Does Your MLS System Speak In Tongues?

One of the great attributes about conferences is that they set the stage for product releases. Product Managers, Marketing Staff, Developers, and of course Sales People are always working toward releasing a new feature that stimulates Buzz in the industry. Today’s top press release comes from Discover MLS – the MLS system that speaks in tongues. Discover MLS announced today that their product now includes multi-lingual functionality. This will come as a welcome announcement to our friends in Canada, and around the world. WAV Group has worked on projects for aspiring companies wishing to launch MLS service abroad and the [...]

By |2018-05-03T21:24:26-07:00September 30th, 2013|MLS Insights|1 Comment

Leveraging The Browser

Many software solutions used in real estate today are offered as Software as a Service (SaaS), meaning that they are accessed through a browser or, in some cases, a mobile app. For most companies today, being cross-browser compliant is about as far as they have gone. Advanced companies, mostly those who have the luxury of products released in the past couple of years, have made their browser-based application “responsive” so as to fit naturally into any screen resolution on any browser. Cloud CMA just came out with a browser Bookmarklet that reminded me how many powerful browser features are not [...]

By |2018-05-03T21:24:26-07:00September 25th, 2013|Broker Technology Research, Main category, MLS Insights|Comments Off on Leveraging The Browser

Advertising in an Association Owned MLS Webinar- Don’t Miss This!

Join WAV Group for an informational webinar on advertising in an Association owned MLS! This webinar will feature a Q & A session with GLVAR, BNAR, and GEPAR - three leading Association-owned MLSs who have launched advertising programs to help generate non-dues revenue. If your Association or MLS is considering adding or modifying your advertising strategy, be sure to register today! You are encouraged to prepare questions and invite your leadership to attend this webinar as well. There is no fee for attendance but the capacity of the meeting room is limited to 1000. Register early to ensure your access. [...]

By |2018-05-03T21:24:28-07:00August 30th, 2013|Main category, MLS Insights, Our Company|Comments Off on Advertising in an Association Owned MLS Webinar- Don’t Miss This!

MLS – It’s All About The Community by Carl DeMusz

If you know anything about the MLS (Multiple Listing Service) you know they are communities and they are better when they are more inclusive than exclusive. A more inclusive MLS will generally have more members, more listings to share with its members and more opportunities for those members to make sales. That makes members happy but it also makes their consumers happy. It would be hard to make the case that less members and less listing content would make an MLS better than a MLS with more members and more listing content looking at it from either the member or [...]

By |2018-05-03T21:24:29-07:00August 19th, 2013|Main category, MLS Insights, Strategic Planning|1 Comment

RE/MAX, One Step Closer To An IPO

RE/MAX, one of the world's leading franchisors of real estate brokerage services, today announced that it has publicly filed a registration statement on Form S-1 with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission relating to a proposed initial public offering of its common stock. According to the press release from the company, the RE/MAX brand name has held the number one market share in the U.S. and Canada since 1999. The timing, number of shares to be offered and the price range for the offering have not yet been determined. RE/MAX intends to apply to list its common stock on the [...]

By |2018-05-03T21:24:29-07:00August 19th, 2013|Main category|Comments Off on RE/MAX, One Step Closer To An IPO

Revenue Generation Emerges in MLS strategy

MLSs are for profit entities. They have investors and a board of directors and have a stated goal of providing returns. Normally, the investors in the MLS are the Associations of REALTORS® or brokers that put up the initial funding for the MLS. The MLS was the natural extension of sharing property listings between real estate professionals pre-dating the founding of NAR. When printed listings were replaced by the electronic MLS, the business model, payment per month by members continued. That model still exists today and is in line with how software as a service (SaaS) is typically delivered across [...]

By |2018-05-03T21:24:29-07:00August 14th, 2013|Main category, MLS Insights, Product Management|Comments Off on Revenue Generation Emerges in MLS strategy

5 Ways to End the “MLS/Broker Stand-off”

A few weeks ago I wrote a post called the “Challenge for Positive Change” that highlighted many of the relationship dysfunctions we are experiencing in the industry today. At Inman Connect in San Francisco I was invited to be part of a panel called the MLS/Broker Stand-off.  It’s clear that there are many that are feeling as though our industry could be working together much better than it is at the moment. I’ve been thinking a lot about what is causing this stand-off and trying to find suggestions about ways to fix it. Here’s what I’ve come up with so [...]

By |2018-05-03T21:24:32-07:00July 24th, 2013|Main category, MLS Insights, Technology Evaluation|Comments Off on 5 Ways to End the “MLS/Broker Stand-off”

Hotel Industry is Trying to Put the “Horse Back in the Barn”

The concept of Listing Syndication is just as prevalent in marketing hotel rooms as it is with real estate inventory today.  There are many syndication sites like TripAdvisor, Expedia, Hotwire and hundreds more.  In theory, these sites were set up, in theory to HELP hotels, especially with last minute inventory to maximize their ability to sell room nights. Sound familiar?  The Theory failed. What actually happened though was that these sites have disintermediated consumers from corporate hotel sites like Hilton, Marriott, Hyatt and others. It changed the way consumers shop and eroded hotel price points. Moreover, it eroded the ability for hotels [...]

By |2018-05-03T21:24:32-07:00June 27th, 2013|Main category, MLS Insights, Our Company|1 Comment

Company Culture – Critical in Choosing a MLS Partner

In almost every RFP (Request for Proposal) process I facilitate I get asked the question, which MLS vendor and system is the best?  In every instance I say, it depends, there isn’t a single right system for everyone.  Unlike the waitress who tells you everything is good on the menu, I really am not trying to avoid the question.  I will openly discuss what we see as pros and cons of each system, but the truth is, the vendor that is right for one customer is not going to be right for another. There are many things to consider in [...]

By |2018-05-03T21:24:35-07:00June 10th, 2013|Main category, MLS Insights, Our Services|Comments Off on Company Culture – Critical in Choosing a MLS Partner

Welcome Back Mr Foley

What do you do when your $6B company (Fidelity) has an extra $1.5B in cash languishing in your bank accounts? You buy back a company (LPS) that you spun out and you start all over again. If you ever doubted the value of providing software and data services to the financial industry, Mr. Foley just answered it. He is now officially back in the MLS business…. Almost. Deal is not quite done. But wait, there is more. Foley is a self made Billionaire who may perhaps be best known for his personal investing in the wine industry – having purchased [...]

By |2018-05-03T21:24:35-07:00May 29th, 2013|Main category, MLS Insights|Comments Off on Welcome Back Mr Foley

The MLS Battleground

The National Association of REALTORS® Midyear Legislative meetings may have reached a tipping point on the role of the MLS in real estate. To be sure, it is the battleground of our industry where brokers and associations struggle for power within the oversight of the Department of Justice. Competing MLS entities develop their operating philosophy that draws the boundaries of how everyone coexists without behaving like a monopoly. To be sure, the MLS is a common use term that takes on a lot of different definitions. Here are the top 5 governance models that define the operating philosophy. Association Owned, [...]

By |2018-05-03T21:24:35-07:00May 28th, 2013|Broker Technology Research, How to Make Strategic Planning Really Work in your MLS, Main category, MLS Insights|Comments Off on The MLS Battleground

How to Succeed with eCommerce

Many MLSs are now considering offering additional products and service to their members. MLS leaders like MRIS, Metrolist and IRES have made forays into the eCommerce space and are leading the industry to figure out the best methods and promotional paths to success with eCommerce. While the concept of generating more revenue per member is an attractive concept, it is not nearly as easy as one might think. The most successful programs are borne out of constant offer, copy and pricing testing.  Like every eCommerce site online today, customers don’t simply show up and push the “buy now” button. They [...]

By |2018-05-03T21:24:36-07:00May 8th, 2013|Main category, MLS Insights|Comments Off on How to Succeed with eCommerce