Increasing Lockbox Compatibility
Last year, we announced the introduction of a new vendor to join the growing list of top lockbox brands that support ShowingTime integration: igloohome™. This integration expands the already extensive list of ShowingTime-compatible lockboxes, allowing an even greater number of real estate agents to seamlessly integrate their lockbox with ShowingTime’s scheduling services.
Early this year, we expanded this integration even further with the addition of igloohome Bluetooth support. With a compatible igloohome lockbox, agents can enable wireless access to it using the same ShowingTime mobile app they already use.
With Bluetooth support, compatible lockboxes can be accessed with the tap of a button from within the ShowingTime mobile app.
For an overview of how to set up your igloohome lockbox with ShowingTime, watch the brief video below or click here for a step-by-step guide to walk you through integration. We also have readily available resources to help you get set up with whichever lockbox you use.
For more information on igloohome, visit go.igloohome.co/us.
Raising Awareness for Buyer’s Agents Tools
Following 2021’s intense high buyer demand contrasted with a shortage of available inventory throughout much of the country, we knew that buyer’s agents would need all the support they could get as they navigate the complex conditions. To that end, toward the end of 2021 we introduced several new features to remove some of the pressure from the process. Features like our Waitlist option, which gives buyers a fighting chance to get in to see popular listings by notifying their agents when availability for a showing opens.
So far this year, we’ve been refining those features and increasing our outreach about them to make sure all buyer’s agents are aware of the beneficial tools they have at their disposal. The result: more than 71,000 successful appointments* have been scheduled for agents who joined waitlists. That means that the Waitlist feature alone has led to more than 71,000 new opportunities for agents and their clients to compete in a busy market that they otherwise would have missed out on!
*Source: Internal ShowingTime data
For more on our recent efforts to support buyer’s agents: Easing the Pain of Low Inventory with ShowingTime | ShowingTime Features to Take the Heat Off Buyer’s Agents this Summer | How ShowingTime Can Help You Prepare for the Spring Market, Today
Expanding Access to Offer Manager by ShowingTime
Competing for the opportunity to attend a showing isn’t the only struggle brought on by the busy market; having to manage a deluge of offers has also been a reality that listing agents have had to juggle throughout the last year as well. For them, Offer Manager by ShowingTime has proven to be an invaluable partner.
The value of Offer Manager has become clearer than ever in the last six months, thanks to the tremendous feedback we’ve received from agents, brokers and admins alike. For example, Kathy Damewood, broker associate and team lead at RE/MAX Alliance Group in Englewood, Florida, recently spoke with us to provide an excellent use case for how Offer Manager is paying dividends.
“Before Offer Manager, I would literally have to print out every offer,” Damewood told us. “I either made my own spreadsheet or I had to jot the pertinent information down longhand on a big yellow legal pad.”
But, after receiving 55 offers in only three days on a single listing, Damewood was able to use Offer Manager to greatly streamline what would surely have been a burdensome, complicated process. This, she told us, not only took the stress of managing offers off her shoulders, but it also greatly helped her share the pertinent offer details with her clients as well.
For more on how Offer Manager has been used to streamline offer management, check out How Brokers are Using Offer Manager by ShowingTime to Navigate Today’s Busy Market.
Simplifying Scheduling Even More with Real-Time Tour Availability
In April, we announced an exciting new feature that we’ve started to roll out: real-time tour availability. As the name suggests, this feature displays home tour availability in real time on broker and agent websites. Real-time availability was specifically designed to reduce the burden on agents to coordinate appointment times, particularly in the face of the previously mentioned complex nature of scheduling in today’s highly competitive market.
The feature was first made live in Dallas, Houston, Denver and Atlanta, with a national rollout planned for later this year. The feature can be easily included on broker and agent websites everywhere by way of ShowingTime’s application programming interface (API).
By enabling this feature on their websites, agents will provide buyers with a great experience since those buyers will now know for certain when a home is available. It’s a benefit for all ShowingTime users along with consumers and their agents, as it is essential for them to quickly narrow down the best options in a market where the typical listing lasts just 11 days before a seller accepts an offer. This will also greatly reduce the burden on listing agents to manage showing requests that conflict with unavailable times.
Sellers will also benefit from this new feature. The simpler, more efficient scheduling process real-time availability facilitates means that sellers can showcase their homes to more buyers who are ready to complete a sale. Sellers still living in their homes will also gain greater insight and control into available showing windows and know exactly when buyers will arrive.
A Look at What’s to Come
The year has certainly been a busy one for ShowingTime, but we still have a lot of work we’re going to do! We’re always hard at work enhancing our existing services and we’ll continue to do so throughout the year. We’re also very excited to reveal more about the next generation ShowingTime experience, a forthcoming major enhancement to our showing management platforms which you’ll be getting a look at later this year.
For just a taste of what to expect once this update is made available, check out our overview video below. You can also learn more by clicking here.
We hope that you’re well on your way to meeting your goals for 2022. Regardless of how far along toward meeting them you are, we’re ready to support you with the latest technology and market statistics to help you streamline your operations and make informed business decisions.
ShowingTime services help agents representing buyers and sells alike. Whether you already use ShowingTime as an MLS/association feature and are considering an upgraded level of service, or you’re new to the ShowingTime ecosystem and want to learn more about our offerings, our dedicated Sales Team is available to discuss your business needs. Click the button below to reach out to them today.
