Let's all work from the top down...

With all the news lately from:

Fukushima,
Wisconsin,
D.C.,
and Trump-ville,

...it's hard to imagine there is any sane real estate left

anywhere in this world.

So why don't we all just soar with the eagles for a while?



Video clips at Ustream
( The Decorah Eagles - via ustream.tv)

...what a world we make for ourselves

-but it always looks better

...from the top!

Steve
shsworks@sbcglobal.net
920-691-6030

Weird, Crazy, Wisconsin Real Estate-get your laugh on!

There are those that say you can't beat weird for Wisconsin.
(and you can always say that real estate is crazy-everywhere.)

After living here ten years,-well, real estate is craziest in the Cheezehedd State.

You betcha.

Why ask why when it is so obvious?




(YouTube-WeirdUSTV)

And just when you think...
On second thought-No. Don't think about this guy who missed his ex-wife so much he was going to open houses and, um,
snooping in dresser drawers.

(...and even calling Realtors for private showings!)

Just remember while real estate and people are crazy-

You're (probably) not.

And don't forget to laugh!

Steve

shsworks@sbcglobal.net

920-691-6030

Don't throw up on your market...

...or on anyone else.

Really.

It's just good etiquette

to keep it down after you have cleared your plate.

Learn how to do it:

Now:

Take a deep, deep breath.

Exhale.

If you are still feeling queasy, uneasy and confused-

imagine how your consumer feels.

Face your market. Listen. Learn.

(And don't forget to pick up the tab once in a while-:)

Steve

shsworks@sbcglobal.net

facebook: http://tinyurl.com/c7f27d

twitter:@stevenstearns

blog: http://realestateisreallycrazy.blogspot.com/

LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/stevenstearns

LET'S GET SOCIAL!

IT'S A HOUSEWARMING PARTY!

and THANKS FOR COMING-

Welcome, old and new friends, to my new digs on the web:

Steven Stearns

Anyone.Anywhere.Anything.

Social Network Building

Content Creation Consulting For Commerce, Creatives and Citizens

shsworks@sbcglobal.net

920-691-6030

Join me at:

twitter: @stevenstearns

http://realestateisreallycrazy.blogspot.com

http://www.linkedin.com/in/stevenstearns

(...and a new facebook page coming soon!)

Google Searches:

Steven Stearns

real estate is crazy

Obeoman

Featured CNN IReport Superstar: Midwest Flooding-June 2008

Blog/Photos and Interviews on CNN National and CNN Headline News

Let's get social!

Thanks,

Steve

YOU FOUND ME!...(again)

(graphic from http://andrewmargolis.com/blog)

Well, thanks for stopping by!

Sorry about the confusion and the boxes, but what I can tell you is this:

I am still here.

Well, so is most everyone else!

Ready to listen. To create and share ideas. To market some of my own, hopefully, (and have something to share with the wolf...)

But most of all, to keep it real and keep it crazy.

And of course, it will be great to see some new scenery.

So-

How can I help you? Just wire me!

Steven
shsworks@sbcglobal.net
http://www.linkedin.com/in/stevenstearns

GIVING THANKS WITH:FREE OBEO STYLEDESIGNERS!

How about this:

We are giving thanks to
all of our friends and associates with a

FREE Obeo StyleDesigner ($40 value)

on any new Obeo photography package.

This nifty widget lets you redecorate a home on line!

To redeem, use promo code 'PC955689'

Ends Nov. 30th, 2008. Call us: 800-729-6236

And it is great to see you here!-
thanks for the thoughts and comments

-keep 'em coming!

Now, wanna grow your social network?

Let's link up on twitter:

http://twitter.com/obeoman

facebook:
http://tinyurl.com/5tt3hw

and LinkedIn!:
http://www.linkedin.com/in/stevenstearns

See you there!

Steve Stearns

Obeoman

http://obeoman.blogspot.com

262-325-8687

Top 12 Real Estate Predictions for 2008

TOP 12 REAL ESTATE PREDICTIONS FOR 2008:

1.) Google corporate jets will feature scrolling AdSense banners on their sides, or tow signs behind them as they fly over beaches.

By the way, you won't need a crystal ball for your sellers

with

Obeo HomeSite and Obeo StyleDesigner.

(Available after January 21st)

2.) Redfin will give away Snoopy Catch-'Em kits to each lister, with free linkbait.

3.) ActiveRain will provide free umbrellas to each Realtor at its site to protect them from getting soaked by falling prices.

4.) Pat Kitano at Transparent RE will move into a new glass headquarters in Pomona, CA. To stimulate the local economy and discourage the proverbial rock throwing, Pat will hire displaced mortgage brokers to police the grounds for any other offending projectiles.

5.) RISMedia’s Annual Leadership Conference will undergo a format change, a cross between Big Brother and Survivor. Hosted by David Hasselhoff, it will only be available by satellite subscription service.

6.) Zillow will use street teams to meme their brand and have street team members carry bells and buckets to enhance cash flow.

7.) The crew at Sellsius, inspired by their successful '08 nationwide blogging tour, will form a Band of Bloggers - like Brian Setzer's, only bigger and more verbose-and go on tour to over 1,500 real estate brokerages, playing at lunchtime in the parking lot.

8.) Inman TV will host a reality series of the Sellsius tour, partnering with Teresa Boardman to vlog and blog the performances.

9.) Trulia Voices, not to be outdone, will go out on a choral tour featuring songs with lyrics based on answers to questions posted at the site. Performance MP3s will be posted free at their site and will also be available as ring tones.

10.) NAR CEO Dale Stinton will go on a consumer-based diet including non-fat technology commodities.

11.) Upstart on line real estate community Wannanetwork will be bought by Donald Trump and leased to AT&T, forming a worldwide network of networks.

12.) Obeo and Krispy-Kreme form a strategic alliance to enhance delivery of its donut-on-a-stick incentive to all eligible-and hungry-Realtors attending their sales presentations.

Obeoair is at NAR this week, so check us out or email me for details!

...what we got, you want!

Obeoman

steven.stearns@obeo.com

NO CRAZY-BAD PICTURES, PUH-LEASE!

Sellers hate them!

Buyers like them even less...

So, why do bad real estate pictures end up on the web when they drive sellers to the brink of hysteria and buyers to nausea, and onto the next mediocre batch of images?

Why are there are millions of bad RE photos populating sites that pretend they are actually attracting buyers with good pictures?

Probably because most people think

the picture is "good enough".

Now, think about that statement.

Then, think about really adding value for clients.

What makes a great RE photo?

(Please, let's not argue about good photos- this is your house we are selling!)

Great RE photos must be technically excellent,

with clear, sharp, crisply focus, not tilted, properly exposed with even lighting and no backflash.

Great RE photos highlight the key feature(s) of the room for the buyer, whether it is a bay window, stone fireplace, fantastic decorating and staging or an awesome view.

Great RE photos invite the buyer into the home,

are composed and taken from an angle the room would normally be viewed at.

Who makes a great RE photo, one that makes the Seller smile and the Buyer stick to the on line tour ?

If you don't know who, just call us at Obeo.

We will go out of our way to do it right-

because that's what it takes to make the Sellers smile

and the Buyers buy!

Stay focused!

Obeoman

steven.stearns@obeo.com

Sexy Crazy Photo of Statistics for Real Estate Marketing !

While the header here may have you chuckling: I never really liked math until I had an algebra teacher tell me statistics are like bikinis: what they reveal is interesting. The inspiration for this post came from the crew at Sellsius !

Obeo can - and does - the job twice as good as our closest competitor.

...and that is something you can take through the fan and to the bank!

I gotta go...call me!

Obeoman

steven.stearns@obeo.com

RAVE ABOUT OBEO!-THANK YOU, ELIAS PAPADOPOULOS OF REMAX!

More great results with Obeo we like to hear about - from his blog at activerain:

OBEO will give you an edge on your Listing presentations....
For RE/MAX agents:
I started to use OBEO listing websites about 3 months ago and it has helped me secure my last 5 listings. Now most of the agents in my office are using it too. Go to www.obeo.com to check it out.
For under $200 you get a professional photographer to come out and take high resolution pictures and 360 panoramas, a street.com website for your listing, a realtor.com upgrade and 10 mini diskettes of the tour.
If you go the extra mile and provide them with a floor plan you can even drag and drop furniture in to the different rooms of the house!
Check it out, you'll love it and your sellers will too.

Elias.
(Elias Papadopoulos Boston, MA-REMAX )

Mhaaaaa..the mAgicK BuS!..and a thank you across the bow.

...Real work has been interfering with my blogging, but not my desire to blog. I apologize again to all my readers and 5-second looky-loos (according to Google analytics) for my absence, the topics that never were covered or properly expanded on and the generally lame attempts at being a bad real estate blog.

Meanwhile, back at the blog:

...I would love to be on the Sellsius bus, so to speak - the requisition has been made through the proper channels and a response is forthcoming in the next 24-36 hours.

...of course, if Teresa Boardman, Pat Kitano, JimmyZ, ZIllow, niknik, Joel Burlsem, REBlogGirl, JeffX, MaureenFrancis and Inmannews would offer me $300 dollars not to place my face on the bus..., well?????

By the way:...Joel has been a busy man lately pushing web RE video. He looked really Gen-Neutral during his Inman interview. His is a worthy cause for those selling digital video equipment - but likely not a great marketing solution for most single listings for Realtors.

Here is why:

Video Tours Lack Traffic and Aggregation: If you Alexa the companies that are doing RE video and stack them up, the traffic pile is not as deep as you-know-who-E-O. Video works great for building affinity for a community, a charismatic Real Estate agent/team or for showcase properties where the money is there to support video production values.

Video Tours are Tooooo Linear: They drag you though a property like a bull with a ring through its nose. Plus you usually have to look at some broker or agent hind quarters, making you feel like a sled dog.

Video Tours Lack Production Values: As a photographic mentor once told me, you cannot make chicken salad out of chicken guano. Find me ten RE video tours - done by agents or brokers at any site anywhere on the web that have any production values at all and I will eat this blog. The vast majority of RE video tours are so poorly executed with lousy lighting, fuzzy focus, shaky shooting, poor panning and awful audio it really isn't any wonder why this hot new trend is flailing to sizzle-yes, flailing.

EXTRA SPECIAL THANKS:

... to Voyager International, a kind-of competitor: Hey! You spelled Obeo right! And it's great to know our name leads on your web page presentation. Just so you happy-go-lucky gang of marketing mash-ups know:

-We are tops with Realtors in the NAR Vertical Metrix : money follows market leaders, and Realtors know their money works hardest with us.

-Obeo posts the vast majority of its tours on 4 days.

-And sorry about your traffic accident: One of my current clients has had a tour with you at Kayyah and the listing has been viewed 38 times since 09/06/2006. Get well soon !

More later, if you can stand it...

Steve

Oh, yes - really crazy...

...isn't it? Just think about the human factor, and forget the (springy) market. Or mortgages. Or the currently popular short-sell. Or the global market.
You own a home. You have an opportunity. Wow. A BETTER job! You have to move-gee, someone just has to come up with, oh, say, between 180k to oh, 1M+ so you can move, and they can move, too - depending on where you live and what your equity situation is. And how much the kids cry. People with more money than that can pay someone else to move there for them.
And what your spouse expects to move into, of course...
Oh yeah - don't forget leaving your house on sudden notice in your Sunday best sweatpants so strangers can troop through it and judge you on your home hygienics, and whether or not they like the neighbors; and the neighbors kids and three or four large dogs, or the fact that you are NOT a vegetarian.
And this can go on for one, two or three months? Longer? Or until your spouse finds a job halfway across the country, too? Why does anybody even move out of their recliner, let alone a place where their kids, pets and in-laws can eat over the sink if they feel like it?

(Bear, our canine companion, and a tasty treat.)

A while back, and likely it still is the case, in Japan a small rambler-type home was a million dollars. Who is ever going to pay that mortgage off? Only love can bear a burden like that - maybe these homes will remain in families for generations.
Even in our 100+ year old pile of bricks and boards near the Rock River in the Midwest, it could happen - not flooding -we are WAY out of the flood plain - I mean moving. But only if I get to retire when we get to our new place.

But I suspect this home will (lovingly) fund a reverse mortgage for my spouse, Theresa.
When they finally come to move me-in my recliner-to a place where she doesn't have to listen to me snore so much, or watch me eat over the sink.



Thanks for stopping by,
Steve
steven.stearns@obeo.com