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Introduce these apps and browser extensions at your next sales meeting. They’ll give your team an edge without breaking the bank.
Smartphone Camera Apps
Your agents should be hiring a professional photographer to shoot their listings, but for everyday photos they share on social channels or blogs, here are two apps that will help make their images look stunning:
- Camera+ is an iOS app that offers DSLR photography features, such as control over ISO (higher settings are generally used in darker situations), white balance, exposure compensation, and more. You can take prolonged exposures in low light settings and use the grid overlay feature to ensure a level shot. Photos are saved directly to your camera roll. Available through the App Store for $2.99.
- Camera FV-5 was also designed with the camera lover in mind. This Android app gives the user pro-style controls, including ISO, light metering, focus mode, white balance, and program mode. You can export RAW format images and control the shutter manually by taking exposures up to 30 seconds long. Your Instagram photos never looked so good. Available in the Google Play store for $3.95.
Marketing Goodies
Looking for a fun way to share your brand?
- Design a branded iPhone case with the Patternator app. You can upload your own logo or graphic to use an original pattern or choose from the app’s library of images and colors. You can also turn your creation into digital backgrounds or wallpaper. Cases are available for the iPhone 4/4s, 5c, SE, 5/5s, 6, 6 Plus, 6s, and 6s Plus, ranging from $29.90 to $35.90 each. Available through the App Store for free.
Helpful Google Tools
These apps and extensions will make the Google lovers in your office go ga-ga.
- Compiling e-newsletters is time-consuming. But for Gmail users, there is a better way. Flashissue is a newsletter creation service that helps you cull content from your own emails, URLs (like your blog or website), or keywords and then returns related articles. You can import your Gmail contact list and use Flashissue’s simple templates to get the word out about listings, community news, market updates, and more. The service even lets you track open rates, clicks, bounces, and other statistics. Plus, it’s free if you allow Flashissue’s branding on your emails. To learn more, visit flashissue.com.
- Mail2Cloud is a Google Chrome extension that lets you schedule emails to send at a later date and time. The tracking feature will show you how many times your email was read and whether your clients opened your attachment. “Scheduling emails is great for not looking like a jerk when working at crazy hours of the night,” says Stefanie Hahn, vice president of operations at Coldwell Banker Hearthside, REALTORS®, in Collegeville, Pa. “Yes, I wrote that email at 2 a.m., but then scheduled it to hit your inbox at 7 a.m.” You can also privately share files. Go all Inspector Gadget with the self-destruct mechanism, which erases an email five minutes after it’s read—handy when sending sensitive information. Available through the Chrome Web Store for free for up to 10 uses per month.