The Future of Real Estate Marketing blog is a very special place for me. When I was getting my feet wet in this industry, FOREM was one of my go-to daily reads. The content that Joel Burslem created was no where to be found in 2006, 2007, and 2008 – back when people were saying, “Facebook – what is that?” When I came on board with Inman News in November of 2009 and was asked by Brad Inman, founder and publisher of Inman News to take over managing editing duties and become the primary writer for FOREM, I was honored, excited, and a little nervous.

I knew I had big shoes to fill, and had several conversations with Joel about why FOREM had the success and audience it did. A big part of it was the content – offering a fresh eye, talking about what was new and exciting and also looking at other industries to see the parallels to the real estate technology space. The other part of FOREM’s success was Joel’s personality. Anyone who knows Joel knows that he is a great guy – down to earth, super smart, and one of the nicest people you’ll meet.

So for the first couple of months, I tried to be like Joel and what I quickly realized, and any blogger reading this can relate, is that I needed to find my own voice. It wasn’t soon after January 2010 that I really found my rhythm. I started writing about things that I knew real estate agents wanted to know more about and things I was passionate about. I talked a lot about Facebook and Twitter – do’s and don’ts, getting started, and taking it to the next level. We also talked a lot about mobile technology – especially with the iPhone and the iPad. It’s hard to remember a time before those two devices!

In the fall of 2010, I started to bring in some fantastic guest bloggers to talk about technologies they were working on or to offer another point of view. Over the course of 2010 and now 2011, our readership grew and grew. I’m very proud to say that we increased our RSS readership ten-fold – literally growing from a couple thousand RSS subscribers to now almost 12K and quadrupling our number of page views. We also won the coveted “Best Blog Award” from NAREE (National Association of Real Estate Editors) this year – taking home the second place award – competing with blogs like the New York Times and Wall Street Journal real estate blogs. I say all this not to pat myself on the back, but to really give credit to you – our readers. It is our readers and our devoted audience who have helped form and grow FOREM; and through your feedback, comments and sharing – have made FOREM what it is today.

So what is next?

I think there is a huge opportunity to take FOREM to the next level and offer a larger variety of content, have more contributors, and reach a broader audience. I am excited to announce the official launch on Monday 7/11/11 of Inman Next, produced by Inman News. Inman Next will be a place for real estate agents to learn about the latest tips and tools in social media, mobile, tech & gadgets and events. FOREM will play a big part in Inman Next.

You will be able to find all of the content from FOREM on Inman Next – it will all be marked “Future of Real Estate Marketing.” Going forward, you will continue to see longer form posts and more in-depth articles marked as “Future of Real Estate Marketing” articles on Inman Next. I am collaborating with Chris Smith, co-founder of Tech Savvy Agent and now Chief Evangelist with Inman News to launch this exciting new channel. In addition to Chris and I, we have a fantastic list of contributors who will be submitting posts regularly to Inman Next.

Special invite

We will be launching Inman Next this Monday, July 11th at 11 am (PST)/2 pm (EDT) and I would love for you to be a part of our special launch event. Please go to Inman Launch and enter your email to receive a special invite to our launch event this Monday, July 11th.

Thank you for all of your continued support and contribution to FOREM. Please join me on Monday the 11th as we usher in one of the most exciting things to debut for real estate agents in a long time. I’ll see you there!

Katie Lance, Social Media Director, Inman News, @katielance

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Please join us for a FREE Webinar this Thursday, hosted by Chris Smith!

Topic: “Make More Money with Mobile”

Sponsored by: DocuSign

Date: Thursday, June 30th

Time: 10:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. (PDT)

Mobile technology is changing the face of real estate. It has changed the way real estate professionals communicate and how they market themselves. A whole new generation is being brought up with the entire Web in the palm of their hand.

Inman Chief Evangelist Chris Smith, one of the leaders in real estate mobile technology, will show you the top 15 mobile apps that will help you make more money, improve your productivity and your consumer experience. Chris will detail some of the hottest and most effective apps that real estate agents can begin using everyday to generate more leads and help them work smarter and faster.

Don’t miss out on this free webinar! See you there!

Register now >>

Katie Lance, Social Media Director, Inman News, @katielance

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Note: I’ve asked several people to share their thoughts and experiences about what Real Estate Connect has meant to them with our FOREM readers. Look for these special “Connect Stories” here on FOREM leading up to Real Estate Connect San Francisco, July 27-29, 2011. Our seventh Connect guest post is from our friend Krisstina Wise, Principal, The GoodLife Team (@krisstinawise on Twitter). Thank you Krisstina! – Katie

@InmanConnect #ICSF

If I could only choose one real estate conference to attend, it would be Inman Connect.

Why?

Well, if you haven’t noticed, the marketplace as we’ve known it has shifted. And, that means the real estate industry, too, is changing. The future does not look like the past as far as our careers are concerned — which means we must prepare for a different future.

Connect is the ONLY conference I know that brings the future to the present
As agents and brokers, there are countless conferences and educational events we can attend. Yet, out of all of them, Connect is the ONLY conference I know of that looks into the future and then brings it back to our industry so that we can prepare for the future of real estate NOW!  Since it’s imperative to our future success to know of the imminent changes quickly approaching our industry and careers,  I can’t imagine another conference that is as important to attend than Connect.

The GoodLife Team’s secret is: Inman Connect
The GoodLife Team is known to be technologically advanced for the industry and is also recognized as being an early-adopter and innovator. People ask how we continue to do this? Here is our secret … we attend Connect!

Inman Connect offers us a glimpse into the future by bringing together the most advanced and brightest thought leaders from around the globe that bring first to the industry the emerging tools, technologies, and trends that are on the horizon. The entire conference is oriented around what the future of the marketplace looks like, what changes are coming and what we, as real estate agents and brokers, need to know in terms of technologies, tools and people in order to prepare ourselves and our businesses for the future of real estate. At The GoodLife Team, we take full advantage of this opportunity to foresee what’s forthcoming and then put the competitive knowledge into practice by innovating, adopting and/or reinventing our operations in order to be on the cutting-edge of real estate brokerage.

Connect is Unconventional, Untraditional and Unstereotypical
It goes without saying that Connect is uncommon, untraditional and unstereotypical. Those characteristics are a given for any conference delivering the future to us now. But, what really makes Connect unique, and my favorite conference, is the people!

I love Connect because it attracts and brings together the most innovative, passionate and knowledgeable thought leaders and actors in real estate! From the great keynote speakers from companies like Google and The New York Times, to each and every session speaker and panelist — you will meet and learn from the true leaders of change. Combine these people with the  entrepreneurs you’ll meet at Start-up Alley and you have the BEST line up you will find at any conference. You will meet the most inspiring, passionate and knowledgeable innovators, entrepreneurs and practitioners who, no doubt, become new friends and colleagues.

The New Reality of Realty
So, sign up for Connect today and I look forward to seeing you there. Please drop by my session on the 28th at 9:25 where we will be discussing the new Realities of Realty.

Do you have a Connect Story you’d like to share? Did coming to Connect profoundly change you, your outlook, your team or your business? All of the above? If so, I want to hear from you and possibly feature you here on FOREM. Leave me a comment below or email me katie (at) inman (dot) com.

Join the Connect conversation on Facebook and Twitter (#ICSF)

Katie Lance, Social Media Director, Inman News, @katielance

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Note: I’ve asked several people to share their thoughts and experiences about what Real Estate Connect has meant to them with our FOREM readers. Look for these special “Connect Stories” here on FOREM leading up to Real Estate Connect San Francisco, July 27-29, 2011. Our sixth Connect guest post is from our friend Chris Nichols, 2011 President, Utah County Association of REALTORS® (@utahREpro on Twitter). Thank you Chris! – Katie

@InmanConnect #ICSF

In my life prior to real estate I was in sporting goods retail. It was always drilled into our head the 3 P’s of Marketing – Product, Price, and Promotion. If you had a good product, priced well, and promoted properly, you’d have success! Well, Inman News has found success with their own 3 P’s for Inman Connect San Francisco – PROGRAM, PEOPLE, and PLACE!

PROGRAM

I attend many real estate conferences throughout the year, and I can say without a doubt that Inman Connect is the one that I look forward to most. It’s due in large part to the phenomenal program that they put together year in and year out. This year is no exception as they have lined up an incredible group of speakers. Some of the highlights this year for me will be: Brian Solis, author of “Engage!”; David Pogue, personal technology columnist at the New York Times and Ryan Holmes, CEO of HootSuite.

But it doesn’t just end there with the headliners! Inman has lined up an amazing supporting cast of breakout session facilitators. Trust me when I tell you that you will struggle to decide which sessions to attend! This is where it’s good to have some friends to divide and conquer and then share notes… or you could also keep on eye on the live Twitter stream (#ICSF) to catch anything you might have missed!

PEOPLE

While a great program is just one ingredient for a successful conference, the attendees are quite possibly even more important! Inman Connect has a proven track record of attract the highest quality people to attend their conference. This will be three days you will never forget, as you rub shoulders with some of the greatest people in the real estate industry. Friendships will be forged, ideas will be shared, and opportunities will abound to network and truly CONNECT like you never have before.

Already on Twitter with the #ICSF hashtag – conversations are happening, plans being laid, and new friendship are being created! I already have a list of amazing people I am looking forward to meeting and interacting with, whom I have never met before. If you don’t leave Inman Connect with a new group of friends from all over the country, you are missing out!

PLACE

San Francisco! Do I really need to say more? One of my favorite cities, and not just because I was born there! Opportunities abound as you meet with your new CONNECTions in the various restaurants, cafes, and historical sites that surround this wonderful venue that Inman calls home. So grab a new friend, hop on a trolley and go experience something new.

One more “P” for the road – PREMIUM!

In closing I have to share one more great thing with you about Inman Connect. As I mentioned earlier, I attend A LOT of conferences! As I leave each conference, I find I am lucky to have a handful of good ideas to implement in my business. At Inman Connect I find I am overwhelmed with great ideas!

Be sure to get a premium membership to Inman News as part of your premium registration. You’ll find it easier to keep track and implement all of those great ideas when you get home as it includes video archives of Inman Connect sessions! Plus it’s a year’s worth of incredible content that will remind you why Inman Connect San Francisco was one of the best investments you ever made in your business!

I look forward to seeing you at Inman Connect!

(Here is a video Chris filmed about Real Estate Connect)

Do you have a Connect Story you’d like to share? Did coming to Connect profoundly change you, your outlook, your team or your business? All of the above? If so, I want to hear from you and possibly feature you here on FOREM. Leave me a comment below or email me katie (at) inman (dot) com.

Join the Connect conversation on Facebook and Twitter (#ICSF)

Katie Lance, Social Media Director, Inman News, @katielance

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Please join us for a FREE Webinar!

Sponsored by: Market Leader

Topic: Leverage Your Reputation as an Online Asset

Date: Thursday, June 16th

Time: 10:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. (PDT)

Any real estate brokerage that operates on the Internet is creating a reputation. Everything from the design of your website, to the way you interact on social media, to client reviews and testimonials, comes together to form your online reputation. In this webinar, you’ll learn strategies and techniques that will enable you to leverage the power of your online reputation as a positive asset that will help you drive sales and grow your business.

This webinar is ideal for brokers, owners, and team leaders!

Register today >>

Katie Lance, Social Media Director, Inman News, @katielance

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Note: I’ve asked several people to share their thoughts and experiences about what Real Estate Connect has meant to them with our FOREM readers. Look for these special “Connect Stories” here on FOREM leading up to Real Estate Connect San Francisco, July 27-29, 2011. Our fifth Connect guest post is from our friend Jay Thompson, the Broker and Co-Owner of Thompson’s Realty in Phoenix (@phxREguy on Twitter). Thank you Jay! – Katie

@InmanConnect #ICSF

I’ve attended a half-dozen or so Real Estate Connect events, in both New York City and San Francisco. It’s been an honor to speak at a few of these events, but that isn’t why I attend.

Connecting is the Key

I am admittedly somewhat of a conference junkie. Having attended the National Association of Realtors Annual and Midyear Conferences several times, RE Tech South (a *killer* conference), many local, regional and state conferences, RE Bar Camps, and more, I keep coming back to Real Estate Connect.

Why?

The connections and networking opportunities are amazing. In attendance you will find agents, brokers, Association executives, MLS executives, real estate startup companies, developers and everything from the worker bees to the CEO’s of some of biggest companies inside, and outside, the real estate space.

How valuable is it to meet, speak with and be able to call VP’s, COO’s, CFO’s and CEO’s of companies like Roost, Trulia, Zillow, Move, and Realogy your friend? That’s a difficult ROI to calculate, but believe me, it is significant. How about connecting with visionaries outside of the real estate space like Social Media Megastar and best-selling author Gary Vaynerchuck, Craig Newmark (the Craig in Craig’s List), exec’s from little know sites like Google and minor media players such as the New York Times?

That’s cool stuff. And if you take the time to meet these people, to make a connection with them (and they are all very willing to spend time with the little guys like us), you are just about guaranteed to walk away with all sorts of nuggets of wisdom spinning around your head.

If nothing else, one cannot help but get a swift jolt of energy and motivation to come back home and start kicking butt.

Oh, there are sessions too

You’ll wish you could be three places at once. Picking and choosing which session to attend is not an easy thing to do. The nice thing is you can’t go wrong with whatever session you wind up in. Connect provides a ridiculous variety of speakers and topics.

An aside

San Francisco is one of my favorite cities on the planet. I get to leave the 900 degree heat of Phoenix in July and spend a couple of days in a remarkably diverse city with all sorts of attractions. Connect is held right smack in the middle of downtown San Francisco at a time of year where the weather is perfect.  It’s hard to tear yourself away from the event, but take some time to explore San Francisco, you won’t regret it.

I hope to connect with you at Real Estate Connect!

(Here is a video Jay filmed about Real Estate Connect)

Do you have a Connect Story you’d like to share? Did coming to Connect profoundly change you, your outlook, your team or your business? All of the above? If so, I want to hear from you and possibly feature you here on FOREM. Leave me a comment below or email me katie (at) inman (dot) com.

Join the Connect conversation on Facebook and Twitter (#ICSF)

Katie Lance, Social Media Director, Inman News, @katielance

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Note: I’ve asked several people to share their thoughts and experiences about what Real Estate Connect has meant to them with our FOREM readers. Look for these special “Connect Stories” here on FOREM leading up to Real Estate Connect San Francisco, July 27-29, 2011. Our fourth Connect guest post is from our friend Brian Boero, the Co-Founder and Partner of 1000Watt Consulting (@1000wattbrian on Twitter). Thank you Brian! – Katie

@InmanConnect #ICSF

Real Estate Connect in San Francisco is the highlight of my professional year.

I get more networking value out of these three days then the 362 that follow. And I come home with a dozen ideas I’m excited to act on.

That may sound over the top. But it’s been a matter of fact for me for years.

I go to a lot of real estate events. Some are for brokers, some are for agents, some are for MLS folks. Many of them are valuable.

But Connect remains unique because everyone’s there.

The tech people. Brokers. Agents. Brand executives. MLS leaders. Entrepreneurs with designs on disrupting our big, complicated industry.

They are together, at Connect, mixing it up.

It makes for great conversations – in the sessions and in the halls – and knocks people out of their comfort zones. That’s a good thing in my book.

I am severely and proudly biased here. I started working at Inman two months before the first Real Estate Connect event in July of 1997 and left in 2005 after producing a bunch of them. This event is in my veins.

But trust me – I’m putting my time and money where my mouth is. I’ll be San Francisco this July, learning, meeting, re-connecting and squeezing every last moment out of this very special event.

I hope to see you there.

(Here is a video from Brian at Real Estate Connect sharing more of his thoughts about Connect)

Do you have a Connect Story you’d like to share? Did coming to Connect profoundly change you, your outlook, your team or your business? All of the above? If so, I want to hear from you and possibly feature you here on FOREM. Leave me a comment below or email me katie (at) inman (dot) com.

Join the Connect conversation on Facebook and Twitter (#ICSF)

Katie Lance, Social Media Director, Inman News, @katielance

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In the last few months I have done quite a bit of traveling with Inman News for our Agent Reboot “roadshow.” Every hotel has its perks, but the hotel we stayed at yesterday, The Westin Bayshore really impressed me with their social media savvy. It started a few weeks ago. I was tweeting for the event and I noticed that The Westin Bayshore was tweeting and promoting our event! They posted welcome messages and tweets about how excited they were that we were coming. I was blown away! At all of the hotels and convention centers we have been to for Inman events – this has never happened – not once!

If that wasn’t enough – when I checked into my room, there was a surprise waiting for me!

On my dresser in my room were three shortbread cookies – one with the Facebook logo, one with the Twitter logo and one with a QR code!

I was so excited to see the hotel engaging its guests in social media! I quickly scanned the QR code with my iPhone app and received a custom message to me personally welcoming me to the hotel and wishing me luck as a speaker at Agent Reboot.

I was impressed.

Not only that – but all the speakers were buzzing about it. Nicole Nicolay who has over 14,000 followers on Twitter mentioned from the stage (as emcee) how impressed she was with The Westin Bayshore. Then Stacey Harmon who has over 4,900 followers commented and re-tweeted it. Then Chris Smith, our new Chief Evangelist with 8,700 followers tweeted it out. Numbers aren’t everything – but in just minutes nearly 30,000 people on Twitter heard about what The Westin Bayshore was doing!

So what’s the lesson here? Honestly – it doesn’t take a lot to use social media in a fun and creative way. Because of this simple gesture – The Westin Bayshore had a dozen of the top people in real estate technology talking about their hotel and how great they were.

That’s why I know that social media is one of the best forms of word-of-mouth advertising. Imagine what The Westin Bayshore would have had to paid to get that type of buzz at one event?

So what’s the lesson for real estate professionals? Don’t miss the boat with Facebook and Twitter. It’s not enough to just throw a page up and post something here or there. Be committed to building your sphere online as much as you have in the past face to face.  Be creative with social media! How about handing out Facebook cookies at your next open house to promote your page? How about making it a point to comment on 5 of your friends/fans posts every day? How about tweeting your local chamber or downtown association to build a relationship with them?

The possibilities are endless – and the opportunities are there because so few people are really doing this.

The real estate industry is ripe for this type of out-of-the-box thinking!

Thank you Westin Bayshore for a great experience, fantastic room, welcoming staff and for the awesome social media welcome.

I’m impressed.

Written by: Katie Lance, Social Media Director, Inman News, @katielance

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Note: I’ve asked several people to share their thoughts and experiences about what Real Estate Connect has meant to them with our FOREM readers. Look for these special “Connect Stories” here on FOREM leading up to Real Estate Connect San Francisco, July 27-29, 2011. Our third Connect guest post is from our friend Michael McClure, the President & CEO of Professional One Franchising, LLC (@ProfessionalOne on Twitter). Thank you Michael! – Katie

@InmanConnect #ICSF

What do LL Cool J and I have in common? We’re going back to Cali.

I DO think so!

Last July, I had the privilege of being asked to speak at Inman Real Estate Connect San Francisco (ICSF). It was my first experience at a national conference, and I had an amazing time.

I forged crucial relationships those few days by the Bay, and made key connections that benefit me greatly today. As I love to say it, everything good happening in my business right now is Social Media-based, and “ground zero” for it all was ICSF last year.

And the good people at Inman News were kind enough to invite back to speak again at this year’s conference.

But here’s the thing: I would be going back to Cali – specifically, to Real Estate Connect San Francisco – no matter what.

I had such a great time last year, there’s simply no way that I would miss it this year. Or next year. Or the year after that. Or the year after that. Okay, I’m sure you’re getting my point, right?

Oh, and before I forget, let me add this: I never had any interest in attending industry events before I went to ICSF last year. Now? I attend every one I can. I went to a number of Agent Reboots last year, and I also attended Real Estate Connect New York this past January.

So, why am I so bullish on ICSF? More importantly, why do I consider ICSF
the “can’t miss” event of the year?

Here are my top five reasons why you need to be at ICSF this year:

• Connecting: OK, this is obvious, given the name – “Real Estate Connect” – but it is still worth noting. For the people who live and move in the space that is of most interest to me – the swirling vortex of the “real estate/tech/Social Media” mashup – ICSF is the place to connect with the people who are moving the needle in that space. Chris Smith. Nicole Nicolay. Matthew Shadbolt. The 1000Watt crew. Reggie Nicolay. The list goes on.

• Learning: With seemingly EVERYTHING being turned on its head these days in real estate, and with technology morphing and changing and iterating at such an incredible pace, we simply must stay as current as possible to stay competitive. ICSF is THE PLACE to learn from the brightest minds in the game, the very people who are creating and leveraging all these changes. I participated in a broker breakout session led by Marc Davison, and what I learned in just that one session – about lead generation at the broker level and how top brokerages were handling that process – was truly invaluable to me.

• Visiting: San Francisco is simply magical. If you’ve never been, you must come and see it for yourself. And if you have been, then you already know how amazing that city is. The combination of dining, sight-seeing, shopping and people watching, combined with the overall vibe and ambience, make this a city like no other. It’s an enchanted place, for sure.

• Socializing: What’s really cool about these events is how they transition from serious learning to serious socializing so seamlessly. As much as I learn at these conferences, it’s the potential for meeting people and getting to know them on a personal level that really makes them special. The highlight of ICSF for me last year was the evening spent at an eclectic bar called Swig. It was a true happening.

• Energizing: The combination of the aforementioned factors – connecting, learning, visiting and socializing – all adds up to this last point, which is that you simply cannot attend ICSF and not come away jazzed, stoked, geeked and all jacked up on Inman Dew. For me, last year’s ICSF was where I confirmed that I was on the right track in terms of tech and Social Media, and that alone was worth ten times the price of admission. Seeing what I saw and learning what I learned has fueled me all these months since.

I would implore you to check out ICSF. And,if you attend, I certainly hope to meet you personally. Let’s Connect!

(Here is a video Mike filmed about Real Estate Connect)

Do you have a Connect Story you’d like to share? Did coming to Connect profoundly change you, your outlook, your team or your business? All of the above? If so, I want to hear from you and possibly feature you here on FOREM. Leave me a comment below or email me katie (at) inman (dot) com.

Join the Connect conversation on Facebook and Twitter (#ICSF)

Katie Lance, Social Media Director, Inman News, @katielance

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Please join us for a FREE Webinar next Thursday

Topic: Achieving a Paperless Process for your Real Estate Brokerage

Sponsored by: DocuSign

Thursday, May 26th
10:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. (PDT)

We have been promised paperless transactions for years. That possibility is now a reality. In this webinar, you’ll learn how to take your office from past to future using tools and applications that make the paperless transaction a reality. Whether you want only parts of your transactions to be electronic, or you want to be as green as green can be, we’ll show you how. We’ll cover everything from contract signing to document storage so that you’ll have all the knowledge you need.

This webinar is ideal for both agents and brokers. See you there!

Register today!

Written by: Katie Lance, Social Media Director, Inman News, @katielance

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