Growing Your Brokerage with Technology

The following is an excerpt from RE Technology's Success Guide to Broker Technology:

Have you seen the headlines? Every brokerage and franchise brand is talking about how they are leveraging technology in real estate to better serve the agent and the consumer. When you ask an agent about the technology they use, they rave about it. Then when you ask the agent to log in to show you how they use the product and how it grows their business, they forget their password and can't log in (tongue in cheek).

Without a doubt, from Wall Street to your local main street, everyone is talking about how technology is the key to agent recruiting and retention. Without a doubt, this is true. Providing excellent technology that solves problems agents face in their business does increase sales volume. And agents will not leave the firm if it means giving up technology that works.

As a brokerage, you need to develop certain superpowers when it comes to technology. You need to be known for something. For example, @Properties in Chicago has an internal communications app called @agent. It generates pre-market exposure for sellers' homes and alerts brokers to listings that match buyers' preferences. Similarly, Pacific Union in California built a digital listing presentation for the iPad. For the most part, there was nothing super special about either of these applications. Any broker could have done the same thing. The success really came from their enthusiasm and their ability to communicate how technology gives their agents a competitive advantage in the market.

Whatever technology products you roll out this year (and you need to roll out at least one new thing each year), roll them out with excitement and bake that excitement into your recruiting and retention strategy! To grow your brokerage today, you must be able to claim a superpower with something.

To find your thing each year, be sure to watch your competition and invest your time in getting technology demonstrations. You need to create a buzz. Be sure to involve your top producing agents and teams in the evaluation. Let them be the first to get the product and provide feedback. Spend time with that "techie" agent in the office and understand why other agents in the office defer to that person when it comes to technology leadership. Your job with real estate technology is to win the hearts and minds of your agents by delivering tools that they will use and rave about. And, most importantly, be sure that agents outside your firm want the product enough to consider joining you.

Download Success Guide: Broker Technology to learn more about broker technology trends, how to evaluate broker technology, and more.