An Open Letter to the Houston Association of Realtors
If this home inspector may beg a moment of your indifference to leave you with a thought to ponder, I would be most appreciative (he says with a smile). Looking at how internet users have been interacting with the real estate community on the web for the past few months in greater detail, and seeing that your site has been improving while receiving due recognition, I believe that I can make a helpful suggestion to take the association to a next step.
This missive has been inspired by a circumstance of last week. I was going to do an inspection of a home, and the Realtor representing a buyer was one whom I had worked with some months earlier. Being on the internet already, I googled his name to find his phone number, instead of digging through my rollodex. I found that his profile on your site was his main web presence, and I believe it could have been much better. Here are my thoughts:
A detailed, unique profile- sites like LinkedIn, ActiveRain, or Konnects among others allow users to create a personal profile which better serves the member. To have Realtors and other RE professionals create an original profile may enhance the web presence of many members who have no other site.
Add a social networking aspect to the site- this is a growing trend on the web, and HAR could help spread its message quickly and effectively to professionals and consumers through this medium. It will help develop a stronger community between the various professionals too.
Allow articles to be posted on your site and through e-mails like the Five Minute Realtor- my example here would be from the Houston West Chamber of Commerce. We can write one article per month, which is made available to the public through the web, and to members via e-mail. This is a great marketing and networking tool, which would be easy for HAR to accomplish.
Tying in offline and online networking- again from the chamber, having a business over lunch each month, where topics discussed could be about creating a valid working internet presence, which members could take back to improve their profiles and article submissions.
Well, that is my humble, basic outline, which I hope that you will consider. Considering that this is just a blog post, I will not belabor the points, but I think that these additions to the site could create a better real estate community here.
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