August 2011 IDX Broker Agent Newsletter

This month's focus is on customizing advanced field names, setting map preferences on IDX pages, and how to display sold and pending listings.

First, we'll cover a handy feature in IDX Broker that allows you to specify custom names for advanced search fields provided by your MLS. This allows you to change any MLS field name that may sound confusing!

The last two articles discuss how to customize maps on IDX search and results pages, and how to manage and display any of your listings that have gone into a sold or pending status.

Best regards,
The IDX Team
@idxbroker

Advanced Search Field Labels

Your MLS provides many Advanced Search fields that allow you to narrow a search to specific criteria. Navigate to Customize -> Advanced Search if you would like to customize the fields and field names that appear on your Advanced Search page.

When we map the Advanced fields for an MLS, we assign standard labels that make sense for most websites. In some cases, you may want to re-name these fields to adapt to visitor feedback. This is very easy to do. Simply rename your advanced fields by clicking the Manage Column Labels link in your Advanced Search Management.



You will be taken to a list of all of the available advanced fields provided by your MLS via IDX. The Default Label column displays the field name as it displays on your IDX pages. The Custom Label column allows you to type in your own custom labels for each field and override the default labels. Simply type your new label into the Custom Label field, and save your settings.



Now view one of your IDX property detail pages to see your new field name in action!

Map Search Options

All IDX Broker accounts include a Map Search page that allows site visitors to view a map of their area of interest and easily see listings for sale within that area. Your Map Search page can be customized in a number of ways by using the options provided under My Preferences -> Global Preferences -> Map Options in your control panel. These preferences control the global map settings throughout all maps on IDX search and results pages.


Below is a summary of each Map Search control:
  • Google Map Key - The maps on your IDX pages require a unique Google API Key to function. You can update your map key here using the link provided. Most likely, you will not need to update your map key unless you set up a custom subdomain.
  • All Results Page Maps - Turn on/off the display of a map at the top of search results.
  • Display Google Map On - Choose which results pages will display the map.
  • Map Behavior - Choose which property set to display on your results page maps. You can display all properties returned from the search, or only the properties on the active page. You can also determine your default view for all maps – terrain, map, hybrid, or satellite.
  • Map Search Center Location - Set the default center location for both your map search page and the default setting for the myAgent iPhone Application. You can enter in your own latitude and longitude, or use the address lookup tool provided.
  • Map Search Defaults - Choose the default property type, bedroom and bathroom count to display on your map search. You can also set the default number of properties to display.
  • Use Search Control Palette - Use this feature to turn off the IDX provided map controls and use Google’s default controls.
  • Map Zoom Level - Set the default zoom levels for your map search and results page independently.

Sold & Pending Listings

You can easily display any of your listings that have gone into a sold or pending status by using the Sold & Pending Gallery page link. IDX Broker begins archiving your Featured Listings as of the first day your account was activated. You will not be able to display any listings that were sold or taken off the market prior to that date. To view archived listings in your account, go to Listings -> Sold & Pending. Here, you can assign a "sold" or "pending" status to your archived listings. Since we do not receive the actual status of archived listings from the MLS, these listings need to be manually updated periodically in your control panel.



To edit the status of a listing, click the pencil icon to the left of the listing. You will see a "Status" field you can edit on the following screen.



Once the status is updated for your archived listings, they will display on your Sold & Pending Gallery page link located under Account Management -> Page Links.



Simply copy the link from this screen, and paste it into your website to instantly display your sold and pending listings!


We hope you enjoyed your Agent Training Newsletter!