And, if they didn’t immediately realize its importance when they first entered the industry, they quickly recognized it.
In fact, 78 percent of real estate professionals listed CRM as the second-most important tool they would recommend for new agents, according to an Inman Select Special Report entitled, “The New Agent’s Technology Playbook.”
Among the many reasons CRM is so popular is because it automates an agent’s marketing interaction with current and potential clients. As any real estate professional knows, any time gained in a day is crucial to expanding your business.
That’s often why agents turn to technology, and 36 percent of respondents to Inman’s survey recommended new agents use technology to help in organization and scheduling.
“Technology enables new agents to come out of the gate looking like they’re smooth, smart and polished. That gives the consumer the perception that the agent is ‘seasoned,’” a San Francisco Bay Area survey respondent said.
Agents understand that automating their messaging to clients means more time, money and opportunities to find more prospects. And they quickly figure out that more free time is key to growing their business, maintaining work/life balance and keeping their sanity.
So what other tasks can real estate professionals automate to make their lives easier and keep business organized?
Start with showing management and feedback, ShowingTime’s specialty.
The ShowingTime Appointment Center provides appointment specialists who are available to answer showing calls in nine seconds or less 24/7/365, schedule and confirm appointments and communicate the details to the listing agent, seller and showing agent. It’s available for single agents, offices – on either a full- or part-time basis – or for entire MLSs.
“ShowingTime has alleviated our having to take calls for showings, having to call our clients to confirm the showings, having to call the REALTORS back to confirm the showings and having to call REALTORS® for feedback, and then call our clients to give them the feedback,” said Mary Lee Klim, an agent in Flemington, New Jersey.
“Whew! That’s a lot of time and energy! Thanks to ShowingTime, we eliminated all of these tasks.”
Subscribers of the ShowingTime Appointment Center, ShowingTime for the MLS and ShowingTime Front Desk also have access to the ShowingTime Mobile App, which allows customers to request and confirm showings, manage showing feedback and more from their smart phone or tablet.
Using ShowingTime’s automated feedback is alleviates a lot of headaches for agents.
Showing agents know how difficult it can be to remember the various homes they show their clients. Likewise, listing agents understand how important it is to receive quality feedback, which, ultimately, can lead to a quicker sale.
That’s why having a consistent and automated real estate process in place for requesting feedback and sharing it with your sellers is imperative — much like CRM —and why letting ShowingTime manage your showing management and feedback requests is valuable to you, your clients and your business.
“If you are an agent and care about growing, streamlining and systematizing your business, you would be making a huge mistake by not using ShowingTime to handle all your listings,” New York-based agent Jimmy Syros said.
Looking for tools that will help you streamline your business? Learn more about how ShowingTime products can help you ease your burden, save you time and enhance your business.