Top 10 ways TicorAgent 2.0 can help you close more business

On April 9, 2013   /   Blog, Escrow, Technology  
Ticor Agent 2.0 Real Estate App

It’s been four months since we kicked off our TicorAgent 2.0 app for iOS, Droid, Mac and PC.  And in that time we have heard rave reviews from across the greater Puget Sound area.  The feedback from Brokers and Loan Officers tells us that the app is intuitive to use, saves time, and helps to quickly answer the tough payment and net proceeds questions on the fly.  We are also receiving feedback that the app helps Brokers to better inform sellers and potential clients during listing presentations.

Interested?
Contact us for a demonstration.

  • Contact your Ticor Sales Executive for a demonstration and setup.
    Ticor Agent 2.0 Real Estate App

With such positive feedback coming in, we decided it’s time to share the top ten tough questions that this powerful little app can answer in the hands of a real estate professional.

Top 10 questions that TicorAgent 2.0 can answer on the fly:

  1. What will I net at closing when my house sells?
  2. How much house can I buy for a specific payment?
  3. What will my closing costs be?
  4. How will a change in interest rates impact my buying power?
  5. When will I break even if I refinance now?
  6. How does renting vs. buying compare, given my budget?
  7. What will my home have to sell for if I want to net a specific amount at closing?
  8. How will my net proceeds change if my home sells for less than the listing price?
  9. What is my current loan balance?
  10. What estimated house payment/price do I qualify for?

How to get the TicorAgent 2.0 app

The TicorAgent 2.0 app works on Android, Apple, and Blackberry mobile devices as well as PCs and Macs.  Here’s a breakdown on where to get it:

Android devices – Visit the Google Play store and search for TicorAgent 2.0
Apple iPhone, iPad and iPod devices – Visit the App Store from your device and search for TicorAgent 2.0
PC and Mac users – Visit http://ticoragent.com/2/ and click the button that says “Get the App”.  Download and install the program.

Questions or comments?  Please share below!

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What happens when you scan our QR codes… Best practices we use.

On July 27, 2011   /   Blog, Technology  

QR codes are still a bit of a buzz in the real estate community. At every sales or social – tech event, there’s at least one person who has a presentation about them. And whether you like them, hate them, use them, or don’t understand them, they’re here and people are talking about them. We’ve talked about them here before, explaining how we have used them in our marketing and how we generate the qr codes, etc… But we haven’t quite covered the best practices that we have adhered to in our usage of them.  Here they are…

Title Insurance and Escrow Order Form Optimized for Mobile Devices

An example of an order form optimized for mobile devices

Mobile Optimization – The question smart phone users ask subconsciously before they scan is, “Where are you taking me and will I have to squint?”  If someone takes the time to scan the fuzzy little code on our flyer or postcard we better give them a legible and usable experience! What this means is that when we direct someone to a website via qr code, that webpage should be optimized for the small smartphone screen. As an example, we have created a very simple, mobile optimized page for placing customer service and title & escrow orders. Test it out by scanning the code below to the right:

Is anyone scanning them? Tracking QR usage
As with all marketing activities, we need to measure the reach of each campaign to determine what our return is.  For QR codes, we track the number of scans by using the goo.gl URL shortener. This accomplishes two things for us. Firstly, because it shortens the URL, the resulting QR code is less complex, making it easier to scan from far away or when printed small. Secondly, goo.gl automatically counts the number of visits to the URL. All we have to do is log in to our Google account, go to goo.gl and it will tell us how many visits and when those visits occurred.

Order Title & Escrow

Scan the code above to see a mobile optimized title & escrow order form

Where we place them
What are the best locations for qr codes?  We have used them on filers, t-shirts, fortune cookies, and scan-to-win games at networking rallies.  In general they should be placed in a location where users will be close enough to actually scan them.  The ultimate goal is to provide an easy link for clients to watch an informative video, follow us on Twitter,  like us on Facebook, place orders, or request property info.

Where we don’t place them
In general, we don’t place qr codes online or in places where it’s impractical for users to scan them. QR codes on billboards may be impractical for obvious reasons.  And this may be stating the obvious but if we have a user already on our website, it doesn’t make much sense for us to ask them to scan a code (unless of course it is to illustrate a point as in this post).

Those are some of the ways you’ll see us using this technology moving forward.  So if you see one, give it a scan and look for the best practices mentioned here.

If you have suggestions or feedback, please let us know by commenting below!

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Using ‘Google Places’ for better search results…

On June 28, 2011   /   Blog, Technology  

As a part of our continuing effort to provide better service to our clients, we have taken the time to set up Google Places pages for each of our escrow branches in the Puget Sound area.

Recommend Ticor on Google Places

Click to rate Ticor Title Seattle on Google Places

What is google places?

In a nutshell Google places allows a company to “claim” their business in Google’s index and subsequently provide accurate information about the company including phone, address, website, hours of operation, parking, amenities, photos of the building, videos and more.

A google places page should give consumers a good impression of the company,  make it easy to find, and make it easy to provide feedback, and claim promotional offers.

The Results…
The result for our clients is that when they do a google search for “Ticor Seattle“, “Ticor Puyallup“, “Ticor Gig Harbor“, or any of our other locations, one of the first search results they should get is a street map with accurate information about each particular branch right next to it.

Ticor title seattle

A Screenshot of Ticor Seattle Google Places Info in Search Results

The Numbers…
When we first claimed our pages and filled them out, our main intention was to simply provide accurate info to google and hopefully boost our search engine presence by telling Google more about our escrow branches.  But we really had no idea what to expect in terms of views, clicks, and consumer search behavior.  And now that we have had a chance to view our page views and click metrics over a year, it’s quite amazing to see the numbers.

What can we learn about our clients / prospects?
When we log in to our google places dashboard we can learn valuable information about our clients (or potential clients).  Here’s a list of info that Google tells us about each of our Place pages:

  • Number of page views
  • Page views by day of the week / month
  • Number of clicks for more info
  • Number of clicks for driving directions
  • Number of clicks to our website
  • Top search queries
  • Where driving requests came from

What can we do to generate leads?
Like Yelp.com, Foursquare.com and other location-based social sites, Google places gives us a place to provide offers, discounts, coupons, etc.. For example we can add a coupon to our places page that reminds people of the discounts we offer on title and escrow when orders are placed electronically or when title and escrow are opened at the same time, etc…

A good place to be…
So in a nutshell, Google Places is free, it provides us with a means of providing accurate business information to people searching for us, it helps us to make a good impression, it tells us a bit about consumer search behavior, and allows us to generate leads.  It makes good business sense, and that makes Google places a good place to be.

Have you used our google places pages to find one of our branches or provide directions to a client?

Let us know by leaving a comment below!

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You look good when we look good! A new theme for ticorblog.com

On June 27, 2011   /   Technology  

Woman Reading Ticorblog.com

We’re excited to announce that we’ve made a few upgrades to our blog here at ticorblog.com. After one year with the same look & feel, we decided that a facelift with a few feature improvements was in order. So without further ado, here’s a quick breakdown on how you can get the most from our new layout:

We Make You Look Good Too
If you’re on our emailing list, chances are you’ve read our posts and shared them with colleagues and clients. We realize that the content is what really brings value here, but sometimes the way in which it’s presented can make all the difference in the world. Now with a more elegant and upscale aesthetic, you can feel even better about sharing these articles and look good in the process! Read more →

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Using Facebook On the Job… with Facebook Lists

On May 23, 2011   /   Blog, Technology  

Facebook Friend Lists

Have you ever signed in to Facebook and wished that you could filter or sort the newsfeed based on friend type (i.e. family members, coworkers, school friends, customers, etc)?  The Facebook Lists feature provides users with an easy way to create segments for various types of friends and create security settings based on those lists.

Once you’ve created a list, you can filter your newsfeed to display only the posts from people in that particular list.  And vice versa, the lists feature also allows you to post content that is seen only by people in particular lists.

This is a huge time saver if you’re goal is to organize your friends and connect with different groups of Facebook friends at different times.

Facebook on the job…
It goes without saying that throughout the business day  there may be times when it’s more appropriate to connect with certain groups of friends and not others. For example, during the course of the day at Ticor, I may want to pay less attention to Aunt Tilly (who just discovered Farmville) and instead be more intentional about listening to Real Estate professionals and what’s important to them (No offense to Aunt Tilly!).  The Facebook lists feature makes this a cinch.

In a nutshell, the Facebook lists feature:

  • Helps organize friends into groups
  • Helps reduce potential distractions during the work day
  • Provides a means for sharing content privately with certain groups
  • Saves time!

To find out how to create Facebook lists, click here.

By the way this is one of the many things we cover step-by-step in our Facebook Setup and Strategies for Real Estate Clock Hour Class.

Check out our clock hour classes here!

Enjoy!
Matt Sweet
@sweetmd

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Is your wordpress site mobile ready?

On April 28, 2011   /   Blog, Technology  

Make WordPress Site Mobile Ready

How do I make my wordpress website easier to read on mobile devices?  Having the answer to that question has become more important as we have studied smartphone usage statistics and  considered our tech savvy real estate client base in the Puget Sound area.  In a nutshell, a large portion of our clients (and future clients) are seeing us online through the filter of a 4-inch screen in their hand.  And consciously or not, they’re making judgements about us based on how we appear.

Smartphones are about to dominate the market
Have you observed people and their smartphones lately? It seems everyone has one and they’re always in hand. If you remember our recent post regarding Ticor’s ability to receive title & escrow and customer service requests via text, you’ll remember that experts are expecting smartphones to garner the lion’s share of the mobile device market by the end of 2011. And what are people doing all day on their smartphones? They’re doing all the usual smartphone things… They’re texting, calling, gaming, reading emails, using apps, and looking at websites.

The problem of browsing the web via Smartphone
Have you ever looked at a website on a smart phone? It’s quite an experience because you never know how things are going to turn out as you browse from one site to another. Sometimes you get lucky and the website is so simple (like craigslist) that it looks normal on even an old-school blackberry. But even on the latest phones with larger touch-screens, you’ll find websites with strange columns of text or split pictures that appear for no apparent reason, making things very hard to read. And if there’s flash on the site, good luck…

Screen shot of mobile ready website

The Good News
We don’t have a solution for the world’s mobile browsing problems. But we do have a solution that we’ve applied to our WordPress site (this site).  Back in 2010, at RE BarCamp in Seattle, Mike Mueller shared a few of his favorite wordpress plugins and one of them happened to be a plugin that makes wordpress sites easy on the mobile browser.  At the time that was a ‘stupiphany’ for us.  Duh!  There’s a wordpress plugin for everything.  Of course there would be one that would make our site mobile ready!

Since that time, we have tested a few mobile-ready plugins and settled on one called WPTouch that we are very pleased with.  It provides a mobile ready look and feel for the most popular mobile platforms and it provides an intuitive set up with options for colors, drop-down menus, individual page icons, and the inclusion or exclusion of pages from the mobile site.

So if you’re a mobile user, we’d love to hear your feedback on how usable our site is on your mobile device.  Please share your thoughts by leaving a comment below!

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Product Spotlight – Ticor Pocket Profile App

On April 26, 2011   /   Technology  

Ticor Pocket Profile App ScreenshotWith Ticor Title’s Pocket Profile application, real estate professionals can get immediate property information on their iPhone or iPad. By entering a property address, owners’ name, assessor’s parcel number (APN) or search nearby properties, Ticor Title’s Pocket Profile can provide real time access to valuable property information.

There are two steps to getting started:
Install the app on your phone
Call this number and ask for a Ticor Representative to activate your account: (425)-255-7575

Get Ticor Pocket Profile for your Smartphone today!

Ticor Pocket Profile for iPhone

Ticor Pocket Profile for Android

Ticor Pocket Profile for Blackberry

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Receive Recorders office holiday schedule via text

On April 1, 2011   /   Blog, Technology  

We’re launching a new service that will remind you via text message when the King County, Pierce County and Snohomish County Recorders’ Offices are closed for holidays!

Just text the word ‘RECORDER’ to the number 47170.

Recorders office holiday schedule King Pierce Snohomish County

Download The Recorders Office Schedule

The King Pierce and Snohomish county recorders’ offices will be closed for a total of nine holidays in 2011. And we all know that when the recorders offices are closed, it can affect the closing of our real estate transactions. So for your convenience we’ve put together an at-a-glance calendar that clearly shows the holiday schedule. That nice looking calendar can be downloaded by clicking the image to the right.

But wouldn’t it be better if you could just simply be reminded a few days in advance of when the Recorders’ offices will be closed for holidays? How about a text message reminder right to your phone?

Here’s how it works.

If you would like to receive a text message that reminds you of the recorders’ office holiday schedule, just text the word ‘RECORDER‘ to the number 47170. You’ll recieve a welcome message once you subscribe. Then three days prior to every Recorders office holiday closure date, you’ll get a short text message reminding you of the day and date of the closure.

Try it today! Text the word ‘RECORDER‘ to the number 47170

Or simply click on the button below to subscribe right now…

recorder,47170
These are the dates that the recorders offices are closed during 2011

Monday, January 17
Monday, February 21
Monday, May 30
Monday, July 4
Monday, September 5
Friday, November 11
Thurs – Friday, November 24-25
Monday, December 26

Enjoy!
Matt Sweet
Ticor Title
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Order Customer Service and Title & Escrow Via Text / SMS Messaging!

On March 25, 2011   /   Blog, Technology  

We are very excited to announce that you can now order title and escrow & real estate property information via text / SMS messaging!  Our Client Services / Property Research team across the King, Pierce, Snohomish area is fully equipped to receive property information requests and title & escrow orders from you via text if that’s the way you prefer to communicate!

Simply text your property info requests and title and escrow orders to:

425-298-7575

Why are we offering ‘order by SMS text messaging’?

woman ordering title and escrow via text sms messaging

Text Ticor Customer Service at 425-298-7575

Have you noticed the people around you texting a lot more lately?  Have you noticed yourself texting more and more?  Or more importantly, have you noticed that your clients prefer to communicate with you via text…. According to CTIA, Americans sent 173.2 Billion text messages during the month of June 2010.  That’s an increase from 7.2 Billion text messages sent during the month of June 2005 (CTIA is the International Association for the Wireless Teslecommunications Industry).

And that’s just texting… Smartphones in general are on a rapid rise.  A Nielsen study predicts that by the end of 2011 smart phones will hold the majority of the mobile phone market.  Another study showed that banking via mobile devices has grown 129% in the US over the last two years.

So logically with information and services becoming more mobile every day, this leads us to a few important questions:  What if you could send a text to order property research or title and escrow for your real estate listing?  What if all you needed was a single phone number for communicating with your favorite Title and Escrow company?  What if the Puget Sound’s most seasoned property information specialists were a text away?

So give it a try today!  If you have a service request or would like to open title on a property, hit us with a text at 425-298-7575 right now!

And remember that Title Insurance orders placed electronically will receive a 5% discount (click here for discount details).

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QR Codes and how we generate them

On February 25, 2011   /   Blog, Technology  

A while back we talked about what QR codes are and how we applied them to our marketing process for our Clock Hour Class in December. As a follow up to that post, today, we’re going to talk about how we went about generating our own unique QR codes.

How to generate a QR Code

Code Machine

Remember that QR codes have many applications. But, for our purposes, we are using the codes to enable smartphone users to easily find our web page of choice when they point their smart phone at our code which is on a printed flyer. If you think about it, QR codes are adding a whole new level of interactivity to printed materials. We joke about how antiquated print has become, how it’s not really forward-able or shareable, and how you can’t tweet it or add it to your favorites. But now that’s not such a problem because if a print item is QR code-enabled, a person with a smartphone can take action and (in Ticor’s case) register for a class, read a print article on the web, watch an escrow video, or ultimately order title and escrow…

So Here are the steps we took to get and apply our QR code:

1. We decided what page we wanted our readers to land on. In our case we wanted our readers to have an easy way to register for our Real Estate Clock Hour Class via eventbrite.com. Our actual URL was http://foxburyclockhours.eventbrite.com.  We’ll call this the landing page URL

2. We copied the Landing Page URL and pasted it into a QR Code generator. We used http://qrcode.kaywa.com/. It’s free and easy to use. The QR code generator created our QR code and we saved it as an image to our hard drive.

3. We added the code to our print piece. We use InDesign, Word, and Publisher for various print pieces and each of them allow us to overlay the QR Code wherever we need to.

4. Finally, we tested it! It’s actually still a thrill to effectively “click” on a piece of paper to navigate to the web!

For more information about our Title & Escrow and Technology Clock Hour classes, please check out our Puget Sound Clock Hour Classes Page!

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