Do you recall Garrett Morris' Saturday Night Live character Chico Escuela? His famous line was “Baseball has been very, very good to me.” Let me borrow from that sentiment to say, “Blogging has been very, very good to me!”  

My own experiences with blogging testify to the positive effect it can have in marketing and growing a real estate business. For the past couple of years I have been talking about real estate and mortgage fraud on my Flipping Frenzy blog (www.flippingfrenzy.com). I was frustrated with the lack of attention given the subject by the media, and felt a blog would be a good way to educate the public and, hopefully, curb the problem.  

Little did I know how powerful an impact blogging could have. The media started visiting the blog and began to use me as a source for feature articles on the subject. The FBI started referring people to the blog and judges used it in two separate cases. As a result, I am now considered an international expert on mortgage fraud.  

So powerful has been the effect I have now incorporated blogs into my Ralph Roberts real estate site (www.ralphroberts.com), and on a philanthropic site called The Big Nail (www.thebignail.com). I am also a contributing blogger on the official real estate industry blog, RealBlogging.com (www.realblogging.com).  

From a business standpoint, blogging has given me the ability to establish myself as an expert in mortgage fraud, created many opportunities for interviews, speaking engagements, and has helped me build my personal brand better than any other tool I have ever used.  

Now, do you understand why I say blogging has been very, very good to me? Here is a list of just some of the ways blogging can work for you as well:

• Search Engine Marketing – Blogs enable increased presence on major search engines like Google and Yahoo! One veteran blogger put it this way, “BLOG stands for Better Listings On Google.” 
  
• Direct Communications – Blogs enable you to speak directly and candidly with your customer and prospects.  
  
• Brand Building – Blogs provide an additional channel to put your brand in front of the customer and keep shaping its unique identity in real-time.  
  
• Competitive Differentiation - A real estate-related blog community will help set you apart from the competition and allow you to strengthen brand awareness and customer loyalty. 
  
• Relational Marketing – Blogs enable you to build personal, long-lasting relationships with your customer that foster trust.  
  
• Discover and Exploit the Niches – Blogs are very niche-specific. You can use them to penetrate niche markets that are underserved.  
  
• Media & Public Relations – The media relies on blogs for source material. As a result, journalists call you, not your competition.  
  
• Lead Generation – Blog are a more personal form of lead generation in that they enable you to establish rapport with readers which fosters trust. Over time that can mean contacts from prospects and customers. 
  
• Position You as Expert - Articulate your viewpoints, knowledge, and expertise on matters pertaining to real estate, your local community, etc.  
  
• Ease of use – Blogs require no technical skills. If you can send an email or use Word, you can blog. It’s that easy!

Blogs should be at the top of every Realtor’s marketing list. The Internet is no respecter of persons. What has worked for me can work for you as well. If you want a low-cost way of being out there in the marketplace every day, try blogging. It will be “very, very good” to you too!