A screen shot from David Fleming’s blog
By Connie Adair
Blogs have been around for years, and they’re not going anywhere.
They are the future, says sales rep David Fleming of Bosley Real Estate, who started his blog, https://www.torontorealtyblog.com, in 2007. “Every single (agent) should have a blog as a way to deal with the general public,” Fleming says. “Consumers are all on the Internet. Clients come to us based on their research. Times are gone when an unrepresented buyer goes into an open house and you can snag them. That’s not the way it works.”
How do you get started? There are no rules for blogs, Fleming says. “Every blog is different. My blog is controversial and opinionated. Some are happy and full of sunshine. It doesn’t matter. Put yourself out there.”
Topics do not have to be limited to real estate. Blogs can be about family, friends, politics, economics or whatever is on your mind, he says. “People want to know the person as a person first, not a sales machine.”
Fleming blogs Monday to Friday, putting his creative writing background to work and harnessing his passion to keep the stories flowing. “Some blogs take two hours to write, some are data and statistics I have collected over the week. Some are rants that take 20 minutes (to write),” he says. Although his blogs are about 1,500 words long, he says less prolific writers shouldn’t be scared off. “Even if you do four sentences, do it. Instead of one long blog, do shorter blogs four times a week. (Blog) often and regularly.”
Some agents hire writers to blog for them, or simply repost links from newspapers stories. Keep the site current rather than have a stagnant website with out-of-date links.
And just because you don’t enjoy it, doesn’t mean you shouldn’t do it. “I don’t like cold calling or open houses but I still do them. Everything in real estate is work. Even if you just post a photo, it’s okay,” Fleming says. “Blogging is a way to differentiate when and how you work.”
Feedback to his blog has been good. Back in 2007, some agents saw the blog and thought it was “neat”. Now, because of his honesty, they say, “Wow. I wish I had the guts to say that,” says Fleming, who enjoys telling it like it is.
“No industry is good all the time. If it’s too positive all the time, it’s not interesting.”
He once had 40 negative comments to a blog, but he says controversy drives people to the site.
Fleming’s site also includes a video bio. “People want to know who you are. It’s a better way to show them,” he says.
Video bios should be professionally done. His was taped on his condo terrace for a personal touch.
“Many people think they’re too old, that an old dog can’t learn new tricks. But that’s not true. Older agents have more interesting things to say,” he says.
Blogs work for buyers in any price point, says Fleming. A recent buyer, who was in the market for a $3.5-million home, contacted him from his blog.
Last year, 30 per cent of Fleming’s business was from family, friends and referrals. A whopping 70 per cent came from his blog. For Fleming, blogs really are the future.
