We had the pleasure of interviewing Kim Noel, a recent REAL ESTATE WEBOGRAPHER™ (REW™) certificant. Kim has worked in many different fields providing her assistant services, but has become a valuable member of our Technology Partner, Team Double-Click.

We took a few moments to ask her a few simple interview questions on her thoughts of the program.

1) What is your background?

I have many years of experience as an Administrative Assistant in a Bricks and Mortar setting.  I have worked within Real Estate, Car Manufacturing and Modular Home Manufacturing as an Assistant.  Mixed with my fascination with computers and technology, the evolutionary step was to work virtually at doing something I love to do.  I have to thank Team Double-Click for that opportunity.  They are a wonderful Virtual Staffing Agency for Independent Contractors to work with and you couldn't ask for a better support system.

2) Why did you undertake the REAL ESTATE WEBOGRAPHER™ (REW™) certification?

I took the Certification to increase my knowledge base so that I may in turn help my clients and future clients have a solid web presence for their businesses.  With this knowledge I can improve their presence on the web at a fraction of the cost and increase their sales; all from the comfort of my home office.

3) Which course (or courses) did you find the most value in?

All the courses were packed with useful and very interesting information, but I have to say the Online Transaction Management (Relay) and Agent Websites (RapidListings / Point2) courses were the highlight for me.  All the modules were easy to understand and very thorough.

4) In what ways will you utilize the technologies you learned in the REW™ certification to enhance your career or business?

With my new REW Certification I can now offer my clients a whole new area to help them increase their web presence and get them on the path to marketing and lead generation the web-savvy way!

5) How long did it take you to complete the certification and what are your impressions of the online experience?

It took me a week to complete the certification.  I went head on and worked at it daily.  I had a hard time putting my mouse down so to speak.  The program was excellent!  It was easy to understand and each module prepared you fully for the Learning Lab case-studies as well as the test questions.  I would certainly recommend this course to any VA who is interested in being an RE Assistant.

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Thanks Kim and all the Best!

We had the pleasure of interviewing Sandra Sims, a recent REAL ESTATE WEBOGRAPHER™ (REW™) certificant.

Sandra is a Virtual Assistant (VA) involved in the Real Estate Industry for 20+ years. She is REPA certified and pursued the REW program in order to be able to offer more services to her clients so that they may use their valuable time doing what they do best - bringing in new business. She found her answer in REW.

We took a few moments to ask some questions on her thoughts of the program.

1) What is your background?

I have been in the Real Estate Industry for over 20 years. I started out working for several Property Management companies handling leasing of properties, doing administrative duties along with becoming an Office Manager. I have become NAR REPA (Real Estate Professional Assistant) certified which is a National Association of Realtors designation along with having extensive experience with real estate operations specializing in property management. I enjoy what I do and it enables me to spend time with my family.

2) Why did you undertake the REAL ESTATE WEBOGRAPHER™ (REW™) certification?

Megan Barber of Barber Virtual Assisting Solutions suggested that I take this course since she had just completed it herself and said that it would help all of us Real Estate Professional Assistants. I am proud that I now have my REAL ESTATE WEBOGRAPHERS™ certification. I took this course to further my education and to be able to offer more services as a Real Estate Virtual Assistant. I own my own business and feel that continued education of technologies is of up most importance in keeping up with the constant changes.

3) Which course (or courses) did you find the most value in?

In the REW course I learned so many different programs and feel that all were very valuable to me and my business and I highly recommend this program to help keep pace with the changing technology of today!

4) In what ways will you utilize the technologies you learned in the REW™ certification to enhance your career or business?

The course has allowed me to be able to offer more services to Real Estate Professionals and there businesses along with offering more as a virtual assistant to small businesses too! This will give my clients the opportunity to hand off to me their day to day tasks which lets them have more time to increase their business and close more deals.

5) How long did it take you to complete the certification and what are your impressions of the online experience?

It took me several weeks to complete this course due to my not having time to complete it all at once. But I enjoyed being able to take it on my own time which allowed me to work it in between my not so busy times!

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Thanks Sandra and all the Best!

We had the pleasure of interviewing Kathy Goldman, a recent REAL ESTATE WEBOGRAPHER™ (REW™) certificant.

Kathy is a Virtual Assistant (VA) involved in the Real Estate Industry for over 14 years.  She currently owns and operates her own business, REVAonline.  REVA Online provides the admin and technology expertise Realtors® need to take their Real Estate business to the next level. They take over the behind-the-scenes administrative tasks to allow the RE professional to concentrate on what they do best — listing and selling properties!

We took a few moments to ask some questions on her thoughts of the program.

1) What is your background?

I have 4+ years as a virtual Real Estate Assistant and 10+ years of in-house real estate experience. I am familiar with many website hosts and their products as well as lead generation tools and website content and maintenance. I have a team of experts trained to support the various tools and services that help integrate and streamline my client’s businesses. We provide website support and maintenance, website content, single property websites, lead management, post card campaigns, Virtual Tours and more!

2) Why did you undertake the REAL ESTATE WEBOGRAPHER™ (REW™) certification?

I believe that you should never stop learning. Although most of the information covered in this course was review, there were many things that I was able to take from the course as well. I prefer to stay on top of the game by taking courses and vendor training when the opportunity arises.

3) Which course (or courses) did you find the most value in?

I though the whole course was a great “package” offering insight and training into many areas Realtors® may not have know about. This is just a great all-around insight into tools and services that agents can utilize to streamline their business.

4) In what ways will you utilize the technologies you learned in the REW certification to enhance your career or business?

I will apply these techniques daily in the support of my clients. My clients look to me to be on the cutting edge of technology and to find ways to make their businesses better and thereby enhancing their client relations and their marketing opportunities.

5) How long did it take you to complete the certification and what are your impressions of the online experience?

I may not be indicative of the average person taking the courses. I used all the days, but that was due to my own time limitations. The course is somewhat lengthy, but covered all the topics necessary. Once in with the online instructor, the time flew by quickly and the courses were easy to understand. This is definitely a series I would recommend to my clients!

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Thanks Kathy and all the Best!

We had the pleasure of interviewing Ekemma Mmeje, a recent REAL ESTATE WEBOGRAPHER™ (REW™) certificant.

Ekemma is a Virtual Assistant (VA) working out of Silver Spring, MD. Having been approached several times by many RE professionals looking for help creating and maintaining an online web-presence, Ekemma seeked out the knowledge to broaden her own RE technology skill set, and improve her value as a VA. She found her answer in REW.

We took a few moments to ask some questions on her thoughts of the program.

1) What Is Your Background?

I have over 5 years of experience working as an office Administrator. I decided to offer my services as a virtual assistant, to help small businesses and busy professionals who are faced with day-to-day administrative challenges to meet their business objectives. As a Virtual Assistant, I enjoy having some time to myself as well as practicing my profession. I currently run my own business, Xpertva serivces, and can be reached at xpertva@yahoo.com, or by at phone 301.943.6096.

2) Why did you undertake the REAL ESETATE WEBOGRAPHER™ (REW)?

I have been approached several times by real estate professionals to assist them with their office management and to also help them create a solid web presence. Because of this, I decided to take this certification to help me broaden my knowledge base in this area.

3) Which Course Did You Find The Most Value In?

The courses that I find the most value in include the following: Online Transaction Management (OTM), Mobile Technology, Electronic Forms (covering MLS, IDX, VOW and ILD Technologies).

4) In What Ways Will You Use The Technologies You Learnt To Enhance Your Career Or Business?

I will use the technologies that I have learnt to assist real estate professionals in their business. I will support their online transactions, create and maintain a web presence and help improve their office management. This will give them more time to interact with their clients, generate more leads, and close more sales.

5) How long did it take you to complete the certification and what are your impressions of the online experience?

It took me 3 days to complete the course and it was very interesting and educative. I have more insights now with the latest technologies in online real estate technologies.

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Thanks Ekemma and all the Best!

We had the pleasure of interviewing Marie Martinez, a recent REAL ESTATE WEBOGRAPHER™ (REW™) certificant.

Marie had an extremely successful career as a travel agent for a corporate firm. Following a relocation, she moved into real estate. She completed REW™ to aid in both her professional and personal businesses and has excelled in both!

We took a few moments to ask her a few questions on her thoughts of the program.

1) What is your background?

I worked as a corporate travel agent for 17 years and edged out with the increased use of technology. After a layoff, I decided not to pursue my career any further. After a couple of years and a relocation from New York to South Carolina I found my niche as a real estate assistant. I enjoy the marketing aspect of the job and in 2005 launched my part time business: Low Country Virtual Assistant.

2) Why did you undertake the REAL ESTATE WEBOGRAPHER™ (REW™) certification?

To assist in both my full time job as an Executive Assistant to three very busy real estate agents and to promote myself as a Virtual Assistant.

3) What are your impressions of the online experience?

I loved the training and knowledge I received and can now bring to the agents I assist both during the day and for my own personal business. Technology is here and it is the future and we have to keep up in order to be competitive.

4) How long did it take you to complete the certification?

It took about two weeks to complete it.

5) What would you tell those who are considering this certification?

Take it! You will not regret one penny. Money well spent. I am able to bring something to the real estate office I work for as my full time job as well as options for the agents I assist in the evening.

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Thanks Marie and all the Best!

We had the pleasure of interviewing Twyla Chapman, a recent REAL ESTATE WEBOGRAPHER™ (REW™) certificant.

Twyla is a Virtual Assistant (VA) with CreativeVASolutions.com and undertook the certification to improve and supplement her VA skills to win additional listings and increase her service offerings.

We took a few moments to ask some questions on her thoughts of the program.

1) What is your background?

In addition to growing up on a ranch, I am a mom of three with one left in high school and a ranch hand which entails about everything there is to do on the ranch. I also barrel race on horses that I have trained myself and work as a VA at CreativeVASolutions.com.          
 
2) Why did you undertake the REAL ESTATE WEBOGRAPHER™ (REW™) certification?  

I wanted to back off the ranch job but still earn a great income without having to drive so far into town to get a minimum wage job. Further, since I'm working as a VA, the completion of the REW Certification would greatly improve my marketability and pay.  Since I could take the courses right over the internet from home and had 90 days to complete it I went for it.  Even though the cost of the cert is extremely low, the increase in pay I could achieve with REW greatly offsets the cost of it. 
 
3) What are your impressions of the online experience?

I thought it was very informative and the courses were well laid out. I liked the fact that after each course you had an assessment that allowed you to go back over any questions that you got wrong "on the fly" making it easier for me to understand it all. I really am not an excellent test taker and I completed each course with flying colors. Also, I enjoyed the experience.
 
4) How long did it take you to complete the certification? 

I completed the certification in 8 days.
 
5) What would you tell those who are considering this certification?

I would tell folks to go for it because it will help you understand the aspects of what a Real Estate office needs for greater exposure and what an assistant can do to improve that exposure. Oh, wow it is just so full of good things! Moreover, with this certification under your belt, you will drastically increase your marketability making it more likely for you to be chosen for a VA job with a salary higher than a purely assistant position.  If you are afraid that you are not very good with tests and you might have a tough time completing the cert, trust me, you won't. Each course is broken down and explained extremely well and they have assessments after each section so you can ensure you understood everything. If you don't complete an assessment you can easilly go back and focus on the things you didn't understand where you messed up and get a real good understanding of it. So, it is not tough to get through. Go for it!

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Thanks Twyla and all the Best!

We had the pleasure of interviewing Megan Barber, a recent REAL ESTATE WEBOGRAPHER™ (REW™) certificant.

Megan is a Professional Real Estate Virtual Assistant (PREVA) and is both an EthicsChecked VA and Certified Real Estate Support Specialist (CRESS), by the International Virtual Assistants Association (IVAA).  She has also earned Real Estate Sales Person's licenses in the states of New Mexico & New Jersey.  Megan owns and operates her own VA company, Barber Virtual Assisting Solutions, and maintains an active account on activerain. 

In light of her experience and certifications / designations, we took a few moments to ask some questions on her thoughts of the program.

1) What is your background?

I have been involved in working “behind the scenes” of the real estate industry for nearly 10 years. I started as a support staff for a large real estate office, and worked my way up within Oregon’s largest real estate company to become a marketing assistant and newspaper advertising coordinator in their corporate office. Later, I gained additional experience through being a real estate office manager, and an “in-house” RE assistant. In January, 2005 I started Barber Virtual Assisting Solutions, and have enjoyed being a Real Estate Virtual Assistant ever since.

2) Why did you undertake the REAL ESTATE WEBOGRAPHER™ (REW™) certification?

I am always searching for ways to better myself, improve my education and enhance my service offerings for my clients. I always like to stay on top of what’s new in real estate technology. When I came upon the REAL ESTATE WEBOGRAPHER™ certification, I was happy to find a program that could help me sharpen my skills with programs and technologies important to the real estate industry.

3) What are your impressions of the online experience?

The online classroom was a great interface. With my busy and very unpredictable schedule, I especially enjoyed the self-paced environment that I could start and stop when ever I needed to. The presentations were very well laid out, clear to understand and paced well.

Getting the chance to use demos of the products discussed in the courses was also a major plus. Also, I learn better by doing, so it’s better if I can dig in and “get my hands dirty” with the programs and products.

4) How long did it take you to complete the certification?

Overall, it took me about 10-11 hours to complete over a few months. Again, the self-paced environment was nice so I could fit it into my free time.

5) What would you tell those who are considering this certification?

I recommend this certification to any and all VA’s that are considering serving real estate professionals. I think it especially will be of great value to those who that may not have an extensive real estate background and will help them gain the knowledge and experience necessary to confidently meet the administrative needs for real estate professionals. Even those that have real estate experience will benefit greatly from the training available in this certification. It doesn’t hurt to sharpen your skills and you will discover new technologies and internet marketing strategies that you may never have thought of before.

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Thanks Megan and all the Best!

We had the pleasure of interviewing Lindsay Pendleton, a recent REAL ESTATE WEBOGRAPHER™ (REW™) certificant.

Lindsay's experience, skill and familiarity with the Baton Rouge real estate market are essential ingredients in providing her clients with an enjoyable Real Estate experience. Her RE Certification and Designations, such as e-Pro and REW™, strong communication and negotiation skills, high energy and effective marketing tactics make her service offerings unsurpassed in today's market!

Lindsay is really taking her website, http://www.forsalebylindsay.com, to the next level. Not only does she have an extraordinary amount of useful real estate tools accessible directly from her site (such as mortgage calculators, property searches, etc), she has already implemented some of the competencies available in the REAL ESTATE WEBOGRAPHER™ - such as Blogs AND Single-Property websites! Combined with appealing aesthetics, she is truly creating a viable and successful web-presence and demonstrating her understanding of Real Estate Technologies! Because of this success, we took a few moments to ask some questions on her thoughts of the program.

1) What is your background?

I am currently a Real Estate Agent with Prime Location Realty, located in Baton Rouge, LA.

2) Why did you undertake the REAL ESTATE WEBOGRAPHER™ (REW™) certification?

I am proud to say that I have my e-Pro and REW™ certifications. I took both certifications back-to-back and enjoyed both of them. e-Pro definitely benefits the real estate agent who is just entering the technology world. It expresses the importance of the Internet (i.e., e-mail, websites, domain names, DSL, forums) and the impact it is making on the real estate industry. I learned a number of things from e-Pro that increased my Internet knowledge. I think and know that the e-Pro class is imperative for every real estate agent.
 
REW™ is the follow-on to e-Pro, in my opinion. In the REW certification, I learned so many amazing new things. A great example is "single-property websites". I'm proud to say that through the knowledge of single-property websites I learned within REW™, I was able to create my own single property website allowing my customers to get 24/7 information (http://www.beaudarren.info/). The REW certification is a step further - it really delves into all of the technology options that are available to real estate professionals.
 
3) What are your impressions of the online experience?
 
Being that my time is limited, and I truly love utilizing the Internet, I was elated that I could take REW™ online.
 
4) How long did it take you to complete the certification?
 
I signed up Dec 20 and was done on Christmas Day! 5 days with an hour or so each day.

5) What would you tell those who are considering this certification?

People underestimate the power of e-mail, websites, domain names, blogs and so forth as highlighted in e-PRO. A number of RE professionals are overwhelmed by all the new technology. Technology is taking real estate in a new direction and it's time to jump on board.
 
When comparing e-Pro to REW™, they do not compare - rather, they really compliment. While e-Pro was very informative and detailed, REW™ went a little deeper into the technology options of today. 
 
While e-Pro teaches and explains the basics of technology to newbies, REW™ enhances it. Every single course that REW™ offered was extremely beneficial. I actually felt more capable and confident with technology options, instead of being overwhelmed. It was very detailed and easily formatted.

I consider e-Pro and REW™ like peas and carrots. While they are both based in Internet technology education, they teach different aspects. They both offer great, in depth information - but it's information that compliments one another. Collaborating e-Pro and REW™ just makes sense. I cannot express how both certifications broadened my horizons and made me feel like an Internet real estate queen! Thank you both, e-Pro and REW™, for making this available to all real estate professionals who want to go above and beyond.

The information available in REW™ and e-Pro combined is priceless!

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Thanks Lindsay and all the Best!

We had the pleasure of interviewing Phyllis Harb, a recent REAL ESTATE WEBOGRAPHER™ (REW™) certificant.

Phyllis spent a successful decade in mortgage banking and entered the real estate profession in 1989. She is a well-established negotiator, ranked in the top 5% of agents in the nation. In addition to her REW™ certification, e-Pro, S.R.E.S. designations, Phyllis is an approved course instructor for the Dept. of Real Estate in California and is licensed to teach continuing education (CE) courses to her peers in the Real Estate and Mortgage Banking fields.

Phyllis is well known for utilizing the latest, time-proven technologies and she has several highly ranked award winning web sites. Because of her decorated real estate career and her highly established web presence, we took a few moments to ask some questions on her thoughts of the program.

1) What is your background?

I have been selling real estate since 1989, prior to that I was in mortgage banking.

2) Why did you undertake the REAL ESTATE WEBOGRAPHER™ (REW™) certification?

I undertook the REW™ certification because I wanted to learn more about blogging and search engine marketing. I have two web sites: www.RealtorHarb.com and www.Glendale-Real-Estate-Agent.com. I also have a blog at http://los-angeles-real-estate-blog.com. In addition, I have three interactive community forums.

• www.LCFOnlineCommunity.com
• www.GlendaleOnlineCommunity.com
• www.PasadenaOnlineCommunity.com

3) What are your impressions of the online experience?

The certification was easy to take (at my leisure) and simple to grasp concepts. Although I feel that I know a lot about the Internet and Internet Marketing, I was delighted to learn even more about RE Technology from the REW program. In addition, the search engine marketing was especially helpful for me at this time (because of my blogs).

4) How long did it take you to complete the certification?

The training took approximately 12 hours.

5) What would you tell those who are considering this certification?

Internet Marketing is often overlooked by Realtors. There is a lot of business being done on the Internet by web savvy agents. Internet marketing is much less expensive than more traditional advertising such as print and farming. With less marketing dollars, more business can be gained through the Internet.

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Thanks Phyllis and all the Best!

We had the pleasure of interviewing Sotorria Calloway, a recent REAL ESTATE WEBOGRAPHER™ (REW™) certificant looking to engage possibilities as an independent contractor, supporting technology and marketing for real estate professionals and companies.

Sotorria has completed the REAL ESTATE WEBOGRAPHER™ (REW™) certification recently and we asked her a few simple interview questions on her thoughts of the program.

1) What is your background?

I am currently a full time graduate marketing student and a former IT professional seeking possible independent contracting opportunities in real estate. I have been in the technology field for many years and look to a career change in the world of Real Estate.

2) Why did you undertake the REAL ESTATE WEBOGRAPHER™ (REW™) certification?

I undertook the REW™ certification as I am (a) a fan of Real Estate, (b) have a strong technology background, and (c) am working on a graduate level degree in marketing. In many ways the REAL ESTATE WEBOGRAPHER™ was a blend of all 3. I believe there is a niche for me down the road to provide contractual services to real estate professionals; assisting them to create a "Consumer-facing, web presence" as discussed in the training.

3) What are your impressions of the online experience

Given my full-time schedule, I required self-paced, online training I could do on my own time. I really enjoyed the interactive presentations that included voice, versus reading plain text. I had lots of fun, engaged a few of the showcased products so I could get my arms around the lessons discussed. Given future clients of real estate agents and brokers, I am proficient to not only implement, but to consult on available technologies they may look to consider.

4) How long did it take you to complete the certification?

The training took about 15 hours, done at a leisurely pace.

5) What would you tell those who are considering this certification?

With the certification under my belt, I believe I'm better equipped to pursue those opportunities. Thanks so much for making this certification available!!! I recommend this to agents who are serious about adopting technology, or to those who look to administer technology for others, playing a support role.

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Thanks Sotorria and all the Best!