Advanced Access October 2003 Newsletter

October 2003 Newsletter

"There is no security in life, only opportunity."
- Mark Twain

Eliminate Concerns about "Do Not Call" List
With Intellicards E-Mail Marketing

Many of our clients have shown interest in a more efficient method of keeping in touch with clients and prospects with the recent introduction of the federal "do-not-call" list.

The federal registry went into effect on October 1, and prohibits most forms of cold calling. Over 50 million people are currently registered on the list throughout the country.

For our clients who depend on the phone as part of their marketing strategy, this is undoubtedly a setback. However, there is a promising alternative - Intellicards E-mail Marketing System.

Studies continue to show that permission based or opt-in e-mail systems are on the rise and are welcomed by Americans as we become increasingly dependent on e-mail as a means of communication.

"E-mail communication is instant, and it's less intrusive than a phone call." says Kristina Morrison, CEO of Advanced Access. "With all of the information Intellicards has to offer through automatic marketing campaigns, it is possible for anyone to consistently keep in touch with their clients and prospects via e-mail."

The National Association of REALTORS® Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers cited a staggering statistic: more buyers now use the Internet than their local newspapers to find a home. In fact, in the first half of 2003, 66% of homeowners used the Internet to look for a home. In addition, recent studies show that 66% of North America is now using the Internet daily. What better reason to implement a positive and consistent e-mail marketing program through Intellicards!

For more information about Intellicards e-mail marketing and how it can affect your business communications, please contact our sales department TOLL FREE at 800-335-1563.

Housing to Reach Historic Highs in 2004, says NAR

Great news for the real estate industry! Although our economic growth is expected to accelerate, inflation should remain low. That will maintain a low level of mortgage interest rates and keep housing near historic highs in 2004, according to the National Association of Realtors®.

David Lereah, NAR's chief economist, said a growing economy normally places pressure on interest rates. "Many industries are now facing increased demand, and we can expect strong economic growth into next year," Lereah said. "With no inflation in sight, we don't expect the Federal Reserve to move on interest rates until the third quarter of 2004."

Lereah said the movement in mortgage interest rates in 2003 has been both unusual and unexpected. "Not only have we seen record lows for mortgage interest rates, but also we've seen unprecedented sharp swings up and down this year," he said. "The 30-year fixed rate is now back below 5.8 percent - on an annual basis we have to go back to the early 60s to see mortgage interest rates where they are today."

He expects the 30-year fixed mortgage interest rate to remain below 6.5 percent for the rest of this year, and to average 6.7 percent in 2004. "That is still very affordable," he said.

Lereah forecasts a record of 5.89 million existing-home sales this year, up 5.8 percent from 5.57 million sales in 2002. New-home sales should grow by 8.2 percent to a record of 1.05 million units. Housing starts are expected to increase 3.9 percent to a total of 1.77 million units, the highest level since the impact of the baby boom generation in 1979.

The national median existing-home price is forecast to rise 6.8 percent in 2003 to $169,000, while the median new-home price should increase 3.3 percent to $193,800. Overall home price appreciation is expected to moderate somewhat next year, with the medians rising 4.9 percent and 5.4 percent respectively.

Haunting Halloween IntelliC@rd Greetings

Many of us celebrate Halloween by carving jack-o-lanterns and hosting parties with family and friends. Halloween's roots can be traced back to Celtic culture in Ireland. According to their "Druid" religion, November 1st was New Years' on their calendar. The celebration would begin on October 31, and last into the following day. The spirits of all who died in the prior year would rise up and roam the earth on this night. These early events began as both a celebration of the harvest and an honoring of dead ancestors.

Did you know Halloween is second only to Christmas in spending? Consumers will spend over $2.5 Billion during Halloween. That's a whole lot of candy, costumes, decorations, and party goods.

Those of us watching our calories can rest assured that a cup of candy corn has fewer calories than a cup of raisins.

We invite you to celebrate Halloween with clients and prospects by sending out one of our colorful and attractive Intellicards designs. There are several selections to choose from under the Holiday/Seasonal category in your Virtual Office.

We at Advanced Access would like to wish you a Happy Halloween, and remember - depending upon the state you live in, it may be illegal to sell a haunted house without warning the buyer first!

"A World of Opportunities" for YOU at the NAR Convention!

Advanced Access' Sales Department is packing up our Exhibit Booth and getting ready to fly to the beautiful city of San Francisco for the Annual National Association of REALTORS® Convention and Trade Show on November 7-10th. Thousands of REALTORS® and guests are expected to attend the conference.

We're looking forward to the opportunity to meet new and existing clients in San Francisco, and expect the trade show to be exciting and successful for all of us. You are welcome and invited to come over and say hello - we're located in BOOTH 419. It's always great fun to meet and talk with our clients across the country. Looking forward to seeing you there!

And, if you visit us at the NAR Convention, we have a FREE GIFT for you…. a beautiful CD with 100 of our valuable Weekly Marketing Tips listed for your reference. If you can't make it to the convention to pick up your gift, you can ALWAYS find our Marketing Tips online. Simply click here to access our Marketing Tips anytime!

If you know some of your colleagues and friends will be attending the convention, please send them over to our booth. Be sure to ask them to give YOU credit for referring them to us.

If one of your referrals purchases a website, Intellicards, or any of our other services from us, it will be our pleasure to add a free month of hosting to your existing contract.

Nationally-Known Speaker Rick DeLuca
Appearing At Advanced Access Booth at NAR

Bringing his proven teaching ability with a sense of the real world ideas that audiences greatly appreciate, Advanced Access will present one of the most well-known and popular speakers in the real estate industry, RICK DeLUCA, at this year's National Association of REALTORS® (N.A.R.) 2003 Conference & Expo entitled "A World Of Opportunities" at the Moscone Convention Center in San Francisco, California, November 7-10, 2003.

Join Rick as he applies the same practical and systematic approach that enabled him to become of the top agents in the country, as he explains and helps you untangle the technology puzzle that REALTORS® all face today! Learn from an expert how to increase your presence on the Internet so that future clients can locate your professional-looking Website with a simple "click" of the mouse!

Visit us at BOOTH #419 and bring a friend. You'll receive a FREE copy of our CD "Marketing Tips For The Real Estate Professional," and if your friend signs-up for service you'll get a FREE month of hosting added to your current contract!

The Next Generation of Website Design
Nearly Ready to Deliver!

Last month we announced the upcoming release of our Classic Package 3.0. Our goal is to provide you with a SUPERIOR product that goes far above and beyond your expectations, increasing your Internet presence.

For about 30 days our Beta Testers have been working with the new program, and we are pleased to announce that they are reporting success with the new features and functionality of the Classic Package 3.0. Our product development staff is diligently working on fixes reported by our beta testers, and we're still on schedule for a November release.

Here are a few comments from our brave and enthusiastic Beta Testers:

Kristin Noll, from Milwaukee Wisconsin, says:

"A dream come true! Advanced Access has listened to the feedback from its most prolific users and fulfilled a fantastic wish list. The new Classic 3.0 lets us customize slide shows, banners, colors and more! What a terrific opportunity to be able to have complete control of the look and feel of your website and still have the fantastic support that Advanced Access offers! Thanks AA!"

Geri Sonkin, from Long Island, New York, says:

"The Classic 3.0 takes template web sites to a whole new level. We can create slides shows (as I have on my site), create custom templates to suit our own tastes and customize just about any other feature -- such as the way our listings appear. I've only scratched the surface of this incredible new tool, but I'm determined to dig deeper to see just how creative I can be. Thanks AA for keeping us on the leading edge."

Linda Giordano, from Pelham, New Hampshire, says

"I really like the fact that I have complete control over the content of each page. The page editor is so easy to use. The file library makes it easy to upload images and documentation, to add value to the site. The Classic Package 3.0 has all of the things I was looking for in a real estate site, without having to worry about its appearance. It always looks professional!"

Mondell Metz, from La Crescenta, California, says:

"The new version 3.0 is even better that before. The capabilities to create unique web pages within my site are even easier to understand. The new Page Manager tool works like something out of MS Office. My site was just converted over two days ago and after spending a few spare hours exploring the new Virtual Office and reading the tips in the AA Forums from users who went before me, I find that I am quite comfortable with it. I now feel ready to take my site anywhere my muse leads me."

Tucker Pennington, from Chattanooga, TN, says:

"I thought Advanced Access was the Website provider on the 'net when I first signed up with them over two years ago. Now that I've used Classic 3.0 they are the only website provider offering this level of custom flexibility for an affordable price. The Advanced Access website is like having an Internet Marketing team available 24/7 365! This company works as hard as I do - [even harder - Shhhh!]

Thank you Advanced Access for revitalizing the way I do business."

The NEW Classic Package 3.0 is a FREE upgrade from your previous Classic Package version. Your new program will be backed by the same friendly and efficient service you've always received from our Customer Support Department.

Next month's newsletter (November) will provide complete instructions on how to complete your upgrade and conversion to the NEW Classic Package 3.0. We will be offering a TOLL FREE number for you to call to get started, so be on the lookout for an announcement SOON.

Don't Forget to Fall Back on Sunday, October 26

Sunday, October 26 marks the end of Daylight Saving Time, as observed in most of our states. Accordingly we should all set our clocks BACK one hour at 2:00 a.m. this Sunday. The exceptions to the rule are: Hawaii, American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, the Eastern Time Zone portion of the State of Indiana, and most of Arizona (with the exception of the Navajo Indian Reservation in Arizona.)

With the change of Daylight Saving Time, it's a good time to change the batteries in your smoke detector(s). Changing the batteries twice a year will ensure that the detector(s) will be working in case there is a fire. Some inexpensive detectors also need to be replaced completely about every five years or so.

WOW…. Did You Know?

The United States now has more REALTORS® than the state of Montana has residents. The National Association of REALTORS® reports its total membership at an unprecedented 952,000 (that's nearly ONE MILLION REALTORS!) and that number seems to be growing every day.

Real Estate welcomed lots of new faces in the last couple of years as home sales and prices broke record after record and housing kept the national economy afloat.

There is power in numbers. NAR's size has enabled its political action committee to become the second top donor in American politics. Since 1989, the association has given nearly $23 million to federal candidates and political parties. In the 2002 election cycle, NAR contributed more than $4.4 million, making Realtors a LARGE voice on Capitol Hill.

How Popular Are You?

Link popularity is a hot topic these days. Although we have been sending you guidelines to attaining link popularity regularly over the last several years, the same basic rules still apply. Reciprocal linking is SO important that we will always remind you about the latest websites that will help you achieve more link popularity, and a better chance for SUCCESS in your website marketing.

How Does Link Popularity Work?

Link Popularity is all about relevance. It's common during an Internet search to find results that are not relevant to your keywords. That's why search engines are always looking for ways to make their results more appropriate to the keywords used by the consumer. Recently links have become more important than ever because the search directories see them as an endorsement of your site by others. The theory is: the more links "to" YOUR website, the more important it must be, and therefore worthy of higher placement in the search engines.

If you read our weekly marketing tips, you'll find how easy it is to get started with your own Link Popularity program. Click here to use our handy Link Popularity Guide. Our Link Popularity Guide contains all of our suggestions for the best real estate links, and you can submit your site to any or all of the sites included in this reference.

If you don't have the extra time available to work on your link popularity, we offer our Premium Marketing Service Division. YOU choose the level which best suits your personality, marketing requirements and budget. Click here for more information about our Premium Marketing Service.

Featured AA Employee of the Month - Aaron Greeno

This month we're featuring an intelligent and resourceful member of our Accounting Department, Aaron Greeno. Aaron has been on board for over three years, starting out with the company as an accounting clerk. Over the years, Aaron has grown along with the company and increasingly taken on more responsibility in Accounting.

Aaron is now in charge of processing invoices for hosting renewals, compiling monthly sales reports, supervision of the daily processing of sales orders, and creating custom accounting reports with specialized programs such as SQL, Crystal Reports, and Visual Basics. Through his expertise in these complex software systems, Aaron has been responsible for creating programs that save the company time and money.

"I'm the kind of person who thrives on finding solutions to challenging problems. Lito (our Director of Accounting) and I have been able to streamline the department's operations and are now proactive in seeking out and solving issues before they impair the operations of the department or the company."

Aaron worked full-time while going to college, and recently graduated from the California State University at Fullerton with a Bachelor's Degree in Economics. He plans to complete his graduate work and looks forward to receiving his Ph.D in Economics in the future.

A native Californian, Aaron grew up in Buena Park, along with his parents and sister. He has been married for three years to his beautiful wife, Serenity. Serenity is currently working on her teaching credential.

In his spare time, Aaron enjoys reading and is learning to speak Spanish. Aaron is also an accomplished musician, playing guitar and synthesizer at his church, and has always been one of our favorite entertainers at Advanced Access karaoke parties.

Intelligent and articulate, Aaron is a talented employee with a great sense of humor. Aaron's knowledge and resourcefulness set him apart, and we're proud to work with him here at Advanced Access.

September 2003 | Back to Main Page | November 2003