Most of us can see the value in computer software these days - there's a lot to be said for the kind of productivity and efficiency that comes from having a computer automate as much as possible.  The trouble with most software that you can find in stores is simply that it’s too complicated.

Off-the-shelf software is too complicated because it tries to be all things to all people.  Programs like Quickbooks, ACT!, and even Outlook offer too many features simply because they’re designed for the butcher, the baker, and the candlestick maker.  While it’s true that most people really only use the same 30% of the functionality of any program, it’s also true that the other 70% of the software makes it bloated, slow, complicated, and cluttered.

From a real estate standpoint, the problem with most contact management or accounting software is that there isn’t much in the way of fields specific to real estate or the way you track buyers, sellers, and listings.  Sure, you can look at your clients as “customers” in Quickbooks, and collect “payments” and post “sales for services rendered”, but is this really how you want to track your most valuable assets, your clients and your listings?

As far as ACT! and Outlook go, the same problem exists – you can create “contacts” but can you really track things like ‘desired neighborhood’, ‘square footage’, or home photos?

So we can certainly make the case that you really need an all-in-one solution, not a one-for-all solution.  We designed RealAgent Accelerator to be an “organically” grown program that grows according to how our users want it to grow – we don’t charge for support and we answer all of our email – there’s nobody overseas to deal with, just friendly staff that developed the product and know it inside and out.  RealAgent was designed by agents (imagine!), so it contains the sorts of things that we ourselves use to better manage our clients and improve the way we do business.

Any thoughts? We’d love to hear your thoughts on your experiences with software – good or bad.  What kinds of things frustrate you about software?  If you were designing software yourself, what one feature would it *have* to have?  Let us know!