09 Mar The Easiest Way for ANY Realtor to get started with Blogging | Posterous.com

Every Tuesday, here at the American Trust Escrow blog, we post Technology Tips designed to help you, the REALTOR®, grow your business, keep up to date on the latest technologies, and move you forward into the new era of real estate.

I love Posterous. It’s my new favorite must-have application for the modern Realtor. If you are a Realtor, and you want to have a personalized, real time web presence for your real estate business, but don’t know how to get started, Posterous is your solution. Before I get into why, let me introduce what Posterous is.

Posterous describes itself as “The dead simple place to post anything.” By creating a Posterous account, you instantly create a web presence for yourself that lets you post anything to it – photos, articles, videos, MP3’s, files (such as word documents, pdf’s, etc). There is no easier way to create a blog for yourself and your real estate business (if you’d like some background as to why this might be valuable for your real estate business, check out my earlier posts on social media, web 2.0, and social networking for real estate). And posting is EASY, making Posterous the most attractive blogging option to the novice user, while still being an outstanding and powerful resource for the techiest of agents.

Why do I love Posterous so?

First: It’s easy. It’s simple. (You can do this. Really. You Can.)

If you can email, you can use Posterous. In its simplest form, all you have to do is email whatever you want to post to post@posterous.com, and it is done. Doesn’t get much easier than that.

Simply tell Posterous what your email account is, and it will know that when you send an email to them, the content is to appear on your Posterous blog. And, if you have multiple email accounts (for example, a brokerage account, a personal account, a gmail account, etc.) you can tell Posterous all your email addresses and it will post to your site no matter which email account you send from.

In addition, there are multiple ways to update your Posterous site from both your PDA cell phone and from your computer. This makes Posterous easy to use whether you are in the office checking out the MLS, or out in the field working an open house or showing property. Here are the options for how to update your Posterous Page:

1. From your PDA cell phone:

• Email whatever you want to post to Posterous and it will automatically post to your site.
• Text in your post via SMS (maximum post size is 110 characters…even a busy Realtor can manage that!)
• PicPosterous: If you have an iPhone, you can download the free PicPosterous application which further simplifies the process of posting photos to your site, and organizes the pictures on the site into photo-galleries allowing the user to preview multiple thumbnail images and select the one they want to view larger (see an example on my site here).

2. From your computer:

• At your Posterous.com website: Simply create a new post and type in what you want to say.
• From your email: Email whatever you want (including file attachments) to Posterous and it will post to your site.
• Use the Posterous Bookmarklet: This is a Posterous application that will let you grab photos, video, audio and text right out of the web pages you’re looking at, comment, and post it to your posterous blog.

Second: Posterous looks good.

Social media is really a brand building opportunity for Realtors. And, part of that opportunity is the visual design of how you are represented online. Posterous has a simple, elegant, and clean design that is professional and will display you and your content in an attractive manner that is good for your business image.

Third: It’s Free.

There is no charge to use Posterous. By creating a Posterous account, you create a free website for yourself. And everyone like free, right?! Over time, Posterous will be adding premium features, but they state in their FAQ “…there will always be a useful free version you can use.”

Fourth: It’s branded to you.

When you sign up for a Posterous account, you will select a vanity URL that can be branded to you. So, for example, my Posterous URL is: staceyharmon.posterous.com. Assuming it’s available, you can have YourName.posterous.com or PalmDesertProperties.posterous.com or WhateverYouCallYourBusiness.posterous.com.

Fifth: Posterous integrates with other social media sites.

One of the most powerful features of Posterous is the ability to auto-post to ALL of the social media sites that are most relevant to Realtors, all at the same time. This includes:

• Facebook
• Twitter
• Flickr
• WordPress
• Blogger

So, for example, if I take a photo of a listing that I am holding open and want to send that to Posterous with a note that says “I’m holding open 123 Main Street from 12-4 today…come on by and say hello!”, I can choose to have that photo and message sent (with one email) to Posterous, and concurrently to Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, and my WordPress blog. This is powerful and efficient stuff!

How to Use Posterous For Your Real Estate Business:

Posterous is the best way for Realtors to get started in social media and in blogging. The possibilities for using Posterous for your business are only limited by your creativity. The goal is to give people a glimpse inside your life as a working Realtor, in real-time. Here are a few ideas to get you started. At the minimum, your Posterous site is an outstanding place to post photos…of your neighborhood, of your listings, of your life as you experience it (why not post photos of your office, or of your team as they are out showing listings?). Position yourself as a trusted real estate advisor by sharing with people relevant information related to real estate in your market. Post market reports for your farm (simply scan what you get a hard copy of at your sales meeting and email it to Posterous, or post a PDF of one that is emailed to you).

Check out my Posterous account here (which I use primarily as a photo blog site) and then sign up for your own. Give it a try. And let me know what creative ways you come up with to build your real estate business with Posterous. I want to hear your great ideas!

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