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Putting the teeth back into the REALTOR® Brand
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Putting the teeth back into the REALTOR® Brand

Main category, MLS Insights

Putting the teeth back into the REALTOR® Brand

Real estate agents in our industry spend millions of dollars as a group annually to become a REALTOR® and to stay a member of the REALTOR® family. As someone who cut their teeth working with some of the most highly trusted brands in the world like Fisher-Price, Sesame Street and others, I have a few observations of the real estate industry’s branding efforts. First, when I ask most REALTORS® what makes them different than non-REALTORS® they say “the code of ethics”. While I appreciate the fact that those that live to the letter of the code of ethics may treat [...]

By Marilyn Wilson|2018-05-03T21:25:22-07:00November 21st, 2011|Main category, MLS Insights|3 Comments

Why MLS sold data is bad, and a note about the comma

Oversights are interesting. They are even more interesting when they are fixed. Let me explain a little bit about “reporting Sales to the (MLS) Service” in the model MLS rules. Up until the recent meeting of the MLS Issues and Policies Committee meeting at the NAR Annual Convention, agents were required to change the listing status to Sold when a transaction closed. This is a case whereby the rule did not clearly indicate the behavior. As written, the agent was required to update the status of the listing, not enter the sale price from the contract. This is a significant [...]

By Victor Lund|2018-05-03T21:25:22-07:00November 16th, 2011|Main category, MLS Insights, Virtual Office Website Series|Comments Off

Nielsen credits HAR and Zillow among others

When it comes to measuring marketing effectiveness, there is little argument that Nielsen is the leader. Nielsen believes that providing clients with a precise understanding of the consumer is the key to making the right decisions — decisions that can lead to profitable growth. At Nielsen, they are always innovating to keep pace with emerging market trends and the increasingly diverse, demanding and connected consumer. Joining Nielsen is the Houston Association of REALTORS, Zillow, a few dozen brokerages, and about 500 of the more than 1 Million REALTORS in America today. These REALTORS are the bold, the true, the transparant, [...]

By Victor Lund|2018-05-03T21:25:23-07:00November 7th, 2011|Broker Technology Research, Main category, Marketing, MLS Insights|Comments Off

CMLS reviews pending IDX policy changes

I am a big fan of CMLS, the acronym for the Council of MLS. The Council does more than any other organization to support best practices among MLS service providers. Today, CMLS hosted a member webinar that provided a 360-degree overview of the pending IDX rule change, a consideration that will be discussed and submitted to the NAR Board of Directors for approval at the NAR Convention in Anaheim. The suggestions to the NAR Board of directors from the call were simple. Cathy Holefelder of Heartland MLS provided a great summary of the call and suggested this synthesized overview. – [...]

By Victor Lund|2018-05-03T21:25:23-07:00October 31st, 2011|Broker Technology Research, Main category, MLS Insights, Strategic Planning, Technology Evaluation|Comments Off

CMLS News: Clareity Safe Syndication and RED reDataVault

Today, October 4th, 2011 two vendors announce separate but complementary solutions leading up to the Council of MLS conference: CMLS. Both companies issued press releases of software that effectively works together to handle data syndication. Safe Syndication is a new product launch and reDataVault is a 2.0 release. Both reDataVault and Safe syndication have similar goals in mind – they both seek to support MLSs in managing data outside the walls of the MLS. reDataVault actually distributes data, Safe Syndication does not.. reDataVault goes a bit further by automating the process of managing RETS/IDX/VOW/DataLicense agreements. Safe Syndication has a document repository, but is not a transaction [...]

By Victor Lund|2018-05-03T21:25:26-07:00October 4th, 2011|Main category, MLS Insights|Comments Off

How many consumers visit agent and broker websites?

I had an email question come in from with Kevin McQueen of Focus Forward Consulting this morning. Kevin asked “If Move, Zillow, Trulia, Yahoo, and Homes a couple of others each pick-up about 5% of the unique visitors to RE sites, who makes up the other 80%?” The presumptive answer might be Agent, Broker and MLS websites, right? Unfortunately, presumptions lead to bad decisions and strategies in business today. In this case, the presumptive answer is very far from the truth. WAV Group WIN Reports uses Experian Hitwise to measure web traffic to real estate websites – all real estate [...]

By Victor Lund|2018-05-03T21:25:27-07:00September 28th, 2011|Broker Technology Research, Main category, MLS Insights, Strategic Planning, Suveys and Research|Comments Off

Technology service providers should think spanish

When WAV Group was learning about Immobel’s multi-language IDX search strategy earlier this year, Janet Choynowski taught us a valuable lesson. Supporting multiple languages is less about making information legible and more about demonstrating your respect for a person’s culture and heritage. It had a profound impact on us. With this notion couched in our minds, we took note when My Florida Regional MLS announced the launch of CoreLogic Data Co-op to their members, and offered two training classes in Spanish. (http://www.mfrmls.com/member-benefits/mlxchange-benefits/data-co-op). WAV Group suspects that there are a number of MLSs across the country who have significant populations of [...]

By Victor Lund|2018-05-03T21:25:28-07:00September 20th, 2011|Main category, Marketing, MLS Insights, Strategic Planning|Comments Off

WAV Group Week in Review September 18 2011

The predominant buzz in real estate this week was focused on successful and unsuccessful buyouts. On the successful side of buyouts, a talented team of managing executives from LPS was able to complete a buyout of non-MLS products and form a new company called RED, an acronym for Real Estate Digital. In a more straightforward buyout, CoreLogic purchased MLS provider Tarasoft, rolling that system under their Marketlinx brand. On the unsuccessful side of buyouts, the Arizona State Association of REALTORS was unsuccessful in its bid to purchase the shares of ARMLS, its first leg in a course to develop a [...]

By Victor Lund|2018-05-03T21:25:28-07:00September 18th, 2011|Main category, MLS Insights|Comments Off

CoreLogic purchases Tarasoft MLS

WAV Group wants to congratulate Corelogic for the successful purchase of Tarasoft. Although the official announcement has not been released, both companies are in the process of advising their clients of the transaction. Like most CoreLogic acquisitions, the independence of Tarasoft as an operating entity is likely to remain consistent with Tarasoft practices. Over time, CoreLogic will supply resources where necessary to grow, support and improve the already excellent relationships the company has with its clients. Tarasoft has significant market share in Canada, along with some of the largest MLSs in America – including CRMLS and MLS Listings in California [...]

By Victor Lund|2018-05-03T21:25:28-07:00September 16th, 2011|Main category, MLS Insights|Comments Off

Arizona Statewide MLS initiative fails

With great hopes, a terrific plan, and strong leadership – the Arizona State Association of REALTORS set forth to unite the independent Associations of REALTORS under a common MLS. The dream was unification – all of real estate under one state law, operating on one MLS data system with one set of rules. It was August 8th, 2011 that the confederates of the initiative first waived their bunting. Sadly, it was announced today that there will be no United MLS of Arizona. As it turns out, only 2 of the 4 shareholders of ARMLS agreed to sell their state in [...]

By Victor Lund|2018-05-03T21:25:29-07:00September 15th, 2011|Main category, MLS Insights|Comments Off

RPR is in good hands with LPS and RED

It would seem that some MLSs were a bit concerned about the bifurcation of service being provided to RPR by LPS. According to the announcement, Real Estate Digital, or RED will be continuing to do what that group has always done in terms of data aggregation. Only now, RED will be a subcontractor to LPS. In a letter today, RPR CEO Dale Ross submitted the following: This e-mail is a courtesy message from RPR about the press release issued yesterday from Real Estate Digital (RED), announcing a management buy-out of select assets of LPS Real Estate Group and the formation [...]

By Victor Lund|2018-05-03T21:25:29-07:00September 15th, 2011|Main category, MLS Insights|Comments Off

LPS issues announcement on MLS Services division

Transfers Products to Newly-Formed Real Estate Digital (RED), and Enters into a Joint Marketing Agreement with RED. In an effort to expand its commitment to and focus on the MLS market, LPS has merged its MLS business unit into LPS Applied Analytics and has sold a number of its real estate products to Real Estate Digital, LLC (RED), with whom LPS entered into a joint marketing agreement. This new alignment will enable LPS MLS Solutions to expand and streamline its current offerings to enhance MLS solutions and better serve our customers and their clients. “Our assimilation into LPS Applied [...]

By Victor Lund|2018-05-03T21:25:29-07:00September 14th, 2011|Broker Technology Research, Main category, MLS Insights, Press Releases|4 Comments