Sessions by Date
Jump to Wednesday • Thursday • Friday • Saturday • Sunday
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
11 a.m.–5 p.m. Registration open
2:30–4 p.m. A L
Information Management Advocacy Group Meeting
2:30–4 p.m. A L
Risk Management Advocacy Group Meeting
2:30–4 p.m. A L
Professional Development Advocacy Group Meeting
2:30–4 p.m. A L
Public Policy Advocacy Group Meeting
2:30–4 p.m. A L
Property Managers Council Meeting
4:15–5:15 p.m. A L
Emerging Issues Forum
4:15–5:15 p.m. A L
International Council Meeting
4:15–5:15 p.m. A L
VREEF Trustees Meeting
4:45–5:45 p.m. E
AE Council Idea Exchange
Thursday, September 25, 2008
7:15 a.m.–6 p.m.
Registration open
8 a.m.–5 p.m. T A CE PL
CRS Designation Course (ticketed)
Connecting with Multicultural Homebuyers
Instructor: Marcie Roggow
An NAR study released in July 2007 shows that nearly one in five REALTORS® has sold a home to an international client in the past year. Are you getting your share of this lucrative business? Practice skills in interacting with multicultural customers and learn to develop plans to continue efforts to attract and connect with multicultural clients.
Approved for 7 Hours Real Estate Related CE; 4 Hours Elective PL.
8:30–10 a.m. A L E
Issues Forum for Local Leaders
8:30–10 a.m. A
FPC Training
9–10:30 a.m. A
Virginia Managers Council Meeting
10 a.m.–5 p.m. A
Cyber Café open
10:15–11:45 a.m. E
AE Council Reporting Meeting
10:30–11:45 a.m. A
RPAC Trustees Meeting
10:45 a.m.–12 p.m. A
Relocation Council Meeting
12–1:30 p.m. E
I–81 Corridor Group Meeting
12:15–1:30 p.m. T
CRS Lunch & General Membership Meeting (ticketed)
1:30–3 p.m. A L E
MLS Forum
1:30–3 p.m. A
WCR Chapter Meeting
1:45–4:45 p.m. A L
Policy Board Meeting
Friday, September 26, 2008
7:15 a.m.–5 p.m.
Registration open
8 a.m.–7:30 p.m. A
Cyber Café open
8–9 a.m. FT
First Timer Coffee
8–9:15 a.m. E
AE 2 AE
8–9:30 a.m. A
CRS Board of Directors Meeting
8–9:30 a.m. A
Find More Buyers and Keep Anxious Sellers Informed, Sponsored by Top Producer
Speaker: Richard McDonald
Don’t leave clients and prospects to “wait out” the market; empower them to act based on accurate, neighborhood-specific market data that is only available through your direct connection to your MLS. Leverage the power of automatic prospecting and communication tools such as Top Producer’s Market Snapshot to give buyers confidence in the current, local market, allowing them to spot and act according to identifiable trends. Plus, by creating a context for pricing and selling decisions, Market Snapshot helps your sellers understand the direct impact of the local market on pricing and selling times.
10–11:45 a.m. A
Grand Opening Session: Trend/Counter Trend with Robyn Waters
Trends used to be so simple. Once upon a time a trend was a trend specifically because everyone wanted the same thing. Today, the ‘next big thing’ is in reality many different things…and it’s not unusual for complete opposites to be deemed trendy at the same time. In this captivating keynote address, Robyn Waters explores the polarity of macro trends influencing the marketplace today.
• Can a commodity be a luxury?
• How do you customize your product for the masses?
• Is there such a thing as ‘healthy indulgence?’
• How can you make something old brand new?
• What is extreme relaxation all about anyway?
• And can you do good and make money in today’s business environment?
F. Scott Fitzgerald once said that the test of a first-class mind was the ability to hold two opposing ideas in the head at the same time and still be able to function. This presentation will help you embrace that concept in practical manner that makes sense for business today.
12–7 p.m. A
Expo Hall open
12–2 p.m. A T
Expo Hall Opening Lunch
1–5 p.m. A
Virginia Real Estate BloggerCon 3.0
This is the longest-running series of peer-to-peer learning experiences for intermediate and advanced real estate bloggers. Bring your laptop, connect to VAR’s free WiFi hotspot, and learn from tech-savvy REALTORS® just like you who run their businesses with a technology flair. The agenda will be set by the participants, but some potential topics are:
• Widgets that work (from Plugoo to Vyew, Meebo to Wufoo and every crazy Web 2.0 company name in between, what widgets deliver real value?)
• How to write for SEO and not come across like a robot
• Legal, ethical and regulatory implications for REALTORS® using social media
1–3 p.m. A PCE PPL
Negotiations: The Games People Play
Speaker: Jackie Leavenworth
What is the difference in a master negotiator and the typical sales person? A master negotiator understands and practices solid, proven techniques that get to “yes,” bypass “no,” and end up with delighted clients leading to future referrals. These negotiation techniques are not human nature! Master negotiators are created through a sincere desire to help others and to learn new skills. Join the “Real Estate Whisperer”™ for a journey to enhanced negotiation and people skills that can be life-changing.
Pending 2 Hours Real Estate Related CE; 2 Hours Elective PL
1:15–3:15 p.m. A CE PL
Three Contingencies: Avoiding the Traps that Lurk
Speaker: Lem Marshall
This course deals with the three contingencies most frequently found in residential purchase agreements, and that are responsible for a high percentage of contract failures. The way these contingencies are negotiated and drafted can have enormous impact on whether a deal stays together or dies an unnecessary death.
Approved for 2 Hours Contracts CE; 2 Hours Elective PL
1:15–3:15 p.m. A PCE PBM PPL
What’s In Your Policy Manual?
Speaker: Marcie Roggow
Broker owners: This is a workshop especially for you! This interactive session is designed to help the broker design, write and implement a company policy and procedures manual. Pending 2 Hours Legal Updates; 2 Hours Broker Management CE; 2 Hours Elective PL
1:30–3:30 p.m. A
Out of the Cockpit and into the Cabin
Speaker: Marc Davison
Collaboration, wisdom of the crowd and social interaction are some of the critical components that lay the foundation for new success for a entire new breed of business leader. Today new ideas are invading old spaces, revitalizing their offerings, creating a new perceptions of value, recharging customers and building brand loyalty. Davison takes his audience deep inside the cockpit of group think in real estate and eases them out into the cabin of modern day, collaborative, conventional wisdom. The result - new ideas, new directions and the seeds to reinvent an entirely new real estate business model.
3:15–5: 15 p.m. A PCE PPL
Pricing Strategies for the 21st Century
Speaker: Jackie Leavenworth
This program contains new words, dialogues, scripts and methods to separate even the most seasoned agents from the crowd. Gain an edge for your listings and for your marketing with this one-of-a-kind presentation on new pricing techniques. Learn the difference between “pricing” and “positioning” and the true difference between “comparables” and “competition.” You’ll increase your listing inventory and decrease the days on market after attending this powerful, fun and enlightening course.
Pending 2 Hours Real Estate Related CE; 2 Hours Elective PL
3:30–5:30 p.m. A
VMC Broker Roundtables
Join other brokers and managers from around the state for discussions about relevant issues impacting your business.
3:30–5:30 p.m. A CE PL
A New Look At Buyer Agency: Putting the Client First
Speaker: Lem Marshall
There are many issues and problems raised by the representation of buyers, including the temptations and dangers of dual agency, obtaining a verifiable agreement, handling compensation issues, dealing with limited service brokers and participating in highly competitive deals. This course looks at each of these challenges and gives straightforward guidance in each instance, with the focus always being on service and putting the client first.
Approved for 2 Hours Agency CE; 2 Hours Elective PL
3:45–5:30 p.m. A
50 New Tools and Technologies For Real Estate
Speaker: Marc Davison
This is an overview of fifty new technologies, that are either free or super cheap but most importantly, a way to evolve your business and cut huge costs.
4–5 p.m. A
Virginia’s NAR Directors Meeting
5:30–7 p.m. A T
Expo Hall Opening Reception
This blowout reception is a party you won’t want to miss and it’s included in your registration fee.
7–10 p.m.
VAR Past Presidents’ Dinner
Saturday, September 27, 2008
8 a.m.–5 p.m.
Registration open
8–9 a.m. L
Local Association Past Presidents Leadership Society
8 a.m.–6 p.m. A
Cyber Café open
8–10 a.m. A T
Breakfast in Expo Hall
Come visit with exhibitors and have a light breakfast before the general session.
8:30–9:30 a.m. A
VLA Alumni Meeting
10 a.m.–12 p.m.
Expo closed
10 a.m.–12 p.m. A
General Session
Word of Mouth Marketing with Andy Sernovitz
With straightforward advice and humor, Andy will show you how the world’s most respected and profitable companies get their best customers for free through the power of word of mouth.
You’ll learn everything you need to get started:
• 5 essential steps that make word of mouth successful
• 4 rules of word of mouth marketing
• 3 reasons people talk about you
… and the real purpose of blogs, communities, viral email, evangelists, and buzz — when to use them and how simple it is to make them work. Learn what sparks the irrepressible enthusiasm of Apple and TiVo fans. Understand why everyone is talking about a certain restaurant, car, band, or dry cleaner — and why other businesses and products are ignored. Discover why some products become huge successes without a penny of promotion — and why some multi-million dollar advertising campaigns fail to get noticed.
12–3 p.m. A
Expo Hall open
12–2 p.m. A T
Expo Hall Lunch
1–5 p.m. (Closed session)
Leadership Academy Final Retreat
2–3:30 p.m. A
Social Media for the Technologically Challenged
Speakers: Danilo Bogdanovic and Tony Arko
You don’t have to be a technology wiz or a computer programmer to take advantage of social media sites. Learn the difference in the different types of sites, and how to use them to increase your real estate business. You’ll be able to get connected in as little as five minutes and start benefiting from the power and leverage of the internet. Increase your referral business and sphere of influence to become a trusted real estate expert.
2–3:45 p.m. A CE BMS
Coach Your Office to Increased Profitability
Speaker: Bernice Ross
Tired of fighting problems all day? Want to increase your office production and actually have time off? If you answered “yes,” to either of these questions, shifting to a coaching-based managerial style can increase your profits while minimizing time spent coping with problems. Bernice Ross shares a simple six-step coaching model you can use today to improve your bottom line tomorrow. This simple to use model assists agents in building better decision-making skills as well as helping you to deal more effectively with agent and client problems. If you want hold your agents accountable while helping them build a more sustainable revenue stream, Bernice can show you how.
Approved 2 Hours Real Estate Related CE; 2 Hours Broker Management CE; No PL
2–5 p.m. L E
Policy Board Candidate Forum
2:15–4 p.m. A CE PL
Legal Update
Speaker: Lem Marshall
Don’t miss VAR’s special counsel on the latest real estate issues affecting the industry and issues that are current and important.
Approved for 2 Hours Legal Updates CE; 2 Hours Elective PL.
2:15–4 p.m. A CE PL
Pricing it to Sell: How to Convince the Seller
Speaker: Steve Harney
Pricing is probably the most important skill for a REALTOR® in this changing market. Learn why housing inventories have grown to an all–time high and how to communicate the current market conditions to even the most adamant seller.
Approved 2 Hours Real Estate Related CE; 2 Hours Elective PL
4–5:30 p.m. A
Pump Up Your Referral Network: Speed Networking
Do you have difficulty meeting new people? This is the session for you! Bring your business cards and practice your elevator speech, it’s time for Speed Networking. This is the perfect opportunity to broaden your network, meet new people and have some fun.
4–5:45 p.m. A CE PL
How to Turn Today’s Market into a Cash Machine for Your Business
Speaker: Bernice Ross
Today’s “new” real estate environment requires an entirely different skills set. Good old fashioned prospecting, negotiation skills, and superb service are not only back in style — they’re a necessity! This session provides attendees with the best of the “tried and true” for 2008 as well as innovative ways to implement today’s technological advances even on a limited budget.
Approved 2 Hours Real Estate Related CE; 2 Hours Elective PL
4:15–6 p.m. A PCE PPL
Death, Divorce and Bankruptcy: Are You Ready for Some Football?
Speaker: Lem Marshall
This course develops strategies for dealing with some of the most vexing situations a REALTOR® can face. What if your buyer or seller dies before closing? Are you comfortable dealing with an estate property (either listing or selling)? Are you tired of being whipsawed by feuding spouses? Do you understand how bankruptcy and creditors’ rights affect your deal? Join Lem Marshall in exploring these trying situations.
Pending 2 Hours Legal Updates CE; 2 Hours Elective PL.
4:15–6 p.m. A CE BMS
Implementing Profit Driving Initiatives: The Five Keys to Success
Speaker: Steve Harney
Increasing profitability is the issue for every real estate company. Whether you’re introducing ancillary businesses for additional revenue streams, redistributing marketing dollars from print to the internet or establishing an agent paid technology fee, getting agent buy-in is critical. This class concentrates on helping the owner/broker/manager successfully attain agent buy-in on any company/office initiative.
Approved 2 Hours Real Estate Related CE; 2 Hours Broker Management CE; No PL
5–6 p.m. (Closed session)
Past Presidents Forum
7–10 p.m. A T
Inaugural Party
Sunday, September 28, 2008
8 a.m.–1 p.m.
Registration open
9–11 a.m. A
Closing General Session
REALTOR® of the Year Presentation
Get Back in the Box: Innovation from the Inside Out with Douglas Rushkoff
This keynote, based on Rushkoff’s first book explicitly for a business audience contends that American enterprise is at a crossroads. Having for too long replaced innovation with acquisitions, tactics, efficiencies, and ad campaigns, many businesses have dangerously lost touch with the process — and fun — of discovery. But those who come to understand the current moment as a renaissance, and who are willing to embrace the possibilities it offers, have an unprecedented opportunity to engage with what they do — and innovate the real estate transaction — from the inside out.
11:15 a.m.–1 p.m. L E
Delegate Body Meeting
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