For the past decade, the advances in technology that have transformed the way Realtors do business may have served as a warm-up act to what's just around the corner: a wireless technology revolution that may change the real estate industry like nothing before it.

You couldn't avoid the topic at the recent National Association of Realtors conference in November, 2003. Everywhere you turned, attendees were discussing which wireless device to buy and how it can immediately help their business.

Nor do you have to look far in the industry to see its fast-growing impact. Around the nation, Realtors motivated both by a desire to provide better customer service and reap the financial rewards that follow, are tapping into wireless technology.

Armed with handheld, unobtrusive, carry-anywhere Blackberry devices and Pocket PC's, they're using sophisticated new software that enables them to instantly call up home listing and other crucial data for their customers. Anywhere. Anytime. Far from the confines of their office or home computer.

I could go on about the many benefits and competitive advantages the emerging wireless technologies and related software offer. But the words of a Realtor during a recent focus group in Vancouver, British Columbia, sum it up best: "Quite frankly," he said, "if you aren't using a wireless device, in three years you may not be in business."

A reach? I don't think so – and the sentiment has history on its side. Just 10 years ago, as the unfamiliar concept of electronic mail and that mysterious thing called the Internet were coming into vogue, many scoffed at the notion that they soon would be invaluable tools for the real estate industry.

Try to find a Realtor who doesn't use them on a daily basis now.

Indeed, not long ago, Electronic Realty Associates (we now know them as the ERA franchise) used to differentiate themselves by staying one step ahead of the competition by faxing listings to customers. Yes, that's right. Faxing listings was a market differentiator. Although ubiquitous today, fax machines in many real estate offices sit relatively idle, now that e-mail can provide the same service, but much faster and with greater clarity.

Over the next five to seven years, a large percentage of tech-savvy Realtors – like those who early on adopted faxes and then the Internet and e-mail – won't even give wireless communication a second thought. It will be an integral part of their daily business, due to its ability to drastically improve customer service – and just as important, because customers will have come to expect it.

Already, 15 percent of Realtors nationwide use a wireless Internet device, according to a recent NAR study. Many of these Realtors are doing so to instantly retrieve critical MLS data.

Because of its ability to make an immediate impact on Realtors' business, wireless technology is the right technology at the right time.

Michael Grabham is president and CEO of Seattle, Washington-based Executive Wireless. His company's flagship product, Wireless Realty, provides Realtors with instant wireless access to MLS information – no matter the device (Pocket PC, Palm, Blackberry and other handheld devices).

Published: January 16, 2004

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