stricted to licensees.
son acting under the express (3) Banks, savings banks, sav-
What's All The weeting About?
ilitary, churches-, social
groups, media, celebrities,
and businesses are all us­
ing Twitter to communicate. With
an estimated 4.1 million visits each
month, and climbing, Twitter is the
fastest growing social network.
But is Twitter a fleeting trend, as
some predict, or a powerful com­
munications tool?
While Twitter messages can only
contain 140 characters or less,
Twitter's power lies in the expo­
nential broadcast potential created
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when you engage in conversation
with others, or when "followers"
retweet your message to their fol­
lowers and so on. Twitter also
gives you the ability to post photos
and link to articles, websites,
blogs, and even YouTube. Plus, it's
easy, free, and can be accessed
from computer or mobile device.
And despite appearing like a se­
ries of disjointed conversations
scrolling by, Twitter direct com­
munications and real
conversations are possible when
boardnews
Don't Miss The Last
ABR Of The Year!
page 8
45
thiS ::;tate or any orner
you learn a few Twitter rules.
REALTOR® organizations such as
the Hawai'i Association of
REALTORS® and the National Asso­
ciation of REALTORS® are already
using Twitter to communicate
with their members. You can fol­
low them at HCRealtors and
REALTORS, respectively.
Elizabeth "Biz" Kellam (RA) at
Century 21 Paradise International,
who has been on Twitter since De­
cember 2007, says, "Tweeting is
not about immediate listing or
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NAR Addresses The
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page 9
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Continued on page 4
closing, but about introducing
yourself and other people and
building relationships. I wouldn't
walk into a cocktail party and say,
'Hi I'm Biz Kellam and I've been in
Hawai'i Real Estate since 1990, so
let me list your home for sale.'
Rather you Tweet about your in­
terests, general information about
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~Hawai'i
~) Association of
~REALTORS®
r commission'? So
tletter, tell us if you
rthe
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Wha '5 AI T e weeti g About?
you, and get to know people and
build relationships.
"Just as in real life sales, you
work with peop'le you like and re­
spect. Maybe every 15 to 20
Tweets I'll put in something real
estate related such as a link to an
article or information. I do notice
a spike in my server stats when I
post a link to my blog."
Kellam says she's built some
solid, long term business relation­
ships over time and met people .
who refer business to her. She tells
the story about helping a vendor
she met at a local trade show find
a real estate agent in Florida. "We
were chatting at his booth, and
when he noticed my Century 21
name tag, he asked if I knew any­
one in his home town in Florida to
help him with a short sale. I
Tweeted on my phone, 'Need an
experienced short sale REALTOR®
in Florida, DM (direct message)
me.' As I can blast my Tweets to
Facebook, the message went out
there as well. Within 15 minutes, I
had five agents for him to inter­
view. He was pretty amazed and is
one of my best word of mouth re­
ferral sources now.
"Again, it's about networking
and building good relationships.
Just like in the offline world."
How to Get Tweeting
Start a Twitter account. You can
sign up and get started at
http://www.twitter.com. Once you
have a Twitter account, which basi­
cally consists of your name, avatar
(photo or logo), and profile, you
can post 140 character statements
about what you're doing and follow
or participate in conversations.
Build a following. As a Twitter
user, you will probably follow oth­
ers who sound interesting to you. A
following can snowball as they, in
turn, begin following you and refer
you to others with similar interests.
New Law Protects Rente sW en
he "Helping Families Save
T Their Homes Act of 2009,"
which became law on May 20,
2009, includes provisions to protect
tenants from eviction as a conse-
Track real estate comments. Joe
Segal of Prudential Locations rec­
ommends that REALTORS® track
and join conversations about real
estate by downloading and in­
stalling Tweetdeck from
http://www.tweetdeck.com/beta/
and then indicating keywords to
begin a search, for example, "real
estate," "homes," or "realtor."
While Twitter messages can only contain 140 characters
or less, Twitter's power lies in the exponential
broadcast potential created when you engage
in conversation with others, or when
"followers" retweet your
message to their
followers and
so on.
How to be a smart Tweeter :
Be social. Success on Twitter de­
mands participation and
conversation to build relation­
ships and gain trust with your
shareholders (following).
Be responsive. If someone asks a
question or messages you directly
or with an @sign, try to provide
an immediate response.
Share information pertinent and
relevant to your followers. Twitter is
a great way to engage in conversa­
tion and share information through
links to articles, blogs, YouTube, and
photos. You can also link Twitter to
quence of a foreclosure affecting
the property being rented. The new
federal law requires that tenants be
given 90 days notice prior to having
to vacate and allows them to tay
Continuedfro"""
websites and Facebook.
Ask questions. Although it some­
times appears that no one is reading
your Tweets, posting a question (or
something controversial) will dispel
that belief quickly. You will get your
answer in moments.
Retweet and #FoUowFriday to
help others increase their follow­
ing, and to spread the word. Help
c
others build their fonowings by
Retweeting their r,1essages
(RT@twittername) or listing their
Twitter names, plus #FollowFriday
on Fridays, recommending your
followers also follow them.
Remember Twitter is a socia.: ~~
rum. Once you Tweet, it's hare! :r:
retract, so keep comments pos:­
tive and don't sabotage yourself
by saying something you wouldn'.
say in public.
Whether Twitter is here to stay or
a platform for future social media
remains to be seen. In the mean­
time, the power of Twitter is being
Is
through the remainder of their
lease, if the home will continue to
be a rental property.
is
HAR is currentl_ reViewing
~ar.dG.r':: c"', __ ~oe::_'..Je
 e Iweeting About?
'"7"i: Track real estate comments. Joe
:5cgal of Prudential Locations rec­
ommends that REALTORS® track
and join conversations about real
estate by downloading and in­
stalling Tweetdeck from
::ttp:!/www.tweetdeck.com/beta/
and then indicating keywords to
~egin a search, for example, "real
estate," "homes," or "realtor."
.ile Twitter messages can only contain 140 characters
or less, Twitter's power lies in the exponential
broadcast potential created when you engage
;: in conversation with others, or when
"followers" retweel your
message 10 their
ollowers and
o on.
'­
- --
How to be a smart Tweeter
3e social. Success on Twitter de­
...ands participation and
conversation to build relation­
Si1ips and gain trust with your
5:-,areholders (fonowing).
responsive. If someone asks a
7. _:::.stion or messages you directly
r", '...~:h an @ sign, try to provide
iate response.
_ .-.~~ ~ormation pertinent and
- ~'c::: :') your followers. Twitter is say in public.
~ a: 'way ~o engage in conversa­
.....:;-::. c...:c. 5~re !niormation through a platform for future social media
• ;'-';:J G-"ti'::es. o~ogs. YouTube, and
"" "JIOS. "lOU ':aD also link Twitter to time, the power of Twitter is being
s nters'Whe
':'::"::::-.CE: 01 a foreclosure affecting
:~e property being rented. The new
:ederallaw requires that tenants be
?\'en 90 days notice prior to having
:-:-. '.'acate CL"1d allows the~ :0 stay
Continued from page 1
websites and Facebook.
Ask questions. Although it some­
times appears that no one is reading
your Tweets, posting a question (or
something controversial) will dispel
that belief quickly. You will get your
answer in moments.
Retweet and #FollowFriday to
help others increase their follow­
ing, and to spread the word. Help
follow
others build their followings by
Retweeting their messages
(RT@twittername) or listing their
Twitter names, plus #FollowFriday
on Fridays, recommending your
followers also follow them.
Remember Twitter is a social fo­
rum. Once you Tweet, it's hard to
retract, so keep comments posi­
tive and don't sabotage yourself
by saying something you wouldn't
Whether Twitter is here to stay or
remains to be seen. In the mean­
through the remainder of their
lease, if the home will continue to
be a rental property.
HAR is currently reviewing
its s~andard forms to ensure
demonstrated in various realms.
For example, actor Ashton Kutcher
has more than a million followers
and is now directing his following
to put their efforts toward charita­
ble causes. And Epic Change's
Tweetgiving campaign was able to
raise $10,000 to fund a new class­
room for a school in Tanzania
through Twitter in just 48 hours.
Twitter provides, real, in-the­
moment communications, com­
mentary, news, and opinion. E9
Some Twitter Rules/S~boIs
'@ before someone's name to
respond
# hashtag before a word to
. . . ",·4it l·
.,. ',' "j
'. ~ 7,;", .•
Cut and'pastURL's "
Sign up for TwitPics
#FollowFridays is a good way to
recommend others to followers
L sad emoticon - your message
will be posted for those viewing
sad comments
J happy emoticon - your message
will be posted for those looking
for goodnews
Find out about and download
programs like TWitterFox,
iPhon~ applications
Use TinyURL.com to shorten
lengthy URLs when posting
Attend a Tweet-up and meet other
Tweeters to increase your network
Find out more on the Twitter page.
compliance.
To view a one-page summary of the
new law, go to Realtor.org and search
on "tenant protection provision."E9