I love it when I’m able to read or witness geeks debating the finer points of TechnoGibberish. Seems most have never learned they’re in the <1% category about which most technology consumers couldn’t give less of a @#%&. 🙂
Though I harbor genuine and deep respect for those of you who’re able to help us TechTards, there are so few of them who actually DO help. It’s funny to watch, over time, as the vast majority of their ‘can’t miss’ predictions die ugly, without even an audible whimper from TechTards.
I bring this up in order to send you to a post I just read which has the most interestingly informing comment thread I’ve recently had the pleasure to read. I’d love to hear what the Bloodhound TechnoGeek posse has to say about the post, but am far more interested in hearing what they have to say about the comments.
For me, the comments were at times a revelation. I urge you to read every last comment — as I was riveted as various ‘sub-threads’ emerged. But then I’m just a TechTard, right?
Here’s the link — I and my fellow TechTards will be waiting to hear from you guys.
Much thanks in advance for your TechTake.
Greg Swann says:
The comments are funny, exactly the kind of geekazoids who stuck 95% of Americans with Windows because pontificating about technical failures makes them sound smart.
Here’s the straight dope from a marketer with geek skills: If you’re in real estate, the smart phone you should be using, for now at least, is the iPhone. I don’t care about AT&T. I don’t care about dropped calls. Your clients are moving to the iPhone in droves. The real estate apps that matter are on the iPhone. If you’re not on the iPhone, you’re at a severe disadvantage.
This presentation by Zillow’s Spencer Rascoff is self-serving, but that don’t make it wrong.
This has nothing to do with technical factors but simply with market trends. Things can change, and phones are so cheap by now that it’s worthwhile to play with anything that shows promise. But for now, the phone that delivers the most bang for the buck for Realtors is the iPhone.
November 20, 2009 — 11:09 am
Jeff Brown says:
Thanks Greg — Would you say that if your local MLS wasn’t Apple friendly? Mine’s not and won’t be in the foreseeable future. I imagine not being able to access local MLS is a biggish deal for most house agents. Would love your thoughts.
November 20, 2009 — 1:00 pm
Greg Swann says:
> Would you say that if your local MLS wasn’t Apple friendly?
I wouldn’t say it is. They have an iPhone app, but it’s definitely the weakest link in their chain of software. I wish I had reliable access to our MLS from my phone. The SmarterAgent app keeps me out of trouble, but nothing is all the way there yet.
FWIW, AAR is trying to screw up the software business for Realtors, and everything they pimp is highly Windows-centric. If you’re not a Mac fanatic, Realtors are better off with Windows machines on their desktops, even though they’re crap.
The iPhone is good for Realtors because the clients are there. I don’t know of any smartphone that is all I’m looking for on the doing-my-job side of the equation. I want to eliminate laptops from our working lives, but I bought a MacBook earlier this year. I figure it’s at least a year before I can leave it behind all the time.
November 20, 2009 — 1:17 pm
Jeff Brown says:
Sounds like I’m giving too much weight to active house agents, especially buyer-agents, in having access to MLS out in the field. Taking a notebook along for the ride all the time seems to defeat the purpose of a smart phone.
November 20, 2009 — 1:22 pm
Greg Swann says:
> Taking a notebook along for the ride all the time seems to defeat the purpose of a smart phone.
You don’t take the laptop along all the time, but when you need it, you need it. With ZipForms and DocuSign, having the laptop along is a killer, though. Right now, everything in Phoenix turns on strategy and speed. I want for my phone to do everything, but we’re not there yet.
November 20, 2009 — 3:57 pm
Brian Sparr says:
Greg – can you expand on the “iPhone is good for Realtors because the clients are there” thought? I’m having a hard time making the connection. Unless there is an iPhone only app that allows an agent and client to exchange information, what is the compelling advantage to having the same phone?
I have an iPhone. I love the apps. But I’ve yet to catch myself thinking that I’m glad I have the iPhone because one of my clients has it too. Maybe there’s some killer functionality that I’m not aware of? Then again, maybe it’s a way of hedging your bet that the majority of future app development within the RE space will occur on the iPhone because that’s where the future clients are going to be?
Thanks,
– Brian
November 20, 2009 — 2:28 pm
Greg Swann says:
> what is the compelling advantage to having the same phone?
Being able to do the same stuff with the same software. Take a look at the Spencer Rascoff post I cited above.
November 21, 2009 — 8:09 am
Teri "TechTard" Lussier says:
I find those TechnoGeek battles fascinating as well. They remind me that there are times when I’m glad I live in a slower-paced town like Dayton (which must mean there are times when I’m not, but that’s another story).
I’m a simple girl. I want a phone that:
a) Makes phone calls;
b) Gets email;
c) Fits comfortably in the back pocket of my jeans.
Thank you BB Pearl.
November 22, 2009 — 3:12 pm
Jeff Brown says:
Ms TechTard — I’ve yet to activate either email or browser on any cell. A waste of time for me. How can Dayton be slower-paced with your around?
November 22, 2009 — 4:59 pm