Phase 1 - with Tweaks but no Twitter (yet)

3locations has recently completed the first phase of development of our Mobile MLS solution for Realtors and real estate companies. I am very impressed with the MLSearch functionality. With our system, you can easily request and receive real estate listing information on any phone through SMS. Simply text message any address to +17783214411 and the 3locations system will send you the 3 closest listings in Greater Vancouver and the Fraser Valley.
Phase 1 specifications include:
1) Proximity Search by address or MLS number
2) Active MLS information with Realtor branding and short URL
3) MLS details with listing images on mobile optimized site
4) Web-to-mobile widget for real estate websites
Recent tweaks include increasing the size of the MLS images on the mobile web, reduced the size of the embedded short URL and eliminated unnecessary numbers to achieve a text message of 140 characters.
In our next release, we will be introducing a Twitter api that will deliver MLS information in Tweets that follow references to real estate listings in the original Tweets. Stay tuned for more developments.

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Web-to-Mobile Widget - Send MLS information to your phone

3locations today, is delivering on its promise to provide Realtors and real estate companies with a way to send MLS information from a website to a mobile phone. This customizable widget will help users reduce their need to print real estate listings and increase the number of ways that Realtors can interact with their clients. The widget will automatically register a new user, generate a password and send them the real estate information they are requesting.
Currently, 3locations is only offering MLS information for the Greater Vancouver area but our system is designed to add real estate listings from other cities as their clients needs expand.

 
(Now active - try our widget for Vancouver, BC MLS information)

Listings are delivered using SMS (text messaging) with an embedded link to access the mobile web.
Today, it seems that everything is being built for the smartphone, with all major phone operating systems offering an application marketplace (iPhone App Store, Blackberry App World & Android App Market). We support this effort but 3locations is building compelling products that Realtors can provide to all their customers by SMS. Products that produce measurable results and hopefully sell homes! That being said, you should see the phone application we are working on. Coming soon… social networking for real estate!

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mlSMS - When only one listing will do

3locations has developed a product that will send a single MLS listing to your phone by SMS. This product is called mlSMS. It works by sending the command “MLS# v######” to our system’s phone number.
The 3locations system will automatically register a new user account and generate a password when it identifies a new user’s phone number or allocate the proper Realtor branding when it recognizes an existing account phone number.
This product is ideal for a number of marketing initiatives. There is the Keyword strategy where a Realtor will add a statement to their For Sale sign that reads… Text “MLS# V######” to +17783214411 for listing info.
As well, Realtors and real estate companies can use widgets on their websites to send MLS information to a user’s phone. This works well when the widget is placed alongside a listing on a web page or as an option in delivering MLS search results. mlSMS may be the easiest way to generate leads and better understand what your new clients are looking for.
3locations is committed to exploring new and better ways to increase productivity and improve communications. For more information on our products and services, please contact us by email: info (at) 3locations (dot) com

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MLSearch: listing information, when & where you need it

3locations is developing Mobile MLS Solutions for Realtors and real estate companies. Our core product is MLSearch. It allows users to search for and receive real estate listing information on their phone. Our goal is to create the easiest and fastest way to find MLS information. We beleive MLSearch will beat any product on any device in finding active listings and we are looking forward to testing our theory.
MLSearch works by text messaging an address to our system’s phone number. Our criteria does not require the exact address of a real estate listing to produce search results, it will simply deliver the three closest active listings to the desired location. We decided that 3 is the ideal number for each search to ensure that the user will receive the information they are looking for and two comparable listings.
Through a third-party database access agreement with local real estate boards, we download all of the MLS listings and geocode them with latitude and longitude coordinates. This allows us to preform proximity search requests by address, neighbourhood or intersection. As well, we can determine the distance between two listings or between a listing and another location (i.e. school, restaurant, store or work).
The best feature of this service is that it works with all phones. Text messaging is a core service and its usage increased 160% in 2008 over the previous year. The key to the success of SMS has been its simplicity, reach, price and reliability. About 75 billion SMS text messages were sent in June, 2008 averaging about 2.5 billion messages a day in the U.S.
For more information on 3locations and the Mobile MLS Solutions we are developing, please contact seanbrawley@gmail.com

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Reinforcing Realtor / Client Relationships

Our business model supports the traditional Realtor / Client relationship. We decided early on to focus our sales strategy on providing simple and reliable products to Realtors and real estate companies. This allows us access MLS information directly from the real estate boards through their existing programs. 

There are three main data policies that most real estate boards abide by:
1) Realtors are allowed to access, advertise and share MLS information for all of the listings from every office within their company. This must be approved by the Realtor’s managing broker.
2) Realtors can participate in the real estate board’s reciprocity program and access, advertise (online) and share all of the listings within the program. This is commonly referred to as IDX.
3) Realtors have access to all MLS information through their subscription with the MLS provider and in some cases they can share this information with registered clients that meet the policy standards of the VOW program. VOW is abbreviated for Virtual Office Website. This program is password protected and provided for a limited time period to clients during their home buying process.

Our services our supplied from Realtors to their clients by SMS, mobile web or through an embedded phone application. When a Realtor advertises the 3locations service or displays a widget, users that respond will be automatically registered and assigned a temporary password. This allows them access to IDX  (or company) listings while they are learning more about our system. Once the Realtor acknowledges a working relationship with the client, they can activate the VOW program (where available) and provide their client with access to all listings for a limited time period. We will notify the Realtor and client when their access is about to expire and make it easy for the Realtor to extend the VOW service as necessary.

We have built our system to work with the existing policies of the participating real estate boards and reinforce the traditional Realtor / client relationship. For more information on 3locations, please contact seanbrawley@gmail.com

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