Stone Wood Family Complex

Gustavo Lopez just presented this fabulous stone wood family complex that is on more than one acre at the southwest of Miami in one of the most exclusive neighborhood of the city. (See virtual tour)
The main house has four bedrooms with two and a half bathrooms totally tiled, an extremely comfortable totally equipped kitchen. It also has a Family room and a library/office area.
The guest house has also a big area with its own kitchen-living-dining room area, a large bedroom and one bedroom and one and 1/2 bathroom.

The landscape is fabulously staged and makes the pool look as part of the landscape and not as an inclusion. It also has a nice covered area at the backyard. The backyard is totally enclosed this guarantees the privacy of the home. (See you tube slideshow)

To contact Gustavo call him at (305) 338 3809

For your entire Internet marketing needs at Miami Dade or Broward counties please contact Virtual Florida Tours at (305)331 8960
Visit our webpage at www.virtualforidarealtours.com
Miami Virtual Tours

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Traverse City Social Networking Training

Traverse Area Association of Realtors (TAAR) is very pleased to offer a free Social Networking, Blogging, and SEO 101 seminar. On Wednesday August 19th Jason LaVanture of BlueLaVaMedia virtual tours and creator of the Social Ignition System will be offering up some very valuable tips on how to increase traffic and build powerful back links to your website. The free seminar will be held from 9-10 at the TAAR office and all members are welcome to attend. If you have an interest in these topics it's recommended that you start out by taking BlueLaVaMedia's free online course found here:
www.BlueLaVaMedia.com/socialignition

Go BlueLaVa!

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Power Play on HDR

According to Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia online, High Dynamic Range Photography is:

"In image processing, computer graphics, and photography, high dynamic range imaging (HDRI or just HDR) is a set of techniques that allows a greater dynamic range of luminances between light and dark areas of a scene than normal digital imaging techniques. The intention of HDRI is to accurately represent the wide range of intensity levels found in real scenes ranging from direct sunlight to shadows.

Keeping this in mind, when we use this powerful tool, we also need to remember that 90%+ of home buyers start their search online. The virtual tour's thumbnail needs to represent the best possible photo as possible, after all this is the first shot your viewer's will see of your tour. The color, detail, contrast and brightness of a point-and-shoot photo cannot be compared to the excellent results you get from a HDR photo.

Another fantastic advantage of using HDR photography is this technique can be done without using extra lighting equipment. These images can be produced by using different exposure levels on your camera. No extra equipment to carry and fuss with thus saving time, energy and expense.

So produce spectacular images, but remember reality. Is this a true representation of your subject? Though this process can produce a spectacular image, is this image a true representation of your subject?

Even through this process can produce fantastic luminous pictures, it can be time consuming. Is this the most cost effective way to represent your virtual tour?

Sandra Gibson
Power Play Multi Media Productions
South Central Michigan Virtual Tours
http://www.powerplaymmp.com
Order a Virtual Tour: 517-869-2707

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Help Yourself by Helping Others

A few years back my wife and I bought a log cabin, The Dancing Bear at Brothers Cove Cabin Rentals, in the city of Sevierville (Wears Valley area) in East Tennessee. Our cabin is a great place, but like so many other rental cabin owners, affording a couple of homes these days has become increasingly difficult, so we started looking for ways to ease up our tight money situation.

Brothers Cove has always been a great place to come and relax, and in the past our cabin has rented well, but these days, with the economy as it is, rentals aren't being booked quite as often. Brothers Cove has always been looking for ways to expand their rental marketing, they’ve wanted a new look, some way to show off their facilities and showcase the cabins with virtual tours.

So, I've found a way to market my business and at the same time provide services that will benefit Brothers Cove and the cabin rental owners. I gave them my offer -- a few of my ideas on how best to use my services along with some discounted incentives -- I started the process of shooting all the cabins, about 70 plus of them, it's going to take a little while, but I'm enjoying myself. I enjoy seeing all the different designs of the cabins plus even better; it is a great way to get the KnoxTours.net name out there and better known for Wears Valley virtual tours.

I'm providing help to all the other cabin owners, assisting them in getting their cabins rented more often and even helping to get several of them sold. I saw this as a great chance to help Brothers Cove, cabin owners and help myself in the process. It's a win-win situation for everyone, to me, its just good business to help the people who help you. It’s the process, part of getting myself out there, virtual tours and Knoxtours.net are here and doing business!

Mike O'Neill
Knoxtours.net
Knoxville Virtual Tours
www.knoxtours.net
Order a Virtual Tour at 865-292-3865

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A Cow, 2 Chickens & a Night's Stay for a Tour

I was wondering if any one has bartered a Virtual Tour in exchange for things, services/gift certificates? I recently was asked by my chiropractor, who is selling a family home, if I would do a virtual tour in exchange for Chiropractic care. Being self-employed and having to provide my own health insurance, which does not cover this service, I agreed. I think I got the better end of this deal. In today’s economy with every one trying to cut expenses this seems like a good idea to me.

I recently approached the owner of a local restaurant who is remodeling and planning a great big new opening, and discussed the need for him to have a Virtual Tour on his new website of the brand new interior and exterior of his business. He grumbled about the cost of remodeling and all the new advertising he was doing. So, I suggested a lower price but with some gift certificates to the Restaurant, he was very interested. I have an appointment to shoot the tour as soon as the renovations are complete. I have also considered using this technique with several other new eateries in my area, as well as some of the Golf and Country Clubs and even a few new Health Centers that are opening around the area.

I am wondering if any one else has done this, and if it was successful. I have considered using the gift certificates as incentives to my Clients for pre-purchasing tour packs, or as a thank you for their referrals.


Have a Picture Perfect Day,

Mary Beth Finnerty
Yes! Virtual Tours
Bethlehem Virtual Tours
www.yesvirtualtours.com
Order a Virtual Tour: 610-597-9915

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The Complete Marketing Plan

In this economy of intense competition, it is easy to get stressed out at the thought of learning new techniques to getting real estate listings and virtual tours out in the public eye. But, there is no need to completely abandon traditional marketing strategies. The best advertising and marketing strategy is to diversify your marketing to reach a larger target audience. In order to do this properly, you must use all available means of marketing to draw potential buyers and sellers to one central place; most favorably, your website.

DIVERSIFY: The efforts of the agent or broker can seem like a monumental chore to undertake, but the benefits far outweigh the effort required in the long run. By diversifying your marketing efforts and funneling leads you can ensure that you are not left without steady business. Using a combination of traditional as well as modern advertising and marketing efforts can pay off for the savvy real estate agent.

LOCAL MEDIA: Many agents who use virtual tours also take out ads in the local paper and include the URL to the virtual tour web site. By using traditional media in the local real estate market area, the realtor can drive targeted traffic to the virtual tour web site, which will feature a variety of homes to choose from as well as virtual tours of the properties. Outlets such as news papers, magazines, local trade publications and free discount magazines are excellent methods of advertising the agent's active virtual tour web site to the world. Once visitors arrive at the agent's site, they can choose from various types of homes and locations to view online and view an interactive virtual tour.

MAKE IT EASY TO REACH YOU: Be sure to include SEVERAL means of contact, regardless of advertising medium. After looking at the virtual tour some users might opt to call the realtor directly for a personal showing. So be sure to leave your phone number in an easily accessible and prominent area on your online AND print media advertisement.

DISTRIBUTE FLYERS: Print-out fliers and brochures that advertise your single property website, your business and the online virtual tour. These fliers and signs can be printed and distributed locally.

USE UNIQUE ATTENTION GETTING MARKETING: Using unique marketing tools such as RTV's PanoRider(tm), emailable HitStats(tm), or even just using a professional photographer service for those dramatic night-time shots can help you stand apart from the crowd. Using these marketing tools not only makes your properties stand apart from the rest, but also says incredible things about your marketing strategy to prospective sellers.

TV and RADIO: The local effort to drive traffic to the realtor's site should include any manner of traditional advertising the realtor can afford to incorporate into his or her ongoing advertising and marketing strategy, even radio and television if the prospective URL isn't too difficult to remember.

OPTIMIZE, OPTIMIZE, OPTIMIZE: Once the virtual tour and the supporting web presence have been established and advertised locally, it is important to concentrate on web site marketing and optimization online. Optimizing your website, your blog and even your virtual tours maximizes your overall traffic and potential leads by allowing search engines to properly index your website and listings. RTV offers free SEO, Blogging, Social Networking, Social Back Linking training by way of our Social Ignition Course too all providers of our technology.

SOCIAL NETWORK: Getting the word out about your website and your virtual tours may seem like a daunting task, but if taken step-by-step, will prove to be quite easy. The trick is to get your network set-up and to get yourself into a routine that is easy for you.

Need help setting up your social network? Check out our 12 week workshop as announced in our last RTV Newsletter. Simply log into your TMS and click on the Social Ignition Course to sign up. Free to ALL RTV providers. A Sure-Fire Way to Beat the Economy!

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Extreme Marketing Makeover | New RTV Employees

This month RTV is very pleased to welcome Jill Sill onto the RTV Marketing team. Jill will be in charge of creating our Inner Circle marketing pieces on a monthly basis as well as writing our 'done for you' newsletters. Jill will be using her skills as a prior teacher and her passion for graphic arts to further RTV's mission. After graduating from Hope College, Jill spent 5 years in Homer, Alaska teaching high School to at risk youth and running the Carl E. Wynn Nature Center.

Look forward to exciting new marketing pieces each month...Yes I said EACH MONTH! And best of all your 'done for you' newsletter will now be delivered to you in a timely fashion. Remember, if you would like to have a custom marketing piece made and are an Inner Circle member, simply fill out our suggestion box and we will add your unique marketing piece to our list.

New Marketing LIVE Chat

You have asked and we have listened! RTV has now setup live marketing support for you to access from TMS. For a limited time our live marketing support will be available for both Inner Circle Members and non Inner Circle Members. RTV is happy to have partnered with team Frugal Marketing U to bring you this premium service.

You can now log into your TMS and click on the Live Marketing Support icon (just like the sales support one on our homepage) Click the button to engage in the live chat. You will even be able to contact a live person over the phone depending on your needs. Yes, you certainly heard us correctly! We are actually letting you talk with members of our marketing team this time around. WHOOT WHOOT!!!

Frugal Marketing U is very familiar with the virtual tour business and has over 8 years of expertise in building a virtual tour company producing over 200 virtual tours a month, search engine optimization, email campaigns, blogging, agent and business to business presentations, web site marketing, cold calling, flyer marketing and yes...even belly to belly sales.

No matter what your budget, no matter how much time you have to spend in a day, they will have a solution tailored to your unique situation. A special thanks to all of you out there in RTV land for your continued support and urging us to make some very necessary changes with our marketing program. Without your support and comments to us this unique partnership and changes would have never happened.

New RTV Employees

In June the Tour Track team welcomed Brandi Neumann. Brandi has been a great asset to our team so far and we are so excited to have her!

Brandi graduated from Hope College in Holland, Mi. After that she moved to Chicago where she spent 4 years working in the restaurant business. After having her daughter, Ella, she stayed home full time to enjoy motherhood. During this time, she developed and created her small business, My Hip Chick, selling hair accessories for young girls. She now maintains her website, and will be working full-time for RTV as Jacque's right-hand assistant with Tour Track. She is thrilled to be honing her skills as a photo editor, and keeping Tour Track orders processed and delivered on time.

Good Luck Out There!
RTV, INC
http://www.realtourvision.com
Virtual Tour Software

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Social Ignition System Now Live

Are you ready to completely dominate the search engines? Would you like to be the #1 ranking virtual tour company or real estate site in your market? If you answered yes to either of those questions then you are ready for the all NEW RTV SOCIAL IGNITION SYSTEM! We have been very busy testing this system out over the past twelve weeks with BlueLaVaMedia and we are now officially ready to release it to any Full Service or In House provider of RTV technology!

Over the last year while Jim Blue has been in and out of several hundred homes here in Northern Michigan, I have been busy working on something truly unique, that is so powerful, and yet incredibly easy to learn. In fact, every time I show someone what I am about to show you they always wonder why they have not been doing it all along.

I must admit that I used to plug my ears anytime someone mentioned Digg, Delicious, Furl, Facebook, Technorati, Backflip, or Twitter to me. But that was before I realized the sheer potential for literally ANYONE...in ANY business...anywhere in the World to maximize their online exposure. So yes, this does mean YOU!

Like you, I used to hear these new buzz phrases and ignore them.

I used to see little symbols like popping up all over the web and, yes, I simply looked the other way. Do you remember when email was the same way? Back when you could still run your business without a website? Times are quickly changing and once again you need to do the same.

Don't worry because once you learn a few of the basics this will be just as easy for you to do as it is to send an email. I promise! If you would like to find out how you can start to leverage the power of social networking and bookmarking I highly encourage you log into your virtual tour manager RIGHT NOW and sign up per the instructions of our July Newsletter. The course is a 12 week course that you will be able to take from the comfort of your home via the web.

The only thing that our program will require of you is a bit of your time and willingness to make some small changes in the way your conduct business online.

Are you ready for Social Ignition?

Sign up now by logging into your virtual tour management system and find the instructions in our latest E-Newsletter! Once you sign up for our free social networking, blogging, SEO, and back link building course you will receive one email every week for the next 12 weeks. This FREE course is open to all RTV dealers!

Why pay for training like this when RTV gives it to your for FREE

If you're an Inner Circle member you can log into our marketing center and download ALL 12 weeks right away and won't have to wait for them. Why would you want all 12 weeks at once? Because you can do just what Jim and Jason over at BlueLaVaMedia did and that's build an opt in email list incredibly fast! Simply let your current prospects and customers know that you now offer a free course that will teach them how to better use social media sites, build up back links to their site, and teach them the basics of blogging. This is working so well that the Traverse Area Association of Realtors has even asked team BlueLaVa to speak in August to a group of agents on the basics of the course.

Not using aweber yet? Well sign up now at http://www.aweber.com and you can drop our ready to go course in and setup a form on your site! This is a tested and very easy weekly course jam packed with SEO tips, social networking tips, and blogging tips. What a great way to be more than just a virtual tour provider or just an average real estate professional in your local market.

Either way know this: You will NEVER have to pay for this material because we have it all right here for you for FREE! To sign up now join the RTV network or if you are an existing provider of our technology simply login and read our latest newsletter for detailed instructions.

Watch this video below and see Social Ignition first hand:



Thanks and good luck out there!
RTV Marketing
http://www.realtourvision.com
Property Marketing That Works!

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Goodbye to Google Rank

The days of Googling your keywords to measure the effectiveness of your SEO strategy are coming to an end. According to Bruce Clay of PubCon, there are big changes in ranking. In the name of Top Shelp Organic SEO, Google is tuning into the specific behaviors of individual users to serve up more customized results.

What this means to the end-user is better results and less spam.

What does this mean to SEO professionals?

Well, for the good ones it means more business. For those that have been concentrating on ranking without any reference to traffic, bounce rates and conversions it means a serious reality check.

At the end of the day, this is a change for the better. More individualized search results means higher conversion rates for companies that have a well built website. This does not mean that SEO is no longer important; it actually makes it more important! Tracking your marketing efforts will definitely require more diligence.

Q: What should you do?

A: Nothing that you should not have already been doing.

The most important part of a website is the ends result; attracting more leads and increasing business. To get there you have to attract website visitors, keep them interested in your website long enough to stay past the first page and finally get them to convert. By convert, I mean to get them to perform a specific action like sign up for a newsletter or request additional information. Conversions vary by website. A conversion for you may be a request for information about one of your listings while a conversion for amazon.com could be the sale of a bestselling novel.

I, for one, think this is a great lead by Google. It forces website owners and SEO professionals to take a closer look of what traffic is actually DOING when it gets to your website. It puts the emphasis on website content, navigation and functionality.

Sending people to your website and getting XXXXX visitors is one thing, conversion rates are a completely different (and more important) aspect. I mean, you can send all the traffic (paid or otherwise) in the world to a dilapidated home, but if they never get out of the car and go inside... it's not going to sell.

It's time to get your website to do what it's supposed to: SELL!

Go Google!

RTV Marketing
http://www.realtourvision.com/image

RTV offers full service national virtual tours

866-947-8687 Order a virtual tour today!

_____

My comments:

First off, I would like to say that this is a blog that my marketing department for http://www.realtourvision.com released at the end of last year. If you watch Bruce’s entire video he states that we will see these changes begin to take hold in the first six months of 2009 so this was a perfect time to push this out there again. This is indeed old news but it is happening right now I can assure you that. For the last ten years I have been actively working side by side with my SEO team to make sure both RTV and our national network of virtual tour photographers websites rank well.

To see this change firsthand, you can run a test on your own. It is quite simple to perform. For the next week google your business or real estate website using what I call you “Geo Key-Words” such as ‘Traverse City Real Estate’ or ‘Traverse City Virtual Tours’. If you continually run this search, and click on your site (not necessarily on the PPC ads you might be running) you will see that your results begin to change after a few days or so.

Your site will begin rising to the top of the SERPS. Is your site ranking better? The answer is yes and no. Yes, your site will be ranking better on YOUR computer and yours alone. You will quickly see that a clearing of your private data, cookies and temp files instantly returns your search to your actual google positioning. I try to clear out my temp files at least every day so I can run clean searches and view actual results. You should make habit of doing this too if you take an interest in your sites true google positioning.

At the end of the day, the people who don’t clear out their private data often, will certainly have unnatural search results. What can you do? Do what you have been doing all along and run a light PPC ad campaign, build strong back links to your site (this brings the spiders and the google juice), make sure that the architecture of your site is laid out properly, optimize EACH page of your site for a new keyword, and drive traffic and people to your site by blogging. Finally you should run tools on your site for fine tuning such as http://www.websitegrader.com.

Blog often on sites that give back link power. Active rain no loger does this unless you purchase a rain maker account. Take advantage of using social bookmarking sites. Big site linking to smaller site is good. Install the google toolbar if you don't already have it.

Google juice is now split by both traffic and spiders so you want BOTH coming to your site. The key with traffic is to get them to stay on your site and that is where the term bounce rate comes in. Your bounce rate increases when people come to your site and are not satisfied by their search results so the simply hit the back button. That is a bounce.

If you’re not already running google analytics on your site DO THIS NOW! This will show you your bounce rate and you can start working on it from there. The lower the number the better. My local RTV dealership for the Traverse City Market has a 50% bounce rate which I am pretty happy with. It does not sound good that 50% of my visitors are leaving but a lot of that comes from the thousands of back links that I have established out there. See what your bounce rate is and try to lower it by using some of Bruce’s subtle suggestions.

For example, at http://www.bluelavamedia.com we push nearly all of our virtual tour listings onto craigslist. I also include a small ad on this craigslist posting that goes to a special page on my site. This page educates the home shopper on the value of using online property marketing tools that work such as interactive virtual tours, single property websites, top notch photography and so on. You can’t get to this page unless you come in directly from one of these craigslist ads that I have posted. Here is a link to one of my pages off of craigslist:

http://www.bluelavamedia.com/traverse-virtual-tours.html

You can see that I have video on this page. I use the video to keep people on the page longer and get them to dive into my site more thus reducing bounce rate. Make sense? Finally, YES, content is still king but also you must make sure that the content is relevant to your website. Do you need to have videos all over your site? I don’t think, so but it does not hurt to have a few here and there. Video testimonials are great and so are power point presentations. You can turn all of your power points into video very easily using Tech Smith’s software found here:

http://www.camtasia.com

Finally, at RTV we offer free photography, blogging, social networking, and social bookmarking training courses for both real estate professionals and full service virtual tour providers who use our virtual tour system. Check it out and we would love to talk to you more about your property marketing program. Thanks everyone!

Jason LaVanture

Vice President / Founder

RTV, INC

http://www.realtourvision.com

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Pimp My Tour | SOLD

While Jim and I are swamped here at work this summer, we still take some time out once in awhile to think of really cool things that we can do to PIMP our virtual tours. The latest really cool thing is to continually make the best use of the agent virtual tour gallery and showcase SOLD properties as well as current listings. Over the last two years Jim and I have not been deleting virtual tours unless specifically requested by our customers. This happens every once in awhile, but for the most part all of our customers LOVE…yes LOVE showcasing SOLD properties in their virtual tour gallery.

Let’s also not forget that RTV virtual tours outrank any other virtual tour on the market due in part to our new SpiderLink™ technology. Simply put, the more tours that we have out there ranking organically in the SERPS the better that is for BlueLaVaMedia and the agent that sold the property.

To further highlight sold properties in the virtual tour galleries, Jim and I are making use of the “AFFILIATE” feature that is built into RTV virtual tours. The affiliate field allows you to select many advertisers to display on your virtual tour, only in this case we will be using a SOLD button. Like so:

If you would like to use this on your RTV tours simply save the above image to your hard drive and upload as an affiliate. It's really that simple! Judy Levin a Traverse City real estate agent uses our virtual tour gallery on her home page here: http://www.JudyLevin.com and here is a sample tour with our new SOLD Affiliate in place:

http://rtvpix.com/RE-5279-E7HUY5-01

Don't forget that when you save a virtual tour it will automatically push that tour to the TOP of the virtual tour gallery. This happens because as pricing and tour changes occur it will be important for those virtual tours to bounce back to the top of the list.

Have fun pimping your tours!

Team BlueLaVaMedia
Traverse City Virtual Tours
http://www.BlueLaVaMedia.com
Order a virtual tour - 877-941-TOUR (8687)

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Hot Springs Village TRUE Virtual Tours

Challenging Designs Inc, a Hot Springs Village Virtual Tour Company is up for ANY Challenge!

Residential and Commercial Real Estate - a virtual tour is not just a slide show and it is not just a few panoramas thrown together. At Challenging Designs Inc., we go beyond the mundane and offer true virtual tours which include multiple panorama views as well as still photos, flyers, descriptions, links, information and a way to contact the Realtor to request additional information. Additional options available are also CDI Living Photos(TM), personalized website, personalized highlight sheet master, virtual tours can be added to a business card CD's and much more. Challenging Designs also offers graphic design and web design as well to show off your property.

Business and Commercial - virtual tours are a great way for the public to see your business from their home. JD Powers has found that over 80% of consumers begin their search on the internet. Showing your facilities off makes a longer "memory" and increases your chances that they will chose to visit your business over someone who just has a phone number and address. It can create a personal connection before they even visit.

Insurance Documentation Services - Our "Vital Records Album(TM)" is great to have around in case of theft or disaster in your home or business. We take individual photographs of your valuables, then a virtual tour of the room where they are housed. We can assist you or do it all and take a written inventory log as we go. Then all the photos and the scanned inventory list is put on a CD or DVD, and you get the original disk as well as the written inventory list. We can also scan other important documents to be added to the disc. We recommend you store these in a fireproof box, or in your safe deposit box. Call us when you update your art collection, or want to update your "Vital Records Album.

Challenging Designs Inc. is your Hot Springs Village full-service design firm, from Virtual Tours, Photography, Graphic Design and Web Design. We take your Challenge and Manage It!
Designs for any Challenge!

Donna Haagenson
Challenging Designs Inc.
Hot Springs Village Virtual Tours
www.ChallengingDesigns.com

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Calgary Virtual Tours on RTV

Dear Barry,

What is your take on RTV and the current virtual tour market?

Sincerely,

Jim



Dear Jim,

There is definitely a need for RTV services. I held a photo seminar at a real estate company last week to show REALTORS that listings presented on MLS have bad photos and, in my city of Calgary, Alberta, there are few multi-media presentations and lots of terrible photos. (I would bet it's the same where you live).

We went live on the Internet to find some examples at random and went through a few with some suggestions on how to improve them. I'm not worried that REALTORS will learn something about photography, but they will regard me as a "expert". Of course, I told them about my company and RTV and got three bookings from the seminar.

I can't stress enough that you have to get your face in front of REALTORS with emphasis on service. To be right up front, Jim, when REALTORS take a beating in the market, you will too, especially if you don't have an alternative plan. RTV has that alternative with Choice Hotels and their national photography service tour track system, so when the market is down in real estate, you can be doing something else, like motels, hotels, resorts, restaurants, etc. I have done six senior citizen homes this spring at rates about five times a real estate listing.

Is the virtual tour business a good business? Absolutely. I have direct contact with Jason LaVanture, the vice-president and founder of RTV for counseling and advice. So would you. The management and new marketing department at RTV is very accessible.

As far as money is concerned, there is no limit. As I mentioned above, seniors home provided five times the revenue of a real estate listing and with baby boomers reaching 65 in a couple of years, the demographics are creating lots of competition in that market.

I can't say enough about RTV, their assistance, virtual tour product, webinars, dealer network and more.

My advice to you: Go for it!

All the best,
Barry Blick
SPINNERMAX, INC. Real Estate Photography
Tel: (403) 850-0801 Fax: (403) 398-1428
Calgary Virtual Tours

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Big Changes in Tallahassee

Tally Tours, a full service RTV dealer and provider of Tallahassee Virtual Tours, has made some major improvements and upgrades over the past month. We have a brand new office located at 308 McDaniel St, a new photographer Amy, and a new office assistant David. Our main phone number will remain the same, 850-491-3909 and will ring directly to David to set up appointments, answer questions, and provide support.

Before we continue with our great news, we want to take this opportunity to thank our loyal customers that had appointments during this transition period and stuck with us as we upgraded.

Until recently, Tally Tours has been a "one man show." A single person did the photography and office work. Keeping up with the workload had become increasingly difficult if not impossible at times for a single person. Our photographer can now focus on what she does best, taking great photos, while our office assistant David will do all of the computer work, scheduling and customer support.

Our valuable customers will soon begin to see major improvements all across the board. We have retrained and retooled to have a more efficient work flow that will provide even better quality end products than ever before!

New Service Packages
When we were operating as a "one man show", a lot of time and effort went into a great product at as low of a cost as possible. With the new employees and office space, we needed to create new packages and prices that keep the business going at this level without sacrificing quality and customer service.

After surveying some of our customers, Tally Tours has come up with four new pricing levels for our residential virtual tour customers (previously there were only three). We’ve also created new marketing services to help our customers beyond just the virtual tour at a new lower cost. We are sure that the majority of our customers will agree with the survey group that the business upgrades warrant these much needed price points.

We would love to hear everyone's input and comments! Good luck out there!

Myles Lasco

Tally Tours Inc
Tallahassee Virtual Tours
www.TallyTours.com
Order a Virtual Tour (850) 491-3909

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Virtual Tour Marketing Tips

Need a New Place To Market Your Virtual Tour Business?

Jobvana is The Social Marketplace! Are you trying to grow your virtual tour business or just starting your virtual tour business? Check out Jobvana to market your passions! Increase your exposure, build credibility, and leverage our web presence, all FREE!

Jobvana is a network that utilizes user provided content. Their mission is to increase your value by creating a market for the skills you have, enjoy and want to share.

View our profile here: Real Vision Studio, a Detroit Virtual Tour Company in Southeast Michigan, and a full service virtual tour provider for RTV.

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Slow Market Yeilds BOOM For VT Business

Is this slow down in the Real Estate Market a Plus for Virtual Tour Providers?

I was worried when the Real Estate Market took some hits this year, what with everyone worried about what the economy would do. My fears seem to have been unfounded. I am busier than ever, (when it isn’t raining in Eastern Pennsylvania). My customers are referring me more and more, as other agents are asking them what they are doing to sell there listings. I find that not only are agents looking for Virtual Tours on the “High End” properties, but even on duplexes, and Condos, and other properties that we may not have expected to see VT of. This just goes to show that every home should and will benefit from a virtual tour and online distribution.

I have received virtual tour orders for from agents that when I approached them initially, they said they didn’t believe Tours really helped sell homes. Well I am here to tell you that Yes! Virtual Tours (shameless plug) do help sell homes. I have lost count of the number of times I have been told that someone saw a Virtual Tour of a listing on line, and called to see the home and put an offer on it. Recently an agent called to order a tour and told me that a house I had just done a tour on had sold on the first showing; the buyers saw the listing on line and looked at the tour and the rest is, as they say, History.

This same agent when I did the first tour for him a year or so ago, had clients from out of State who saw the tour on line and said that would be the first home they looked at when they came to town, and yep, you guessed it they bought that house.

So, don’t let people tell you they don’t believe in the internet or Virtual Tours as an aid in selling their listings. More and more agents are telling me their sellers are asking for Virtual Tours.
So as the Market gets more competitive, remember that Virtual Tours are a great enhancement to Realtors’ Marketing tools.


Have a Picture Perfect Day,

Mary Beth Finnerty
Allentown Virtual Tours
Yes! Virtual Tours
www.yesvirtualtours.com
Order a Virtual Tour : 610-597-9915

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Virtual Tour Company Phone Tips

Need to call a new virtual tour customer and explain your property marketing services or products? Get a virtual tour lead from RTV and are you ready to make first contact? Here at Real Vision Studio a Detroit Virtual Tour Company in SouthEast Michigan, a full service virtual tour provider for RTV, we get and make numerous business/sales calls a day. Phone skills are critical for the success of our business, any business for that matter.

The telephone is the most important point of contact with your prospects and customers. Improving your phone skills with these tips can make a big difference in the level of your success and how quickly your business grows.

The telephone can be one of the most valuable as well as inexpensive resources available to you. These practical tips will help you with becoming more productive and profitable, whether you are making the call or your customer is calling you!

~Prepare yourself by getting mentally set for the task ahead and by having a purpose and an agenda ready.

~Follow your script, but be flexible. Don't sound like you are reading.

~Create index cards (or cgeat sheets) with specific points that keep you on point. If it's more natural for you to just strike up a conversation, then just do it!

~Keep it brief, and get to the point right away. Make sure you are clear concerning your reason for making the call.

~Be friendly but try not to get off topic.

~Be a good listener. That way you will be able to help your customer with making the right decision, hopefully about using your services or products.

~Avoid the hype. Show enthusiasm, but make sure it is sincere.

~Smile! Keep a smile on your face, your attitude can show through the phone.

~Understanding how your business works will help you feel more confident when talking to customers over the phone.

~Don't get on the phone if you are in a bad mood.

~If someone is not interested, then don't keep calling them. This will only make you look desperate, not to mention waste your time.

~Be aware of two things as you speak, what you say and how you say it. The sound and tone of your voice is just as important as what you are saying.

~Alway's leave a message! Let your potential customers hear your voice and know that you are available.

~When leaving a message don't speak too fast. Slow down so your message is not hard to understand.

~Say your name clearly. If it's not common spell it, just make sure the caller understands your name.

~Slowly leave your phone number. Assume that the listener is writing it down, so make it easy! Repeat the number at the beginning and end of your message, if possible.

~Most importantly, if you don't get an answer, leave the reason for your call. Why would they call you back if they don't know what you want?

~People can be very impatient, so it is important to answer your phone by the third ring or make sure your voice mail is set to pick up by the third ring.

~Your answering machine greeting should make a good first impression. Be short and to the point and don't drag it out. Leave clear instructions and what information they should leave. Such as their name, phone number and the best time to call them back.

~Check your messages often. A customer may be waiting on information to make a decision, and by taking to long returning their call they may choose someone else.

~Return all phone calls! This could be the most important thing that you do to build your business. Set a goal to return all calls within 2 hours.

~Avoid using a speaker phone. It will make the caller think that the call is not private and that you are not concentrating fully on them.

~Put together a list of answers to frequently asked questions (Virtual Tour Prices List, Tour Features, etc.) and post it by your phone.

~Decide what you will say if someone answers the phone other then the person you are calling. Should you leave a message with them or call back later?

~Don't type or shuffle paper while you are talking, it can be distracting to the other party.

~If you must put the phone down for any reason, do so gently so you don't startle your caller.

~Never chew food or anything else while talking on the phone.

~Cover your mouth and the receiver, if you have to cough or sneeze.

~Always speak directly into the receiver.

~Don't hang up if you dial the wrong number, just explain yourself and verify the number to avoid repeating the call.

~Avoid any background noise such as TV, radio and computer beeps and clicks.

~Listen to how people talk and not just to what they are saying. You can learn how to connect with a person over the phone by reading "between the lines".

~Be prepared. Have a list of calls that you need to make including the name, phone number and any other information that you may need.

~When you first begin using the phone rehearse in your mind what you are going to say. Once you do it enough, it will come naturally.

~Know what your schedule is before making any calls. That way you can set up any follow up appointments if necessary.

~Do not procrastinate. Get you calls done first thing in the morning. Putting them off may mean losing business.

~Make sure you are not hungry, cold or need to go to the bathroom before making any of your calls.

~Record whether you left a message, if you need to make a return call, who you talked to and what was said.

~Leave an email address as an alternative communication option. Many people will use email to get back to you rather than the telephone.

~Always enunciate clearly keeping the volume of your voice moderate. Speak slowly and clearly.

~Speak properly while sounding professional. Avoid using slang or jargon.

~Think before you speak! Offending potential customers will not encourage them to use your service or product.

~Never say "I don't know", instead say, "Let me find the answer for you". This is a great way to set up a return call.

~Don't do all the talking. Give the person on the other end of the line an opportunity to answer you, to ask questions, or to make comments. Never interrupt your customer.

~Remember the Number One Rule Of Selling Anything: Ask for the order. The reason most often given by people for not buying is, "No one asked me to."

~Have fun! Remember that some will and some won't, just keep at it!

Good phone etiquette is good for your virtual tour business. It can set you apart from your competition and it can actually get you the results you want much faster. Many customers are calling on an impulse. They have developed a sudden need and want that need filled. You have a great opportunity to bring additional revenue to your business. People buy where they feel comfortable and appreciated. Give them that feeling when they call. It's just common courtesy.

Good luck out there!
Mike and Joy Thompson
Detroit Virtual Tours

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New TrueBlue Technology by BlueLaVaMedia

As most of you already know Jim and I are always working very hard to bring you better and better technology and improve your online image among your customers.

Our new TrueBlue imaging does just that. In fact it goes well beyond just having a home photographed and displayed online. Our new TrueBlue technology entices and plays directly to the imagination, sweeping online shoppers off their mouse pads while they are temporarily mesmerized by the sheer beauty and elegance of the colorful scenery.

We have literally hit a home run with this new release of technology and for now there will be no additional charge for the added service. Jim is busy perfecting the art for both inside and outside shots and we anticipate no additional fees for the service until sometime in 2010. In the meantime we are going to sit back and watch the compliments keep pouring in over the images. To see an online sample of the technology visit the link below.

See our TrueBlue Video on YouTube and give us your feedback!

Good luck out there everyone.

Jason LaVanture
Traverse Virtual Tours
http://www.BlueLaVaMedia.com
Order a Virtual Tour: 877-941-8687

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Get Yourself Connected

Online social networking use among adults has more than quadrupled in the past four years according to a December 2008 survey from Pew Internet & American Life Project.

This is a huge jump in the amount of people taking advantage of these kind of sites. Approximately 35% of American adults use social networking. While this number is heavily skewed toward younger adults, the popularity of these kinds of sites cannot be ignored.

Social networking is an excellent way to get new business contacts as well as keep in touch with current clients. Social networking is a great opportunity for a business person to have a virtual 'calling card' available all the time to prospective clients.

A well planned Facebook page or Twitter account can help 'sell' you to the client and convince them to use you for their real estate needs. Since these accounts are free to use, though they do cost time to maintain, using social networking to advertise yourself can be very cost effective.

If you have not already I highly recommend that you sign up for our FREE online social networking, blogging, and search engine optimization course. Our course will help you setup what we feel are the most important sites, set up your profiles, build back links to your site and learn how to blog. Whether you decide to go it on your own or take our online course you should always be sure to include a nice photo of yourself. Make sure you use a current one, and add in your website and other contact information.

These social networking pages are like mini-advertisements for your business so always be professional and maintain yourself in a good light. This is a great way to show off your expertise in your field through blogs and posts about real estate, buying a new home, or even the general market conditions.

Prospective home buyers or sellers may see your profile through a "friend of a friend's" profile and if you have impressed them with your knowledge and business savvy then you've got them interested in YOU with very little effort.

Thanks for your support!

Jason LaVanture and Jim Blue
BlueLaVa Tours
http://www.BlueLaVaMedia.com
Order property marketing Tools Today!
231-877-941-TOUR (8687)

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Home Selling Strategies

What do buyers look for, or look out for when purchasing Traverse City real estate and the five county surrounding areas? This article is designed to help sellers evaluate the important aspects of selling a home and what potential buyers want.

The way you live in your house is not the way to sell your house. So, what makes a house a home for sale on the market, and one that soon has a “SOLD” sign out on the front lawn? And what aspects are important to look at because potential buyers will ask the question, “How much work are we going to need to do prior to moving in and beyond?” The appearance and cleanliness of the home are significant.

Always have your home in show ready condition. It is critical to be prepared so you have the least amount of stress when you get the call that an agent wants to show your home. Sellers need to know that today, buyers have high expectations. An updated home in excellent condition is critical to getting your home sold in the least amount of time and for top dollar. Buyers love updated kitchen and baths, new lighting fixtures and it is amazing how new paint and carpet can transform a home.

Here are some things a buyer will look for when dealing with the purchase of a home. The buyer will consider the following:

• Exactly what personal property is included in the sale? Lighting fixtures, drapes or blinds, refrigerators, and washers and dryers.

• Is the neighborhood quiet, friendly? Are the homes well kept?

• Are there any development plans that will affect the property?

• The inspection report - are there any substantial problems with the house?

• Real estate taxes - what are the current property taxes, and what impact will your purchase have on the taxes?

Another issue that raises concern regarding buyer appeal is that sellers often mistakenly think that viewing empty properties will give the buyers an accurate sense of the space available. On the contrary, sometimes it is more difficult to judge the size of a room without furniture and other objects as reference points. An empty room even allows buyers to focus on negative details instead of getting a sense of the overall space and the flow of each room to the next. Buyers need to ask themselves the question, “Can I see myself in this home?” Therefore, staging really helps buyers envision themselves in the space.

The idea of “staging” a home to make it look alluring to buyers has become popular during the last decade, as manifested by the proliferation of numerous home staging companies offering advice about how to make the house more attractive to buyers. Check out next’s month’s article about “Staging a Home.”

Finally, once your home is in perfect "SHOW" condition be sure to have your home professionally photographed with an interactive 360 virtual tour. Virtual tours that can be converted into video and distributed across many outlets will put more eyes on your home than ever before when it is in it's best light.

When selling your home Julia Lilley and Linda Zajac will work with you to put your home is the best showing condition possible. Our goal is to create the Wow factor so that buyers can envision themselves in the home and want to put your Traverse City home or property under contract.

Julia Lilley Real Estate

Century 21 Northland | Traverse City Real Estate

Website - www.TraverseCityHomeGuide.com

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What is a Virtual Tour?

Many virtual tour companies lately have been advertising a “PowerPoint” like slideshow as a virtual tour. The “Virtual Tour” tag line is powerful and many companies with inferior solutions are trying to cash in on it. We at www.frencksolutions.com and others belonging to the RTV network of dealers use proprietary software and hardware to produce real virtual tours – a 360-degree panoramic moving picture of a room or location.

We are able to provide not only the high-resolution photos that the others supply; but we also deliver high quality moving panoramic spins that will be sure to impress your customers. We are all looking for the one thing that will seal the deal. There is nothing more impressive than a Realtor being able to “walk” their clients through a home in the manner in which it truly exists. Bonus benefits include not having to drive all over town to look at homes because of the inferior slideshow quality. Homebuyers can decide to look or not look at a home based on true to life images.

Wayne Frenck
Tampa Virtual Tours
www.frencksolutions.com

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The FORMULA | Create a Virtual Tour Feed - Hot Sheet

Join us on TUESDAY July 7th, 2009 at 7pm EST. Jason LaVanture will reveal just how easy it is to create a virtual tour feed or Hot Sheet for all of your newly posted virtual tours. Once setup, the feed is 100% automated and is sent out to all of your prospects and current customers for viewing. YOU CAN DO THIS TOO!! See you there on the FORMULA.

Find out how easy it is to apply ‘The Formula’ to your business!

PS. Please notice that we have moved all of our shows to Tuesdays.
Title: The FORMULA - Creating a Virtual Tour Feed | Hot Sheet
Date: Tuesday, July 7, 2009
Time: 7:00 AM - 8:00 AM EDT
Space is limited so reserve your Webinar Seat by logging into your TMS!

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More Virtual Tour Customers With Email Marketing

Tips For Writing More Effective Emails For Your Virtual Tour Company

Most business people receive dozens, even hundreds, of emails each and every day. As email has become the primary means of communication in the business world, it’s very important to create messages that effectively communicate your point while presenting a professional image.

Have you ever needed to email someone - a stranger, a business associate, asking them for a favor? How can you compose an email such that they will be read and responded to? How do we effectively email someone who gets a lot of email?

Here are some helpful tips for writing emails:

~Keep it Clear & Concise. To write with clarity it is essential to keep the message no longer than necessary. Keep it concise, including only the most important details, and be sure to get straight to the point. If an in-depth discussion is needed, schedule a phone call rather than trading drawn out emails. It’s more efficient. Also, try to stick to just one point. If you want to cover several topics, write different emails with the title showing the correct topic. This also makes archiving emails easier.

~Use proper spelling and grammar. Poorly spelled or grammatically incorrect emails make you appear unprofessional and reduce the effectiveness of your message. Always double-check your emails before sending them, and make use of spelling and grammar-check tools. Remember the quality of your English will also have a subconscious impact on how you are perceived by others.

~Think (and read) before you write. In our swiftness to respond to all our emails in a timely fashion, many of us neglect to fully read the mail we’re answering and consequently overlook vital bits of information. Most people will have had the experience of sending or responding to an email, which soon after, they regret writing. So before you send a message or respond to one, make sure you’ve completely read and understood the original email or the text you are writing; if not, ask for a clarification to avoid further confusion.

~Be polite. Email is a convenient way to communicate, but convenience shouldn’t be an excuse for overlooking manners. Remember that an email can easily be misinterpreted because it is a very limited form of communication; usually when we speak we have the advantage of using facial expressions. When communicating with clients or superiors, it’s important not to ignore fundamental courtesies. Address the recipient with a salutation like “Hello” or “Dear”, and be sure to include a closing like “Regards”. Always use “Please” and “Thank you”!

~Use subject lines effectively. Your subject line should be a concise summary of the content of your email. The recipient should directly know what the email contains or what the request is.

~Keep it Simple and Short. Simplicity is the essence of a good email. Try and convey the point using the smallest amount of words and sentences. Don’t be afraid to use bullet points or numbers to better organize your thoughts.

~Set Time Aside for Writing Emails. Just because we have a few minutes to spare doesn’t mean we should check our email again and again. The trouble with that is if we try to respond to emails when we have a lack of time, our replies will be rushed and perhaps inappropriate. It is better to set aside time during the day when we can write the best response without any unnecessary time pressure.

Mike & Joy Thompson
Detroit Virtual Tours
http://www.realvisionstudio.com

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