RealTown's RealTalk

About 30 days ago I asked the group if I still needed my Top Producer 8i Contact Management program, if I also am using Zipform's Relay Transaction Management System. I did not hear a peep from anyone, so either those using these systems just don't know, or were not in a position to choose.

I took it upon myself to research this and have found the following, which I would like to share with you.

The monthly cost of Top Producer 8i including Market Snapshot is about $100.

The annual cost of Zipform's Relay Transaction Management System is $99 per year if a NAR member.

Though, when I first got it, Market Snapshot got me 4 listings in less than 30 days, that was almost two years ago and a very different market. I have not had a Market Snapshot inquiry for months and months. This does not mean that it is not a great program - it is - but it is not beneficial to me in today's Phoenix area market. I am going to drop it.

Top Producer 8i has a fantastic email stationary, similar to Bogo. But, that is the only thing that really impresses me at this time. I found that all I have to do in my Relay System is to click on Contacts, and I have a very nice Contact Management System. Why have another one in Top Producer? I do not use most of the Top Producer features, including their email, letter and flyer templates. I used to use them for my drip email BEFORE I got that service inclusive of my Point2Agent Professional Web site.

My point is that in today's frugal world of real estate, each of us needs to take a long, hard look at what we are paying for and see if it is paying for itself or not. I have found that Relay can do for me for only $99 per year what Top Producer 8i is doing for $99 per month! If I love the stationary so much, I should just purchase IT from another vendor for far less cost. I am going to drop Top Producer 8i.

By dropping these two programs, I am freeing up $100 per month, and not losing any features that I use.

I have also recently tried a local search engine boost from Big Local. They indicated that I would have tons of traffic to my website and be on page 1 or 2 of Google and Yahoo within 30 days. I have not found this to be true for me. As most of my clientele comes from referrals, friends and relatives, I am not really looking for 'new' business on the net. I just want to have the information available to my clients. So, I am dropping this, too.

Many of us are still 'throwing lots of stuff on the wall', hoping some of it will stick. It doesn't take very long to take a good look at what is and is not working for you. Many programs we have are just duplicates and are not needed. I'm cleaning house and thought you might like to do that, too.