I just received  an email marketing a listing from a NJ Realtor that made me want to write this post.

There was a QR code in the email that says ” Scan this with your smart phone.. links to a listing website”  WHY would I do that? Wouldn’t it be easier for me to click a link to the listing than  grab  my iphone, go to the app, and  scan  her QR code on my computer? Even if I were on my iphone or ipad, it just seems easier to click a link. Am I the only one who feels this way?

Hey, I really get technology for real estate and consider myself an early adopter, but it annoys me when I see how not just agents, but many industries use certain tools for the “cool” factor and just embarrass themselves by using them all wrong.    My favorite is the facebook or twitter icon on a billboard.. like you can actually click through.  OK, back to topic…

Seems QR codes have the ‘IT” factor going for them right now but from a practical stand point, I get how it could be great in some industries, such as a QR code next to a description of a bottle of wine on a menu, leading to reviews and a full description of that wine ( thanks to Rob Hahn for showing a great example of that on facebook) .

As a real estate consumer, if you  were interested in learning more about a property, price, etc..   if you saw a QR code on a real estate sign in any of our New Jersey Midtown Direct Train Line Towns,  would you ….

1. call the free recorded message telling about the property?

2. call the agent’s direct line?

3. pull over, go to your QR code reader app ( if you have one) and scan  the code to see the photos?

4. google the address to to see the photos?

5. use another real estate app that you already have to see the photos?

If you’re looking for a house, please respond. It would help me as well as the other realtors in the industry understand the consumer thought process.

Another scenario…… you walk into an open house, or see a house with your Realtor, and the property brochure on the dining room table house has a QR code. Would you use that to access the floor plan or additional photos at a later time? Or would you just use the direct link, for example: www.sueadler.com/42Tillou that is on the brochure for more info once you’re back to your computer? I’m really curious so if you wouldn’t taking a minute to respond, I’d greatly appreciate it.

Yours to count on,

Sue

The SUE ADLER TEAM website The SUE ADLER TEAM website

Recently I posted a question on my Facebook page asking, “Which Leadership books have had the biggest impact on you and why?” and I received many, many fantastic responses from my Realtor friends across the country, local New Jersey friends and clients, and even best selling authors.    Comments varied from Steven Ligon’s, “At the risk of sounding trite, the Bible…the best examples of servant leadership are in the Bible. There are also great examples of leadership failure,” to Alex Charfen who said, “Think and Grow Rich, Born to Run, Unlimited Power, The Fighter’s Mind, Where Have all the Leaders Gone?, Power vs. Force : some of these are not considered leadership books but they should be. They have all had a profound impact on my life and business. ”

Short Hills resident, Caroline  Updyke and others really liked The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, stating, “It’s about character and principles and it’s one of my all time faves,” and best selling author of Seven Levels of Communication, Michael Maher, agreed and added dozens more to the list, including multiple biographies. Maher suggested you can find some great inspiration from Abraham Lincoln, Winston Churchill, Mother Teresa, and many other leaders.  After a conversation with Adam Hergenrother, I started Psycho-Cybernetics, which is absolutely a life changing book. We even got a response from Mindy Hager, Gary Keller’s executive assistant on Gary’s favorite Leadership books: Optimal Stress  byCarol J. Scott, M.D. , Practice Made Perfect  by Roberto Moretti , Margin  by Richard A. Swenson, M.D., and Mastery by George Leonard .

Check the full list  below from my facebook friends and feel free to subscribe to future posts, friend me, and/or add a comment to this post below and list YOUR  favorite leadership books, too!

• Personal Leadership
• How to Win Friends and Influence People
• The Greatest Salesman in the World
• One Minute Manager
• No BS Time Management for Entrepreneurs
• Servant Leadership
• Good to Great
• Leadership & Self-Deception
• How to become a person of influence
• Think and Grow Rich, Born to Run
• Unlimited Power
• The Fighter’s Mind
• Where Have all the Leaders Gone?
• Power vs. Force
• 6 Steps to 7 Figures by Pat Hiban
• The Dream Manager
• Great
• Winning
• Getting to Yes
• Think & Grow Rich
• John Maxwell books, including The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership
• The Travelers Gift
• Mastering The Rockefeller Habits
• Art of War, Sun Tzu
• Leadership and Self Deception
• The Prince
• Psycho-Cybernetics
• AdaptAbility
• Mastering the Rockefeller Habits
• Leadership and self deception
• Lord of the Flies
• Optimal Stress
• Practice Made Perfect
• Margin
• Mastery
• 5 Dysfunctions of a Team
• Entreleadership
• The Bible

The SUE ADLER TEAM website The SUE ADLER TEAM website

I’ve been fortunate to speak at several major real estate conventions over the years, but this time, I was lucky to have the King of Video, Kenn Renner, on stage with me because he filmed our whole panel!

Ben Kinney and Cary Sylvester interviewed us about how we have dominated our local markets with our web strategy and use of videos. I discussed my community videos and how they attract relocation buyers who will be working in NYC, want an easy commute to work and great schools. The reason buyers stay on sueadler.com typically more than 5 minutes,  is because the site gives the real estate buyers and sellers the information they are typically researching –   commute, schools, home sale stats, restaurants and shops, recreation, community blog posts, seller blog posts with staging and pricing tips, and of course listings with floorplans and tons of photos. But it’s the community videos that make our buyers fall in love with our towns and make them want to come in and see it all in person. Do you agree?

We also discussed SEO and the fact that only after a couple of months, my new website is at the top of google for most of my towns, which is pretty cool considering how new it is.  BTW, if you’re on google plus, go ahead +1 the site if you like it. Thanks  I also do pay per click advertising for my www.LatestNJlistings.com site, which is my NJ home search site. I made a point to the Realtors in the audience that they need to make sure not to just throw money at pay per click advertising unless they have a website that has “stickiness” with great content that people won’t just click out of. Also, they need to have a great long term follow up system in place or they are just throwing money out the window.

We discuss my new chat feature that we just  added for everyone who is browsing the site. If  my team and I can be there to answer someone’s questions while they are on my site, I’ve found that people are so appreciative, especially in this day and age where everyone has ADD  and would also like to stay anonymous.

If you have any suggestions for the site, I’d love to hear. Are we missing anything?

Aside from all of the  national and international referral business I get from speaking ( which amounts to 4 or 5 new clients a week) , this is what makes it all worthwhile: My favorite tweet:

Want to follow all of the other twitter chatter?  Enter #kwmc in the search bar.

Thanks Keller Williams for allowing me the opportunity to share, and learn from the other top agents in our amazing company. Believe it or not, when I spoke at my first Mega Camp back in 2006, I was so terrified of public speaking that I would have rather jumped out of a plane, but now I really look forward to it!

The SUE ADLER TEAM website The SUE ADLER TEAM website

Last week, The Sue Adler Team was named #103 in the “The Thousand!”  This article is published every year by The Wall Street Journal and Real Trends, Inc. and highlights the Top 1,000 real estate teams in the United States. We are so excited to be a part of that exclusive list for 2011!  The teams are chosen based on the  amount of dollar volume   for 2010, and The Sue Adler Team is the only NJ Real Estate Team to be named on this list.

The Sue Adler Team strives daily to bring you the best possible consumer experience in New Jersey real estate and it is thrilling to be recognized not only through the numbers, but also through realizing how many people we have helped.  Each closed transaction represents a midtown direct buyer or seller, a satisfied customer and a new friend.  For that we are truly grateful.  Thank you, our clients ,friends and many supporters who have recommended us, for your continued support and referrals of the Sue Adler Team and for helping us to reach such amazing goals.  We could not achieve these milestones without you!  To see the latest article rankings, please click here  http://realtrends.com/products/top-1000-sales-professionals/team-volume.

The SUE ADLER TEAM website The SUE ADLER TEAM website

This past month, Top Agent Magazine contacted me for an interview. Recognizing us as one of the top producing teams in the country, they wanted to know more about our innovative marketing and social media strategies, and the amazing results they have brought to our clients in our   New Jersey Midtown Direct Train Line Towns. This was the focus of the article which you can read here.

Our new website was once again brought up as a key tool to help relocation buyers understand commute times between our New Jersey towns and New York City, and our videos and robust community pages were highlighted as well!
The article pointed out that 43% of our business last year came from internet marketing strategies and with the new website and other services we are now able to offer our clients, that number will increase this year.

The main point of the article is that real estate has become a skills based business… pricing first and foremost, negotiating, staging advice, online marketing strategies, and having long term “action plans” in place so that transactions run smoothly.

I run my business like a business. By hiring a team of specialists and consultants, I’m able to have the best of the best in the industry as a part of my team.  This way our buyer and seller clients can always keep their pulse on this changing market because we are able to provide the home, community, and market stats to them on a regular basis and become their connector to their new community. We are also able to manage the transaction from pre-list to close because Dawn, our Transaction Manager, has contractors and the important people in town hall on speed dial - Dawn makes it happen!

I tend to get the credit most of the time, but I really want everyone to know that without my admin, consultants, and buyer specialists, we could never offer our clients the level of services we are able to today.

Enjoy the article and and dont hesitate to contact me with any questions.

Yours to count on,

Sue

The SUE ADLER TEAM website The SUE ADLER TEAM website

Now there is even more national recognition for Sueadler.com!  Chris Smith from InmanNext interviewed Jim Marks, CEO of  Virtual Results about his “websites that work” and featured my new custom New Jersey real estate site as an example.

When Jim and I discussed how this site was going to be built, we had the Midtown Direct Trainline Town home buyer and seller in mind with each and every page.  Most of our buyers move here from Manhattan, Jersey City,  Hoboken or Brooklyn.  I joke that there is usually a dragger and a dragee out of the city and aside from the house, their priorities are often great schools, direct train for easy commute, and a walkable town.

So….. We built sueadler.com for the buyer relocating to New Jersey who isn’t sure yet which town to call home. Our interactive map has commute times to NYC, links to all of the community info including town tour videos with locals discussing the community, and links to all homes for sale in Millburn, Short Hills, Summit, Chatham, Madison, Maplewood, South Orange, Livingston and surrounding New Jersey towns.

Keeping both buyers and sellers in mind, on each of my listings, we pulled in the corresponding community information. For example, on www.sueadler.com/38rollinghill, you will notice a community video of Chatham, the Chatham blog posts, and the Chatham yelp reviews, as well as Chatham school and commuting info.

What I have discovered is that home buyers go to real estate websites and may see a nice house, but they have no idea what the community is like.  We designed this site with the intention of providing the whole package. And our sellers are thrilled to have their New Jersey homes featured in this way, so it’s a win for everyone.

A huge thank you to Jim Marks and the Virtual Results Team.  And to Chris Smith for giving sueadler.com national exposure!  Click here to see the article or watch the video.

The SUE ADLER TEAM website The SUE ADLER TEAM website

Our team website, sueadler.com, has been spotlighted in a recent article by Diverse Solutions, a California based company dedicated to providing leading edge technology to real estate, and I wanted to share the good news with you! Click here to see the full article and find out about how our website can help you in finding a home in New Jersey. Reviewing our interactive custom map, complete with train route information, Diverse Solutions, explained that it provided a way to instantly “engage” website users who want to live in New Jersey. They also loved our choice of colors and clean design and our custom quick search which allows website visitors to quickly conduct a search for the New Jersey home that most closely matches their needs and interests. We love the fact that Diverse Solutions took the time to even evaluate our many videos which help you to preview our towns in Chatham, Millburn/Short Hills, Summit, Maplewood, South Orange, Livingston, and Madison.  Our videos are a great way to check out each town, especially if you are relocating. Be sure to tell your friends who are interested in buying or selling real estate in New Jersey, we’d love to help them settle into one of our towns, whether they prefer a home in Chatham or to live in Millburn/Short Hills.  We’re here to help!

The SUE ADLER TEAM website The SUE ADLER TEAM website

The SUE ADLER TEAM website The SUE ADLER TEAM website

As 2010 comes to a close, I’d like to share a few of our team’s “defining moments” …

The Year The SueAdler(dot)Combo helped raise money for our local charities:

Thanks to my facebook friends for helping me build and promote my Millburn Deli signature sandwich from March through September this year! Because of it’s popularity, Down The Block and The Millburn/Short Hills First Aid Squad made $1,500 from the sandwich sales.  A few fun Moments: 1. Spotting a local realtor w/ her client, and watching the realtor’s face as her client orders a Sue Adler. combo. 2. Interviews with Andrew Morgan and Jay Papasan.  The sandwich can still be found at the deli under the name “The Cali”.

The Year We helped 81 families buy or sell houses in our Midtown Direct Towns:

While the average Realtor in our towns sold about 6-8 homes this year,  my team helped 81 families buy or sell , totalling about $65 Million in real estate, which is a personal record for me. As of Dec 1, we are #7 Worldwide for Keller Williams ( out of about 80,000 agents). And for the 6th year in a row, we sold more real estate in the entire New York Region for KW ( comprising of NJ, NY, CT) than any other agents. Words cant express how thankful  we are to our clients and friends who have continued to send us their friends, family and co-workers.

The Year Alex Charfen “STARRED” Me!

Having the STAR POWER team fly in from Austin with the camera crew for 3 days was one of those things I’ll never forget. I wasnt crazy about the article headline “The Queen of Social Media”, but the exposure brought our team a ton of client referrals from across the country; Then meeting other STAR POWER stars and making such great new friendships and learning all of their secrets to success to bring home to my clients - priceless!

The Year I  Began Teaching Others How to Grow THEIR Businesses!

I was invited to speak at several real estate conferences and had the opportunity share  my  On and Offline Marketing Strategies with other Realtors and Small Business Owners to Help Them Grow Their Businesses! The Inman Connect NYC 2010, Virtual RE BAR Camp, Women’s Coucil of Realtors NJ, Star Power Annual Conference, Keller Williams Mega Tech Camp, Keller Williams Family Reunion, Real Estate Social Media Summit, and CRS NYC Chapter Marketing Panel. The most rewarding part is the Thank Yous. To be able to help people succeed is just so awesome!

The Year The French Came Pour Une Visite !

After hearing me speak at the Inman Connect Conference in NYC, The leaders of ORPI, the largest real estate company in France, approached me to learn about social media and internet marketing for realtors.  They came to my office in October and  have since invited me to speak at their national convention in Paris!!! Definitely a ”once in a lifetime” moment, dont you think?

How can I thank you enough  for all of your support, friendship and business throughout the years!  What can I do for YOU?

If there is anything I can do to help you grow YOUR businesses, let’s set up a time to have lunch. So much of it is about connecting people with other people, and that’s what I’m good at, and if you’re on facebook, friend me -http://facebook.com/sueadler I’ll introduce you to people in the towns you’re moving to, and help you make any connections you need for your own businesses.

Wishing you and your family a happy, healthy 2011 with many defining moments!

Sue Adler , Robin Benjamin, Dawn Preziosi, Traci Freeman, Cindy Barna, Gail Harrison, Amy Gotsch, Zina Smolyanskiy,  Jeri Dana and Barbara Gifford.

www.sueadler.com (973)464-9129

The SUE ADLER TEAM website The SUE ADLER TEAM website

 I know my Midtown Direct Trainline Town restaurants, but for NYC restaurants?  I totally trust my facebook friends’ recommendations… yes, even more so than www.yelp.com . Why? Maybe because I feel they know me and know what I’d want. 

STK NYC

Last night my facebook status update was “Great trendy restaurant in NYC for my daughter’s 18th birthday party?”

Because I  got such an overwhelming response from people who were very passionate about their recommendations, I thought I’d share my compiled list with you.

Peter Luger’s Steakhouse for carnivore’s. Yeah it is Brooklyn, but just barely.

wd-50 – Food is amazing

Buddakan, Spice Market, Blue Water Grill

http://lidiasitaly.com/restaurants

http://www.gordonramsay.com/usrestaurants/

http://ny.eater.com/tags/joe-bastianich

Definitely Abe and Arthur’s – you can go virtually any place in Meat Packing and have a wonderful time. You can also look into STK and Tao.

If it’s the immediate family (and not a big crowd), “Cuba” in the Village is worth checking out for a tropical style celebration.

Piedmontese mega-market Eataly opens its first North American branch in conjunction with Mario Batali and Joe Bastianich, with separate restaurants devoted to meat, fish, vegetables, pasta and pizza, and panini — plus a rooftop brewpu.
I’d go to Todd English’s Food Hall at the Plaza before going to Eataly. You’ve got to wait for the crowds to subside before even attempting that place….plus have heard that the service is awful.

Check out one of my personal Italian favorites – ‘Cesca on upper west side. Great space and great food. There’s a little private area for parties as well. You mentioned wanting a less adventurous yet delicious menu like italian. Also Craft is wonderful for farm to fork and still trendy. Good luck. We will all wait for the invite.

If abby likes chocolate….you should take her to max brenner’s (chocolate by the bald man) for a special treat!!!
for something fun & very casual…..a burger & a shake from the shake shack in madison square park….eat at a table in the park….talk about a hip city experience!!

And the grand finale: 

I got this from Erick, who I have to give a special thank you to because his response is pretty over the top.   I am, however, saving the next part of this post for my older daughter’s 21st birthday party coming up in December ….

The key to a good birthday spot is friendly staff / management, something compelling to keep people entertained, and the option to reserve a section or tables so you have a home base for people to hang out. The venues below range from laid-back bar to upscale lounge to places made for dancing divas.
1. Anchor. Same music, crowd, and feel as the more pretentious lounges, but none of the attitude. Everyone will be dancing, mingling, and mulling over why theres no hassle at this super-fun spot.
2. East End Bar & Grill. If you want a more laid-back, sporty vibe, check this out. Best part is the birthday person always drinks free and you can book discounted open bar for all your friends. So no ones counting drinks, and everyones having fun.
3. Galloway Hooker. Huge bar. Plenty of private, sectioned off rooms and nooks that you can reserve just for your crew without the hassle that comes with more pretentious, upscale places. Great top 40 tunes and pool table / darts to boot.
4. Ella. This East Village gem is a posh, pulsating place thats always accommodating to birthdays and keeps guests happy with delicious drinks like watermelon martinis.
5. Thom Bar. If your style is ultra-elegant and hopelessly hip, invite everyone to the Thompson hotel, but make sure you clear it with the venue first. Door policy can be strict, but if you iron out the details beforehand, its a great spot for lounging and people-watching.
6. Gallery Bar. The art on the walls is a natural conversation piece, and the mix of Madonna to Mos Def makes sure everyone stays awake. Its become popular for birthdays so make sure to call ahead.
7. Superdive. Anywhere you can reserve tables and order kegs instead of bottles of Belvedere is bound to be interesting. Its faux dive-y so go expecting a cool crowd and think trendy over trashy.
8. PS450. Its usually a slightly younger crowd, but that just means its guaranteed to be high energy. There are great back rooms sectioned off by sheer white curtains that you can reserve for your crew. So you can have a private dance party, but still feel like a part of the main bar.
9. Slate. Not too crowded, not too much hassle, but tons of fun in a venue that has a back room perfect for 10 30, ping pong and pool tables downstairs, and music that wont let you stay in your seat.
10. Lucky Strike. Bowling may not seem like a good birthday bash, but it is when the venue feels more like an upscale lounge than an alley. Lucky Strikes sleek dcor, upscale food, and club-worthy beats make this a great choice when you want something different than the usual.
Sorry this is sooo long, but ive been to just about all of them…they are all fabulous!
Have a great time!!!

So, that’s all folks! BTW, if we’re not yet facebook friends, join my network at www.facebook.com/sueadler . I do NOT solicit business on facebook so no worries. If you’d like to join our business/community page, hit like at www.facebook.com/sueadlerteam for happenings in and around Millburn, Short Hills, Summit, Chatham, Maplewood, South Orange and Livingston NJ.

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