Help-U-Sell® Connect

Broker Focus: Karen Detwiler

We’re starting a new series that profiles successful Help-U-Sell brokers. The goal is to honor these brokers while at the same time offering insight and advice for all of our brokers and agents.

Karen Detwiler, Help-U-Sell Real Estate

Our first Broker Focus profile subject is Karen Detwiler of Help-U-Sell Detwiler Realty in Pennsylvania.

An almost 10-year real estate veteran, Karen started out as a part-time licensed assistant with a Help-U-Sell office while learning the ropes of real estate. In March 2005, she opened up her own Help-U-Sell office.

Her office has closed 56 sides so far this year. She attributes some of this success to advertising on the radio and old-fashioned meet-and-greets. “I believe networking with community organizations, churches, local chambers and our local Realtor association is the most cost effective marketing tool in this market,” Karen says. “It doesn’t require an outlay of money, but gets us as agents interacting with the community.”

Another tactic she has used, based on what she’s noticed in her market, is properly pricing a home at the beginning of the listing, “right along with that, making sure your listing outshines the competition in ‘showability.’” She has also observed buyers take more time looking at the inventory of homes available prior to making an offer on a property.

Karen has a love for real estate, which shows in her work. “I believe real estate has to be a passion that you have inside of you,” she says.

For new brokers, she offers great advice.

•   For those that got into real estate at the height of the market, this current market is a real adjustment. Start small. You don’t need a lot of agents, but the ones you have make sure they have the drive and stamina to succeed.
•   Focus on your clients, as they will be your best advertising! I found testimonials were a great tool.
•   Current and past clients always seem to know someone who is in need of buying or selling a home, so don’t be afraid to ask for referrals.

If you have more advice to share, please comment below.

OMS Upgrades – QR Codes and Leads Management Module Progress

We have some exciting developments to report. Those of you who participated in the Tech Time Tuesday meetings the past two weeks already know about these new tools. For those who have not been able to attend the meetings, here is a recap.

QR Codes

By popular demand, we’ve created a system to generate a QR code for every listing in the OMS. To access a listing’s QR code, open the listing and then click the “Reports” tab. You’ll see the listing’s QR code on the right-hand side. If you want to add the code to your printed brochure, select that option from the drop-down menu. The QR code will direct users to the mobile version of the listing.

You can save the code for use on printed materials by right-clicking on the image and choosing to save it. Some suggestions for use of the QR code are stickers and sign riders. One of our preferred vendors, Oakley Signs & Graphics, can print stickers for use on your existing signs and print the codes directly on new signs.

For more about QR codes, read our previous post on the subject.

Leads Management Module

The first phase of our Leads Management Module is complete. You can see your new web leads in OMS under the new Leads Management tab. Leads are color-coded based on their age. Red means the lead is more than two weeks old. Orange indicates between two weeks and five days, and green is younger than five days. Click on a lead to read the comment and to either delete or assign the lead to an agent. Once you “claim” the lead, it moves from the “New web leads” area to the “Leads” area.

On next week’s call, we’ll preview the next phase. It will allow you to add leads to the “Leads” area and you can sort them into types, such as “buyer,” “seller,” “walk-in” and “call.” Once the leads are converted into buyers or sellers, they will move to the “Contacts” area.

Top Producers for May 2011

Congratulations to Help-U-Sell Real Estate’s Top Producers for May 2011! We have a record number of offices in our top 3 for last month, including some newcomers.

1) Detwiler Realty, with two offices in Pennsylvania, closed lucky number 13 sides, including 8 on May 31.

2) Perennial top-3 producer Galleria Realty, Tucson, Ariz., finished second for May with 12 sides.

2) Another office frequently on the list, Prestige Properties in Chino Hills, Calif., tied for the #2 spot.

3) Part of a four-way tie for third place, Homequity Consultants, Apple Valley, Minn., had 7 closed sides in May.

3) A newcomer to the top-producers list, Honolulu Properties also had 7 closed sides.

3) Select Services is located in Fort Myers, Fla.

3) Rounding out the #3 spot, another office debuts on the list, Triad Realty out of High Point, N.C.

[Figures are as of June 7, 2011.]

Help-U-Sell® Real Estate To Host Free Technology Demonstrations

Sarasota, Fla. – Help-U-Sell® Real Estate will host free technology demonstrations on June 22 and 23 for real estate professionals who are interested in opening a franchise. These demonstrations will review the company’s industry-leading technology platform, such as national and local broker websites, the back-end Office Management System (OMS) and some of the tools Help-U-Sell has to drive leads to local affiliates.

Help-U-Sell has developed and supports its own technology solutions, eliminating the need to rely on third-party vendors.

Solutions tailored to the needs of the busy real estate professional include:

• A Referrals Module that enables sending and receiving buyer and seller leads to any Help-U-Sell office and tracking the referrals’ progress
• A Listings Module that makes it easy to upload videos, 360˚ virtual tours and documents
• A Sales Module that displays past sales by type and statistics
• A Contact Module that organizes contact information for buyers, sellers and leads

Participants will have an opportunity to ask questions at the end of the call. Interested attendees can register for the demonstrations using the following links:

June 22 at 8 p.m. EDT: https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/194831794
June 23 at 5 p.m. EDT: https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/775181346

Created 30 years ago, the Help-U-Sell ® model was the pioneer for providing an alternative to the dated commission structure, something that had gone uncontested for years in a market overrun by a monopoly of traditional brokerage firms. Help-U-Sell ® forged a revolution in the real estate industry by proactively challenging the commission structure, and has continued to perfect its full-service set-fee model today.

For more information on franchise opportunities with Help-U-Sell ® Real Estate, visit www.helpusellfranchise.com or call (888) 619-7776.

Help-U-Sell ® Real Estate is the world’s first set-fee real estate company, with offices in 36 states, and operations in South Africa, and the Philippines. The company has revolutionized the real estate industry by focusing on information and transparency to consumers. Help-U-Sell ® differs from traditional brokers, not in the level of services provided by its licensed brokers throughout the country, but in the dollar amount that the consumer pays for those services.

Help-U-Sell® Real Estate Announces New Franchise units in California

Sarasota, FL. – Help-U-Sell® Real Estate, the industry’s leading provider of set-fee real estate services, is proud to announce new franchises in Upland, Corona, and Redlands, California. Unlike traditional real estate companies that are struggling in today’s slower market, Help-U-Sell®’s unique business model is designed to allow their local broker/owners to thrive, regardless of the market conditions, while still providing a significant savings to consumers.

“While many of our competitors are downsizing or in a retreat mode because of the current market conditions, we’re launching an aggressive growth campaign,” said Ron McCoy, Franchise Opportunities Director, Help-U-Sell® Real Estate. “While our primary effort will still be the service and support of our local broker family, we can’t deny the response in franchise interest these past many months. This, along with the encouragement and support from our local brokers, has allowed us to again begin the pursuit of adding new members to the Help-U-Sell® Family.”
Tammy Whitehead, owner of the new Corona, CA office said, “Help-U-Sell® gives me a competitive advantage unlike anything else. The website and technology platform drives leads to my door and my set-fee offering is the best deal out there. It’s a win-win for both my clients and my business.”

Created 30 years ago, the Help-U-Sell® model was the pioneer for providing an alternative to the dated percentage based commission structure common in the residential real estate business, something that had gone uncontested for years in a market overrun by a monopoly of traditional brokerage firms. Help-U-Sell® forged a revolution in the real estate industry by proactively challenging the commission structure, and has continued to perfect its full service set-fee model to this day.

Help-U-Sell® Real Estate’s success has been founded on the ideal of providing its franchise offices the products and services needed for them to be as efficient and effective as possible, and seize a growing opportunity in their marketplace, while at the same time providing consumers with an alternative to the traditional commission structure.

In an industry that can be plagued by the false promise of the entrepreneurial myth and guessing what it takes to succeed, Help-U-Sell® has formed a unique, comprehensive and integrated set of business systems for its Network of offices. These business systems have been built by leveraging leading edge products, services, ideas and techniques. By creating this comprehensive system, Help-U-Sell® is taking the “entrepreneurial guess work” out of succeeding. And the result is one of the most dynamic, consumer-centric real estate systems in the world.

For more information on franchise opportunities with Help-U-Sell ® Real Estate, please visit www.helpusellfranchise.com or call (888) 619-7776.

Help-U-Sell® Real Estate is the world’s first set-fee real estate company, with offices in 36 states, and operations in South Africa, and the Philippines. The company has revolutionized the real estate industry by focusing on information and transparency to consumers. Help-U-Sell® differs from traditional brokers, not in the level of services provided by its licensed brokers throughout the country, but in the dollar amount that the consumer pays for those services.