The Top Tools, Apps, and Technology for Real Estate Agents in 2017

I have some good news and I have some bad news for you. So which would you like first?

I’m going to assume you want the bad news first so let’s start there.

It’s HARD WORK.

It’s hard work to develop your digital marketing skills.

It’s hard work to learn how to communicate and market your brand on social media.

It’s hard work to shoot and edit videos.

It’s hard work to create and add content to your website.

It’s hard work to grow your network.

It’s hard work to maintain, develop, and nurture your database.

It’s hard work to keep up with changes in technology.

It’s hard work to run a Facebook Ads Campaign.

There is no single app, no single one piece of technology, no all-in-one super CRM that can perform all of your digital marketing activities, send out emails to your database, manage your online leads, post to your social media, and produce all of your marketing materials.

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There are several super CRM-ish types of technology that try to do it all. However, I don’t believe these monster do-it-all programs are very effective at producing the end result which most agents are looking for.

Which is Leads? Everybody wants leads.

In the real estate, we have a multi-million dollar sub-industry of companies, coaches, and gurus who are pitching and selling leads to agents everyday. If you’re an active agent then I’m sure you’ve received plenty of these sales calls and emails over the past several months.

My favorite are the sales calls from Zillow/Trulia where they deploy the sales tactic of “scarcity”. They call up the agent and ask them “Wouldn’t You Like an Extra 4-5 Leads a Month?”. Of course the answer is going to be YES, I want more leads. This is part of the sales tactic they use, get you to say yes, yes, yes, then it becomes harder for you to say no.

Then the sales rep tells you this: “Well I have an opening in your zip code available right now, and I have agents in this zip code who are really crushing it with these leads, BUT you have to get it today because I may not have this opportunity last much longer”. That’s where they try to get the agent hooked, so that you can buy 6 months worth of “Ad Space” and share the same zip code leads with about 10 to 15 other agents.

We see so many of these companies selling “easy leads” from Facebook, Google, squeeze pages, super CRM’s, and so many other types marketing concoctions.

Now ask yourself this.

Who said being an entrepreneur, a business owner, and a real estate agent was going to be easy and not take hard work?

Who said you should be able to put all of your marketing on autopilot so that you don’t have to get your hands dirty in it?

Who promised you that you would just succeed as an agent simply because you took the real estate exam and passed it for your license.

Nobody did… But if somebody did it was most likely someone trying to sell you “easy leads”

Ok, now for the good news. And it’s really good.

There has never been a better time than right now to be an entrepreneur. And has a real estate agent, you are an entrepreneur.

It’s never been a better time because any agent today, regardless of your production level, or the name of your office, or whether you work for a big office or mom and pop shop can compete on a level playing field because of technology.

It’s no longer about which brokerage you work for, or having a high traffic brick and mortar location.

Technology allows you to build a brand for yourself, and at a fraction of the cost it was just 10 years ago.

When you can build a brand which stands for something valuable in the marketplace you can win, because your brand and these tools can help build your network.

And has Jorge Guerra, from RESF, says “Your Network is Your Net Worth”. Check out the complete interview with Jorge CLICK HERE.

The road to more leads and success in real estate is in building your network and your database.

It’s not about getting more likes on your Facebook Business Page, it’s about building relationships and creating Top of Mind awareness.

It’s old school, the Zig Zigler approach.

Technology, tools, and apps have never been more easier to use than today.

Technology, tools, and apps, have never been more affordable to purchase and use than today.

Technology, tools, and apps, have never been more accessible for everyone to use than today.

Technology has been “democratized”.

Meaning that, you don’t have to be a “tech expert” to know how to effectively technology today for growing your business.

You don’t have to be a “millennial” to know how to use technology today.

You don’t need to have a degree, certificate, or designation to know how to use technology today.

And finally, you don’t have to hire a millennial or “tech” expert to do it for you.

If you know how to enter a listing into the MLS, then you already posses all of the “technical” skills needed to use all of the technology, tools, and apps available for real estate agents today.

The only thing that can stop you: Is You.

I see this to be the biggest challenge for not only real estate agents but for the whole industry.

There is a misbelief that only a tech expert, or a social media pro, can figure this stuff out.

Real Estate Technology, Tools, and Apps, in 1996

I don’t care how old you are, or if you have not been formally trained in marketing, there are no excuses. Technology is not hard to learn how to use, but it will take hard work to get develop your skills and use it everyday in your business.

For myself, being 43 at the time I’m writing this article, we didn’t have social media when I graduated college in 1996. In fact, the technology we used in real estate back then was a land line telephone and carbon copy real estate contracts.

We negotiated deals face to face or on the telephone. Not in text messages and emails.

When we delivered a signed contract, that meant physically driving it over to the agents office.

I love the way things used to be, but that’s the way it used to be.

The world has changed forever and there is no going back now.

We are currently living through the single biggest shift in human communications since the printing press, and in business this means how we market our brand and how consumers buy & sell goods and services will continue to change and evolve until this shift slows down.

But it’s not slowing down anytime soon. Look back at the last 10 years, from 2007 to 2017, and look at all of the changes we’ve seen. This is nothing compared to what we are about to live through in the next ten years from 2017 to 2027.

Virtual Reality is coming. Chips will be embedded into our bodies tracking everything. Driverless cars. Our refrigerators will begin ordering food for us when we are out of milk. And the list goes on…

The Top Technology, Tools, and Apps for Real Estate Agents in 2017, The List

I’ve been publishing this list for real estate agents since 2012 and over the years it has changed and evolved, but one thing about the list has not.

Everything I write about and everything I talk about, are the actual tools, tech, and apps I use on a daily basis for running Agent Redefined. These are also the very same tools I recommend for real estate agents whom we service in Chicago with my media company Agent Redefined Media.

Agent Redefined Media, is a real estate photography and virtual tour business which I run and it’s how I generate half of my revenue. We produce virtual tours and real estate photography, plus help agents market their listings online through using our online marketing plan.

There is absolutely nothing on this list which Agent Redefined receives any type of commissions, royalties, or affiliate/referral fees from.

If the tool is not free, then I have purchased it with my own money.

We receive hundreds of requests from companies who want us to pitch/add their product/service in this list and we typically refuse to, unless it’s something that we have already chosen to be on the list. This list is pure and free from any type of “false promotion”.

In the coming weeks I will be adding a series of videos which will accompany this list to extend the training.

The 2017 Top Tools, Apps, and Technology for Real Estate Agents in 2017

1. The Database and a Real Estate Agent’s Network
2. Having an Online Presence
3. Facebook Personal Profile
4. Facebook Targeted Ads and Facebook Ads Manager (Dark Posts)
5. Zillow & Trulia
6. WordPress Websites
7. Email Marketing Tools
8. DocuSign and DotLoop
9. Your Smartphone
10. Smartphone Photo & Video Apps
11. Instagram & SnapChat
12. Learning from Audiobooks and Podcasts
13. Business Cards from Moo.com
14. DSLR Cameras
15. 3-Axis Motorized Gimbals
16. The Off Button
17. Cloud Storage (Google Drive, Dropbox, The Box, iCloud)
18. Carbonite.com (automatic file backups)
19. BombBomb Video Email
20. SendOutCards.com (database marketing tool)
21. Mile iQ App
22. The Loopy Case for Smartphones
23. Smartphone Camera Rigs & Microphones
24. Real Estate Signage and Posts (oh yeah it’s old school and still works)
25. Google Keyword Tools & Google Adwords
26. Steven Pressfield’s book: The War of Art
27. Sally Hogshead: How to Fascinate (personality test)
28. HomeGoods, The Store
29. Intex Queen Size Blow-up Mattress w/Built in Electric Pump
30. G Suite – Google Apps
31. YouTube
32. LinkedIn
33. Wise Stamp (email signatures)
34. Content & Permission Based Marketing
35. The Social Media Examiner Conference (yes, it’s on the list. This is the world’s largest conference on social media, tech, and marketing)
36. Unroll.Me (clean out your email inbox)
38. Final Cut X & iMovie for Mac. Camtasia for PC (video editing software)
39. Canva.com
40. Adobe Spark Post & Video
41. Adobe Lightroom
42. FiLMic Pro App
43. Drones from DJI & the FAA Small UAS Rule (Part 107)

Other tools I’m checking out right now but they are not on the list

I’m always checking out new tech, tools, and apps for real estate agents. These are some of the tools I’m looking deeper into right now, but I’m not fully using them at Agent Redefined. Zapier is the most interesting to me right now.
1. Contactually (CRM)
2. Insightly (CRM)
3. Zapier (A magic app that connects everything to each other)
4. SnapChat (Actually using it for business development)

The 2018 List…

The 2018 Top Tools and Apps List is coming out January 2018.

Thanks for reading…

George “el Guapo” Cuevas