Realtors agree that using a computer is absolutely essential to their success. However, the frustration of learning software, trying to data between multiple computers, and staying connected to
important resources like the MLS can be challenging. Now, there is one truly mobile device that replaces desktops, laptops, and pocket PCs with a single system.
Stay connected with email and internet
Tablet PCs come with built-in wireless connectivity that lets you connect to the internet in your office, home, and on the road. By accessing mobile “hot spots”, you can check email, connect to the MLS, and download leads from your website. A cellular phone card lets you get to the Internet from anywhere your cell phone works.
Market yourself to beat the competition
Getting out the message that you can market a seller’s property more effectively than anyone is critical to your success. Tablet PCs provide a real advantage in your ability to begin marketing the seller’s property better and more quickly. And since you can have them sign an agreement right on the tablet, you can move fast with clients that are ready to go on the first appointment.
Enter and update contact information
Top agents know that success is all about networking. This means keeping in contact with potential clients, past customers, other agents, or people you’ve met through community involvement. Being able to easily enter this data lets you spend more time meeting with buyers and sellers. Using the inking capability of the tablet software, you can enter this information, in your own handwriting, directly into a contacts database like Microsoft Outlook, ACT!, or Top Producer.
Use your computer anywhere and anytime
A desktop PC doesn’t allow you to access your wealth of customer data without first printing it out or moving it to another device like a pocket PC. A laptop is the next step toward mobile computing but is difficult to use in the car and impossible while walking around a house. The tablet PC, with simple pen input, allows you to carry a device that weighs about three pounds, has all the power of a desktop or laptop PC, and can be used easily while standing or walking. The portability makes it a great tool while sitting at a client’s kitchen tablet or on the couch at home.
Read how a Realtor uses her tablet PC to organize her job and her life...
Most real estate agents sell about five or six houses in their first year in business. In the first half of 2004, Mandy Helwig had already sold that many and she gives her Tablet PC some of the credit.
“This tool is the wave of the future,” says Mandy. “It replaced my laptop at work and my desktop at home. It really is the next step in technology in business and at home.”
As a real estate agent. Mandy and others at her real estate agency, including her father, needed a way to cut down on paperwork, have papers ready to sign on the go, show houses instantly on a computer and more. With her Tablet PC, Mandy is able to do all of this, as well as use her Tablet PC for personal use.
“It is so great to be able to show my buyers the consumer notice they need to see right on my Tablet PC, have them sign it and then email it right to them,” says Mandy. “I can review and email MLS information with my clients, and use the OneNote software to keep everything organized perfectly.”
As a self-proclaimed “organization freak,” Mandy finds her Tablet PC useful with its ability to integrate MS Works with Outlook and OneNote software. She creates reminders for herself in Outlook, using OneNote. The Tablet PC also works with her real estate software, so she is able to do everything she did on her previous laptop computer—and more!
Mandy takes her Tablet PC home and uses it for personal use such as email, music, and accounting. “Everything I need is always there in the comfort of my own apartment, ready to go!”
“If someone took my Tablet PC away from me, I’d kill them,” says Mandy. “Get your own!”