Gone are the glory days when real estate companies had exclusive access to listing data; people communicated by actually speaking on the phone and facsimiles were considered high tech. Today, nearly everyone has a smartphone, a Twitter feed and a mobile lifestyle. Help your team maximize their productivity with these mobile apps:
1. Find nearby homes
Your reps can point clients to nearby homes with REALTOR.com®. Just launch the free app and the geo-locator displays homes for sale in the immediate vicinity.
2. Take advantage of ABR® benefits
With our mobile app, reps can access home-buyer resources, finance calculators, marketing tips and articles from Today’s Buyer’s Rep. This free download is available at iTunes or the App store on your iPhone. Search for “ABR® App” and use your last name and REBAC ID number to gain access to all features.
3. Go paperless
A number of mobile apps can make transactions entirely paperless. zipForm®, NAR’s exclusive and official forms software provider, offers online and offline program versions, and zipForm® 6 Professional (online) has one-click integration with the relay® transaction management system (ziplogix.com). Top Producer users can integrate their transaction documents with SureClose.
DocuSign and GoPaperless Solutions allow clients to sign documents electronically. DocuSign, the official and exclusive electronic signature provider to NAR members under the REALTOR Benefits® Program, offers the DocuSign for REALTORS® Professional Edition along with member-only offers and savings.
4. Reduce driving distractions
DriveSafe.ly will read text and email messages aloud so reps never have to take their eyes off the road. DriveSafe.ly is also compatible with Bluetooth car kits, making it easy to privately listen to messages when others are in the car.
5. Read voicemails
Listening to voicemail messages can be time consuming and inconvenient. Make sure your buyer’s reps know about PhoneTag.com and YouMail.com, two apps that convert voicemail to text.
6. Cut your phone time
Have you ever needed to leave a message for someone, but didn’t have time to get caught on a long phone call? SlyDial.com lets you go straight into someone’s mobile voicemail.
7. Speak it aloud
Consider using speech recognition software to send text or email messages, make a call, search the Web or update social networking pages. Free and premium options are available from Vlingo.com and Nuance (nuancemobilelife.com).
8. Access and edit documents
Google Docs has completely eliminated the need to purchase special software for word processing, spreadsheets, etc., and it makes documents accessible from smartphones, or wherever reps have Internet access. (Microsoft loyalists can do the same with Microsoft Office 365).
Marc Gould is the executive director of The Real Estate Buyer’s Agent Council (REBAC). A wholly-owned subsidiary of the National Association of Realtors® (NAR), The Real Estate Buyer’s Agent Council is the world’s largest association of real estate professionals focusing specifically on representing the real estate buyer. With more than 30,000 active members, REBAC awards the Accredited Buyer’s Representative (ABR®) designation to REALTORS® who work directly with buyer-clients.
To learn more, visit www.REBAC.net.
