30 | OPP GET INVOLVED WORDS | John Howell
No one knows the international residential property industry better than you, the readers of this magazine. When I look at the list of subscribers I see hundreds of real experts, deeply immersed in the markets and countries within which they operate and with a vast amount of useful information to share.
publish online or in the various OPP magazines.
Get involved with OPP W
e at OPP and OPP Connect want our readers to send us news and stories for us to
This is not because we are lazy; it is because it would make the service we supply to our readers even better. We already receive items of news from many different sources - insiders, readers, news agencies, press releases, the people concerned, the internet etc - but nobody knows more about what is going on in your area than you do. You will come across news and other items of interest in lots of different ways. There might be something in your local paper. You might see something on the internet. You might hear someone talking in a bar or at an exhibition. You might have your own news about a new appointment, a new project or something that has happened to you personally.
In the last couple of days OPP has
been given three news stories by three different readers: one about a local mayor who has just been sent to jail for corruption, one about a very interesting development in Portugese law which could help thousands of international buyers who have taken out mortgages on their second homes overseas and one about an alleged mathematical fl aw in one of the main property price indices. We would like even more. At OPP we are, of course, mainly interested in the news as it affects the international property industry: new laws; new political or economic developments; markets opening up or closing down; the success (or failure) of projects, exhibitions and the like. We would love it if, when you fi nd or hear a piece of news, you would send it to
news@opp.org.uk. Your piece of news could be as little as 50 or 100 words. It could even just be a link to a story on the internet and your comments on that
story. Alternatively, the piece could be much longer: giving us much more information about something that is happening to you, your company or in your area. We do not credit short news stories (the credit would often be longer than the story) but we do credit longer pieces, giving your name, your company’s name and your contact details. This can be very good for raising your profi le in the industry and getting you recognised as an expert in
“Nobody knows more about what’s going on in your area than you”
the fi eld. We are not just interested in the dramatic or the important. While we would love you to send us stories with headlines such as “Man lands on Mars”, we are likely to have heard these items from other sources. But if the man who landed on Mars
was a realtor from Tampa, we might not have heard that aspect of the story and we would love you to bring it to our attention. Equally, we will be interested in smaller stories, such as airlines starting new fl ights to your local airport; tourist statistics; economic statistics for your region and changes in the law. We are also interested in stories about you and your company: not just hidden adverts but interesting things that have happened such as your development winning an award; a phase selling out in two days or six of your staff climbing Everest.
I have already spoken to a few of our readers about contributing to OPP. Several of the people I spoke to were nervous about writing in English. We fully understand this: for most of you, English is not your fi rst language. However, we say: “Don’t worry about it!” Our team of journalists will read your story and, where necessary, tidy it up to make it clearer.
Better connected| Working together will help foster a stronger property industry
In other words, this is not a problem. I am far more excited about the fact that we have readers in 89 countries who are able to feed with accurate, reliable and relevant information coming from
their area – and the opportunities that this presents to us – than I am worried about the use of the odd incorrect word or missing comma. However, at the request of our readers and to help them, the staff at OPP have put their heads together and produced a very simple guide to writing news and other stories for OPP. It is printed in this copy of the
magazine and can be found in the Info Zone on the OPP Connect website. Look under the ‘Articles’ tab. Have a quick read and see how easy writing can be. More importantly, have a go. Next time you see something of interest, send it to us with your comments. Remember, whatever you send us will be reviewed by our journalists and edited as needed.
It is not just pure news that is of interested. We would also like to hear from you about your thoughts on issues relating to our industry. How should new business be encouraged? How should development be controlled? What fi nance is available for developers in your area and how could the position be improved? What facilities are available to people moving permanently to your area? Should the industry be regulated? How does regulation work in your area?
These pieces would typically be about 1000 words - basically, one page in the magazine.
They might be printed in one of the magazines or they might go in as part of the OPP Connect Info Zone. In either case, you will be credited with submitting the item.
If you are thinking of writing a piece of this kind, it would be sensible to let us know fi rst just in case someone else has already written on exactly the same subject. Finally, and while we’re talking about contributions, OPP may well be contacting you to take part in our ‘Round Table’ sessions (at which six industry leaders discuss topics of major importance to the industry as a whole) or with a view to your being a panel member at our OPP Live conference. If you would like any more information about contributing to OPP, please contact John Howell by email at
editor@opp.org.uk.
BUSINESS
www.opp.org.uk | JUNE 2012
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68