It's no secret.... The genius of this platform? ....It's in the points!
Seriously,... forget about all the great information, the social networking, and all the potential business it generates. We Want Points!
Just put a bunch of "Type A" personalities in the same virtual room, tell them they're competing for status & position by earning points, and watch the 'FRENZY' begin!
Now, granted, there are some who take this point thing just a little TOO seriously! But for the majority of us, it simply adds to the fun and enjoyment of participating in the Rain.
(Who are we kidding? We'd sell our own Mothers if it would help us achieve top spot in our State, right? Well, okay, maybe not 'Mom,' but maybe that annoying little brother or sister, eh!)
For some of you newer members, you may be asking yourself, "What hope is there for me? How can I ever hope to catch up to some of the veteran players who've racked up a gazillion points already?"
Well, don't despair, Buckwheat! You too can become the Big Cheese in your respective town, city, county, or even State, by following one simple, seemingly overlooked strategy.....
......by 'Inviting Others' to the Rain!
Down at the bottom left-hand side of your "My Home" page, you'll find the link that says, Invite Others 
Click on that link, and it will take you to the 'Invitation Page,' where you can enter your colleague's name, e-mail address, write a short personalized note encouraging them to join our beloved community, and hit 'Send Invitation!'
It's that simple!
For every person you get to join the Network, you receive 50 points! Then, after that, you receive 10% of ALL the points that person earns from there on out!
We have a member here in Washington State who has nearly 70,000 points! He's only posted 3 articles, made 9 comments, so almost ALL of his points are from inviting others to the Network! Imagine how much more he could do if he were actively participating?
If you look at some of our Top Scoring members, almost all of them have 10's of Thousands of points as a result of 'Inviting Others.' Granted, they've all worked hard to achieve their ranking. Effective blogging takes time, hard work, and commitment. But 'Inviting Others' to benefit and contribute to this platform is a major part of their success. And it can be a part of Your success too!
So start Inviting a couple of people a week, and watch your numbers climb!
Your Mother will most definitely appreciate it!
~ o ~ o ~ o ~ o ~ o ~
Rich Jacobson is a licensed real estate professional providing knowledgeable empowerment and relentless representation for his clients of residential properties and vacant land throughout all of Kitsap County WA and portions of Pierce, Mason, and Jefferson Counties. You can also find him at KitsapLife.com, SOUNDBITEBLOG and Crabbing in the Hood, or e-mail: kitsapagent@gmail.com
Rich Jacobson is a District Director for Fathom Realty and a licensed REALTOR®; an avid Crab Hunter, Clam Digger, and Oyster Shucker, He is the Social Media Evangelist for Life on the Kitsap Peninsula & The Western Puget Sound in scenic WA State.
Thanks for the reminder about the invitations.
Virginia - actually, I intentionally keep my eyes open for newer members to 'feature.' Our community has been doing a really great job of greeting the newcomers. I always make it a point to comment on members first blog post, but many times, several others have beat me to the punch!
Hi Rich
Nothing feels better than sharing Activerain with other professionals. I am always surprised how many try a blog or two and then just disappear. They are missing the wonderful outlet and benefits the AR provides.
I don't need points I need referrals for Pot of Gold Real Estate Inc. investment program.
I've also invited some people. One joined and I got the points, two joined but didn't follow my link therefore I didn't get the points and one Realtor I guess just didn't want to be a part of it.
It's funny when I hear people say, "It's not about the points", come on! People in Real Estate are competitive. You have to be. So as a member here on AR, when you see someone else in your field with more points than you, that competitive nature kicks in. I don't believe it's all about the points. AR is for me, a daily continuing education in Real Estate.
My mission since I've been a member, was to knock off the top 3 people in Title Insurance for the State of Florida and in Broward County. Why? Just for the fact that there isn't any activity from them. You snooze, you loose!
Hey, I get 25 shameless points for saying 'hey' to you on this fine Friday morning from NH! ;-)
Ann
I've invited a lot of people who have NOT joined... but I have invited a lot who have joined and a number of those have participated very much.
I am out of the habit of inviting people... but this is a good reminder.
Well that has not worked for me. For some reason, the people I invite just do not get it.
I'm not sure how I feel about this Rich.
I think a member who writes and contributes to the quality of AR should be valued...anyone can invite hundreds of people which I suppose makes AR look good and strong...but how many are active? How many contribute to this community.
The invite points are great....but really I don't think they should be such a big deal IMHO.
I don't think someone who invites a lot of people should rank higher than someone who writes and contributes to the community as a whole.
Points make the rain come down, the rain come down.
I've invited a number but only 5 have joined but they must be
dudsbusy with work. I didn't realize it was A types (yes, like me) I should be inviting. On to inviting A types and notdudsbusy with work artsy fartsy types!I love my points!
Well I'll take my 25 and roll... Thanks....Hey you got 200+ for a good blog post!
duds...busy with work!Rich,
Aha...Active Rain IS a 'pyramid' MLM scheme!!! NOT! Thanks, Fran
P.S. BTW...that profile pic...is that what they mean when they say 'a square peg in a round hole'? LOL
Gracious Rich...
As we both know Blog Boy (Broker Bryant) sends out the invites...
As he discovered AR before me he gets to do that :)
I will just stick to commenting for points and hope someday I may actually catch up. LOL. It ain't ever gonna happen :)
Hey...I know! I can invite a bunch of the Country Clubber's to join. The Country Clubber's are my turf :)
TLW...ROAR!Type A Personalities...
"Type A personality, also known as the Type A Behavior Pattern, is a set of characteristics that includes being impatient, excessively time-conscious, insecure about one's status, highly competitive, hostile and aggressive, and incapable of relaxation. Type A individuals are often high-achieving workaholics who multi-task, drive themselves with deadlines, and are unhappy about the smallest of delays."
Okey Dokey then...
Sounds like RE sales people to me :)
TLW...ROAR!
Don't look at me like that...
I get points for this CRAP :)
TLW...ROAR!
Rich, I think you have found what makes us agents tick. Just throw a bit of competition in and watch us go? thanks!
Audrey
bribessolicitations....Thanks for the reminder. inviting people is definately an effective way to get points and hopefully get referrals, etc. However it is more important to invite folks you believe will participate rather than folks who wont. All the ones I have invited, if they hace accepted, have not been active on the site and really do not know the information that they are missing out on.
thanks for the tips
Best of luck in 2008
Oh...
I have an idea...
Who wants to buy Blog Boy...He's on sale :)
After the deal closes I get his points...Right? :)
TLW...ROAR!
Just so you all know,....I've invited 103 people and 24 have signed on, but only a handful are currently active.
My real 'point' here is not so much to place an emphasis on earning points, but encourage you to 'Invite Others' to join our community. Points are nice, but it's the connection we all share that is worth telling others about!....
Doggone it Rich, you mean there is something here besides points!
Virginia, The day that I ran from our home office onto our porch where my hubby was sitting quietly talking on the phone to his brother and I was yelling my head off he finally understood why I do what I do. My website had moved from about #35 to #1 on a google search. It has stayed there consistently from that time. That was only weeks after I began blogging, commenting and INVITING here in the Rain. Hum, can I sell this experience? Yeah, I think so.
Rich,
True, true and true. That is why you need to watch some of the people you pass on the way up, because if they have large numbers of invitees and they every wake up it could be a 4th quarter comeback.
We happened to placed 2 in invitees for January 2008 http://activerain.com/action/nav/top_referrers?year=2008&month=01
add a
Click to Join The
graphic or a link to you website or another blog
My last person who joined Active Rain that I got credit for inviting I believe used the graphic like the above on one of my blogs. He had left nasty comments on both of my other blogs ..the next thing I see he's joined using my link. He's an inspector from another part of the state. He is opposed to licensing of home inspectors in Ohio. His comments were really pretty rude. He's posted on ActiveRain a few times.
I snagged Teri Lussier with a link in a blog post on my other blog.
* Point of View
* Point of Departure
* Point of Honor
* Point Accumulation
* Point System
* Point Blank
* Beside the Point
* To the Point
* Point of No Return
* Pointless
May I have my Points, please?
Rich, I need to get better at this. I've tried and came up wanting.
Bill Roberts
Rich,
Referring is a given for me, I do that anyway. But I want points too and although you don't care, I really have never felt more cheated out of my hard work anywhere in all of my life. This "Rev Limiter" concept is unfair, you cannot deny that. Those with top points, achieved them under different rules, than the new people obviously. Folks with cheapo posts are getting 200 pts for them, that is absurd, considering others who post excellent posts of 200 to 1500 words with pictures, deep thought and valuable information worthy of ActiveRain. If the system rewards underachievement, half-ass effort, protectionism of status quo, then that system will get exactly that, and thus the way it will grow.
But you know what, to the credit of the "System" and platform, other than that one issue with ActiveRain, I like all the other aspects just fine, the point system, must be revised, to for ActiveRain to achieve all the goals it has set out for. Sincerely
Your Friend,
Buckwheat!
Don Rich - We've only invited a few, and so far have little activity from that. Saw a piece earlier that had crabs in it. In Beaufort, SC. Looked at it right away to see if you caught it, but not. But if she would have just written "sushi."
Working on a new "Buyers Report" that BB inspired in one of his posts the other day. Hope you are well.
best
Lance - I just created a new group just for you....."Whining for Points"...make sure you go join. I'll even let you moderate!...
Did someone say "Sushi?"
I joined the group just to keep you company.... don't have anything to put in it ...yet.
oops...an anonymous commenter...
Great Post.... Inviting others Really does work ! I have got a couple that have boosted my score as well.
DARN IT!!!! I was checking to make sure I didn't mess anything up when I made the point change and I wasn't logged in as me
What I meant to say........not ARDELL, was
I hope you marked your little notify me of comments box on this post and you get a chance to read this...........
There are lots of little tools that Matt and the boys have given us here that I rarely take a look at until I am inspired by something Rich (or Paul Slaybaugh.....this guy has some kind of spell over me, but I just love humor and he is my kind of comic.......sorry, I got off topic) does and so I head off to look for something Matt showed me a long time ago. I never really know if it's going to be there on the little panel of tricks the programmers have developed for us. As I search for it, I sometimes feel like maybe I dreamed it up and that feature isn't actually available to me.........but then I find it.........
I can adjust the points level for certain things. So in honor of this post, and as a thank you for reading it and commenting............
FOR THE NEXT WEEK, YOU WILL GET 250 POINTS FOR EVERYONE THAT ACCEPTS YOUR INVITATION TO AR INSTEAD OF THE NORMAL 50
As I was reading Rich's post, 50 points didn't seem like enough. I'll move it back to 50 next friday or saturday.......I don't know when exactly. But when I move it back, it's back........so don't go sending me any emails saying you missed the deadline, can you just get that extra 200 points.........:)
I'm not announcing it..........so if you read this, tell your friends, and tell them to tell their friends :)
Have a great weekend everyone!!
I noticed a few people say they had invited someone and never got points for them.........we can fix that for you. All you need to do is contact us and let us know.
I must warn you that if the person you are attempting to claim is a big point earner already, I may verify with them before we credit you, because you will get that 10% bonus retroactively.
Monika,
You made a comment about not making a big deal out of the invite points...........I think Rich is trying to let the newer people know that while it may seem daunting to look up from having 8000 points and see the person in first in your state with 130,000, there are opportunities for you to contribute to making a more healthy and vibrant network in addition to contributing content. There are a lot of members of ActiveRain that do not make contributions but instead spend a lot of time here just reading and learning. I think that giving everyone the chance to be involved here is a worthwhile thing to shoot for. Whether they choose to get engaged or not is not the fault of the person who invites them.........
Rich,
I swear I have not been drinking.........but now that I have pretty much butchered the end of this post.......I am leaving it alone now :)
Go invite people or don't......the 250 point off is still there :P
I didn't see that... or did I?
What does a person have to do to get unsubscribed around here? I thought I clicked that things 4 times already! sheesh
Can I invite the same people over and over? Or, How about create non-existant people without pictures, then invite them and have each one blog the same exact Blog or just copy some real estate report(s) that are sent out to the world and use this as their blog. Wow. Points.
Hey, 25 points is 25 points. Now, let me see how many I have and how many I need. I like the idea of 250 points.
aj
Rich,
Thank you for making a group just for me! Wow, the ActiveRain Gods are sure considerate of us Power Blogger Sharks, who like Yellow Tail. I'll be sure to post any of my comments on the ActiveRain Point System there. Oh and that WSJ article I am working on with a friend on Social Networking Sites. Thanks again for your "loving feeling" and true care of us ActiveRain Bloggers. Its so nice to know that you truly care so much. Lance
Rich,
I wish to thank you for making this Special Group for me, I think I would please like to have a picture like this there:
Because the reason for this comment is about one thing, JUSTICE, especially for the newbies. Indeed, the Future Modification of the Point System, that will be instituted here at ActiveRain will assist in decreasing attrition rates of those people who come and set up profiles and then fail to continue their blogging endeavors or participation. The crying baby might insult some members who wish to work on this project with me, to improve the system, and it must be perfect for efficiency, functionality and for the humans that use it.
After all, why invite new people, when those already members are not properly participating. I am confident our group will come up with the perfect solution, thus, I believe respect is important for this group. This Group Name should be changed to:
Improving Active Rain Point System!
I believe it is essential to take this very seriously, as to be fair for all concerned, failure to address this issue might cause a future divide, yet fixing this minor issue now, could in fact put new vigor into participation, I am confident of that.
Rich - Enjoyed reading the post, as well as the comments (there are a lot of comedians on AR!).
I agree with those who say the key to getting people to accept your AR invitation is to explain the benefits.
Bob...I understand what you're saying BUT I think there needs to be a better system in place.
I don't think it looks good for a "top" blogger point wise, to have gained those points simply by inviting people and posting pictures.
When the consumer clicks on that blogger's Blog and doesn't see any posts...what value does he get and how does that make us look?
Maybe increase the points for Blog posts...everyone says content is king...right?
Monika said " Maybe increase the points for Blog posts...everyone says content is king...right? "
but then how to do you the cr*ppy content out Monika? The bloggers who just post an ad about themselves rather than content for consumers... then repost the same thing over and over? Increase points on all posts and AR gets spammier.
More points for local content is something for AR to consider, when they reintroduce Localism... of course that is what is spammed...
Didn't AR say there was going to be a "Digg" like system developed for rating posts at some point, something that can not be gamed the way the old rating system was? Still on the horizon?
Good photos have value... good photos are content. Problem is people used photos to game the system... some people are not writers but are great photographers... Good photos have value and some people are not comfortable writing. If someone had great photos and posted them in my market I certainly would not begrudge them the points.
Basically there is a way to game the system with most of the things that points are awarded for on AR. There is for inviting (someone spelled it out above... or part of it, the inviting the same people over and over is not going to get you any points, unless they'd join over and over and if they are real people that is not going to happen or you will see it looking at an area.)
Really though there is not a way to game inviting people who actually participate and add quality content (to read or look at.)
Rich
You are so right but many people don't even open the invitation..........they deleted it!!! And still there is a lot of selfish realtors that don't want to share......they are afraid of competence.
Thanks agood post,
Gracious Rich...
I thought that was meant in jest...But...Then I thought I must have missed something :)
I went ahead and joined just to see how things unfold :)
TLW...ROAR!
Maureen McCabe says: "Really though there is not a way to game inviting people who actually participate and add quality content (to read or look at.)"
Ya gotta love this lady!
Invute points are great...IF the person whoi joins is actively blogging....
I have invited a LOT of people... 4 joined and ONE is actively posting blogs....
I will UP my invites.....
We will see what happens....
250 points is a NICE incentive!!
=-)
LOL Sardi...
I have tried giving them away before...Then they made a rule that I couldn't do that.
Matt said something along the lines of it creating problems.
He also said he'd be more than happy to zero any of us upon request :)
TLW...ROAR!
Gracious Rich...
That was a wonderful answer to that question.
And just happens to be totally true...
"Success is at it's best when bring other's along with you"...
I am quoting myself :)
TLW...ROAR!
I've invited a couple of people. I guess I should invite more. Thanks for the fun post!
Rich, I see that you haven't received any comments on this post for a while so I thought that I'd give you one, and get some points of course... Mike
I sent an invitation to join ActiveRain about 2 weeks ago
on a real estate forum and have gottan 8 acceptances so far....
I am encouraging them by e-mail to post regularly and network with others
so they will benefit from ARs page rank and extensive knowledge
base and other features!!
I have gotten over 1700 extra points for these people joining AR!!
AWESOME!!
Very interesting... I will definately give it a try since I am new to AR. I like the fact that there are different ways to accrue points, and that the more people input on AR, the more potential points you may receive because you invited them to join.
One of these days, I will write my own blog.
Hi Rich,
I think you are so funny, I am sure your clients love you, I would!!! Take care, I'm off to invite more to AR... I am in love with this Website!!!
Shelly Q
I could not agree more
Thank you for the post
Invitee number 73 today... she spammed me, my office? the whole company? Hopefully she will be a good citizen here and use social media rather than spamming to get her message to her target market real estate agents.
73 accepted. I've invited a lot more....
In the invite I said something about the unsolicited email. I have invited others who have spammed me, even warned one lender who joined NOT to spam on AR...
thanks for the info
thanks for the info..by the way i was searching the AR blogs and inside one I found a few very interesting blogs linked to that blog. I went to each of the blogs that interested me and responded to each in the comments section, but alas no points fo rthe comments. This has happened to me before. Do you know why this happens? (Iwas logged in).
Rich, I really am not sure what the whole purpose of the points are...
My first blog became a featured post.. thanks! It really does make you feel "special!" And encourage you to blog more!
Well, having a large network of realtors involved can't be a bad thing. Best of luck in growning your real estate business.
Carole Lhuillier
Our Home Team
Keller Williams Realty
Is it in the true spirit of AR that someone should be awarded this number of points just because they invited a lot of people to join?? I thought we were supposed to be sharing knowledge, experience, etc. for the good of all?
Oh, well....
Good luck to you!
I too have invited people to join... got credit for one and not the other,I contacted AR about it, I never got the points. Maybe this will seem like a selfish question..but... why would I invite an agent in my office or in the community where I live. Isn't it competitive enough for agents? We are handing them an open invitation . for a stronger position against us. It's like handing over your customers.
Five people in my city were in AR, long before I was. I accidently stubbled of AR, but was never told about AR from any of the five. They are great agents and we all work together as friends, but I can understand, why AR was a secret. What has happened. I am close to 27,000 points in 2 months and have the 1 position in area the 2 spot is held by an agent that was in AR long before I was.and has 5000 pts I came in last but gain on him. If he would have invited me would't there be a little hostility there?
Sorry this is so long should a been a post Thanks for your post...love the way you present topics in your post. Thanks btw I have invited 7 people 2 joined and only added a profile, the rest didn't bother.
So the scret is to find another chatty cathy like myself and invite her to active rain...gotcha ya.
Rich,
It is simple and the best part....everyone in AR benefits too.....by adding the new member's we get the advantage of their knowledge and experience's.....what a great site.
Enjoy the holiday my friend.
I have invited several people, however most of them put up their profile and that's that. And while, sure I like the points, I really thought they'd be great additions to the community.
Anybody have suggestions or tips on how to get them to 'get' the value of participation or encourage them?
Thanks!
50 bonus points and a percentage of their points from there on out? Had no clue! Thanks for sharing!
As a Southern girl, I understand the beauty of Hospitality and will jump right on this "Invitation Thing"! thanks for ALL you do to help us, newbies out.
One has tried that as well Joseph, with more or less the same results ;^(.
Rich, how much do a half dozen stray cats give (points wise).
Thanks in advance.
That right
Thanks for clearing up the "points" issue. I was wondering what the secret was to accumulating so many! I'm going to get busy inviting!!
I have invited two colleagues to join but they have not yet taken the time to discover AR. I am sure once they get on to AR, create their profile and start reading the posts, they too will want to join in the action and blog on AR. Points or no points, the important is to gain a better online presence, to share knowledge with those in our industry, to better ourselves as individuals and to have fun doing it.
I hear ya! I invited several people, none of which joined. I can't rack up invite points for nothing!
Yes, must say that aspect is inspirational to roll out the red carpet and invite everyone you can think of! Keep hoping I invite a few that get active - so I can get a bigger bonus! :)
ok ok, 25 free points ... thanks ... my clients would also expect me to pick up the easy free stuff ... then work hard for the big prizes. what a nice long thread of comments.
Rich, I like the reference to the Type A personality. I think that is a prerequisite for being a real estate agent. So far it has been pretty easy to climb the ranks in Iowa, not very many other agents have caught. I just figure I am way ahead of the game when they do.
The point system is awesome, but I think it is time to get creative with new ways to earn points. In the hayday when AR was free to set up a blog I think it was probably much easier to invite people with some success. Any other tips on some of these bonus points and linking points?
Bruce & Sandy: I still think that one of the most effective ways of garnering points is inviting other to the Rain. On your 'My Home' page on the lower left column is a link 'Invite Others.' If you click on that, you'll find a link similar to this:
http://activerain.com/action/referrals/rich
Whenever you invite someone to the Rain, take the time to sit down with them and actually help them log on with this link. Then, help them with the 5 minutes it takes to set-up a basic profile.
This ensures that you get credit for inviting them, and they'll appreciate you taking the time to help them get started!
I've invited two members passively since the membership changes. I don't think the changes are going to kill invites.
Something creative (to earn points) to get people involved in ActiveRain is always fun!!!!!
Thank you Rich for all the knowledge I am gleaning from you as a newbie. Your tips are walking me through this in an easy to understand way (and helping me figure out this point thing along the way)
Kim: It thrills me to know that someone is deriving value/benefit from something I've written. Thanks! Feel free to shoot me an email if you ever get stuck or need some help!