Broker Efficiency: How to put more money in the BANK at the end of the month

Brokerages, large and small, face significant challenges they did not face 20 years ago. Profit margins have eroded and control over their independent contractors has been minimized. The consumer has taken on a much more vocal role in the process and is forcing transparency and responsiveness never before experienced. Some of these challenges are related to technology and the advancement of the internet, while others are cultural challenges that have come about through the changing broker/agent relationship.

Many brokers focus the bulk of their efforts on generating sales revenue and gross commission income (GCI), but not nearly as much time focusing on ways to improve efficiencies and profit margins. With increased expenses and aggressive competition, this is more important than ever.

"Understanding the data behind your business will help give you an advantage over your competition," says Lorne C. Wallace, CEO of Lone Wolf Real Estate Technologies. "Using reports to dive deeper into the numbers and really understand what's going on behind the scenes will show you who is not performing to the business' standards, and where you may be missing out on additional efficiencies and profit margins that could bring your business to the next level."

Brokers today face numerous issues to make their business profitable. Technology is both part of the problem and the solution. Brokers that run their offices the way they did ten years ago are a dying breed. If there is one absolute in our business world today, it is the fact that change is happening exponentially. To be successful, brokers need to reinvent their business on a continual basis. Having the right infrastructure and view into their business is a key element to allow them to navigate these changes.

Broker systems have developed over time and are typically made up of multiple products from multiple vendors that were not developed to work in an integrated fashion. The result is numerous points of entry for the same data and inability to share data easily between modules.

"One of the greatest challenges in the real estate industry is the silozation of data. Many offices have a product to handle their back office, another one for their front office, a third for their public website, and numerous spreadsheets and other documents," says Wallace. "This means any changes made to the agent information in the back office have to be duplicated in the other programs as well. This is where you see a lot of wasted time, a lot of duplicate entry, a lot of errors and a lot of additional expense on the end of the broker."

Brokerages are experiencing cultural challenges, as well. Consumer and industry pressures are forcing an evolution in the role of the broker and the services they offer for today's agents. The sense of community that used to be evident in every brick-and-mortar office is challenged today. Agents are mobile and more independent today. Smartphones, wireless internet and even wirelessly enabled laptops, iPads and tablet PCs have changed the way agents do business. Many brokers, however, still approach business the way they did before the internet and this is a losing battle.

Agents are searching for improved solutions to do their job more efficiently, as well. A brokerage that offers social media services is more likely to be a top choice for agents, as more consumers use it to share experiences and even find agents in their area. Agents are seeking a toolbox of services supported by the brokerage with components they need to be successful, from lead generation tactics to social media services to financial tools and more.

WAV Group published a paper called Brokerage Technology – An Industry Needing Backbone outlining the right questions to ask to identify more efficient and cost-effective systems. Ideally, broker systems seamlessly integrate client-facing marketing technologies with back office accounting and transaction processing technologies. The result is streamlined processes and an open pipeline of data sharing within the brokerage, encouraging a more efficient way of doing business for continued growth.

This paper explores the issues brokers face today in choosing technology and in recreating their value proposition. It examines how brokerages need to evolve from a pure brick and mortar approach to technology that will allow them a clear view of their business while creating a virtual community to meet the needs of today's modern agents.

Here are the key benefits a brokerage can reap if they deploy an enterprise technology solution in their business:

• Control of brand across entire company
• Train agents on a single interface
• Support agents on a single interface
• Enhanced functionality under a single interface
• Data integration in multiple systems streamlining the data pipeline
• Data aggregation from multiple MLSs under a single interface
• Use of entire real estate company data through a single source
• Stronger lead generation and management
• Single CRM/contact management interface across company
• Ability to deploy marketing campaigns on a single platform
• More seamless connections from accounting system to lead generation systems allowing for true lead conversion tracking
• Ability to create company-wide branded presentations, forms, CMAs, brochures, etc.
• Reduced data costs to manage feeds to websites, third parties and other internal systems
• Strong recruiting and agent retention tool

If you're looking for some interesting solutions to consider, check out Lone Wolf Real Estate Technologies or other broker solutions here.