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Jack Bogun
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Sales Associate, Keller Williams
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Born in Poland, Jack Bogun came to the United States in 1990 and settled in Chicago. His first job was as a dishwasher in a nursing home. Knowing only one word of English, “okay,” Bogun took ESL classes, became a Certified Nurses Aide and worked in a hospital until he opened his own business in 1994. After 14 years, he became a real estate salesperson – working in a business he loves. Bogun’s Twitter motto: “I love my life and am passionate about making a difference for others. The possibility of full-blown self expression, being bold and contribution leads the way.”
E-mail Jack
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| Jack, you recently were chosen as one of Proxio’s Most Visible Professionals in Real Estate, a select group of 24 “connected” individuals from across the nation. Tell us how you are using Web 2.0 technology tools to build relationships for your business. |
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| I was very nicely surprised to be listed among a group of very successful people. I use Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn as backup tools to help grow my business. I don’t spend hours with them. I am on them every day; I read and respond, but they are not my main tools. I am in the relationship business. My number one satisfaction is to sit face-to-face, to ask, “How may I help you?”
But I do enjoy Twitter (which also feeds into my Facebook page) because it is short and to-the-point. I think a lot of people don’t have a lot of time to read whole-life stories. For instance, 10 minutes ago I Twittered that I was going to be interviewed by FrogPond.com, and I’ve already received a reply.
Real estate is local, and you are not going to change that. But the trend, where the future is going, is the Internet. For instance, Proxio is an awesome Website that gives agents the opportunity to connect with other businesspeople, from Europe and India. I’m from Europe and I’m looking for referrals from all over the world. |
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| How does your Keller Williams Web site work with your Web 2.0 efforts? |
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Most of my leads come from REALTOR.com®, and some come from Zillow® and Trulia®. My Website at http://jackbogun.yourkwagent.com/ gets a few. But it’s a place where I can send my friends in Europe to get information about real estate. In addition, I have links to three friends’ businesses, to help them grow and hope they send me referrals as well! |
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| I notice you have “speaks Polish” featured prominently on your Web site. Have you received business because of that? |
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| Yes, a month ago I received a $2 million listing from a seller who walked into our office looking for someone who speaks Polish. I figured out that 40 percent of my closings are with Polish-speaking people. You may not know that Chicago is the second-largest Polish city after Warsaw, Poland. (Wikipedia says approximately 1,100,000 people of Polish ethnicity live in the Chicago metropolitan area.) |
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| Barrington is out in northwest Chicagoland; are you working with Polish clients in the city? |
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| Yes, the city is only 40 minutes away. I see a big trend in real estate where no longer will one agent be “king” of one town. In the future, I see where a company will have one huge office but its agents will be spread out all over. For instance, Coldwell Banker, the company I used to work for, had 23 offices across the city and now has about half that many. I think companies will save tons of money that way. |
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| Is social networking contributing to that trend? |
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| I think it goes back to the fast way of life we all lead. The Internet contributes to that. At the same time, buyers – especially Generation X buyers – prefer to deal with the person rather than the company. |
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| You are located in Barrington, centered in an upscale area with a number of corporate headquarters and high-end executive homes. How has the Great Recession affected your market? |
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I have been in real estate for four years and last year was my best year in the business. I work very hard. At the same time, I look at what Gary Keller (Keller Williams Chairman) said in his book Shift, when there’s a change, we have to shift – instead of staying still. I’ve been with Keller Williams for a year and a half and I’m growing, excited and happy. I’m looking forward to a great year.
Email Jack |
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