Thinking Outside the Box: Florida Agent Gets Creative with Listingbook and Its Offerings

By Stephanie Andre

RISMEDIA, Nov. 10, 2008-Elaine Sherer is very smart about how she uses her partnership with North Carolina-based Listingbook. Introduced to her as a source of lead incubation, she not only uses the platform for its original intent, but more proactively-as a lead generator.

“I flipped when I saw what Listingbook could do,” says Sherer, broker/associate, TRC Sellstate Achievers Realty Network in Fort Myers, Florida. “I quickly realized there was so much I could do with it. I put every single one of my sellers on it.”

Indeed, Sherer has capitalized on that notion, marketing her listings on Listingbook in ads to consumers.

“I call it, ‘Surf Like a Realtor,’” she explains. “Once they register and log in, I can see their preferences and get ideas about what they are looking for. Then, I set up search criteria based on their wants and needs, and e-mail them the listings that match.”

What’s more, Listingbook instantly updates Sherer every time one of her prospects or clients makes a criteria change.

“It’s like I’m inside their heads,” says Sherer. “Some people may make tons of changes, but in the end, they usually end up going back to what I originally set. But, they have free reign to do what they want.”

With the current market conditions, Sherer says this practice has brought her a good number of bank-owned property and short sales transactions.

“If I see a great match, and something that looks like a great deal, I’ll preselect a home for them and quickly send over a virtual tour,” Sherer explains. “My husband does super virtual tours, which are completely honest about the property-the good, bad and ugly. We then write up the offer before they even get here, submit to the bank and see what the bank will do. It’s wrapped up before they even arrive in my office.”

Sherer’s Listingbook presence also extends across continents; she created a German real estate website in December 2007. Sherer is originally from Germany.

“In Germany, the message is that America is on sale,” she explains. “However, the Euro is down and that’s cutting into buying power, so there’s now even more urgency.”

To capitalize on that momentum, Sherer is promoting her Listingbook inventory and is seeing great results. “It’s interesting; I have more people logging into my Listingbook account than on my own German website.”

In the end, according to Sherer, it comes back to basic fundamentals.

“People always need a place to live,” she says. “These days, in Cape Coral, we have brand-new houses for $60,000-that’s idiot-proof and positive cash flow off the bat.

“Not everyone is afraid of the market,” she continues. “Americans and people overseas are buying. Also, through Listingbook, I’ve saved foreclosures on three houses-I’ve helped someone who really needed assistance and done something in my life. That’s all you can ask for.”

For more information, please visit www.listingbook.com.