Ok, so our second hurricane in as many weeks has rolled through the Shreveport/Bossier area. Needless to say, the virtual tour business has come to a grinding halt while everyone cleans up from the aftermath of these storms. While this area was fortunate not to have the brunt of Ike that hit the coastal areas, we got worked over pretty good. Below are some photos of Ike's aftermath in the Shreveport area.

For more pictures visit our Reaching Further Blog.

Well, hear we go again. Just days after Gustav, the Ark-La-Tex is keeping a watchful eye on Ike. For those of you who may be unfamilar with this area, the Ark-La-Tex is the area where northeast Texas, northwest Louisiana and southwest Arkansas come together. Shreveport is more or less the midpoint of the region.

When Gustav came through the area the southern and eastern parts of the region got hammered pretty hard. Now, Ike seems to be contemplating picking up where Gustav left off. Threatening to do its damage to western and northern parts of the area. Although the Ark-La-Tex is far enough inland that all that "eye wall" and "storm surge" stuff you hear about on the news dosen't really apply, we are coastal enough to get the "flooding rains" and "tornadic activity" they talk so much about on the day after landfall.

At Ark-La-Tex Virtual Tours we are keeping a watchful eye on the gulf and scheduling tours contingent on the weather. The worst of the storm is forcast to be here over the weekend. Hopefully, things will be back to normal by Monday. I feel as if I am taking the crash course in weather forcasting!

The forcast for next week... Major scheduling upheavel giving way to low ability to photograph homes until clean up has occurred. Look for clearing with a gradual return to normal toward the end of the week.

Ark-La-Tex Virtual Tours is pleased to announce that we have weathered Hurricane Gustav with minimal impact. Earlier this week Gustav roared ashore in south Louisiana causing much distruction. According to forcasts, Gustav was on track to deliver a harsh blow to the Ark-La-Tex. Once inland, however, Gustav shifted its path just enough to spare the Ark-La-Tex all but the rain and a brief period of high winds. Others were not so fortunate and our prayers are with them as they begin a long peiod of cleaning up.

At Ark-La-Tex Virtual Tours a lot of rescheduling went on this week, but next week looks to be right back on track. Below is a picture from my camera phone of the clouds of Gustav as they began to enter the Shreveport area.

If you are located in an area impacted by Gustav, let us hear from you. We would like to know how you weathered the storm.

We were recently invited to a Tuesday morning Realtor's meeting to discuss Virtual Tours. This Brokerage is pretty new to utilizing the internet. We covered some of the following points.

1. All the realtors needed to have and utilize a working email account. Although it is understood that a phone call is only second to meeting a perspective buyer/seller in person, the email is the most commonly preferred and used form of communication of most internet users.

2. The brokerage and possibly the individual realtors should have a functional and easy to use web site. The web site should be able incorporate a virtual tour link for properties that have one.

3. ALL PRINT MEDIA that is utilized should state "See the Virtual at www.....website.com". At a minimum the web site address should be listed. With the amount of properties listed these days, photos, virtual tours, and the internet are the best ways to generate interest not only for the property but the realtor and brokerage as a whole. For example, if the Real Estate Book is used, a virtual tour icon can be placed on the add, and the web site, email address, and phone number should be listed.

4. We recommended photos from a good camera and/or the utilization of a professional photographer and virtual tour provider. Listings that have a poorly shot photo or no photo at all on sites like Realtor.com or the local real estate board, are generally passed right by. Listings with multiple photos and a virtual tour get the highest hit stats (number of viewings). Utilizing Postlets, Craigslist, and other internet sites only enhance the property and realtor's exposure.

5. We lastly recommended using PanoRiders and single property websites to grab the drive-bys traffic and direct them online. Utilizing the street address on the PanoRider and single property websites make it easier remember. Even if the PanoRider isn't used, the realtors sign should have some form of contact information.

Our goal at Ark-La-Tex Virtual Tours is to enable, empower, and assist our realtor and business clients' ability to get their product out to the public. We have seen great results when our clients utilize the above strategies.

Movies and Moonbeams Outdoor Cinema is presenting "The Legend of Bagger Vance" at Querbes Park Golf Course on April 18. This is a free event for the public. If you are in the Broadmoor area, come out and join in this unique movie going experience.