Survey details real estate marketing spending With the focus on slumping home prices and stagnant sales, one issue is not being addressed: How are REALTORS actually marketing properties in a down market? So in a buyer's market, what are REALTORS doing? VHT, a leading provider of visual marketing services, surveyed more than 1,300 brokers about the number of listings each is handling, what they are spending to market, and what marketing vehicles they are using. VHT is publishing these results to highlight marketing trends in the real estate industry. Some of the hightlights include: Sample size of 1304 REALTORS --Most of the realtors surveyed (34.8%) had between 10-20 listings --The average listing price for 59% of the agents was between $250-500k --24.5% of agents/brokerages spent $250-500 to market their listing --Agents with more experience are spending more on a listing than their counterparts --Some of the biggest challenges in managing their media is managing multiple inputs and tracking the results of their media buys --There is a significant disparity between spending on higher priced listings vs low priced listings --Agent who market higher priced homes needs to know what their counterparts/competition are spending. Other areas covered include most popular media vehicles, online ad effectiveness, seller preferences, top online sites, average ad spending. The full release follows, hi-res survey graphs are downloadable at www.vht.com/about/news/#marketingsurvey. Managing the Multigenerational Workforce by Christy S. Meeting the unique needs of the Traditionalists, Generation Xers, and Millenials...As the baby boomers approach retirement age, companies must begin to plan ahead by investing in leadership development and succession planning. The numbers are truly staggering; according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics 25 million employees plan to leave the workforce by 2010. Of these, 22 million will be at least 45 years of age and will be exiting due to retirement; creating a significant need for younger workers to fill the vacated jobs. Unfortunately, a recent report by the Center on Aging and Work indicates more than 25 percent of U.S. businesses have done little to plan for the effects of this aging workforce. Additionally, respondents acknowledged that they are facing challenges when it comes to replacing the retiring workforce. Read more ... http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.jsp?articleId=281474977371064 Consumer moving survey revealed The ups and downs of the housing market aren’t only keeping the real estate industry and consumers on edge; the professional moving industry is also being challenged. Relocation.com recently conducted a national consumer survey to gain insight on attitudes about housing and moving, as well as state moving trends. Among the statistics, the survey found that only 15 percent of people moved from a rental to home ownership and that more people went from ownership status to renter status than the reverse--both a direct correlation with the deteriorating U.S. housing market and economic slump. Consequently, consumers are experiencing higher levels of anxiety during their move. These findings pose unique challenges--as well as new opportunities--for the moving industry as well as REALTORS. Read the survey's findings, including information about online moving search trends and regional moving preferences. http://www.ohiorealtors.org/news/enews/backup/0623Relocation.pdf Group releases Internet trends forecast What online trends are shaping the creative profession? To get a snapshot of the shifts taking place and how to best prepare for them, The Creative Group tapped the expertise of The Webby Awards. The information in this report is compiled by an executive of The Webbys, dedicated to creative, technical and professional progress of the Internet and evolving forms of interactive media. The industry's elite were interviews to get their perspectives on how the Internet is evolving. Read further... http://www.ohiorealtors.org/news/enews/backup/0623InternetTrends.pdf Will states topple Electoral College? Stateline.org--First it was the presidential primary calendar that state legislatures across the country upended to give their voters a greater say this year in choosing candidates. Now a few states are orchestrating an overhaul of the way voters select the U.S. president. Voters this fall will still use the Electoral College to determine the next occupant of the White House, but a movement is bubbling at the state level to bypass the process and instead ensure future presidents are the candidates who get the most votes nationwide — an outcome not always guaranteed under the current system. Read the Full Story ... http://www.stateline.org/live/details/story?contentId=316080 2008 enrollment in U.S. expected to set record Washington Post--Public school enrollment across the country will hit a record high this year with just under 50 million students and the student population is becoming more diverse in large part because of growth in the Latino population, according to a new federal report. Nationwide, about 20 percent of students were Hispanic in 2006, the latest year for which figures were available for ethnic groups, up from 11 percent in the late 1980s. Overall, about 43 percent of the nation's students are minorities. Read the Full Story ... http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/06/08/AR2008060802023.html Violent crime down, FBI says Washington Post--Violent crime appears to have declined nationwide in 2007 for the first time in three years, with major cities showing the most significant drops, according to a preliminary FBI report released yesterday. Bureau officials said the number of violent crimes reported--offenses including homicide, robbery and assault--dipped by 1.4 percent across the United States last year compared with 2006. While cities with more than 1 million residents showed improvement, smaller urban communities ... Read the Full Story ... http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/06/09/AR2008060900675.html Technology changes quickly and so too the etiquette rules You could be checking your Office Live Small Business or Windows Live Hotmail account on your smartphone, completely unaware that you’re either offending those around you or the person to whom you're sending. For instance, you shouldn’t be typing and talking to a customer at the same time. And you shouldn't be sending the great American novel to someone who’s checking e-mail from a cell phone. Inside are eight new tips for handling e-mail on a wireless device. http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/officelive/FX102533521033.aspx?xid=3D6C82EC-C8B7-4E86-B154-32CD0A58D874 Paste text from Explorer into Excel Do you want to paste text from Word or Internet Explorer into Excel without having it interfere with the formatting in the cell? Hit F2 so you are in editing mode before you paste. Then, only the text will come through, not the formulas. Remove your dead site link from Google Old sites often stay cached in Google's search engine. If you own a site that you want removed, you can request its removal using Google's webmaster tools. www.google.com/webmasters/tools/removals Is time flying right by? If you have been spending a lot of time on a project and want a quick and easy way to track it, let 88 miles figure it out for you! This web-based service allows you to set up projects and simply PUNCH IN and PUNCH OUT. You do not have to look at the clock; 88 miles will do it for you! You can share your time study with other staff members, or keep it for your eyes only. 88 miles even offers a mobile edition! www.88miles.net On the light side First Agent : Did you pass your ethics exam? Second Agent: Yes, I passed my ethics exam. Of course I've cheated.