After my response to the "secret agent" I received another email from her about a week later. Here's what it said:

Technology is the prominent topic of conversation in almost every real estate office in the country today. Each company is working diligently to keep up with the next new development on the information super highway. Due to the incredible amount of information now available to the general public, the public’s perceived value of a real estate agent is changing dramatically. As a result, the value of the company the agent works with is also changing. For example, 10 years ago agents joined companies based on the great value of a multi-function high-speed fax machine and maximum exposure through the local newspaper classified section. Today, the average buyer or seller can see the complete inventory of homes for sale on the Internet from the comfort of his or her own home.

In the last installment, I discussed website basics.  I intentionally left off one part of the typical website: the capture mechanism or gateway.  Some call it the form or registration page, but whatever you call it, it is the most important part of your site.  As far as I’m concerned, it is more important than the website itself.  Yes, I really said that.  Let me repeat myself: It is more important than the website.

Most Agents hold top-producing Agents in the highest regard.  A top-producing Agent is given a status that is almost God-like.  Since I was put on a pedestal for many years during my sales career, let me give you an undeniable truth.  Each and every one of us has a top-producing Agent inside of us trying to get out.  Each person has the God-given ability to produce at a stratospheric level.  Top-producers are ordinary people who happen to be doing extraordinary things.

Ok, so we’ve talked about advertising — the value proposition in the ad, the call to action, the advertising key words, as well as sources of Internet traffic.  We discussed pay-per-click (or pay-per-visitor) advertising and search engine optimization (SEO).  Now it’s time to talk about the actual website.  What do the customers see once they have clicked on your Internet advertisement?  In this segment we will be discussing everything about your website, from the website’s landing page, to the content, to the value propositions, to graphic appeal and finally to keeping those customers on your site for as long as possible, or to minimizing abandonment.

One of the major challenges facing a new home sales specialist today is managing leads. Because there are people coming in and out of your models and projects daily, you often are blessed with more leads than you can work.  Selecting the right lead becomes critical to your success.

I have opened the recruiting flood gates!  I believe I have stumbled upon the cure for all recruiting and retention woes.  I am a genius and will forever go down in history for saving our industry from demise.....

By now I think we’ve come to understand that there actually is a science to online lead capture, and we’ve identified the methodology where we can actually test and measure resulting in the ability to produce much more bang for our Internet marketing buck.  From here we will examine and discuss at great length a number of different crucial elements of the online lead capture process.

Let’s talk for a minute about science.  After all, I’ve made the assertion that there was a science to online lead capture.  So with my having made such an assertion, it is reasonable for you to expect me to back it up.  What do I mean by “the science of lead capture”?  In the introductory article I defined science as a branch of knowledge or study dealing with a body of facts or truths systematically arranged and showing the operation of general laws: e.g., the science of online lead capture.  From that definition, you can assume two things:  that I have used a very systematic approach and that I’ve identified certain principles with regard

In June 2002 I got my real estate license and embarked on a brand  new career — selling houses!  I was excited.  I studied everything I could find.  I took classes.  I read dozens of books on real estate practice.  I couldn’t wait… and then nothing happened.  Don’t get me wrong — I did all the things that all the experts said I should do, but my results were very limited at best.