Week 6 - Alternate Assignment

My Facebook Page

We first created our business Facebook page in September, 2017, as Cortes Real Estate and Investments, Inc.  We rebranded our business Born & Raised Realty, in June of 2018.  We haven’t been able to change our Facebook page name to Born & Raised Realty even though we’ve requested the name change numerous times and were denied. We appealed the denial, but always received a standard automated response of denial of the appeal.  We have been waiting to invite people to like our page until after we get this handled. Just last week I finally was able to get an actual person to respond and I am hopeful we will finally get the name change soon.  Currently, we have 61 followers and 58 total likes. In the last few months our posts have gotten between 91-146 link clicks and 157 – 253 post engagements. Our reach has been between 1,270 – 2,285.

In researching, I found three businesses that are similar to my business. 

The Shelhamer Real Estate Group is using Facebook to promote their business and real estate listings.  This company has room for improvement, as I see only four posts in 2019, no posts in 2018 and one post in 2017. The Cover photo is a photo of their team which helps the visitor right off the bat see who the business is. There are no calls to action that I can see. Consistently posting on a schedule both listings and other items of value, and adding calls to action could greatly improve the effectiveness of their Facebook page.

Charles Dunn Company is a commercial real estate company and they have a professional presence on Facebook with relevant posts of their transactions and listings. Their most recent posts are from October 2018 and they were posting about 3 times per week. Their Cover photo is a very nice professional photo over-looking the city skyscrapers. This is a great photo choice for a commercial real estate company. I also did not see any calls to action on this Facebook page. I think this company for the industry it is in is using Facebook effectively.  

Keyes Real Estate uses Facebook to promote their real estate business and transactions. They have many positive reviews from previous clients. They post consistently about twice per week and each posting is really nice with professional photos and useful information. Their Cover photo is a photo of their office space, which to me doesn’t really tell me much about them or the type of business they have. As far as a call to action, the only thing I see is a tab to “Call Now”. The only area I think they could improve on, is that first impression a visitor gets when they see the Cover photo. 

After reviewing these business pages, I think I can improve my business page by posting more consistently. I also believe the use of professional photos in my posts will make a difference. The pages I visited with the professional posts really looked impressive and were much more enjoyable to browse through, which meant I spent more time on those pages compared to pages with poor quality posts.

Week 5 - Post 2 - Defining My Target Market

The target market for Born & Raised Realty are both male or female, age 25 to 60, of all races and religious beliefs. The client has at least some community college or higher education.  The typical client is primarily one who is married or in a committed relationship, with a household income of $120,000 or higher, and with good credit. The client resides in or is looking to purchase or sell a home in North County San Diego or south Riverside county, CA.  

The psychographic description of our client are those who value stability. They believe in making wise financial investments, moving ahead in life, and planning for the future.  They’re hard workers with an attitude that the American dream is alive and well, and investing in a home is a stepping stone to living that dream. They may be searching for a starter house, or their family is growing and they are interested in selling their current home and looking for a larger property to raise their children. The client may also be an investor looking for either rental property or a flip to buy and sell for a profit. They are tech savvy and spend much time on the internet. Typically, it’s online where they begin most any research.

Our client is interested in quality services and a personal experience.  Understanding that the purchase of a home is one of the biggest purchases most people will ever make, it is important to the client to choose a realtor who is not only experienced and honest, but one that listens to their needs and puts the client's best interest first, guiding them through the entire process.

Week 5 - Post 1 - Target Markets

Armstrong Garden Centers

The website is a well-organized representation of the actual nursery. In the “About Us”, page you can further access tabs titled “Employee Ownership”, “Armstrong Grown”, ” Donations”, “Careers”, and “Contact Us”. The website is informative and in reading you will find that it’s a well-known nursery that has been around since 1880. This particular website is for the store located in Glendora, CA, however, there are 31 stores Armstrong Garden Centers.

Throughout the website, there is an initial call to action which is prompting the visitor to click the “LEARN MORE” tab. This then takes them to a page that prompts them to “BOOK NOW”. There are also free classes and services offered and the site visitor can “ADD TO CALENDAR” or “VIEW DETAILS”

The target market is someone interested in visiting nurseries or shopping for plants and garden accessories online. This person is probably 30-60 years old, middle to upper class, likely a home owner interested in improving the landscape of their property. This person may be interested in education, and attending classes and other events. It’s possible they have an interest in landscape designer services. The customer is someone on a mission, they come, purchase what they want, possibly learn something, and leave.

Myrtle Creek Gardens & Nursery

The website is a warm welcome into the country, giving the rustic, farmhouse feel. There are many photos that show the setting in an environment rich with history and a story that draws you in. The property is covered with flowers, plants, trees, and herbs that grow wild.  The restaurant, Café Bloom, offers farm to table dining, and you can order made to order hot crêpes from the Crêperie. There is a bird sanctuary, a butterfly garden, and a fairy garden workshop where guests can create their very own curious garden. Guests can participate in historic farm tours. Myrtle Creek is a one of a kind experience, not just a nursery.

This website isn’t really usingcall to action with the exception of where they give the option to join the eNewsletter. A visitor can fill in their information and click “Subscribe Me!” to receive News and Promotions.

The target market can be anyone who is local or visiting from out of town. This is a historic destination for visitors of all ages, young and old alike, looking for an experience in the country, surrounded by nature. It can be a great place for a couple to go on a date and have a picnic in the field while taking in the scenery. Also, a great place for a mother/daughter outing.  Between the ages of 3 to 93, there is something for everyone, but I would guess it appeals more to women. Myrtle creek offers a care-free experience and opportunity for bonding. The garden is the perfect place for those who have the time to enjoy what it offers, taking in the beautiful flowers, plants, trees, and other creatures that live there. 

Conclusion

Although these two nurseries offer very different services and experiences, I do believe that anyone with a love for plants would enjoy both. I think those in search of information and purchasing plant products will spend more time on the Armstrong website and store.  Those in search of an outing and unique experience will visit Myrtle Creek where there is the option of not only purchasing plants and products, but also enjoying a meal, checking out the bird sanctuary, butterflies and goats, and maybe even creating their very own fairy garden.  

Week 4 - Part 2

Two websites I use and visit frequently are https://www.buffiniandcompany.com and https://www.thredup.com/.  I would say the number one reason these websites are effective is because they offer value to the user.  Buffini and company offers many tools and resources to its members and ThredUp offers excellent name brand clothing and accessories for hugely discounted prices. 

From the moment I enter the Buffini and Company website I can see many principles of good design.  This website offers a professional presence, is well organized and easy to use. It’s clear what kind of business it is, who they are as a business and what they offer. The toolbar is accessible consistently on the left side of every page, the business logo is on the top left as well as at the very bottom, and there are good quality and informative photos with additional links to more great information. It really is jam packed with great videos and resources all very well organized. There are links to Facebook, Instagram, twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn, and Pinterest, so I can easily get more information and interact with the business on multiple platforms. There is also an easy to locate company info page and “contact us” link with a physical address, business hours, and a contact telephone number.

ThredUp also has a well-designed and highly functional webpage. It’s an easy-to-use website with a good filtering system, so I can really narrow down what I am looking for.  I like that the site is straight forward, not bogged down with too many options, yet really makes it convenient to quickly see if they have what you’re looking for. There are plenty of good photos which are organized in different categories.  The logo is at the top left corner of every page, there is a search box in the top right side of every page, and the closing information is at the bottom of the page. 

I tend to visit the Buffini and Company website on a regular basis because there are may tips and tools that I enjoy using.  The website is regularly updated with relevant information to my business and the service offerings are always being added to.  I also regularly visit the ThredUp website because the products are constantly changing every day by the 10’s of thousands. When I do visit the site, I tend to get sucked in to spending more time than I should and probably buying more than I planned.  

I think both websites are really great. I cannot find anything on either website that needs improvement. Perhaps as the weeks go on and I learn more I will have to revisit and re-evaluate these websites.  I hope my business website emulates these, specifically the Buffini website, once I finish with it.

Week 4 - Part 1

Problem Examples:

http://www.pennyjuice.com/ 

The Penny Juice webpage has a few issues that can create potential problems for visitors. First, it’s lacking in contrast as the entire page is full of bright colors, none standing out more than any other. Also, although the logo is at the top of the page, it is not in the background so the new page content goes behind it as the visitor navigates down the page. The headlines are all centered with multiple different types and sizes of font, not easy on the eyes and they are too far from the text body.  

To improve the overall appearance of the website it would help by increasing contrast in the color scheme of the webpage, putting the logo in the background, and selecting a decorative yet uniform font for the headlines that stands out clearly from the text body and situated close enough to the text body. 

http://jamilin.com

This site is too busy, there is a ton of information on the landing page.  I’m not sure what the business is and I didn’t see a logo. There are many small pictures, a lot of small font and at least 6 different colors of fonts. There are also many different drop-down menus that each have long lists of options.

It would help to simplify the landing page by only using one or two good quality pictures, streamlining the verbiage, and sticking to one or two font colors. This website needs serious organization on the main page as well as each subsequent page. A lot of the information on the home page can be moved to different pages, and each of the pages need to be organized as well. 

Excellent Examples:

The http://apple.com/

This website is an excellent example of a well-designed and user-friendly website. It is aesthetically pleasing with the black and white contrasting homepage, crisp photos and legible font.  The selection options are clearly posted and the site is easy to navigate which may create further interest in additional products and accessories by the viewer. 

https://www.nps.gov/index.htm

The National Park Service has a very nice website, great photos and easy to navigate. As soon as I got to the page it was very clear what website I was on. The logo is in the top left of the webpage, but also at the bottom so they do a good job with using branding in their page. The menu tab is clearly located in the top left corner with a simple and organized drop-down selection. The color scheme is contrasting and complementary with greens, blues, greys, black, and white. The font is in both black and white, easy to read, and contrasts well with the background. There are multiple tabs aesthetically pleasing to the eye that are a call to action, engaging the visitor.  The page is organized in a way that I want to continue to reading and learning more about the organization because it’s user friendly, interesting and informative.

Week 3 - Part 2 - Five Business Examples of Social Media

Business: Team Bjorkman Real Estate

Their website is https://teambjorkman.com. At the bottom of the webpage are the icons for Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. When I clicked the links, Facebook had a message, “sorry this content isn’t available right now”.  Instagram and Twitter are both up and running with frequent and recent real estate posts. The most recent Twitter post is from February 1^stand the most recent Instagram post was from 1 day ago, Feb. 9^th. Team Bjorkman Real Estate seems to have a great social media presence. Their consistent postings of photos and informational real estate videos and holiday greetings help to keep them and their business at the front of followers’ minds.

Business:RESULTS real estate group.

Their website is https://www.roryposin.com. The social media links on their website are Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter, as well as Yelp and Zillow. Each of these pages are regularly updated. The most recent Instagram post was 5 days ago, Facebook post was February 5^th, Twitter was February 5^th. RESULTS Real Estate Group has a very professional and consistent presence on social media.  I really like their photos, videos and other postings and would like to create a similar presence for my business.

Business: The Shelhamer Real Estate Group. 

Their website is https://www.shelhamergroup.com/. The social media they are visibly using on their website are Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, Yelp, Zillow and YouTube.There are four informational YouTube videos from 2 years ago. Last Facebook post was from 2 years ago.   The last Twitter was 11 hours ago and the previous to that was March from 2018.

Business: Charles Dunn Real Estate Services. 

Their website is https://charlesdunn.com. The social media links on their website are Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Instagram. The last post on Facebook was October 24, 2018. Prior to that it looks as though the posts were consistently made about every 3-5 days.  This similar trend is found on Twitter, LinkedIn and Instagram, with the most recent Twitter post October 25^th, the most recent LinkedIn post was  3 months ago, and a most recent post on Instagram was October 25^th.  Charles Dunn is a large commercial real estate company and although all there postings are very professional and relevant to the services they offer, it does seem odd that all their social media pages have stopped updates.

Business: Keyes Real Estate

Their website is http://keyesla.com. The social media there are links to on their website are Facebook, twitter, Google+, LinkedIn, Instagram, and Vimeo. Facebook, Twitter and Instagram postings are 2-3 times week last post on both was Jan 30, 2018. Google + was the similar patter with the last update 2 weeks ago. On LinkedIn there is one post from 9 months ago. As with the other real estate businesses I researched, Keyes Real Estate is utilizing all the main social media outlets to get their business in front of people. They post relevant photos and information that attracts the interest of those on these platforms. So they will be at the top of mind when a connection needs the type of services they offer. 

Discovery

First of all, I began my research by looking for some of the most successful real estate companies in Los Angeles county. In doing so, I found that every single one of them have professional and useful websites and all utilize multiple social media platforms.  I am going to return to these businesses’ websites and social media platforms over the course of the next few weeks and work on developing my business platforms to model after a few of these that I really liked. 

Five of the five businesses had links on their website to Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.  From what I’ve heard, these three platforms are the most popular with the most users and greatest reach to many different target markets.  This is something I will do as well as I build up my professional social media platforms. It is very convenient for prospective clients to have access to all of these in one place.  It’s also a great way to showcase your businesses services and experience with current and past transactions and offerings.

Three of the businesses I researched also had links to their LinkedIn account. This is a great way to promote oneself as a professional and build credibility.  What I like about LinkedIn is it gives us a place to be specific about our skills, experience, accomplishments, and rewards.  I think this platform is a must for a real estate company.

Two of the businesses included links to Yelp and Zillow on their website. This is very helpful because many people who search online for an agent want to see reviews on those two platforms. One business had a link to their Google + and Vimeo.  I don’t know if many people are on Google+, but when I clicked on the Vimeo link there were some great videos that I think definitely added value to the viewer and a professional touch.  Come to think of it, although all these social media sites are an excellent way to stay in front of the market, I think when you do that by adding value to the viewer you leave a lasting impression.

I commented on the following three blog posts:

Mary Goulet https://csit155sp19maryg.blogspot.com

Carlyrose Raketich https://csitcarlyrose.blogspot.com

Peyton Jansma https://csit155-sp19-peytonj.blogspot.com

Week 3 - Part 1 - Communication Between Business & Customer

Have you ever experienced difficulty communicating with a business? I once purchased a hand-held Dirt Devil so I could more easily vacuum my stairs and clean out my car.  On the box was an illistrated bubble that said “New longer lasting lithium battery!” But even after I fully charged the battery, when unplugged from the wall, the fully charged battery only lasted about 90 seconds! I purchased it at Walmart, but I couldn’t return it there, they would only let me do an even exchange.  I exchanged the vacuum 3 times and the same thing happened every time! It was such a hassle! I still have Dirt Devil #4 because the thought of dealing with contacting Dirt Devil and paying to ship it back to them is an inconvenience.

I believe social media makes it easier to get noticed by a business, especially when you present a problem or complaint about a product or service.  I personally have never communicated with a business through social media. However, I have responded to many of our clients or prospective clients who comment on our posts or sent us private messages inquiring about our services.  A few times I reviewed businesses on their social media pages and I that's a very useful tool when customers give accurate ratings. 

In business, I believe it’s important to respond to every comment a client makes on social media. It’s important for a client to know there is someone on the receiving end of their comment, they are being heard, and will receive a timely and thoughtful response. If it is a positive comment, I would thank them for the comment as well as mention how it was a pleasure to work with them, and add something to personalize the message specific to that client. If someone made a negative comment regarding my business, I would still respond respectfully. I want the client to know that we take our job seriously and it is always our goal to go above and beyond exceeding expectations. Depending on the comment, I might clarify the situation in detail, respectfully and thoroughly, explaining actions taken to fulfill our responsibilities to the client and actions taken that were beyond our responsibility. If something in a transaction went wrong and it was at the fault of our business, we would take full responsibility. 

In responding to a comment on social media, my hope would be that the client, as well as anyone who reads my response will have a greater understanding of the bigger picture.  Since I am in real estate we cannot offer a replacement product or refund, in some businesses this may be appropriate. I believe what makes one’s experience either positive or negative when communicating with a business through social media is the timeliness of a response, whether or not the issue at hand is addressed, and whether or not the company takes responsibility for their part in a situation.