ASK MR. INTERNET
Michael Russer answers your Internet marketing questions
Mr. Internet is the alter-ego of Michael J. Russer, an Internet speaker, trainer, author, and consultant. You'll see his column on REALTOR® Magazine Online every month and in the magazine quarterly. Send your questions to help@askmrinternet.com.
A toe in the water
Take the Plunge into Online Transactions
If you're afraid to dive into electronic transaction management, here’s a marketing way to test the waters without getting wet.
DEAR MR. INTERNET:
I'm hearing a lot of talk about online "transaction management" systems lately. Is there some way I can ease into using these tools without making a drastic change in the way I manage my sales?
Penny Pagliaro, e-PRO®
Clark Realty Corp.
Kamuela, Hawaii
DEAR PENNY:
For once, all the publicity about online transaction management as the "next big thing" in real estate is justified. Eventually we’ll be managing all our transactions from server-based applications that allow all the information and documentation for a transaction to be stored in one electronic, easily accessible, password-protected group of files. This technology will dramatically streamline the time and reduce the cost of buying, selling, and leasing real estate. In the meantime, you can experiment with online transaction management by using it as a terrific listing tool for your high-tech prospects.
There are currently about two dozen vendors that offer (or soon will offer) their own version of a transaction management platform. The NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS is actively pursuing a transaction management platform through eREALTOR.com, which will provide practitioners with online suites of tools to automate and expedite many components of the homebuying process. In the end, it’s unlikely that there’ll be enough business to support all the transaction management sites on the drawing board, so we’ll probably see considerable consolidation down the road.
But even if the industry is in flux, now’s a great time to test out online transaction management without diving in head first. That way, by the time NAR roles out with its transaction management platform, you’ll be comfortable with the technology.A well-designed site that lets you wade in slowly is Realty Plus Online’s CloseYourDeal.com. Settlement service providers such as title companies, lenders, and appraisers pay to participate in the system, but it’s free to brokers and salespeople. You can also begin the process of enrolling your regular service providers on the site.
Here’s how to add a high-tech element to your listing presentation using CloseYourDeal.
1. Go to CloseYourDeal and register. It’ll take about 48 hours for the site to confirm that you’re a licensee in good standing. Once approved, you can use the system to manage as many transactions as you wish.
2. Prior to a listing appointment, log on to CloseYourDeal and "Open a New Deal,” which takes only two or three minutes. Create a file for the prospect you’re about to see.
3. Add your selling points from your standard listing presentation—I’ll follow up with you once a week; I’ll market the listing in these places--to the "To Do List" for this file. The list can be saved and will automatically reappear next time you create a new deal file. If you were carrying through the entire transaction online, you could also customize additional to-do lists for tracking appraisal completions, title documents, home inspections, and all the other elements needed to close a sale.
4. Create a user name and password so the seller has access to view the entire file.
After completing these four quick steps, you’ve effectively created an online client "extranet," which you, the seller, and later other parties to the transaction, can use to stay constantly informed about the entire sales process.
What makes CloseYourDeal unique is that it has transaction templates for every state in the union. Since each region of the country has its own way of processing and closing real estate transactions, these templates automatically adapt to real estate practitioners’ ways of doing business, no matter where they’re located. For the new user, this factor helps the whole online experience seem more familiar.
For now, you can become comfortable with online transaction management by using it to differentiate yourself in the minds of your prospects. By walking into a listing presentation with
your pre-built, seller-customized file in CloseYourDeal, you can easily separate yourself from the rest of the pack.
When you’re ready to take the plunge, you can work with an Internet-savvy seller to manage an entire transaction online. ClosetheDeal allows you, the seller, the buyer, and anyone else with the appropriate passwords to view, manage, and track the entire transaction online.
Once the deal is under contract, the site enables parties to request documents such as appraisal reports and title searches from connected vendors and to post them electronically for immediate review and approval. All parties can exchange messages and requests 24/7. This instant availability of information is a real "wow!" for sellers who use the Internet regularly. It facilitates a fast, smooth transaction and may help to reduce costs.
Online transaction management is here to stay. Which vendors will ultimately prevail is hard to say. One thing is certain, however. Those real estate professionals willing to try and adapt to new ways of doing business will always be those that come out on top.
