Recently I was the keynote speaker for the Middle Tennessee Realtors convention hosted by the Greater Nashville Association of Realtors (GNAR.) Not only was I impressed by the people I met, but never before had I seen an association go to so much trouble to generate publicity for their event and for me.

The association CEO Don Klein saw to it that all the local media knew I was there and that I was an expert on housing and was willing to comment on Nashville's housing trends. It didn't hurt that my book "Bubbles, Booms, and Busts " made me an attractive pundit to discuss rising and falling markets.

That day, I was squired to interviews with the local television station , newspaper and business journal, as well as CNN. Terrific publicity was generated for the conference and for Realtors in general, as well as for Realty Times and me.

It was the industry's opportunity to provide some positive news about the housing market.

Like a lot of beautiful and under-valued inland cities, Nashville is a gem that offers the best of both worlds -- rural beauty and city excitement.

I told the press I saw nothing but upside growth for the area. Not only is the city the home of country music, giving tourists plenty of reason to come, it's also growing as an important business center. Thanks to a shot in the arm from Nissan which chose the area to build a major plant, housing is booming. Homebuyers have lots of choices, from revitalized downtown lofts to sprawling farms just outside city limits.

Nashville has had a quick growth spurt, and some housing inventory is languishing as buyers weigh the national news and its impact on their area. That has some worried, but a little patience is all that's needed. It's pretty hard to make available the exact number of housing units needed at a given time and place. And buyers are fickle. One neighborhood can be hot one minute and cold the next, as they flock where they believe the grass is greener.

I was impressed that the GNAR accomplished something very smart by publicizing their event and drawing attention to their keynote speaker -- they reminded the media of who the real estate experts really are.

No one can tell the story of real estate better than the local agents. They know the answers to questions like, "What's happening? How are people being affected? What are the latest ideas and solutions to problems consumers may be having?"

Edward Segal CEO of the Marin Association of Realtors and author of Profit by Publicity, Universe Press says, "News organizations are storytellers. You must be your own storyteller."

More importantly, "If you don't tell your story, someone else will," says Bob Hale, CEO of the Houston Association of Realtors.

There are many reasons why the Nashville media may have responded to Klein. Maybe they respect what he and the members have to say about real estate. Or, it could have been a slow news day. But whatever the reason, for that day, Realtors got to tell their story.