Jun 23, 2015EasyView, a real estate technology company, has launched a system designed to make shopping for a new home much easier. The solution alerts prospective homebuyers, via their smartphones, when they have approached a property for sale, and then links them to more information and an agent.
For the past 31 years or so, the Iowa-based firm has offered its technology and software solutions to businesses in a variety of verticals. In October 2014, EasyView launched a Web-based platform to help real estate agencies connect with homebuyers regarding properties for sale. The company's latest solution, however, includes Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) beacons to make the process more automatic.
EasyView's original home-buying solution consisted of a shortened URL printed on a property-for-sale sign or brochure. A user would enter the short URL into the EasyView app running on a smartphone, and would thus be directed to a listing of pictures, prices, square footage and agent information, enabling him or her to learn more about that specific home. Interested users can contact the listing agent directly from the website, and the agent receives the buyer's request and contact information instantly. With a short URL, the company reports, EasyView solution is intended to be easier than looking up a home listing by typing in a full-length URL or conducting an online search.
In November 2014, the company added beacon functionality to the Apple iOS version of its EasyView app. The new functionality, known as infoBeacon, eliminates the need for a user to manually enter the short URL, by enabling iPhones running iOS 7.1 or later to capture data from GeLo Bluetooth beacons installed in front of the homes. (InfoBeacon is not being offered for the version of EasyView that runs on Android devices.)
First, a house hunter uses an iPhone to visit the iTunes website to download and install the iOS version of the EasyView app. If the phone's Bluetooth radio is turned on, the app will receive an alert whenever that phone comes within range of a GeLo beacon installed in front of a property for sale.
The infoBeacon system aims to make it easier for shoppers to access data without having to get out of their car, pick up brochures, dial phone numbers, conduct Web searches or type in an EasyView short URL. In fact, the system can even get a driver's attention if he or she did not see the signage on the property, or if the signage wasn't there at all, such as at a condominium or apartment building.
Most real estate agencies use software or apps that provide home shoppers with digital data about a property, either via the URL or a QR code, both of which typically require that an individual exit the car and take out his or her phone to interact with data printed on the sign. EasyView's CEO noticed the inconvenience of this while trying to obtain a listing several years ago, recalls Ryan LaRue, EasyView's client success manager. He could not find the listing information online, nor could he contact the agent right away because it was in the evening.
The company sought a system that required much less from shoppers. Users don't want to have to type URLs, LaRue says, and a QR code would need to be about 10 square feet in size for an individual to scan it without leaving the vehicle. In addition, LaRue notes, research from Inc. indicates that "97 percent of consumers don't know what a QR code is."
Bluetooth beacons, says Christopher Van Oort, EasyView's senior software engineer and operations manager, showed the most promise, by eliminating the need for a user to get out of the car, enter a URL or scan a QR code. EasyView spent two and a half years developing its infoBeacon technology, he says. The firm added infoBeacon support to its app using GeLo's software, and is currently applying the GeLo beacons to its real estate signs. The short URL is still printed on the sign for house hunters who prefer not to use the beacon system, or who are using Android phones.
The first customer for EasyView signs fitted with battery-powered GeLo beacons was a northwest Iowa real estate agency. Each beacon emits an identifier that is then picked up by an iPhone running the EasyView app. Upon signing up a new property among its listings, the real estate agency installs the sign in front of that property and that beacon's unique identifier of is then stored on EasyView's server, along with that property's description.
Properties for which there are often many units for sale typically do not want to put for-sale signs in front of their buildings; for them, the solution can be more discrete. Gated communities usually don't allow real estate signs either, and the beacon technology thus provides a solution. In these cases, a GeLo beacon is mounted on a wall or post in front of the property, in such a way that it would remain unnoticed by those without the EasyView app. However, house hunters using the app may be driving around a neighborhood looking for properties—or, if they are simply driving past the property, their iPhone will emit an audible tone indicating that there is a property available in their vicinity (an iPhone can pick up the signal of a beacon located up to 180 feet away).
When users are alerted that there is a property listed within their vicinity, they can select the prompt displayed on their phone's screen to learn more. Then, they can scroll through information about the home and select another prompt ("Request Listing Info") that triggers a message from EasyView to be sent to a real estate agent. In that way, they can reach out to an agent even if it is in the evening or on a weekend. "The nice part about sending a message from EasyView—as opposed to sending an e-mail or leaving a voice message—is that an agent doesn't need to guess and wonder if the buyer wanted to contact them," Van Oort explains, "and the buyer doesn't need to wonder and worry about the message getting caught in spam or the agent returning a call."
The GeLo beacons have a battery life of about two years.
EasyView's platform not only links shoppers to property information, but also collects responses from buyers to provide analytics to their customers—the real estate agencies. The company can create reports based on individual listings, agents, marketing campaigns and the agency as a whole. That's valuable information that real estate agents could provide to home sellers and their customers, says Christopher Waters, EasyView's engineer project manager.
Since the first real estate broker went live with the technology, several others in the Iowa area have begun using it during the past month as well. "They're very happy," LaRue says, though they have not yet provided him with any statistics, he adds. "This has been a good time for them to get familiar with the system," while the real estate peak season is arriving. To make implementation easier, the beacons and signs are fully set up for agents when they arrive in the mail. The agents simply input listing information and link that listing to the sign. Training videos show how to add listing information, invite agents, post listings to social media and create marketing campaigns.
EasyView starter packages cost a flat fee of $49.95, which includes five property-for-sale signs containing the agent's name, phone numbers and EasyView short URL, as well as a $20 monthly fee for each agent. InfoBeacons are sold as an add-on for a flat fee of $20 per beacon, plus a $2 monthly fee.
"We've had significant interest from customers internationally," LaRue reports, including in South America, Asia and South Africa. He predicts the technology will be especially popular with members of Generations X and Y, who are coming into—or are already in—the market for homes and rely heavily on technology. "Their buying power is increasing every day," he states.
For real estate agents, Van Oort says, the technology not only enables potential customers to access the necessary information to make a buying decision, but also allows them to start conversations with buyers faster. This, he adds, increases their chances of making a sale.
