Old News Never Goes Away on the Internet

My friend, Jim Walberg, called the other day to ask me a question about Google and search engines. (I used to own an Internet Marketing & Promotion business that specialized in SEO – Search Engine Optimization)

Jim’s concern was about an article that appeared in the East Bay Business Times back in February of 2006. The article (my opinion) challenges Jim’s integrity over an issue that is common practice in most brokerages – supporting your fellow agents by attending their open houses.

The current situation is that some of the East Bay Business Times’ content seems to have refreshed in the search engines. This has resulted in the Feb. ’06 article moving back into a high ranking position, bringing attention back to an issue that was never addressed in a responsible manner by the East Bay Business Times (my opinion).

Jim wanted to know what he could do about this situation. I told him that getting the article removed from the East Bay Business Times archive would be impossible and consequently getting it removed from Google’s index would be impossible as well. The best thing to do would be to explain your side of the situation – this is a great opportunity for the public to get to know you better and see you as many, many people in the East Bay and the real estate industry do.

So, The Harper Team decided to give Jim Walberg some space on our blog to do so since we outrank the East Bay Business Times on Google when it comes to Jim Walberg.

The Impact of Responsible and Irresponsible
Articles Posted on the Internet

John, thank you for your comments on a challenging moment for me relating to an article in the East Bay Business Times in February of 2006.  The article, written by Katherine Conrad was posted without any conversation with me regarding the intent of the email I sent out to my fellow Danville Keller Williams Realty agents.  Also, I never gave the East Bay Business Times permission to print any text from a private email from me to professionals within our Danville office.  Nor, did the Realtor who contacted Katherine Conrad with a copy of my private inter-office email speak with me about my request to have my fellow Keller Williams agents visit her new listing during the Thursday brokers tour for the San Ramon Valley.

Like many “news items,” this one, too, does not supply the reader with much of the context surrounding an event which helps create “a story.” Adding the omitted context to this news item turns this story into just another day at the office which is not very newsworthy.

At the time of this article, I was the Assistant Team Leader in the Keller Williams’ Danville office. Part of my responsibilities involved training new agents on all aspects of becoming real estate professionals. There was some concern at that time by a few of the agents that Keller Williams did not have enough public recognition. One of the ways to build recognition and support fellow agents at the same time is to insure that our agents are actively attending the local Realtor association marketing meetings and touring as many of the new listings on brokers tour as they can.

The intent of the email was to encourage agents to support each other and to emphasize that Keller Williams Realty not only is one of the top brokerages in the East Bay, but they are also the #4 ranked real estate company nationally.  Our team must have done something right because the East Bay Business Times recognized Keller Williams Realty – Danville as “The East Bay’s Real Estate Firm of the Year” in October of 2006. 

I have no problem taking full responsibility for any behavior and actions connected to me.  The most valuable assets I have in business are my reputation and my integrity.  I also know that anything written in an email by me, no matter what the intention of that email was, could be published, in whole or part, worldwide by anyone for any reason. 

It was a confusing moment for me when the East Bay Business Times produced an article that was motivated by a conversation with a Realtor from a different Brokerage who took objection to my email sent to my fellow Danville Keller Williams agents.   Plus, there was no follow-up by the East Bay Business Times to confirm that the information given to them by the Realtor was correct.

When it came to my attention that the article was published, I immediately contacted the Realtor who had motivated the article and left a detailed voice message apologizing for any misunderstanding on her part regarding my intentions.  I never heard back from her.  I also contacted and spoke with Katherine Conrad, the reporter from the East Bay Business Times, to find out why she had not contacted me to get a balanced opinion of this moment that I never dreamed was that important.

What Ms. Conrad created was an ad homeni that had no connection to the intention of my email.  Ms. Conrad apologized to me for rushing the article without the courtesy of checking with me, but said she would not be able to give me any editorial time in the next issue of the East Bay Business Times as she had resigned her position as the Real Estate editor and taken a position with a different news organization.

I guess the point of this comment is that the Internet is an interesting and fascinating place where information never goes away, even if it is irresponsible and incorrect information. All of us using the Internet need to ensure the veracity of what we find published online.  I welcome anyone who has an interest in any aspect of real estate that involves me to contact me for any open discussion.