Posted by Rob FL on January 25, 2001 at 21:12:58:
Use that name and the seller may give you more than you bargained for. LOL
Wow, check out this site. - Posted by Stacy (AZ)
Posted by Stacy (AZ) on January 25, 2001 at 14:14:29:
What’s your opinion?
Is this guy’s site a great one for getting sellers to call? It reminds me of some of Ron Legrand’s marketing ideas. Or, is it so flashy and overbearing that it would scare off sellers? Like a used-car salesman?
http://home.flash.net/~alancash/allcash.html
Stacy
I couldn’t get in. - Posted by Jim Locker
Posted by Jim Locker on January 28, 2001 at 10:45:14:
I browse the net with a fully up-to-date system (except for my lousy connection to the net…I live in the boonies and can’t get DSL or cable).
I also browse with a very high security environment set. So I browse into this strange site (which I have no reason to trust) and suddenly the alerts go off all over the place that this stranger wants to put active content on my machine.
Flash. ActiveX. Java. All things I have disabled in my browser. I denied all of it permission to start, and consequently I couldn’t get in.
So I browsed right on out of there.
There was an ecommerce site, Boo.com, that came and went in a hurry. It is now one of the poster children of the dot com crash. Boo.com wanted to sell you all kinds of things, but in order to look at it you had to permit their cookies, their activeX, their java.
If I decide to buy, I’ll take their cookie. But if they INSIST on giving me a cookie just so I can look…well, I can go on down the street.
Boo.com is gone.
I see no reason to revisit Mr. Cash’s site. If I were a potential customer, he would have lost me.
I’m IMPRESSED!!! - Posted by Rick Wheat
Posted by Rick Wheat on January 27, 2001 at 06:15:02:
I have to admit it, the site definitely gets your attention. Although I’d probably recommend that he replace his heavy “business-like” tone for that of a soft-spoken female, (marketing purposes only, I assure you), he gets his point across well.
I did listen to it on a high speed box, and even though the graphics weren’t the best, the message was there.
As far as WHAT he was saying, this is in all likelihood a “bait and switch” deal where he gets them in with his “ALL CASH”, low discount offers, but then changes to a bit more of a discount before it’s all over. As we all know, CASH NOW is what most of our sellers are looking for, and are usually willing to entertain alternatives when there’s no chance of getting it.
I happen to be helping present a 3-day "Real Estate Internet Bootcamp next month, and I’m surely using this as an example. I’m just not sure as an exmple of WHAT?!?
GOOD LUCK!!!
Rick Wheat
A site designer’s opinion - Posted by Newbie
Posted by Newbie on January 26, 2001 at 07:12:29:
JP is right about Flash. When you design a business web site, you must make it useable for your lowest common denominator end user. Most people have not upgraded their workstations or their browsers to effectively use Flash, so you absolutely MUST provide an alternate version (low graphics - fast loading) that they will be able to use. Even people who have the capability to view Flash many times will choose the non-Flash version of your site becaue they don’t feel like sitting through a commercial - they just want information quickly. I’ve seen some very good use of Flash (check out Nike.com), but this site, imho, is not an example of that.
So much for my professional opinion, now for my personal one - it is too flashy, cheesy, etc… Real estate transactions are legal transactions - often they are the most important transactions in the lives of your clients. I think a site advertising services of this type should be of a more professional theme, conveying your company as a solid, respectable establishment that homeowners can trust with what could be a make-or-break, life altering transaction for them & their family. …getting down off of soap box now…clunk, clunk…thank you.
Newbie
Re: Wow, check out this site. - Posted by Luke Jones
Posted by Luke Jones on January 26, 2001 at 02:27:06:
Kind of cheesy, but I’m sure it is very effective. A very good rating from me. The only thing negative I would say about it is that if he is going to use flash he might as well have hired someone to do some decent graphics for him. It would’ve made it more cutting-edge.
Re: Wow, again…the audio! - Posted by Stacy (AZ)
Posted by Stacy (AZ) on January 25, 2001 at 21:17:29:
When I first found the site, I was on a computer without an audio card. I just went through the site on my home computer and heard the audio. Holy cow, it’s like having a 24/7 TV commercial for the price of a website!
Too bad everyone doesn’t have Flash, as J.P brought-up. This guy is ahead of his time!
Stacy
Did not like some of what he had to say - Posted by Jim IL
Posted by Jim IL on January 25, 2001 at 20:48:05:
Stacy,
The actual layout of the site looked nice, and was something that should get the viewers attention.
But…
I played around with a second website for my company a while back that used “Flash” , and the traffic was not as great as my regular plain site.
I also got a few e-mails from people trying to get into it without flash, so I agree with J.P. below.
I was not particularly thrilled with his slams on other investors and their methods with “Terms”.
Frankly, there are a ton of deals I have done where cash was just not possible due to a high loan balance and where terms was the only way to get the deal done.
And I still made money, performed on my agreements, and am not just another “Seminar tire kicker”.
I can and have bought homes for cash, but at SEVERE discounts, which is not what the majority of sellers are willing to do, at least based on my experience.
So, rather than advertise that I buy for cash, I just advertise that I Buy Houses.
We do not decide “How?” we buy until we talk to the sellers and complete some research on the deal.
I’d sure hate to rule out all the deals I have done without using cash.
Besides, they are my favorite ones to do.
Someday more people will have “Flash” and this may be a way to go with our websites, but for now I’ll stick to a simple site that ANY browser can view without a plugin.
Take care and thanks for sharing,
Jim IL
Re: Wow, check out this site. - Posted by Rob FL
Posted by Rob FL on January 25, 2001 at 20:06:38:
I like the site. Lots of info and very professional. A little flashy, but it definitely gets your attention. Also it is kind of cool that his last name is CASH. Maybe I should change my name too?
Re: Wow, check out this site. - Posted by Randy M
Posted by Randy M on January 25, 2001 at 19:28:38:
Pretty neat. I’m from the school that you have to let people know what you do. Cash has lots of information on the site for those who want to do business with him. I imagine this really helps sort out those who are unable to qualify and who are just kicking tires. I vote OK…
Major Problem… - Posted by J.P. Vaughan
Posted by J.P. Vaughan on January 25, 2001 at 17:44:31:
Most internet users do not have Flash. I don’t use it,
and when I tried the non-flash link, it didn’t work. I
could not enter the site. He’s turning away most of his
visitors, which is a big mistake.
Re: Wow, check out this site. - Posted by Charity
Posted by Charity on January 25, 2001 at 17:25:50:
I actually liked it a lot. I thought it held the viewers attention quite well. It did seem a little salesy, but I don’t think buyers and sellers will forget it!
Charity
Re: Wow, check out this site. - Posted by Charles Steed
Posted by Charles Steed on January 25, 2001 at 17:06:50:
Enjoyed the show but IMO flash is entertainment. When I want information I don’t want to wait til the cartoon is over. When visiting a site with flash or “regular” display I ALWAYS click regular. Just my 2 cents.
Re: Wow, check out this site. - Posted by JPiper
Posted by JPiper on January 25, 2001 at 14:52:50:
I liked the site…of course this comes from a guy with no site at all. Whether it would put sellers off is hard to say, but I thought he did a good job of stressing his strong points…all cash…and some of the weak points undoubtedly with some of his competitors.
I also thought the site would do a good job with buyers. I assume he’s advertising in the paper to drive buyers/sellers to his site.
JPiper
Re: Wow, check out this site. - Posted by Marc in Portland
Posted by Marc in Portland on January 25, 2001 at 14:33:56:
Too strong. I find that most investors who advertise come across like used car salespeople eventually, particularly when their Web sites tend to be very close-lipped about what they’re going to do for the seller and make no effort to explain the process. But, that allows those of us who have a more professional and straight-talking approach to capitalize on them, so I wouldn’t change a thing!
Marc
additionally… - Posted by eric-fl
Posted by eric-fl on January 26, 2001 at 08:48:47:
under his “how much discount” link, he states that AFTER taking into consideration the condition of the house, realtor fees, closing costs, and holding costs until the house sells, you can expect a discount in the 10-20% range. Hmm. How much you wanna bet his presentation goes something like this:
FMV- (100%)MINUS:
7% Realtors commission
3% closing costs
3% holding costs (average 90 days to sell, typical PITI 1% of FMV)
20% discount
Puts us at 67% FMV cash offer. Just about any hard money lender will go to 65% LTV, so he’s coming up with 2% out of pocket on a pristine house “cash” offer. Shoot, I’ll buy houses like that too, all day long. “Terms” might not look so bad after looking at it like this.
Re: Flash is nice…BUT… - Posted by Houserookie
Posted by Houserookie on January 25, 2001 at 22:09:22:
Websites have to be setup for 28.8 modems.
If I were him I would definately invest in a
good domain name instead.
Re: Wow, check out this site. - Posted by Randy M
Posted by Randy M on January 25, 2001 at 20:32:20:
I thought about that too. My wife suggested “Stud Muffin.” Do you think that’s too cheesy? 
LOL
Re: additionally… - Posted by Jim IL
Posted by Jim IL on January 26, 2001 at 08:53:42:
Eric,
My thoughts exactly!
Have a nice day,
Jim IL