Real Estate Contact Management- Why Agents want to Forget about Tech Support!

Over the years I've tought real estate agents how to utilize technology to their advantage as far back as when DOS was around. Seriously, this was the time when mobile phones were called "car phones." Probably one of my most memorable achievements was working for the company that introduced laptops to the world of real estate. In the good old days they were heavier and weighed about 10lbs. Heck the hard drive was even smaller than what an iPod Nano uses today. My point is; many things have changed over the years and real estate contact management is one of them.

If there is one thing that hasn't changed over the past quarter-century has to be the irritation and constant frustration of technical support when your little do-dad won't turn on or freeze like a deer in headlights. When I run my PowerPoint presentation I have two slides that can help you understand what real estate agents don't want to hear from technical support people. The titles are: "Do you have a brick or a sledgehammer handy?" and "Please hold for Mr. Gate's attorney." There are many others as well, but I will save them in case I visit your area for a live seminar.

The truth about tech support, especially as it pertains to real estate software, is the fact that almost none of the people you call have actually used the software you are calling about. In fact, it would be safe to say that NONE of them have ever sold real estate. In other words, the people you are calling don't know how the software "works," they just know how to handle error messages. It's this little subtlety that is at the core of so much dissatisfaction with technical support for programs like Top Producer and AgentOffice. Here's an example: you are trying to do a mail merge in the word processor for a group of contacts and every time you click the print button you get one letter and then the printer stops. After three or four tries you finally call tech support to find out what is wrong with the software. After a few minutes (or hours) on hold you finally get to speak with a technical support person who takes you through a series of questions like: "Does this happen when you use other programs to perform a mail merge?" to which you answer, "I don't know, I don't have another program that performs mail merges." They then take you down a rabbit hole of different diagnostics with your printer only to discover that there's really nothing wrong with your printer. After another hour of running checks on the software you are informed that there doesn't appear to be anything wrong with the software either. I even remember one particular customer who was told by a tech support person that, "Maybe you shouldn't try to use it to do mail merges!"

The main problem all along is that there was an "educational" issue instead of a "technical" one. When you were printing out your Real Estate Contact Management list you tried preparing a form letter from a different part of the program. Then again it might have been one minuscule step that didn't take place. You know, like telling the software to print "to the contact" not "to the group." The worst part is most of the tech support on staff has no idea this is an issue when preparing a mail merge. However, they are well versed to make you feel like an idiot when using your Real Estate CRM software.

Then of course you can't forget about the cost attached to inferior technical support. Top Producer says their tech support is free, but you actually pay $39 a month for the program. AgentOffice gives you a month free when you purchase their software, but if something goes wrong you have to pay $295 for a year long support contract. Heck, this is the same price as purchasing the program!

My point here is, if you just take the time to get trained on the program you purchase, life with Agent Office Demo will be much easier. Just think of it as a good health strategy. After all, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. If you take this route you won't have a tech support person say; "We can fix this, but you're going to need a knife, a roll of duct tape and a car battery."

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Do You Need an Elder Law Attorney?

Whether you are looking out for an aging family member, or are reaching that age yourself, it is never a bad idea to look into an elder law attorney to ensure that the coming future is secure for both you and your family. Elder Care Lawyers in Chaska MN provide the answers and options to those clients interested in preservation of assets, gifting, or those looking into medical assistance planning. Providing a solid legal foundation with firm and practical goals is something everyone looks into eventually. So even if it's just to answer a simple few questions, elder law attorneys are here for you and your loved ones.


As the area of elder law continues to grow and expand over the years, the rules and regulations become more complex and frustrating to some. That's why elder law attorneys work personably with their clients, providing one-on-one contact with up-to-date answers and ease of access to all the information they have. Attorneys strive to be not only knowledgeable, but reliable. They work around a person's wants and needs and listen to the short and long term goals of each client. With this attention to detail and sincere interest in each case that comes their way, elder law attorneys are able to build a plan that satisfies everyone.


Elder law attorney's work encompasses a number of areas. Attorneys can help create a living will or establish a health care directive. They can provide assistance for medical planning that includes planning for incapacity or any disabilities. This ensures that as time progresses the client can rest assure that they have planned ahead and are not caught by any surprises. Personalized attorneys care for their client and want to do what is best for them in all situations.

If a loved one is being threatened with the idea of being put in a long term care facility, elder law attorneys can step in and develop strategies to keep them at home for as long as possible. This can vary from situation to situation, and if it is the case that the loved one must be transferred, attorneys will be there to walk the family through the transition. They will make it their personal responsibility to see that the process goes smoothly, and that both the client and the family are at ease.

Elder Care Lawyers in Chaska MNalso specialize in creating an estate plan for anyone looking ahead, or for those who are already arriving at that stage in their life. They can also review assets and help preserve them if necessary, providing clients the assurance that they will never be shortchanged. No matter what the question or legal issue is that you face elder law attorneys are here to help each and every client transition painlessly into the next stages of their life and assure that every future they work with is secured.


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Portable Hunting & Ice Fishing Houses With Portability

The concept of Ice Fishing Shelters and portable canvas hunting enclosures are finally being more realized by manufacturers, and are indeed becoming something that is actually practical to use. This isn't something new however, outdoorsmen and women have been using canvas as a way to create shelter for centuries, and it's pretty clear that canvas is extremely durable, and that's what really counts in weatherproof shelters, as well as ice fishing houses.

The toughest weather conditions stand up to marine upholstery namely Aqualon Marine Canvas, a high grade canvas fabric that is made of: Vinyl Coated Polyester Canvas at 9 ounces per square yard and a two-ply polyester duck double coated with a pigmented vinyl resin on the top side. This means, TOUGH. The underside is coated with a durable water resistant finish and is usually white in color. This gives an excellent dimensional stability and weight to strength ratio.

As far as ice fishing houses go, these structures will be left out on the ice for a very long time. In fact they can even be out there for several months. As you can imagine, there going to be conditions that would be less than ideal for any other material, but the canvas holds up very nicely. In fact, it is so durable that it doesn't even lose it's color during conditions that would destroy most materials.

Whether you're in the north or the south, there is always going to be a good reason to use canvas shelters. When you are in the south, you need a place that is cool and free of the sun's deadly rays. These enclosures actually provide a well ventilated shelter, which is surprising. When you take it to the north however, it provides the opposite service, creating a warm shelter for you and your friends to take cover in.

These tents and shelters can also be used for hunting enclosures. They can actually be easily camouflaged, making them useable by the military. No matter where you are hunting, you can find a use for this tent, without resorting to a cabin or shack when in need of shelter. The "Wall Tent" is great for these purposes, and they come in all different sizes. No matter what the weather is like outside, you will find that this type of canvas enclosure is ready for the challenge.

Big Wall tents are just as tough as any other canvas enclosure, and are heavily reinforced at the stress points. It is easy to deploy, making it ideal for any hunter out there, as well as those who are interested in the outdoors. There are many items included with the tent, ranging from a Stove Pipe Shield, Sod Cloth, and a zippered door.

Ice fishing is a most popular sport in northern regions where a simple tent pole construction allows the angler to set up the ice house in short time and store it during summer months and reuse each year with minimal space required that some big wooden/metal structures require. These spacious canvas fish houses fit on your snowmobile sled. They fold out on both sides providing enough room for four to fish comfortably. Now you can haul all your gear with ease and "pack-in" to distant fishing spots. The canvas shell features: hardware, framework and complete instructions. It is tall enough to stand up in, has two zippered doors, two large side vents with flaps, two large windows with flaps, and is available in a heavy canvas construction or a lightweight version.

So basically these Ice Fishing Houses are great for hunting or fishing, whichever sounds like your cup of tea. They are easily customized, and because they are so large you will be able to invite your friends to come with you. It is easy to deploy, and they are also quite easily shipped. You can have the sent through UPS or FEDEX, or you can move them yourself with your truck. They are easy to ventilate and you can even put a portable generator within for those times when you need to cook or heat the tent. Your ice fishing experience will never be the same again.

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