Insider's look at the fantastic event put together by the Hopkinton Education Foundation and the Hallmark Sotheby's International Realty team letting their hair down and celebrating this wonderful cause.

Hopkinton Education Foumdation Gala

A few years ago I was asked by the Hopkinton Education Foundation to sponsor the Gala Game Room. Times were good in Real Estate and it just seemed like a fun way to give back to the community. Often as Realtors we are asked to sponsor many in town events. It makes a lot of sense as normally the people who ask us to sponsor their organization are the people who have chosen us to represent them in the sale of their home and/or the purchase of a new home. So, I wrote out the check, designed an ad, had a sign made (by Mike Carroll who is also a sponsor), and showed up at the event.

There is a certain vibe at the Gala. It is a high energy vibe. The people who are there are the ones who care greatly about the education of Hopkinton's children. They are young parents. The ones whose children are about to embark on their wonderful journey thru the Hopkinton Public School system. They are parents who have children in many different grades and there are the parents who have been supporting the schools for years and years and continue to do so. There are people who live in big houses and little houses, neighborhoods and country roads. What ties us all together isn't the age of our child or the size of our house or who are neighbor is. It is our desire to give our children the best education. It is our desire to enrich their education and support our Teachers and Principals and our Superintendent.

This year, I am happy to say that I have made my Professional Affiliation with Hallmark Sotheby's International Realty. We too are a group of highly dedicated Realtors who strive everyday to enrich the lives of our children, our clients, and the community as a whole. Each of us was hand picked to work for Hallmark Sotheby's. Each organization that we support has been hand picked by us as a team. When we are confronted with the decision to be the biggest or the best we will always choose the best. It is for that reason that we, as a group, chose to sponsor the Hopkinton Education Gala Game Room.

For more information on the HEF Gala, email them at info@HopkintonedFoundation.org or email me at www.JeannineCoburn.com.

*Blog written by Jeannine Coburn at Hallmark Sotheby's International Realty

Heard in our office sales meeting recently "Be the first girlfriend, the second wife, and the third realtor." Mike comments on positioning yourself to be the third realtor FIRST ... confused? click play for the rest of the story..,..

Video by: Mike Lefebvre of Hallmark Sotheby's International Realty, in Hopkinton MA

A real estate firm who selectively and successfully recruits experienced Realtors

I spent the last 6 years positioning the company as a high end well respected independent boutique real estate firm. The challenge was always in recruiting. The solution was to associate myself with the best and most sophisticated brand in the industry. Since our launch 4 months ago I have successfully and very selectively recruited 11 wonderful Realtors, who complement my original team of 5. My goal is to support them in every way possible to make them even better agents.

A real estate company at the forefront of online technology and superior marketing

One of the things that I have always prided myself on is my marketing skills. This is probably the main reason why I stepped away from the traditional real estate company I worked for and started my own firm 7 years ago. Most of our competitor's lack of marketing support is quite staggering especially when there are two key reasons why homes sell, exposure and price.

Sotheby's International Realty's sophisticated marketing program is available to all agents via a comprehensive and user friendly intranet site. In addition to a top of the line marketing program for brochures and postcards I provide the agents with an experienced, young and tech savvy Marketing professional for support. My Marketing Coordinator, Erica Wallace, has brought all of us up to date with online social media. In our evolving world of technology and given that approximately 90% of buyers shop online, we understand the importance of meeting the needs of the new age of real estate.

A true real estate company is not about one person... it is about a group of professionals who come together as a group and learn and grow together!

"Erika is a detailed Broker Owner whose main focus is on developing her agents to be the best they possibly can. She prides herself on "hand picking" each of her agents and thus she is as committed to their success as they are to their own. She has provided a full-time marketing coordinator to her agents and a beautiful high tech office in the center of Hopkinton. There is not a detail that is missing at Hallmark Sotheby's International Realty. If you are an experienced Realtor who values quality control and adheres to high personal standards, I would highly recommend Erika and Hallmark Sotheby's International Realty."

Jeannine Coburn , Realtor , Hallmark Sotheby's International Realty

"Erika is a broker of honesty, integrity and forward thinking. She will lead the Hallmark Sotheby's International Realty team through this market and be the pace setter for real estate in the Metrowest."

Mary Ellen Wasielewski , Realtor, CBR, Ecobroker , Hallmark Sotheby"s International Realty

A historic brand with a 200 year reputation of quality and service

The collaboration of the Sotheby's Auction House and Sotheby's International Realty® is truly one of our greatest differentiators from any other real estate brand out there. We embrace and are thrilled to offer our clients with this distinguished brand associated with quality and service.

Blog written by Erika Paul, Broker Owner of Hallmark Sotheby's International Realty

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT:

Erika Paul, President, Broker-Owner

508-435-9200

Erika.Paul@SothebysRealty.com

HALLMARK SOTHEBY’S INTERNATIONAL REALTY BRAND WEB SITE OFFERS LANGUAGE TRANSLATION CAPABILITY

Hopkinton, Massachusetts (Jan. 26, 2009)— Hallmark Sotheby’s International Realty, a luxury real estate firm based in Hopkinton, Massachusetts, today announced that its brand Web site, www.sothebysrealty.com, soon will be multi-lingual with the addition of seven new languages.

All functional and static information on the Web site were translated into Spanish and Portuguese this month. It also will be translated into French, Italian, German, Russian and traditional Chinese within the next few weeks. Translations will be done by professional translators based in each respective country, not by machine translation methods.

The brand added a currency conversion to the Web site earlier this year.

“The translations will be done by professional translators in each respective country, not by machine translation methods, and the Web site will be search engine optimized for each language,” said Erika Paul, President and Broker-Owner. “Consumers in the Metro West area of Boston now will be able to search our inventory of fine properties in their native language with just the click of a button.”

According to Broker-Owner, Erika Paul, the Sotheby's International Realty affiliation offers her firm the tools and resources needed to provide clients with the very best in real estate services.

Six years ago, Hallmark Realty established itself as a boutique brokerage firm that has always offered its clientele a level of service not often found in the industry. Now as part of the Sotheby's International Realty network, the office has access to the very best in marketing resources and technology which she feels will take the level of service to new heights. Paul also pointed out that it was not only the high quality services that led her to join the company, but their commitment to the client as well.

"Our focus has been, and always will be, completely on the well being of the client and building lasting relationships that endure long after a home is bought or sold. In Sotheby's I saw this same dedication to the client and knew right away that we would make the perfect fit."

Hallmark Sotheby’s International Realty is located at 11 Grove Street, Hopkinton, MA 01748.