/24-7PressRelease/ - Carlsbad, CA, July 14, 2008 - This year's show was different than years' past. Why? Because people weren't talking about the coolest newest technology, they were talking about applications that were right for their specific business needs. Yes, Microsoft was there with its Virtual Earth and yes, that does fall under the category of really cool, but for the most part, the educational offerings and the tradeshow floor were filled with people with serious looks on their faces as they absorbed the information that was coming at them. They were ready to make real decisions about how to implement the technology within their companies. ready to make real decisions about how to implement the technology within their companies.
The conference also felt very current. The environment, social networking and philanthropy were on the lips of everyone. They weren't just the icing on the cake, but are clearly part of the foundation for years to come. The attendees have known that they are the leaders in the industry and now proof of that leadership, through implementation of good technologies, is their reward for years of leading the charge.
For the commercial real industry that is extremely fragmented, it was clear this year that the top tier 'gets it' and the train has left the station. Anyone who wants to participate in commercial real estate over the next decade can now clearly see what they're going to need to do so particularly when it comes to technology. The attending companies have identified the path. We owe them a big thank you.
This was not a conference attended by small commercial real estate businesses, but rather, most of the attendees were from the largest commercial real estate lending, property management, development, portfolio owners, legal and brokerage firms in the country. Property management had a significant presence at the show and the software solutions to support this sector of the industry, particularly for accounts payable type systems, which were in abundance. There was also significant connections between technology and building management. Hardware, issues of controlling energy, improving access and security and overall, intelligent and environmentally sustainable buildings, was a big piece of the show.
This was Realcomm's 10th anniversary. It was hard to believe as one sat in the audience at the opening and saw those ten years flash before me on the big screen. Brenda Dohring, CEO of RealWired, refers to Jim Young, co-founder and CEO of Realcomm, as an evangelist for the commercial real estate and its intersection with technology and that he's focused on showing a continued path to productivity and sustainability of the product that it deals in - buildings.
The conference also talked about brokerage and Customer Relationship Management Systems. What is different is that whether attendees cared that they are starting to call them Relationship Managers (RMs) or xRM's, which drives home the point that they are good for managing all relationships and not just customers. More importantly, all of the major brokerage firms are on board and most have put in incentives or penalties to ensure that there is adoption and use.
One of the best stories to drive this home was told by a panelist. A property owner narrows its representation selection down to three firms. Everyone knows the drill. They come in and do your "dog and pony show" and see who walks away with the business opportunity. Only in this case, unbeknownst to two of the presenters, they were from the same firm. The owner knew well that they were both from the same firm and intentionally had both come and present. What story drives home that the implementation of a CRM system shouldn't be about the brokers, it's about the customer. This is the new mindset for the conference attendees.
This scenario will not happen when people are tracking their opportunities in a system which gives transparency to those prospects that the brokerage community holds so close. While there are all sorts of ways that firms were penalizing and/or try to entice their brokers to participate, they all impact the wallet or purse in one way or the other.
On a positive note, there is another story of one very smart company getting great adoption by having upfront communication and in writing agreements with their brokers about how to handle the contacts and associated data that they had put in the system, should there be a parting of the ways. These types of agreements are vital to the success of having cooperation. And they build the most important piece for success...which is trust.
Dohring encourages everyone to take advantage of what you can learn from Realcomm. Bookmark the site: http://www.realcomm.com. There is a continual educational process through seminars throughout the year every year leading up to this event. Participate. Because as Jim says, 'You don't know what you don't know.' Maybe next year one will see increased attendance and leadership from the smaller commercial real estate firms who make up about 85% of the entire market. And that'd be a good thing!
For more information, contact Brenda Dohring at brenda@realwired.com or visit ww.realwired.com.
About Realcomm Conference Group, LLC
Realcomm Conference Group, LLC is the world's leading research and educational institution that produces an annual conference and exposition on technology, automated business solutions and intelligent buildings for executives in commercial and corporate real estate. Realcomm was founded in 1999 with the goal of bringing industry leaders together each year to discuss, demonstrate and debate the latest innovations that impact the industry. Today, in addition to the annual conference, Realcomm conducts seminars, webinars, workshops, executive tours and other strategic services to educate industry professionals about the latest business solutions and technologies to improve commercial real estate development, leasing, management and operations.
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