COVER STORY
Embracing Technology: Business in a Virtual World
T
he pandemic has certainly changed the way we do business, and thankfully in Florida, the real estate business has charged forward. Along with determination and grit, we all have technology to thank for keeping the real estate business booming, for redefining networking, events, and programs, and for maintaining an overall healthy, local commerce. Many business hurdles we faced before simply do not exist anymore thanks to technology. But now that we have all become Zoom, Teams, and Slack experts, the question arises, “what’s next?” The technology we depended on over the past year has now gained a stronger appreciation as a major convenience and necessary tool towards a more efficient way of doing business. So… what are the next tech trends?
RASM EMERGING TECHNOLOGY COMMITTEE The RASM Emerging Technology Committee meets monthly to continually monitor and evaluate new technologies that are emerging, which have the capacity to affect general real estate, brokerage operations, property management, and association management. The group acts like a “thinktank,” exchanging new concepts and information. “Being on the committee is amazing,” said Jessica Peterson, Realtor® with eXp Realty and the Chair of the RASM Emerging Technologies committee. “We all 6 | ELEVATE [ MAY 2021 ]
come together to exchange ideas on what’s happening in the future of real estate. One of our jobs is to bring future speakers to RASM to educate and empower our members. The pandemic brought virtual training to the forefront, but it’s here to stay – it’s a great way to reach people efficiently and we are working on new ideas for technology-based training.”
CRYPTOCURRENCY AND BLOCKCHAIN “One of the hottest things that I’m observing now is a shift to blockchain and cryptocurrency,” said Peterson. “What’s fascinating is that people are using blockchain to buy houses, and even though I’m not yet an expert, I am taking crypto and blockchain classes to better understand it. If our customers are using it, then we need to be educated and prepared to assist with our more tech-savvy clients.” WHAT IS CRYPTOCURRENCY?
Cryptocurrency is a digital currency that is encrypted using cryptography (a method of protecting information and communications using complex codes), but it’s not backed by a bank. It’s bought and sold in a similar manner to stocks on the stock market. The most well-known form of cryptocurrency (and the first) is Bitcoin, but there are thousands more like Ethereum, Binance, Tether, Litecoin, Dogecoin, etc., each one offering its own unique set of features.
