Industry Visionary

  • Doug Devitre
    Doug Devitre International
Doug Devitre shares easy-to-implement solutions that save REALTOR® Associations money, increase productivity and generate quantifiable results. Devitre has been hired by more than 100 REALTOR® Associations. He is a past REBAC Hall of Famer and authored the REALTOR® Association Social Media Performance Guide. 

Devitre asks, “Do you READY, FIRE, AIM? If you know where you are headed but not sure what to do first, you are in the right place.”




Doug, you work with REALTOR® associations all over the country. What is the most important thing an association can do to be valuable to its members?

The REALTOR® Association must assess members’ needs using a deeper line of questioning when asking for feedback, and be proactive in communicating expectations using the receiver’s preferred method. For example, instead of asking, “Do you watch YouTube videos?” instead ask, “How often do you visit YouTube when searching for answers to a specific question?” 
 
If you can use a Microsoft® Word document, upload a picture and copy/paste, you are tech-savvy enough to run your association online campaign. However, creating blog posts, posting pictures, in addition to producing video and persuasive messages take specialized skill-sets each contributor may need to develop as part of their own professional development. The leadership team can hold the ones who enjoy a specific form of content creation to a regular schedule ensuring that medium remains consistent over time.
 
I built the online campaign for the Houston Association of REALTORS® (HAR) including a blog, Facebook, Twitter and online videos. HAR’s Facebook page has been a wild success (with nearly 7,000 “likes”) because of the dialogue between the association and members – sharing photos, resources and comments that come in. Three ways to make any association page better include:
• Posting timely information that benefits the target audience
• Mentioning member successes more than the association
• Commenting on the comments shared by members

The HAR blog, HAR Connect, gets 4,000 hits every week and has done so since its release in January 2011. Posts are contributed by multiple staff members who specialize in one or a few categories. Posts can be easily shared by members using other social media sites. In other words, the members do the marketing for the association. The formula: shoot for clear and conversational posts and promote action for greater success.

“Doug Devitre is our trusted advisor and visionary for online communications at the Houston Association of REALTORS®.” 
Bob Hale, CEO/President, Houston Houston Association of REALTORS®

 
Another thing the association can do is to create answers to frequently-asked questions in a video format. It allows them to show members something rather than just telling them. In addition, it saves the association money by cutting back on call volume during peak times such as dues renewal.

Speaking of video, what are the three best tools for agents to use to make their videos better and more effective?

Here are three tools I recommend: first, Jing, a free video-screen capture tool. Let’s say you have a PDF of some MLS stats – your EO (association executive officer) could interpret it by showing the document with your voice and a video of yourself in front of it. A similar but more robust screen-recording tool is Camtasia, which is $99 on an Apple computer or $299 for PC. Try the 30-day free trial to start. 
 
The second tool is Skype, with an add-on (VodBurner for PC or eCamm for Apple) to record your conversation in audio and video format. The program saves the file which can be edited if needed and shared on YouTube in minutes. 
 
Third, a Kodak EasyShare camera using the Eye-Fi memory card to take videos and events. The card can send photos and videos wirelessly using a Wi-Fi connection without the cord and auto-post them to Flickr or YouTube channel to save more time.

Finally, what technology are you recommending for the next six months?

Use what you already have. I’m pretty pragmatic about new technology and don’t always jump on the latest thing when it comes out. I see many REALTOR® Associations invest thousands in services and products that become obsolescent within a few years. However, the one thing you need to do is to make your information “mobilized” – able to be viewed on mobile devices. YouTube videos, SlideShare presentations, WordPress blog posts, and online photos can be consumed on mobile devices without spending any extra money. 

Download the Real Estate Association Toolbar at http://reassociations.ourtoolbar.com to save hours on your social media marketing and produce more results.