By Melissa Dittmann Tracey

We all make mistakes sometimes, but a mistake delivered over technology can be a lasting one — even at times an “archived” one on the Internet that plays over and over again.

Maybe an embarrassing photo of you surfaced on Facebook for all of your clients to see, or you accidentally sent a document to the wrong client or hit the “reply all” button when making a snarky remark over e-mail. Such technology mishaps can certainly be damaging to your career, particularly if not resolved quickly.

In real estate, where technology is often more friend than foe, taking precaution to avoid tech blunders can be well worth the extra effort. According to a recent survey by Robert Half International, the top professional “technology etiquette sins” reported by human resource managers are being inconsiderate to others by taking calls anytime on a smartphone, venting on bad things about the workplace on social networking sites, using instant-messaging shorthand, and constantly pestering others using technology.

If you’ve committed a technology sin, the best thing to do is repent. Here are some tips from etiquette experts on how to handle the fallout from some unintentional errors that can occur over technology and, better yet, how to prevent landing yourself in a technology mishap to begin with.

Tech Mishap No. 1: Forwarding the wrong document to a client

The Oops Moment: You forwarded an important, personal document regarding a real estate transaction to the wrong client.

The Recovery: This can be a very damaging mistake, depending on the extent of the private information the document contained. Putting someone else’s private information in another’s hands, unintentional or not, can land you in professional or even legal trouble. “Your best bet is to try to appeal to the humanity of the person who received your e-mail mistakenly,” says etiquette expert Cynthia W. Lett, director of The Lett Group in Silver Spring, Md. “Explain to them that they received a personal document that was intended for another client you are working with, and that you would appreciate it if they would destroy the document immediately.” You should also notify the other client about your mistake and apologize.

Avoid This Mistake: The REALTOR® Code of Ethics says that REALTORS® have an obligation to preserve the confidential information of their clients (as defined by state law). Slow down to avoid such big blunders when sending personal documents.

Also, watch for the auto-fill feature on most e-mail programs when sending messages. Your e-mail may save your contacts; when you begin to type a name, it may automatically input the e-mail address of a client to whom it assumes you intend to send the message. Encrypt any sensitive records and files to keep them more secure when sending anything online, and make it a policy to never send highly confidential information over unsecure e-mail.

“Pay attention,” Lett says. “We do things too quickly without thinking clearly.” Before you send any e-mail, take your hands off the computer and put them in your lap for at least 20 seconds, carefully reviewing what you just wrote and who you are about to send it to, Lett advises.

Tech Mishap No. 2: An embarrassing photo of you surfaces on Facebook

The Oops Moment: That photo of you after you’d had a bit too much to drink at a holiday party or otherwise acting unprofessional may someday come back to haunt you, thanks to social media. Your friends can upload a photo and tag you, and voilà. There it is, for all your clients to see.

The Recovery: In Facebook, you can untag yourself in a photo by bringing up the offending picture on your screen and then looking for the “report/remove tag” link to get your name removed from it. This at least will remove the photo immediately from your page. However, the picture will still be on the poster’s page and possibly even surface elsewhere on the Internet. Contact the person who tagged you in the photo. Call her on the phone to make the conversation more human and urgent, Lett suggests. Ask her to remove the photo immediately. Many people who tag you in photos think you’ll appreciate it, and don’t realize you’d be hurt by it, Lett says.

Avoid This Mistake: Facebook has security features so that you can choose a setting where you must approve all tagged photos of yourself prior to them appearing on your page. You’ll get notified as soon as someone tags you and can approve or disapprove of it. From your Facebook account, visit “Privacy Settings,” click on “Edit Settings” for “How Tags Work,” and then review the settings you have in place. The security setting won’t prevent others from uploading embarrassing photos of you, but it can prevent the photo from appearing on your page for your contacts to see.

And this probably goes without saying, but try to take some caution so that embarrassing photos aren’t taken in the first place. Remember: “The photos posted of you and the comments you make on social networking sites can start to form your reputation,” Lett says. “Take steps to protect your reputation on social networking sites.”

Tech Mishap No. 3: Mistakenly hitting ‘Reply All’ to an e-mail message

The Oops Moment: You went to respond to a message with a sarcastic comment intended for only one other person’s eyes — a person with whom you may have a joking relationship. But you accidentally hit “reply all” to a company or group message. Now everyone sees your private message, and some may take offense.

The Recovery: Some people have lost their jobs over this very scenario. Get on the phone if there’s anything in your message that could potentially hurt anyone’s feelings, apologize, and try to explain yourself, Lett says. Your top priority is to concentrate on repairing the damage from the person most hurt by your message. By having a voice conversation, you share your emotion, tone of voice, and energy in apologizing much better than an impersonal e-mail apology could ever communicate.

Avoid This Mistake: Avoid using your work e-mail to send any humorous or overly personal e-mail chains. Use a private account so there’s no mix-up. Keep all of your company e-mail communications professional in tone. And before you ever press “send,” make sure your e-mail message is going to the right person.

Tech Mishap No. 4: Calling your client by the wrong name

The Oops Moment: When talking on the phone or sending an e-mail, you mistakenly call your client “Jim” when his name is really “Bob.”

The Recovery: Call your client back immediately — even if the mistake was made over e-mail. Voice-to-voice interaction on the phone makes the conversation human again, Lett says. She suggests starting the conversation jokingly as you laugh, like “Hello, Jim. I mean, Bob. You know what, you look so much like someone I know named Jim and I was just talking to him, and I had his name in my head. Please forgive me, Bob.”

Avoid This Mistake: This can be one of the worst etiquette mistakes you can make because it’s so personal, possibly more offensive than even misfiling a document, Lett says. Avoid multitasking so you can concentrate when speaking or crafting a message to your client, so that you can avoid making such mistakes while distracted.

Technology Mishap No. 5: Inconsiderate phone use

The Oops Moment: Your phone rings, and you answer it while you’re out with another client showing him homes.

The Recovery: Tell the person on the other line that you’re meeting with another client and that you will have to return her call once you’re finished. Apologize to your other client for the disruption.

Avoid This Mistake: Make it a point to not pick up the phone when you’re out with another client — if you do answer those calls, it makes the client you’re with feel like he’s unimportant to you and the client who called you feel like you’re rushing her off the phone. Let your phone go to voicemail when you’re out with another client, and set your phone to vibrate so it won’t be distracting by constantly going off. Also, try to avoid other inconsiderate phone uses: Don’t call a client back or take a call while waiting in line at Starbucks or while driving. The loud background noises may make it difficult for your clients to hear you and for you to hear them. (Tip: If you must use the phone when you’re out, use the “mute” feature on your phone whenever background noise gets too loud.) Your best bet is always to pay your clients respect by waiting until you can get to a quiet place to call them back so that you can focus on the conversation, experts suggest.

“Rudeness will tick people off faster than humiliation,” Lett says. “If you’re out with a potential client who’s looking for a house and you’re getting text messages from other clients and you stop to take care of those text messages in front of that client, you will probably not have that client by the end of the day. There’s nothing people hate more than being ignored because of technology. It sends the message that you care more about your phone than the person sitting in front of you.”

QR codes should direct consumers to a mobile landing page, otherwise they load slowly, do not format correctly, and do not allow for easy browsing.  They also must be accompanied by a clear call to action, encouraging consumers to scan for a discount or to receive useful information. After consumers scan the QR code, there must be an exclusive offer or important content or information waiting for them.

Although QR codes can be had for free, experts say it is important that they come with reporting tools, which can help real estate agents gauge the success of their marketing campaign.  Free codes also prevent changes in content, requiring that a new QR code be created.

Finally, agents should keep the URL short to make the code easier to scan.

Source: “The 5 Rules of QR Codes” RISMedia (12/11/11)

September 2011 | By Michael Antoniak

Video is an essential component of effective real estate marketing on the Web, whether it’s to showcase the appeal of a listing or to let satisfied clients speak for you. Like it or not, producing mini-movies to promote yourself and your properties is becoming more commonplace — and in some cases, de rigueur.

It begins with some means of capturing video. Today, that capability is built into smartphones, digital cameras, and digital camcorders. Which is your best solution? That all depends on what you want from video, how involved you want to be in production, and what’s good enough for your goals — and, of course, how much you’re willing to spend on all of that.

In This Guide:

• 2011 Video Cameras
• Video Specs That Matter for Real Estate in 2011
• 2011 Video Camera Shopping Glossary
• 2011 Video Cameras: Some Core Considerations Before Buying
• 2011 Video Cameras: What Real Estate Pros Are Using
• Shop for 2011 Video Cameras by Budget

Rapattoni is deep into the development of MLS tablet software for the real estate agent. As we progress, we are finding many new opportunities presented by this revolutionary technology. The convenience of the tablet combined with touch technology is changing the MLS software paradigm forever. In order to take full advantage of this paradigm shift we are delaying the release of our tablet software until early 2012. A new release date has not been determined at this time.

The number of tablet computer users has been steadily increasing since the introduction of tablet computers with the Android operating system, the release of Apple’s iPad last year and the upcoming release of Microsoft’s new tablet operating system. We fully expect these numbers to continue to grow. The tablet is the ultimate presentation tool for mobile agents.

We believe that tablet software concepts will lead the way for all future MLS software including laptop and desktop computers, as well as smart phones. Delaying our tablet product release by a few months reflects our dedication to “Setting the Standard.” We will let you know when our progress lets us establish a new release date.

Tablets have been around for years, but these ultra-portable devices really caught on with real estate professionals and the general public alike in early 2010 with the release of Apple’s iPad. That product—and its newer, lighter iteration, the iPad 2—still enjoys a comfortable lead over competing products, but tablets from Samsung and other providers may begin to catch up soon. The real winner of this vendor competition is you, the consumer, who benefits from new functionality, more powerful computing, and interface improvements.

Smartphones are becoming a standard business tool. For most real estate practitioners, a phone with advanced Web and e-mail access is increasingly a requirement. A basic cell phone is just not enough to stay competitive anymore. Indeed, smartphones now outsell laptops and desktop computers, according to PC Magazine. As technology continues to improve, smartphone prices keep dropping to as little as $49 for the iPhone 3 with a service contract.

A camera is among the most valued and utilized resources in a real estate practitioner’s tool kit. Think of photography as the medium for telling the story of a home. Images should draw potential clients in, helping them see a property’s potential. Plus, most sellers expect online promotion with slide shows, virtual tours, and even videos. The great news is most new cameras on the market today are able to capture high-resolution images as well as record HD video. So how do you choose the right one? With so many factors to consider, such as focal length, pixel counts, zoom range, ISO range, shooting modes, and effects, we’ve broken down the essentials to help you choose.

Printer quality has improved in recent years while costs have dropped precipitously. But major decisions still remain: ink-jet or laser; portable or office-based? Most real estate professionals will find that an ink-jet machine under $200 is sufficient for most daily needs. Pricier laser models will fill the bill for larger, high-volume operations. Multifunction machines combine printer, scanner, and copier functions to  handle all your document needs. Entry-level MFMs are well under $100, making them an attractive option for home offices. They also save space since you won’t have to have a separate unit for each task. A mobile ink-jet printer will allow you to print in the field. Back at the office, a color laser model will prove to be a worthy upgrade if your needs include printing color documents in bulk.

Related Content:

• Buyer’s Guide: 2011 Tablets, Netbooks, and More
• Buyer’s Guide: 2011 Digital Cameras
• 2011 Smartphone Software
• Buyer’s Guide: 2010 Printers
• 2011 Digital Cameras Gallery
• 2011 Mobile Computing Solutions: Shop By Budget

In just three weeks since its launch, Google+ has boasted 20 million unique visitors worldwide–more than 5 million in the United States alone–which has many saying that it’s poised to be Facebook’s biggest competitor. Google Inc.’s new social networking site has particularly impressed observers since access to it is still by invitation only, which means a current member has to send you an invitation in order for you to join. Google hasn’t yet unleashed Google+ to its more than 1 billion monthly visitors who use its search engine, Gmail, and other services.

Still, analysts acknowledge that Google+ has a long way to go before reaching Facebook’s 750 million users and even Twitter’s 200 million, but many are expecting it to give steep competition to both.

“I’ve never seen anything grow this quickly,” Andrew Lipsman, vice president of industry analysis at comScore, told The Wall Street Journal. While Twitter in 2009 was also able to capture as many new visitors, Lipsman said it happened over several months–not three weeks.

Google+ allows you to build a social “circle” of friends, easily separating out family and friends from work contacts, and then lets you share comments, articles, photos, and videos with your designated “circle” of friends or even the public. Google+ also boasts a “hangout” feature that lets you do video chats to several contacts simultaneously.

Google+ features will eventually be incorporated into services like YouTube and in Google’s suite of online software for businesses.

Source: “Google+ Pulls in 20 Million in 3 Weeks,” The Wall Street Journal (July 22, 2011)

Read more: Google+: Should You Join?
Don’t Have a Google+ Invite? 3 Things to do While You Wait

We are pleased to announce that we will be releasing eKEY Basic for Android this week. In preparation for this release, below is some preliminary information about this exciting new application. We will provide you with copies of all user documentation when the application is officially available on Wednesday, November 24th.

• The eKEY application will be a free download from the Android Market (works much like the Apple App Store). A direct link will be provided this week. 
• Like eKEY for iPhone, a demo mode is included. This provides you with a great, risk free way to check out the application’s features. 
•  The application uses the same Bluetooth Fob as used with the BlackBerry. Thus there is no need to carry extra fob inventory. 
• If you already have a fob, you can use it with Android. There is no need to purchase a new one. 
• Android is the name of the operating system, and is owned by Google. Please note that the Droid is a model of phone available from Verizon, it is not the name of the operating system. Several manufacturers are building Android based phones including HTC, Samsung, and Motorola.
• All major carriers (Verizon Wireless, AT&T, Sprint and T-Mobile) have Android devices. Thus, you are not tied to any particular wireless network provider.
• We are working to test as many of the Android based phones as possible. Click Here for an updated copy of the Certified Device list.
• If you have a phone that is not yet certified, the phone will most likely work if it has an Android version 2.1 or greater operating system. However, we cannot guarantee that carrier-specific or model-specific differences will not impact how the eKEY application performs.

As soon as the application is loaded onto the Android Market site, we will send out an official announcement, along with a QuickStart Guide and User Manual.

Click Here for details & screenshots on promotional flyer.

What’s RPR and how can it help me?
So here’s your quick guide. The RPR national demographic information, along with enhanced search capabilities, will allow a REALTOR® anywhere in the country to provide detailed information to their clients. The enhanced search features will allow nationwide property searches, as well as market-to-market comparisons.

Exclusively for REALTORS®.
RPR is an NAR REALTOR® member benefit that is available at no charge. RPR is 100 percent owned by you, directed by you, and operated for the benefit of NAR and its REALTOR® members. Only REALTORS® can access the information available in RPR.

Breadth of robust data.
RPR provides a detailed view of every parcel of property in the United States, including; public record and assessment information, details of prior transactions and sales history, zoning, permits, mortgage and lien data, neighborhood demographics and schools. RPR merges MLS/CIE-provided information with this robust catalog of publicly available data, while also incorporating psychographic and lifestyle information, all in one place. Imagine a single-source national compilation of public information that provides all the facts about U.S. residential and commercial properties, for the exclusive use of NAR’s REALTOR® members. That’s RPR!

Accurate and advanced valuation tools.
In addition to compiling and displaying raw data from a wealth of sources, RPR helps REALTORS® interpret the information, produce valuable analytical reports for clients and customers, and create a personal library of market information. Analyzing listing, sales, and default unit and volume trends, along with pricing, mortgage, and valuation history, REALTORS® get a unique and comprehensive interpretation of the dynamics driving the market.

An advantage to productivity and efficiency.
Because it’s all in one place, RPR has the ability to enhance agent productivity. Search features yield nationwide property results, as well as, local market-to-market comparisons. Hot trends, unique maps, and reliable reports are all readily available, but that is only scratching the surface. With its advanced reporting tools, RPR can enhance sales and listing presentations. An easily interpreted historical chart for each property layers years of transactions and financing activity, assessed value, loan balances and default recordings, along with other relevant trends and facts. Smart analytical tools like these, along with nationwide demographic comparisons can help agents provide value to their clients and customers.

Have it your way.
REALTORS® will enjoy using RPR to create customized reports to share with clients and customers. Start by setting unique parameters to customize the report the way you want it, and even personalize it’s appearance with your identity. Report content is managed using tools to refine the presentation of a property; for example, by updating the facts or subjective analysis of a property, you can also show return on investment from a planned or existing home improvement project. The Market Activity and Forecast Report provide all the details for your clients and customers, with special features to focus on distressed property conditions and expectations for the future.

Today’s real estate markets change quickly. With RPR, REALTORS® can respond with confidence to consumers who demand increased access to detailed information. RPR will increase the breadth, depth, immediacy and power of real estate information available to REALTORS®, and most important, it is a free member benefit, exclusive to the REALTOR® members of NAR.

Ready to learn more? Get more information and join the conversation at the RPR Blog: http://blog.narrpr.com

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