September 05, 2013
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Around this time last year, I walked into our DC building with wide eyes, taking on a whole new role at an association that the prior week I belonged to as a member. I was pretty engaged with the organization while I was a REALTOR in northern Virginia…I volunteered on several committees, attended both our Midyear and Annual meetings, and paid close attention to the information flowing from the association that helped both my business and my clients. I’d been to visit the Chicago office before, and I knew more than a few staffers very well.
Stepping into the (newly created) role of Director of Social Business Practice was exciting, if not intimidating. There was no road map for me to follow, no one to show me the ropes, because there wasn’t anyone in this type of role before me. Like jumping directly into the deep end of the pool, I had to figure out how the organization worked, and how I could become a productive member of the team. Good thing I know how to swim, a little. And there were plenty of staffers willing to help me figure things out. I know it took a full six months before I felt like I was starting to get my arms around it all.
Without delving too much into the weeds of what I do here, it’s my job to help our many different departments use social channels to connect with our members; we are listening to what they need to be able to provide better service to them as an association, and we are working to help spread the word about the resources available to our million REALTOR members. Every day, the association shares a tremendous amount of information, hosts events, and creates content to help our members run successful real estate businesses.
Looking back, as a member I really didn’t understand how many moving parts there are at the Association. How many staffers are working diligently behind the scenes, and how very much they care about the members. Also, I didn’t realize how much the staff had created to help my business…whether it was articles full of relevant information, educational sessions, or lists of resources at my disposal. Hopefully, with my ability to shine a light on these things, our members that keep up with our social channels will be able to use all of these tools.
The great thing about my role here is that I have an opportunity to learn every day…from other staffers as well as from our members. It’s amazing to see how many members respond when we ask what they are working on in their businesses. Or ask how the market is going for them. As a staffer, I don’t ever want to lose the perspective of what the ‘boots on the street’ agent is working on every day, so I’m going to keep asking to stay connected to that. And when the @REALTORS twitter account posts "Good morning, world," that’s me. So don’t be shy, please say hello and let me know how I can help.
I’m going to keep posting about my experiences as I help us work toward being a more social business, across the organization. If you’d like to follow along as we grow and learn, you can follow us on twitter or keep up via our Facebook page.
Cheers,
Heather
Posted by:Heather Elias
