting to question the American Dream as it was created in the 1950s.

Indeed, as Raj Date points out in the article, "The world we live in today is not quite the world that existed in 1950", referring to the transient nature of work and suggesting that a middle class American should not "stake themselves" with a house.

With the mercurial nature of today's economy, home ownership may not end up being the ultimate fruition of the American Dream.

After all, as The New York Times points out, one-third of twenty-somethings move to a new residence every year and go through an average of seven jobs within the decade.

With such drastic statistics, it's no wonder that renting, as Joanne Cleaver pointed out in the article, "[isn't] being rootless, [it's] being free."

And isn't being free ultimately what American Dream is all about?