Real Estate Zealot

The Advantages of Being a Metro Broker

The 2011 Colorado Association of REALTORS® State Convention was held at the Downtown Denver Sheraton Hotel.

Scott Shields, Corporate Director for Metro Brokers Inc. speaks to us from the convention.

Hi I'm Scott Shields, Corporate Director for Metro Brokers Inc., and I'm down here at the Sheraton in downtown Denver at the Colorado Association of REALTORS® State Convention.

It's been an amazing convention so far, meeting a lot of great realtors and affiliates, talking with them, asking about how the convention is going for them.

What I find surprising though is how many people are unaware of our brand and what our model can do for the realtors in Colorado, so definitely you want to make sure you check out Join Metro Brokers.com for all the benefits and cost-saving tips that Metro Brokers can do for you.

If you want to spend less and earn more, check out Join Metro Brokers.com.

Youngest and Oldest Compete at the Metro Brokers 2011 Triathlon

An interview with the youngest and oldest competitors at the 3^rd Annual Metro Brokers TriathlON Friday held at the Cherry Creek Reservoir.

Interviewer: We are here at the Metro Brokers Triathlon, third annual, and we are at Cherry Creek Reservoir. And I am here with some unique contestants today, this is a three generation team, and we've got Wes, Gary and Chase, and who was the winner today?

Gary Smith: Chase.

Wes Becker: Chase was the winner, he beat me by six minutes and I think he beat Gary by, I don't know how many minutes.

Gary Smith: A long time, an hour maybe.

Interviewer: So, have you guys competed in triathlons before then?

Gary Smith: No.

Wes Becker: Chase has.

Chase Becker: I am still a rookie but, yeah when I was seven I competed in triathlons.

Interviewer: Well that's great. So how old are you now Chase?

Chase Becker: I'm 12.

Interviewer: Excellent.

Gary Smith: Maybe the youngest and I am maybe the oldest?

Interviewer: Yeah, you are 70?

Gary Smith: Yes.

Interviewer: Great, then we probably do have the oldest and the youngest as far as competitors.

Gary Smith: Maybe.

Interviewer: So what do you guys think of the venue overall for the triathlons?

Gary Smith: Excellent. Well I thought it was really good support, and you know, for people who can't see very well, they are pointing "this way" and it was really, it was just right, it was right.

Wes Becker: There was a beautiful Colorado spring evening you know, so it was beautiful, spring evening.

Gary Smith: No wind, great sport, haven't had the food yet.

Interviewer: Well its great food, it's food from Lodo's, one of our sponsors they have sponsored us, I believe every year we have put this venue on.

Gary Smith: Wow it's a great one. We'll be here again next year if you do it.

Interviewer: Awesome.

Wes Becker: We might be up for a cold beer, if they have a cold beer.

Interviewer: They have beers over there.

Wes Becker: Chase can't have a cold beer but Gary and I will drink his.

Interviewer: Well, hey we appreciate you guys supporting Metro Brokers, and all the charities that this venue supports too, so hope to see you next year.

Wes Becker: Thank you guys, you have put on a great event, thank you very much.

Gary Smith: Yeah, it's a great, great company too by the way Metro Brokers we try to use you anytime we have a house to sell.

Interviewer: Awesome.

Gary Smith: You guys are the best as far as in the real estate business, that's for sure.

Interviewer: Experienced caring professionals.

Gary Smith: Yes.

Interviewer: For more information about Metro Brokers, make sure you put your browser to metrobrokerstv.com.

The 3rd Annual Metro Brokers Triathlon: A Great Success!

Tom Guest, President of Metro Brokers speaks to us from the 3^rd Annual Metro Brokers Triathlon. The event drew over 200 participants who competed at the Cherry Creek Reservoir.

Interviewer: Welcome to the 3rd Annual Metro Brokers Triathlon. I am here today with Tom Guest. Tom Guest is the President of Metro Brokers and Tom, what do you think of the event so far?

Tom Guest: Oh, this is the most fantastic event I have ever been to. This is so exciting. We've got over two hundred people, biking, and running and in the water and it's just an excellent event from Metro Brokers.

Interviewer: Yeah, it looks like the weather is a little more conducive today; it looks like we got a new record that came in.

Tom Guest: It is, it is. The swim was very good, because the water is nice and flat, less wind, so it was a good event, all around very good.

Interviewer: So what's been the feedback so far from the people you've talked to, here at this event versus say running a golf tournament?

Tom Guest: Oh, they love this event. The participation is great; we are getting more activities and more activities out to the whole community, so it's very good.

Interviewer: Excellent. I noticed a few more handicapped participants this year too?

Tom Guest: We did. We had one that I actually helped into the water and I provided a chair for him so he could change his prosthetics. And he came out of the water and now he's already gone to the biking and he's on the course right now, so I'm waiting to see how he does.

Interviewer: Great. Well, it's a great event Tom, and we appreciate everything you do for Metro Brokers too.

Tom Guest: Thank you. I love it. Thanks for the event.

Interviewer: For more video about Metro Brokers, please check out metrobrokerstv.com.

Winner of the 2011 Metro Brokers Triathlon

Sam Holmes is the overall winner of the 2011 Metro Brokers Triathlon which was held at the Cherry Creek State Park. Sam declares this is a great event, held in a beautiful location and plans to attend next year as well.

Interviewer: Welcome to the 3rd Annual Metro Brokers Triathlon. I am here today with Sam Holmes. Sam Holmes is the winner of this year's event and congratulations Sam.

Sam Holmes: Thank you very much.

Interviewer: So I heard you were a little late registering today, what kind of held you up?

Sam Holmes: You know I kind of procrastinated about leaving town. I live up in Laramie, Wyoming and got stuck in rush hour traffic coming down and barely made it. So I got in here at about 5:30.

Interviewer: Yeah, well it looks like you set a new record for us then?

Sam Holmes: I don't know, I am actually not sure about that.

Interviewer: Yeah, I believe you came in like 1:01 and some change

Sam Holmes: Something like that I think.

Interviewer: Yeah very good, very good venue?

Sam Holmes: Yeah, yeah, yeah great venue.

Interviewer: So do you know Tim Hola, the person you competed with last year?

Sam Holmes: Ah, I have met him a couple of times at a few races, never officially you know talked to him much, but yeah, I know who he is, I'll say that.

Interviewer: Do you participate in other triathlons then?

Sam Holmes: Yep yeah, I do a lot of them all throughout the summer so...

Interviewer: Oh really.

Sam Holmes: Yeah.

Interviewer: And what do you think of this event that Metro Brokers puts on then?

Sam Holmes: I love it, it's a great event. The food is great. It's a great venue, it's a beautiful, beautiful state park, water is calm, roads are totally clear, it's a great event, great venue.

Interviewer: Right. Well, we appreciate you participating and supporting our people here and being a part of Metro Brokers Triathlon. Thank you.

Sam Holmes: Thank you all very much. I will be back next year.

Interviewer: For more videos about Metro Brokers make sure to check us out at metrobrokerstv.com.

Metro Brokers 2011 Triathlon was a Fun Event for all!

Paul Martin, winner of the physically challenged division of the 3^rd Annual Metro Brokers Triathlon, enjoyed the varied course at Cherry Creek State Park. The event benefitted Adaptive Adventures, an organization that provides outdoor sports opportunities to physically challenged children, adults, veterans and their families.

Interviewer: And welcome to Metro Brokers 3^rd Annual Triathlon. We are here at Cherry Creek Reservoir, and I am here with Paul Martin. Paul welcome.

Paul Martin: Thank you very much Mark. Thank you.

Interviewer: How did you do today at Triathlon?

Paul Martin: Actually, I kind of thought I wouldn't be able to do it. I haven't been doing that high-end training anymore, so the sprint stuff is fast, you know, all the way and other than the swim, the bike and the run went pretty well, I was able to turn it on, so it was good.

Interviewer: What are your thoughts on this mini venue that we run here at the park?

Paul Martin: Oh, it's great. I hadn't been here before and the swim water was cold, but once you go in, it just felt great. The bike was nice, there was just enough varying terrain to make it interesting, and nothing too static so that was nice. The run was nice and tricky. The terrain was kind of bumpy and wavy and bouncy and made for a fun run. We were very much cheered when you come to the finish line and you had another whatever, about a quarter mile to go around the park a little bit.

Interviewer: So you have participated in other triathlons and running venues like that?

Paul Martin: Yeah, this is probably somewhere around 90 triathlons in the last 15 years.

Interviewer: Oh wow, quite a few. And this would seem like a good venue to be in?

Paul Martin: Oh yeah specifically because we benefited Adaptive Adventures and Joe and Matt invited me to come down to be a part of this, the last couple of years I haven't been able to make it, so this time I was able to, you know, give back to those who help people like me, so it was nice.

Interviewer: Yeah, well we really appreciate you participating and being a part of Metro Brokers here.

The 2011 Metro Brokers Triathlon was Bigger and Better!

An interview with Mark Harrison, organizer of the 2011 Metro Brokers TriathlON Friday events. This year, the event drew over 200 participants

Interviewer: Welcome to the Third Annual Metro Brokers Triathlon. I am here today with Mark Harrison and Mark great show today.

Mark Harrison: You know, I think this was a great event. It's our third year and it's bigger and better than ever, so we are excited.

Interviewer: So you were involved this year more in the planning versus being in the event?

Mark Harrison: You know, I think my official title was Sponsorship Coordinator, you know, I have participated in the event for the last two years and helped on the front end side but really kind of felt like I have done the triathlon and I am going to continue doing it but for now I just wanted to make sure we put on a good event.

Interviewer: Right. It looks like we got a lot of sponsors here too.

Mark Harrison: Great, great list of sponsors. Once again Lodo's is back on providing the food after the event, there are a lot of real estate related sponsors and then also not real estate related sponsors. So it's kind of a nice mix and I think everybody is having a good time.

Interviewer: You bet. Once again we appreciate all that you do for Metro Brokers, Mark, and this is a great event.

Mark Harrison: Well, you know, I just want to have the members come out next year hopefully and then certainly the public, you know, hopefully we'll go on and do a fourth year and get bigger and better as well.

Interviewer: I'm sure we will. Thanks for pointing it out again.

Mark Harrison: Thank you and thanks for being here guys.

Interviewer: For more video about MetroBrokers, make sure you check out metrobrokerstv.com.

The Women’s Winner of the 2011 Metro Brokers Triathlon

An interview with Kathleen Allen, women's division winner of the 2011 Metro Brokers Triathlon. Kathleen loves the Friday night race format, so the whole family can come and participate!

Interviewer: Welcome to Metro Brokers TV and we are here again at the Metro Brokers Triathlon at Cherry Creek Reservoir. And I am here with Kathleen Allen, and Kathleen is our winner for the women, for the second year, congratulations.

Kathleen Allen: Thank you so much.

Interviewer: How did you feel this year?

Kathleen Allen: It was hard, but it's always hard, its fun. It's fun to push yourself.

Interviewer: So are you involved in a lot of triathlons then?

Kathleen Allen: I do, I've done many triathlons.

Interviewer: And how do you like the Metro Brokers venue here at Cherry Creek Reservoir?

Kathleen Allen: Cherry Creek Reservoir is great, and this is one of my favorite races because my kids can come.

Interviewer: Oh, that is great.

Kathleen Allen: Yeah, they don't like to wake up early and so it's kind of nice to have an evening race so they don't have to wake up, so the whole family can come.

Interviewer: Super. Well we appreciate you participating and contributing to our causes and being part of Metro Brokers Triathlon. Thank you very much Kathy.

Kathleen Allen: Thank you.

Interviewer: And congratulations again.

Kathleen Allen: Thank you.

Interviewer: For more information about Metro Brokers, turn your dial to metrobrokerstv.com.

The Esky Knows Real Estate Team Knows Denver!

With 38 years of experience in the business... Team Esky knows everything there is to know about the Denver metro area!

"We are constantly keeping up with what's new in the industry and we believe in customer service," says Mark Eskanos. "We keep in touch with all of our clients through Facebook, LinkedIn and our blog."

"In the summer," adds Gayle Eskanos, "we have a huge barbecue that we invite everyone to. It's a great way for everyone we know to interact and for us to catch up with friends and customers."

New to Town? Let Mark, a third generation Denverite, give you his famous "Nickel Tour" through "his" town of Denver. "Denver is a vibrant city," says Mark, "To understand what our town is all about, you have to go see it. I love to show people all the famous and beautiful places in Denver."

Visit their website at EskyKnows.com.

Interviewer: Hi, I am Kathy Soltero with metrobrokerstv.com. Today we are in the studio with Mark and Gayle Eskanos, and they are with the EskyKnows Real Estate Team. Welcome, thank you so much for coming in today.

Mark & Gayle Eskanos: Thank you for having us.

Interviewer: Tell me a little bit about how that EskyKnows team kind of came about?

Mark Eskanos: Growing up, you know all kids get a moniker; I have an unusual last name... Eskanos. So my brothers and I got called the Esky brothers.

Interviewer: Okay.

Mark Eskanos: And then everyone always calls to ask questions since I am a third generation Denverite. Everyone asks: "Do you know where we can go?" "Do you know who we can call?"...etc.

Gayle Eskanos: Because he knows everything about Denver.

Mark Eskanos: Years ago, Gayle said we ought to be the Esky Knows Real Estate Team and that's how it all got started.

Interviewer: So now again...

Gayle Eskanos: Because Esky knows... he knows!

Interviewer: Right, you know a lot about real estate, how long have you been in the business?

Mark Eskanos: I've been in business for 38 years.

Interviewer: That's awesome and you have been a team together for...

Mark & Gayle Eskanos: We have been a team for 15 years.

Interviewer: 15 years okay, tell me a little bit about what's unique about your team, besides the fact that you're husband and wife and that you work together.

Gayle Eskanos: That's unique, in and of itself!

Interviewer: Having stayed together that long.

Mark Eskanos: There is a lot that's unique in that, from a real estate perspective, and I'll let Gayle address the people perspective. From the real estate perspective it's the years of experience, it's constantly being out-front, it's constantly learning and going to classes, and I always want to learn more. I always want to be at the leading edge of real estate. So that experience is what I can offer and Gayle is just the most incredible people person, but we are both from the old school believe in this word called customer service.

Interviewer: That's the most important thing... and that's not just old school, that's what we have to deliver today.

Mark Eskanos: So many people want it.

Gayle Eskanos: Social media today is customer service, really.

Interviewer: So are you in the social media, do you do a lot of that online and that sort of thing too...

Gayle Eskanos: We do some online, we are learning, we are getting there, Mark knows more about the computer than I do, but I like the social aspect of it, but in our business we have been doing social media forever, it seems like...

Mark Eskanos: Forever.

Gayle Eskanos: We invite clients to our home for dinner parties, people that we know that will get along and we have a barbeque. Mark loves to barbeque. So we invite everyone in the summer, we have about 150 people for a barbeque in the backyard and that's it. Everybody intermingles...asking, "Are you a friend?" "Are you a customer?"

Interviewer: And what a great way, it's kind of the old fashion way, but still everybody passes your name along and loves you and...

Gayle Eskanos: Absolutely.

Mark Eskanos: We are doing LinkedIn, we use a great email program and we are really constant with our emails and consistent with Facebook and so it's really a great blend.

Interviewer: That's wonderful; tell me about the "Nickel Tour" real quickly.

Mark Eskanos: Well, when people come into town, and people that are in town that don't know anything about Denver... before I do anything else- taking them to neighborhood, showing them a house- I say, "You've got to understand what my town is all about'" Denver is mine. And I know everything about Denver, history and I put them in the car, we usually drive for about three hours and take them all through Denver and show them all the great old places and what's going on new and what a vibrant city we are and...

Gayle Eskanos: Hard to believe, Mark can talk for three and half hours, but he does.

Interviewer: No, that's awesome.

Mark Eskanos: We have one famous stop, we have to take a break and we stop at a little monument over off of Speer Boulevard and I stop and I am very solemn, and I say, you know you have to get out of the car and...

Gayle Eskanos: Pay homage.

Mark Eskanos: ...pay homage to this place that we are at, and they go and read this little monument and it's the Home of the Cheeseburger, it's where the cheeseburger was invented!

Interviewer: Well, that's awesome.

Mark Eskanos: So really a lot of fun.

Interviewer: That's great, well Mark and Gayle thank you so much for coming in it's the EskyKnows Real Estate Team.

Mark Eskanos: Thank you.

Gayle Eskanos: Thank you very much.

Interviewer: And we just appreciate all that you do and you know what I am sure if people want to know more about you they can go to your website, is that right?

Mark & Gayle Eskanos: Absolutely.

Mark Eskanos: eskyknows.com.

Interviewer: All right, thank you so much.

Mark Eskanos: Thank you.

Gayle Eskanos: Take care.

Interviewer: And for more real estate related videos like this one be sure to tune in to metrobrokerstv.com.

Marketing and the MLS

Use all the great tools Metrolist has to offer to create custom branded reports, informative presentations and interesting blogs with up to date statistics and reports on real estate in Colorado.

Interviewer: Today we are talking with Mike Hixon from Hixon & Associates. Mike, welcome to the program, good to have you here.

Mike Hixon: Thank you.

Interviewer: We are talking about building a personal brand for realtors and the MLS and how that may all tie in and help but let's start with talking about brand and image, why is that important today for realtors?

Mike Hixon: Oh, brand and image is huge as far as establishing your brand, because everything that you send out, you want to have it branded, so down from your email to every bit of marketing literature that you send out, even to colleagues or associates as well, you know everything that's got your name on it leads people to you.

Interviewer: I tell people it should all look the same: your website, your Facebook, your Twitter, your e-mail it should all provide kind of the same service and lend some type of message and credibility.

Mike Hixon: Yes, exactly.

Interviewer: Which I imagine you do with all of your associates?

Mike Hixon: I do.

Interviewer: Some easy ways to do that, obviously we just talked about a few but if you are a realtor and you are just starting out and you say, 'What do I do about establishing a brand?", what would be the first thing you would give him?

Mike Hixon: Well you know it's interesting that you ask that because I just had a conversation with a colleague of mine, who went through a training course with me. Had I had the benefit of knowing a lot of this information upfront, it would have been huge.

Interviewer: Yeah.

Mike Hixon: You know I mean the first thing you've got to do is, you've got to setup an email that tells people every time you send them something what you do, and who you are.

Interviewer: Yeah.

Mike Hixon: I mean that's the first thing. And then of course you know your business relationship, how you are going to setup your office and the name of your office and how you are going to brand everything you send out, from letterhead to email.

Interviewer: I am an internet marketing guy and people always talk about that because that seems to be the wave of technology today and so forth, and a lot of people get wrapped up in it, but the bottom line is I still tell people, 'as you can do all that, this really still comes down to a relationship business', talk a little bit about that.

Mike Hixon: Big time relationship business, it is strictly relationship, you know I think I read, heard something the other day that says, "If you think you are a realtor, you are wrong, what you are is a marketer; and it's all about marketing. I mean people have to know your name, they have to see you, you have to have exposure, they have to see you somewhere and a lot of it is referral business, but you know there are a lot of folks out there that, if they see something on the internet, like YouTube or whatever that's their first point of contact and a lot of it is electronic now.

Interviewer: I hear a lot about how in the last 10 years, realtors are really breaking off into specialties, distressed property specialist, divorce specialist, whatever it may be, how important is that to incorporate into your brand?

Mike Hixon: I think it's important, I don't know that you want to just be strictly branded by one specific niche but, if you do a lot in general and your specialty is short-sales or REO, that's important to get it out specifically to your colleagues or you know other realtors in the business because a lot of times that's where I get referrals.

Interviewer: Lastly Mike, the MLS obviously is very cooperative and user-friendly for agents to help brand the agent and help talk about their personal marketing and so forth, talk about a few ways in which the MLS does that for realtors.

Mike Hixon: MLS is huge for realtors as far as getting information out to your colleagues in the business. So how do you use that as far as sorting up your listings is I think pretty important. I see so many times when you come across information that you are looking for, and it's just been skipped over, it's important information that you need, especially things that you are searching on, you know, but the more information you put in, the better off you are going to be.

Interviewer: Mike thanks.

Mike Hixon: You are welcome.

Interviewer: Appreciate you being here.

Mike Hixon: You bet. Thank you.

Learn more about How to Succeed in the Real Estate Market on Broker IPTV.

Top Tips for Finding Buyers

Real estate is a people business, and you need to cultivate relationships in order to generate more business through referrals. Mike Hixon offers these tips on how to find buyers.

Interviewer: Today we are talking with Mike Hixon from Hixon & Associates. Mike welcome to the program.

Mike Hixon: Thank you.

Interviewer: Glad to have you here. We are talking about buyers, of course every realtor would love to know how to get more buyers, so let's go ahead and just address the question, I am an agent I would like to find more buyers, I would like to find them with financing in place and ready to purchase, I mean I guess that would be the $65,000 question, right?

Mike Hixon: Team up, yeah, yeah. That's a good question. My sources use the lenders that have had people come to them, they come to us and say, 'Hey look, I am looking to get the financing ball rolling and then I get that phone call from that lender and they say, 'Hey, we've got a buyer, they are ready to go, I have got him pre-qualified or pre-approved and they are looking for a house, keep them below this dollar amount' and we are ready to go. Another good resource is your website; not a ton of leads come from my website, but you know if you get X amount of numbers per year it certainly is worth putting your "shingle" on there.

Interviewer: Yeah. You know at the end of the day whether you are going to farm a neighborhood or you're going to do an e-mail farming system, whatever it's going to be this really boils down to a relationship business, talk a little bit about that.

Mike Hixon: Relationship is what it's all about; I mean referrals are huge for me, there's a magazine that does some surveys that go out every year and for the second year in a row, I'm proud to say that I will be in that magazine, that comes directly from your clientele, so the relationship you build with your clientele, they are telling other people and if you don't do a good job they are telling a lot more people.

Interviewer: Yeah.

Mike Hixon: But thank goodness to the folks that I've dealt with, have spread my name around and referrals is huge. So that's how you take care of your business.

Interviewer: Obviously in the last several years there has been far more sellers than there have been buyers, I mean everybody's a little short on the buyer end. And maybe people, agents say I have got a lot of listings but I'd really like some more buyers. Any tips that you can give them to kind of balance that equation out a little bit?

Mike Hixon: Cloning! That's how..haha. How do you get those buyers? Well you know, it comes back to, you know back in the good old days you just really had to hit those prospect lists, you know you got to call people up and say, "Hey I've got a great house, do you know of anybody?' There is a prospect list that comes out that Metro List provides you've got to call every single one of them. And just remind them, 'hey if you haven't seen it yet, I got a new listing on the market and it sounds like it meets the criteria for your buyer'.

Interviewer: Obviously everybody's looking for those buyers and you have to figure out a way to kind of set yourself apart, how do you do that in today's economy and business?

Mike Hixon: I just think exposure is the key.

Interviewer: Yeah.

Mike Hixon: I mean you've got to get your name out there.

Interviewer: I tell people you just can't have enough conversations.

Mike Hixon: No.

Interviewer: I mean when you're sitting getting your haircut and the gal or guy that's cutting your hair, ask him, where do you live? Do you rent? Do you buy? Are you in the market for buying? I happen to be a realtor, how about your family, what's your family doing for a house...?

Mike Hixon: That's right.

Interviewer: I start a conversation with the grocery store clerk, you know.

Mike Hixon: I was just going to say, I was wearing my pin the other day in the grocery store line and happened to be on the phone...

Interviewer: Yeah.

Mike Hixon: And the conversation came up, I said, "Sure! Here's my card, give me a call".

Interviewer: Absolutely, that's how it goes.

Mike Hixon: That's exposure, yeah.

Interviewer: Mike thanks, good information, appreciate it.

Mike Hixon: All right, thank you.

Find out more about How to Follow up with Business Contacts on BrokerIPTV.

photo credit: Greenbelt Alliance