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softRealty.com | Redefining Real Estate Software

softRealty.com is partnering with real estate professionals and board associations to deliver a fresh new user experience that will captivate home buyers and reinforce their professional value. Search Connect™ is our IDX Property Search Engine with Simple CRM and Lead Capture - designed to help agents promote themselves and their web sites with the appeal found in many of the large national property search engines without the hodgepodge advertising of competing agents. Search Connect™ is more than searching for properties, it’s about helping agents connect with their clients and building their business as well as connecting with all of their website visitors. See how it works by clicking below.

Property Search :: FREE IDX

Adding this fresh and inviting MLS property search to your existing real estate website is Free and Simple. Experience a fresh, new property search design that doesn’t feel like it was built decades ago.

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Simple CRM :: Manage Real Estate Clients

Manage all your contacts with this simple to use online CRM designed for real estate agents like you. Finally, a simple contact management system that doesn’t rob you blind or require a masters degree to use.

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Lead Capture :: Redefine How You Connect

Connect with your website visitors, even before they register, and convert them into your clients. Engage with the people visiting your site, even before they register their contact information.

Register for an account today. If you don't see your MLS, contact us! We are adding

new MLSs as fast as we can.

www.softRealty.com 3098 Breckinridge Blvd. Duluth, GA 30096 678-367-3780

Posted by ActiveRain Approved Business Builders on 08/05/2009 04:03 PM

Comments (54)

Approved Business Builders in the ActiveRain Channel

idx solutions

54 Comments on softRealty.com | Redefining Real Estate Software

JUL

This is another case of a vendor using a post as a bill board, but not engaging us on a human level about their product. This is Web 2.0. Tell us a story about how your product helped an agent. Give us specific examples. Be a human part of the community.

You may have a very good product. I am going to need new IDX. There is nothing here to show me specifically why you are better than anyone else. You are being featured in the News Letter, but this is the First Comment!

I am sorry if I sound mean. I am really trying to help you.

Chris - I will check it out later today! We are looking for some changes and I do like the busines builder idea to help us all sort through what works or doesn't for our particular business.

Gene, thank you for the comment. We are huge supporters of the passion and integrity of this community. It's one reason we are participating in the Business Builder program to further support ActiveRain. We do plan on engaging with the community on a human level and have already started that through my personal Active Rain blog. Our understanding of this particular post was meant to be a vendor "billboard" designed to give a quick review of our product directly. We will follow up with ActiveRain to better understand how we should utilize this specific page / post.

In the meantime, we are very much about engaging the community on a human level. While we are still new, this is a continued learning process from which I look forward to learning more from you and the other very active agents on ActiveRain.

Best Regards,

David Carroll, Founder Dude (a.k.a. CEO)
softRealty.com Corporation

David! It was great meeting you in Philly! Welcome to the ActiveRain Business Builders!~

i signed up for free thinking it was a 'benefit of AR'

gonna have to pay better attention before blindly jumping off the bridge next time.

btw, my MLS was not listed, any idea on timeframe for it to be up and ready

still willing to give it a try, thats for sure

Daniel, we're always very interested in getting new MLSs online. All you have to do is request it and we'll get the process started. Please email me directly at david.carroll@softrealty.com and let me know which MLS you belong to.

Check out this article that was posted on AgentGenius.com on July 3rd and see what others are saying about their experience with us. http://www.agentgenius.com/real-estate-technology-new-media/free-idx-combined-with-social-crm-and-real-estate-lead-capture-redefined/.

Jeremy, it was great meeting you as well. All the ActiveRain members we've met so far have been amazing. Good to see you online.

The guys at softRealty are lots of fun, and the product is excellent... and BTW, David, I still have a couple of pages of noted for us to talk about sometime.

JUL

It is amazing the free stuff you can get through Activerain. I am certainly going to send this on to my coaching students. Why spend money when you don't have to?

thanks David, I will check this out. I need IDX on my website, but will see if I can put this in. thanks for sharing!

Everyone checking our IDX Service out, please do register online, then contact me directly at david.carroll@softrealty.com and copy support@softrealty.com. We would like to queue up your MLS as soon as possible.

Another broker out of Chicago, Tim McDonald, left a comment on another blog stating "too bad we weren't in his area." We talked this past Tuesday and Chicago should be online this Monday. I share this with you so you can have an idea of how quick our turn around is.

Best Regards,

David Carroll, Founder Dude (a.k.a. CEO)

softRealty.com Corporation

Lane -> Can we meet this week? I have been taking notes from other agents and working them into feature releases already. I want to review your list and see where we can fit those in for you.

Thanks for speaking with me last night. It is too bad that the NAR does not allow anyone to broadcast active listings. I would think that it would be in the best interest of the entire industry to allow access to all available listings by whatever means the end consumer desires.

IS this the same thing as the "free" on realtysoft.com. Are you the same company?
I'm not sure that Miami is included in your IDX. Could you let me know. Thank you.

David,

Thank you for responding. I will try and check our your personal blog. I am not ready for new IDX yet, but will take a look at yours when I am ready.

If I sounded harsh I am sorry. I want the vendors here to succeed.

Is this a conflict of interest here?

We have Chris Martin of ActiveRain ALSO a part of this new IDX company? So then ActiveRain will show MORE of their ads for this IDX company than for say IDX Acme Builders...? Is this what is going on here?

How can you take AD dollars if you were say an IDX developer and here, it appears we have Chris Martin playing both sides of the fence?

Say it isn't so, Chris.

- Bart

Lynn -> We've already corresponded via email. However, I'd like to answer your questions here for the benefit of the community. There is another company with the inverse of our name that also promotes Free IDX. We officially launched our Free IDX Campaign on April 1, 2008. Feel free to check us out specifically at www.softRealty.com. As discussed, we will be pursuing your MLS in Miami this Monday to begin working on getting this MLS online as soon as possible.

Gene -> No worries. As I said before, I have a deep respect for the passion and integrity of the ActiveRain community. Your comments allowed for us to clarify the purpose of this page. I do hope to have an opportunity to engage more with you in the future.

Bart -> No conflict of interest here. Chris Martin is the Advertising Director running the new ActiveRain Business Builder's Blog. He is not affiliated with softRealty.com in any way beyond managing our account with ActiveRain. Additionally, other IDX vendors can be promoted in this program. I hope this clarification puts your concerns at ease.

Best Regards,

David Carroll, Founder Dude (a.k.a. CEO)

softRealty.com Corporation

JUL

I visited your website but was told that MIBOR (Indianapolis Board of Realtors) isn't supported yet. How many locations are you currently working in?

I'm sure we can... I've been sitting on these since REtech South, so I'm not on fire or anything.

JUL

Tonda and Steve -> We actually have 2 requests (including yours) for us to get out to MIBOR MLS. I look forward to starting this process of coming out to your area. I will follow up via the email you sent me directly.

Several have asked the question of which areas we serve. We are working on some new updates to our corporate site that will list all the MLSs. In the meantime, we are currently serving MLSs in GA, FL, AL, CA, and IL. We've got MLSs started in MA, WA, OR, DC, VA, MD and PA. This is definitely an expansion time for us and we need more people from these areas and others to help us grow and keep the FREE IDX concept going.

Best Regards,

David Carroll, Founder Dude (a.k.a. CEO)

softRealty.com Corporation

JUL

David I will definitely check this out. I need a new IDX for my website and another website that I am trying to get. Can I get this for my Active Rain Outside blog too? Great post.

Lanre, thanks for the comment. What MLS are you with? We'd definitely like to get this setup started with your area. I'll check with Jeff Corbett regarding the Active Rain Outside Blog. I’m currently traveling and have a team that is dedicated to bringing MLSs online. Please send details to mls@softrealty.com. I am also on that distribution list.

Many Thanks,

David Carroll, Founder Dude (a.k.a. CEO)
softRealty.com

Monmouth County MLS & Middlesex County MLS of NJ- thanks!

AUG

David... I'm up the street from you all week. I'm spending as much time as I can with my kid at Hockey Camp at the Duluth Ice Forum... Give me a call...

IDX is our pain. I will need to look at it carefully. My problem is that we need to be able to set filters, so that we can narrow some type of properties (like condo-hotels), or be able to do it on a location basis.

thanks

AUG

I was trying sign up to try using their web form several times. Today 8/15/09 and yesterday.

Is not working. .

So far no answer to my e-mail where I notified them that they web form is DEAD

Jon - Thank you for the comment. We do have settings where agents can specify default locations and search criteria. That said, it would be great to compare notes and see if we can further improve our support for this feature. Reach out to me via email at david.carroll@softRealty.com if you would like to discuss this further in more detail.

Jacek - Please accept my apologies regarding any inconveniences you've experienced with our registration form. We do monitor our system activity very closely and follow up with all support inquiries as soon as possible. That said, we have not been able to locate your email and would like to get more information from you regarding this.

In the meantime, my support team has been working on reproducing the registration issue you described in this post and reviewing our application logs over the past couple of days for additional insight. We've not been able to reproduce any issues with our registration form or identify any issues in our application logs. I'd very much like for you to contact me directly at david.carroll@softRealty.com so that we can better assess and resolve the problems you were experiencing.

Aaron - Thanks for the MLS requests. Can you send me your contact information to david.carroll@softRealty.com? We may have already started the process with Monmouth County and Middlesex County. I need to check with our new MLS Coordinator regarding the paperwork status and would like to keep you posted.

SEP

Thanks David. Always looking for and evaluating new products. I hope this is available in AZ for some testing... I just signed up, but the MLS info not validated yet... Thanks again.

David,

I belong to the Williamsburg area association of REALTORS and our MLS, FLEX Business systems already has an MLS. CAn you still provide the free IDX?

I have been trying to get on board for a while now. The mls that we have was not listed but I did just try again and we will see if this is the same mls. When I did the reseach as I have been communicating with Peyman about it, the mls was listed as the same name but different geo area. I just tried again to register and checked off regional mls again to see if maybe this time it will accept it. We shall see. I have been looking forward to using your product for a while now. Katerina

I love to see competition. While I would hate to be a vendor in this crowded marketplace, I relish the thought of more competition as everyone benefits.

I love to see competition. While I would hate to be a vendor in this crowded marketplace, I relish the thought of more competition as everyone benefits.

Hi - any update on additional MLS additions? I'm in the Twin Cities (MN) - Northstar MLS.

SEP

Sounds interesting, but I'm not sure if your product is available to me here in L.A.

And what all the features are?

Does your platform allow us to embed pre-defined searches into our webpages or blog posts? For instance, I want to display Acworth Ga new homes for sale that have foreclosed. When my web page or blog post is visited, those homes are displayed on my site already; the visitor does not have to perform the search.

Thanks to everyone for your MLS inquiries and comments. The excitement from this and other communities continues to be validation that we're doing the right things.

We are expanding and bringing MLSs online throughout the country. I have forwarded all inquiries to our MLS Coordinator, Karen Brinker. Karen will be following up with all of you directly regarding your MLS inquiry. She can also be reached at mls@softrealty.com or you can visit us at www.softRealty.com

Chris -> Thanks for the comment. Competition is great for spawning innovation, bringing prices down, and benefiting the consumers across the board. We're making waves in goods ways across the real estate technology front.

Steve Graham,

Predefined searches are indeed supported. I will have one of our account reps follow up directly with more details.

Best Regards,

David Carroll

Thanks, David. I read some of the FAQ's on your site, and it appears that framing is the process of displaying IDX listings. I was speaking more about embedding, like with videos.

SEP

Hi David,

Sounds interesting, I need IDX solution. Please contact me on my email or call. And what it would take for you to go the Alaska MLS. They want certain criterias in their area fulfilled. Can look into that for me?

Reynaldo Balla

NOV

I have been looking to switch sites for a while but you do not offer IDX in my area. Also my MLS just came out with their own websites. While the design is not the greatest I think that will offer me the best IDX option.

I signed up for your IDX and took to long to intergrate your system. It has been over two months, So I decided not to go for it because of that. You commented that it is not your companies fault, but I did my part and everyone that is needed, except for softrealty.com. If I am a little more patient and actualy changed over to your company when my contract is up from current web provider, I would wonder what your customer service would be like. As I see it is a indication of your company.

I am going right now to check it out. Thanks

David, for all it's worth. .

IDX for you is a lot of info put together to inform the public about listings

I have yet to find . .with exception of two IDX providers what the PUBLIC wants not what your developers can do. .

Big Pictures. . I mean the bigger the better. . let me find about basement and water heaters and laundry rooms by scrolling below.. .but first let the client fall in love with the property.

Put Google street next. . let the people find out what the neighborhood looks like before going there. .

is free is available. . USE IT

Put my picture there in a chat box. .CAN I HELP YOU? I'm Available Now. .

Let me engage with my visitors. .

SEND IT TO YOUR GRANDMOTHER. . press a button and you send the listing to your friends or family to let them know what you are looking for in a house. . .twitter. .should be there too

If is there. .I did not see it because teh page is overloaded with info and ads

See below. . it comes from your IDX. . Put all that stuff down. .ALL THE WAY TO THE BOTTOM!!

Let the client FALL IN LOVE WITH tTHE HOUSE FIRST WITH A BIG PICTURE . .

They don't need to know ABOUT THE LAUNDRY TYPE?. . yet

Laundry Type

Room

Possession Date

Negotiable

Roof Type

Composition

Style

European

Basement

Bath Finished
Concrete
Daylight
Entrance Inside
Entrance Outside
Finished Rooms
Full
Boat Door

Description

Single Family Res

just my opinion out of many. . .

yeah, i have to agree with Reynaldo. I have sent numerous items to the support team trying to integrate my MLS into the website.

last 2 emails were not responded to, and while they profoundly apologized that I fell through the cracks, when they told me what they actually needed, I did it and sent them it and a few other choicesj

no confirmation of receipt. No mls on 'my beautiful website'

no notification that apparently I sent the wrong thing. Guess I should have realized I would get what I pay for. I paid nothing, I got nothing

I even told them that what a i sent was FARs mls info which covers most major markets in Florida, thus bypassing the need to get the local MLS for each new client.

But after a couple/few months, I am done. I will not even write a follow up email as it will have the same response yet lack of action

too bad as it sounded like a good thing

It's not the idea of it being free. The principle is that doing the part that is asked and possibly getting a future client. If we treated all our prospects as if they just want a free CMA to get a idea of what his house would sell for we would all be broke. It is not something we get right away sometimes. It takes follow-up, consistancy, and keeping my word. At the end of the day, what do we have left.

NOV

Reynaldo / Daniel,

First, I want to apologize for the bad experience you've shared with us regarding softRealty.com. As a customer focused, support driven company, it is our priority to learn from our shortcomings and proactively prevent such bad experiences from recurring. I just sent emails to each of you directly in response to your specific history. Please reply to the emails acknowledging receipt.

I do want to assure you that we work with hundreds of agents in supported and unsupported markets at any given time. These numbers accumulate month-after-month and we have managed to retain a very positive customer experience. Regrettably, we were not able to extend you the same level of service.

Sometimes the desire of serving everyone at one time can get the better of a company with nothing but the best intentions. The timing of when we received your MLS data feeds occurred right after we had several dozen new MLS feeds queued up for setup. The demand for new MLS markets have simply exceeded our expectations and therefore turn around time is a bit more extended. We are working on doing a better job of setting appropriate expectations for new MLS requests. In the meantime, we released an alternative Property Search to consider for those in unsupported MLS markets.

Thank you again for your candid criticisms and sharing your frustrations.

Best Regards,

David Carroll

Fernando,

Thank you for your comments about our IDX. We make it a point to utilize the feedback we receive to make our products even better.

Most of the great features our IDX contains now came about because of the great ideas we received from our agents and their interactions with their clients.

I would like the chance to review all of the things you mentioned in your post with you if you have the time. We feel that we have captured the ability to do many of the things you mentioned and I am curious if they are unclear or not prevalent. We feel this is something we can improve in future updates.

Due to the great demand from around the nation for our free IDX property search we are now offering a free, non-MLS based property search powered by Google Base. This property search integrates with real estate agent’s existing websites or if the agent does not have a website, softRealty provides websites through their sister company, Agent Element (www.agentelement.com).

This property search is perfect for the agent who wants national access extending beyond the reach of their MLS listings. Features of this free property search include printable brochures with agent branding, photo tours, Google mapping, the ability to create predefined search results, upgradable Anonymous Lead Capture technology and much more.

This Anonymous Lead Capture technology is unique from any other in the industry because it throws the decision of “forced registration or not” out the window and gives agents the power to connect, qualify, and convert all their website visitors.

When compared to search engines that charge hundreds of dollars per year, this search tool has more features and a more intuitive interface.

Please review some sample sites that are using our Google Base Property Search and compare this to our MLS versions:

FREE Google Base Property Search:

• http://talktoshawn.publishpath.com

• http://bit.ly/HagerRE

• http://bit.ly/CartwrightRE

FREE MLS Property Search:

• www.kunkelsells.com

• www.ronsellsatlanta.com

• www.zoomre.com

DEC

I am curious if you are participating with Southern Oregon MLS (SOMLS) ?

DEC

Melinda - Thanks for the inquiry. We are not in Southern Oregon MLS today. However, we do have a Google Base version of our property search if you are interested in taking a closer look. Please contact support@softrealty.com for additional information.

Thanks,

David Carroll

Thanks,

David Carroll

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