Leverage ListTrac to Convince Potential Sellers There is Strong Interest in Their Property
While supply is still limited and approximately one-quarter of homes are still receiving multiple offers, homeowners are still hesitant. They do not believe there is enough demand for their home to warrant selling it. Here's one simple way to counter that belief and demonstrate strong home buyer interest. Using the weekly ListTrac report available through participating MLS markets, it is easy to visually demonstrate where buyer interest is highest by looking at the weekly ListTrac views by price point information. In the attached example, you can see that homes retailing between $200,000 and $400,000 are creating the most online interest. If you have a potential seller that falls into that price point, you can convince them there IS strong buyer interest by sharing the easy-to-read graph shown here. Ask your MLS If they offer ListTrac and how you can take advantage of this FREE tool included in your subscription. This tool is also great to show your seller clients all the ways you are generating listing exposure and lead activity for them. Ask your MLS to show you the automated sellers reports you can easily create with ListTrac, too. To view the original article, visit the WAV Group blog.

Inside the Tech Stack of a $500 Million Dollar Company
Tech enthusiasts, this one's for you. Whissel Realty, a $500 million company with over 100 agents, shares the technology stack that has allowed their business to scale, all while keeping costs and administrative needs low. How? They use systems and tools that let them achieve maximum efficiency and effectiveness. In the video below, Kyle Whissel and Bryan Koci break down their company's top 10 most used systems, including: Their CRM IDX website Sales management system Transaction management system Team communication app Presentation app And more! Kyle and Bryan also dive into which processes they automate and how they integrate their systems using tools like Zapier to streamline operations. Watch to learn how a top real estate team uses technology to achieve real estate success: Related Reading 3 Unconventional Ways to Measure Tech Stack ROI Demystifying the Real Estate Tech Stack

8 types of smart technology for property managers
Smart technology can benefit property managers incredibly, making processes or tasks more efficient and less effortful. So what exactly is smart technology? Let's dive into it and how you can implement it for your rental business! What is smart technology? Smart is an acronym: self-monitoring, analysis, and reporting technology. Smart technology gives cognitive abilities to inanimate objects. A great example of this is doorbells. A doorbell was previously an inanimate object with an alarm attached to it, so the sound would go off when someone pushed the button. With companies like Ring, doorbells can be smart because they have a camera, speaker, microphone, and the ability to record and move. What smart technology is available for property managers? Here's a list of smart technology that can help property managers save time on the rental application process and when managing the rental itself. Remember that these technologies constantly evolve; this is not an exhaustive list. Smart rental applications can streamline the process, making it more efficient for you and the applicant. The application, essential documents, and screening reports are all in one spot, available whenever you need them. Apply Now by Rental Beast Smart locks are typically operated remotely using a smartphone app, enabling property managers to grant access to service providers without needing physical keys. It also removes the hassle of keeping track of keys when you have new tenants. Smart locks may also provide detailed access logs, enhancing security and accountability. The Best Smart Locks for 2023 Smart water leak detectors can detect leaks and water damage early, helping to prevent costly repairs and property damage. When a leak is detected, alerts are sent to the property manager's smartphone. The Best Smart Water Leak Detectors for 2023 Smart thermostats allow property managers to remotely control and schedule heating and cooling systems, optimizing energy usage and potentially reducing utility costs. Some smart thermostats also learn tenant preferences and adjust settings accordingly. Best Smart Thermostats for July 2023 Smart home security has cameras, motion sensors, and door/window sensors to help monitor the property. Property managers and tenants can receive real-time alerts and access video feeds remotely. Best Wireless Home Security Systems Of July 2023 Smart rent payment platforms enable tenants to pay rent online, making the process more convenient for tenants and property managers. They also simplify tracking rental payments, generating financial reports, and setting up reminders or late payment notices. The 7 Best Online Rent Payment Systems (for 2023) Smart energy monitoring tracks energy consumption throughout the unit to help property managers identify areas that would benefit from energy-saving improvements – potentially lowering utility costs. Best Smart Home Energy Monitor Smart appliances, such as refrigerators, ovens, and washing machines, can provide energy efficiency and tenant convenience. Some smart appliances can be remotely controlled or monitored through smartphone apps. 15 Smart Appliances Every High-Tech Home Needs Keep in mind privacy rights When implementing any new processes, technology, or systems related to your rental business, keep in mind the privacy rights of your tenants. It's okay to install monitoring technology for leaks if it's sensor-based, but live monitoring with cameras is illegal. If there's technology (smart or otherwise) you're considering implementing and need clarification on its legality, we recommend checking with a legal professional. When showing your property to a potential tenant, point out and discuss all the smart technologies in the rental property. Although these are typically rental upgrades the tenant appreciates, they should be aware of all technology included. To view the original article, visit the Rental Beast blog.

Why Tech Debt Is Something Your Brokerage Can't Afford to Pay
Tech debt is an often overlooked, but business-critical, concept that affects real estate brokerages around the country. In this post, we explain what tech debt is, how it affects real estate brokers' bottom lines, and tips for not just overcoming tech debt, but turning it into an asset. Read on to learn more. What is tech debt in real estate? The term technology debt or tech debt was originally coined in the 1990s to refer to cutting corners during the software development process. Today, tech debt has evolved to also refer to investments (or lack thereof) in technology maintenance and upgrades. In simple terms, tech debt means not investing in technological upgrades to save money. Over time, this starts accumulating into a debt that includes the higher cost of upgrading your technology if and when it breaks down as well as associated opportunity cost, any losses associated with down time if your systems stop working, and the long-term cost of customer dissatisfaction, reputational damage, staff turnover, and more. Why are brokers susceptible to tech debt? Real estate in general is an industry that skews older. Real estate agents and brokers, on average, are all over 50 years old. Older generations generally (though not always) tend to be less familiar with technology. Generation X is the last generation that reached adulthood without widespread computers at home or the internet. The result is increased comfort with the "old" way of doing things, and thus less emphasis and less focus on technology, which is exactly how tech debt starts to grow. Picture this: It's 2010. You've finally revamped and rebranded your brokerage's first website, which you've hosted on your own server since the late 90s. The new look and functionality are a big hit, and you're proud of your new look. It displays your listings and has a contact form that goes directly to your email. The problem: It isn't 2010 anymore. Search engine optimization has taken off and changed dramatically. Cloud computing is the way to go to reduce infrastructure costs and operational challenges. APIs and integrations are much more common. What few organic leads you get through your website these days you have to add to an Excel sheet by hand and follow up with manually. Your business is doing OK, but your competitors are doing better. See what we mean? You've accumulated website tech debt, and overcoming the obstacles to tackling it can be hard. Is tech debt always bad? Like any debt, brokerages like yours can leverage tech debt strategically. Maybe you postponed getting rid of your on-site server for a year because your office needs new carpet, or delayed purchasing a company-wide CRM because you had to relocate to a new space. All business owners have to make tough decisions. But all debts have to be paid—one way or another. Tech debt can be particularly painful, too, so it's important not to put it off for too long. The cost of your brokerage's tech debt Most brokerages have some level of tech debt. This is normal, especially since tech debt can be a way to leverage your other assets in strategic ways when it suits your business. But it's safe to say that if you've gone more than five years without making ongoing investments in your tech, your business is potentially at risk. Since every brokerage is different, it's impossible to put out an exact dollar figure, but ask yourself the following questions: If my systems went down today and were inaccessible for three business days: How much money would I need to spend to diagnose and fix the root cause? How much money would I lose from delays or canceled deals? What would be the long-term impact on my customer base? Would I lose referrals from my affected clients? What would be the long-term impact on my sales team? Would my best performers decide to go elsewhere or renegotiate their commissions splits? Perhaps even more importantly, your tech debt also has an opportunity cost: the amount of money you could be making if you had invested in technology that helps you work better, more efficiently, and seize more opportunities. This cost is potentially even higher, but also more difficult to quantify. How to start paying off your tech debt Technological advancements are only going to keep accelerating as time goes on. Every moment you delay will make it harder to catch up. Tech debt feels free. When your systems are working well, upgrading or improving them isn't top of mind because busy brokers have a lot of other important things to think about. But a word to the wise: it's much, much better to start paying off your tech debt now, rather than waiting for the proverbial debt collector. But how? The first step is to perform a tech stack audit. A tech stack audit will help you identify crucial aspects about your tech: Your powerful and useful tools: These are the tools that are currently offsetting your tech debt. They are the solutions that are well maintained and contributing to your business goals. Your redundant solutions: These tools aren't contributing to your tech debt but aren't offsetting it, either. However, you would benefit financially from offboarding them because you're paying for things you don't need. These dollars would be better spent on solutions in the category above. Your pain points: These are the tools that are actively adding to your tech debt. These include any obsolete software or hardware that is burdening your business as well as any solutions that require a significant amount of upkeep. It also includes anything that poses an operational risk to your brokerage, such as data breaches. And finally, it's an opportunity to identify gaps in your processes or workflows where technology would be a significant asset to your team. Would you benefit from an electronic signature solution, better lead management, a transaction management platform, customer-facing apps, more modern marketing tools, or something else? You often don't know what you're missing out on until someone else points it out. How to turn brokerage tech debt into a tech surplus Whether you have a little tech debt or a lot, there are effective ways for your brokerage to minimize it: Regular tech stack audits: As we mentioned already, technology is changing all the time. Staying on top of what you're doing well and where you can improve will help you make informed decisions in the future about what to buy and what to get rid of. Follow industry trends and best practices: Did we mention technology is changing really fast? It's impossible to stay on top of everything, and almost by definition, whatever technology you onboard now will be obsolete before you know it. It's important to stay informed about technological trends and shifts affecting real estate, the latest proptech innovations, and where and how your brokerage, whatever its size, can get the biggest bang for its technology buck. Attend the technology sessions at industry conferences: There's more to real estate industry conferences than cocktail parties and sales presentations! Yes, the technology presentations at the NAR Broker Summit and Conference, Inman Connect, T3 Sixty, RISMedia, and the other unmissable industry events are extremely informative and will give you an idea about the latest trends and all the great products available on the market. Read industry ratings: Do you know what providers and tools are the most trusted in the industry? Industry lists like T3 Sixty's Tech 200 are a great resource for finding reliable solutions that will turn your debt into a surplus. Dedicate a percentage of revenue to tech: Brokerages are facing tightening margins like never before. Tech investments provide measurable ROI that can help you with shrinking margins, so putting a certain percentage aside every month to invest in your tech is a fail-proof strategy to get ahead. Why the ideal technology partner is the best defense against tech debt Perhaps the best way to minimize tech debt is to work with a partner who cares about your success just as much as its own. At Constellation1, we are firmly committed to and heavily invested in our customers' success. You don't have to take our word for it, either, because our customers aren't shy about giving praise. If you want to tackle tech debt at your brokerage and set yourself up for long-term success, request a FREE tech stack audit today. To view the original article, visit the Constellation1 blog.

Milestones Announces Launch with RE/MAX Results to Deliver Homeowner Portals
Milestones Labs announced that RE/MAX Results will be empowering all of their agents with Milestones' all-in-one homeowner portal to help clients manage their properties. "Customer for life, homeownership, and home maintenance portals have been buzzwords in real estate for years," says Brenda Tushaus, CEO of RE/MAX Results. "Milestones is the first company to get it right with the features and functionality that will truly drive value to our client though our sales executives, mortgage executives, and title executives." Milestones uniquely combines the client engagement efforts of real estate professionals, mortgage loan officers and title representatives in a dashboard that supports the entire experience of homeownership. This includes functionality hubs for monitoring home value, searching for property, managing transactions, moving, and most importantly, managing the maintenance that homes require. "It has the potential to integrate with most of our tech stack," says Nicole Biczkowski, Director, Product Strategy and Launch at RE/MAX Results. "What we felt like an unattainable consumer experience is finally here." With this launch, RE/MAX Results is among the first brokerage firms in the nation to deliver a comprehensive solution to customer portals that collapses multiple disparate software applications into one. "Our sales executives are our customers," says Tushaus, "and we deliver tools like Homebot, Tribus websites and CRM, SkySlope, and many more great products. Unfortunately, this creates a disjointed experience for customers. Milestones consolidates all of those services into one place and makes some of those services redundant." Homeowners are only going to need one portal or "hub" to manage their home, just like consumers need only one to manage their health. This, along with Zillow's planned "super app," designed to steal the consumer's eyes away from the Realtor or loan officer, is causing the increase in demand for companies to get Milestones implemented for their agents and loan officers quickly. Today, industry publishers rank RE/MAX Results as the top firm in real estate by agent productivity. The firm manages 28,000 trades a year, an average of 24 per agent. The nearest competitor is at 12 transactions per agent. Tushaus says, "With Milestones, we believe that the performance of our sales executives will lift productivity even higher by delighting clients with an experience that nobody imagined was possible."

The Broker's View of Homeowners Under Management
The Broker Resource Network recently hosted a webinar for their members to discuss an emerging topic in real estate called "Homeowners Under Management." It is a different perspective on how firms, teams, and agents approach client relationship management, and it marks a sea change in thinking that WAV Group believes is very important for the future of our industry. Zillow came out and announced the "super app" before it is built or released – and it sent brokers and their technology partners into the workshop to craft a super app of their own. Today, super apps are live and implemented. The webinar shared below gets the perspective from Mike Hickman, broker of Seven Gables real estate in the highly competitive market of southern California who has deployed a super app at his firm. Joining Hickman is Lacey Conway of the multi-state independent firm Latter and Blum, operating across the southern states from Louisiana to Texas. She shares the values that the super app will have not only for real estate, but her affiliated companies in mortgage, insurance, and more. The webinar is moderated by WAV Group's Mark McLaughlin, alongside Milestones Chief Revenue Officer, Ashley Terrell. If you are a subscriber to WAV Group, you will be receiving an email with a link to download our white paper on Homeowners Under Management. It will be published very soon – it's at the designer right now. Please enjoy the recording below: To view the original article, visit the WAV Group blog.

Is Your Tech Stack Optimized for 2023?
The past two years have been wild for real estate. Experts believe 2023 will be a return to a new "normal"—given that the factors affecting the market today are different from anything we've seen before. Brokerages have transitioned from a two-year sales spree to a state of reflection (and evolution). The consensus among the biggest executives in real estate is that times are changing, and technology will be a key differentiator. What does that mean for you? Complicated (and confusing) economic factors The Fed is still raising interest rates, though these increases are slowing and may even stop in 2023 if inflation shows signs of stabilizing or, better yet, returning to the 2% target. Even still, low housing inventory remains a persistent problem, one that will be compounded by high interest rates (high cost of borrowing to develop new housing) and a stubborn labor shortage in the construction industry. Optimism for real estate brokerages All of this is actually good news for brokers. As Forbes has reported, Chief Economist at Realtor.com Danielle Hale expects home sales will be down 14.1% compared to 2022, but prices are expected to remain relatively high, albeit with an increase in days on market. Consumers are still going to buy and sell millions of homes this year, and many more will start looking for their first home, even if they aren't ready to buy just yet. The key will be ensuring your brokerage is there at the right moment to advise them and win them over as customers for life. Tech will play an increasingly important role in this process in 2023. The undeniable importance of proptech Constellation1 President Andrew Binkley was recently featured in a Real Estate News article that asked top proptech executives about the state of real estate tech. He noted that software solutions that help brokers and their teams reduce repetitive tasks (and human error) will help lower operating expenses, improve margins, and free up time to focus on value-added tasks, like strategizing, roadmapping, and building the human connection that is central to real estate. The right tech will be critical for teams to improve and simplify operations, generate business, and create "a homebuying experience with fewer clicks." Wouldn't that be great? It's time to put your brokerage's tech under the microscope Let 2023 be the year you really get your tech stack in order. Do you have old tools that are no longer suited to the way you do business? Did you acquire software that none of your agents use? Are you looking for ways to move more of your processes online and streamline them so you can work smarter, not harder? Start 2023 off right with a free, no obligation audit of your front and back office tech by the experts at Constellation1. We'll take a holistic view of your business and your tech and recommend ways to make it better to set you up for greater success in the coming year and beyond. To view the original article, visit the Constellation1 blog.

Empower Your Real Estate Brokerage for 2023 with Technology
Real estate and technology have come a long way since the early days of MLSs and online transactions. There are now hundreds of tech companies offering solutions to help real estate teams and offices, but what are the right tools to employ to cope with the current circumstances? We have passed those complicated days of the pandemic and the fluctuations of the post-pandemic era. Still, 2023 has vowed to bring its own challenges or opportunities, depending on how we approach them. In this review, we will recommend a few tools to equip your brokerage for the 2023 real estate market, which is shadowed by a looming recession. What Makes a Real Estate Brokerage Successful in 2023? Competition is the key. Agents and brokers are working against the clock to keep up with the market moving between buyers and sellers. Another great player in this market is data. Business intelligence allows real estate brokerages to stay ahead of the market. The real estate market is an ever-green business environment. In other words, there are always people and companies looking for property and there are leads all over the place. All it takes from a real estate professional is the right mindset, timing, and the right lead generation tools. How to Compete with ‌Competitors? One of the main challenges of small and medium size real estate offices and brokerages is the "big guys." Companies like Compass have reportedly "snatched" lots of agents from more local brokerages, depriving them of revenue. These companies have managed to provide tech tools that make the lives of agents easier, at least tentatively. Therefore, real estate brokerages need to leverage their business by offering their agents state-of-the-art technology. According to T360, top five brokerage firms take almost half of the market share across different classes of the industry: Image source Brokerages that wish to increase their share of the market can compete with the big names in two ways: Be the local expert they really are Equip your brokerage with the right technology. Tools for a Tech-enabled Brokerage A functioning real estate office or brokerage requires the following services: Seamless property listings access and display Effective CRM and lead management tools Mobile apps for agents and clients Branding and visibility Local presence and authority Realtyna offers white-label solutions, designed to turn your brokerage into a full tech-enabled hybrid office.  Learn more about Realtyna's White-label solution here. To view the original article, visit the Realtyna blog.

How Brokerages Can Overcome the Challenges of Using New Real Estate Technology
Technology in real estate is growing and evolving. As a result, processes like managing listings, open houses, closing deals, virtual technology, and more have improved. However, despite the innovative nature of modern tech, not all real estate agents are quick to embrace change and fully use the latest technology. To ensure that all agents adapt fully to new tech, below are some ways of overcoming the challenges of using new real estate technology. Provide Training and Mentoring Training programs help professionals understand and master how new technology works and how it helps improve work efficiency. Also, brokerages can assign personnel with full knowledge of how to use new real estate tech to those still facing challenges understanding or adopting it. Help Agents See the Value for Themselves Before adopting new real estate tech to the brokerage, Realtors/brokers should introduce the technology to their members, explaining how it benefits them. Agents are more likely to use new technology if they know how it works and how it helps their business growth. Promote Technology Use Motivating agents and clients to use new tech will engage them in adapting to its use. When professionals or clients understand that previous technology is outdated and needs an upgrade, the benefits of adopting new tech will beome clearer to agents. For example, brokers can offer incentives to promote using new and effective technology. Break It Up into Small Steps Brokers should carefully break down the process of learning and adapting to new tech to avoid overwhelming agents with new functionality. Also, the learning process shouldn't be rushed so  professionals an catch up at a convenient pace (proper learning/training and work balance). Host 'Launch and Learn' Meetings Host meetings to assist agents in interactacting with and learning more about new tech. At such meetings, brokerages can provide presentations of new technology to give agents insight into the functions and importance of the tech. Questions can be asked to clarify doubts while offering more understanding about the technology. Bottom Line Introducing new tech to real estate businesses can be met with mixed feelings. However, as the world continues to shift towards technology, its importance in the growth of companies can't be overstated. So brokerages must ensure that their members and clients are educated and ready to embrace new real estate technology. To view the original article, visit the Realtyna blog.

NAR Announces 12 Tech Startups for Pitch Battle Competition at iOi Summit
The National Association of Realtors has announced the 12 companies that will participate in the Innovation, Opportunity & Investment (iOi) Summit's "Pitch Battle" competition from September 28-29, in Los Angeles. "In today's real estate ecosystem, innovation is accelerating, opportunity is exploding, and investment is at a record high," said NAR CEO and SCV President Bob Goldberg. "At the iOi Summit, real estate professionals, investors and innovators gather to cultivate and champion the most impactful ideas that will disrupt the status quo and advance the industry. We are thrilled to have these companies showcase their innovations live on stage." NAR's venture capital arm, Second Century Ventures, will present the Pitch Battle competition. Each entrant will conduct a live, 4-minute pitch on their product or service, followed by a 4-minute rapid-fire question-and-answer session from a panel of judges. Contestants are tasked with making a compelling case about their new tech innovations or services that are intended to improve the real estate industry – including commercial, residential, or both. The Pitch Battle contestants are as follows: Agently: Brokerages spend $2 billion annually to recruit agents and compensate for turnover. Agently is on a mission to become a gateway into a real estate career to help agents kickstart their career by providing daily guidance and tools to real estate professionals. Agently stands apart from traditional coaching by using the latest technology and offering accessibility and result-driven action plans. Arx: Currently, a professional searching for investment and development opportunities must identify a property and then manually underwrite it to determine whether the property makes sense to target. This process happens on a property-by-property basis with in-house labor or external consultants. There's no way to know if the property is a slam dunk or not without underwriting it first. Arx automatically underwrites millions of properties in advance – allowing professionals to cut through the noise and focus on the properties that have the best potential. CubiCasa: With zero training required and a five-minute property scan from almost any phone, CubiCasa's computer vision technology produces a reliable and accurate floor plan and property data. CubiCasa is the fastest and most scalable floor planning solution for iOS and Android devices. With floor plans being one of the most desired features of a home listing, CubiCasa brings a home to life by providing a more visual look to potential buyers. Fractional: People want to co-own real estate with friends and other likeminded investors, but most step away feeling overwhelmed by the thought of the complicated legal processes and logistics to acquire and co-manage properties. Fractional, a social platform, allows anyone to easily co-invest in properties, share ideas and build a network. Fractional is becoming a leader in eliminating exclusivity for the average person in the real estate market. Inspectify: Inspectify connects real estate professionals and home buyers with qualified inspectors to provide reassurance their homes are safe. Inspectify takes the pain out of the inspection booking process by providing scheduling in minutes and direct communication using the latest technology. Inspectify was founded to create a better inspection experience and provide more value with the information collected. Pacaso: Pacaso was founded on the belief that we must improve second-home ownership for buyers and communities. Pacaso makes second-home ownership more accessible by lowering ownership cost and reducing hassle through a full-managed owner experience. With Pacaso, second-home buying is more affordable and efficient – a win for luxury home buyers. Prisidio: Prisidio was created to help individuals and families capture, manage and share their most important information. Prisidio provides a safe and protected cloud-based vault that's secured in one location, allowing users to share their valuable and important items with those they trust. It's simple, mobile and secure. With Prisidio, privacy and security are their highest priorities. RentBase: The RentBase mission is simple – to help residential real estate agents succeed in any economic environment. RentBase provide a holistic, single source of truth by providing agents with an interconnected bird's-eye view of their landlords, listings and leads. Agents can easily access all of their data and automatically qualify and match leads to listings. RentBase aims to maximize cashflow by leveraging technology to uncover new opportunities and drive regular cashflow. Residently: Residently is on a mission to make renting better than owning by solving its greatest flaw – the inability to plan ahead. Residently simplifies renting a home by building a world where renters can find their next home months in advance of a move, secure it and set it up – all within minutes. Renting a home should be as convenient and stress-free as possible for tenants and landlords. Revive: With Revive, homeowners can strategically repair and renovate their homes before selling and significantly increase their net gains. As a home renovation consultant, Revive assists homeowners with maximizing the value of their homes with no upfront costs. Revive's complete and streamlined renovation solution swiftly converts an "as-is" condition property into a "move-in ready" home. Stake: Stake builds renters' savings with no fees or debt accumulation and empowers today's owners to create financially safe and secure rental communities. Renters can earn cash back and build savings through financial tips and tools. Symba: Symba makes financial well-being easy for real estate agents, with the only platform in the industry that combines customer relationship management with embedded banking. Symba helps make life as a solo entrepreneur easier for agents by empowering them with the essential tools needed to take care of clients, manage deals and make intelligent financial decisions. The winner will be awarded $15,000, a booth at NAR's annual conference in November (NAR NXT) and will present the next Pitch Battle winner at iOi 2023. "In addition to the cash prize, the Pitch Battle winner receives national publicity as a company that will likely have a significant impact on the future of the real estate industry," said David Conroy, NAR's director of emerging technology. Learn more about the Pitch Battle and register to attend the iOi Summit at ioisummit.realtor.

How Do You Get Your Agents to Fall in Love with the Technology You Provide?
Much like dating, technology adoption is rarely love at first sight. There are predictable stages and steps you can take to encourage the relationship and help your agents get the technology support they need. The first stage is awareness. At this point in the technology cycle, there is no shortage of tools and platforms for agents to choose from, and they know they need technology to be successful. So when it comes to awareness, the focus is simply on letting them know what your brokerage or MLS offers. That may seem easy enough, but simply giving them a list or login to the single-sign-on dashboard filled with app icons is not enough. A short technology onboarding class with an overview of all the technology offerings for your organization is a great place to start with new agents. But don't assume that just because an agent has been a MLS subscriber or member of your brokerage for years that they know about all the tools you offer. Regular marketing of your technology offerings is necessary to cut through the noise and make all your agents aware. High impact product overview videos and regular email reminders highlighting the business benefits of different tools can help. Agents will not be impressed by the features of the technology until they understand the benefits it provides to their business. Lead generation, active client engagement, and past client retention are all popular benefits that agents are often looking to improve. Also consider adding references to other tools in any training you are providing or banner ads in your emails to your agents. The second stage is engagement. At this point, you have piqued their interest in one of the technology solutions you offer and they want to try it. At this critical stage in the falling in love process, you need to support their efforts and try to shorten the learning curve. Most agents get into the business because they are good with people, not apps. Training is the objective here. Sometimes this is just the basics, like which button to press to send a message, but don't overlook training on the various use cases for each technology solution. Just knowing how to use the technology is not enough to cement agent adoption of the tool. They need to understand the bottom line: How is this technology going to make me more money? If they don't see and experience the benefits of the tool early on, then it really does not matter how easy it is to use or how efficiently they interact with it. Does the technology keep them organized so they can make more prospecting calls? Can it create market reports that sellers will want to download from their website in exchange for their email address? Or maybe it can predict which doors in a neighborhood they should knock on that are most likely to sell soon. Whatever the reason is, your training needs to include these implantation steps in order keep the agents engaged. Once they fall in love with the results, they will ultimately love you for providing them these technology offerings. Having great technology to offer to your agents is not enough. If they are not using it, then it is not providing them any value. The new Customer Experience Index for MLSs measures all three stages of technology adoption in your organization, and can help you improve with insights that are working in other markets. It is not too late to join the Customer Experience Index for 2022. To view the original article, visit the WAV Group blog.

Create Community in Your Company Intranet
The pandemic has created the best of times and the worst of times for real estate firms and their agents. It was not long ago that we were helping firms to engineer more welcoming, collaborative, and efficient office environments for agents. A great manager and a cool space attracts new agents and retains existing ones. The cadence of remodeling the office every five years is as relevant today as it was before the pandemic, but the new focus needs to be on creating better community on your intranet. Your intranet is the private and password gated back-office website that you provide for your agents and staff to communicate with each other and access the software that you make available. WAV Group studied a handful of leading intranets to determine if they were good at building community. The results were pathetic and respondents proved to be yearning for improvement. The importance of this is increasingly relevant, given that more agents are working from home than ever before. P.S. These tips would apply to MLS systems too. Here are a few tips that you can use to bolster your community: Add Music Create playlists on Spotify and stream them to your intranet. If you are using Wordpress, here is how to embed a Spotify playlist. Beyond music, you can also add some podcasts or short training snippets. I especially enjoy motivational podcasts and comedy. Add User Profiles and Chat Usernames are fine, but avatars are way better. When people are chatting, a little effort to see a photo of the person you are chatting with goes a long way. And chat is great. One of the things we really like to see in chat is a multi-threaded chat. There can be a general chat where people will feel comfortable posting something as simple as "GM" – Good morning! Other channels can be dedicated to chat about specific things like marketing, prospecting, listing presentations, etc. The list goes on. Add Voice and Video Chat Text chat is good, but if you really want to build community, you can add voice chat and video chat. Not surprisingly, voice chat is the most popular. More community members will feel comfortable listening in and occasionally joining the conversation. Video chat is great too, but less popular because people are often fatigued by experience of being in front of a webcam. Stream Events Many firms did a great job during the early days of the pandemic of having virtual meet-ups on Zoom. As the world opened, many firms stopped this. Bring these virtual meet-ups back and also think about extending the programming to have guest musicians, DJs, coaches, or anyone else that might bring interesting flavor to your livestream. Hire or Appoint a Community Manager Having a dedicated community manager (or a few of them) who is online 24/7 is a fantastic best practice. There is nothing more disheartening than a shoutout by an agent on your company intranet that goes unanswered. This person can also focus on your social media presence. It's a full-time job. Real estate firms need to wake up to the recognition that it is as important to develop a digital community for your company as it is to develop real-life community. If you look at the most remarkable growth companies over the past decade in real estate, such as Keller Williams and EXP, you see one defining feature that separates them from everyone else – community. If you do it, they will come. Need help? Contact WAV Group. We can assist you at evaluating the opportunities that you have with your current intranet. We are happy to work with your existing vendor to discuss enhancements to their platform to enable these features. If necessary, we can also support you at building or replacing what you have. To view the original article, visit the WAV Group blog.

Revive and zavvie Partner to Give Brokerages a New Way to Help Sellers Get the Highest Price for Their Homes
In one of the hottest seller's markets on record, many homeowners in the past year have rushed to list their homes for sale, often in as-is condition. But those sellers are typically leaving money on the table -- as much as $168,0000 in a single sale -- compared to a home that's in top condition, according to experts. Two fast-growing PropTech firms -- Revive and zavvie -- are partnering to help sellers capture the highest possible home price through their listing agent and the agent's brokerage. Revive offers a turnkey home concierge service that identifies the most effective pre-sale home improvements, provides renovation estimates, secures and manages contractors to complete the work, and fronts the cost of the renovations; they're paid after the home sale closes. Now part of zavvie's recently expanded brokerage services, which provides real estate brokerages with a marketplace for buying and selling solutions, Revive can potentially reach tens of thousands of new real estate agents with its turnkey home concierge solution. "Buyers are willing to pay more for a ready-to-live-in home," said Michael Alladawi, co-founder of Revive. "Agents have shown that using Revive to accomplish a pre-sale renovation can mean as much as $50,000 to $100,000 more for sellers. For homeowners, getting that much more from their home sale can be life-changing. "Best of all, it's a seamless process for sellers, as the only finger they have to lift is to sign our agreement. Now with zavvie, it's easier than ever for agents to add more value to every transaction by showing sellers all options, including the value of a pre-sale renovation," Alladawi added. Some brokerages and individual agents have been offering concierge-type services in-house for years, providing funds out of their own pockets. However, Revive is a more efficient and scalable option, Alladawi explains. "With Revive, a brokerage doesn't carry the overhead. Running a concierge service is expensive and time-consuming. Revive has both expertise and a network of vetted, high-quality contractors who are motivated to work with us and offer better pricing because of the volume of work we provide." Lane Hornung, co-founder and CEO of zavvie, says Revive for brokerages is another vital tool modern agents must have in their box of solutions. "For brokerages, if they enable their agents to offer buyers and sellers every option – iBuyer, Cash Offers, Power Buyer, Homeownership Accelerator and Concierge – they also will develop a new source of ancillary income – recurring revenue – that will come from these new solutions."

10 Keys to Look for in Buying Broker Products
The following is an excerpt from RE Technology's Success Guide to Broker Technology: If you are like most brokers in America, you probably did not get a degree in systems engineering. That's okay. Most business leaders outside of the technology industry do not. That is why software-as-a-service (SaaS) has become so popular. Here are a few suggestions that you may want to consider when you interview a technology company about a product you like. When was the product built and how long has it been in production? New products tend to have more software bugs than older products, but being new may be the reason you are attracted to them. Be sure to get references from a number of customers that are on the platform and ask about the quality of the product. If the company has an integration with your MLS, ask if they are members of the Real Estate Standards Organization (RESO) and if they are certified. RESO is the non-profit community that manages data standards which allows software to be quickly integrated with MLS data without a lot of custom programming. What is the company's capital structure? Are they a venture-funded startup? Maybe you want to invest, or maybe you are concerned that you may not like who they sell the company to. Be sure that you have the ability to cancel the contract in the event of a change in control. All of the technologies in your company need to work on mobile. Be sure that your test agents spend some time using the product on a mobile device. Agents don't spend hours in front of a computer screen, they use iOS or Android most of the time. Do they support Single Sign-On (SSO)? This will allow your agents to access the software without remembering 10,000 usernames and passwords. Does it work on both Mac and PC? What are the terms of use? Are they getting access to the ability to repurpose or reuse the data that is contributed into the application or do you own your data? Privacy is becoming a major issue with the passing of more restrictive regulations on how companies can use consumer data. How does the company handle privacy? Indemnity is also a key consideration. Make sure that you are indemnified from any litigation involving their product or your use of the product. Customer support is clearly half of the equation in SaaS. If they do not have a good service department, you will need to make sure that you have the staff resources to provide that. Even better, request a few dedicated service staff. It's always better when you or your agents are talking to the same representative when they have a problem. It makes support familiar and can go a long way toward driving agent satisfaction. Download Success Guide: Broker Technology to learn more about broker technology trends, how to evaluate broker technology, and more.

Latest Trends in Brokerage Tech: The End of the End-to-End Solution
The following is an excerpt from RE Technology's Success Guide to Broker Technology: For the last decade, real estate brokerages and vendors have been focused on developing the "end-to-end solution." Like all trends, this one is on the way out. The reason why end-to-end solutions were so popular was that agents did not want to log into 27 different end point applications to do their business. Putting everything under one software roof made a lot of sense. It provided agents a single place to go to accomplish everything they need. Great idea, but it failed. There are two reasons why the end-to-end solution failed. First, agents may love or hate the platform. So as not to condemn a current vendor, I would like to use Agent Achieve as an example. Agent Achieve was developed for Intero by a great group of software developers, but it was also sold to other brokerages. Under one platform, the agent had access to their website, lead management, CRM, CMA, transaction management, drip marketing, and so on. Agent Achieve was awesome, and it allowed Intero to recruit amazing agents in the heart of California's tech savvy Silicon Valley. The problem, however, was that Agent Achieve was too complicated for some agents. Another problem was that Intero agents would frequently compete for the same customers using the same templated website, the same listing presentation, the same drip marketing, etc. This brings us to the second reason why Agent Achieve failed. It did everything, but was a master of nothing. It was not the best product as a website, CRM, CMA, transaction manager, or anything else. It did all of those things, but was not the best in any category. The two biggest trends that have allowed brokerage technology to evolve beyond the end-to-end software products are Single Sign-On (SSO) and Application Programming interfaces (APIs). These two features combine to allow the brokerage to integrate a group of different applications from different vendors all under one roof. In effect, the brokerage can build their own end-to-end platform using integration tools. Think of it as a Lego set for building a firm's custom technology ecosphere where you can choose the best products and integrate them into your personal mix of the right tools for your agents. The best news of all is that just about every technology company in the real estate industry today supports SSO and APIs. Moreover, they are rolling out app stores that feature their integration partners. As you rethink your technology roadmap this year, focus on partners who have robust integration tools and existing partnerships. As we move forward in this new environment of technology product integration, brokers will have more flexibility than ever before. When you think about technology products, think about choice. You do not need to have one CMA product for all of your agents. Let your agents choose from a selection. Obviously, a selection of two or three is probably more than enough for most agents and teams. The SSO links and API integrations make this possible today. The tricky part is in negotiating the contract with the vendor. We suggest licensing technology on a per seat basis. Agents can only make a vendor switch once a month. At the end of each month, the vendor looks at the user logs and bills you for the number of agents who were active on the platform. If agents did not use a product, you don't pay for it. This will allow you to give agents the best products for the most reasonable price. If product usage for a particular product dwindles down, remove the option and replace it with something better. Download Success Guide: Broker Technology to learn more about broker technology trends, how to evaluate broker technology, and more.

How Top Teams Set Themselves Free!
For the longest time, real estate agents and brokers alike have sought something of a holy grail: the perfect "all in one" software platform that can literally do it all, from generating leads to providing both customer relationship management (CRM) and transaction management. But the reality is that the perfect, "best at all things" platform simply does NOT exist. And when you really think about it, how can any one company be the best at absolutely everything? In a growing trend, the highest performing teams now choose to work with the top specialized providers in each category and make sure that there is a seamless integration with these "top gun" solutions. Grant Johnson, founder of the Grant Group, said, "I used to have one Hyundai and now I have both a Ferrari and a Porsche!' Johnson further explained that his company formerly worked with an all-in-one platform that had a decent CRM but digital marketing services that were sub-par. Today, they work with a purely focused CRM and a separate, best-in-class digital marketing platform and the absolute key is their seamless integration. As Howard Tager, Ylopo CEO and co-founder, explains it, "CRMs should be CRMs, and digital marketing companies should be digital marketing companies. It's absurd to think that one company can be the best at everything." As a founder of Tigerlead Solutions, he was on the front part of the all-in-one wave. But now in 2021, that model is antiquated at best. That's why at Ylopo, "we don't try to be all things to all people. As a pure-play, digital marketing solution for real estate, we can maniacally just focus on being the best at lead gen, dynamic remarketing, AI texting, video marketing, and custom-branded IDX websites. And we make sure that we have amazing two-way integrations with the best CRMs in the real estate industry." "In 2021, being an all-around software development company doesn't cut it anymore," says Dan Corkill, CEO of real estate CRM Follow Up Boss. "Technology companies now need to have deep domain expertise and be uniquely specialized in order to effectively build and manage the latest and greatest advancements in tech. We live and breathe all things real estate CRM—this is our pure focus!" Corkill further explains that this is where the all-in-one platforms run into trouble. "By still trying to do absolutely everything, rather than focusing on integrating with other, more advanced tools, they're living in the past, with outdated technology and as a result providing merely average tech to their customers." Unfortunately, the old-school all-in-ones have what is called a closed application programming interface (API). When a company maintains a closed API, that essentially means they refuse to integrate well with other needed technology tools. Why does this matter? Companies with a closed API can easily create a situation called "customer lock-in" where they hold their customers and their data hostage by preventing them from switching to other products and by forcing the customer to put forth massive effort, incur significant switching costs, or suffer substantial data loss if they tried to leave. But the good news is that making the break and moving off of an all-in-one platform, while it might cause some short term pain, will ultimately provide greater freedom and control over an agent or team's business and put them in a better position for long-term success. Furthermore, with this approach, agents, teams and brokers will have the ultimate freedom to switch out any of their individual providers at any time that they like without affecting the other solutions at all. There was a time when we believed an "all-in-one" platform was the best way to support agents," said Mike McGowan of Chime. "Through our strategic partner program, we learned that by maximizing the potential of each best of breed partner and tightly integrating with our powerful CRM, we can deliver a more powerful technology stack to our clients. As one of our valued partners, we are incredibly proud to work with Ylopo and offer our customers unmatched lead generation and digital marketing tools for long term success." "Agents should be able to adapt and change as fast as tech changes and must partner with technology companies who can do the same," says Tristan Ahumada, top team leader and CEO and Co-Founder of Lab Coat Agents. "Better products come out for agents when companies focus on what they do well. Companies like Ylopo who have an open API and singularly specialize in the services they provide allow for agents to freely build their businesses how they see fit." The key then, according to Ahumada, is to make sure that your best of breed tech solutions all talk to each other and are integrated in a seamless two-way manner. "Great integration is critical!" Learn more about how Ylopo and our strategic partner program can work for you.

The New Bridge Solution: How to Turn Homeowners Into Sellers
The biggest problem for home sales today remains a lack of inventory. So, how do we keep the bounce-back from COVID-19 going? We need more listings! To create more listings, we need to get homeowners off the sidelines. The problem is that homeowners are nervous to make a move for the same reason everyone else is: a lack of inventory. It's a catch-22, but there's a new, innovative bridge solution for brokerages available through zavvie that's designed to help agents get sellers moving. A bridge solution removes urgency from the buying and selling process, reduces stress and removes the biggest barrier to selling. Don't confuse a bridge solution with a bridge loan, however. The only people who qualify for bridge loans don't need one. A bridge solution is available nationwide, unlike an iBuyer option. Bridge solutions are flexible. Sellers love them, and so do agents. Getting a Homeowner to Become a Seller Many homeowners today feel like they are locked into their homes. It's a "chicken and the egg" problem: they can't buy until they sell, but can't sell unless they find the right house. A bridge solves that by giving your clients time to find that right house. Smart agents know you can quickly turn a homeowner who has no plans to sell into a seller if you show them the right place or the right offer. A bridge solution can do both. Homeowners also don't want to sell right now because they don't want people traipsing through their homes. To them, it's a safety issue. And selling a house on the open market is always daunting. Your clients have to prep until it's perfect, keep everything in shape and interrupt their lives for showings. A bridge solution removes these obstacles to selling. Two Bridge Solution Approaches Today, two dominant bridge solutions exist. The first purchases your client's house with an all-cash offer, then leases it back to your clients, giving them the time they need to find a new home. With the second approach, the bridge solution provider buys your client's next house, providing them time to sell their current home. Homeowners who want to move up and have excellent credit, have growing income and are looking for a more expensive home do well with the bridge solution that buys their next home. The other approach is a home sale-leaseback model that delivers flexibility. Your client can lease their current home for as long as they like and move whenever they find their dream house. This bridge solution can work with a wide range of credit scores and income types. Offering All the Options Homeowners have more options to sell their homes today than ever before—and they need and want the help of an agent. It's why zavvie helps brokerages keep the agent at the center of the transaction. By offering a bridge solution for sellers on the zavvie-powered platforms of our broker partners, zavvie makes sure agents can show homeowners all of their options. Lane Hornung is CEO and founder of Colorado-based 8z Real Estate, one of the nation's most successful brokerages, and is CEO/co-founder of zavvie, one of the only complete iBuyer solutions for real estate brokerages. To view the original article, visit RISMedia.

Industry Experts Discuss Technology's Role in Transforming How Realtors Do Business During the Pandemic
The coronavirus pandemic significantly disrupted real estate transactions and accelerated the reliance on innovative technologies to conduct business, according to a group of industry experts featured at the 2020 REALTORS Conference & Expo. Jeb Griffin, director of Strategy and Innovation for the National Association of Realtors, moderated the discussion, "COVID-19 – Transforming How Realtors Do Business," and reached a consensus with the panelists that technology has played a central part in residential real estate's strong resurgence after the initial strict economic lockdowns and subsequent market downturn in the spring. "Real estate experienced some significant challenges during the first several months of the pandemic, but we've witnessed a remarkable v-shaped recovery in housing demand and sales," said Griffin. "By necessity at the beginning, and now by design, technology is playing a much more active role in nearly all aspects of the real estate transaction." "There was a moment of panic when the pandemic first started, but several technologies are making it easier for agents to stay in touch with clients and in front of them on a regular basis," said Marilyn Wilson, managing partner of WAV Group and president of RETechnology.com. "For many real estate professionals, the pandemic reminded them about how much they love working with people and not just to sell real estate, but to check on their customers and families." Many Realtors® now rely on videoconference platforms in their interactions with clients, but an even broader acceptance of the technology hasn't yet occurred, possibly due to an unexpected reality. "This technology was adopted very quickly following the lockdowns because the virus was hitting everyone – agents, lenders, consumers – all at the same time," said Nick Bailey, chief customer officer, RE/MAX, LLC. "Videoconferencing technology isn't new, but we're slower to adopt technologies than we'd like to admit. The reason is that we don't want to see or hear ourselves. We have to get over that and use it." Electronic signatures and remote online notarizations are two technologies experiencing an ever-growing appeal during a time when social and physical distancing measures are required to maximize safety. However, some challenges still remain. "There is some amazing technology that exists and remote online notarization is one of those technologies," said Andy Ambrose, practice lead at DocuSign Notary. But there's a whole ecosystem of technologies that should work better together and seamlessly." "Integrating those core programs like e-signatures and RON are key," Ambrose continued. "Unfortunately, there isn't uniformity at the county level for doing electronic signings and closings. Embracing title companies and lenders who have that ability for full electronic signings and closings will be important." Each speaker emphasized that many of the technological advancements currently in use will remain relevant and sought after by Realtors® and consumers alike, well beyond the pandemic's conclusion. "Some of these technologies are here to stay, like 3-D virtual tours, as some consumers will continue to be uncomfortable with seeing homes in-person," Griffin said. "It's amazing how some of the virtual platforms can take an empty room and fill it with furniture and dynamic lighting. Artificial intelligence and automation are helping drive consumers through the sales cycle." "The pandemic isn't going anywhere anytime soon," Wilson added. "Consumers love the idea of virtual tours, especially live virtual tours, which they can do with their agents and narrow down their home selections to two or three. "Imagine how much time you and your client can save without having to drive around and see 10 different homes," Wilson said. "It's so much more efficient. The technology tools are allowing us a lot more flexibility." Bailey agreed with that sentiment. "If every agent can take away two pieces of technology to be more efficient, it will improve their business," said Bailey. "The one really bright spot – it has reminded every agent that they are the most important part of the real estate transaction and that's not going to change anytime soon."

Growing Your Team Business with Productivity Software
The following is an excerpt from RE Technology's Success Guide to Team Software: Operating a team is pretty similar to operating a brokerage. The advantage that teams have over brokers usually relates to having more influence over the activities of the team. Quite frankly, beyond compliance related activities, most brokers have little or no control over how agents operate. Teams come in all shapes and sizes, but one shared commonality is a unified approach to how they operate and how they provide services to clients. For example, some top producing agents focus on listings, often carrying an inventory of 10 or more listings. At that rate, it is hard for the listing agent to also take on buyer clients. So, they create a team of buyer's agents to respond to leads generated on their listings, both digital and from yard signs. The biggest concern by the listing agent is the effectiveness of buyer's agents at converting those leads to grow the business. Another key common element between these team solutions is buyer and seller lead tracking paired with powerful follow-up actions that generate business. More than anything, these platform solutions offer the team leader the ability to empower team members with great follow-up software while simultaneously evaluating the strengths of team members converting opportunities into business. Another prevalent feature of these platforms is a focus on lifetime relationships with every client in the database. With the entire team able to see what the last touch was with the customer and how they responded to it, this component creates continuity with client engagements, driving home future repeat business and referrals. For too long, real estate teams have primarily targeted new business generation while allowing existing customers to stray from insufficient relationship maintenance. All of the tools in this year's Teams Success Guide facilitate collaboration between you and your team, helping your customers receive the best possible service. These platforms are proven to help you stay organized. You will be able to run reports on the effectiveness of your team members and have visibility into their activities. Each of these companies invest in dedicated staff members who deliver awesome support resources, ensuring that your team maximizes their productivity when using these platforms. But remember, you must make sure that your team of agents and staff attend those trainings and maximize the features of whichever platform you choose. Download Success Guide: Teams to learn more about Team software trends, how to evaluate Team software, and more.

iBuyer Platform Provider zavvie Launches New Streamlined Offer Optimizer
zavvie, the nation's first iBuyer platform for real estate brokerages, announces the release of an improved Offer Optimizer to bring home sellers all their options with unprecedented accuracy and clarity. The pro-consumer Offer Optimizer helps agents engage clients with all the newest selling options, including instant offers from iBuyers, a buy-before-you-sell option from Bridge providers, as well as a traditional Open Market offer. Real estate experts note more sellers may find instant offers from iBuyers more attractive because of COVID-19. "The iBuyer business model is uniquely positioned to thrive in a world of social distancing, where people are putting a premium on the ability to conduct business while limiting direct human contact," said Mike DelPrete, a global real estate tech strategist. "Feedback from thousands of agents using Offer Optimizer in the field reveals many sellers have heard of iBuyers, but are unfamiliar with how they work," said Lane Hornung, zavvie co-founder and CEO. "A streamlined Offer Optimizer makes it easy for the agent to explain how an instant sale works, and why it might be the right choice for their client." Individual estimates from each iBuyer have been replaced with an estimated offer range for all iBuyers. The market-specific ranges are based on zavvie's proprietary data set, with a statistically significant 95% confidence interval. "We know consumers want to be represented by an agent, even with an instant offer," Hornung said. "But agents need the right tools to talk about all the options available today. Agents add value by quarterbacking the transaction and earning a commission regardless of the option the seller chooses." In addition to agents being able to provide their clients all iBuyer and Open Market options, the new Offer Optimizer adds a Bridge option for sellers. The Bridge option, available in all 50 states, allows a consumer to buy their next home before they sell their current one. "The newest options for sellers – iBuyers and Bridge – are nearly completely digital, and well-suited for social distancing," Hornung explained. "This expansion of options available in Offer Optimizer also extends our reach. While iBuyers are limited to select markets, Bridge providers operate in every state."

The 'Four Pillars' of Brokerage Technology Tools
It's no secret that real estate brokerage business models are continually evolving, and tech innovation is happening at warped speed. In the fast-paced and highly competitive real estate industry, it can serve as a helpful reminder for brokers to focus on the "four pillars" of brokerage technology tools. Let's break down the "four pillars" of technology tools for your brokerage: 1. Drive Revenue With the industry's leading recruiting module, we make it easier than ever to target the agents you want to recruit and build rapport and meaningful relationships faster. With contact record details protected in the agent databases, agent adoption is greater and leads to more engagement with more of their spheres of influence, resulting in more business transactions. Additionally, our industry leading lead generation volume and conversion rates catapults new business opportunities leading to increased returns on investment. 2. Increase Capacity An advanced CRM productivity solution such as Elevate BOSS™ allows agents to stay on track with tasks associated with each stage of the pipeline for buyers, sellers, and renters. Daily coaching emails (morning reports) designed to focus the agent on the highest and best use of their time while reminding them about the customers that need attention now is a sure-fire way to maximize effective selling time and increase production capacity. 3. Save Time Currently, the typical agent manages 10 different and disparate technology vendors. The Elevate platform combines an agent's core services into one solution, providing best-in-class IDX websites, CRM, CMA, email and text message marketing, document storage, pipeline management, activity coaching, social media marketing and lead generation, plus much more. Time lost is time wasted, and agents need to maximize their time on the activities that matter most, driving the behavior that produces the most desired financial outcome. 4. Save Money The typical brokerage manages more than 15 different vendors, incurring costs exponentially higher than what can be available in one, consolidated, simplified solution. By providing IDX websites, advanced productivity CRMs, email and text marketing, recruiting module, document storage, CMA creation wizard, blogs, automated content, social media marketing, online lead generation, lead routing and lead scrubbing concierge services, there is NO OTHER platform in real estate that combines all of this functionality into one, singular solution. With an unrivaled price point, Elevate BOSS™ saves you money and time while improving production capacity and driving revenue to increase your "company dollar." Are you ready to meet the BOSS? Elevate BOSS™ helps brokerages concentrate on what matters most. Consider your current technology tools, products, and services and compare them to what Elevate BOSS™ provides. Are your current solutions meeting all your needs? If you are unsure, spend a few minutes with the Elevate Brokerage Development team to discuss your business challenges and determine if our solution can benefit your brokerage. < Schedule Your Gap Analysis Now >

Augmented Reality: Two Startups Expand Partnership to Include 3D Staging Product
The PropTech industry is teeming with life; the pressure to stand out and be extraordinary propels companies ever forward toward the cutting edge of our digital capabilities. We see multitudes of increasingly impressive tech companies at industry conferences each year, with the prioritization on user experience distinguishing those on the road to success. BoxBrownie and GeoCV are two such companies that have stood out to WAV Group in the past few years. We were excited when they announced a partnership back in July to address the growing demand for the visualization of a home's furnished spaces. They are now expanding their partnership to include commercial GeoCV's commercial 3D staging product, and the demo is spectacular. Instead of imagining an office space with furniture and lighting installed, what if you could actually see what it would look like? The market opportunity here is undeniably huge. Augmented reality (AR) has just begun its journey in many industries, real estate included, and like machine learning, promises to shape the future of the business landscape. Both GeoCV and BoxBrownie leverage AR in their products with image mapping and photo manipulation, providing brokers and agents with the means to immerse prospective clients in a unique virtual experience that truly demonstrates the potential of a space. The commercial real estate market has increased by a whopping 42.5% in the last four years alone, and the announcement of this new product with the potential to revolutionize the buyer experience should not go overlooked. About BoxBrownie WAV Group set our sights on BoxBrownie last year at the National Association of Realtors® Midyear conference in Washington, D.C. during the company's participation in the 2018 REACH® class. Based in Australia, BoxBrownie offers an impressive range of services, from stunning 360° virtual staging to image enhancement and even design renders. Users can upload images from a phone, tablet, or desktop computer and their editing experts deliver the finished product within 24-48 hours, with the user retaining 100% of the copyright ownership. www.boxbrownie.com About GeoCV A start-up company out of New York, GeoCV specializes in photorealistic 360° and 3D property tours. Users create the videos by uploading floor plans along with imagery captured using 3D-enabled smartphones—the depth perception feature translates to beautifully rendered, seamless 3D walkthroughs. I was personally floored upon experiencing GeoCV's virtual tour service for the first time—it is unlike any other application I've used (aside from Matterport). geocv.com

Industry Acquisitions Drive Luxury Brokerage to Launch New Tech Stack
Willis Allen Real Estate, a leading luxury brokerage in the greater San Diego area, announced that they are launching a new tech stack for agents, "WAREhouse." The new platform will be launched in phases, with the first phase released to agents on June 17.

Where Is the Real Estate App Store?
For mobile apps, it's the Apple App Store or the Google Play Store. But where is the app store for everything else? Where is Amazon for real estate tech? There are many oars in the water, but there is no clear leader in the race.

How Brokerages Currently Structure Their Tech Is Limited
Technology inside the real estate space is finally catching up to address the complete needs of how the modern brokerage operates, allowing solutions and tools from broker-specific, team-specific and agent-specific perspectives all under one umbrella inside of a single solution. An insurgence of companies are laying claim to be an "all in one solution" or "complete broker platform" but what does it take to actually be one?

Yes, There is Such a Thing as Too Much Real Estate Tech
Brokerages that pile on the tech might be hurting their business Today, it seems as though there is a tech tool or solution for every stage of the real estate transaction, from marketing and advertising to listing and closing. Sometimes it can feel like we are kids in a candy store, overwhelmed by so many choices that promise they will miraculously improve our business. But is there such a thing as too much tech for real estate? And what is the perfect balance of tech tools that produce the highest agent adoption and profitability for the brokerage?

Magnificent 7 Tech Trends to Watch in 2019 and Beyond
Two years ago, I picked a "Magnificent 7" list that included Automation, Deep Learning, IoE (Internet of Everything), Intelligent Apps, Security, Digital Twins, and Ghosting. Here's my list for 2019 of the NextGen and NextLevel tech that have caught my eye and the implications for real estate.

To Adopt or Not To Adopt
Agent adoption has always been a hot topic. As long as new technologies develop and emerge in the real estate space, there will always be an ongoing conversation on adoption. Typically, we hear a lot from the quantitative side of adoption. In the statistical data highlighting agent adoption numbers related to specific technology solutions and platforms, however, rarely do we hear about the qualitative data or the "why" pertaining to agent adoption. Technology solutions offered at a brokerage level to agents are intended to make agents more productive and make their life easier at the same time. So why is there often so much hesitation and resistance to embrace these solutions that have nothing but good intentions towards the agent and their business? Here are three primary reasons/barriers why agents don't adopt technology:

Demystifying the Real Estate Tech Stack
Real estate brokerages share a common goal: to make our agents' businesses more successful, and therefore driving more revenue to the brokerage. Every brokerage operates differently. Having the ability to choose best-in-breed solutions offers an edge when investing in a competitive technology stack, and is a key way to help agents grow their businesses and give broker owners an advantage to increase agent retention. But building a tech stack can be intimidating. How should a brokerage choose technologies to include? Should the brokerage invest in an "all-in-one solution" or a few solutions that are the best on the market? What are the essential components of a real estate tech stack? At Fox & Roach, we focus on giving our agents the tools necessary for them to be most successful. Here's how we did it.

Homebot Wins Realogy FWD Innovation Award
Realogy Franchise Group brought together 300 industry leaders to hear and vote on their 6th Annual Realogy FWD Innovation Award. Sherry Chris of Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate is the brand sponsor of the event, but it was really a team effort that fostered collaboration among all of their brands. Chairman Ryan Schneider kicked off the event with opening remarks that focused Realogy's strategy for the event, suggesting that Realogy always balances the decision of "Build, Buy, or Partner" in all of their technology decisions. He noted that for Realogy, it is "our opportunity to leverage technology," remembering that real estate is a human focused business enhanced by technology." Well said. I took some notes on each company that come from my perspective as a consultant that works on technology strategy with America's largest brokerages and franchises. So my comments are slanted in that direction.

5 Technology Expenses to Review for Budget Season, Part Two
Part two of this two-part series continues to explore technology expenses and strategies for budget season. In part one, we discussed the importance of reviewing your technology partner agreements and telecommunication expenses. Part two focuses on finding savings in cloud services, the benefits of a hardware refresh program, and capturing Shadow IT costs. So, let's start.

The Smarter Your Home Gets, the More Useful It Becomes
Understanding what a smart home is and what the technology can do for you and your leads is a great way to get a leg up on your competition. On the most basic level, a smart home saves you time and money by linking various systems around your home or office so you can control them via your phone or a voice command. But when you drill down into it, smart home technology can do so much more. Here's a list of ways you can use smart home technology in your personal life and in real estate.

Bitcoin or Bust: Buying homes and paying rent with digital currency
"Bitcoin accepted." A not-so-strange note to see anymore. Digital currency, or cryptocurrency, is hot and some of those in real estate are now using it to appeal to young renters. That means saying goodbye to mailing checks and hello to using an API that converts a digital currency payment into U.S. dollars.

Better technology fuels consumer interest in new real estate brands. Here's how local real estate brokers can compete
Who are they? Redfin and Compass are new brokerage companies coming to your town. They are fueled by hundreds of millions of dollars in cash. Redfin recently went public. Compass has raised over $750 million. Redfin resonates with mainstream consumers via their easy to navigate web and mobile systems. They streamline the home selling and buying process similar to how Amazon made e-commerce easy for buyers and sellers. In contrast, Compass entices premier agents to leave their existing firms with healthy incentives and the promise of better agent technology. In Chicago alone, 50 agents who sold over $400 million moved to Compass.

Future Tech: Tools that will change our work and our homes
Imagine this: It's the day before Christmas 2025 as you dash into the Amazon Mall for a last-minute gift and Pepper is there to greet you. Pepper immediately knows you are anxious. Pepper patiently and calmly answers your questions, directing you to the right place for that perfect gift. Pepper is a lifesaver and made you feel great. Pepper is also a robot from Softbank that can read and respond to human emotion. Now, the Amazon Mall may be fiction—although Amazon has started to open brick-and-mortar stores—but Pepper is not. Pepper just went to work at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Las Vegas recently. In this article, we explore how the future is now, because many of the tech tools that will change our work and our homes tomorrow are already in production today. They're just not widely available yet.

5 Startups Shaking Up the Real Estate Industry
Real estate technology is experiencing a moment. Last year, $1 billion was invested in the space, with two companies, Opendoor and Compass hitting a $1 billion valuation. Where there is funding, there are disruptors. These five caught our eye. The type of ingenuity demonstrated by these companies inspired the recent launch of our Jump Start program. But in addition to creativity and problem solving, these companies are bringing something else to the real estate transaction – a little bit of fun.

Real Estate Leaders See Bright Future for Predictive Analytics, Big Data, and Marketing Automation
New Imprev Study Also Shows Surprises: Lukewarm Ratings for Portals and "Hot" Technologies Real estate industry leaders anticipate big opportunities coming from newer technology like predictive analytics, big data, and marketing automation over the next five years, but show lukewarm confidence in artificial intelligence, augmented realty, and virtual reality 3D tours. These findings emerged from a new Imprev Thought Leadership Survey asking participants to predict the future of real estate marketing and anticipate the effect on their businesses. The study was released today at Inman Connect, the nation's largest real estate technology conference being held August 7-11 at the San Francisco Hilton.

What Smart Home Technology is Trending in Real Estate?
Hey Alexa, will the next listing looky-loo really care that my home is smart? Eighty million smart home devices were delivered in 2016 – up 64 percent from the previous year, and that number is expected to climb even higher in 2017. In today's spotlight on real estate trends, we'll take a look at what smart home technology is trending, why – and how being in-the-know on smart tech can give your business a boost.

Smart Home Hackers: What Real Estate Pros Should Know
Is smart home technology putting you and your clients at risk? Purported to bring convenience, security, and improved connectivity, smart services are instead bringing unauthorized surveillance, loss of privacy, and compromised data, thanks to the Internet of Things (IoT). What's the IoT? It's the combined/synergistic use of mobile apps, cloud storage, big data, automation, sensors and more that are attached to everyday items, processes and systems—part-and-parcel of everything from your phone and laptop to your TV, appliances, door locks, and security. Case(s) in point: Recent WikiLeaks on the CIA's (and other hackers') ability to spy on you via TV – not to mention last October's massive, internet service disrupting DDoS attack. The IoT-DDoS Conundrum Each of these items relies on the cloud to operate, either for analysis or as a communications path to other devices, forming a "botnet" of devices. But there is no magical "cloud" – only someone else's computer, such as company Dyn's DNS system – the one hacked last October. Protection from botnets, to date, is woefully insufficient, and devices are so prolific that if a mere portion of those in homes were comprised, it could prove disastrous. The best protection? Keeping these devices out, as even password protected gadgets are NOT secure, and informing clients of smart home risks.

Why a Smart Home is also a Danger Zone
A most provocative talk about smart homes and the dangers of the IoT (Internet of Things) kicked-off the first Hacker Connect in New York City in January. Molly Sauter, a PhD candidate and Vanier Scholar from Montreal's McGill University, gave a presentation that scared the crap out of me when she dove into the dangers of today's smart home. Now I've been a fan and even early adopter of affordable smart home tech: in the late 1980s, I had a wireless alarm system from Radio Shack and switches that allowed me to turn on lights with a remote. But that stuff turned out to be terribly unreliable. More than a year ago, we outfitted our home with Amazon's Echo and Echo Dot and have been blissfully pleased. Great product, awesome interface and we're now dabbling in more ways to make our home smarter. I even wrote about Amazon's move into the smart home space after last year's homebuilder convention, since it was being largely ignored there ("Digital Dawn: Amazon is creating the smart house for the rest of us"). Fast forward one year later, and Alexa was the star of the most recent CES (Consumer Electronics Show), and a plethora of products at this year's International Builders Show touted ties to Alexa. In fact, the popularity of Alexa is so pervasive – Amazon sold millions of units of its Echo and Echo Dot during the holiday – when Google introduced its competing product – Home – industry experts predicted that Google is simply too late to beat Amazon at this game ("Amazon's Echo is building a coffin that's custom-made for Google").

Up Close with Clareity's Broker Dashboard
For brokerages looking to replace their aging intranet platform, there's a new player in town that can improve internal communication with agents and boost adoption of broker-provided tools. Clareity's new broker dashboard, known as DASH!, offers single sign-on (SSO) access to all MLS and brokerage provided tools. If that sounds familiar, it should. DASH! is an extension of Clareity's MLS-provided SSO dashboards that serve over 800,000 agents in 175 MLSs and associations. The broker dashboard is accessible as page extension within the MLS dashboard, or as a standalone offering. That's important because, according to Clareity, agents use their MLS dashboard an average of 3.4 times a day. That frequency of use makes the dashboard a superior place for brokers to promote the tools they provide to their agents. The dashboard also serves to reduce frustration in agents. According to WAV Group satisfaction research, a major pain point for agents is having to run around the web to access the dozen or more tools that they use--as well as having to remember log-in information for each. By consolidating all of these tools in one place under one log-in, brokers can vastly increase adoption of the tools they offer agents.

Looking at Virtual Reality for Real Estate? Augmented Reality Will Be Even Bigger
A lot of attention in real estate goes into looking at what the next big thing will be in technology that will impact our business. As a self-confessed closet geek, I do my best to stay on top of future trends. All things related to data have garnered my greatest attention over the last few years – from predictive analytics, to artificial intelligence and the emergence of the "algorithm economy." The future impact of these trends on real estate will be stunning, but there are two other trends closer to the vest for real estate brokerages that could have a much more rapid and practical impact. And that's what is happening in leveraging technology to allow people to not just see a house remotely, but feel as if they are actually inside the home. VR has the buzz One of the biggest buzzes in real estate continues to be around virtual reality. VR gives real estate agents the ability to immerse customers into a property, virtually, through a three dimensional online experience. Matterport is among the hottest technologies being used to create the most advanced digital 3D property tours. Just visit their website, and you'll see the value of what they do. It is being used by some of real estate's biggest and most forward-thinking brands: Redfin, Alain Pinel Realtors, Halstead, and Apartments.com, to name a few. In fact, Matterport has spawned a cottage industry, giving birth to a nationwide network of professional 3D photographers that have helped drive down the cost of a 3D tour and make it more accessible to agents nationwide.

Top Tools and Apps to Get You through the Day
Sometimes all those apps and tools we have taking up space on our phones and tablets can be a bit distracting. How often are you grateful for an app or a crucial tool for keeping you on task or for making you more productive during your day? We've all had one of those days where it seems the simple app we have keeping us on task is the only reason we were productive. Since we tend to get stuck using the same tools over and over again, we may be unaware of the other tools out there, or unwilling to try something different for fear of switching up our routine. Via Atlassian There is a lot of time wasted at work, and you'd be surprised to know that some of the biggest culprits are some of the unnecessary things we end up having to do while at work...and not just checking on our Facebooks. According to a study by Atlassian, at least 60% of our time at work is actually spent productively. If you're working a 40 hour work week, that's at least 24 hours spent not being productive. One of the biggest culprits? Answering and keeping your emails organized. That same study found that, on average, it takes about 16 whole minutes to get back on track after being derailed by an incoming email. Okay, ready for the good news? We've got the master list of professionals from all different industries of the tools and apps they use to get through their day productively. We went out and asked a few of our customers what they thought about it and what top tools or apps they use everyday. The results? Amazing. And we'll be honest, there are a few on this list that we hadn't even heard of! But you can be sure we'll be implementing them into our routine very soon.

Smart Home Certification for Residential Properties
Today, we had our Logictech Harmony Ultimate Home automation experience installed. From a single controller or mobile device, anyone in our family can control connected lights, locks, thermostats, home entertainment devices, and even schedule when devices turn on or off. Everything is connected. Smart Homes May Add More Value This week, Coldwell Banker Real Estate and CEDIA announced a collaboration to develop a smart home curriculum for real estate sales associates. Coldwell Banker and CNET, the world's largest and most trusted online source of consumer technology news and reviews, also developed the definition of a smart home, which is illustrated below. At the onset, Coldwell Banker will be culling smart home features from their database through keyword search to determine listings that qualify for the designation. By pulling qualitative data from the Coldwell Banker database in the form of keywords in the property descriptions, they hope to begin measuring benchmarks in relative price per square foot and days on market for smart homes. Today, consumers can search for smart homes on ColdwellBanker.com/smarthome, but the company expects that they are at the beginning of a long road to lead the industry into support for smart homes. Coldwell Banker recently released research that indicates that 87% of consumers value smart home features.

What’s the Real Estate Tech Arms Race?
In the past, real estate companies have felt threatened by new technology. However, recent activity on the tech front points to upcoming real estate trends embracing technology and challenging the sector's reputation as resistant to change. Sometimes dubbed the "real estate tech arms race," the rewards are real, and both residential and commercial firms are rushing to form alliances with these new tech technologies to ensure they're not left behind. The uprising of real estate tech Up more than 350 percent from 2010, investors tossed a whopping $1.5 billion in the real estate tech pot in 2015, and they're battling all the way to the finish line to fill the void of real estate industry driven technology tools that will allow brokers to complete jobs more efficiently and effectively. An explosion of startups aimed at the industry There are 175 startups trying to change the world of real estate. Though most are destined to fail, the movement will not. The commercial sector is leading the way and the residential sector is struggling to catch up. The dragon hiding in the rafters Mega-giant Zillow is hosting hackathons to get an early read on potential ideas and consider where to invest.

16 Ways to Be Productive in 2016
2015 flew by and it's crazy to think that 2016 has started. Since most of us probably felt how fast 2015 flew by, we cannot waste time in 2016, especially at the beginning. Resolutions and setting goals are important, but staying productive is at the top of most of our minds in order to achieve these resolutions and goals successfully. It's clear that productivity and to "be productive" is a trending topic right now, so how do we all maintain this stride for the rest of 2016? There are many lists for ways to be more productive and we've found many to be helpful. However, here's our list of the top 16 ways to stay productive throughout all of 2016. 1. Energy Mapping When do you feel like you have the most energy? During the day, when do you feel most productive? For a week, log your days, the amount of work you completed, and the timeframe you completed it in. You'll be able to see at the end of the week the times you feel most productive and energized. Then schedule that time where you feel most energized for whitespace or to get stuff done.

How Concierge-level Service Helps Brokers Impress and Retain Clients
"Concierge service" is the buzzword of the moment in real estate technology. We've been noticing that more companies are making it as easy as possible for agents and brokers to start using their products. For example, some CRMs will transfer or upload your contact database for you, or set up drip marketing campaigns for your clients. It's a smart move; by removing the barriers to getting started using their product, these companies vastly increase their customer retention rates. Brokers can learn from this model of customer service--and many already do. Brokers deliver concierge level services all the time. Our CEO, Victor Lund, recently experienced this level of service from a brokerage he listed his second home with. See the picture below? That's the home's front yard after a blustery storm blew through the area. Because his broker understood the importance of keeping a listing in top shape for showings, they immediately recommended and sent over a contractor who took care of the problem for him. What happens when a customer asks your company, Where can I find a landscaper? or Where do you get your tires fixed? Do you have an answer? Many brokerages, especially smaller ones, don't--even though providing that concierge-level service differentiates them other agencies in their area. Many consumers may not presume that a broker can answer these questions. However, if a brokerage can, then they become a more valuable resource to the homeowner.

The Surface Pro 3: The Tablet that Replaces the Desktop?
Microsoft calls it "the tablet that can replace your laptop," and with every update of their Surface series, they are getting closer and closer to that goal. If you are still in need a full-sized laptop, you should probably still buy one, but if you need/want something lighter and more portable but with the benefits of a laptop, the Surface Pro 3 is that something. It's a complete PC with a full Windows operating system, currently available in Windows 8 and Windows 10 models, but not a complete PC all of the time. It's perfect to use for both home and work, because it's essential to both. The Surface Pro is as adept at watching Netflix in bed as it is working on-site and on the go. Boasting a 12 inch display, it's comfortable to watch movies on and shows as well as space to view webpages, compose emails and edit spreadsheets. It's light and thin, clocking in at 9.1mm thick and under 2 lbs. The standout feature of the Surface series is the kickstand. With the Pro 3, there comes a new and improved, more flexible one; it offers nearly every angle between upright and almost flat to give you the optimal viewing angle for any lighting situation. For those that need the textile feel of a button press when typing and a touch screen just doesn't cut it, the Surface offers the flip out physical keyboard. Flexible enough to fold over the screen as a cover and durable enough to handle typing out the next great novel—or at least the next great email!

Discover More Information Automatically about People Online with Connect6
Have you ever received an online lead in which the only information included was the email address? How about an email from a potential client who didn't provide much information, such as a phone number, their name, or other personal information? If you answered "YES" to either of these questions, Connect6 could be your solution for these types of predicaments. Connect6 is a Chrome browser extension that also works with Gmail. Check out this short 45 second video on how Connect6 works:

Productivity Hack: Drown out Distracting Noise… with Noise
Noisy workspace got you down? Whether it's a chatty colleague, a droning lawnmower just outside your window, or the chaos of an open office floorplan, nothing torpedos your concentration like loud distractions. So what's an effective way to drown out all that noise? Surprisingly, it's more noise--white noise, to be exact. Like the static you hear between radio stations, white noise can boost your concentration, soothe frayed nerves, and act as a kind of aural fence that keeps unwanted sounds at bay. Luckily, white noise generators are pretty easy to come by. There are countless sites and mobile apps you can start using today to get your productivity back on track. Here are a few: SimplyNoise.com - This is my go-to noise generator, mostly because it's, yes, simple. Just go to the site, choose from white noise, pink noise, or brown noise (each affects the brain differently), adjust your volume and get to work! Coffitivity - If you can't quite buy in to listening to static, this website offers users' ears the gentle ambient sounds of a coffee shop. Coffitivity is also available as a mobile app for Android and iPhone in case you run into distractions on the go.