Using Flickr to Speed Up and Enhance Your Real Estate Blogging

WordPress and other blogging software all have image insert ability, with albums or some other way to keep track of images. They require that you upload the image to your site server, then when you need it, you pull it into the post and format it.

I love WordPress, but I've never really liked their image solution, even though it has gotten better with each new version of the software. And, there are a bunch of great plugins to manage your images better. But there still has been something lacking in the way of multiple value features.

When it comes to managing permissions and licensing for my images, Flickr really makes it easy. I keep my images in sets by type or subject matter. I have sets for local nature (mountain area), business, tourism, architecture, etc. I also have a set that is around 175 images I've licensed from iStockPhoto.

I don't mind some of my local area images being used by others, if they use them properly and credit me. But, I can't let others see or use the iStockPhoto images. So, it's really a great feature to be able to pull up entire sets, or multiple images and change who can view them or the licensing as a batch.

Flickr has the Creative Commons license selections for me to use, and I like to use the Attribution Non-commercial license for most of my photos. I also set most of them for viewing by the public. However, the iStockPhoto images can't be seen by others, and I withhold all licensing for use by others.

I can still use the restricted images in my blogging, but they aren't visible to others anywhere else on the Web.

The WP-Flickr plugin was a great find for me. There are a number of Flickr plugins for WordPress, but I like this one. It places a box on my Add New Post screen, and it pulls all of my Flickr images in with the different sets accessible with a tab structure.

So, if I'm writing a post about local government or business, one click brings up a page full of thumbnail images from my local business set on Flickr. One more click, and it's in the post. And, there is a default setting for size, so I usually have it all done with those two clicks.

Generally, I don't need to do a lot with editing an image for the blog. Listing images take more, but both jobs are usually handled quite well with Picnik. The edit button for an image in Flickr opens Picnik and you can do the most common type of edits there. Usually, I'm adjusting exposure or contrast, but you can also resize, sharpen, rotate, crop and work with the colors of your image. When you're done, it is saved back to your Flickr account.

Getting your images to Flickr is pretty easy, because you can do it in a number of ways:

• Use their uploader at the site.
• Use their batch upload software for lots of images from your hard drive.
• Email images to a special address as attachments.
• Send them from your cell phone to that same email address.

I've used all of these methods, and they work quite well. Each has its place, depending on what I'm doing, and what I'm using to take the image. I'm doing more with my new cell phone, as the 3.2 Megapixel camera gives me enough quality for blogging.

You may find that you can do most of what you need with the free Flickr account. It's not a trial, so you may just continue without cost. There are limitations, though liberal, for the number of images you can display with a free account.

I went with the Pro account for $24.95/year. That's really cheap, as I have over 800 images up there now, and plan on that number increasing with the new features and using my cell phone around the area for blog shots. With the Pro account, you get:

• Unlimited image and video uploads.
• Unlimited bandwidth.
• Ability to show HD video.
• Statistics for views of your images.

I work on three computers depending on what I'm doing and where I am. I'm doing more work now on my netbook computer away from the office. It's no problem working with my images no matter which computer or where I am. They're all on the Web, in their full resolution, so whatever I need them for, I have them ready.

Using a Java Applet from FlickrEdit, I keep my images backed up on an external drive. The software is free, and it will do incremental backups, getting only the new photos since the last one.

I would never advise putting your trust in one vendor or source for your valuable images. So, use whatever resource you want, but have a backup somewhere for your images on Flickr.

One of the reasons Realtors give for not blogging is that they don't have the time. We are all busy, but real estate blogging is proving to be much more effective in generating business from the Internet than a normal website. So, we should always look for ways to speed the process, with quality of content still at the top of our mind.

I write a lot about technology tools for real estate business management. If a software product or online service is useful in saving me time, serving my clients better, or generating business, then it's usually worth trying. And, when these products and services are free or very low cost, it's even better.

Flickr helps me in working with images for many tasks, from print to the Web. But, for my WordPress blogging, it's really made a difference. I am using more images in my blogs because it's faster and easier with Flickr.