This is me in a comment at Todd Carpenter’s REMBEX Blog Fiesta:
Not to be too contrarian, but this is all Old Testament. None of these people meant anything to me when I was building BloodhoundBlog. If influence means creating the RE.net as we know it, Dustin Luther is the New Testament. He’s not a category killer, but the phenomenon Inman is trying to surf has Dustin as its without-whom-not. I may post on this, because it’s a point we ought not lose in the hoopla. I know Dustin would credit Levin and others, but the fact is that Dustin more than anyone else invented this thing we do.
I hadn’t intended to write anything about this silly Top 25 list, other than to make fun of it in comments to Russell’s post, but I didn’t want to let the moment pass without drawing attention to Dustin’s amazing achievement.
Todd was writing about the people who pioneered the idea of real estate weblogging, and I certainly don’t want to take anything away from them. But the real estate weblogs that dominate the conversation now owe their origin either directly or by — perhaps unknowing — concatenation to the work that Dustin Luther did in building Rain City Guide. BloodhoundBlog, as I disclosed very early on, is a virtual blogchild of RGC, a maculate reconceptualization of ideas Dustin invented or himself reconceived — not from the nascent RE.net but from the weblogging world at large.
Inman’s list means nothing to me. I don’t want to be categorized in any way with exponents of evil, which Keith Brand surely is. The idea of being influential is important to me, but there are but few human behaviors upon which I would seek influence, with all the rest being so much noise. What Inman is celebrating is not influence but popularity — or perhaps simply the celebrity of having been written up in the past by Inman. It’s all one to me in any case. The entire universe I would conquer can be encapsulated by a baseball cap. Lend me your mind, and the rest of the world comes of its own.
But the point for now is simply this: Who taught me how to play baseball this way? Who taught us all how to do this thing we do? Dustin Luther, none other, before-whom-nobody. If we’re going to tip our caps, almost all of us should be tipping them his way first.
Technorati Tags: blogging, real estate, real estate marketing
Kris Berg says:
A resounding AMEN!!!! Best post of the year.
October 4, 2007 — 7:49 pm
Kaye Thomas says:
I agree that Dustin’s influence has been monumental.. but don’t discount the influence you have had on all of us.
October 4, 2007 — 7:59 pm
Greg Swann says:
> but don’t discount the influence you have had on all of us.
Thanks. Even so, I failed twice before I learned by watching Dustin what I was getting wrong.
October 4, 2007 — 8:04 pm
DB says:
I do not think Dustin has influenced many as a blogger but it depends on your definition of a blogger. I see Dustin not much of a blogger but a community builder and that he does very well. He’s the Godfather of RE.net community building.
What is a blogger? Is it the writer or is it the one who runs and builds the site? Or is it both? When I think of blogger, I think of the writer.
When I think of Dustin, I see him as the model for RE.net community building. Writing wise, I see people like Kris Berg, Ardell Dellaloggia, and a few of the other writers at RCG as more of a blogging model. I kind of have model roles for a lot of writers on both RCG and Bloodhound. One of my favorite writers as of recent is Steve Lueng.
And Greg, you’re the Senator of Real Estate, a politican figure.
October 4, 2007 — 8:06 pm
Brian Brady says:
Attending a seminar with Dustin is a treat. Rapid-fire information shot from a most knowledgeable man. Fingers ache and brains swell after 45 minutes.
Then, have a beer with him. You have to coax him to get the goods out. When you do, it’s duck and dodge, duck and dodge, and try to absorb.
Kind of like a Greg Swann phone call.
Thanks, Dustin and thanks Greg
October 4, 2007 — 8:33 pm
Pat Kitano says:
The tributes are the best result of the list. Applauses all around…
October 4, 2007 — 8:51 pm
Todd Carpenter says:
Gregg and Kaye, in your comments, you have just validated the original point I was trying to make with my story. People look to you Greg, but you defer to Dustin. I think Dustin would do the same for some of the earlier pioneers.
My perspective of Dustin is different from almost every other blogger. He actually introduced himself to me, wanting to be on my blogroll page, after visiting Hanan’s site. When I met Dustin, he was just another one of us, trying to figure out a way to cheaply market his wife’s business.
At the time, I honestly don’t think I would have given Rain City a second thought if it weren’t for the fact that he had initiated a conversation with me. We traded many “Hey, look at this” emails in the early going.
Make no mistake, leaving Dustin off my list was not meant as a slight. I’m sure he wouldn’t see it that way, as I’ve written such compliments about him on more than one occasion. Dustin has helped me a lot. I considered him a true friend, long before I had the opportunity to meet him in person.
I just wanted to pay homage to some of the original bloggers out there. Many who started years before most housing professionals even knew what a blog was.
October 4, 2007 — 9:35 pm
Greg Swann says:
> I just wanted to pay homage to some of the original bloggers out there.
Understood. You did a great job.
October 4, 2007 — 11:12 pm
Dustin says:
You guys are way too much! Thanks to everyone.
And Greg, you’ve been awesome. I continue to learn from you with every post! 🙂
October 4, 2007 — 11:22 pm
Jay Thompson says:
From my “interview” with Todd Carpenter:
“Just over two years ago, I thought about starting a “personal journal” sort of blog until I ran across Rain City Guide. It inspired me to try a real estate blog…”
I’m sure there are many, many similar stories out there.
October 5, 2007 — 1:16 am
Maureen Francis says:
The first RE blogger I knew of was Frances Flynn Thorsen. She influenced me and many others.
October 7, 2007 — 8:59 am
Jillayne Schlicke says:
I started research for Realtor class called “New Media” at the tail end of 2005, back when youtube was still yet to be discovered by the masses, and the only person blogging about RE in Seattle was Dustin. Every time I searched for Seattle Real Estate Blogs, RCG kept popping up at the top of google. It’s still on top.
It’s the tail end of 07 now and time to renew that class with the state. A lot of the new media feels old to me, yet the majority of Realtors I meet have never 1) listened to a podcast, even on their own computer, 2) never read a blog, 3) have never visited youtube, and, 4) do not own a phone with an alphanumeric keypad.
…and I live in the Seattle area with the technology crowd. What is it like in other cities out there?
Are we that far ahead of the majority of Realtors?
October 7, 2007 — 11:05 pm