Delta Media Group updates Virtual Slideshow

Delta Media Group has updated the new Virtual Slideshow option that was recently released on their real estate website and lead management systems.

The Virtual Slideshow is an automated Virtual Tour-style slideshow that Delta Media Group's Web system can create with a listing's photos. The upgrade allows company admins to turn this option on for all listings throughout the real estate company website, instead of having to manually turn it on for each real estate listing.

Read more about the Virtual Slideshow upgrade on Delta Media Group's blog. For questions on the Delta Media Group's real estate company website and lead management systems, contact Sean Cutright.

Details on Delta Media Group's exclusive Webinar for LRES™ Members

Delta Media Group will host a private Webinar exclusive to members of Leading Real Estate Companies of the World™ Thursday, February 26 at 11am Eastern.

The Webinar, "Blog Your Way To The Top - LRES™ Members," is the second in a series of LRES™-specific Webinars from Delta Media Group, a Preferred Leading Real Estate Solutions™ Associate.

During the Webinar, Delta Media Group Vice President Jonathan Blood will review blogging and content strategies that can help your brokerage improve real estate Search Engine Optimization, drive more online opportunities and establish your brokerage as a regional and industry expert.

For more information on Delta Media Group's LRES™ Webinar, or real estate company website and lead management systems, contact Sean Cutright.

Delta Media Group's Wednesday Webinar

Delta Media Group is about to begin their final agent training Webinar of the week, " The Agent Web Site System in Depth." Visit Delta Media Group's real estate training page to register.

The Webinar description reads:
Associates will become familiar with DeltaNet site design tools. Topics covered during this session include: Updating Photos, phone numbers, email addresses; Verifying MLS ID's; Entering Designation, Titles, and Slogans; Changing the About You Paragraph; Entering External links; Linking a personal Domains (URL) to the Delta real estate website.

This session is recommended for all agents that are new to the Delta Media Group System.

Delta Media Group will host another Webinar tomorrow, though it is exclusive to members of Leading Real Estate Companies of the World. More information to will be posted soon on Sean Cutright's real estate blog. Contact Sean Cutright with questions or for further info on Delta Media Group's real estate company website and lead management systems.

Another ERA Real Estate brokerage signs with Delta Media Group

It was a big day for Delta Media Group and ERA.

The Canton, Ohio real estate website and lead management developer set one ERA Real Estate company website live, and contracted with another ERA Real Estate brokerage.

Delta Media Group launched ERA Lincoln Realty's new real estate brokerage website this morning, and, this afternoon, welomed ERA United Home Realty.

ERA United Home Realty is based in Cary, NC, just outside of Raleigh. The brokerage will be the first in the Raleigh, NC real estate market to use Delta Media Group as their real estate company website and lead management developer.

I'll post more information on ERA United Home Realty soon.

Contact Sean Cutright for more information on Delta Media Group's real estate company website and real estate agent website solutions.

Delta Media Group launches new ERA Lincoln Realty website

Delta Media Group just launched ERALincolnRealty.net, the new online home of ERA Lincoln Realty.

ERA Lincoln Realty's new real estate website was custom designed, complete with IDX property search, Atlas Search interactive property search map, national property search, strategic lead generation, My Home Finder portfolio system, and more.


The website is integrated with Delta Media Group's renowned real estate lead management system, which includes full lead and contact management database, drip marketing, listing optimization, eCards, company intranet, reports and analytics, and more.

ERA Lincoln Realty is an 11-agent real estate brokerage based in Ruston, Louisiana. Headed by owner Dicky Nealy, ERA Lincoln Realty specializes in homes and real estate for sale in Ruston, Louisiana; homes and real estate in Lincoln Parish, Louisiana; and homes and real estate throughout North Louisiana in Lincoln County.

ERA Lincoln Realty joins dozens of ERA brokerages using Delta Media Group as their real estate website and lead management developer. For more information on Delta Media Group's real estate website and lead management systems, contact Sean Cutright.

Delta Media Group to hold one Webinar today

Delta Media Group will host one Webinar today: Introduction to the Agent Delta System.

The Webinar is aimed for beginners to the Delta Media Group real estate website and lead management system, and will teach many of the basics on the system.

The Webinar description reads:
Associates will become familiar with DeltaNet features, functions, and navigation. Topics covered during this session include Agent Login & Navigation, Lead & Contact Management, Listing Management, Preferences & Passwords, and key system features that are important to buyers and sellers.

This session is recommended for all agents that are new to the Delta Media Group System.

For more information or to register for any of Delta Media Group's Webinars, visit www.deltagroup.com/training.

Delta Media Group Webinar, Broker Advisory Committee updates

Delta Media Group will host multiple training Webinars this week, starting tomorrow.

I'll post more details soon, but check Delta Media Group's Training page to follow the up-to-date schedule of training Webinars.

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Delta Media Group's first Broker Advisory Committee meeting, held Feb. 20, was a large success despite some sound issues with the Webinar software. I have a lot of good notes from the meeting that I will soon post, and will share details on the next Broker Advisory Committee meeting as soon as they are released.

Contact Sean Cutright with any questions on Delta Media Group's Webinars, Broker Advisory Committee, or real estate website and lead management systems.

Social Media usage up amongst Baby Boomers

Economies like the one we are currently in require companies to take new and creative steps to generate new business. This is especially true in the real estate industry.

It is for this reason that I've recently dedicated a good amount of time to sharing different marketing tips, articles and success stories on Social Media, and its growing role in the real estate industry.

One such article was posted a couple days ago and can be found here. It shows the increase in Social Media usage, particularly amongst Baby Boomers, a generation many people don't necessarily associate with Social Media use.

The article states:

In 2007, the percentage of Boomers consuming social media was 46% for younger Boomers (ages 43 to 52) and 39% for older Boomers (ages 53 to 63). By 2008, those number increased to 67% and 62%, respectively.

It goes on to provide additional usage stats and how this can translate to business. The included statistics are very important, particularly for those in the real estate profession. Social Media is playing an increasingly important role in marketing to all generations, and can open up a whole new marketing opportunity to real estate brokerages and agents.

Follow www.dripmarketingblog.com for more information on how Social Media can help improve your online business, or contact Sean Cutright for more information on how real estate brokerages are using Delta Media Group's real estate website and lead management systems to increase business.

Update: Broker Advisory Committee meeting details

Delta Media Group will launch their first-ever Broker Advisory Committee meeting today at 1pm Eastern.

The Broker Advisory Committee Meeting is open to all owners, brokers, administrators, trainers and marketing personnel of real estate brokerages using Delta Media Group as their real estate website and lead management partner.

The Broker Advisory Committee will meet monthly via Web conference, and will offer a valuable way for real estate professionals to network and share dialogue with colleagues.

Delta Media Group posted a blog entry about the committee last month, stating:
During the Broker Advisory Committees I will be sharing and facilitating discussions on topics such as: Generating more leads now; Getting your agents to close more business; How can the company generate more business for the agents; Getting more web traffic; etc.

Click here to read Delta Media Group's blog entry about, or register for the Broker Advisory Committee meeting. Contact Sean Cutright with questions at scutright@deltagroup.com.

Broker Advisory Committee to hold first meeting

The Broker Advisory Committee will have its first-ever meeting today.

This is exciting news on the Delta Media Group front, as the committee will put some of the greatest minds in real estate together to discuss ways they have used technology to increase their business.

The meeting is scheduled for 1pm Eastern, and more information will be coming soon. The committee is exclusive to those using Delta Media Group's real estate website and lead management systems. Watch www.dripmarketingblog.com for more info.

$15,000 home buyer tax credit to return in original form?

Much has been said about the housing market since last week's conception, acception, reduction, deposition and, eventually, inclusion (albeit reduced) of the home buyer tax credit.

Today, President Obama spoke about a plan to address foreclosures. But rumor has it, the home buyer tax credit may resurface in its original form as a separate bill from the now signed economic stimulus bill.

You may recall that the initial proposal offered up to a $15,000 tax credit to any primary home buyer. By the time the stimulus bill was signed, the tax credit had been reduced to $8,000, was only good for first-time home buyers, and only applied for homes purchased by the end of August (later reports pushed that date back to December 1).

Johnny Isakson (R-GA), who initially proposed the bill, intends to bring it back up, according to an Arizona real estate blog. It will be interesting to see how this plays out, and www.dripmarketingblog.com will keep you updated on the details.

Sean Cutright
Delta Media Group

Increase your real estate business through blogs

If you find yourself questioning the benefits of blogging to help your real estate business, you need to take a look at this New York Times article published in October.

It's a few months old, but the information still applies. Essentially, it shows how real estate blogs provide consumers some of the best information available about real estate.

Consumers looking for homes for sale are turning more and more to real estate blogs to read up on the community, and more. Of course, this is even more effective if you're in a destination area, but even if you're not selling ocean-front properties, there are unique aspects to every region. It's up to you to correctly communicate those to your prospective buyer.

If you're looking for help on your current blog or how to get a blog started, contact Sean Cutright at Delta Media Group. We are offering several free live Webinars to train real estate brokers and agents on everything from blogging to Social Networking to enhancing the presence of your real estate website.

Last chance for today's real estate training Webinar!

Last chance to sign up for today's real estate training Webinar!

The "Introduction to the Agent Delta System" Webinar begins in roughly 15 minutes...click here to register.

Delta Media Group's Webinars are aimed to best train real estate brokers and agents using our real estate website and lead management systems on how to improve their online profits.

Delta Media Group will host two Webinars tomorrow. Click here to see Delta Media Group's entire Webinar schedule. Contact Sean Cutright for more info.

Delta Media Group launches new real estate website for RE/MAX The Producers

Delta Media Group has recently launched several new real estate website and lead management systems for brokerages across the country.

One of the most recent real estate websites to go live is RE/MAX The Producers' site, at www.theproducersrealestate.com.

Specializing in Omaha, Nebraska homes and real estate for sale, RE/MAX The Producers is a forward-thinking real estate brokerage applying some of the latest tools in real estate website technology. In the short time their website has been live, RE/MAX The Producers has already seen a great response, including increasing traffic, leads and compliments from customers that found their site on search engines.

RE/MAX The Producers works in Omaha, Elkhorn, Bellevue, LaVista, Ralston, Papillion, Waterloo, Gretna, Millard and Fremont, Nebraska; and Douglas and Sarpy Counties of Nebraska. Owners Don and Valerie Keeton, or any of RE/MAX The Producers' 10 other agents can help with all your Omaha real estate needs.

For more information on Delta Media Group's real estate website and lead management systems, contact Sean Cutright at scutright@deltagroup.com or 330-491-2003.

Delta Media Group's training Webinars continue this week

Delta Media Group's Webinar training series will continue this week, following a week off.

The first Webinar of the week is the "Introduction to the Agent Delta System," which will be held Tuesday at 1pm Eastern. Click here to register.

Delta Media Group will hold two additional Webinars Wednesday, Feb. 18 at 1pm and 3pm Eastern. Wedneday's Webinars include "The Agent Web Site System in Depth" and "Bring Your Website Alive With Audio," respectively.

To view Delta Media Group's entire Webinar schedule or register for any upcoming Webinar, visit www.DeltaGroup.com/training. If you have questions on any Webinars or Delta Media Group's real estate website and lead management systems, contact Sean Cutright at scutright@deltagroup.com.

Delta Media Group's new headquarters

I've mentioned in the past that Delta Media Group is building a new headquarters, scheduled to open in early March.

Last week, we posted a video of the building on Delta Media Group's Blog. The video is actually a couple weeks old, and a lot of progression has been made since. The video is of the second floor of the building, which is 15,000 square feet. The first floor will be a 15,000 square foot data hosting center, which will be unveiled in two phases.



We are very thrilled about the new building, and the many new opportunities having an in-house data hosting center will bring. Check back to Sean Cutright's blog for further updates as we move closer to the official opening.

Click here to see Delta Media Group's blog entry about the building.

Comments on the video? Questions about Delta Media Group's real estate website and lead management systems? We'd love to hear them. Contact Sean Cutright at scutright@deltagroup.com.

Should you use Twitter? 11% of online Americans are

If you've considered getting more involved in Twitter and other Social Networking sites to improve your online real estate marketing potential, now would probably be the time.

A new report shows that 11 percent of online Americans are now using Twitter. The study, conducted by Pew Internet & American Life Project, shows that the percentage of online Americans using Twitter has increased from 9 percent in December and 6 percent in May.

Though 20 percent of online Americans age 18-to-24 use Twitter, the median age of Twitter users is 31. That's above the median age of 27 for MySpace users and 26 for Facebook users, but below the median age of 40 for LinkedIn users.

I'll soon be releasing more about the top Social Networking tools and how members of the real estate industry are using them to improve their online business and marketing, and increase traffic to their real estate website and lead management systems.

In the meantime, you can follow me on Twitter at www.twitter.com/seancutright. See my website at www.seancutright.com or click to view/friend/follow my accounts at the following Social Networking sites: Facebook, Trulia, ActiveRain and LinkedIn.

Senate proposal of 4.5 percent mortgage rates voted down

It appears the $15,000 homebuyer tax credit wasn't the only housing proposal knocked out by Congress recently. They also shot down Amendment 353, a Senate plan that would have encouraged banks to lower mortgage rates to 4-4.5 percent.

A Los Angeles Times story on the amendment's vote states:
"A plan by Republicans in the Senate aimed at pushing mortgage rates lower has gone down to defeat at the hands of Democrats.

The plan by Nevada Republican John Ensign would have encouraged banks to issue mortgages with interest rates of 4 to 4.5 percent. The government-controlled mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac would have bought the mortgages on the secondary market. Jumbo loans would have been ineligible.

Democrats killed the idea Thursday night by a 62-35 vote.

The plan also contained an assortment of expensive tax cuts such as cutting the bottom 10 percent income tax rate in half for two years.

New York Democrat Charles Schumer said the plan was too expensive and would provide a windfall to banks charging fees to refinance mortgages."

Will Congress re-work the amendment? It's tough to say now, as it seems to have been over-looked by the homebuyer tax credit proposed as part of the economic stimulus bill. The homebuyer tax credit was initially proposed at $15,000, then was said to have been "wiped out" of the bill, only to resurface at $8,000. Details are still being worked out on the tax credit, including an update that the credit will only be good for homes purchased through the end of August.

I will keep you posted with any new updates on these topics and other real estate news.

-Sean Cutright

Delta Media Group hosting Webinar for Leading Real Estate Companies of the World™ members

Delta Media Group is hosting an exclusive Webinar to members of The Leading Real Estate Companies of the World™ at 1pm Eastern today.

In the Webinar, titled "2009 Online Marketing Strategy - LRES™ Members," Delta Media Group president and vice president, Mike Minard and Jonathan Blood, respectively, will discuss proven strategies to improving online real estate marketing.

Topics include blogging, content strategies, Social Networking and more. The Webinar is open to LRES™ owners, brokers, management, relocation coordinators, marketing directors and top producers.

Click here to register for the Webinar.

Delta Media Group is a leading national real estate website and lead management developer, and preferred vendor Associate of Leading Real Estate Companies of the World's™ Leading Real Estate Solutions™.

-Sean Cutright

AP: Tax credit only good for homes purchased through the end of August

In digging through the scattered details of the homebuyer tax credit of the economic stimulus bill, I have occasionally found a new update here and there.

The latest? That the now-$8,000 homebuyer tax credit is only good for homes purchased by the end of August.

The article, which can be found here, states:

"A $15,000 tax credit for anybody buying a home over the next year was dropped; instead, first-time homebuyers could claim an $8,000 credit for homes bought by the end of August. Car buyers could deduct the sales tax they paid on a new car but not the interest on their car loans."

I'm not sure why the credit is only good for homes purchased within the next seven months, but I'll be looking to find out.

-Sean Cutright

Bloomberg.com: Homebuyer tax credit reduced, but not removed

In an interesting turn of events, a Bloomberg.com article is reporting that the homebuyer tax credit was not removed from the economic stimulus package, but was reduced from $15,000 to $8,000 max.

The article, which was updated just after 7pm Eastern on Wednesday, stated:

"Negotiators all but eliminated the biggest tax cut for businesses, a provision that would let companies convert losses into tax refunds, Baucus said. He said the provision, which would have let companies claim an estimated $67.5 billion in tax refunds this year and next, was sacrificed to help keep the final package under $800 billion. A proposed $15,000 tax credit for homebuyers was reduced to $8,000, Baucus said."

So we've gone from a $15,000 homebuyer tax credit, to a possible reduction of the credit, to a rumor of the credit being removed entirely, back to the credit having been reduced to $8,000, and all in a span of eight hours.

I wouldn't be surprised if there are more twists to this story by the time the bill makes it to President Obama's desk, IF it makes it to his desk. If so, I promise to keep you updated.

Questions or comments? Contact Sean Cutright at scutright@deltagroup.com.

UPDATE: $15,000 homebuyer tax credit wiped out?

A new update from the Associated Press suggests that the $15,000 homebuyer tax credit may have been taken out of the economic stimulus package entirely.

The AP story with this update is the same as one I linked to here, but the wording in the story has been changed. The new story states:

"Working to accommodate the new, lower overall limit of the bill, negotiators effectively wiped out a Senate-passed provision for a new $15,000 tax credit to defray the cost of buying a home, these officials said. The agreement would allow taxpayers to deduct the sales tax paid on new car purchases, but not the interest on loans for the same vehicles."

The previous article stated:

"[Max] Baucus had said earlier that $35.5 billion to provide a $15,000 homebuyer tax credit, approved in the Senate last week, would be cut back. There was also pressure to reduce a Senate-passed tax break for new car buyers, according to Democratic officials."

How quickly things can change in Congress.

Without the $15,000 homebuyer tax credit, will the bill revert back to the $7,500 tax credit? The updated verbiage of this story opens a lot of new and discomforting questions. Contact Sean Cutright at scutright@deltagroup.com if you have any.

$15k homebuyer tax credit to be scaled back?

Will the $15,000 homebuyer tax credit be scaled back in the final versions of the recently-approved economic stimulus package?

Reports say so, as can be seen in the eighth paragraph of this Yahoo! story. According to the article:

"Baucus had said earlier that $35.5 billion to provide a $15,000 homebuyer tax credit, approved in the Senate last week, would be cut back. There was also pressure to reduce a Senate-passed tax break for new car buyers, according to Democratic officials."

"Baucus" refers to Senate Finance Committee Chairman Senator Max Baucus, Democrat from Montana. So far, Baucus is the only member of the committee to reportedly make such a statement publicly.

I promised to deliver the most up to date news on this topic, and will continue to do so as updates come. Contact Sean Cutright with questions and comments at scutright@deltagroup.com.

To read previous and future updates on the homebuyer tax credit, visit Sean Cutright's blog at www.dripmarketingblog.com.

Decline in for-sale homes brings more good real estate news

The past month has already brought us plenty of positive news for the real estate industry.

The homebuyer tax credit was approved in the economic stimulus package by the Senate; judging by predictors, home sales are currently on verge of an increase; and home sales unexpectedly rebounded in December.

In addition, the Wall Street Journal reported that the inventory of homes for sale has declined. The article, which can be found here, was released two days ago, and I'm amazed that I have not found anyone in the industry that's really talking about it.

In 2008 a widely-discussed topic at real estate conventions was how to improve home sales when the amount of homes on the market was reaching record highs. Prices had not dropped enough for buyers to start buying, and the growing inventory was like the proverbial groundhog spotting his shadow--six more weeks (or, more likely, two more years) of a bad real estate market!

But now, "The supply of homes available for sale in 29 major metropolitan areas at the end of January was down 2.5% from a month earlier," the article stated. The kicker is, this happened in a month that historically sees for-sale homes increasing in supply.

With supply getting lower, demand should soon increase, particularly after the homebuyer tax credit is approved completely and word is spread to consumers.

All in all, this makes for a lot more good news for the real estate industry.

Contact Sean Cutright with questions and comments at scutright@deltagroup.com.

Further updates: $15,000 Home buyer tax credit

RISMedia takes a good look this morning at the details of the proposed $15,000 home buyer tax credit, approved by the Senate as part of the economic stimulus bill.

The article is lengthy, and mainly political in its first half. The second half gets into the specifics of the home buyer tax credit, how it will work, and the impact it should have on the real estate industry. In short, RISMedia repeats the National Association of Home Builders' estimates that the tax credit "will boost home sales by almost 500,000, create more than 255,000 jobs, generate $12.3 billion in wages and salaries and increase federal, state and local tax revenue by $8.7 billion."

Read the RISMedia article by clicking here

The article also says the home buyer tax credit would:

"Create a $15,000 home buyer tax credit available to all purchasers of a principle residence for one year after its date of enactment. The tax credit would not have to be repaid and buyers could claim it against their 2008 and/or 2009 tax returns.

"The $15,000 home buyer tax credit would replace and sunset a much narrower tax credit that was enacted last year. Available only to first-time home buyers, the current $7,500 tax credit works like an interest-free loan that must be repaid over a 15-year period. It is set to expire on July 1."

As promised yesterday, I will keep updates on news and opinion of the home buyer tax credit and its implications on the real estate industry. Please contact Sean Cutright with questions at scutright@deltagroup.com.

NEWS UPDATE: In-depth look at homebuyer tax credit

Inman News has just posted the most thorough breakdown I've come across of the economic stimulus package and how the $15,000 homebuyer tax credit relates to the real estate industry.

Click here to read the article

The Inman News article states that "the National Association of Home Builders welcomed the Senate's move, saying a $15,000 tax break for all home buyers could generate nearly 500,000 home sales and create more than 255,000 jobs."

The Inman article also noted:

"The Senate today approved an $838 billion economic stimulus bill that includes a $15,000 homebuyer tax credit, just hours after President Barack Obama's new Treasury secretary unveiled a multitrillion-dollar financial stability plan that includes $50 billion for foreclosure prevention programs.

"The financial stability plan may also lead to an expansion of existing efforts by the Federal Reserve to drive down mortgage interest rates by buying mortgage-backed securities and debt issued by Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and Ginnie Mae."

I will post more information as it is released. If you have comments, questions, or more helpful materials to share, please contact Sean Cutright at scutright@deltagroup.com.

Gain opportunities through the home buyers tax credit

The passing of the economic stimulus package by the Senate is provoking a lot of discussion about the proposed home buyers tax credit.

As a real estate professional,
Have you informed your customers about this package yet?
Have you blogged about it?

Now is the best time to do so, as you can spread the positive real estate news, show yourself and your real estate brokerage to be the industry experts on the topic, and potentially pick up some new prospects as a result.

I heavily encourage real estate professionals to spread the word on the home buyers tax relief, as this could generate some great opportunities for you. Consider how many people may have been on the fence, knowing they would invest in real estate in the next few years, but, as result of this package, will make it a goal to do so in 2009.

If you're still sketchy on the full details of the home buyers tax relief proposal, I will have those for you in full detail soon. Make sure to revisit www.dripmarketingblog.com for updates, or contact Sean Cutright at scutright@deltagroup.com.

If you'd like additional information on how to correctly use blogging, social networking, or your real estate website to best spread this news, Delta Media Group can help. Just let me know.

Economic relief package passed by Senate, Questions persist about home buyers tax credit

The proposed economic relief package was approved by the Senate, as the New York Times reported here.

In the real estate industry, the biggest questions remain about whether the proposed $15,000 home buyers tax credit will stay as it was initially proposed, or change. Real estate professionals are also eager to see the exact details behind the proposal.

Details are still sketchy as new information is being released. I will keep you updated on new home buyers tax credit information I can find, as well as the feedback I receive from real estate brokers and agents around the country that I speak with. Last week I posed the question: Will the proposed $15,000 home buyers tax credit help the real estate industry? Most of the feedback I received from real estate professionals about the tax credit was positive.

This morning, a Florida broker expressed to me his favor toward the home buyers tax credit, as the median home prices in his real estate brokerage's region have dropped enough that the proposed $15,000 tax incentive should have a major impact. It may have had less of one, he said, if home prices were still at pre-2006 levels.

A broker in Illinois expressed similar ideals to me yesterday, stating that she expects the market to have a solid rebound if the home buyers tax credit is passed, but if it didn't, she joked, "we may be looking for jobs outside of the real estate industry!"

Questions, comments, opinions? Contact Sean Cutright at scutright@deltagroup.com.

Delta Media Group breaks from Webinars this week, beefs up for next

Delta Media Group will not be holding any real estate training Webinars this week.

We are taking a week off to assemble a new package we will be offering, designed to better optimize applied training.

Delta Media Group's Webinars have been a huge success, with over 1,000 real estate agents and brokers attending in the past few weeks. But, while the information shared during the Webinars has been informative and profitable, we want to better enhance the info so real estate professionals can best apply it to their business practices.

Starting next week, Delta Media Group will release our new Webinar series, complete with interactive worksheets and check-off lists of steps to take to best apply the discussed real estate practices. The interactive sessions are aimed to not just educate real estate brokers and agents, but to help them best implement the discussed techniques to their daily business. We feel strongly that the new model will best help real estate professionals to improve their leads and sales by helping apply the practices discussed in the Webinars.

Please contact Sean Cutright with any questions on Delta Media Group's new training Webinar series. More information to come.

Final Delta Media Group Webinar of the week

Delta Media Group's final Webinar of the week will begin shortly.

The Webinar, titled " HTML Editor Tips, Tricks and Suggestions," is hosted by Delta Media Group President Mike Minard. The bio for the Webinar reads:
An overview of how to use the built-in HTML Editor in the Delta Media Group System with Search Engine Optimization tip, tricks and suggestions. During this session I will show agents and administrators how to adjust fonts, place images, insert links and more.

Mike has previously hosted a few Webinars on the topic, and received great feedback from the hundreds of real estate agents that have attended.

If you're looking to learn how to best use the Delta Media Group HTML editor to improve Search Engine Optimization, don't miss the session.

Click here to register for the Webinar.

Contact Sean Cutright with any questions at scutright@deltagroup.com.

$15k homebuyer tax credit good for the industry?

There has been a lot of talk over the past 24 hours about a proposal to add a $15,000 home buyers' tax credit to the economic stimulus package.

Let's first clarify by noting that this is currently only a proposal. It has not yet been passed, as I've seen some blogs report.

Second, it is also not for a guaranteed $15,000, but up to $15,000. It would actually give buyers a tax credit of 10 percent of the price of their primary home purchased, with a $15,000 max.

From what I can gather this looks to be good for the real estate industry. It may nudge some people to buy instead of rent for the tax savings. It may push some to relocate if they are not happy with their house, but have not been upset enough to move. It may make some people buy this year rather than "down the road," when they planned to.

The New York Times had one of the better articles I've seen on the proposal, which, I remind you again, is currently just a proposal.

Johnny Isakson, Republican senator of Georgia, was the prime sponsor of the credit, according to the article. It just so happens he is also a former real estate broker, so he knows a thing or two about the industry. The article goes on to say the credit "was modeled after a similar, $2,000 homebuyer incentive that helped lead the country out of recession in 1975."

My optimism is growing.

Isakson continued in the article:

“'We do have a history in this country with housing and it goes back to the crash of 1974, which actually in terms of inventory and price declines was comparable to what’s happening now,' Mr. Isakson said at a news conference.

“'Within one year of the inception of that tax credit, two-thirds of the available inventory that was on the market was gone. The market moved back to a balanced inventory, values stabilized and things became very healthy. The only reason I know all of that is I was selling houses in 1974, that’s what I was doing to feed my family and make a living.'”

This could be a very good thing for the market. The question now is, will it hurt the market until it is (theoretically speaking) passed, as buyers may wait for the package to go through before finalizing their purchases?

I'd love to hear your thoughts. Contact Sean Cutright at scutright@deltagroup.com.

Today's Webinar focus: Real estate blogging

Both of Delta Media Group's training Webinars will focus on blogging today, though in different ways.

At 11am Eastern, Delta Media Group Vice President Jonathan Blood will host our first ever Webinar exclusively on blogging: "Blog Your Way To The Top In 2009."

The bio reads:
Learn how to use a Blogging strategy to increase your website exposure through Search Engines.

The second Webinar is at 3pm Eastern and will be hosted by Delta Media Group President Mike Minard.

The bio for "Attracting Visitors With Web Site Content and Blogging" reads:
Strict focus on Search Engine Optimization (SEO), web site content, and how content helps to drive SEO. Blogging is also discussed in depth, learning what the purpose of blogging is, how to effectively blog, and how often to blog.

The Webinars will overlap slightly in topic, but are very different. If you want to learn more about blogging in real estate, I recommend you attend both.

Visit www.deltagroup.com/training to register for either Webinar, or contact Sean Cutright with questions at scutright@deltagroup.com.

3pm today: Webinar on adding audio to your real estate website

At 3pm Eastern today, Delta Media Group will host a Webinar on how to use sound to enhance your real estate website.

This will be the first Webinar Delta Media Group has hosted on the topic, titled " Bring Your Website Alive With Audio."

The bio for the Webinar reads:
One of the easiest ways to grab the attention of visitors to your website is to add THE POWER OF VOICE. For example, a Welcome Message!

There are many exciting solution offerings on the market today, at varying costs and levels of service. This example uses several free software offerings found on the internet.

During this session, you will learn how to create an audio welcome message and how to embed the audio message into your Delta Media Group website.

Set yourself apart from the rest of the crowd and add audio to your site in 2009!

Click here to register for the Webinar, or contact Sean Cutright with questions at scutright@deltagroup.com.

How NOT to use Social Networking

So if you read this blog, you know I'm a huge advocate of Social Networking.

As an iPhone-carrying member of Generation Y, I dutifully follow my professional Facebook account, my personal Facebook account, my Twitter account, and the accounts I have on Trulia, ActiveRain, LinkedIn, etc. (I have a MySpace account, but I'm not a fan).

I see the value of Social Networking from a professional and educational level. I love the ability to keep up with friends, no matter how distant. I fully comprehend, and often preach the benefits of Social Networking to those that don't quite get it.

But every once in a while, it can go too far.

Such was the case today, when I checked my Facebook account to find that I had an invite to a birthday party. A dog's birthday party...

Granted, it was a half-joking way for a friend, who's still in college, to throw a creative social gathering. I'll give him that. But sending the invite for the dog's birthday party to over 600 people via Facebook? The only thing more absurd would be a blog about the topic...

As I've previously mentioned, I'm dedicating a considerable amount of blog space to tips and updates on Social Networking sources and practices. For those keeping note, mark "birthday party invite for my dog" on the "Don't Use Social Networking for This..." list.

For more undeniably helpful tips, stay tuned to Sean Cutright's blog, or visit www.seancutright.com.

Details on today's real estate Webinars

As I previously mentioned this week, Delta Media Group will host two training Webinars today for agents and brokers using the DMG real estate website and lead management systems.

The first begins at 1pm Eastern, and offers an in-depth look at the agent website system. The Webinar will serve as an intensive training course for real estate agents that are new to, but somewhat familiar with their Delta Media Group website. It will also serve as a refresher course for real estate agents that would like to touch up their familiarity of the Web system, or learn some of its newer functionality.

The second Webinar is on a brand new topic that we have not previously covered, and begins at 3pm Eastern. I'll have more details on this soon, but it should be exciting.

Dont forget to check Delta Media Group's Training page to view and register for every upcoming Delta Media Group Webinar. Contact Sean Cutright with any questions at scutright@deltagroup.com.

Home sales on verge of increase, according to these figures

Home sales are likely on the verge of increasing, as evidenced by two major real estate technology predictors.

Trulia, a leading national real estate search engine and social networking website, reported that consumer activity on their website was up tremendously in January.

The report, which can be read on Trulia's blog by clicking here, is positive news and a potential sign of optimism for the real estate industry. It states that "Consumers on Trulia viewed 40% more pages per visit compared to a year ago and participated in the Trulia Voices community more than ever before with a 115% year-over-year growth in real estate questions, answers and blog posts." This, the blog claims, equates to the best month of the company's history.

Delta Media Group is seeing very similar increases in leads and traffic among the real estate website and lead management systems we build for brokers and agents acros the country. These numbers will be released soon and, combined with the Trulia report, certainly show an upwards trend of real estate interest.

In November we were able to correctly predict a coming increase in real estate sales, as we saw a spike in website leads and portfolio creations among the real estate brokers and agents we work with. At the time, home sales had taken a steep drop nationally, but, just as projected, increased in December in what the mainstream media has since referred to as "an unexpected rebound."

If the trend holds true, we should experience the same brand of mainstream media astonishment in February-March.

For more info on these studies or Delta Media Group's real estate website and lead management systems, contact Sean Cutright at scutright@deltagroup.com.

Delta Media Group agent Webinar today

If you're a new agent to Delta Media Group's real estate website and lead management systems, take the opportunity to register for the agent training Webinar, scheduled for 1pm Eastern today.

The Webinar will last about an hour, and is hosted by Ray Lester, Delta Media Group's national trainer. The topic is "Introduction to the Agent Delta System," and the bio reads:

Associates will become familiar with DeltaNet features, functions, and navigation. Topics covered during this session include Agent Log-in and Navigation, Lead and Contact Management, Listing Management, Preferences and Passwords, and key system features that are important to buyers and sellers. This session is recommended for all agents that are new to the Delta Media Group system.

You can register for the Webinar by clicking here. If you're unable to attend the Webinar, Delta Media Group is hosting five more this week, though each is on a different topic. Click here to view the real estate Webinar schedule.

For more information, contact Sean Cutright at scutright@deltagroup.com.

Delta Media Group to host six real estate Webinars this week

I wanted to give a quick reminder that Delta Media Group is hosting six real estate Webinars this week, starting tomorrow. A quick schedule looks like this:

Tuesday:

• Introduction to the Delta Media Group Agent Web System

Wednesday:

• The Agent Website System in Depth
• Bring Your Website Alive With Audio

Thursday:

• Blog Your Way To The Top In 2009
• Attracting Visitors With Website Content and Blogging

Friday:

• HTML Editor Tips, Tricks and Suggestions

Remember to sign up for or follow Delta Media Group's detailed Webinar schedule at www.deltagroup.com/training. You can also access previously recorded live Webinars at Delta Media Group's Training page, or find more information about the real estate website and lead management developer.

For more information, contact Sean Cutright at scutright@deltagroup.com.

Facebook, and the possible future of real estate marketing

I've been writing a lot about Social Networking sites recently, and how these can come into play with increasing real estate business or contacts.

Keeping focus on that topic, I received a "Tweet" from Twitter this morning linking to an article about Facebook from the Telegraph.co.uk, talking about the company's torrential market research database (Tubular use of "T's," huh? OK, so I was reaching with "torrential"...).

It sums up to this: Facebook can access the info of all their users and apply that to a database from which companies can directly market to consumers with relative interests. This was taken a step further with Facebook's new instant polling tool, which can gather users' responses by geographic region in minutes (Click here to read the article).

The technology is opening a new door in the world of online advertising, and one that may soon have a large impact on the real estate industry. The same can be said for Google's "GDrive," which I blogged about last weekend.

Take it as you will for now, but it could have massive implications to marketing a real estate website in the future.

Questions? Comments? Contact Sean Cutright at scutright@deltagroup.com.

Meeting update: New Delta Media Group headquarters a month away

We were updated in Delta Media Group's company meeting this morning that our new headquarters and data hosting center looks to open in about one month.

The two-story building is over 30,000 square feet, with the entire downstairs serving as a massive data hosting center. The second floor will house our offices and additional work space.

The new headquarters will bring an exciting start to a fresh year, and an even faster, smoother Web presence to those companies using Delta Media Group as their real estate website and lead management developer.

A ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new headquarters is scheduled for March 5. I'll release further updates as they come, or you can contact me with questions at scutright@deltagroup.com.

Sean Cutright