ShowingTime hosted its third annual Executive Forum on Tuesday, Aug. 8, at the Westin Chicago River North.
The invitation-only event was created to help our valued MLS and association clients learn and apply critical ShowingTime business tools and engage with other ShowingTime clients who are transforming their organizations for the growing real estate data economy.
An optional lunch preceded the event, which began at 1 p.m. CDT, and — despite early afternoon thunderstorms — concluded with a Hawaiian-themed waterfront dinner cruise.
To relive the event, view our Facebook photo album or check out our video.
The following is a breakdown of some of the items discussed at this year’s Executive Forum after a brief welcome by ShowingTime CEO Scott Woodard:
ShowingTime Business Update
ShowingTime President Michael Lane discussed ShowingTime’s growth over the past year, including:
- Nearly 150 employees now working in the Chicago office
- The opening of an office in Serbia, with three software engineers
- After handling approximately 45 million showings in 2017, ShowingTime estimates that number will increase by 15 percent in 2018
ShowingTime Appointment Center
Lane and Chief Information Officer Bill Kellogg discussed the manpower, technology and care that goes into ShowingTime’s appointment specialists managing showing request calls.
ShowingTime has three appointment centers throughout the country, including Overland Park, Kansas (main); Greenville, South Carolina; and Westborough, Massachusetts. It also has many appointment specialists who work remotely.
Kellogg explained how ShowingTime caters to regions with distinct accents, such as Boston and southern states, by having appointment specialists from those areas handle those calls.
The company also makes sure to have specific appointment specialists handle showing requests in markets that have subtle differences in scheduling, such as Ontario versus Nova Scotia.
ShowingTime Product Development
Manager of Product Development Mike Caputo and Director of MLS Accounts Kathleen Bohanon introduced their teams and discussed several key upgrades and initiatives they’re working on for ShowingTime for the MLS, the ShowingTime mobile app and more.
MarketStats by ShowingTime
ShowingTime Chief Analytics Officer Daniil Cherkasskiy demonstrated MarketView Broker and discussed the ShowingTime Showing Index® and other MarketStats products, including InfoSparks and FastStats.
Cherkasskiy said the company’s goal is to expand its MarketStats offerings throughout the next year to provide even more data for its clients.
Round-Robin Breakout Sessions
- Improvements for ShowingCart® multi-scheduling
- ‘Home by ShowingTime,’ a mobile app for clients
- Smart showings & leveraging today’s technology
- Next generation of ShowingTime analytics
- Seamless communication through in-app messaging
- Q&A with the ShowingTime management team
Client Feedback and Discussion
“We’ve been using ShowingTime for about a year and a half now and it’s the best choice we’ve made in ages. I can’t believe how easy it was to get ShowingTime installed, the support is incredible, we love all the new upgrades. … It’s just really excellent and you people can’t be beat.” – Rachel Weist, Triangle MLS
“The good tech support, fast response time from the staff and the platform itself, with the products it provides, I think, are great. And you all are continually adding functionality to the product, which is great.” – Roger Chapman, Coastal Carolinas Association of REALTORS®
“For me, it’s probably our most valuable service of the MLS, but it’s the one I have to spend the least amount of time on. If there are any problems at all, I hand them over to your team, your team takes care of it and, problem solved, we move on.” Steve Byrd, Carolina MLS
Contest Winners
Furthest Traveler: Sarah Trent Miranda, California Regional MLS
“Golden Ticket” Ghiradelli Chocolate Bars: Allan Hetkowski, Greater Scranton Board of REALTORS® and Pike/Wayne Association of REALTORS®
Showing Ticker: Denise Price, Amarillo Association of REALTORS®
Best-dressed (Hawaiian theme): Steve Candler, Big Sky Country MLS
Are you an MLS or association executive, broker or real estate agent looking for tools that will help you or your members save time? Learn how ShowingTime products and services can help you free up your time to focus on other tasks to grow your business.
