"When people feel information is being withheld from them, they become even more skeptical and their trust begins to wane." -- Rep. Elijah Cummings, D-Md.
For months he demanded greater transparency from AIG. And for months information regarding who benefited from the $173 billion bailout of the insurance behemoth were withheld. Regulators feared providing too much information to the public would further cripple the financial system.
Well, those fears now appear to be exaggerated.
As more and more bailout disclosures ensue, as information continues to leak across the wire and as transparency now begins to rear its righteous force, it appears to me that the world isn't ending like everyone thought.
Sure things are bad. And they may get worse. But...
The truth will set you free
The Matrix was a film filled with religious, social and philosophical symbolism suggesting we humans were being fed false sensory information by a giant virtual reality computer. Not that much different from the false information the public had been fed for the last decade.
We all sensed something wasn't right. Yet we all bought stock in unsustainable companies. And homes we couldn't afford. Or helped folks buy homes they couldn't afford with bad loans backed by the likes of AIG.
We were a Blue Pill society.
As Neo reaches for the Red Pill, Morpheus warns, "Remember, all I'm offering is the truth. Nothing more."
As the film proved, the truth hurts. But it also sets us free.
Transparency
As the opaque veil of false bliss is ripped off everything around us, truth and rationality stream in. Virtuously. At every turn.
It's painful no doubt. But it leads us to the sort of examined life Socrates envisioned, one created from the positive results that stem from the excellencies of rationality.
The goods of that experience are the greatest and highest goods of all.
A Red Pill of transparency now finds its way across all mediums. As a result we are slowly, painfully, unhooking ourselves from our Matrix. And though we all seem to be somewhat shocked by the realities of the world around us, we are also realizing that the sky is not caving in.
And this is precisely what happens time and time again when the shit hits the fan. People come alive. We thrive on real. And honestly, we haven't felt real in a long time. So despite the troubles, the pain, the loss of equity, the devaluation of our business, the truth is, we are starting to feel alive in a way we haven't for a long time.
And the positive effects ripple ever so slightly.
Red pill
Take one every morning. And strive towards greater transparency. Seek to achieve it across everything you have. Your website. Your business card. Your blog. Your Twitter bio. Your collateral. Your market reports. Your core values.
Socrates was right.
As was Morpheus.
It will set you and those around you free.
- Davison
Twitter: 1000wattmarc



This "office of the future" thing is starting to catch fire
First it was NRT's Manhattan Beach Project. That was circa 2005, a year following a presentation Brian and I gave the folks at NRT about the paperless office.
Then it was Intero's Andare office on Santana Row, which has been getting considerable attention these days.
Last week Inman featured a guest perspective by Matt Dollinger from @properties [disclosure: @properties is a 1000watt Consulting client] that took the notion of a future real estate office to some far-reaching lengths. Given the absolutely stunning nature of their facilities, I can certainly see where he was coming from.
Today Coldwell Banker announced their own take on the office of the future, which offers several of the ideas and appointments taken from the participants at a workshop we moderated with Sherry Chris last summer at Real Estate Connect.
Just now I was sent a link that introduced me to the Dunes Properties website, which includes a microsite built around their office of future.
Man is this hot!
Here's what I like:
The website itself is super clean. It has a Web 2.0 feel to it which I found to be quite elegant and appropriate for real estate. I love the simple navigation that excludes all those typical things most brokerage websites offer that nowadays seem so pointless, such as" Buyer Tips," "Free Reports," etc.
I was excited to find a "Contact Me" page that actually offers a phone number, which strangely enough is not all that common. Many brokerage sites don't publish a phone number anywhere on their site.
Oddly, the site is missing a direct link to search. If you click around long enough you'll find it, but I wonder how many users will put in as much effort as I did searching for it.
Nevertheless, the payoff on this site is the microsite, a "studio tour." What a great idea. And talk about environmental branding -- holy cannoli!
I've quickly logged a host of suggestions that would make this microsite much better, such as including some video, live chat, links to PR, a blog and quite possibly a live cam - things that could bring this place to life.
But here's my bottom line: If I lived in Charleston or decided to move there and needed to source out a brokerage, I'd go with Dunes. This facility creates that much of a wow factor for me. Considering I recently hired an agent to work with me in Austin due to her quick trigger on Twitter, and how nicely this has worked out for us, I trust my gut on this one.
While this website itself might not make our Top 10, and while there are many things I would do to improve the site, this post is more about what some brokerages are doing today to create difference, to spread the seeds of their brand, create impact and build something that brings them into the here and now. And poise themselves for the future.
I know there is considerable focus on the virtual office. But there is still something precious about a terrestrial facility -- if it is done right.I have a feeling we are going to seeing more and more of these as time goes on.
- Davison
Twitter: 100wattmarc
Posted at 04:09 PM in Brokers, Commentary, Website Design | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBack (0)