When MRIS offered two Broker Reciprocity solutions to its members, Washington D.C.-based Pardoe ERA knew just what it wanted to choose.

While other brokers are going for the "Bridge" solution, which allows opt-in brokers to share public-ready listings data on their personal Web sites, Pardoe went with the RETS solution, a direct download of MLS listings data.

Why? Pardoe wanted a market advantage while it played by the rules at the same time. And the company should know how to pull that off - Pardoe's new technology director is none other than Sam Jackson, former director of education and business development for MRIS, and he knows both solutions well.

"The first thing I wanted to do when I came on board was to make a good decision about Broker Reciprocity," says Jackson. "With the Bridge, some brokers can opt out, so you don't have all the listings, and other brokers can also ask not to show addresses, so it's not a true Broker Reciprocity solution. With the RETS feed, the consumer gets to see all the listings by permission, after signing a buyer agency agreement on our site."

The key to using listings as lead generation tools is to have an effective lead capture and management program in place, says Jackson. Pardoe has done so with Pardoe Passport. Passport is Pardoe's way of making the RETS listings available to consumers.

According to Jackson, Internet consumers start the information-gathering process much earlier in the homebuying and selling stage thanks to what is available over the Internet - the problem is that many agents aren't equipped to nurture a client who isn't ready to buy right away. This can cause problems in communication and service delivery.

"That's why we had to work on a leads management program because you can't turn leads over to agents who don't know how to work them properly," says Jackson.

He started by giving the online consumers what they want - an appropriate access to view homes.

"After being involved in the politics, I knew we would have to compete with brokers who use the Bridge, so I wanted to have registration and online agency (which is unenforceable) so that consumers could look at the whole MLS listings with addresses," explains Jackson. "If you have a buyer's agency agreement, you can display the data any way you want."

Jackson said he was proven right as MRIS Bridge got underway, and eight or nine brokers opted out. "With the RETS datafeed, we have all the listings," he says, "if we had bought the Bridge, we wouldn't have those brokers' listings."

But having the listings is nothing without bringing leads to the closing table, and that is what the Broker Reciprocity solutions are all about, says Jackson.

To get better control of lead conversion, Pardoe outlines leads two ways, those that are company provided, and those that are non-company consumer profiles.

Any of the Pardoe agents can enter their customers into the Pardoe Passport system, and they can enjoy access to listings and e-mail alerts and other online privileges. These leads are not charged back to the agent.

But company-proved leads are. Pardoe agents go through a voluntary training program which enables them to handle Internet leads in a certain way. When a consumer comes through the Passport system and says that they are not working with an agent, then the company forwards the lead to one of the trained agents. If the lead is converted into a sale, the agent pays a 25 percent referral fee to the company.

"To be in control of lead conversion, you have to control the company-provided leads and sell them back to the agents," says Jackson. "We haven't had any complaints because these are warm leads."

Leads are also monitored by the system, which are tracked through a branded e-mail system. "We don't want our agents using AOL, we want them using our brand," says Jackson. "If they want to respond to a lead we give them, then they have to use our e-mail system, and they must answer within 24 hours. I would like it to be even sooner."

While the system hasn't been in place long enough to study the conversion rate, Jackson knows already that it is paying for itself. "We only started this June 23rd, and Passport has already paid for itself in the referral fees from the converted sales," he says.

But he's still tinkering, and may decide to add the human touch after all.

"I just got back from Coldwell Banker Burnet where they have a Home Resource Center where a "guide," someone who answers call, ad and e-mail inquiries with that human interaction that is so necessary," says Jackson. "Sometimes people just aren't ready to immediately buy a home - they may want someone to come out and paint their house first so they can sell it. That's where lead management is important - you can initiate an exchange before you direct those leads to an agent. That way the agents aren't working leads that can't be immediately converted to a sale and getting frustrated."

"If they ask about Broker Reciprocity listings, on the other hand," he says, "we can say that we'll have someone call you."

Published: October 2, 2001

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