Where Real Estate Gets Its Dirt

Kim McLean, Party Girl!

Those of you who attended the MarketLinx party at NAR should drop to your knees and thank Kim McLean for once again putting together THE party of the show.

Kim McLean, with unidentified Marketlinx employee ; )
Kim McLean, with unidentified Marketlinx employee ; )

B.B. Kings was taken over by Marketlinx and a few hundred of their favorite friends. I’m glad Marketlinx decided to keep the party on the agenda for NAR. Everyone needed a chance to let go, and man o’ man did a lot of people let themselves go that evening!

The party was the place to see and be seen.

Sam Scott of HAR at party wearing a Vendor Alley T-Shirt!!!
Sam Scott of HAR at party wearing a Vendor Alley T-Shirt!!!

Great band. Great people. Great vibe.

Thanks Kim!!!

What if your birthday was the same date as the NAR Annual Conference?

You would party like a rock star with your clients and friends!

Nice moves!
Nice moves!
OPA!
OPA!
Make a wish
Make a wish

Happy Birthday Andy from Vendor Alley!!

More NAR fun to come, I’m just getting started…..

Narlando is upon us!

mickeyfeio

I can just feel the state of Florida sink as the multitudes of REALTORS(r) and Vendors decend upon Orlando to the 2008 National Association of REALTORS EXPO and Conference. Questions remain…

1. How many REALTORS(r) will show up? 3,000 or 20,000?

2. How many Vendors will show up? Word on the street many Vendors cut back on staff this year. It will be interesting to see who made the cut.

3. Trade show traffic. Will the REALTORS buy?

4. What are budgets looking like next year? Only so many dollars for those “per member per month” type deals.

5. And what about the rumors? Will they all come true? Will new ones replace them? Time will tell.

So get your Twitter on and follow us from the lobby bars, the hospitality parties, the industry parties, the after parties, the after-after parties, and all the blood sweat and tears that is NAR 2008!!!!

And remember Vendor Alley Trade Show RULE #1

NEVER, and I mean NEVER go BIG on the first night!

I don't have to be at booth till 9!

First major iPhone MLS application is released by Rapattoni

This looks cool. Although I’m not quite sure “been optimized” means. We shall see…

iphone_rapmlshomeRapattoni Introduces New iPhone Interface for Mobile MLS Agents
Simi Valley, Calif., November 4, 2008 – Rapattoni Corporation announced today that the Rapattoni MLS PDA interface has been optimized for the Apple iPhone. Elegant changes to the user interface now put the power of Rapattoni MLS at iPhone users’ fingertips. Tap through listing searches, pictures, details, history, and contacts using the iPhone’s revolutionary Safari web browser. Tapping a listing’s address will plot the listing in Google Maps where driving directions are just a tap away.

Nick Rapattoni, president of Rapattoni Corporation, stated, “The iPhone is a powerful and stylish business tool. We are pleased to provide our users with an elegant mobile MLS experience on this innovative and popular platform.”

The iPhone software roll out scheduled for November 12, 2008 is the result of a continuing research and development program at Rapattoni to assure that its customers are able to take advantage of new technologies.

Rapattoni will be showing its real estate industry software and service products at the annual National Association of REALTORS® Conference and Expo in Orlando, Florida, November 6 through 10.

About Rapattoni
Rapattoni Corporation has been serving the real estate industry under the same name and management for 38 years. The company provides an array of integrated products and services for real estate associations and MLS organizations, including Internet MLS systems, Association Management software (AMS), and Secure Logon with Single Sign-On identity portals for online security and convenience. The company’s MLS products are serving about 300,000 agents nationally and its association management customers represent more than 88% of the nation’s Realtors®. Rapattoni’s headquarters are in Simi Valley, California.

For more information contact Public Relations at 800-722-7338 or visit the company’s Web site at http://www.rapattoni.com/.

NARlando MLS Vendor Party Update

We are just days from the 2008 NAR Conference and EXPO kicking off. And of course a lot of you are already in Orlando, “prepping”. Which I think means “playing golf”.

Well I’ve confirmed what many of you already know. Looks like FNRES is NOT having a party this year. I’m sure it has to do with cutting down costs and such.

But I do hear that the MarketLinx party is still going on. Not sure of the details yet, looks like my invitation got lost in the mail (hint…hint).

If you know of any others email us at vendor.alley@gmail.com or via Twiiter. And of course keep tuned to VA for any other “after-party” locations.

Vendor Alley Makes Inman's "25 Most Influential Real Estate Bloggers: 2008" special report

Vendor Alley made it to the “Notables” section of Inman’s Industry Special Report.

The description they gave the site was…
“Greg Robertson
Founder, Vendor Alley
Greg Robertson led the sales and marketing team at eNeighborhoods and had served
as general manager and vice president for the company prior to his departure this year
from the company. He now serves as an industry consultant for Woolley Robertson
Group and as a corporate director for the Council of MLS, a 51-year-old organization
for representatives of MLSs and real estate vendors. Robertson’s Vendor Alley blog is a
sometimes humorous, sometimes down-and-dirty insider’s look at the real estate industry through the eyes of a vendor. It’s a must-read for anyone who has ever attended a real estate industry conference or plans to.”

I must correct Inman in stating that I’m not an “industry consultant” (not that there is anything wrong with that..) but currently building another real estate software company (yet to be named).

Thanks to all our readers who made this happen!!! Don’t forge that you can also follow us on Twitter.

If you are interested in getting the full report click here.

And don’t forget those super comfy Vendor Alley T-Shirts!

Rumors….rumors…and more rumors…

The rumor mill is cranking away today. So it looks like the NAR show next week in Orlando is gonna be interesting.

I’m sitting on 3 HUGE rumors that could be potential game changers in the industry. The first involves agent software, the second involves the NAR “gateway” plan, and the third involves one of the biggest players in our industry.

All I can say is WOW!

NAR EXPO attendance numbers.

Just spoke to some of the higher ups at the National Association of REALTORS(r). They are approximating close to 20,000 REALTORS attending the 2008 Conference and EXPO in Orlando, FL. That number does not include spouses and Vendors. Sounds like Mickey Mouse is doing his job!

NAR EXPO is just arround the corner. Are you ready?

I’m starting my NAR training routine today. Thought I would detox a little before the show. Cut down on the alcohol, drink lots of water, and maybe eat something green.

What about you? Any pre “Big Show” rituals?

CMLS 2008 “After Hours” Part II

Let’s continue with CMLS “After Hours” Part II with a stop at one of Minneapolis’ favorite restaurants…

Murray’s steakhouse has been in Minneapolis since 1946. Home of the “Silver Butterknife Steak” the service and food were fantastic. A lot of people headed over to Manny’s but I think we made the right choice at Murray’s (thanks SMH!), which had a great “old school” vibe. I mean the neon sign outside says “COCKTAIL LOUNGE”, you gotta love that . We need more cocktail lounges in this country!

Our apologies to the couple sitting in the booth next to us, I guess they had heard their limit of f-bombs and had to leave.

What happen after Murray’s cannot be shared is such a public forum. I’ll just say this….off the hook!!!

Let’s jump forward to “The Kissing Room”. It seems a bar called “The Local” had a “kissing room” where some of the attendees of the Council of MLS 2008 conference found refuge.

I’m told there was both “Vendor on Client” action and “Vendor on Vendor” action. After I heard a few of these stories I stopped by to take a look. The room was in the back of the bar and properly labeled with a couple red lamps adorning the inside. What stories those lamps could tell!!

And who could forget the lawn bowling at Brit’s Pub! The weather was perfect and I can’t think of a more original place to throw a party. I never made it down to “the pitch”, at that point of the day I wasn’t too confident with my hand motor skills.

Also one of my favorite places was a tequila bar (go figure!) called “Barrio“. There is nothing like having any tequila you want served any way you want by young female college students that must traverse up a long ladder to the top of the bar to fetch it! Ay Caramba!


I’ve got one more story to tell, I’ll leave that till next time and I might even talk about what happen during the conference (oh really?!)

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