Dear Mr. Internet,

I'm hearing more and more about the advantages of using Virtual Assistants for my business. Where would I look to find one that really knows the real estate industry so I don't have to spend a lot of time with training?

Lynda Baker
Coldwell Banker Gundaker
St. Louis, Missouri

Dear Lynda,

There are literally thousands of Virtual Assistants from around the world who are making a huge difference for business people in every industry imaginable. There are times however, when you need a VA who really understands the nuances of your business and specializes in assisting REALTORS®. When you hire a real estate specialist VA, they are typically up and running in no time with little or no training required on your part. 

Up until recently, there was no easy way to find VAs who specialize in just serving the real estate industry. Now there is a rapidly growing community of real estate virtual assistants, one that you can be part of as well...

Networked Real Estate Support

REVA Network is an online community of Virtual Assistants who specialize in supporting real estate professionals and REALTORS® who are interested in using their services. It was founded by myself and 6 real estate Virtual Assistants for the purpose of expanding the awareness and benefits of REALTORS® using VAs to grow and manage their business. There are three specific groups that make up the REVA Network community:

1. PREVAs (Professional Real Estate Virtual Assistants) - these are VAs who specialize in assisting REALTORS® and have at least 6 months experience doing so. It should be noted that PREVAs often have subspecialties such as online transaction management, CMA and custom listing presentations, listings management, e-mail and Web marketing, etc.;

2. REVAs (Real Estate Virtual Assistants) - these members are VAs who want to specialize in the real estate industry but have yet to fulfill the experience requirements necessary to become a PREVA. Typically, REVAs are mentored and trained by PREVAs as they help them with their overflow work;

3. REALTORS® - real estate professionals who either are currently using a VA or are exploring that possibility

To take advantage of all the benefits that REVA Network has to offer, you must become a member (there is no cost). You can join at any time by simply going to the REVA Network Web site and clicking any of the "Join" links.  As a member, you will have access to the following benefits:

• E-mail Discussion List - where you can "lurk" or better yet, participate in discussions between real estate specialist VAs and REALTORS®. This is a great forum to ask any kind of question (e.g. "How do you create CMAs for sales associates that live thousands of miles away?"), and even do it anonymously. It is especially helpful for those REALTORS® who haven't started using a VA yet and want to know more about the details and mechanics of working with one;

• VA Profiles - where you can look for PREVAs that specialize in certain aspects of your business (i.e. transaction management, drip e-mail marketing, REALTOR.com® listings enhancement, etc.)  This is a quick way to find that VA who is just right for your operations;

• Web Discovery Sessions - live, online tutorials on how certain aspects of your business can be handled effectively and powerfully by highly trained PREVAs. For example, a recent one used real-time Web screen sharing and teleconferencing systems to demonstrate how VAs can create compelling CMAs even though they may live thousands of miles away from your market area (my speaking audiences always wonder about that one!). It was an awesome session delivered by a PREVA, moderated by me, and allowed direct interaction with participating REALTORS®;

• Resources - a listing of tools and other resources to help you with your business and work more effectively with your VA.

  The use of highly specialized Virtual Assistants within the real estate industry is literally exploding because of the massive benefits realized by those professionals that use them. And now thanks to REVA Network, you have only one place to go to find that VA of your dreams!

Article Resources REVA Network - a community of highly specialized real estate Virtual Assistants and the REALTORS® who either are or would like to use them.

Published: May 20, 2003

Use of this article without permission is a violation of federal copyright laws.

Michael J. Russer (a.k.a. Mr. Internet®) is an internationally acclaimed speaker, trainer, author, and strategic consultant to the real estate industry and small business. He is also the exclusive Internet columnist for REALTOR® Magazine, the architect of the revolutionary e-ProductivityTM system and leading voice for the use of Virtual Assistants in small business. You can subscribe to his free monthly leading-edge newsletter ePOWER NEWS by going to ePowerNews.com.