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You’re a good estate agent. You work for a decent agency. Built a rep for yourself. Bank a respectable commission cheque each month.

You’ve even got a decent presence on social media. Found yourself a catchy account handle.

You look good on camera. You post; a lot. You get a few hits. A handful of likes. Usually from friends or colleagues.

But you’re not crushing it. Not really getting traction with the people you want traction from.

So what’s holding you back?…

CONTENT!

We’ve all had writer’s block. When it’s on the tip of our tongue but we don’t know how to articulate it. Or worse. When our mind goes blank, suddenly having no clue about the kind of content our potential clients might find interesting.

So we’ve made things easy for you.

Here are 6 of the most trending real estate agent blog ideas, that’ll guarantee to deliver high-quality content to your readers and blow up your online following.

#1 Mind Your Business

Do you know what effect inflation’s going to have on home prices? What will an increase in tax rates do to demand?

Be relevant instead. Educate yourself, in order to educate your clients. It’s all about adding value.

#2 What’s On

Get miles of traction discussing local events. Keep your blog updated with What’s On in your local community. From charity golf tournaments to festivals, to new development or off plan property launches, your readers would love to know the goings-on in their locality. 

#3 What’s Hot and What’s Not

Do you know a great place to hang out with friends and have a yummy burger? Or, perhaps the best coffee shop? You also might know the go-to happy hour spot. Your audience will not only love the list of cool places to check out but also appreciate your insights.

#4 Pet-Lover’s Paradise

It is often difficult for pet parents to find the best places to take their furry friends. Whether it is a pet groomer or a pet-friendly restaurant you talk about, this is a great topic to engage with your pet-loving readers. So, grab a list of places that let felines, canines, and any other nines, in and add those recommendations to your blog. 

#5 Kid-Friendly Zone

Residents usually love exclusive information about places that are great for kids. Be it a perfect pizza joint or a school with all the amenities, giving parents the themed information is an excellent way of marketing your website. The content is likely to be shared on social media platforms as well. 

#6 Get Personal

Who said real estate agent website content couldn’t be personal? You can share your story of how you grew into an agent. Why should people trust you? How did your journey in the real estate arena get started? What have you learned in your years as a real estate agent, an entrepreneur, and an investor? 

A real estate blog is one of the most effective ways of creating an online relationship with your clients, building credibility with informative content, and generating potential new leads. The more useful the content, the more people will return, engage and share your content.

So if you’re looking for inspiration that’ll take your next (or first) post up a few notches, this is your starting point.

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For informative news and views on the world of real estate, proptech and AI, follow overwrite on Instagram and LinkedIn, and keep up-to-date with our weekly NewsBites blog.

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About overwrite.ai

If you’ve searched for a property to buy or rent online in the MENA region, chances are you’ve read adverts created by overwrite.ai.

overwrite is a real estate themed generative AI. 

It is a pioneering proprietary Foundation Language Model that allows real estate industry agencies and technologies to create marketing content, instantly and efficiently. 

We create the marketing content that powers the real estate industries of the UAE, KSA, Egypt and Lebanon. 

As Uber is publicly mocked for inaccurate local references, it’s clear that “local real estate content, needs local real estate knowledge.” – Ayman Alashkar, Founder and CEO overwrite.ai

In terms of oblivious advertising, Uber’s latest San Francisco campaign may have bested the time the Giants released those “SAN FRAN” tees or when Gwyneth Paltrow called it the “Golden City.” 

According to a Reddit post shared last Wednesday, titled “Uber has put up ads at SFO that were written by someone who’s never set foot in San Francisco,” the ride-hailing company has debuted a set of new ads at SFO that feel like they were written by ChatGPT. 

“See you in Marina District,” the first proclaims. 

The dropping of the definite article here is just bizarre — and not even the worst thing about the ad.

Could it be, as one commenter speculated, that a hasty stock image search for “Marina” dropped the “a” and returned photos of Marin? 

It’s hard to imagine any Uber employee who knows San Francisco saw the photo of the iconic houseboats across the Golden Gate Bridge and greenlighted the ad. It’s also hard to imagine why, of all the wonderful neighborhoods our city has to offer, anyone would choose the Marina, but that’s a different issue. 

The next ad is marginally less egregious. Another romantic photo is shown, this time of a place actually in San Francisco — the little lamp-lit wooden dock at Pier 7. 

“See you at Embarcadero,” the ad proudly states. Uber has again neglected the “the” here. Also, good luck trying to get an Uber to the end of the pedestrian-only fishing dock. 

The final ad, promoting a ride to the Mission, is also somehow worded in a way that would make you squirm if you ever heard it out loud: “See you at the Mission.” 

Unless you’re meeting pals at the historic Misión San Francisco de Asís adobe building on Dolores Street, the phrasing is begging for an “in” over an “at.”

Reddit comments

Reddit posters were quick to note the uncanny incongruities in the ads. 

“See you at the mission made me break out in hives,” one commented. 

“This is like when someone says ‘The Bart,’” wrote another. 

Another summed it up well: “Nothing seems human about those ads.”

Being displayed at the airport, the ads are likely targeted at tourists over local residents. But Uber is headquartered in San Francisco, so it seems unlikely a city resident wouldn’t have reviewed the campaign before sending it to print.

Or maybe Uber got exactly what it wanted from the campaign. “This ad did its job,” one Redditor pointed out. “By purposely being bad so that it gets everyone talking.”

Uber told SFGATE on Thursday that the campaign has since been canceled.

“We’re glad people are paying attention to our ads!” a spokesperson wrote over email. “And while we’re happy we didn’t refer to our home city as ‘Frisco,’ we agree these ads, which are in the process of being removed, could have been better.” 

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This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of overwrite.ai and its owners.

Andrew Chamings writes for SFG.

This story has been published from an article in SFG published on 9th February 2023.

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For informative news and views on the world of real estate, proptech and AI, follow overwrite on Instagram and LinkedIn, and keep up-to-date with our weekly NewsBites blog.

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overwrite | Real Estate Themed Generative AI

There’s been a tidal wave of new estate agents joining the industry looking for a slice of the pie, and to be the next top million-dollar agent.

But these new kids on the block are often without any real estate experience. And learning the ropes can be a minefield. 

However, you’ll be surprised at just how many simple “tips and tricks” will have you saving time, avoiding tyre-kickers, or knowing when to spot a deal breaker.

Getting a grip, early on, of real estate principles, finance and law will undoubtedly create a solid foundation for success. Investing time in learning the practical aspects of being a “real life” estate agent, can mean the difference between success and failure. 

We’re bringing you the top 5 best-selling books for aspiring real estate agents, all of which provide an insider’s perspective on becoming a successful real estate agent, and help them hone their skills.

#1 The Miracle Morning for Real Estate Agents

There’s something to be said about starting every day on the right foot and Hal Elrod is all about this. The Miracle Morning for Real Estate Agents will talk you through the exact morning routines of the industry’s top players. Certain habits may seem trivial, but carried out consistency over time will reap rewards.

#2 The Millionaire Real Estate Agent

Gary Keller’s The Millionaire Real Estate Agent is about taking your real estate career to the next level. But it’s an important read early in your real estate career because it forces you to see the big picture and think long-term.

This book will give you a millionaire agent mindset. First you’ll learn how to think like a millionaire. Then you’ll learn how to become one through real estate sales.

#3 The Book of Yes

No one likes to cold call. But if you’ve ever had to make these, you’ll probably know that it helps to have a script in mind. Author and multi-million dollar real estate agent, Kevin Ward swears by the belief that real estate sales is largely about scripts. He’s spent his career perfecting them. 

The Book of YES: The Ultimate Real Estate Agent Conversation Guide will teach you exactly what to say in order to nail that ice-cold sales call.

#4 The Honest Real Estate Agent

Mario Jannatpour’s The Honest Real Estate Agent is a perfect introduction to the real estate industry. From topics like networking, negotiations, time management, basic marketing and professional integrity, this title covers a lot of ground in attempting to explain what the real estate profession is all about. 

The Honest Real Estate Agent explains what’s required to be successful in the industry. And you can use that information to confirm that real estate is the right career move for you.

#5 The Million Dollar Listing Social Media

Many of today’s new agents are surprised at just how much business is done online via social media. Whilst you needn’t be a “social media expert” it is fast becoming part of the job description for real estate agents. Buyers and sellers are online. So you need an online presence that will engage them.

Check out Sebastian Acosta’s The Million Dollar Listing Social Media: The Ultimate Social Media Marketing Guide for Real Estate Professionals. It’s probably the most comprehensive book on the topic but there’s no harm in getting comfortable with this minefield, even before you’re officially licensed. 

Habits for life

Many of these habits, designed to make agents better at their jobs, will actually set you up for success in every area of your life. Because even for agents, life is about more than just real estate.

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For informative news and views on the world of real estate, proptech and AI, follow overwrite on Instagram and LinkedIn, and keep up-to-date with our weekly NewsBites blog.

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overwrite.ai | real estate themed generative AI

If you came across a four bedroom, 3.5 bathroom home listed for sale recently on a quiet cul-de-sac in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, you might not think twice about the online listing. It included typical real estate descriptions like “ideal for entertaining” and “ample space for relaxation.”

But JJ Johannes, the realtor for the home, created the description in less than five seconds by typing a few keywords into ChatGPT, a viral new AI chatbot tool that can generate elaborate responses to user prompts.

It’s a task, he said, that would otherwise have taken him an hour or more to write on his own.

“It saved me so much time,” Johannes told CNN, noting he made a few tweaks and edits to ChatGPT’s work before publishing it.

“It’s not perfect but it was a great starting point. My background is in technology and writing something eloquent takes time. This made it so much easier.”

Johannes is among the real estate agents experimenting with ChatGPT since it was released publicly in late November. Some residential and commercial agents told CNN it has already changed the way they work, from writing listings and social media posts to drafting legal documents. It could also be used to automate repetitive tasks such as answering frequently asked questions and doing complex calculations.

ChatGPT is trained on vast amounts of online data in order to generate responses to user prompts. It has written original essays, stories, song lyrics and research paper abstracts that fooled some scientists. Some CEOs have used it to write emails or do accounting work. It even passed an exam at an Ivy League school. (It has, however, raised concerns among some for its potential to enable cheating and for its inaccuracies.)

In less than two months, ChatGPT has sparked discussions around its potential to disrupt various industries, from publishing to law. But it’s already having a tangible impact on how a number of real estate agents around the country do their jobs – where much of the written work can be formulaic and time consuming – to the extent that some can no longer imagine working without it. 

“I’ve been using it for more than a month, and I can’t remember the last time something has wowed me this much,” said Andres Asion, a broker from the Miami Real Estate Group.

‘As soon as I tried it out, I was sold” 

Recently, a client reached out to Asion with a problem: the woman had moved into a pre-construction home and couldn’t open her windows. She had attempted to contact the developer for months with no response. Asion ran a copy of one of her emails through ChatGPT, asking it to rewrite it with an emphasis on the liability implications. 

“ChatGPT wrote it as a legal issue and all of a sudden, the developer showed up at her house,” he said. 

Asion has also used the tool to draft legally binding addendums and other documents, and sent them to lawyers for approval. “I fine-tune all kinds of drafts with ChatGPT,” he said. “Sometimes I’ll tell it to make it shorter or funnier, and it gives you so many samples to pick and edit from.”

ChatGPT is free for now, but OpenAI, the company behind it, is reportedly considering a monthly charge of $42. Asion said “it’s not even a question” he would pay for access. “I would easily pay $100 or $200 a year for something like this,” he said. “I’d be crazy not to.”

Frank Trelles, a commercial real estate agent at State Street Realty in Miami, said he’d also pay to keep using the tool, which has already impacted the way he does business. “As soon as I tried it out, I was sold,” he said. “I went to sign up for a package, thinking it would be at least $100 a month, and was blown away that it was free. Nothing in this world is free though – and that made me a bit nervous.”

Trelles said he uses ChatGPT to look up the permitted uses for certain land and zones in Miami-Dade County, and calculate what mortgage payments or return on investment might be for a client, which typically involve formulas and mortgage calculators. 

“I can be in a car with a client when they ask me what their mortgage payments might be,” said Trelles. “I can ask ChatGPT what a mortgage payment would be on a $14 million purchase at a 7.2% interest rate amortized over 25 years with two origination points at closing, and in two seconds, it gives me that information. It also explains how it got the answer. It’s amazing.”

Lots of potential, and some limitations

There are some limitations, however. The tool has, for example, struggled with some basic math before. Trelles said it’s helpful for approximations on the go, not for exact numbers.

Serge Reda, a commercial real estate executive and adjunct professor at the Fordham Real Estate Institute, said some use cases for ChatGPT are better than others. ChatGPT may help save brokers time when writing listings or responses, but automating client responses may not be the best tactic because generating leads and closing transactions typically requires a personalized approach.

“It’s accessible to everyone right now because it’s free and they can get a taste of how this powerful tool can work. But there are definitely significant limitations,” he said.

While ChatGPT has generated a wave of interest among realtors, incorporating artificial intelligence in the real estate market isn’t entirely new. Listing site Zillow, for example, has used AI for 3D mapping, creating automatic floor plans and for its Zestimate tool, which can scan pictures to see if a home has hardwood floors or stainless steel appliances so its price estimation better reflects market conditions. Earlier this week, Zillow rolled out an AI-feature that lets potential buyers conduct searches in a more natural language (something that’s long been mastered by Google). 

Matt Kreamer, a spokesperson for Zillow, said the real estate industry has been slower to innovate, but “I think we’ll be seeing much bigger strides very soon.” He said Zillow sees no clear concerns with agents using ChatGPT to help streamline the work they already do and save time.

“We aren’t promoting or wary of ChatGPT but are interested in how it’s being used and watching it,” he said.

Although it’s too early to say if the tool will become a mainstay in real estate, realtor Johannes believes AI in general will transform his industry and others.

“It may not be with ChatGPT,” he said, “but I believe some form of artificial intelligence like this will become a big part of how we work and live our lives.”

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This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of overwrite.ai and its owners.

Samantha Murphy Kelly writes for CNN.

This story has been published from an article in CNN published on 28th January 2022.

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For informative news and views on the world of real estate, proptech and AI, follow overwrite on Instagram and LinkedIn, and keep up-to-date with our weekly NewsBites blog.

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overwrite | real estate content creation, reimagined

Like a pride of lions, your reputation, and that of your Agency, are intertwined. And in the Real Estate Animal Kingdom, only the strongest survive. 

It’s no secret. Your industry is more challenging now, than ever. The potential for massive earnings and the low barriers to entry, are leading to increasing competition. 

Greater compliance oversight. Rising portal charges. Interest rate hikes. These are all very real challenges that demand your continuous evolution. 

Here’s the bottom line. Estate Agents are pack animals, not lone wolves. Every Agent is bound to an Agency, and must work together to market themselves and their properties. 

But what if your marketing department is failing YOU?

Hunting Together

Continuous evolution. I said it before. I’ll say it again. If your agency’s marketing team aren’t doing enough to have your back in this cut-throat animal kingdom, you die. If they stand still, falling prey to the complacency of how they do things, you die. If they are not leveraging the latest technologies, guess what? You die. 

Your marketing team has got to be top-notch. If they’re scrimping on budgets, or out of touch with tech, they’re no good to you. A weak link in your chain. Impeding your earning potential.

Animal Rights

It’s your right to query anything that could impede or enhance your income. If they’re not on their game, they’re taking you down a road to nowhere. Pure and simple. 

You need to know where your marketing department’s budget is being spent. And what that’s getting you in return.

Here are 5 questions that all Estate Agents must be asking their marketing departments in 2023:

1. What international and local best practices are baked into your marketing strategy? 
2. Are you originating tactics to distinguish you from competition, or just copying what others do?
3. Do you consciously try to drive traffic to our website, and not just portals? How? What are the results?
4. How do you ensure that the quality of content we, and our brand, publicly associate our names with, is always of the highest standard?
5. For each marketing dollar you spend, what is our ROI? (Tip: Nothing less than 300% should suffice)

A Fighting Chance

A Little Tip

The easiest way to know whether your marketing team’s thinking of your best interest, is if they’ve subscribed to overwrite.ai for you. If not, get them to without further delay. Only then will you understand what you’ve been missing.

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For informative news and views on the world of real estate, proptech and AI, follow overwrite on Instagram and LinkedIn, and keep up-to-date with our weekly NewsBites blog.

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overwrite | real estate content creation, reimagined