VAST.com expands their Real Estate Listings database with Catalyst partnership

CHICAGO, March 17  /PRNewswire/ – Catylist Inc., the nation’s leading provider of marketing-based commercial information exchange (CIE) technology for commercial real estate communities and brokerage firms, announced that Vast.com (http://vast.com/), a leading vertical search platform for real estate (as well as autos and travel), has been added to the Catylist distribution network. Subscribers of the Catylist Network, which includes the premier National commercial listing exchange, Commercial IQ, http://www.commercialiq.com/, and nearly 40 local Catylist-powered commercial information exchanges, can now send their commercial properties listed for sale or lease to Vast.com without re-entering the data.  Listings will automatically update on a nightly [...]

By |2008-03-18T14:21:34-07:00March 18th, 2008|Broker-Agent Information, Main category|0 Comments

MLS Consumer Website Research Released

For many years there has been an on-going debate about whether MLS consumer websites were supportive of REALTORS® or competitive with them. A comprehensive study of using the Houston Association of REALTORS® consumer website was conducted to address this issue. This report will demonstrate conclusive evidence that an MLS consumer website is one of the most valuable tools an MLS can offer its members.  The MLS has technical expertise and advantages to support their members to compete collectively effectively for traffic against even the most well-funded listing portals on the Internet today. This report is unique in that it provides [...]

By |2018-12-13T06:22:41-08:00March 13th, 2008|Main category, MLS Insights|0 Comments

MLS Vendor Selections

A factor that tends to be considered when choosing an MLS service provider is how many customers they have won or lost recently - particularly when some of those customer losses are large, costly, and well-publicized. And if that is not a formal consideration, when an MLS vendor looses a major customer, it is often on the mind of sourcing MLS organizations. In fact many companies that I have spoken with over the past 12 months have actively excluded some MLS vendors from their short list due to rumors or reports of customers lost. These types of metrics tend to [...]

By |2018-05-03T21:26:46-07:00March 12th, 2008|Main category, MLS Insights|0 Comments

SentriLock goes public with major anouncemnt

SentriLock, provider of lock box products to REALTORS is making a major stir in the lockbox category with their announcement of NXT Wireless lockboxes, as reported by the Cincinnati Enquirer. With expected release this year, Sentrilock will be throwing a lifeline to real estate agents who do not embrace the Palm series of smartphones or eKey required to open the GE Supra lockboxes. By targeting technology that is more widely adopted in the marketplace, Sentrilock looks to grab market share by deploying lockboxes with enhanced usability and access from any computer or wireless device.  “Being cross-platform is clearly going to be an [...]

By |2018-05-03T21:26:46-07:00March 10th, 2008|Main category|0 Comments

Free Real Estate Technology

Yes, that is right!  REALTORS who look around can get some high quality technology for Free. But is free really Free? One of the more successful business models on the Internet today is making money by giving things away.  Much in the same way that Newspapers and Television have done for years.  Unlike those counterparts, the cost of distributing digital media is so cheep that 1% of people paying for premium services is usually enough to justify giving it away to 99% of the user group. In researching the cumulative effects of the NAR strategy to dole out blogs to [...]

By |2018-05-03T21:26:46-07:00March 5th, 2008|Main category|0 Comments

Blogging in Real Estate

I had an interesting conversation yesterday with a leading industry speaker about Web 2.0. I have heard him speak many times and his message is delivered simply and clearly.  In his view, the audience hears what he is saying, but they are not able to ingest it very well. Simply stated, Web 2.0 has killed traditional marketing in real estate.  If you are marketing real estate today, you need two things; a blog to communicate with customers, and a great property search solution to inform them about what is on the shelf. In an effort to generate some buzz, I [...]

By |2018-05-03T21:26:46-07:00February 28th, 2008|Main category|0 Comments

Adobe Air for Real Estate MLS Application

The race is on to provide a seemless MLS desktop, again.  But this time - no painful data sync. MLSs seek Service providers/technology leaders to blur the differences between the connected and unconnected computer - code once, deploy on desktop and online. If you have not heard the story, Kevin Lynch, a software developer on sabbatical from Macromedia in 2001 wanted to be able to use his computer to see online information offline, so he built a prototype called Kevincloud. Macromedia was purchased by Adobe, and now Kevin is the CTO of that company.  He had a meeting with himself and [...]

By |2018-05-03T21:26:46-07:00February 26th, 2008|Main category|0 Comments

Belize National Association of Realtors – Implements Point2 Technologies Online Marketing Solution to Power New Multiple Listing Service

Belize National Association of Realtors® ("BNAR") and Point2 Technologies Inc. ("Point2") today announced BNAR's new MLS system, based on the Point2 NLS (National Listing Service) platform. BNAR® selected Point2 NLS for its unique opt-in / opt-out reciprocal listing advertising functionality, enabled by Point2's patent pending technology, HandshakeTM. The technology allows real estate brokers and agents to instantly and selectively share listing data, including listing distribution to Point2 NLS-based peer websites. Key benefits include the ability for users to advertise listings on hundreds or thousands of websites for maximum visibility and leads. Point2 NLS's listing syndication functionality, Exposure EngineTM was another key [...]

By |2018-05-03T21:26:46-07:00February 25th, 2008|Main category|0 Comments

Take Great Photos

This video is all over the web. It made me think of two things. 1. Realtors could use this as a tip. 2. Social Media and blogs are very effective when good information is shared. $1 Image Stabilizer For Any Camera - Lose The Tripod - video powered by Metacafe

By |2018-05-03T21:26:46-07:00February 24th, 2008|Main category|0 Comments

Property not mapped by Microsoft, Google or Mapquest

What do you do when the map is wrong? There are many instances when mapquest, google, or Microsoft maps are wrong. This ongoing problem is getting better now that companies are filtering property rooftop locations against multiple databases. Recently I was asked to get a mapquest location fixed and I was able to do it very easily after a few hours of research. To save you the time, for mapquest, here is the link. For google maps, here is the link - this is particularly cool because it allows you to move the marker for your home. For Bing maps - here is [...]

By |2018-05-03T21:26:46-07:00February 24th, 2008|Main category|0 Comments

Real Estate Lead Generation News

Most Home Real Estate Services Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Most Home Corp. (OTCBB: MHME), today announced the launch of an all new Online Lead Conversion Program designed exclusively for Keller Williams.     The Program, which will enable Teams and Associates to effectively manage and convert their Internet leads, offers proven processes for customer acquisition, response, and cultivation, and call center services provided by a highly skilled, licensed team of lead conversion specialists.  Launched at the KW Family Reunion in Atlanta, GA on February 9, the Program is immediately available to all 75,000 Keller Williams Associates across the [...]

By |2018-05-03T21:26:46-07:00February 20th, 2008|Main category|0 Comments