Yes, it’s that time again.
The women selected for Sellsius‘ 3rd Annual Top 12 Women Real Estate Bloggers for 2008 were chosen for their exemplary efforts in publishing local consumer-centric content across multiple channels, building their brand identity, awareness and trust and, most importantly, for their community involvement and service, both online and offline.
Thank you to all these ladies, and those I have overlooked, for continuing to raise the bar for real estate professionals seeking to improve themselves and the profession in service to the public. You are glowing examples for those who are to follow.
1. Mary McKnight. Netamorfasis. Also known as REBlogGirl. Previously, we had only chosen real estate agents for the Top 12 list. It was time for a change. (Heck, there are umpires in the Baseball Hall of Fame.) And the first non-agent I want to honor for recognition is Mary McKnight. She has been giving real estate bloggers valuable tips and insights into the mysterious art of blogging for business for a long time. As long as computer bots are crawling blogs, SEO & SEM have to be part of the blogging equation.
Mary has also been known to stir up hornets’ nests and not run away. She has been able to stand out from the madding crowd and build her brand with bravery, a key to success in any medium.
2. Nicole Nicolay. MyTechOpinion. NikNik, Nicole has shown that geeks can be excellent real estate bloggers. She is always on the lookout for new technology and tools to help real estate professionals stay ahead of the curve. She was an early adopter of video blogging. Nicole is also tuned into the microblogging crowd at Twitter.
Nicole was recently named by Inman News as one of the Top 25 Most Influential Real Estate Bloggers. Nicole has teamed with Mary McKnight in a most sacrilicious way to launch a new marketing blog. These ladies mean business.
3. Kelley Koehler. MyTucsonBlog. As the Housechick, Kelley has taught real estate agent bloggers to win the small battles and go niche. Kelley represents the best in local blogging, keenly focused her market, Tucson, AZ. I think her post Getting the Most out of the Listing Router should be required reading for real estate agents. A classically trained ballet dancer with a Systems Engineer degree makes for quite a range of talent.
4. Lani Anglin-Rosales. Lani keeps it local for the Austin, Texas market at SinglePointeRealty Blog. She can also be found on ReRevealed. Lani is also one of the resident agent geniuses at AgentGenius. Darn, how does she do it? With husband Benn, she took the group blog concept to new heights, gathering the best collection of real estate bloggers on the net to win an 2008 Inman News Innovator Award. Lani was also named by Inman News as one of the Top 25 Most Influential Real Estate Bloggers in 2008.
Lani is the consummate networker and has been known to use that ancient piece of technology, the telephone.
5. Linda Davis. Eastern Connecticut Real Estate Blog. The Carnac of Connecticut. I love Linda for her straight shooting style. Linda is a frequent public speaker on blogging. Who can forget her quote from Inman Connect San Francisco, “If your business is crappy, blogging won’t help.” Linda preaches service to the client as the essence of being a real estate professional. Linda takes service seriously. She is currently on the Ledyard, CT Town Council as Chairman of Land Use and Planning Committee. Linda was also selected as “Outstanding Woman of Ledyard” by the Ledyard Jaycees. Local and involved in her community, she is outstanding in my book too.
6. Lenn Harley. Lenn blogs the way I like to read them– direct and to the point. Her posts are scannable and easy to read— and understand. Jakob Nielsen would be proud. And Lenn blogs her listings, contrary to the wisdom of some. I like that she goes her own way. Lenn is a conversational marketer, using her comments to stamp her brand across the net. Lenn is a buyer agent evangelist with Homefinders.com. She has blogged with Real Town and Active Rain. Lenn is a great model for new bloggers.
7. Mariana Wagner. Colorado Springs Real Estate Connection. Fer shizzle Mizzle. If you want to know anything about Colorado Springs, read Mariana’s blog. (I think I would move there). She sports the tell tale signs of a McKnight styled blog– focused on the consumers’ needs and wants, with clear calls to action. I think she has one of the best About Us pages I’ve seen. I’d hire the Wagner team in a second.
8. Sherry Chris. Clean Slate (Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate). Sherry is CEO of Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate, a progressive brand which combines nuts and bolts real estate advice with lifestyle features. I had the pleasure of interviewing Sherry at a RISMedia event in New York and found her to be committed to social media. She is one of the most respected leaders in the industry (including the male of the species) and can be found speaking at virtually every major real estate conference in the country. That she has embraced blogging shows her understanding of media trends. What I especially admire about Sherry is her commitment to charitable causes, even those which may seem out of reach.
9. Ginger Wilcox. Marin Real Estate Guide. A third generation real estate professional, Ginger specializes in residential real estate in Southern and Central Marin County. Besides being very active in the blogging community and social media, Ginger is also devoted to community service. She currently serves as Provisional Education Chair for the Junior League of San Francisco and is an Executive Vice President on the Board of the Kentfield Schools Foundation. Ginger chaired the award winning Junior League of San Francisco Home Tour, Give My Regards to Broadway in 2006 and has worked with a variety of other community organizations including Marin Family Service Agency, Booker T. Washington Community Service Center, TALKline and many more.
10. Cheryl Johnson. NELALive. Another keepin’ it local, tech-savvy blogger from Los Angeles, CA. Open Houses and Market stats are blog staples, along with all things related to her neighborhood and community. Heck, reading NELA makes you feel like a native. Cheryl also contributes to the Active Rain community and Bloodhound blog.
11. Heather Elias. Loco Musings. Heather blogs for the Loudoun County, Virginia community. She is well versed in using social media. A testament to her popularity and social media networking skills was her campaign to win the Virginia Association of Realtors’ 2008 Blog Brawl. Getting to the top locally is what it’s all about.
12. Bernice Ross. LuxuryClues. Bernice has devoted herself to helping real estate professionals improve their business. Writer, coach, speaker and blogger, Bernice owns a Ph.D. and the rank of Emeritus Professor of Psychology, Los Angeles Pierce College. She now has a Sellsius Top 12 to add to her trophy case.
Congratulations to all.
Past Top Women Real Estate Bloggers:
Sellsius’ Top 12 Women Real Estate Bloggers 2007
Sellsius’ Top 10 Women Real Estate Bloggers 2006
Technorati Tags: Sellsius Top 12, Women real estate bloggers, blogging, Bernice Ross, Mary Mcknight, Lani Anglin Rosales, Lenn Harley, Nicole Nicolay, Linda Davis, Cheryl Johnson, Ginger Wilcox, Heather Elias, Mariana Wagner, Kelley Koehler
