accessibletech Brian Copeland
The technology gap Worried you’re being left behind when it comes to technology? Don’t be. We’ve got some pretty major misconceptions in the technology world of real estate. In a class I recently taught for NAR, I asked a room of well over 200 to fill in this blank: If you do not have a tech strategy in your business, your business will ___________. Answers ranged from “die,” “suffer,” and “dwindle” to “crash,” “falter,” and “go down.” The right answer, in my opinion, is “be just fine.” Technology is not the end-all/be-all to survival in real estate. While technology makes treading this market’s deep water a lot easier, it cannot rescue your business from sinking into the poor-market abyss. Your business can only be saved by strong and smart pricing, customer service, and referral building. Technology is a vehicle for processing things more efficiently and quickly. Among other things, it allows connections beyond face-to-face and voice-to-voice. But some see it as more, and the misconception that technology is the savior of real estate kind has caused a gap to appear between agents. We have a wall that divides the two camps. One camp says, if you don’t have technology on your side, your business will die. The other camp says it doesn’t have time for all these toys like smartphones, social media, and tablets. Slowly over the past few years that gap has started to fill in with the people I call the Hugh Jackmans of real estate: Not only can they act, they can sing, dance, speak, and look good while doing it. These triple-threat agents are growing stronger by the year. They understand 1) you must be involved in the Realtor® organization, RPAC, and leadership; 2) you must sell real estate on a profitable level within your market; and, 3) you must embrace the technology tools that streamline those worlds. Daily, I see more and more Realtors® who are serving their organizations in a whole new way because they understand the gap must close. These are the agents who live and breathe their technology. This doesn’t mean that technology surrounds everything they do and they shove it down people’s throats. Volume 18 ● Issue 4
For those who have yet to find enlightenment and become one with their gadgets, the question lingers: What do I do to bridge the gap? It means they have become so “at one” with their tools, systems, and tech arsenal that it’s now as natural, seamless, and smooth as breathing. But for those who have yet to find enlightenment and become one with their gadgets, the question lingers: What do I do to bridge the gap? I’d like to share with you the five actions/ideas I think you need to implement/keep in mind as you go through your next few years of real estate. 1. The television remote is no longer new technology. This is one of my most common rebuttals to agents who say they don’t understand technology. Do you pick up your TV’s remote control and say, July/August 2011 31
accessibletech “Wow, this is an amazing technology. How do I use it?” Absolutely not. This once-daunting technology is widely adopted and used in almost every household. But I’m certain that in 1960 it was amazing and foreign to some. Some of us act the same way with social media. Social media has moved into many people’s minds as just another way to communicate. So many agents complain, “I don’t have time to do that.” That’s like saying you don’t have time to go to church and meet people or to the park to let your dogs play. Social media — to those who are actualized with it — is just an additional way of life. If you’re not on it now, chances are you shouldn’t be on it. It’s simply not for you. 2. Hunger to learn. In 1996, I took my first Photoshop course. It was only eight hours, far too short to really grasp that software. Now, 15 years later, I still find myself — on a scale of 1 to 10 on Photoshop knowledge — a six. After searching through numerous courses, I could find nothing that gave me what I wanted and needed to know about this cumbersome software. I had to enter the classroom of myself — a classroom that was lonely, filled with errors, and required many late nights. I had the hunger to learn it. Many of us today expect to walk into a three-hour course, especially in technology, and learn it all. But the reality is more like a weight-loss program. You can spend three hours with the personal trainer and dietitian, but the hours, days, and months you spend alone in the gym and at the refrigerator door is the time that really matters. Find something in the tech world that feeds your passion, then go chase it. 3. Remember tradition. Just as we have learned in Real Estate 101, you must 1) list homes, 2) sell homes, 3) garner referrals, and 4) have top market knowledge. The same holds true for the tech world. Each of these four basics can be fortified via technology. If you want to list more homes, learn how a blog can function as free farming. If you want to sell homes and attract more buyers, learn how to create robust neighborhood videos to syndicate everywhere a buyer may be looking. If you need more client or agent-to-agent referrals, dive into Facebook and get in the flow of life with your friends. Finally, if you 32 July/August 2011
Find something in the tech world that feeds your passion, then go chase it. want top market knowledge, a ton of resources exist in Altos Research, Trulia, and even RETechSouth’s website. Remember, technology doesn’t trump tradition. It only provides an additional framework to continue to do the things you’ve always done. 4. Beware of the next greatest thing. If you’re anything like me, you get at least two sales calls a day. “I can make you number one on Google!” “We have a new listing program that’s guaranteed to bring you scores of relos!” “We have buyers in your market place that need agents. For only $x/month you can get these leads!” The list goes on and on of the great things people want to sell us. Each year, I look at tradeshow floors where I see 10% amazing opportunities and 90% waste. If you are going to understand more applications for technology, you must learn that less is indeed best. In my opinion, the arsenal of necessities are 1) a good laptop, 2) an cellular card for access away from hotspots, 3) a smartphone — Android or iPhone — which might very well provide #2, 4) an easy database, 5) an organized transaction management program, and 6) a scanner or fax machine. In addition to those foundational items, adding in a few other applications can make life a lot easier. Those include Facebook, Twitter, a compass app (or an actual compass), a good camera, basic design software, cloud storage (so you can get your data anywhere), and video editing software. While I’m sure I’ve left out several must-haves, these are the things I’ve brought together over the past five years to create a top 1% producing team. 5. You can’t do it all at once. If technology overwhelms you, add one simple thing a year. In 2006, my addition was video cameras and software. In 2007, Facebook and blogging were my concentrations. In www.VARealtor.com
2008, I added IDX and IVR to my website and listings. In 2009, Twitter became my new challenge. In 2010, dominating WordPress knowledge came top of mind. Now, as I look into 2011, I am expanding my Facebook fan page and working on filter and funnel systems with a new lead generation system. Had I had walked into the fictional Real Estate Super Electronic and Application Store and bought all these things, I would have been overwhelmed and let everything sit in a drawer somewhere. You must start somewhere, and you must know where you are in your evolution. Yes, I had my core database and transaction management in place immediately, but that was the only exception. Remember, you control your technology gap. You can fill it in as fast or as slowly as you like. But keep in mind that if you find you can’t shake the “I-just-don’tget-it” attitude, technology may simply not be for you. No one’s going to dismiss you. Your business can
survive in this market place without technology, but it can certainly thrive and help you get your life back when you have the right technology in your business arsenal. Now, go fill in that gap! ●
Brian Copeland might be the country’s most televised realtor® — you may have seen him on the learning Channel’s “Flip that House” or on HgtV’s “goodbuy/Badbuy” for starters. He’s won awards for his real estate marketing innovations, and as a realtor® he’s in the top 1% of his market. see Brian at the real show, where he’ll be teaching “owning your online Brand: digital reputation management” and “taking your Business Completely mobile.” www.REalShow2011.com
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