The Agenda aka “The Board”

One of the unique traits of reBarCamp is the agenda. A majority of the day’s sessions will be determined by the participants: those who show up on the morning of March 3, 2011. At registration, typically there is a stack of index cards available where you can jot down suggested topics. Often times the topic may be something you want to learn more about or perhaps it’s something you’ve found success with that you would like to share with your peers. Topics have ranged from social media, tech, real estate trends, issues and concerns – there is no limit to what you submit with exception to “sales pitches” or prepared presentations. For the most part, this is an “ad-hoc” event. This year we will have “newbie” sessions created for those who may consider themselves to be ”novice” and providing a little more structure than typical barcamp sessions. We’re also going to have a track where our sponsors have a chance to promote themselves in the “Sponsor Spotlight“.   All other sessions (5 tracks) will be classic “reBarCamp”.  TIP:  If  you’re coming to Seattle reBarCamp, start thinking about what topics  you’re interested in and jot them down so you don’t “draw a blank” at registration.  

As the index cards with suggestions for topics come quickly rolling in from hundreds of participants, some of the reBarCamp organizers will sort through and organize the suggestions into sessions.   The Seattle Center NW Rooms (by the north side of the Key Arena) offers several conference rooms for the session.  Last  year we had seven different sessions to chose from at one time!   Sessions will most likely be color coded (like last year) to help you see which sessions might be more advanced, basic or perhaps geared towards mortgage.   The color paper is taped up on “the board” which is really a dedicated space on a wall by the registration table.

 Your exact suggested topic may not make it to “the board” or seem to appear on the agenda.   It may, however, fit or be similar to what is on the board.   We do our best to create an interesting schedule based on what everyone is asking for.  If at a certain time, the board doesn’t have something that’s appealing to you, you can always create your own session, write your topic on piece of paper and one of the reBarCamp organizers will help you try to find a space (there will probably be extra tables in one of the larger conference rooms, or if it’s sunny, there’s nothing wrong with having a session outside).

Each session will start at the top of hour following Jim Marks, our fabulous Key Note Speaker, and will run for about 50 minutes.   This will give you 10 minutes to revisit the board.   It is our goal to not do too many changes to the board this year…however sometimes ”change” happens.  

Seattle’s 4th reBarCamp is going to be amazing with over 500 participants registered so far (check out the rsvp list).     Stephanie Dawson describes her experience from her first Seattle reBarCamp last year and offers great advice.   

As Stephanie says, this is a free event but it is your time. 

We look forward to seeing you on March 3, 2011 at the 4th Seattle reBarCamp!  If you haven’t signed up yet, please take a moment to RSVP…and be sure to thank our amazing sponsors for keeping this year’s event free!

Things We Love

It’s Valentine’s Day and we can’t think of a better time to share some of the things we adore and love.

We love our volunteers. Our volunteers all have full time “day jobs” and have dedicated countless hours of their time brainstorming, researching and planning to make the 2011 Seattle reBarCamp worth attending and participating.   As one of the volunteers, I can tell you it’s been a lot of fun working with this amazing group…and there is a lot of work that take place “behind the scenes”.   Please take a moment and check out our volunteers on the right sidebar and show them some love.

We love our sponsors.   Let’s face it, without their financial support, this event would not be free to attend.  Not only is this year’s event back at the NW Rooms of the Seattle Center, because of all of our sponsors, we will be able to make a nice donation to a great local charity, Solid Ground.    We love that too!

We love you.  Seattle reBarCamp returns to Seattle for the fourth time on March 3 because of you!  Thanks so much for tweeting about the event and using #rebcsea and for promoting us with  your blog post and on Facebook.   We have almost 600 people signed up to participate at this one of a kind event from all over the west coast.   For some it will be their first reBarCamp experience and others are returning.   Not only will there be a lot of peer to peer learning and sharing taking place, many will be networking and developing new relationships that will last beyond reBarCamp.

We look forward to seeing you all participating in the sessions and to making it a great day.

Seattle reBarCamp is the word

Seattle RE BarCamp is being talked about all over the blogosphere… check it out!

What I Want to See at REBarCamp Seattle by Jeff Bern

RE BarCamp Comes to the Emerald City on March 3rd by Rich Jacobson

Womens Council of Realtors South King County:  Are You Curious About the next Seattle RE BarCamp by Rhonda Porter

Productivity Junkies RE BarCamp Seattle 2011 by Darin Parsinger

Real Estate Bar Camp by Babbs Weissman

Chik Quintans talks about how much he has learned by attending Seattle reBarCamps in this video (you have to check out the special guest appearance).

You can also see what people are saying on Twitter by following #rebcsea.    If you’ve written a post about Seattle reBarCamp, let us know!

A Word from one of Sponors: Keller Williams Greater Seattle

Stay on the Leading Edge or be Left Behind
By Brad Davis, Keller Williams Greater Seattle

If you’re not adapting to the latest trends in real estate marketing, stay home and gussy up your resume. For those who have a passion and desire to continue making it in this business, RE BarCamp Seattle promises to offer you a leading edge.

Foremost, take a look at your brokerage brand name and logo. Think about the image it portrays to your colleagues and the general public. Ask people what they think or feel about your branding. Is it relevant to Gen-Xers or even Gen-Yers for that matter? Or does your brand image cater more to a segment of the market that’s retired and making ends meet on a fixed income?

Believe it or not, much of the general public thinks we agents are a dime a dozen. Truthfully some agents are and you may actually be shocked how seldom people you know think about you. Given half as many deals closed in the Seattle area compared to 2005, I hope you’ve at least thought about how you’re positioning yourself to stand out from the crowd.

Communicating how you’re unique from other agents isn’t magic or rocket science. It starts with a way of being which should permeate everything you do including how you communicate with your sphere and prospects.

What you’ll discover at RE BarCamp Seattle is very similar to what you’ll find happening daily at Keller Williams Greater Seattle or any KW office for that matter. Exchange of ideas, camaraderie , support, training and masterminding to name a few.

Come month’s end KW will also be releasing to its agents a highly advanced multi-function tool designed to fully manage contacts from initial lead intake all the way through closing. It’s called eEdge. This tool integrates with your existing database, can auto generate marketing campaigns, replaces your transaction management software and much more.  I’m certain you’ll hear much more about it throughout our industry in the coming months.

KW exists to support its agents in the further development and advancement of their careers in real estate. In alignment with our company’s core values, Keller Williams Greater Seattle is a proud sponsor of RE BarCamp Seattle. Come find out what might be missing from your business.

Editor’s Note:  Seattle reBarCamp thanks Keller Williams Greater Seattle for being one of our sponsors and helping to make this event possible.  Please be sure to check them out on Facebook.

Thanks Keller Williams Greater Seattle!

It’s Official: The Newbie Sessions

We had a very energizing planning session yesterday and one of the decisions that we agreed on was to have an a official track dedicated to the pariticipants who are newer to social media.   Now before some of you ol’ salty seasonsed savvy social media guru’s start to roll your eyes at the thought of a track being dedicated to those who are a greener, anyone who has attended an reBarCamp knows full well that a good amount of the participants are “newbies”.   When I attended my the very first reBarCamp in San Francisco a couple years ago, even though my blog was up and running, I really wasn’t functional with Twitter or Facebook.  In fact, I learned about Flickr and all it’s possibilities by sitting in a session that Teresa Boardman was in…but I digress.   We were all reBarCamp and/or social media newbies at one point in time. 

Our plan is to have one of the rooms at our venue, the Seattle Center NW Rooms, dedicated to this track.   If someone who is new wants to make themselves comfortable all day, they can.  If some of the sessions offered in that room/track do not appeal to them or there is another session they want to see in another room, they are of course, free to do so.

Last year, we had a “newbie” track where many of the sessions were referred to as “101″.  2011 is going to be a little different as we are planning on having a majority of the sessions for newbies set with moderators and folks who are experienced with the topic of that session.  We’re hoping to pull from some of the great talent we have coming to participate from across the nation and local real estate professionals who have found success on that specific topic.   The goal is not to have lectures or pre-planned presentations – we are staying true to the reBarCamp experience as far as that’s concerned.  It will probably be more like a causal panel with plenty of Q&A opportunities.

A majority of Seattle reBarCamp’s agenda will still be determined by the participants the morning of the event as always.   So do bring  your ideas and I’m really hoping the “Guru’s” will really ”bring it” so we can have advanced sessions and everything in between.

Update February 22, 11:  we’ve just added a rough draft of the agenda for this track…and it looks like we’re renaming this “the Rookie Sessions” in the spirit of spring training!

A Word from One of Our Sponsors: Natalie Danielson with Clockhours

Natalie is not only a sponsor, she’s also been a volunteer for Seattle RE BarCamp for the past couple years.   Thanks again, Natalie, for your continued support and all you do to make this event extra special!

Our sponsors have allowed this event remain free to attendees this year. Please be sure to show your appreciation and check out Natalie’s video above and her continuing education business, Professional Directions at www.clockhours.com.    You can also follow Natalie on Twitter at www.twitter.com/clockhours

Thanks, Natalie!

You’ve Got Two Feet and You Can Use Them

I was asked via Twitter, “what if someone takes over a session to sell their services or product”. If you’ve attended an RE BarCamp before, then you know this is NOT what this event is all about. Ideally the day’s agenda is determined by those who show up. At past events, we’ve had index cards available  at registration and throughout th day so you can submit topics for things you’d like to learn or talk about. This is not about being self-serving or promotional — it is about giving and sharing. Sometimes this can be a real fine line.

As the suggestions come rolling in from those who are attending (aka participants), the organizers of the event start sorting them out and looking for themes to try to organize potential sessions and schedule them in the various spaces that are available. Your specific request may or may not make the schedule but hopefully there’s something close that you can check out. It’s not unusual for a session to go completely off topic depending on who’s participating. The key word here is “participation”.

RE BarCamp is not about being shy and sitting back. The more involved folks become the better. And it’s important to keep in mind your fellow bar-campers. You may have a ton of questions or things you feel are important to offer, please don’t be a conversation hog. This will most likely discourage others from speaking up.

Seattle RE BarCamp is a FREE event thanks to our sponors…. and as much as we appreciate their support, this is not a license for them to hold sessions or take them over. I believe our sponsors are well aware of this. However, there may be times when a topic is about what they do and of course, they’re going to jump in and participate without selling.

This is an event that evolves throughout the day and is not planned; there are no instructors to lecture, dictate or control a “class”; those who seek and demand structure may find that RE BarCamp is not for them…and that’s okay. There are plenty of other events and conferences that offer structure, certified instructors, etc.

The bottom line is that should you find yourself in a session where it’s being taken over by someone trying to promote themselves, or perhaps the session just isn’t what you thought it would be, you can use your feet. There is nothing wrong with simply standing up, walking out and joining a different session. Also, if the during the event, you find that there’s nothing on the schedule that you’re really interested in, you can always create your own session…there’s going to be plenty of room at the Seattle Center by the NW Rooms. I’ve heard of great mini-break out sessions taking place at past events.   One of great points about RE BarCamps is that you have the power, as a participant to participate and make the most of your barcamp experience.

But what the heck is a “un-conference?”

But what the heck is a “un-conference?” by Rene Fabre

A client asked me the other day about RE Barcamp. The concern was, as the topic was framed, “Aren’t you guys competing with Raincamp and Agent REBoot?

Answer: No, not at all.

Raincamp and Agent REBoot are conferences, and they’re both excellent.

RE Barcamp is an “un-conference”

But what the heck is a “un-conference?”

RE Barcamp is not a conference or a seminar. There is no list of headlining social media stars giving presentations on the latest new wave of lead capture topics. You don’t come to REBC to hear a presentation from an expert to learn their method. There won’t be any speakers to convince you that their “system” is the best and if you sign up for now it’s only $199 with free upgrades for life.

The “un-conference” is coming together to share and learn from each other. The topics are wide ranging and pretty much anything goes if it has something to do with real estate, marketing, emerging technologies, and social media.

Online networks and communities are places where we gather around ideas. At RE Barcamp we have the opportunity to gather around these topics and ideas face to face. The “un-conference” model gives everyone opportunity to participate. It’s not lecture and learn, it’s bringing your unique experience to the group discussion.

The fun begins when everyone in the morning writes their suggested topics on a card. The cards are collected and by simple majority the topics get posted to the board first. This initiates, by order of the group, what “breakout groups” will first be formed.

It’s like jazz for ideas. We want to hear you solo!

There won’t be a Pouring Ceremony of Kool Aid that you have to drink to become an official member of the “Tech Savvy Hip and In Usual Suspects Crowd.”  Cuz there ain’t one. The big expectation is you’ll bring your passion with a purpose and share with an open mind. We could all use a lot of that.

Much of the excitement for me about RE Barcamp is the opportunity to mingle my way into as many conversations as possible. I have a lot of ideas about how it all works and where it’s going. I need your input. I’m putting the puzzle together also, “what pieces are using and why?

We’ll pick each others brains, share our real world experiences, talk about successes and failures, and discover insights to personal processes. What worked, what didn’t, and of course that varies from person to person. People talk differently when they’re in a group discussing something they’re passionate about.

My take: Go to Raincamp, go to Agent REBoot… and don’t miss RE Barcamp! We need to be in as many good relevant conversations as we can be to succeed.

I hope to see you March 3, 2011. Let’s jazz some ideas!

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