Bloggers Connect has been a popular component of Inman Real Estate Connect for a few years now.  For every new edition of Bloggers Connect, attendees have learned more about blogging and social media.  But just because the event has been successful doesn't mean that it can't be better.

That is why, this year at Bloggers Connect NYC '09, attendees will have a completely new experience.  The program has been reformatted to include more intense information sharing and to include more time for interaction and Q&A.  That is just part of the big changes. . .

This year, for the first time ever, we are conducting a LIVE BLOG MAKEOVER.  That's right, one lucky blogger will have an opportunity to have their blog completely made over, improved, and tricked out using the input of the expert presenters and attendees at Blogger Connect.  Leading the way will be expert blog builder Jim Cronin, who will be providing the winner with their new-and-improved blog courtesy of the Real Estate Tomato. 

Here's how it works:

1) Submit your blog for a makeover. To do that, simply leave a comment in the Inman Community Blog Makeover Contest Group. In your submission, make sure that you give the URL for your blog.  Most importantly tell us why you think your blog deserves a makeover. Any type of submission is fine, you can write the whole thing out, make a video and link to it, be as creative as you want. The more creative, the better. This isn't a random drawing, so keep in mind that the quality of your submission matters.

2) We will collect submissions from THE COMMUNITY GROUP ONLY through December 14, 2008.

3) We will then select one winner, who will be announced on December 17, 2008.

4) The winner will receive a full conference registration to Inman Connect NYC '09. (winner to cover his/her own travel expenses)

5) During Bloggers Connect, the winner's blog will be discussed by all the attendees and presenters, who will offer their insight, input, and expertise as to how to create the most effective blog.

6) Using the input from Bloggers Connect, the winner will work with Jim Cronin and his team at The Real Estate Tomato to build a completely transformed blog.

7) We'll follow up with the winner and with Jim periodically afterwards to see how the blog makeover has affected the winner.

If you have any questions, you can leave a comment here, or send me an email:  Daniel.Rothamel@Inman.com

So, what are you waiting for? If you have always wanted to do something new with your blog, but never thought you had the time or resources, now is your chance! Make your submission here, and who knows, maybe we'll see you on stage at Bloggers Connect getting your very own blog makeover!

Courtesy of Youtube user firecatgreg. 

A thought-provoking (and depressing) summary from The Boston Globe:

The lines wouldn't be outside soup kitchens but at emergency rooms, and rather than itinerant farmers we could see waves of laid-off office workers leaving homes to foreclosure and heading for areas of the country where there's more work - or just a relative with a free room over the garage. Already hollowed-out manufacturing cities could be all but deserted, and suburban neighborhoods left checkerboarded, with abandoned houses next to overcrowded ones.

What's your take? Are we heading towards a Depression next year?

I spent last week at the 2008 NAR Convention and Expo in Orlando.  It was a rewarding experience, and a lot of fun, too.  One of the cool things that I got to do was meet Tom Everitt.  Tom is a REALTOR in Vancouver.  He sent me an email prior to the convention, sharing with me some of the cool video stuff he has been doing with his wife on his website, ThinkTom.com.  He asked if I would sit down for lunch with him at the convention.  I'm glad I did. 

Tom and I talked about all things real estate, and even a few things Canada (hockey, in particular).  We talked about video and the upcoming digital video summit at Inman Connect NYC '09.  Tom has been successfully using video for quite some time now.  After lunch, he asked if I wouldn't mind doing a quick interview.  I was happy to do it, and he sent me the link:

Tom is a great guy, and a dedicated real estate professional, making him a perfect fit in the Inman Community.  This got me to thinking, what do Stephen Jagger, Ian Watt, and Tom Everitt all have in common?  Not only are they using video, and not only are both Stephen and Ian going to be speaking at Connect NYC '09, but all three men are CANADIANS!  

I don't want to start an international incident here, but I think some friendly border competition is in order.  Our friends from up north have made it known that they are on the cutting edge of real estate technology and that they are going to be well represented at Connect NYC '09.  

What say you, pride of the Stars and Stripes?  When will we hear from the American contingent?

Share your videos, share your expereinces, and tell us why YOU are excited to be at Real Estate Connect NYC '09, among the top real estate professionals from around the world.  Make a video, and just email me the link:  daniel.rothamel@Inman.com  I always love when I have the opportunity to promote our members to the world.  

If you haven't registered yet for Connect NYC '09, now is a great time.  There is still time to save on the registration fee.  If you are a real estate blogger, there is even very special Blogger Pricing available.  

I think we all know Real Estate is in uncharted territory. Everyone is looking for answers and now, more than ever, we want to help unravel the mess. 

Inman News is excited to introduce Robert Shiller, Co-founder of MacroMarkets LLC, Co-creator of the Case-Shiller Home Price Indices, and Professor of Economics, Yale University, as one of our keynote speakers at Real Estate Connect in NYC where he will be addressing: How Today's Global Financial Crisis Happened, and What to Do About It.

He predicted the dot-com bubble and the housing bubble years before it happened. More importantly, Robert knows why it happened—no one understands market volatility and the psychology that drives market swings better.  

If you want answers, join us at Real Estate Connect in NYC, January 7-9, 2009.  This is one event you can't afford to miss! Register today and you'll save $170.

Down in Pinellas County, Fla., last month's transition to TEMPO 5 MLS system "was one of the smoothest I’ve experienced in more than 20 years."

So says the director of information services for the Pinellas Realtor Organization and Suncoast MLS in a press release issued by TEMPO 5 vendor MarketLinx (see Inman News story).

Many Inman News readers will recall San Diego-based broker-owner and Inman News columnist Kris Berg's take when Sandicor upgraded to Tempo 5 over the summer.

TEMPO 5, she complained, seemed to have been developed by "a rabid badger holding a doctorate in quantum physics and a grudge."

Now Pinellas Realtor Organization's chairman of the board reports (via MarketLinx) that TEMPO 5 business reports are "amazingly fast" and listing maintenance is "extremely efficient."

Pinellas County broker and Inman News member Anne Hensel begs to differ.

"Sorry, I am NOT impressed at all," with TEMPO 5, she comments. "It is Soooooooo slow and it takes twice as many clicks than it used to take to get a result."

Buyers are unhappy too, Hensel says.

"If I send them 5 listings, only one shows up and they have to click at the bottom somewhere on the right hand corner to get to the next listing," she reports.

Hensel says the only feature of TEMPO 5 she likes is the map search.

You know how the song goes:

"I've got to admit it's getting better, better

A little better all the time, it can't get no worse"

Pretty excited:

Ian is a Realtor in Canada, and he is a dedicated video blogger.  I've been an admirer of Ian's videos for quite some time, and I'm looking forward to meeting him in person at Connect NYC '09.  Ian is part of the fabulous lineup of speakers and panels we have for Connect.  Register today, and say hello to Ian when you're there!

Move Inc.'s makeover of Realtor.com has created a buzz -- our coverage of the rollout of a redesign that's been through months of testing was the most widely read story on the Inman News site this week -- but apparently little enthusiasm.

Judging by reader comments on the story, many Realtors remain unconvinced that their interests are aligned with Move Inc.'s, and question whether Realtor.com (the official site of the National Association of Realtors) works for them.

A comment from Charlottesville, Va. Realtor and blogger Jim Duncan sums up the mood:

"It's time to reclaim [Realtor.com] and give the Realtors access to the data and information rather than keep selling it back to the Realtors themselves - the ones who generate that which gives [the site] the advantage it currently holds."

Phoenix-based Realtor Russell Shaw has created a Web page with links to posts around the 'Net dedicated, he says, to reclaiming Realtor.com for Realtors.

"When it comes to residential real estate it is still the most recognized and most respected name in the world," he says of the Web's most visited real estate site. "I want the National Association of REALTORS to fully reclaim REALTOR.com. Take it back and make it a member benefit."

One of the links on Shaw's site is to a post by ActiveRain Corp. co-founder Jonathan Washburn, "NAR: It's time to make a move on Move."

In short, Washburn -- who also runs his own brokerage, Brio Realty -- says NAR should just buy Move Inc., because it will be hard to get out of the agreement it made with the company to operate Realtor.com, and Move's stock price has fallen to the point where it's within reach of NAR.

Practical? Necessary? Tell us what you think.

The Inman Special Report, "25 Most Influential Bloggers: 2008," is now available exclusively to Inman News Premium Members as a PDF download! 

 If you're not a Premium Member, now would be a great time to join.  Once you become a Premium Member, you'll not only get access to this special report, but all of the Inman News special reports, premium content, and special features.  

The 2008 edition of the Inman News Special Report, "25 Most Influential Bloggers," will be released tomorrow.  What can you expect from the special report?  Here's a glimpse from the introduction:

"There is a busy field of bloggers in the real estate industry, and some clear standouts that have built a loyal following. This annual list of most influential real estate bloggers recognizes those bloggers who are well-known, well-read and have a knack for stirring up discussion and debate on important, timely and relevant topics for the industry. In addition to this list of 25 bloggers, we provide a handful of notables who are also stirring up the blogosphere."

And that's not all.  The report also names 10 of the most influential blogs that focus on economic and financial issues, along with 10 of the best international real estate blogs.  If you want to know who the movers and shakers are in the real estate blogosphere, this is where you can find them! 

This special report will be available exclusively to Inman News Premium Members as a PDF download.  If you're not a Premium Member, now would be a great time to join.  Once you become a Premium Member, you'll not only get access to this special report, but all of the Inman News special reports, premium content, and special features.