Sunday, November 3, 2013

Social Media - It Can Be As Easy As Walking Through An Open House - Let's Break It Down!

As a real estate professional and entrepreneur with experience in many industries, please find below my insight into Social Media; Social Media is not a huge nebulous concept and unapproachable, #SocialMedia can be as easy as walking through an open house...let's open the door and take a look inside!



  1. Facebook.com - The Backyard BBQ - The behemoth, the big daddy on the block, the reality is that your interaction with Facebook probably matters more than the other top 5 combined.  What makes a good friend someone you want to talk with, they both talk & listen, Facebook is the same and if you are good at connecting with your friends... Facebook is your Backyard BBQ, the great deck or porch you have on your home, a lovely place to stay and what ultimately where all of your contacts would like to be, connecting with you personally.  How do you act at the BBQ, some are still formal, others are on the back deck in flip-flops grilling burgers, you make the call.  Facebook is the backyard BBQ because you share you, you don't promote here, you may mention what you do, but everyday people want to see this feed and interact with you on Facebook because they like you!  Exhibit your personality on Facebook and interact with your network in the same way you would if you met someone on the back deck of your house at a neighborhood BBQ.  Be personal, show your style, comment on what is going on in your friends life, wish them a happy birthday, tell them their daughter is cute, this is real life! A quick shout out to Chad Hyams from the KW BoldTech team - he inspired me on this post and was the person that put the idea of the Backyard BBQ & Cocktail Pary  in my head (see below for the cocktail pary / front porch reference).  Connect with me on FB here - Christopher.J.Cribb

  2. Twitter.com - The Cocktail Party  / Front Porch - At a recent Real Estate conference I had an esteemed colleague call this the "cocktail party", and in many ways I agree.  The beauty of Twitter is that the inventors realized that our time is precious and if you put limits on what people can say they will be short about it... 140 characters (120 in reality so others can RT you content) limits what you can say, and focuses the writer on making this statement short, and sweet.  I see Twitter as the front door, or the front porch of a house, what would you share if you were on the front porch of a house at a cocktail party;  this is what you should be tweeting about (not your last haircut).   No twitter conversation is correct without leaving your handle - connect with me please! @cjcribb - Christopher Cribb
  3. LinkedIn.com - The Corporate Boardroom / LibraryWe made it to what many people who are seeing this post are confused about; what is Linkedin.com - This is the boardroom, the spot that people that run businesses use understand, the true spot for expansion in a digital world   What would you say to the boardroom at your next corporate meeting?  Linkedin.com is what matters to business.  This is not the location to tell someone  what you are doing for dinner, this is the library of a house, the location people look to get information that is critical for them, the place that people would be looking to understand what the thought leaders in their industry think about a certain subject.  I have been influential about many subjects over the years (#wine, #kansascity, #socialmedia) and would submit that you should have a top notch profile on LinkedIn so that your circle of influence can find your talents, and know which areas you would be considered an expert.  Don't shout in the boardroom about the wrong thing!  Connect with me here on LinkedIn - Christopher J. Cribb & let me know if you are a KC expert, Real Estate Expert or Wine Expert I have great groups for you!
  4. Craigslist.com - The Sign In Your Front Yard / Garage Sale - First things first, there was a Craig at one point that made this site and he made it to be about selling things!  Craig's List was intended and should be used as the front yard sign or "Garage Sale" sign posted in your yard to let others know what you want to sell.  This site is meant to be basic in an effort to ensure everyone is at a level playing field.  There is a reason it is free, but there is also a reason that it works.  People are viewing this site much more than you can imagine.... 20 billion people look at these new age "want ads" each month and in many businesses you should be looking at this as a great free resource to help you sell things! No personal link to find me here - it moves too fast!
  5. Pinterest.com - The Kitchen & Ideas For The House - Pinterest has spun in to the online world with fast speed over the last two years and for that reason alone people should be taking interest.  Brands, please take note - you should have a Pinterest presence and monitor the traffic that your brands create because it matters to you overall web activity   Pinterest, when walking thorough our virtual open house, is the kitchen (not only because of the many recipes that are shared, but also because of the visual impact and ideas that are promoted).  The kitchen in any home is a great place to be, and one of the best locations, if you want an interactive gauge to assist you in this process, take a look at your next event and see how many people are in the kitchen... this is a place that people communicate! Follow my Pins here - cjcribb on Pintrest
  6. Facebook.com - Business Page - Your Virtual Shingle / Post Office & Phone -  In reviewing the overall virtual landscape, Facebook is king, but after Facebook went public it started selling stock... and had to make money as a public company. I don't know if everyone has taken a step back to understand the bigger picture for their new initiatives, but they are strongly commercial and if you would like to do a quick test to understand the change, follow me.  One, refresh your Facebook feed, the details change a bit at the top and someone that you are connected to comes up first (usually with a picture as it ranks the highest in their results), shortly thereafter that - 2nd on your feed will be a sponsored request, or a direct ad that people are targeting to you because of your profile.  If you want to target a specific population this entity has the where-with-all and ability to only target people that fit your ideal profile from geography to personal preferences and beyond.  There is still a VERY personal aspect to Facebook Business Pages as they are now "liked" by people that are invited to their population, but this company is in the business of making money and ad the 3rd largest population in the world ( if they were a country) they should be considered and your brand should be here.  One brief note - my personal opinion and the "rules of Facebook  ensure that you only have one personal profile and that your personal profile is not used as a business profile.  I will be posting my open houses to a personal and business profile as I would love my friends to come see me at an Open House (See Sunday Open 11/4/2013), but you need to have a reasonable separation of church and state (business vs. personal) - there is nothing more likely to get you de-friended or un-liked as a person that can not separate the two.  See my example & LIKE The Bubb Cribb Team - Reece & Nichols here any feedback is appreciated!
  7. YouTube.com - The Best HD TV In The House - Yes, YouTube.com can be more than cat videos, bloopers or Gangham Style fun... For social media use YouTube, owned by Google, I would compare this site to a theater room or as the awesome HDTV that I now have in more than one room of my house.  Videos seem tough, but we now all have cell phones with great cameras and video can be a great asset to sales efforts.  A simple testimonial, a look inside what a home can show, as a Realtor I love to take a short video from the back porch, to show my potential buyers the backyard BBQ experience that will make them want to come to this home.  I believe I mentioned earlier this site is now owned by Google, let me reemphasize just for the faint of heart, if you do videos and tag them correctly it will help your search engine results with Google.com!  We, my team, has committed to a new years resolution to become better in 2014, , but currently we could use some YouTube help - here is my personal page - Christopher Cribb and my previous page in the wine business, Marquee Selections,.. I do like what my friend Brian Icenhouser is doing at Keller Williams for a fun example!
  8. FourSquare.com - The Lottery Ticket / Addictive Game - It's a game, not it is a discount platform, well - who knows exactly what it will morph into in the long run.  The reality is that Foursquare is the lottery ticket, punched ticket, and interactive "check in" game / service that has stood the test of internet time.  You can "check in at places" to find tips, show your friends where you are interacting & ultimately to win a "Mayor Ship" for a certain location.  My personal feel is that this might get integrated with another service in the next few years, but for now it is the best in it's industry and worth downloading.  The interface allows you to post to other sites like FB & Twitter from it;s platform and who doesn't like a game (farmville, candy crush, solitare, souduku)!!??   Please be advised - as a game, it will not make you want to "farm more" or solicit your friends, but it may make you want to frequent going to a certain location ( which any business would love to have happen)!  You might be able to find my favorite mayor-ship under Club 7100, but the office & where I meet client to sign contacts is at Reece & Nichols - SouthGate Office... look here for some fun tips!
  9. Instagram.com - The Photo Hallway - Photos rank #1 on Facebook in terms of relevance.  Yes, this is a section about Instagram, but the reason that photos rank #1 on Facebook is because in people are visual and Facebook knows it.  Instagram in the our "virtual home" is the hallway that you must look at when you are on your way to the bathroom.  Pictures line the hall and they make you smile as you take a personal breath into what someone is interested in.  Instagram is an application that allows you take a photo and briefly manipulate it to make more appealing   In a mobile touch world, most photographs are taken on a mobile phone and Instagram allows you to share this with your audience / friends without the words necessary on other media.  Recent integration efforts allow you to take photos from Instagram and share to Twitter, FB, FourSquare and  other media - recently purchased, guard your content, but a great tool!  Find me here - cjcribb on Instagram
  10. Google.com+ - Google+ - The Set Of Expansion Plans On The Table -The social media arm for Google has never broken the user barrier as a true tool that will overwhelm the masses, but it is owned by the biggest search company in the world!  Google+ is a much better derivation than the previous Google social media integration and has a strong tie with both YouTube and Gmail.com for integration.  Google+ in terms of the home that we have been touring are the new "expansion plans" sitting ion the kitchen table, professionally designed and possibly the best part of the house to come in the future.  Owned by Google I have seen several testimonials that these results carry a very strong weight in the world of Google native content search and I believe will be a long term player in the industry.  Did I mention that this service is owned by the only company that turned search into a  verb, Google!  Find my personal page - Christopher Cribb and my team here The Bubb Cribb Team - Reece & Nichols
If you are in the market for real estate in Kansas City - please consider using The Bubb Cribb Team - Reece & Nichols - 10+ years of experience from homes all across the city (Kansas City, Brookside, Prairie Village, Plaza, Sunset Hill, Waldo, Leawood, Fairway, Mission, Overland Park, Olathe, Lee's Summit. KC North, Raymore, Liberty, Independence) start your search here Kansas City Metro Area Homes For Sale with us & call or text 816.982.5990 - cjcribb@reeceandnichols.com to engage the best in KC for you!
Thank you for taking this "virtual tour of social media" with me.  :)


The Bubb Cribb Team at Reece & Nichols would love to be your neighborhood experts in buying or selling your home in Kansas City please contact Christopher CribbMegan Bubb Cribb or Eric Bubb for assistance!

Christopher Cribb - The Bubb Cribb Team Reece & Nichols - Southgate  Direct Line 913.239.2023

Social Media keeps changing everyday, but, the ideas of what people need and want stay the same.  Thanks for coming on my real estate "open house" of social media and if you have any needs in the SM space as a real estate professional or need assistance finding your next home in the KC, Kansas City, area I implore you to call The Bubb Cribb Team at Reece & Nichols - we will be your key to real estate in Kansas City!

Have a great day!

Christopher Cribb - 816.982.5990  
cjcribb@reeceandnichols.com

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