NAR Convention Exhibits New Hi-Tech Real Estate Tools

At the National Association of Realtors Convention in San Francisco last month, new hi-tech tools and gadgets were on display. Unfortunately, the event, along with the tools and gadgets exhibited, were aimed mainly at the residential real estate industry. However, commercial real estate brokers could also use some of these tools.

The tablet PC may eventually become a core tool for brokers. As it becomes thinner and more lightweight, the tablet PC will be ideal for quickly creating tours and gaining virtual access to the office. The device is equipped with 3D and GPS, offering the capability to zoom in on any building in the United States. Users are also able to view the surroundings, along with demographics, crime statistics, parking surveys, recent sales comparisons and much more. Tablet PCs also have touch screens, offering additional convenience.

Database management programs have expanded to include full development tools in addition to databases. These tools create virtual tours, tour packages, and buyer and seller presentations within a client file. One of the best programs at the convention was Top Producers (topproducer.com.) Although this tool is oriented toward residential real estate brokers, most aspects of this program can easily been adopted by commercial real estate agents.

Another great program, which I plan to use for my own goal planning, is Create a Plan (createaplan.com.) This web-based planning program guides the user through their goals, projects expenses to achieve those goals, identifies the pillars of business to address and offers an easy update feature to track your results. The program includes a manager’s report, allowing the user to review agent’s individual results against their goals and to track multi-agents at once with reports that are easy to read.

Many marketing companies oriented towards real estate were present at the event. One of the best of these is Hobbs Herder Advertising (hobbsherder.com). This firm specializes in training agents how to market themselves and how to acquire reliable tools to develop constant business.

The tools readily available for the residential real estate industry compared to the lack of similar tools for commercial real estate agents suggest that the industry has look outside of the box. It should also consider adapting some of these great tools to keep up. The tools will help our agents and brokerage companies become far more efficient and productive businesses.