Tech talk

No matter the size of your firm, technology has both tangible and intangible advantages that will help you communicate with buyers and sellers more effectively, make more money and produce the best results. New hardware, new tools and new software can help in many ways to make life simpler, not to mention provide greater support for an estate agency business.

Agents access cloud systems on phones, iPads or laptops; anytime, anywhere.

From the central processing unit (the processor) to the size of the memory used to store programmes, your computer system contains various crucial features. This could be anything from Windows XP to the latest estate and lettings agency software offering various essential tools, such as wizard driven data entry systems, one touch property matching, html mailers, full integration with MS Word; something that very few leading agents can do without.

Software is just as important, there’s no point having the best computers if the tools installed aren’t up to speed. Brendan Cox, Managing Director, Waterfords

Brendan Cox, Managing Director at Waterfords, says, “As an estate agent, IT performance and reliability are of utmost importance. Keeping up with technology and providing the latest hardware not only enables our staff to carry out their job to the best of their ability, but it gives an impression about who we are as an agent.”

“Tablets, for example, have changed the way in which estate agents present. All our valuers have iPads to assist with their market appraisals,” he added.

Cox also marvels at the voice-over IP telephone system that Waterfords use, “it enables the company to record phone conversations and playback any calls as far back as we wish.

“We have our phone system linked to screens in our offices with each property consultant’s name on recording how many calls they have made that day. We use it as a bit of a league table in the branches. The system is great for us to use in training and also to check on the level of customer care our members of staff are delivering.”

Compatible devices

Staying up to speed on evolving technology, although occasionally challenging, is highly important for any agent aiming to stay on top of their business. However, the type of sales or lettings agency software or service that you use, depending on compatibility, may dictate the type of computer hardware needed, and therefore sway the sort of devices that your company elects to adopt; Mac, Dell, Samsung, HP, iPad, along with a wide selection of other computer devices.

Cox continued, “Within our offices, members of staff have either a PC or laptop depending on their role. We lease these, enabling us to upgrade every three years and with this, we can then ensure we always have the most up to date systems available.

“Software is also just as important; there is no point having the best computers available on the market if the tools installed that our agents require are not up to speed. For this reason, we use Reapit for residential sales and Jupix, which is the leading cloud-based lettings agency software, to control our front end sales and back-end property management.”

The Cloud

With all this innovation, it can sometimes be hard to know what sort of computer device your firm should be using. But with the emergence of cloud remote hosted technologies, agents are no longer restricted to a Mac or PC, iPad or laptop. They can use them all; along with notepads, android phones, surface tablets, plus so much more, to access live and simultaneous company information and documents across devices via a fully configured remote office environment.

“While some estate agents and property management software packages only work with certain computers, such as a desktop PC, fully integrated cloud-based systems enable estate agents to log-on to virtual office software, irrespective of whether it’s web or server based, via any device from anywhere with an internet connection,” said Nick Hubbard of Estates IT.

Working remotely

Ever been needed to be in two places at once? Ever been out on a property viewing but wish you could be back at the office sending out a few vital emails and offer letters or uploading a new property listing to your website and the major property portals? Of course you have!

As an agent you will almost certainly be familiar with the feeling of sitting in the car, waiting for a prospective purchaser or renter to turn up for a viewing, while numerous other jobs need to be done.

Thankfully, due to the introduction of numerous mobile devices in recent years, more agents are now able to adopt mobile working practices, operating in real time, by using a host of mobile gadgets to completely sync with the office, allowing them to access important documents and business emails on the move, without the pressing need to get back to the branch just to catch up.

“We find our iPads, iPhones and laptops allow us to work on the move and save us considerable amount of time, enabling us to focus on delivering great customer service,” said Alistair Boscawen, a Partner at Best Gapp estate agents. “The technology presents the data for sellers to make an informed choice, which can then be uploaded to our website immediately, which can speed up property searches, and therefore reduce the time it takes to complete a property sale.”

According to Boscawen, the estate agency software that his company uses, Reapit and Lonres, contains various crucial features that enable him and his staff to operate remotely, including DocuSign, which allows the firm to digitally sign off agency agreements.

“We also use apps that allow us to send property information, photos and voice files back to our office at the touch of a button, where they are integrated into our back-office computer systems,” he added.

Mobile tech helps clients to make an informed choice and saves time!

Viewings and valuations

Various agents we spoke to use mobile gadgets, most notably iPhones and iPads, when visiting properties to meet prospective new clients.

Javier M Carrillo, a Partner at West End estate agents, LDG, for instance, reports that he uses his iPad on valuations together with the Rightmove app.

The app allows him to store the terms of business, with additional files ready to be emailed to landlords, while he also uses DocuSign, which enables him to get clients to sign documents on the spot.

“Our sales professionals use new technology such as iPads and iPhones for a variety of reasons,” explained Carrillo’s colleague, Suzi Christie, who works as the Office Manager at LDG.

“Senior Partner Laurence Glynne and Partner Ben Everest both use their iPhones as a tool to dictate details of the properties they are visiting, which they then email to the office for transcribing,” she added.

Agents with a plan

Aside from using a tablet to send photographs to a desktop or a smartphone to dictate all the details of the property being taken on, a growing number of agents are also using mobile devices to undertake a wide range of other advanced visualisation systems, such as compile a floorplan which is generally one of the first things that most house-hunters now look for when viewing property particulars in a brochure or a listing online.

Around two-thirds of properties listed by agents on Rightmove.co.uk now feature floorplans, according to research conducted by The Mobile Agent, a major floorplan software provider that has launched an iPad compatible system that enables agents to draw up floorplans onsite, whilst theoretically valuing a property.

We recommend agents to use an iPad to draw up floor plans at the valuation. It saves time and looks more professional. James Davies, The Mobile Agent

“When going out onsite we recommend that agents use an iPad to draw up floorplans in order to save time by not having to duplicate work by initially drawing out plans on paper and then transferring them onto a computer back at the office – it also looks more professional in front of the client,” said James Davies of The Mobile Agent.

“Almost 70 per cent of floorplans listed by agents on Rightmove are produced using software provided by either ourselves or Metropix,” Davies added.

In fact, Metropix has also seen demand for its software system increase significantly in the past year, with more than one million floorplans produced on the Metropix system during that time.

Blurring the lines between work and home

There is no doubt that the innovative use of technology in estate agency is changing the way that people working in the industry operate, making agents more accommodating, reactive and practically available around the clock!

“We have evolved into a 24/7 business thanks to all these damn gizmos,” remarked James Wyatt, Partner Barton Wyatt. “Quite apart from my Blackberry Z30 smartphone, there’s the iPad 3 which I probably use for a couple of hours a day – generally at home in front of the TV which I don’t watch, but do sometimes use for the Apple TV link to beam big property images on to the TV screen. The dual monitor PC at home is linked to the office system. Everything is on the cloud now – so rather depressingly I am wired into the business 24/7 and anywhere in the world. There is no escape at all!”

Cost-effective technology enhancements

The ability to respond to enquiries swiftly and efficiently both in the office and when out in the field (or at home!) can mean the difference between success and failure, especially with so many agents competing against one another in any given area.

What’s more, it does not have to take a huge investment or upheaval for agencies to keep equipment on the cutting edge of technology developments. A small outlay can often yield big returns.

Contacts:

• Best Gapp www.bestgapp.co.uk
• LDG www.ldg.co.uk
• Estates IT www.estatesit.com
• The Mobile Agent www.themobileagent.co.uk
• Waterfords www.waterfords.co.uk
• Barton Wyatt www.bartonwyatt.co.uk