Last week was a big week for real estate bloggers working in the East Valley, Scottsdale, and Phoenix Metro. As real estate buyers and sellers turn to the Internet to find real estate information, and even to find and qualify their Realtor, blogging becomes more and more mainstream.
While I signed up for my first blog over two years ago, it was only last summer that I finally started writing. What I found when I began networking with other blogging Realtors, was that there’s a need to connect and share. The relationships that I’ve found via the blogosphere have expanded my universe into the realms of social networking. I think the biggest surprise for me has been how friendly and helpful more experienced bloggers and social networkers have been.
And last week was an example of just how connected the Phoenix area real estate bloggers have become, and the lengths they will go to in helping educate other agents on how to get started blogging.
On Thursday, the East Valley Real Estate Blogging Network held the first get together in Gilbert and attracted a good number of bloggers, many who are prolific on Active Rain.
The Scottsdale Area Association of REALTORS® hosted a Technology Symposium that included several topics, including a demo of our soon-to-be new Arizona Regional Multiple Listing Service (MLS) and, of course, blogging. One hundred and fifty real estate agents from around the valley attended. Our keynote and moderator, Keith Garner, from the National Association of REALTORS® Center for Technology shared a video on Web 2.0, “The Machine is Us/ing Us“, that may really open your mind to the possibilities – truly worth watching.
More photos from the symposium.
Saturday morning, even more bloggers, all in real estate related industries, met for breakfast in Scottsdale. I arrived late, but still had the opportunity to meet new bloggers and re-connect with others. People were still standing in the middle of the restaurant chatting, as I pulled myself away.
Conversations that occur at these networking events are amazing. People who have never met each other in person, but who are connected on-line, greet each other as long-lost friends. There’s almost a hunger for connecting in person, after getting to know someone from reading their writing for so long.
Keith and I had a sidebar conversation during our time together, and he mentioned the large population of social media types and real estate bloggers in the Phoenix area. Being in the midst of this dynamic group of people has been an inspiration to me, and as I have mentioned in the past, blogging has made me a better REALTOR®.
And if you are Phoenix, Scottsdale, or East Valley buyer or seller reading this blog, I’d encourage you to search around the Internet to find a real estate agent that blogs, who has the experience and skills you need, and one of the easiest ways to do that is to read local real estate blogs.
Here are just a few bloggers I’ve met, who participated in this past week’s events:
- Heather Barr – North Phoenix Agent Blog
- Steve Belt – Phoenix Area Real Estate Blog
- Artur Ciesielski and Joanna Zajusz - Phoenix Market Trends
- Jonathan Dalton – Phoenix Arizona Real Estate Blog
- Irene Hammond – McCormick Ranch Blog
- Christoph Schweiger – Your Personal Guide to the Phoenix Real Estate Market
- Jay Thompson – The Phoenix Real Estate Guy
- John Wake – Arizona Real Estate Notebook
You’ll find that we all have different “voices”, and different areas of expertise, plus we provide a real-time look of communities around the valley. Add in the up-to-date real estate statistics that are shared, and you will find that reading real estate blogs to be a valuable addition to your search for professional real estate expertise.
{ 6 comments… read them below or add one }
Dru, you must have had so much fun getting to meet in person the people that you’ve gotten to know on line. I loved my very first AR get together. It is truly amazing how we feel that know some people before ever meeting them in person.
Dru, Jay mentioned 2 key things at the meet-up in the East Valley:
1) The real estate market in Phoenix is HUGE. If an agent had just 1% of it, they’d be a gazillionaire. Accordingly, there’s plenty to go around.
2) Which leads to…even if we share exactly what we are doing with 100 people, the chances are that 97 of them will ignore it, or be unwilling to do it. Blogging and Social Networking can be considered fun, but it’s also work.
To that end, I cherish every opportunity to network with people and learn from the group we have here in Phoenix. There are so many things we are each doing that the other has yet to StumbleUpon. I even managed to find a tiny thing Jay could do to improve on Saturday.
[[with that, I need to work on my comment policy]]
Dru,
It was definitely a pleasure to meet everyone. I learned a few things that will improve my blog and the dissemination of information for better absorption.
I hope to participate more often.
I wished I could have attended…
Artur, It was great to meet you finally, after reading your blog for months.
And Christoph, you had a good excuse, and were missed.
Irena, It is amazing to feel like you know someone before ever meeting them in person.
Steve, Thanks for sharing Jay’s ideas – I agree! How’s that comment policy coming along?