For the seventh consecutive year, real estate professionals gathered in Jacksonville to help each other learn industry tips and tricks.
The Jan. 11 event, ReBarCamp Jax, was an opportunity that one of its co-founders called a “one-day safe zone to share all your secrets.”
But it was more than that.
The function gave Realtors the opportunity to discuss topics of interest and interact with their peers in a workshop setting with sessions that aren’t decided in advance.
As they arrived at the University of North Florida Adam W. Herbert University Center, attendees were given sticky notes to write down what they wanted to learn.
Those ideas were posted on a large board and the event’s facilitators, who volunteered their time, taught classes based on those suggestions.
The topics ranged from “how to deal with multiple listings” to “how to not be a social media goofball.”
In addition to the 45 classes that were offered, the event began with a keynote presentation by Alexis Bolin, a Pensacola-based real estate broker who, among other honors, was added to the Real Estate Experts Hall of Fame in 2013.
Using humor, Bolin asked the 900 real estate professionals in attendance what is the best four-letter word and “F-word” in real estate.
After some interesting responses, she said those words are “next” and “flexible” because Realtors should be anxious to start working on the next sale and if they are not flexible and able to take on lots of deals at the same time, another Realtor will take their place immediately.
“Don’t be afraid to make (clients) laugh,” Bolin said, adding that Realtors also should not be afraid to be honest with their customers about the 6 percent commission, particularly since only 1.5 percent goes to the listing agent.
Kim Knapp, one of the ReBarCamp Jax co-founders, said the next event probably will be moved to a larger venue because of its popularity. The 900 free tickets were snatched up in about an hour, she said.
She said the organizers also are considering charging an event fee, likely less than $20, to cover the costs of renting a bigger space.
The origin of the event and name came after a group of professionals went to a bar after attending a standard conference in San Francisco, saying that they didn’t learn what they really wanted to and decided to discuss those topics over a few drinks.
“BarCamp” was born and several industries have made it their own, including real estate, hence the addition of the “r” and “e” in the event title
