Please don't call me an expert, just call me when you want it done.

Please don't call me an expert, just call me when you want it done and hopefully sooner rather than later.

With the slew of certifications and designations flying around out there I think the word "expert" or "specialist" has started to develop a negative connotation with me.

That's not to say they aren't worth obtaining, but it's hard for a consumer to know which is valid.  Sure, their website says they're the Number 1 expert but how is the consumer to differentiate which requires some legitimate training/production and which you can pick up for $59.95 per month?

Don't get me wrong, I'm sure if you read far enough back in my blog posts or combed through my marketing materials the term "expert" or "specialist" would probably surface.  With the onset of the foreclosure and short sale markets, those are two terms that now raise a red flag with me.

So what would I tell a consumer seeking the truth?

I've resorted to telling clients that I don't consider myself either of those.  I'm good at what I do, and I have the experience to back it up.  I've taken the classes and continue to do so.  This is an industry in which you should be a life time student.  I even have some designations you've probably never heard of.

Do they count for anything? 

Yes, in that I tend to be certified or carry designations in areas that I truly have experience working in.  My production validates my claims.

No, in that our industry doesn't require us to disclose any more than I'm an "expert" or a "specialist" because I've taken a class that says so, despite the fact that the "expert" or "specialist" production may tell a different story.

The fact is we're in a market that changes so rapidly it takes a daily effort to keep up.  To me being an "expert" or "specialist" means you know everything there is to know about something.  In regards to short sales and foreclosures, you'd be hard pressed to find an agent willing to claim they do, and I'd be suspect of anyone who did.