CourthouseSquare.com Blog

Children, as they say, are our future and protecting them while we rear them to me is just as important as the quality of life they receive. But as a society we are unfortunately not exempt from the dangers and horrors that children are sometimes exposed to.

As a father of a 4 year-old daughter I can tell you that her protection is my utmost priority next to her happiness. As they get older and start going to school it becomes tougher and tougher to hold on them and dictate the course of their day. You hope and trust that teachers monitor the behaviors and attitudes of the children, but sometimes that isn’t enough. What’s worse is when the children are in places they’re supposed to be protected and ultimately aren’t.

I came across the following article online and I was reminded that there are some really great organizations out there keeping children as the priority. We should support organizations such as these and get involved with local groups in our area.

For Kids’ Sake
Staff Writer The Tahlequah Daily Press Thu Apr 19, 2012, 09:52 AM CDT

TAHLEQUAH — The Cherokee Courthouse Square was bathed in shades of blue Wednesday – from blue pinwheels to blue ribbons and T-shirts – as supporters turned out for the annual Rally Against Child Abuse.

April is National Child Abuse Prevention Month, and staff and volunteers from a number of area agencies, including rally sponsor Court Appointed Special Advocates of Cherokee Country, Hope House, Help-In-Crisis, Cherokee Nation Indian Child Welfare, Cherokee County SmartStart, and the Oklahoma Department of Human Services, set up booths to provide information about services in the area.

“The blue pinwheels, and there are 95 of them, represent abused or neglected children CASA was able to help over the past year,” said CASA Executive Director Jo Prout. “Unfortunately, we had 186 cases, which means over half went unassisted.”

Volunteers from Talking Leaves Job Corps were in charge of placing the pinwheels along the front side of the square.

“We help wherever we can,” said Jamie Torix, TLJC student support services specialist. “[Jo] Prout called and told us she needed some assistance, and we’re happy to help. We feel it’s a really good cause.”

In addition to offering information about services and how to volunteer, the rally provided attendees with free hot dogs, chips and drinks, and helium balloons for children.

Participants were also encouraged to sign a petition to stand against child abuse, and tie a blue ribbon on a tree on the square.

“Normally, we have a class from Sequoyah Elementary School participate,” said Prout. “Sadly, since we had to reschedule the rally due to last week’s rain, the kids weren’t able to come because of standardized testing. I really miss having them here.”

Laura Garner, executive director of Hope House, is a regular participant in the rally.

“We brought the blue ribbons for the tree,” said Garner. “We’re here to provide support any way we can.”

The event, which ran from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., garnered a good deal of interest, despite being rescheduled from last week.

“We had more than 100 people at the rally,” said Prout. There were no hot dogs or chips left, and we had 100 of each of those things. People were still lining up after we had run out of food. It’s just astonishing the amount of support we received today.”

The local CASA program was established 17 years ago as a part-time venture; the first group of child advocates was trained in 1996, and in that same year, 24 victims of child abuse and neglect were served. Each year, the number of abused children served has continued to grow, but the number of volunteer advocates has fluctuated.

Volunteer advocates are often lost due to changes in employment or residency, health concerns, or other reasons. In 2011, the attrition rate was more than 30 percent.

To help not only spread the message that child abuse and neglect should never be tolerated, but to also garner interest from potential volunteers, CASA of Cherokee Country has created an internet presence.

“I’ve always wanted a website,” said Prout. “Recently, the state CASA organization offered technical support to all its agencies, so we took advantage of the opportunity to have a website set up. We have no resources in our budget to pay a technical person, so it was a blessing. We send them information , and they upload it to the site.”

Prout said the organization has also embraced social media, thanks to the younger members of the CASA staff.

“I have never wanted a Facebook page or a Twitter account,” said Prout. “I’ve never been excited about social media, but my two younger staff members, Liz Rainbolt and Sandy Macauley, pestered me until they convinced me it was necessary. We now have both, and they take care of posting information.”

CASA of Cherokee Country conducts training for prospective volunteer advocates three times a year. No special education or experience is required.

The only absolute requirement is that a prospective child advocate must be at least 21 years old.

Individuals interested in becoming CASA volunteer advocates are encouraged to phone CASA at (918) 456-8788 or (866) 400-8788 (toll free), or visit the website atwww.cherokeecasa.org. Individuals can “like” CASA on Facebook at CASA of Cherokee Country and follow CASA on twitter at casaofcherokee.

In my opinion there’s nothing worse than jury duty. Just last week I was called for jury duty and luckily I didn’t get picked. I get released around noon only to find that my car won’t start and my car battery missing! Missing! What a way to cap off the journey downtown, paying for parking, and making $6 for my time. Nonetheless it is a civic duty and responsibility of all of us to partake in jury selection. Sometimes we get chosen so in the very least we can hope for is a quick trial and most importantly, comfort.

Thank goodness counties like Alamance County in North Carolina are seeing that changes must be made to accommodate their jurors. Imagine how many (bad) decisions may have been made in trials due to lack of comfort and the desire to be free of jury duty. Scary.

By: Michael D. Abernethy / Times-News
www.thetimesnews.com

GRAHAM — Superior court judges from around the state — not to mention jurors — have long bemoaned the small size of the jury box in the Alamance County Criminal Courthouse.

After June, they’ll have to find something else to complain about.

Judges often apologize to jurors for the cramped conditions and invite them to stand up during trials if they need to stretch. If two or three grown men are seated next to each other in the box, one or all of them usually have to slump or squeeze in their shoulders to fit.

“It’s about the smallest jury box in the state,” Alamance County Senior Resident Superior Court Judge Rob Johnson told a jury last year.

Brooke Rush, who served as an alternate juror in a trial this week, spent three days in the jury box with a man’s knees poking into her back. He couldn’t help it, being as tall as he was, she said.

“It’s not the most comfortable of accommodations,” Rush said. “The only thing that might be better about being on the jury rather than (on the courthouse benches) is that at least the seats are cushioned.”

The jury box is 12 feet long and extends 5 feet from the courtroom’s eastern wall, holding 14 people on two rows of seven connected seats. Each seat is about 18 inches wide. About five inches separate the back and front rows of seats, barely enough room to squeeze a knee into.

“If you were in the other courtroom up the road, you’d each have your own chair to lean back in … They really should do something about it, but that’s up to your county commissioners,” said Superior Court Judge Howard Manning Jr. as he addressed jurors in a trial several weeks ago.

Alamance County has plans to rebuild the jury box the week of June 18, County Manager Craig Honeycutt said Friday. There is no superior court scheduled for that week.

The new jury box will be large enough to hold individual swiveling chairs like the ones in the County Courthouse in the courthouse square.

“It’s been a complaint from the D.A.’s office and the court staff for years,” Honeycutt said. “It’s cramped.”

The improvements, which will also enlarge the witness stand and relocate the court reporter’s desk, should cost about $15,000. The funding is from the county’s facilities improvement budget, left over after money was saved on other renovations, Honeycutt said.

The Alamance County Board of Commissioners approved the project earlier this year.

It’s an odd thing when it comes to disasters, be-it natural or not. The devastation and loss of lives associated with said disasters will always haunt and scar those involved, but there is always an evolution to come out of these events. It’s in these times that true strength can really be displayed and bring forth a new future.

Take one of the most tragic events our nation has ever seen with the attacks of September 11th. Out of all the tragedy and loss it was the strength of people, a city, and ultimately a nation that was proven to be stronger than any structure human hands could ever assemble. As they say, true strength is measured in times of weakness. This too goes for the story below which is a perfect example of a group coming together to help rebuild what was lost and

County courthouse fire 100 years later (Written April 16th, 2012)
By Matt Smith/msmith@trcle.com
The Cleburne Times

Sunday marks the 100th anniversary of the RMS Titanic’s sinking, an event that will be commemorated by people and planned events the world over. Although less well known or remembered, even locally, April 15, 1912, proved a day of tragedy for Johnson County as well.

Fire consumed the Johnson County Courthouse, claiming the life of Cleburne City Marshal Abe Bledsoe in the process.

Built in 1883, that courthouse, the county’s fourth, occupied the same location of the county’s current courthouse. Although the date on the current courthouse reads 1912, completion of construction and the opening of that building actually occurred in 1913.

JC courthouses through the years

Wardville served as the original county seat for Johnson County, which was created by the 5th Texas Legislature in 1854. William O’Neal built the first courthouse, a log building, at a reported cost of $49, according to a Johnson County Courthouse Historical Museum pamphlet.

That courthouse now sits at the Chisholm Trail Outdoor Museum off U.S. 67 on the banks of Lake Pat Cleburne.

Texas Constitution compliance requirements necessitated moving the county seat to Buchanan, named after then President James Buchanan, in 1856. The second courthouse, a wooden one-room structure, cost $500. Unfortunately, no pictures of that courthouse are known to exist.

Ten years later, Hood County was formed from a portion of Johnson County and a new county seat had to be established. The new county seat established in Camp Henderson, which became Cleburne in 1867. That same year a wagon moved the Buchanan courthouse to the spot where the Christian Heritage Foundation building, which before that was a Woolworth’s, now sits.

County growth soon required a larger courthouse. A two-story building with a wooden fence was built for $10,123. That courthouse also occupied the same spot on the downtown square as the current courthouse.

In 1883, the county completed its fourth courthouse at a cost of $44,685, a courthouse that still stood until the 1912 fire.
In 1907, a Mr. and Mrs. L. Freeman married on top of the tower of the 1883 courthouse.

“The event brought more people to town, it is said, than has ever before surrounded the courthouse,” according to a hand-written remembrance of the courthouse, portions of which appeared in the Cleburne Morning Review on April 16, 1912.

The letter is now in the county judge’s office in the current courthouse. The name A.J. Wright, former owner of the Wright Building in downtown, appears on the letter, which would seem to make him the author.

Sandy Sims, former administrative assistant to County Judge Roger Harmon, said it is unclear who actually penned the letter, it may have been Wright’s wife, or someone else.

The Morning Review article containing part of the letter offers no help as the story carries no byline.
Plans were already under way to replace the 1883 courthouse with a new building before fate and tragedy intervened.
“The JC Courthouse burned,” reads the headline in the April 15, 1912, edition of the Cleburne Daily Enterprise.
“City Marshal A. Bledsoe meets death in the burning building,” reads the first subhead.
The third subhead states, “Fire alarm turned in at 12:30 this morning sounds the death knell for Cleburne’s efficient city marshal and marks the passing of the old temple of justice with its history.”

From another headline on the front page of that day’s edition, Cleburne readers learned that, “Titanic is in trouble south of Cape Race.”

The front page of the April 16, 1912, Cleburne Morning Review contains no mention of the courthouse fire. Readers had to turn to page 5 for that story.
A story headlined “Santa Fe Shop men have a good meeting” appears on the front page.

Fire Marshal Burditt spotted the courthouse fire Monday morning “about 12:30 o’clock,” according to the Cleburne Morning Review.
“Burditt, while on South Main Street, noticed a red tongue of flame shooting up behind the small windows in the tower of the Johnson County Courthouse,” according to the article.

Burditt, the paper fails to list his first name, ran toward the courthouse square firing four shots into the air. As he drew closer he could see the red glow of fire through the tower windows.

On the east side of the courthouse, “night officers Messrs. Rogers and Darnaby” also fired shots into the air.
“The six-shooter bombardment soon awakened half of the city, and in 20 minutes the courthouse square was alive with people, according to the article.
Burditt asked a night clerk named Mobley at the Hotel Cleburne to turn in an alarm, which Mobley did before waking the hotel guests.

Fire wagons soon arrived and streamed water into the blaze. A strong south breeze swept smoke and sparks northward as the fire worked its way from the upper part of the building to the lower floors.

A fatal turn of events
Abe B. Bledsoe became city marshal of Cleburne in 1911, a year before his death.
The titles city marshal and chief of police seem to have been interchangeable in those days, according to a history of the Cleburne Police Department written by former CPD Chief Claude Zachary in the 1990s.

The 1907 Cleburne City Directory, for example, lists Charles McClain as chief of police while later directories and records refer men holding the same, apparently, office as city marshals.
Or maybe not. Specifics of whether city marshals and police chiefs were separate or once the same office in Cleburne depends on who you ask.
Former CPD Deputy Chief N.H. Laseman said he believes to two positions were always separate.

“At least that’s what I was told,” Laseman said. “Until we went to the police department concept, people would run for [the city marshal position] then they’d hire their own deputy marshals.”

The city marshal office went from an elected to an appointed position — Cleburne still has a city marshal — sometime in the ’40s or ’50s, Laseman estimated.
Senior District Judge C.C. “Kit” Cooke said he believes the positions may have once been essentially the same thing.

Cooke said a former bailiff of his, Glenn Clark, served as chief of CPD in the late ’40s or early ’50s, but was referred to as marshal. Carroll Cooke, Cooke’s uncle, on the other hand was appointed to the office in the mid-’50s as always referred to as chief of police, Cooke said.

Whether Bledsoe was city marshal or chief of police, he unfortunately ended up in the wrong place at the wrong time that 1912 morning.
Bledsoe apparently felt duty bound to join firefighters as the Cleburne fire chief — Bledsoe’s brother, Baylor Bledsoe, was out of town on vacation.
That decision proved heroic and deadly as it cost Bledsoe his life on the second floor of the burning courthouse.

Bledsoe joined several firefighters in the building, all of whom soon realized the peril of the situation.

“[Bledsoe] was conscious of being in imminent danger and he told fireman Vernon Steakley and Elmer Shannon to get the second floor windows and lower doors ready for a quick getaway,” according to the Cleburne Morning Review.

The firefighters were standing near the west door of the district court, firefighter Carey Hughes reported after the fact, when Bledsoe approached him and said, “Let me have the hose; you go down and rest, I’ll fight ’er some myself.”
Soon after a crash reverberated through the courthouse as the big tower and tin roof collapsed into the structure.

According to the Cleburne Morning Review story, many spectators watching said, “Can it be possible that someone has been caught under that death trap?”
Shannon exited safely, according to reports.
Tumbling bricks and mortar struck Steakley, injuring his shoulder, as he climbed out a window. Bledsoe was not so lucky.

“As fireman Steakley crawled into the window, he heard the crash behind him and he knew one of the brave firefighters had been caught in the clutches of death,” The Cleburne Morning Review reported. “How to rescue him was the question. A large piece of tin from the roof had covered the officer like a blanket, and heavy brick and mortar had fallen on the tin. The officer still held to the nozzle, and the water was pouring on and about him, and another stream was played on the pile of debris. But the bricks and tin being hot, there was no chance for the brave man under the death trap. He was scalded and roasted to death.”

It was “heart-rending” for firefighters to fight the fire and not attempt to save Bledsoe, according to reports. Which didn’t stop firefighter Louis Cashion from attempting to do so.

“But he had not proceeded far on his daring mission when the heat and smoke caused him to waver, and he too might have been lost but for the timely act of his brother, Joe Cashion, who ran in and brought him out,” according to the Morning Review.

With the fire finally extinguished, firefighters managed to recover Bledsoe’s body at 4:30 a.m., a recovery fraught with jeopardy.
“For the men did not know what instant an over-topping section of brick and mortar might also bury them and mash their lives out,” the Morning Review reported.

Rescue workers found Bledsoe clutching the nozzle of the hose in a death grip when they finally managed to unpin him from the rubble, according to reports.
News of Bledsoe’s death caused a general expression of sorrow from the hundreds of Cleburne residents gathered on the sidewalks, according to reports, and false rumors spread that Cashion and Shannon had also died in the fire.
The aftermath left the courthouse’s steel vaults and some brick walls standing but consumed practically all the wood work, according to reports.

“The familiar faces of the old clocks in the courthouse tower had gone forever,” the Morning Review reported.
Newspaper accounts from the time recorded no cause for the fire.

“I’ve heard people say that it might have stared in a court reporter’s office, but I don’t know if that was ever proven for sure or if the cause was ever determined,” Sims said in 2009.

The Cleburne City Council met on April 18, 1912, and appointed Alf C. White as the new city marshal, according to reports.

City officials also allowed residents to remove bricks and other debris from the rubble of the 1883 structure, according to reports.
One Dub Collins carted off the 1883 date marker, formerly affixed to the upper outside wall of the old courthouse before the fire.

“It was in the backyard next to a tree,” said Carla Oefinger, Collin’s great-granddaughter. “My brother and I used to play on it all the time. It was my father’s grandfather’s; he collected things. We always knew it had some kind of special meaning, but as children didn’t really understand what it meant.”

Oefinger’s mother donated the date marker to the county in 1990, she said. The marker and a plaque, which mentions Bledsoe and the 1912 fire, is located on the lawn of the current courthouse.

Cleburne Police Chief Terry Powell said in 2009 that, to the best of his knowledge, no other Cleburne police officer, save Bledsoe, ever died in the line of duty. The Cleburne Fire Department has not been as fortunate, having lost three firefighters in as many fires over the years.

It really bums me out to think that a piece of town history could be deemed worthy (or unworthy for that matter) of no longer being needed. In my eyes there’s such a sense of history being lost to the demands of a new age and townspeople ready to move forward. Here’s what the people are saying according to the www.StatesmanJournal.com :

To read additional comments about Courthouse Square, or to add your own, go to Statesman
www.Journal.com/SoundOff.

What should be done with Courthouse Square?

We posed that question to readers on StatesmanJournal.com because the Marion County Board of Commissioners and Salem Area Mass Transit District Board are preparing to discuss proposals for remediating all or part of the building, parking garage and bus mall.
Readers were unanimous: Tear it down and start over.
Below is a sampling of their comments, edited for length.

What readers said:

As a person who worked in the cement and pre-stress/precast concrete structures I believe the Courthouse complex needs to come down for safety reasons, without exception. …
The support columns are weak and cannot support the building structural load and can easily fail.
… No amount of retrofitted bracing and support will make this complex safe to use — ever!
The best option is to call the old bonds (that were at high interest rates), issue new 30-year bonds at the very low current rates, completely tear it down and rebuild using best industry practices.
Oh, and keep the politics out of it. Let the professionals do their jobs and build it properly!
— StatesmanJournal.com user PaulHomewood
The Marion County Board of Commissioners and the Salem Area Mass Transit Board already have their minds set on what will be done. The money issue is irrelevant since the public will foot the bill.
In the end they should prominently locate a plaque telling future generations the building represents a toilet where millions of wasted taxpayer dollars were flushed.
— StatesmanJournal.com user Salemmania
Oh, let’s spend another two years deciding what should be done about it. Spend $$$ on meetings, and committees, lawsuits maybe — while it sits in the middle of town as an eyesore and a danger to citizens.
— StatesmanJournal.com user Satindoll444
Bulldoze it and build a parking garage for the courthouse.
— StatesmanJournal.com user Alphatrion
Knock it down by the cheapest means possible, bulldoze the rubble into the underground garage and pound it down hard. Then use that as the sub-base for a new, non-sinking transit mall.
— StatesmanJournal.com user Foamer
… Get as much money as you can selling to a movie company to use as a prop/site for scenes. Let them blow it up in a wild and crazy scene in a movie.
Allow citizens to come and grab what is left over (like the original Senator Hotel on this site), then clear the rest off and create an open-air bus station with food carts, a Saturday Market, etc. through the nicer weather months.
Maybe create a parking garage below, if possible, for downtown shoppers and make it a hub like the Pioneer Courthouse Square in Portland.
— StatesmanJournal.com user RedSoxKen
Tear it down. Any attempt to fix it will just result in a lawsuit when it falls down.
— StatesmanJournal.com user MamaKatt
…Use it for a training exercise for firefighters and disaster relief workers. Then, once it’s down, I like the idea previously posted of something akin to Portland’s Pioneer Square, including room for maybe a few shops or food places.
— StatesmanJournal.com user schultz47
…It should be razed, recycled (each and every brick and screw), planned by an advisory committee of professionals and rebuilt to city needs. A city park dedicated as a safe space offering outreach information at the very least!
— StatesmanJournal.com user wolven51
…They should just tear the thing down and start over again. I know there is no way I am going inside that building again no matter how much they try to repair it.
— StatesmanJournal.com user marycontrary2
Tear it down. I have little faith in the ability to repair the building. I drive by at night; the sagging is so obvious now. …Who’d feel safe inhabiting this building?
Instead, tear it down and replace it with a nice park ala Portland’s Pioneer Square. There could be a nice pullout with shelters for bus riders, a state of the art BMX/skateboard area, benches to relax, even a nice mini-amphitheater for street musicians and local talent to set up and perform at will.
— StatesmanJournal.com user keyjo
Raze the lot, make a park with a fountain in the center and build a modest customer service/waiting room/restroom building at the corner of High and Chemeketa with the street sides around it as the bus mall as now but with more permanent shelters. Eliminate the underground parking.
And make sure no other public building project is ever again allowed to proceed without adequate bond insurance.
— StatesmanJournal.com user Silverstorm

I’ve never been one to preach and I’ve certainly never been one open to hearing people overtly preach their thoughts, opinions, and ideas in manner than can become offensive and annoying. But one thing that we can all benefit from is the preaching of someone when it comes to our history. It’s odd, even in this information age where Google and YouTube offer everything it seems as though we’re getting further away from our past. Suffice to say I was elated to read this from Lou Antonelli of the Daily Tribune.

Vietnam Veterans Recognized

By LOU ANTONELLI Managing Editor www.dailytribune.net

Veterans Service Officer Steve Austin held the first-ever local Vietnam Veterans Recognition Day at both the Titus and Franklin County courthouses Friday.
The ceremony was held at 10 a.m. in Mount Pleasant and 1 p.m. in Mount Vernon, Austin serves as veterans’ service officer for both counties.
Speaking in Mount Vernon in the courthouse square, Austin noted how some servicemen didn’t get a warm welcome when they returned home from Vietnam, “but we Vietnam veterans don’t have a long memory.”
“While many aspects about the Vietnam War are debatable,” he said, “the facts and figures of the war have a voice of their own and are indisputable.” He reviewed some statistics from the conflict:
• Five men killed in Vietnam were only 16 years old.
• The oldest man killed was 62 years old.
• 11,465 KIAs were less than 20 years old.
• Vietnam Veterans represent 9.7% of their generation
• 8,744,000 GIs were on active duty during the war (Aug. 5, 1964 – March 28, 1973)
• 2,594,000 personnel served within the borders of South Vietnam (Jan. 1, 1965 – March 28, 1973)
• Another 50,000 men served in Vietnam between 1960 and 1964
• Of the 2.6 million, between 1 – 1.6 million (40-60%) either fought in combat, provided close support or were at least fairly regularly exposed to enemy attack.
• Peak troop strength in Vietnam: 543,482 (April 30, 1969)
• Total draftees (1965-1973): 1,728,344
• Draftees accounted for 30.4% (17,725) of combat deaths in Vietnam
• National Guard: 6,140 served; 101 died
• Last man drafted: June 30, 1973
• 97% of Vietnam veterans were honorably discharged
• 91% of actual Vietnam War era veterans and 90% of those who saw heavy combat are proud to have served their country
• 66% of Vietnam veterans say they would serve again if called upon

It’s obvious that in this day and age that it’s easy to get left behind in the world of social media. Take my father for example; he’s a top brass at his company, very successful, but still living in the stone-age when it comes to the advancement of advertising and the utilization of the internet. Of course he has a staff and a team of people who actually handle this for him but that isn’t to say that he’s never rolled his eyes in meetings when people mention names like Twitter, and Facebook. Suffice to say that my old man subscribes to the “if it ain’t broke don’t fix it” school of thought.

“I’ve done business like this for the last 27 years and if it’s working there’s no need to reinvent the wheel.” That was what my father told me when I asked him when his company was getting a Facebook profile. If I remember correctly, this conversation took place about a year ago. Of course they are now on the band wagon and enlist the help of their receptionist(s) to make posts add friends, likes, etc. I believe they also have a Twitter account too but I think it’s covered in dust and cobwebs as it’s rarely utilized from what I can tell. But say my old man was the type that liked social media, how would he get started on what to do? How would a person who’s never done anything more than use the internet for sports, stocks, and email get aboard the social media bandwagon in a successful way that benefits his business?

Below are some tips I found from Heba Hosny on blogging in a successful manner for those in real estate. Of course these tips translate into any facet of business and are certainly worth a read. This one’s for all you noobs out there so pay attention and take notes. Yes, noobs.

Top 5 Tips for Successful Real Estate Blogging
Author: Heba Hosny

The popularity of blogging has helped real estate blogs to evolve to a great extent. As blogs tend to be inexpensive, they can be used extensively as an effective marketing tool. Blogs are called dynamic website, where the content keeps on changing and you have the option of using several designed pictures to make the content attractive. But if you are new to blogging, you need to consider few things before choosing a right blogging platform for your real estate blog. Below are few tips that will help you in starting an effective real estate blog:

1. The first and foremost point you need to figure out is what type of content you will be posting on the blog. You also need to manage the time you have to devote in writing those blogs. A blogger needs to devote enough time in writing the necessary posts. In the beginning you can start with two or three articles per week and then gradually increase the number as you progress further.

2. Next point that you have to figure out is the cost of a real estate blog. There are many free blogging platforms available on the net. But you should not succumb into these web services. Although there are no negatives in a free blogging platform but if you are thinking of becoming a professional real estate blogger then these free blogging services is not the correct option for you. Further free blogging services do not provide every designing and customizing feature to your blog.

3. If you want to make your blog effective then you should follow the habit of reading. It’s through reading that you will develop your writing skills. Reading will help you in researching the relevant topics in real estate. Subscribe to various journals of real estate, you can even download few e-books available on the net. Generally these books are offered at a very low cost but they contain many vital information. You have to develop yourself as an avid reader which will ultimately help you in becoming a better blogger.

4. Various discussion forums available on the internet will help you in sharpening your writing skills. Many questions are posted on these discussion forums, try answering them. You can even convert these discussions into a blog post. Then link the posts back to those discussion forums for an increase in the traffic to your blog.

5. After you have developed an effective blog, you need to put that blog in the eyes of your audiences. Advertising is one such option using which you can promote your blog. But if you do not have enough budget for advertisements you can opt for Search Engine Optimization (SEO). SEO is one of the inexpensive marketing techniques used to promote blogs and websites in the search engine results. There are many books on SEO available in the market; there are tons of blogs as well which give successful SEO tutorials. Subscribe to these services to learn the art of SEO and increase the traffic to your blog.
Creating a blog requires ample amount of time and patience. You will have to wait for your blog to get noticed. In the meantime do not neglect the posts and look for the techniques that other real estate bloggers are using to promote. Analyze those techniques and try including them into your blog posts.
About the author: Margaret is a blogger by profession. She loves writing on environment and autos. Beside this she is fond of books. She recently did an article on cointreau. These days she is busy in writing an article on indian autos.

From what I saw on the news last night, it seems that the home buying market is finally beginning to recover. I’m sure real estate agents everywhere are beginning to rejoice and are salivating at the thought of making sales they were once accustomed to. I remember a time when I contemplated becoming a real estate agent. I liked the idea of the freedom, the commissions and perhaps even the thought of my face adorning a front yard sign. Once that idea faded the reality would then set in; I had no interest in getting licensed, I didn’t know how to market myself or find clients, and most importantly I didn’t know how to present a home to a potential buyer.

I would ask myself, “Am I a seller? Damn right!” I would tell myself. But a home is such a multi-faceted product. It’s one thing to sell a space that’s empty because you can employ theatre of the mind to help potential buyers see the, well, potential. But what happens when you’re selling a home that’s still occupied? What if the owner is a sweet old lady drowning in a sea of doilies? What if the home owner is an uber-hunter living in a dwelling that’s half home, half animal-head trophy case? Well Bill Ness from 55Places.com had to simple yet effective ways to sell an occupied home. Check it out…

Can’t Sell Your Home? Try Staging It.
Anyone involved in real estate knows that we are currently in a buyers’ market. There are many homes for sale, and, while they are selling, they aren’t selling quickly. This makes it a great time for those looking to buy, but a frustrating experience if you have a home that just won’t sell. If you want to generate interest, it’s time to give staging a try.

While you may have already cleaned, repaired and de-cluttered, staging your home takes your preparation to the next level. A staged home looks more like a magazine set-up than a home that’s been lived in. It has design appeal, yet is neutral enough to let potential buyers imagine themselves — and their belongings — in your home.

When you are ready to try staging your home, your Realtor may be able to recommend a staging expert. Someone who is a professional home stager is trained in home design, but also understands what it takes to make a home more appealing to buyers. After assessing your home, a stager should be able to give you an upfront estimate for how much the job will cost. Often a stager can make a big improvement for less than $1,000.

If you want to save some money, you can try staging your home yourself. Generally speaking, you can get started by following just three simple guidelines:

1. Keep it neutral and impersonal — Tone down any wild wall colors by repainting with light, neutral shades. Lighter colors will reflect the light and make rooms feel more spacious. Removing personal items like family pictures will make it easier for buyers to imagine themselves owning the home.

2. Clear out clutter and excess furniture — Keeping knickknacks, furniture and other decorative items to a minimum will make a home feel more open. It lets buyers see the potential space instead of focusing on your belongings. Rearrange your furniture to make sure that it’s easy to walk from one room to the next, and put excess items in storage.

3. Add magazine-style touches — Once your home is more neutral and sparsely furnished, it’s time to bring in some thoughtful touches. Take a look at some home magazines and see how the rooms are pictured. Try setting a bowl of fruit on the kitchen counter, adding fresh flowers to the front hall, and setting the dining table with attractive dishes and cloth napkins.

To get more ideas for staging your home, pick up some interior design magazines or watch some of the popular TV shows about selling real estate. Exterior curb appeal will bring buyers through your front door, but a staged home may be the final push to help them make an offer.

This article originally appeared on 55Places.com. For more articles like this or for information about hundreds of 55+ active adult retirement communities across the country, please visit 55Places.com.

   
   As business people, we all know that first impressions mean everything. People already know that they want to buy; it’s just a matter of whether or not they want to buy from you. Example: Anytime I’ve ever gone car shopping I’ve gotten hounded by a salesperson. I walk in, head straight to the lot bypassing the human wall of sales people that resemble hyenas with iPhones and politely try and pass through. Here’s an example of how a conversation once went for me:

Salesperson: “What are you looking for today?”

Me: “Not sure, I just want to see what you have”

Salesperson: “Well give me an idea of your taste”

Me: “Actually, I’d like to just browse the cars and see what sticks out”

Salesperson: “Well let me show you this new…”

Me: “No thanks, I just want to see what you have overall”

Salesperson: “Well how about I join you in case you have questions?”

Me: “Not necessary, but thanks. I’ll let you know if I need anything”

(Salesperson trails me like I’m going to steal something)

Salesperson: “Ok, well I’ll be right here if you need me”

(Salesperson keeps following me, so I deliberately stop and go in an obvious, humorous fashion to proverbially show them their reflection in the mirror.)

Me: “What’s your name?”

Salesperson: “I’m __________,”

Me: “Listen _________, I’ll let you know if I have any questions, seriously. I know you guys work on commission and I’ll come to you if I find anything I like.”

Salesperson: “Oh, I’m not concerned with any money; I just want you to have a great car shopping experience.”

Me: “That’s very noble, but I promise I’ll find you if I need anything.”

Salesperson: “Have you seen the latest…?”

Me: “No. But thanks anyway.”

(Still following my every step)

Salesperson: “But I bet you’d really like…”

Me: “Listen, I just want to see what you have at my own pace, ok? Please?”

Salesperson: “No, for sure, do your thing man.”

(Salesperson keeps a steady pace behind me)

Me: “Please stop following me”

Salesperson: “I’m not following you sir, but truth be told, no one is allowed on the lot unescorted.”

Me: “Ok, but I’ve kindly asked you to let me look and I’ve told you I’d come to you with any queries. Now you’re just invading my space.”

Salesperson: (In a devastated voice) “No, I’m not!”

Me: “Thanks for wasting my time”

(I exit the premises quickly)

                Sound familiar? This also happens anytime I go furniture shopping. If people walk into your office, store, or lot they’ve made a decision or a consideration to spending their money with you.  At that point the ball is in your court to handle and massage their needs with your solutions and value. Here’s a great piece by David Nour on how to gently traverse the first interaction with potential clients and business contacts. Check it out:

How to Establish and Grow Business Relationships
By: David Nour

David Nour is the thought leader on relationship economics, the quantifiable value of business relationships. The Nour Group, Inc. helps organizations drive growth through unique return on their strategic relationships.

By now, you have a robust profile on LinkedIn, you tweet several times a day with hashtags, you have a Facebook Page, several videos on YouTube, and you’ve even created several clever boards on Pinterest. You attend a handful of networking events every month, and you venture out to interesting events like SXSW a couple of times every year. But after all that, how do you build your social circle and influential contacts in key centers of influence?

How do you maintain, nurture, and ideally, bridge the gap between relationship creation and relationship capitalization? How do you turn friends and followers into active, interested social currency. How do you foster engagement to create valuable, lasting relationships?

Well, it has to do with the evolution of our on- and off-line business relationships. How do our business relationships evolve, why do we screw some up, and how can we repair them? Why do some partner, client, investor, supplier or even colleague relationships tend to accelerate naturally, while others fizzle and never fully materialize as you had hoped?

Quite simply, the manner in which we build business relationships has evolved. Find out how to keep the pace.

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Initial Contact

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You meet someone or, ideally, are referred through a trusted introduction. Tossing an unsolicited email over the wall is a losing proposition. Online and in-person relationships are getting more sophisticated, better protected and constantly pressured for efficiency and effectiveness.

The critical focus here is to add value in every interaction, to provoke, or to provide a contrarian perspective. In other words, if you want to elevate yourself above the noise, ensure that a person remembers your conversation. I recommend that you become well-read in a variety of topics, listen intently, question constantly, and capitalize on the value of brevity (aka Twitter etiquette). Finally, get to the point without pontificating.

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Additional Interaction

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If, during the initial contact, you made a strong, positive and value-centric impression, people will begin to seek you out. The conversation was impactful enough to warrant immediate action on their behalf.

 Their follow-up email starts, “I left our visit excited about the conversation on X topic,” or “I enjoyed meeting you and discussing X technology.” The timeliness of their response should communicate that your interaction was a priority.

But what if the roles are reversed, and you’re the one following up? Here are my recommendations.

Pre-Initial Contact: Research the event, the topic of discussion, potential attendees, industry trends, topical conversation starters and recent similar events. And get there early! If you’ve already been introduced online to the person you’re targeting, reinforce credibility by association. If you were engaged around an interesting topic, bring up a question to jump-start the next interaction.

During the Event: Engage proactively, be present in each conversation, add value, don’t be a conversation hog, and don’t distribute business cards excessively. After speaking, immediately capture a couple of notes about the conversation. Be as diligent disengaging from conversations as you were proactive in initiating them. Finally, anticipate their needs; simply meeting their current or articulated needs is not enough. Don’t let them ask you for more.

Immediately After: Send a brief follow-up note the same day, and include something of value, for example, a link to relevant data, a PDF of an article, a couple bullet points of interest, or an introduction to an influential relationship. Finally, proactively suggest a next step.

Be interested but casual. Pace yourself — too much, too fast turns most people off. Be poignant, practical and pragmatic and always give them options, for example, “Can we meet or Skype next Tuesday or Thursday at these times? If next week is bad for you, let me know what the following week looks like on your calendar.”

 If the person’s business stature is higher, position yourself as a peer and don’t get delegated to others down the food chain. If the business stature is same or lower, be humble and make time. Most importantly, be candid: “Apologies in advance. I travel extensively, so please don’t take my unavailability as a lack of interest — it’s simply a lack of immediate bandwidth.”

A Week Later: If you haven’t heard anything in a week, call and email to make sure they received your follow-up. Be professional and polished, and remember to add value at every interaction.

If you don’t get any response, ask yourself whether you could have done anything differently. If you didn’t add sufficient value in your early interactions, pestering them won’t do much good. Move on and focus on working with, helping and adding value to relevant, responsive contacts.

Additional best practices: Demonstrate unquestionable integrity, have pride in the relationship, garner a personal passion to work together, and earn a person’s vested interest in the long-term viability of the relationship.

Never lose sight of the fact that your performance, execution and results rely on fostering relationships. Lack thereof will dilute your credibility and relevance. Remain competent within your industry and among your peers, and the resulting value will match the effort.