Blogs and online media: New influences in R.E.

At our firm we read newspapers early but first we look at Curbed, Manhattan's most influential residential real estate blog. In Brooklyn, the go-to blog is Brownstoner which has the latest news and comments about sales and the market. Online media have become a fact of life in public relations. Like it or not, we all consult with and rely on them. Publicists value the influence of bloggers and online editors. Because of consumer impact residential blogs set the pace, but commercial real estate is building its share of online media. New York Real Estate Journal publishes weekly editions online as do Real Estate Weekly and CityFeet. TheRealDeal.com. which covers both residential and commercial, operates like a blog and posts readers' comments on its daily stories. The online publication Globest.com has developed a good national following with regional sections and offers a biweekly blog, TrendCzar, which posts comments. CoStar.com runs daily national and weekly regional stories. To get online, submit news to the contact listed. Blogs rely on readers to submit news and on readers to post comments about the stories. Some comments are negative but they can also be constructive. Good blog stories plus lots of comments equal buzz and awareness. And that leads to sales. Harry Zlokower is president of Zlokower Company, New York, N.Y.