Choosing the Right Software
| With the hardware in place, let's turn our attention to the software that runs on it. After all, software is what does the actual work on your computer, from checking e-mail to creating flyers. Checklist Your Software When shopping for software, be sure to consider the following types of programs. In some cases, you might prefer to hire a specialist to do certain tasks for you:
There are several classes of software you should consider having. Unlike your hardware choices, your software choices are usually more flexible. For example, rather than lay out your own business cards or flyers, you might hire a graphic artist to do so. Or you might hire someone to design and perhaps maintain your Web site. So as you go through my software recommendations, always keep in mind the tasks you want to do yourself and the tasks you're willing to pay someone else to do. In some cases, you can hire someone to create the basic materialssuch as a flyer template or Web siteand then handle modifications and updates yourself. But it's a very rare agent who does it all. When you're shopping for software, you'll find that prices are pretty much the same wherever you go, although you'll find that certain categories of softwareparticularly system utilitiesregularly go on sale or offer rebates. A few online sitesAtomicPark Software and NewEgg, most notablyoften have discounts on major software programs. So do shop around.
Selecting Office Productivity SoftwarePerhaps the most widely used software is office productivity software. Most people know it in the form of Microsoft Office, which includes the Word word processor, Excel spreadsheet, and PowerPoint presentation programs. A variation of Microsoft's suite also includes the Publisher page layout tool. All the Office suites include Microsoft's Outlook, a combination e-mail client, schedule manager, and contacts manager. (On the Mac, Outlook is called Entourage.) There are competing programs such as Corel WordPerfect Office for Windows and AppleWorks or iWork for Mac. (Note that iWork has no spreadsheet program.) But most people use Microsoft Office applications, so it's usually easier for you to use them as well. Plus, Office comes installed on most new PCs, so you likely already own it. You use office productivity software mainly to create letters and other documents such as seller presentations. You'll most often use a word processor (like Microsoft Word), but sometimes you might want to use presentation software (such as Microsoft PowerPoint) to create a more dynamic presentation to give to your potential clients. Also part of an office productivity suite is a spreadsheet (like Microsoft Excel), which is very handy for doing quick budgets and other calculations, whether for yourself or your clients.
Selecting System UtilitiesThere are certain software tools everyone with a computer should have, yet they're easy to overlook because they don't help you produce specific items like flyers or presentations. System utilities typically keep your system running smoothly and help you manage files more easily. In today's Internet-connected world, PC users face an insidious threat of malicious software, or "malware," that includes viruses, adware, spyware, Trojan horses, worms, and other exotic varieties. Some of these threats monitor your actions and deliver only certain ads based on the Web sites you visit, while others destroy your data, use your PC as a virus-spreading engine, or capture your financial and other private records and send them on to thieves. You need at least one program that protects your computer from viruses and other malware, and make sure this software is set to run continuously to intercept any threats. In fact, you should really have a couple of programs, because no single program can catch everything. (This is particularly true on Windows, which malware writers target. The Mac is a safer venue for computing because its small market share makes malware authors less interested in writing their destructive software.) Norton Antivirus and the full System Works suite from Symantec are the best known protection tools. Unfortunately their popularity has also led to malware authors figuring out ways to disable their protection when attacking your system. So I recommend that you don't use Norton Antivirus but instead use an alternative tool like McAfee's Internet Security Suite or Avanquest/VCom's well-regarded Fix-It Utilities for Windows, or Intego's Virus Barrier X for Mac. (It's perfectly fine to use Symantec's other utilities, such as Norton Disk Doctor.) Not all protection tools safeguard your PC from all forms of malware. For example, not all tools yet deal with a newer type of threat called spyware. So you may need a separate tool to detect and eliminate spyware. For Windows, you should consider Lavasoft's Ad-Aware, Microsoft 's Windows Defender, PC Tools' Spyware Doctor, Trend Micro's Anti-Spyware, or Webroot's Spy Sweeper. (Note that Fix-It Utilities also includes spyware protection along with its virus protection.) For Mac OS X, the only real option is Intego's Net Barrier X3. Even if your protection software blocks spyware, it's usually a good idea to get a separate antispy-ware program anyhow, as an added layer of security. Your antivirus and antispyware programs continuously monitor your system. On a Windows PC, look for the programs' icons in the Taskbar (the row of icons that also contains the Start button). If you don't recognize the icons shown, using your mouse, hover over the icon to display a pop-up description. As mentioned earlier, you should routinely back up your data, using a built-in tool such as Microsoft Backup or a third-party tool such as EMC Dantz's Retrospect or Symantec's Norton Ghost for Windows, or CMS's BounceBack Express, EMC Dantz's Retrospect, or Intego's Personal Backup for Mac OS X. A third type of utility that compresses and decompresses files is especially helpful when you're downloading or e-mailing large files. Two popular compression formats in use are Zip and StuffIt. Zip compression is used on both Windows and Mac OS X PCs, while StuffIt compression is used almost exclusively on the Mac. WinZip's WinZip for Windows handles Zip files, and Allume Systems' StuffIt software handles both Zip and StuffIt files, with versions for both Windows (called ZipMagic) and Mac OS X (called Stuff It).
Selecting Page Layout SoftwareMany people use Microsoft Word, WordPerfect, AppleWorks, or iWorks Pages to lay out simple flyers and documents. Each can do the job, and if your needs are simple, go ahead and use any of these programs. But to produce professional-looking flyers or marketing materialsopen-house flyers, neighborhood mailings, business cards, listing presentations, stationery, and so onyou need a real page layout program, or you need to hire a graphic artist who uses one. You can use Microsoft Publisher, a Windows-only page layout tool, for a whole range of documents without knowing a lot about design. Professional publishers typically use Adobe Systems' InDesign or, less and less frequently, Quark's QuarkXPress, both of which come in Windows and Mac OS X versions. Although harder to learn, they can do much more than Publisher. InDesign, for example, can help you assemble electronic flyers that include slide shows or movies to help you create a virtual-tour flyer. You can create flyers in several programs. For example, the left flyer was created in Microsoft Word, and it's perfectly serviceable. The right flyer was created in InDesign, which allowed more column choices, more control over image placement and text wrap, and more control over font and style choices.  As you might expect, the professional tools are much costlier, although Adobe sells the Creative Suite, which includes Photoshop image editing, Illustrator illustration, and InDesignpage layout programs, for a discounted price. No matter which tool you use to create your documents, you'll need a good selection of fonts to create a distinctive identity and showcase your higher-quality work. The fonts that come installed on Windows and Mac OS X are so widely used that they carry little design impact. But many sources for fonts are available, including Adobe, Agfa Monotype, FontSite, International Typeface Corp. (ITC), and MyFonts.
Selecting PDF Creation SoftwareA related type of software handles PDF creation and editing. PDF is a common format used to display documents electronically. It's practically a standard. Anyone can open these documents and view or print them using the free Adobe Reader software. But just reading and printing PDF files is only part of what you'll need. You should also be able to edit and create PDF files. Some programs, such as Adobe's Creative Suite applications and QuarkXPress, let you create PDF documents from within the program, but most applications do not. Using Adobe's Acrobat Professional software or Docudesk's DeskPDF software, you can create PDF documents from almost any Windows or Macintosh program, by simply "printing" your file to PDF rather than to an actual printer. And as mentioned earlier in this chapter, software such as Adobe's Acrobat Professional and ScanSoft's PaperPort lets you automatically convert documents scanned in from a scanner or multifunction device to the PDF format. To edit PDF files, you'll want to use Acrobat Professional or Docudesk DeskPDF Pro as well. Note that editing PDFs is not the same as editing other documents: You're limited to changing text line by line, and you can't move or delete items on the page. Instead, you can only fix small errors or make small changes to an existing PDF document.(Chapter 3 covers techniques for creating and editing PDFs in more depth.) For example, the MLS system I use lets me create PDF flyers from listings in its database. So I create PDFs from the MLS for my office's listings so I can include links to them on my Web site. Because I am not the seller's agent for these listings, I need to edit the MLS flyers slightly. Using Acrobat Professional, I add "buyer's agent" after my name, so it's clear what my role is. I also edit the contact information to indicate that agents and buyers with agents should contact the main officeafter all, the whole point of publicizing these office listings is to find prospective buyer clients. In addition, it's a waste of my time and against NAR rules for me to try to answer questions from other agents or from buyers who already have agents, sinceI'm not the seller's agent. A PDF editing tool like Adobe Acrobat Professional lets you make small changes to PDF documents. Here, I'm adding "buyer's agent" to my name in the flyer produced through my MLS system.  Acrobat also lets you attach electronic sticky notes for comments. I like to use this feature to make notes on disclosures I provide to clients. Using the sticky notes, I can explain what confusing text might mean or highlight where they need to sign or initial a page.
Selecting Image Editing SoftwareWhen working with digital imagestypically, photos of houses and their interiors for properties you're listingit quickly becomes apparent that not all photos look that great. Sometimes, you'll need to reshoot a bad photo, but in some cases you can fix it on your computer. That's where image editing and photo retouching software comes in. Many digital cameras come with photo retouching software, such as Adobe's Photoshop Elements (based on Photoshop but designed for nonprofessionals), Corel's Paint Shop Pro, Google's Picasa, Microsoft's Digital Imaging Suite, Roxio's PhotoSuite, or the camera maker's own software. (Of these programs, only Photoshop Elements comes in a Mac OS X version, though Apple's iPhoto for Mac also includes photo retouching capabilities.) You can also buy photo retouching software separately. Photo retouching software lets you lighten, darken, change contrast, straighten, rotate, crop (cut out the parts you don't want), and adjust color balance for photos. Some software also lets you "stitch" together multiple images to create a panorama or create a slide show from multiple pictures. To do more than retouching, you'll want a professional image editor such as Adobe Photoshop (for Windows and Mac OS X), Apple Aperture (for Mac OS X only), or Corel Photo-Paint (part of the Windows-only CorelDraw suite). A professional image editor gives you finer control over your images' resolution, size, and color balance as well as sophisticated editing features such as creating multilayer images. But, honestly, these features are overkill for most agents. Most of us just need a photo retoucher to brighten dark pictures, correct color imbalances, and crop out the neighbor's tree, not a professional image editor.
Selecting E-Mail Client and Web Client SoftwareA big part of being an agent is staying in touchwith clients, with other agents, and with the MLS's data. That's why every agent needs an e-mail account and needs to check it at least daily. You also need Web access to view the local MLS and other resource sites. Today's computers come with built-in e-mail client software and Web browser software. Windows PCs typically have Microsoft's Outlook (or Outlook Express) e-mail client and Internet Explorer Web browser installed, while most Macs come with Apple's Mail e-mail client and Safari Web browser. E-mail and Web client programs are all similar, although their interface differences do tend to make people love or hate individual ones. For example, in Windows, I find Microsoft's Outlook e-mail client too complex, because of its other features such as contact management, so I use the free Outlook Express instead. On the Mac, I find Apple's Mail is too simplistic, so I use Microsoft's Entourage instead. Other choices include Mozilla's Thunderbird and Netscape's Messenger, both of which have Windows and Mac versions. For Web clients, you will need Internet Explorer on your Windows PC or Mac, because there are some sitesincluding many MLS sitesthat use Microsoft-specific technology and thus require you to use this specific browser. (And many of these sites require that you access them from Windows.) Internet Explorer is a frequent target of virus and spyware attacks, so using Internet Explorer extensively could compromise your computer's securityparticularly on a Windows PC. Many people instead use an alternative such as Mozilla's Firefox, Opera's Opera, or Netscape's Browser, all of which have both Windows and Mac versions. (I prefer Firefox.) If you use these programs, you'd still use Internet Explorer occasionally, when visiting sites that only work with Internet Explorer.
Selecting Contact and Schedule Management SoftwareSome people are very organized. The rest of us are not. A big challenge for any agent is tracking all your contacts, appointments, and to-do items, especially because many contacts are specific to a particular transaction, while others are contacts you'll talk to repeatedly. The best way to manage contacts, appointments, and to-do items is difficult for me to suggest, because everyone has such personal approaches to this kind of work. But there are plenty of tools availableincluding paper-based standby tools like Rolodexes, appointment books, file folders, and notepadsto use after you figure out your own system. As mentioned earlier, Microsoft Outlook (and its Mac counterpart Entourage) comes with tools to schedule appointments, get alerts so you don't miss them, track to-do items, and manage contacts. An advantage to Outlook's integrated approach is that your phone, e-mail, and mailing-address contact information can be in one place, so you don't have to maintain a separate e-mail directory from your phone directory. If you do use Outlook, consider a real estate-specific add-in like Eurekaware's RealEstate Contact Manager, which adds fields to help you track current prospects, past clients, and so forth within Outlook.
Some peopleespecially those with lots of sales experienceprefer full-blown contact management systems such as Sage Software's Act for Windows and Now Software's Now Up-to-Date and Contact suite for Windows and Mac OS X. The newest version (8) of FileMaker's FileMaker database for Windows and Mac OS X also adds such capabilities. For me, a simple contact manager and scheduler work best. I use a Handspring Visor (a version of the well-known Palm Pilot)a portable organizer that holds schedule and contact informationto maintain my appointments list and frequently called numbers. This device comes with a desktop program that lets me access the same information on my computer, so whether I'm at my office or in my car, I have the same information available. (Outlook lets you accomplish this as well, if you use a Microsoft-compatible organizer device such as the Hewlett-Packard iPaq.) I store transaction-specific information in client folders (both paper and on my computer), keeping a notepad of contacts in my car. Using this strategy, I can keep my contacts list manageable, so only long-term contacts are in my organizer.
The key is to use your preferred system for managing your information, and then figure out where to keep it. Knowing what works best for you will guide you toward the technology (paper and/or electronic) you need.
Selecting Bulk E-Mail and Campaign Management SoftwareIf you have a large client base or a large farm (a neighborhood or other area in which you focus to cultivate clients), you probably send regular postcards, letters, holiday cards, or other materials to advertise your services and remind past clients that you're still in business to assist them and their referrals. But mailing printed materials is expensive. To lower your costs, you can stay in touch with prospects and clients for much less via e-mail if you use bulk e-mail software. This software lets you create e-mail messagescomplete with graphics, essentially as a small Web pageand send them to all your contacts. (Chapter 5, "Online Marketing Techniques," explains how you can manage campaigns, including how to abide by recent laws meant to protect recipients from spam.) If you've attended free technology seminars sponsored by training companies, you've probably been pitched some expensive campaign management software or subscription service. Maybe these make sense for a medium to large brokerage that sends messages on behalf of all its agents, but the software or services I've seen are overkill for individual agents and small brokers. If your client e-mail list is small, you can use your e-mail software to send bulk messages, but bulk e-mail software makes more sense. Bulk e-mail software lets you manage your client lists by categories, and it allows you to personalize your messages (such as insert their names in the "Dear so-and-so" lines). One of the easiest to useand affordablebulk e-mail programs is G-Lock Software's EasyMail Pro. Other programs aimed at sole proprietors and small offices include AtomPark software's Atomic Mail Sender and LmhSoft's e-Campaigner.
Selecting Web Creation and Editing SoftwareHaving your own Web site is one of the most powerful marketing efforts you can make, as Chapter 4, "Effective Web Sites" explains.But laying out Web pages and linking them together is not a simple task, especially if you aren't a geek. Although many brokers give you your own page on their site, you can't showcase your skills, listings, or services your way. That's why you'll still want your own Web site. One option is to create your Web site's pages yourself, using Web creation software. This gives you complete control over how your site's content is arranged and presented. Or you could subscribe to a Web service that creates your site's pages automatically based on templates and that lets you use menus and dialog boxes to update the pages without actually working with the underlying HTML code. (The Hypertext Markup Language, or HTML, is the programming language in which Web pages are written. Web browsers then use that code to produce what you see on the screen, which is why Web pages often look slightly different from one computer to the next.)
Or you could hire a Web designer to create a Web site for you, which either you or he maintains (such as updating listings). There are pros and cons to each option, which boil down to three factors: required knowledge, time and/or money spent, and control over the end result. If you create and/or maintain your own Web site, you'll need HTML editing software to create and edit the pages. Such software typically gives you a layout viewwhere you can work on pages visually much like you would in a word processor or page layout programand a code view, where you can edit the actual HTML code. If you're new to Web design, consider Microsoft's FrontPage, a Windows-only program that does a good job of shielding you from the HTML code, so you can fairly easily create a decent-quality Web site and maintain it without excessive effort. If you're more experiencedor adventurousget a full-blown HTML editor such as Adobe's GoLive or, my favorite, Adobe's Macromedia Dreamweaver. Both programs require more skill, but you can make much better sites if you're willing to learn the software.
You'll also need an image editor, which I covered earlier in this chapter, to work on the images you place on your Web site. (Chapter 3 provides tips on using Web creation and image editing software.)
Selecting Accounting and Tax SoftwareWhen considering the tools you'll need as an agent or broker, it's easy to overlook the tools necessary to manage your business. Many of us dislike managing money, such as tracking costs and calculating taxes. But even if you use an accountant to do the nitty-gritty work, you should have some method of tracking your income and expenses so your accountant has accurate information. If you're more proactive in managing your finances, you might find you can do more with your money, such as saving more in tax-deferred retirement accounts or setting money aside for vacations or your own property investments. There are three basic ways to manage your finances: using paper, using a spreadsheet program, or using accounting software. Accounting software, such as Intuit's QuickBooks and Sage Software's Peachtree Accounting, are probably overkill for individual agents, although such an application might make a lot of sense for small-to-medium brokerages. For individuals, a program like Intuit's Quicken or Microsoft's Money is probably more appropriate. And if you have rental properties, consider Intuit's Quicken Rental Property Manager. But some users have found that the data entry is so time-consuming that they get out of the habit of keeping their records up to date, making the software useless. However, you track your income and expenses, so keep in mind that you also need to manage your taxes. Most agents are self-employed independent contractors and must pay quarterly taxes. Yet none of the tax programs, such as Intuit's TurboTax or H&R Block's TaxCut, calculate quarterly taxes; they're just designed to figure your taxes at the end of the year. Remember, if you underpay your quarterly taxes in any quarter, you'll likely owe a penalty. A good accountant can figure your quarterly taxes for you (or you can try to use the IRS's complicated forms), but that means for most of each quarter you won't really know how much to set aside for your taxes. One way to track your expenses and your estimated taxes as the year progresses is to use a spreadsheet. If you're not a spreadsheet jockey, you can use a spreadsheet template for Microsoft Excel such as the Zango Group's ZangoTaxQ.
Selecting Real Estate Forms SoftwareIn many parts of the country, agents can use Realfast's Realfast or RE FormsNet's Zipforms software to complete all transaction forms on their PC. (In California, the Zipforms software is called Winforms.) Typically, the state or local Realtors association has contracted with one of these two companies to provide its forms, so you usually do not have a choice. The software uses the standard transaction forms for various states and local Realtor associations. Using your computer and the software, you fill out all the forms for each transaction, ensuring a clean copy for your client to read and sign with no hard-to-read handwriting to confuse matters. You never have to worry about not having enough forms. Plus you always have an electronic copy if you need to print extra copies later. (Zipforms has an option to complete transactions over the Internet, which is handy if you don't happen to be at a computer with the Zipforms software installed.) The only flaw with Realfast and Zipforms is that they do not work on the Macintosh, even over the Internet. Some local associations might use forms that are not available via Realfast or Zipforms. However, they may be available directly from the local association in PDF or other computerized format, so be sure to ask. And TrueForms sells individual forms for several states in electronic format for use by agents, sellers, and buyers. Depending on how savvy the form's creator was, you can fill in the blanks onscreen and print some of the PDF forms, but some forms only let you print them out for completion by hand.
Brokers and agents are so used to working with the printed forms that often no one bothers to mention that electronic versions are available. If your real estate business includes property management and rentals, there are a few places you can get standard lease and related forms in electronic format. These include Kaktus Productions, Socrates, and local apartment owner associations. A good place to start is with the Apartment Owners Association, which can direct you to any local chapters. Remember: There are many state and local laws that these forms might not address. Because they are typically written for the entire country, make sure you understand all the local requirements and have a local real estate attorney make all the required adjustments. If there is a local landlords or apartment owners association in your area, the chances are excellent that it has the localized versions of the forms you need, created by its lawyers, will be available.
Selecting CD Creation SoftwareIt's a good idea to use recordable or rewritable CDs or DVDs for archiving transactions and disclosures. You also might want to create CD "flyers" to use at open houses or for prospective buyers who stop by your office. These CDs could contain a PDF flyer, video tour, photos, disclosure documents, and/or other materials. Both Windows and Mac OS X let you write ("burn") CDs by copying files and folders onto them. If you want more control, you should consider using disc-creation software. This type of software helps you create and edit music and video, as well as produce discs that work on both Windows and Macintosh PCs. In Windows, two good choices are Nero's Nero and Roxio's Easy Media Creator. For the Mac, Roxio's Toast is the gold standard.
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