Rich Rogala, Digital Strategist, Business Development Coach, Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage  With approximately 90 percent of all potential clients starting their home search online, according to 2011 National Association of Realtors Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers, many real

A content sharing service that allows members to “pin” images, videos and other objects to a virtual pin board, the social media site Pinterest is more than the latest hot fad. According to recent web analysis, it was one

By Megan Oster “You do not want your video to look like the Blair Witch Project.” Stephen Schweickart, CEO of VScreen, is referring to one of the seemingly minor mistakes some real estate agents make when filming videos of

By Peter Ricci Google may be one of the more valuable tech companies in the world, but it is hardly one to rest on its laurels. Every week, it seems, the Mountain View, Calif.-based company is launching a new

By Peter Ricci Finding a good virtual assistant can be harder than it initially looks. After all, how can you be confident that a remote employee, someone you may never officially meet, will complete many of your organizational tasks

So you have finally decided that you need some help with your real estate business, but one question remains – do you need an in-office assistant or a virtual assistant? Here are some situations to consider when making the

These can’t manage your social media platforms, but if you’re looking for someone to manage your agenda and help you find files online, try one of these virtual

Sure, you might need an assistant, but an assistant doesn’t come to you trained and ready, knowing what tasks to do for you off the bat. If you don’t have much spare time to begin with, do you have

By Stephanie Sims In a country where bigger has been better for so many years, finally, recognition is being given to the little guys. The American Institute of Architects (AIA) Chicago started its first Small Projects Awards last year,

By Cynthia Gregory In partnerships between homebuilders and agents, trust is essential. This may be why a growing number of Chicago-area builders and developers offer unique Realtor programs that encourage agent participation as well as offer incentives for their

By Cynthia Gregory Most buyers believe that negotiating the lowest possible purchase price is the way to go in this market, but in fact, focusing on cost alone can end up draining hundreds of dollars every month from an

By Peter Ricci A few years into the new millennium, when the housing market was performing swimmingly and terms such as “subprime credit crisis” and “credit default swap” were found more in economic journals than evening newscasts, Christine Ingraham

By Russ Bergeron Questions agents have pertaining to education and training have answers that often go hand-in-hand with their budget. While virtually all agents agree that education is vital to staying successful in the industry, some worthwhile classes and

By Joe Bean If you’re one of the 15,000 salespeople and brokers who has completed your state-mandated real estate license transition, good job – you have not procrastinated about something particularly important to your

By Stephanie Sims Are real estate courses and training seminars really preparing agents for what they will actually experience in the “real world” of the industry? An ongoing murmur in the real estate community has been that real estate