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Don’t Buy a Smartphone, Tablet or Pad! ….. For Now.
About 18 months ago I started reading articles by experts that Microsoft would dominate the mobile technology market by 2015. I was skeptical but added it to my presentations and have delivered the message since then. I could see Microsoft not laying down and watching as Apple and Android (Google) seize the ever growing market as the desktop and laptop market continues to shrink. Blackberry the once major player in the mobile market is in big trouble as stock has dropped from a high of around $150 to $10 now. Things can change quickly in this market if I told you in 2008 that Blackberry might not see 2013 you would have told me I was crazy. Oh how about Palm in 2007 did we think they would be GONE in 4 years?
So why am I telling you not to buy anything mobile today? The big players in mobile technology are lining up to release new products this fall. Once we see what is released we can then decide what is the best device (for now). Please remember what I always preach when you purchase a device live with it for two years and don’t worry about the next generation released a week after you buy something.
So let’s talk about what’s coming later this year;
Microsoft (MS) expects to make a big splash this fall with Windows Phone 8 and the Surface Tablet. MS has a plan and is slowly releasing details causing high expectations and from what I have read the products will be equal to the big two Apple and Android. Getting on the same level with the big boys would be quite a leap for MS.
Apple is releasing IOS 6 this fall with a laundry list of upgrades. I don’t have room to list all 31 enhancements so I suggest you Google “31 New IOS 6 Features”. For most of us we can use a handful of these improvements so we each need to look at the list.
Android (Google) is stepping up highlighting how Android has more bells and whistles then Apple. The consumer is winning here as these two products keep pushing each other giving us more features many we will never use. Recently Samsung released the Galaxy S III to the disappointment of many. Again due to space Google “disappointment with Galaxy S III), this leads me to believe another release in a few months.
BlackBerry (BB) this could be it for them with the scheduled release of BB 10 this fall. For BB to survive they need an iPhone style release selling millions of them quickly. The problem many were die hard BB fans but because no new releases consumers switched to either Apple or Android. Can they get the market back, only time will tell?
So guess it will be an interesting fall and holiday season for many of you looking to upgrade or jump into the Smartphone, Tablet and Pad market. Please remember it’s not the shiny most bells and whistle device that works for you, rather it’s the mobile technology you will use for the next two years!
Did you wake up Christmas morning and run out to find that Santa left you a small box under the tree? Well apparently many of you were surprised by Smartphones, Tablets and Pads, or did you just decide to treat yourself. I know many of you did get mobile devices for Christmas due to the number of emails that started rolling in Christmas morning.
I guess I compare this to a dog chasing a car and finally catching it, what do you do now? The numbers are in: From Christmas Day 6.8 Million Apple and Android devices were activated and 242 Million apps were downloaded. I don’t have last years units sold but I did find the number of apps downloaded one year ago, 85 Million, guess that says it all.
For those of you with younger people around you Christmas Morning I am sure “Angry Birds” was one of the first things you downloaded but “can’t make no money with Angry Birds”. Looking back at the emails one of the most frequently asked questions was” How do I move my contacts to my new device? That’s easy, in most cases just sync from computer if using Outlook or from Google contacts. But here is my first red flag, many will just run down to the phone store and have contacts moved from the old phone to the new phone. That’s living life dangerously because most will not bother backing up contacts by any of the ways offered, either wirelessly or with a cable. For 12 years I have been harping back up your device, which back in the old days was so important because of crashes. It’s still important, not because of device crashes, rather lost or stolen devices.
The next most asked question was¨What about electronic lockboxes, how do I get in? Simple, call your association or MLS and get what you need to make it happen.
The next question was which apps do I download first? Let’s see, half a million apps for Apple, 300,000 apps for Android, where do I start. Where ever you start, take one app at a time, download it, set it up, learn how to use it and enjoy it. In time you will be looking to add productivity and there are a ton of those to help you. I guess my short list would be Social Media, QR, Scanner, Flashlight, MLS, Weather, Pandora, Skype, Red Laser and then look for apps that help you with your personal interest.
Get your email set up quickly which is one of the top five benefits of having a Smartphone. Conquer texting, learn how to use the camera, play with the map/GPS and oh yes figure out how to answer phone.
I meet folks who brag about the number of apps they have downloaded but in conversation many of the apps have never been opened. I have downloaded countless apps only to decide the app doesn’t help me in my world. Very easy to delete and look for other apps that can help me. I just counted of the 100 plus apps I have, there are 15 apps that I can say I use at least once a week, many of them daily.
When you first look at that new Smartphone, Tablet or Pad, please keep in the back of your mind, “How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time”.
Dick Betts National Real Estate Speaker
Should I or Shouldn’t I Upgrade That is the Question?
It seems like every time a new tablet, iPad or Smartphone is released my email inbox fills up with the same question “Dick should I upgrade”. My first question is what are you using today and are you happy? This sometimes leads to a long winded discussion trying to determine where some folks are in regards to technology. One of my favorite responses I hear is “I currently have a dumb phone and want to wait until the latest technology comes out so I don’t have to switch again.” Well guess what you will be waiting forever because new devices are coming out almost daily.
Last year I was invited to speak at a tech forum and requested I sit in on a panel of agents to talk about Smartphones. We had an agent with a Droid, another with an iPhone, another with Blackberry, another with a Palm Treo 680 and me which my role was to not take sides. Each agent explained to the audience why they thought the device they used was the best. The agent with the Treo 680 was sitting next to me and when it was his turned he wowed the audience with how much he was getting out of the 5 year old technology he was using. When it was my turn to speak I told the audience if they got as much out of their phone as the agent with the Treo we would not be sitting here. Many clichés have been written about “The Right Technology” or “The Technology you will use” I could fill this article.
We each need to take inventory of what we are getting out of our current technology, what features the new device offers I could implement into my career and life and is this step worth upgrading. Many of the users of these types of devices only use about 20 to 25% of the capacity offered by new technology so why not spend the time learning what you already have and not focusing on buying new and starting all over again.
I guess while I’m venting let me also talk about the exact opposite I see all the time. An agent talks to me about wanting to upgrade from a current phone normally very antiquated to a new phone. A loved one, colleague in the office or someone has sold them on the fact they need to upgrade to help with their career and life. The benefits are obvious, how it could increase productivity and maybe even profitability are well documented BUT they are concerned about a $100 early cancelation fee so will wait another 10 months until the contract expires. Wait a minute if I suck it up spend the $100 to increase production and profit while adding to the quality of my life can happen now or be frustrated for the next 10 months. I know money doesn’t grow on trees but neither does life! If I can work smarter rather then harder, if I can accomplish tasks in a shorter time giving me more time for either my career or personal life why am I fighting with $100?
So “Should I or Shouldn’t I” can only be answered by one person YOU! Feel free to drop me an email and I can help you with a list of benefits a new technology offers over older technology but it will be your choice alone.
Dick Betts National Real Estate Speaker
Broadcaster
I pour over tons of apps each week and looking for the next big thing to help REALTORS well found this one “Broadcastr” no I didn’t spell it wrong. It’s on beta test right now and free for iPhones and Androids I downloaded in last week and finally have a few minutes to try it. What the app does is allows you to pin a voice message at a certain location. Let’s talk Real Estate first with this app you can have talking listings for free. Simply stand in the house or yard do a two or three minute speech about the property and you are done. Anyone in the area can use the app to hear what you have posted to that location. I think this is a great listing tool you can offer most other agents know nothing about.
Just think of all the uses of this app! Sitting in a restaurant and your food is great leave a message for the next diner. In your area important landmarks or historic sites leave messages for all to hear. The list goes on and on as this could be the next big social media tool.
I am on the road for two weeks so my friends at the Bucks County Association of REALTORS in Warminster, PA left me use a room and internet today in return I posted my first Broadcastr message from their offices. Try it out download the app for free sign up then do a search for Warminster, PA and you will find 2 pins. One is some woman talking about her first love then my message. You also can search by author’s name this is so cool.
So going out for a listing explain to the seller you are going to turn the property into a talking property. Working with buyers explain to them about the app and now they can ride around listening to your listings.
Did I mention this is FREE!
Oh nay sayers best estimates are by Christmas half of the phones being used will be Smartphones and let me go a little further. Based on market trends in the U.S. I am betting between 65 to 75% of those Smartphones will be Androids and iPhones.
Dick Betts National Real Estate Speaker
iMapWeather Radio
Do you live in a tornado prone area? Today that seems to be most of the country so I started looking for an app to help protect you and your loved ones. Today this app is only for iPhones but hear it will be coming to other platforms shortly. Rather then me taking up your time please read below;
Description ****ABOUT iMapWeather Radio **** With iMapWeather Radio you will receive critical voice and text alerts on life-threatening weather events. Your iPhone will “wake up” and also “follow you” with alerts wherever you go. Listen with ease to local weather forecasts while you are on the move. Enjoy the power of a Weather Radio, with all the convenience and precision of a smart phone.
***FEATURES*** •More Precise Alerts: iMapWeather Radio provides more precise alerts than those offered by the typical consumer alerting service. Most alerting services will alert you to severe weather if you are in a county only partially covered by a watch/warning, even if you are not actually directly in the watch/warning. With iMapWeather Radio you only get an alert if your device or saved locations fall inside a watch/warning box. That means you are not disturbed by false alarms. •Follow Me: Follow me is a critical feature if you are on the go. Imagine you are driving through severe weather, or trying to get away from severe weather. This app will alert you if you move into an area under a watch/warning without you having to do anything. You don’t have to stop and add a new location. The app will make sure to deliver alerts to you no matter where you are. •Friends and Family: iMapWeather Radio can follow your current location alerting you to dangerous weather, but you can also save five additional stationary locations. That means you can make sure friends and family, at school, out of state, at a ballgame, etc., are safe as well. •Battery Management: The application is designed conserve your battery even though it uses GPS to give you alerts for your current location. We can’t give away our secret sauce, but just know we are careful to limit the GPS usage and we dynamically reduce the usage to help extend battery life. •Audio: iMapWeather Radio provides audio alerts in the form of beeps followed by a brief description of the alert type. The audio could wake you in the middle of the night or give you the information you need when you can’t stop to look at the phone. Furthermore, you can always listen to the alerts and forecast for your area at any time. •Video: In markets where local media partners participate, you can get streaming video of severe weather coverage. So, you can get up-to-the-minute coverage. •Trusted Provider: WDT Inc., is a trusted weather provider for most of the major weather brands in the U.S. Weather is our business and has been for more than 10 years. That means you can count on us to create a top notch app and continue to improve it.
*Data and alerting available for the United States only. Years ago I landed in Kansas City and needed to drive to Springfield, Missouri I happened to pick one of the busiest tornado days in history. It was after dark as I crossed the state and the radio was giving notice about tornadoes by county. I had no clue what county I was in. Love the GPS follow me feature, the fact I have my emergency weather radio with me as I travel from city to city plus can add 5 locations to be alerted about pending weather. Yes its $10 but go price a weather radio that sits beside your bed.
Dick Betts National Speaker Real Estate
Text Messaging and the Real Estate Professional
I am quickly approaching my 10th Anniversary of working with REALTORS and I have lived through many technology changes. I can remember back in 2001 telling agents "If you don't email, you will be limiting your business". I had agents argue that email was a passing fade and wasn't here to stay. In 2005, I started telling agents the Smartphone will become a major part on the way business is conducted, and many said they were completely happy with the flip phone. In 2006, I stated if you don't use text messaging you will lose a certain amount of clients, and again folks argued with me. Well guess what, today when I ask a group of Realtors "how many have worked with clients using text messages", three quarters of the room raise there hands.
With this dramatic increase in agents texting clients we need to find ways to document the conversations and protect all parties involved. I always suggest to an agent early on; when texting a client include all the information required by local state for electronic media such as name, company name, phone numbers etc. In my humble option I look at text messaging as a thread with a certain person much like an email we keep sending back and forth. By including your information once you have advised your client of the information required in most states. Don't subpoena me as I will crumble on the stand!
Next, as we find ourselves texting more and emailing less we need to save these text messages in a format that could be printed and brought to closing, and saved in the closed file. If you're like me I scroll back through hundreds of text messages looking for that certain tidbit of information. One big factor when shopping for Smartphone's should be does your phone save all your text messages exchanged by you and each party you are texting. Not all phones do that. With many of us using text for business it should be on your short list of requirements.
Had a great story in one of my seminars; I will pass along his handy idea. An agent was working with a buyer who preferred most of their communication to be done by text. He got the idea to copy and pastes the "text conversation" into a Microsoft Word Document allowing him to document the flow of information. Then, when the contract closed he could print the entire text message conversation and put it in the closed file along with his other documentation. It was simple to do, so he starting doing it for all of his clients. At a recent closing, a buyer questioned why he had not been told something; the agent was able to pull out the printed Word document and highlight the conversation which included the buyer acknowledging the information in question.
I highly suggest each agent using text to work with a client learn how to keep a copy of all text messages on a computer or convert to a printed document. For the sake of keeping this article smaller then a book please go to Google and search with the following phrase; copy text messages from (type of phone). I did it for many of the most common phones and found all kinds of freeware or very inexpensive programs that convert text to documents. The old Palm OS had it for years, and the new Pre has the same feature; however, they did not include time and date stamps. Not real happy with that fact.