While it can’t magically give you more time, the right technology can help you do more and provide your customers with a valuable and personalised experience.
But there’s no point simply using technology for technology’s sake. The value of implementing the right technology lies in its ability to save everyone time, over and over again.
Here are three ways technology can help you get more out of each day:
1. Automating personalised communications
No one wants to feel like they’re just another faceless person in a crowd – and that includes your customers. Gone are the days when a letter or email addressed to ‘Dear Sir’ or ‘Dear Madam’ will cut it. We expect to see our name (spelt correctly!) along with a personalised message.
While providing a personal touch may seem time-consuming, it doesn’t have to be. Thanks to the amount of data that is generated every day by digital processes and social media, you can develop insights into individual customer interests and needs – and, using this data, you can generate a personalised communication experience in a bulk, automated way.
2. Controlling the online experience
We’ve been conditioned by the online tools we use to expect this control in our everyday lives. Consider social media. When we set up our profiles, we select our preferences – the types of posts you want to see, the kind of alerts you want to receive and who you want to connect with. It’s all about ‘you’. It should be no different when it comes to business.
You should be able to pick up your mobile device and have everything at your fingertips. No downtime. No time wasted.
The right technology can ensure your customers have access to the information they’re after whenever they need it. From online knowledge bases and training videos to self-serve preferences and user portals, the options are endless. And every time a client uses one of these services, it saves you time because they’re not dialling your number or filling your inbox.
3. Maximising every minute
These days we’re always ‘on’. Out of the office, out of business hours, we all need the right technology solutions at our fingertips to get the job done. We need on-the-spot access to the information and data you need, no matter where we are. You can’t afford to be chained to a desk. That’s why it’s essential for your business to implement cloud-based technology tools.
If you’re out and about and a customer asks a question, you can’t wait until you’re back in the office to provide the answer. You should be able to pick up your mobile device and have everything at your fingertips. No downtime. No time wasted.
Think of technology as the Robin to your Batman. It’s important, but on its own it can’t do everything. Why? Because real estate is a people business.
Real estate has been and always will be about relationships. Property managers are dealing with what is often their customers’ biggest investments. While technology can help facilitate a transaction, it will never be able to completely replace people.
So by letting technology do what technology does best – which is a lot of the more routine and mundane tasks – you can get back to building stronger relationships with your clients.
