What is IDX/Broker Reciprocity

		Broker Reciprocity

What Is IDX / Broker Reciprocity?

Benefits/Values
Why Should You be Interested in IDX?
How Can I Make IDX Successful?

What is Internet Data Exchange (IDX) / Broker Reciprocity?

It is a business program where brokers grant each other permission to display their listings on each others' web sites. Brokers who participate in the program can display all active listings of all participating members of the program. If a broker chooses not to participate, no other broker will be permitted to display that brokers listings. A broker can include their listings in the IDX / Broker Reciprocity database without having a web site of their own.

Benefits/Values:

Dynamic Content…creates a draw for new prospects to visit the brokers web site.
Local service…the consumer may feel more comfortable using a property search tool that is offered by a local brokerage vs. using a national portal such as realtor.com or homeadvisor.com.
Retention…creates an incentive for the consumer to come back to the site.
Branding…most IDX / Broker Reciprocity solutions are “branded”, keeping the broker identity and message in front of the consumer at all times.
Stickyness…IDX / Broker Reciprocity is automatically updated with the local MLS data, usually on a daily basis. This creates a dynamic resource and consumers will want to keep coming back to see what's new.
Lead Generation…consumers will go to a brokers web site that promotes access to the entire MLS database, once they're on your site, you can use capturing tools to gather the leads.
Better educated…never before has this type of information been available to consumers without interacting with a real estate professional. Consumers come more prepared and better educated about the market with more realistic expectations. This makes the home buying process more efficient when they begin working with a real estate professional.

Why should you be interested in IDX?

Empowers you to deal with the real estate customer of the future.
Helps you establish a relationship early in the buying/selling cycle…and maintain that relationship throughout the transaction. In short, it generates leads!
Enables the smaller agencies to provide comparable services to the larger agencies.
Allows you to display more information about the listing than any of the national portal sites.
Creates “stickier” web sites since you now have more data and information to offer.
Makes you more innovative.
By providing listings on-line, your clients become more educated with the market which means you spend less time researching the market for each client and more time prospecting and servicing existing clients.

How can I make IDXsearch successful?

Advertise, Advertise, Advertise
You “must” advertise your web site for it to be effective. In all your advertising, all print (i.e. business cards, letterhead, flyers, yard signs) every place you advertise yourself, you need to have your web site address. Your URL has become as important as your phone number, you need to promote it.

Co-marketing Opportunities
You should start getting some reciprocal support from your business partners. If you are promoting your favorite professional services partners such as mortgage, title, appraisal, home repair, electrician and plumber you should have them place a banner ad or link on their sites to your site. Think of all the strategic relationships you have and negotiate with them to support you with a link to your web site.

Dynamic Content
IDXsearch is the first step in adding dynamic content to your site. IDXsearch is updated as often as your local MLS allows so it's being updated a minimum of every 24 hours. Dynamic content is what creates “stickiness”, it keeps your customers coming back.

Permission Marketing
So many broker and agent web sites give away valuable information without getting something in return. Permission marketing draws a potential client into giving you permission to continue a relationship with them. Rather than putting all 20 of your Buyer and Seller Tips on your web site, give them 2 or 3 and ask them to subscribe to your “free” Buyer and Seller Tip email service where you will provide them with a complete list. This way they still get what they're looking for, but more importantly, you get their contact information. Permission Marketing is one of the most underutilized methods of marketing but it is the most effective way to draw new clients into your business. Let us help you build a web site that's full of Permission Marketing tools that help you grow your customer base.