As Maryland’s No. 1 real estate agent, Creig has earned many distinguished awards, including achieving the No. 1 agent spot among all Long & Foster agents across the United States in 2004, 2005 and 2006. His record-breaking sales allow him to sell more than two homes each day. Creig is known for displaying a high standard of professionalism as well as a thorough knowledge of the real estate industry that comes from 20-plus years of experience. He has created a team of professionals with individual specialties to ensure extraordinary service to his clients. A 1989 graduate of the
Anybody can say they have a Web site, but if you can’t find it, what does that do for you? We get a lot of eyeballs which is what you need in the Internet world. My site gets 2.8 million hits per month. Last month, visitors looked at a million homes. The average visitor spends five minutes on my site because our content is extremely in-depth and we have a large inventory base.
People want information as quickly as possible. With Obeo’s products, I have virtual tours on all of my listings as well as 20 photos on average for each property. What we have found through working with Obeo for an extended period of time now is that they have come to understand our unique needs for the business — and they’re responsive. If we need an extra photographer, they are willing to help us. We try to keep things to a system here, but there are always those exceptions. We find Obeo to be very responsive in that way so that we can better serve the needs of our clients.
The whole nature of real estate has changed dramatically, but with companies like Obeo working together with us, we’re at the forefront of that change. Now it’s unheard of to start a real estate search any other way. According to NAR, 82 percent of buyers start their search online. Our clients can search the whole MLS and find everything they need — they don’t have to leave my site to find anything. When it comes time to make a move, they’re going to go to the source that they got their information from. It builds trust — and it’s the key to selling.
We market to 40 million people in 30 days. It’s a huge campaign. Being high on search engines drives leads, too, because we’re at the top of them all. We have 150 URLs (Web site addresses) pointing back to our Web site. Additionally, call response time is important. There are three types of leads: Web, phone and person-to-person. The response has to be quicker on a Web lead than a phone lead, for example. These lead types all move up the channel. You want to turn a Web lead into a phone conversation that becomes a person-to-person contact. The quicker you do that, the better off you’re going to be.
One thing computers will never do is replace the personal part of our business. People have to touch houses; they need representation. A computer can set parameters but to close the deal, you need a person. Transaction management systems, for example, are great, but you still need a person inputting the information, making sure it’s correct and also making sure the buyer is happy at the end of the day — which always requires personal attention.
A lot of times, we get sellers who give us all of the information about their house. I can read about the house in black-and-white but I can’t price it unless I go touch and feel it. Everyone’s interpretation is different. Again, it’s that personal piece. Zillow is an information source, but a number doesn’t sell your house. You need furniture stagers, virtual tours and other personal touches to help get the sale done. Computers facilitate things more quickly but will never alleviate a person from being part of the process.
The fact that it’s an independently owned company makes a huge difference. I can talk to the owner — who is as involved as I am in my company — any time I like. Long and Foster has also allowed me to grow the way I want to and supported me the whole way. They do what they say they’re going to do here and have a solid compensation plan, even in these changing times. Plus, we’re the top brokerage and relocation brokerage in the eastern region.
First, my philosophy is: Knowledge is confidence. Confidence is trust. Trust is the sale. The first and most successful thing I have is knowledge. It doesn’t cost much. Anyone can get it — it just takes time. I know every house at every price on every street in my area.
Taking risks is also important. Everyone can talk about the current market. I’m out there doing it instead of talking about it. We can believe what we want to hear or go do and make things happen. In 2007, I sold 838 homes, 100 more than I did in 2006. We never cut back marketing. Whether it takes a day, a month or year, we are going to market your house the way we always have. Others pull back when the market changes. We move forward and get stronger. When people pull back, it makes my marketing more effective.
I also started publishing my own magazine in November. It’s distributed in my service area. Wherever these types of real estate books are found in my service area — the supermarket, Blockbuster, etc. — you’ll see a Creig Northrop certified book next to them. I have more than 50,000 of them.
How you interpret leads is how they become. If you interpret one as a cold, wet, bad lead, then it is. I treat all clients and leads the same. I love Web leads, for example. Or, you’ll hear some agents say, “I don’t like rentals.” We did 100 rentals this year that could be 100 buyers next year. There is no bad word before lead. A lead is a lead is a lead. It’s what you do with it that makes a difference.
Since its evolution from 360 House to Obeo in 2005, the Salt Lake City, Utah-based company has become the largest preferred supplier of full-service residential real estate online marketing products in the United States and Canada. The Latin word for “to go to” or “to encompass,” Obeo provides Realtors®, homebuilders, land developers and property managers with customized online marketing solutions and offline sales tools. To find out more, go to http://www.obeo.com/.
