by Michele Newbern Gillis
Staff Writer
The Northeast Florida Builders Association’s Sales and Marketing Tram is getting ready for another trip.
“Our next one will probably be in the first part of August and we are going to cover the Palencia and World Golf Village area,” said Anita Kelly of North Florida Builders and chair of the SAM Tram committee for the second year. “We will also visit Vista Cove and Sea Colony in St. Augustine.”
They are also planning to do another trip later in the year, but the area hasn’t been chosen yet.
The SAM Tram offers Realtors and lenders a chance to get together with friends and visit properties for only $10.
“Otherwise, they may not venture out into those areas,” said Kelly. “It is getting a group of Realtors that are familiar with each other together to get on a bus, have a good time and go see properties. For a Realtor to get in a car by herself to go see properties is time consuming. For them to go out and educate themselves, I don’t think they really do that.
“I think they like getting on a bus, bringing their best buddy that they do real estate with, and go see properties together.”
Due to time constraints, Kelly faces the challenge of finding a meeting place and route that will allow the participants to board the bus at 8 a.m., see all the properties planned, have lunch and be back at the meeting place on time.
For the upcoming trip, she is considering everyone meeting somewhere in the Sawgrass area or somewhere near Palencia, but nothing is final yet.
Why should people attend a SAM Tram?
“All Realtors need to know everything that is going on in town, not just one area,” said Kelly. “If you are in Ponte Vedra Beach, you need to educate yourself on Orange Park. A lot of times the properties that we visited, the Realtors didn’t have a clue that they were going to be there. It is great information for Realtors about upcoming properties.”
Kelly said a trip last year to Fernandina Beach was very educational to Realtors who rarely venture into that area unless they have a relocation customer interested in that area.
“It’s a good way of educating them of what is up and coming and what is available in areas they do not frequent,” said Kelly.
Participation in the SAM Trams has not always been great. But, Kelly is working to change that by bringing the idea back alive.
She is trying to get the word out in various places to increase participation. She has gotten the Northeast Florida Association of Realtors to include the SAM Tram information on its website and newsletter ,and she also has been partnering with the Beaches Council to distribute flyers of upcoming SAM Trams.
She is also focusing on getting it back on time by shortening the trips and making them even more fun.
“I had some games planned where Realtors had to remember details about the house and we quizzed them on it,” said Kelly. “They really seemed to enjoy that.”