Montreal Real Estate Blog » web 2.0

Pssst: Did you get my flyer?

Deya Bautista — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 12:30:32 +0000

It is now thursday, and if my calculations are right and you live in (one of ) the areas where I advertise, you should have received my flyer on your mailbox.

If you are wandering what it is, the one side looks like this…

The other side will change monthly, with a different message.

I’ve never been much of a flyer advertiser, but this time I’ve decided to concentrate on the areas where I sell the most. So now, new pictures, new flyers and let’s see what gives…

Posted By: Deya Bautista - Real Estate Broker working as part of the McGill Immobilier team. Specializing in high end condos in downtown and Old Montreal. For buying or selling contact Deya at: 514.917.7889 http://montrealrealestateblog.com/

Video Blog: Episode One

Deya Bautista — Mon, 18 Jul 2011 20:29:53 +0000

Hi everyone!

Last week we were quietly preparing the videos for the next few updates, so there were no articles published. I’m sure you understand. I was busy trying to figure out the video editing thingy…

And finally, here it is. This is the first one I shot exclusively for the blog readers, and, there is another one (soon to be published here) I did for McGill Real Estate, you know? That awesome Real Estate Agency I’m part of ;)

For those how are reading this message from your email, notice the video won’t load in your inbox. You will have to click here to view it.

Transcript:

Hi this is Deya Bautista here at the Montreal Real Estate Blog. I wanted to share some very interesting news with you today. As you’ve well known and if you’ve been following this blog for a while, I’ve been writing some articles since 2007 and we’ve decided to move a little bit more towards the new trends which is Video Blogging. This is pretty much my first video blog that I’m doing, my first episode*. Just a little introduction to let you know:

Hi my name is Deya, and you’ve been reading me for quite some time, and from now on you can expect to have a mix of writing, video (and perhaps some podcasting; we are not sure yet, but we are working on that.)

If you like this video, video please vote for it. Spread the word, if you like the blog, please tweet it, share it with your friends on facebook.

We are going to give you some information on new construction in Montreal. There are very interesting projects coming up. The agency which I work for, McGill Real Estate, has picked up a really interesting bunch of new projects. Very different all of them, from very high end to more affordable ones. Soon enough we’re gonna be doing a little tour of each one of them so you can have an idea of what to expect; price range, what they look like, the whole information about them. So, if you have any questions you can leave me a comment below. Or you can email me at deyanira at mcgillrealestate dot com. I’m gonna be leaving all my contact information at the end of this video, and…so that’s it for now.

Don’t be shy. Send me a note, leave a comment and I will see you soon. Bye Bye.

* Not really my first, because I did many test shootings before. Also, my broker had one of my so-called video experiments and he published it. So, in reality this is my second published video. First one on the blog though :)

New Zoocasa Application for Yahoo! Canada

Deya Bautista — Mon, 06 Sep 2010 12:00:44 +0000

It has been two years since we last wrote about Zoocasa. Back then, they were just starting out and I do believe they were still on Beta. A lot has changed since then.

It turns out that Zoocasa, owned by Rogers Communications, developed iPhone app (home search on your phone? great!) AND now Yahoo! Canada has teamed up with Zoocasa as their Real Estate Home Search. They have just launched a new application that lets users do home searches directly from their yahoo.ca home page.

Now the more than 17 million Canadians who visit Yahoo! every month will be able to search for a new home, research local neighbourhoods and receive updates about properties that fit their personal profile, all through the Zoocasa.com application on their Yahoo.ca homepage. Combining real-time listing information and mapping technology, Zoocasa.com allows users to personalize their search experience and discover community, demographic and lifestyle information to help them choose the right home.
[ Source: Finantial Post. Read More ]

The site grew in popularity, but their affiliation with a powerful search engine such as Yahoo! Canada definitely puts them in the major leagues. Now there’s talk about brokerages like Re/Max, Century 21 an Royal LePage looking for alternative sites, such as Zoocasa, to advertise their listings, since they feel that Realtor.ca is lacking some important features:

“Realtor.ca isn’t as technologically advanced as its competitors, lacking information that prospective home buyers like, such as demographic data, school zones and average prices for neighbourhoods.” [ The Globe and Mail . Read more ]

And we second that opinion.

If the joint venture of Yahoo! Canada/Zoocasa and the major brokerage firms succeeds, realtors will now have our own Canadian version of Zillow. Pretty interesting to say the least. Not to mention the different options for online exposure to all home sellers, having a mix of Realtors.ca, Google maps Real Estate (also gaining popularity with home searches) and the already existing listing sites like micasa.ca.

Our Brand-Spanking New Facebook Page

Deya Bautista — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 15:40:20 +0000

Finally I got around to making a Facebook Fanpage for the Blog. It has been on my mind since last November, and I must admit: I didn’t have a clue how to make one. But miracles do happen, and last week I belatedly uncovered the Facebook Fanpage Mystery. Now, it’s just figuring out what to do with it. I’m still pondering over that last one. Suggestions are, as always, gratefully appreciated.

You might think that having a blog is already enough work. And you’re right.
What I am hoping here is that -unlike the blog- the Facebook page will be self-supported. Of course, with the help of all the lovely fans!

I invite you to join. Yes, you. I know you have a Facebook account, and don’t pretend you don’t.
Let’s get the discussions going, comments and links to Real Estate related topics. It’s up to you.

And oh, before I forget…I’ve change the Facebook sidebar link to point to the page itself and not my profile anymore. Just in case you missed this post.

Google Maps the Next Real Estate Search Engine?

Deya Bautista — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 11:30:20 +0000

I guess it was just a matter of time before Google decided to monetize on the home search queries. A lot of real estate related websites are now using google maps (in the form of a plugin) as part of their listings, and so far is working out just fine.

I’ve noticed more and more properties appearing on google maps – or Google Real Estate 2.0 as they are calling it- since this last summer, and the last time I checked there were a lot of listings from the west coast of the US. But slowly is moving into Canadian territory. More and more Canadian cities are listing their properties online with google base. Agents and brokers are able to upload their listings via google base or RSS (I have yet to check into it). I was surprise to see that not many brokers/agencies listed from Montreal, there are 2 main websites getting most of the hits from google real estate map searches.

Will they compete with the MLS®, Realtor® website?
Compete, most probably. But they are neither a broker nor a MLS system, according to their disclaimer. The complete answer and explanation is found in their FAQ for Real Estate Agents and Brokers:

“Is Google a broker? A national MLS?

We’re neither. Our role is to connect users as quickly as possible with the information they need. People come to us looking for all kinds of information, including housing listings, comparable pricing, and how to find an agent or broker in their area. In all cases, we want to deliver these users to the industry experts who can provide the most useful answers.”

Well, as long as they don’t start crawling the MLS the Realtors.ca database -without permission- they will be lawsuit free. It makes me wonder if, say, 5 years from now, Google Maps -Real Estate 2.0 will be more popular than our Realtor’s site. We’ll have to wait and see.

What do you think?

Montreal Real Estate Board: Blogging as a Marketing Tool

Deya Bautista — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 13:30:16 +0000

Another video posted on the Montreal Real Estate Board about blogging as a marketing tool. While the first video talked about social media and web 2.0 in general, this one tackles the do’s and don’ts of blogging.

Here is the scoop:

Don’t expect any results for the first 6 to 9 months. [getting high traffic, readers, or potential clients]
You have to be a reasonably good writer. [gulp!]
Information you could offer as a blogger: local market, national trends, international real estate news and realtor gossip (Uh?) [I strongly suggest you stay away from this one unless, of course, your source of info is solid.]
How often you should update: Preferably once or twice a day. Minimum three times a week. If you cannot do the minimum, don’t even bother.- [We're doing a little more than the minimum here, so we're not so bad.]
Length of articles: you don’t have to write a novel on each entry, a few lines of words will suffice. [I'm taking the hint as well]

Opinions, rants and comments are welcome!

Happy blogging.

To twit or not to Twit?

Deya Bautista — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 14:18:39 +0000

For many many months I entertained the idea of joining the twitter madness.
I’ve seen news on big companies having their twitter accounts and twittering away, some of my favorite writers and bloggers also are using twitter. Was it the “peer pressure” that led me to finally sign up? Nope. It was mostly my curiosity. Just to find out what all the fuzz was about.
So there you have it: The Montreal Real Estate Blog, is now on twitter. Actually, it’s just me. Let’s correct that by saying: Deya is now on twitter. Care to know what I’m doing?