January 2011 IDX Broker Office Newsletter

Happy New Year and welcome to another Office newsletter!

This month's newsletter will discuss the myAgent Custom iPhone/iPad app, roster pages, and how to organize and filter lead contacts.

Don't forget to add us via Twitter and check out our Facebook page!

Best regards,
The IDX Team
help@idxbroker.com

New: MyAgent iPad Banner

New this week: A new iPad/iPhone promotional Widget in your Mobile tab!

This widget provides you with a great way to take advantage of the growth in sales of the iPad. With the iPhone about to launch on Verizon, and the iPad available both on Verizon and AT&T networks, you are in a great position to differentiate your office from other offices.

If you want to move beyond the Office/Agent code, and embed your own App inside the iTunes App Store, that's possible with a custom myAgent iOS App. For $1500 you get a native iPad application, that also works on the iPhone. The iPhone version is only $1000. In 2-3 weeks we can embed your contact information into the App, remove the Agent Code requirement for your App, and submit your custom logo or icon to the app store for approval under our Developer agreement with Apple.

How does this custom branded app compare to the free branded app included in your account? Below are some details:

In App Store

Branded App - The Branded myAgent IDX App is already available in the App store. Anybody can download the App for free. Once downloaded, users can enter in your agent code to load the app with your logo and contact information.
Custom Branded App - We submit this App to the iTunes App store, as a new App, on your behalf. If approved, your App will display all the branding, images, and text that you have customized.

On The iPhone Display

Branded App - Standard MyAgent icon. Anybody who has installed the myAgent iPhone App can open the App simply by touching the myAgent icon.
Custom Branded App - The Custom Branded App gives you a way to brand the iPhone display with your logo or icon imagery. Once added, this App automatically embeds your agent or office code so that the App user is sent directly into your IDX mobile map search!

On The iPhone Display

Welcome Screen - The Branded App asks everyone for an Agent Code - but only once. If somebody enters the Agent Code that you've provided to them, your logo, phone, and email will show up next to every listing and on every mobile IDX map search screen.
Custom Branded App - The Branded App offers two options for Offices - The map search screen, or the multiple Agent screen option. The multiple Agent select option gives App users a way to select a specific Agent. This allows your Agents to instruct mobile users to simply select a name. No Agent codes to remember!

Both versions of the app include our great set of map search tools and property detail views. You can click here to learn more about both versions of myAgent. If you're interested in getting ahead in your local market with your own mobile app, you can sign up for one here.

A Closer Look: Roster Page

The roster page is one of the most popular features in IDX Broker. Your agent roster page is a dynamic page that displays all of the agents listed within the Manage Users area of your IDX control panel. Whether your team is large or small, the agent roster page is a great way to feature your individual agent listings and contact information, giving your agents great value-added features directly on the company website. Here, we'll talk about some of the features available on your roster page.

Adding Offices
While many small offices choose to display their agents all on one page, some large offices, especially those with multiple locations, may want to display their Agent roster by office location. You can set up roster pages for each office by adding them in the Manage Offices area of your control panel. Each office page can have its own photo, contact information, and description.

Offices Roster

Simply assign your agents to each office, and they will display on that office's roster page:

Office Roster Page

Agent Search
For large offices with several locations, it may be difficult for your site visitors to locate a specific agent's bio page. In this case, you may want to turn on the "Agent Search" feature on your roster page. You can find the Agent Search feature on your Global Preferences > Other Options section. Setting this preference to "Yes" will display a small search box at the top and bottom of your roster pages. Using this search box, your site visitors can search for your agents by first or last name.

Agent Language Selection
When setting up an Agent Bio page, you can promote any languages that they speak. Your roster page includes a dropdown menu allowing your site visitors to easily view agents who speak their language. If your site visitors can quickly find agents they can communicate with effectively, your agents can serve your clients better.

Agent Languages

If your office requires further customization to the look of your roster page, your web designer can take advantage of the custom CSS tools available to style the page as needed.

Keeping Your Leads Organized: Inactive Leads

This section will explain some of the features available in the Lead Management area of your control panel. If you have a lot of leads listed here, t can be difficult to categorize and keep track of them. You'll want to follow up with relevant leads - leads that have signed up, searched for properties, or received email updates recently. You'll also want to be able to view these leads at a glance. This is where IDX Broker's Inactive Leads feature comes in to help you out.

IDX Broker will automatically disable lead accounts that have not had any activity, such email update notifications, or if they haven't logged into their Listing Manager account for some time. You can adjust this period of time by viewing the Inactive Leads area of your IDX control panel.

Here, you can also choose to receive an email summary of your recent leads that have become inactive. If you do not want your Inactive Leads to remain in your account, there is also a preference to delete your leads outright from your account after your determined period of inactivity.

By customizing these rules, you can easily manage your active leads list, for maximum effectiveness. This also gives you an easy way to omit or include Disabled Leads when exporting your leads.

Export Leads

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