I’d like to let you know about a quick way to earn some extra cash by doing what I know you love doing . . . spreading the word.

If you keep up with marketing blogs and the online industry, it’s likely you’ve heard the word “affiliate” used a lot. I’m not surprised as it is a very successful way to earn passive income and many are taking advantage of it.

Just in case you aren’t sure, an “affiliate” is someone who earns commissions for promoting someone else’s products or services. There are many people who have made a business out of this income stream and others use it to supplement their existing income for some additional spending money.

And that’s why I want to tell you about my brand new PRES Affiliate Program. With this new offering, you now have an opportunity to earn commissions on my upcoming, brand new online home staging home study I’m launching next month!

I invite you to join my PRES Affiliate Program. It’s absolutely free to join, so even if you just have a small list or few social media followers, you’ve got nothing to lose –and only commissions to gain.

With my soon-to-be-announced (FREE) call happening on September the 8th, ‘Taking the Fear Out of Selling’ it will be a perfect opportunity for you to earn commissions when your referrals sign up to participate in my brand new online course: PRES Home Staging Home Study Program 2.0 Blueprint . . . 7 Steps To Creating Your Home Staging Business – Make Money Doing What You Love!

The course starts September 22nd so you could start earning commissions as early as next month!

To start earning commissions right away, create your free affiliate account here: https://www.secureinfossl.com/affSignUp/1114.html

With Gratitude
Dana

P.S. Remember my free 90-minute call is happening on September 8th, 2011 and will be a perfect opportunity for you to invite your list to attend. On that call, I will reveal my 7-week online course where I will take students through a step-by-step process on how to build their very own home staging business and make money doing what they love!

Sign up to become an affiliate today and I will send you more details soon on what you need to do next: https://www.secureinfossl.com/affSignUp/1114.html

In an earlier post I mentioned that I was staging a vacant 2 bedroom condo. I found (I didn’t actually hire anyone) a painter to do some work, and cleaners to really clean the place so it would be ready for selling. All good.

I selected the inventory (look at my earlier post) and it all arrived on time for the staging. The movers were fantastic as they put your large furnishings exactly where you want them which saves you time and energy.

So far so good – right? My team arrived on time – Lisa Maddocks and Cheryl Grattan were my paid assistants and since I teach home staging two other PRES members were invited for a work experience – Tracy Johnson and Elin Ife.

* Well when I went to inspect the painting I found that through a MISCOMMUNICATION the painter had painted the white mantel over the fireplace BLACK and what I had requested was that he paint out the BRASS not the mantel. What to do, what to do… we just got busy and staged the condo as you see here, and I am going to see what the home owner thinks about the black mantel. It’s not that bad so the lesson is – make sure you have everything in writing and not just verbally as I did with my painter.

* When we went to open up the blinds in the breakfast nook one of the blinds went flying off and so, we were slowed down by having to fix it. In my follow up email to the client I let them know about that, and also 2 of the hallway light fixtures were not working. It’s a nice little ‘value added’ that you can give your client once the job is done.

I’ll keep you posted on whether or not we repaint the fireplace!

Last year the PRES community had a fantastic time learning, laughing and loving all the goodies and prizes.

This year the PRES members are getting ready to enjoy a full day of education and then some fun! The conference will be held on October 16th at the Executive Hotel in Coquitlam BC.

We have a fantastic line up of speakers: Marlie Oden of Bridge Communications – Defining Your Personal Brand, Carolyn Cooper-McQuatt of Inspired Business, Susan Friesen of eVision Media – How to Create a Low-cost & Effective Marketing Funnel Through Newsletters, Kathy Forbes of A New Paige Event - I’m This and You’re That…So What? Learning your personality type and how to work with the other types and Michelle Bellerose of She Hoops providing Fitness that Rocks.

Dana J. Smithers the Founder & Creative Director of PRES Staging Resource Centre will open the conference and welcome the PRES members.

The RESA International Conference is the only one of its kind focused on providing stagers (RESA and non-RESA members included) with personal and professional development opportunities. The entire conference is dedicated to YOU. CLICK HERE for further details.

With the industry growing leaps and bounds, this is the perfect opportunity to:

■ Learn how to take your business to the next level
■ Learn what it takes to become a leader
■ Hear first-hand what the industry leaders are doing
■ Understand what it takes to “close” the deal
■ How to give a presentation
■ Learn how to market your business
■ Meet vendor partners who are there to support YOU!

If you are still unsure about taking that ‘leap of faith’ and living your dream of becoming a Home Stager, then please join me LIVE for the PRES Staging Webinar on Thursday February 18, 2010 from 7:00 PM to 8:00 PM Pacific Standard Time. I will go through the PRES home staging AND redesign course and answer any questions you may have!

You will also receive a SPECIAL OFFER just by joining the webinar!

All you need is your computer and your phone. Make sure all your programs are closed except your internet and you will get a better connection.

FOLLOW THESE STEPS:

1. On Thursday night go to your computer and CLICK or Cut and Paste this link in your internet browser:

https://www2.gotomeeting.com/join/575894843

2. Phone in to get on the webinar call and listen to the prompts:

Dial +1 416 900 1165

Access Code: 575-894-843

Audio PIN: Shown after joining the meeting (if you are calling in my phone you just press #the two digit pin number#)

Meeting ID: 575-894-843

On the webinar you will have an opportunity to ask questions and find out answers to any questions you may have. I look forward to talking with you!

You will only receive a SPECIAL OFFER by joining the webinar!

One of the resources that I use to keep updated with the real estate market, and what is going on with the NAR (National Association of Realtors) is through a website called Active Rain. It’s a blog site so there are thousands of members, thousands of articles and lots of great topics.

I just read a blog titled: It’s Time For Realtors to Stand Firm on Not Doing Open Houses written by Lee Morof, Associate Broker/Attorney in Birmingham, Michigan. He is with Re/Max Showcase Homes. You can read the full article from this link

It’s a great article and while he does have some very good points we know that not all areas in North America face the same concerns about Open Houses as others. You can read more about the CONS in his article.

What I found really interesting are these statistics:

Every year I order the results of the National Association of Realtors (NAR) Survey of Home Buyers and Sellers. I am particularly interested in How the Buyer Found His or Her Home in the last year because that determines where my marketing efforts will go to sell the homes that I list. Because the numbers pertaining to open houses are so dismal, it is no longer a category in the survey results. I do understand that open houses were more successful before personal computers and the internet but now, approximately:

• 90% of buyers begin their home search on the internet
• 36% will find their home on the internet
• 36% will find their home through the help of a realtor,
• 12% from a yard sign
• 6% from a friend, neighbor or a relative.

That covers ninety percent. Another 5%, will purchase new construction from a home builder or the builder’s agent.

And because of the internet availability as a resource this is precisely why homes need to be staged so that the MLS photos look FANTASTIC! That is what will attract a potential buyer. As PRES home stagers it is critical that the realtors we have strategic alliances with know the value of a staged home.

Listen to the Podcast of the show here