We have just released the RealBird Map-based Property Search covering the whole United States. This service uses data from Google Base and is completely private labeled for you. It is a new user interface view for our almost one year old RealBird Property Search service and adds a new option for providing a lightning fast property search experience for your website and blog visitors.
Just like with the previous versions of the RealBird Property Search (full screen tabular and sidebar widget option) you can create unlimited, preset search engines that target not only your market but other niche audience as well. (E.g. you can set up searches for REOs, ocean view luxury properties, equestrian ranches you name it)
Before the brief tutorial, see two live RealBird Map-based Search widgets below:
Ocean view homes and condos for sale in Miami Beach (courtesy of Janie Coffey)
The example above is preconfigured for Miami Beach and filtered with the "ocean view" keyword search.
San Francisco South of Market Lofts for Sale, all property types (Courtesy of Joe Parsons)
This example centers on South of Market in San Francisco and uses the keyword search "loft" for full text search filtering.
The two examples show how to create niche map search widgets so that you can embed relevant results in your blog posts. Of course, you can create more general searches if that is what you need for your application.
We are going to write more tutorials on the RealBird wiki on how to best utilize the RealBird Property Search. In the meantime, see the main functionalities below:
Create map-based searches for any map extent and zoom level with any search criteria pre-configured
As shown above, you can set up unlimited, preset, general or niche searches with your service. The steps area easy: log in to RealBird and go to the Property Search section. The system provides you with a default map search. Then use the "Search" and "Location" modules on the bottom right on the map itself to configure your search. Pan and zoom as needed. Once you are done, click the blue "HTML" icon, again on the bottom right on the map and copy the embed code from the pop-up.
Share your searches on social networks
You and your visitors can easily share a search on social networks and social bookmarking sites. At any time during the home search process, one can click on the "+" sign at the bottom right on the map and the current search (criteria and map extent) can be shared with a few clicks. It's a good practice to share your niche searches on Twitter, Facebook and other major networks to create some initial buzz.
How to embed it into your ActiveRain and Localism post
The embed code can be easily added to your website and blogs. Furthermore, the width of default code is set to 100% so you can post it on ActiveRain and it will automatically adjust the width for Localism and your outside blog as well, without any modification. Of course, you can always override the width and height of the widget. If you want to provide a full screen map, you can use the "green arrow" icon at the bottom right of the map to generate a permalink to the current map extent and search criteria and use that link as a regular Url in your blog post or in your website. Because the embed code is a regular iframe HTML snippet, you can use it on most blogs and websites including Posterous, Typepad, Blogger etc.
How to get the RealBird Map-based Property Search
The map-based search widget is available for RealBird PRO members. For only $99/year, it is one of the most affordable private-labeled search engine out there. Make sure to log into RealBird to see our current special. For existing RealBird PRO members, this is a free upgrade.
Existing RealBird Pro members:
- Log in to RealBird
- Go to the "Property Search" section
- The default page here is preset with the map-based search widget centering to your zipcode
- Pan and zoom in or out or use the Location button to jump to the proper location
- Use the Search button to set and submit search criteria if needed
- Finally, use the blue button that reads "HTML" at the bottom right on the map and copy the widget code from the popup box
- Paste this code in HTML view into ActiveRain or any other website or blog
RealBird free members and new registration
- Log in to RealBird or create a free RealBird account
- Go to the "Property Search" section
- The default page here is preset with the map-based search widget centering to your zipcode
- We provide you with a demo so that you can try your own map-search, set location and search criteria and preview matches.
- The free RealBird service shows a "This is a demo..." message when trying to click-through to the property details, but you can see all the other search functionalities otherwise
- Check out the top right area of the sidebar in the member area for our current promotional price. Follow the "Upgrade" link there to upgrade your service to RealBird PRO instantly
We hope you find this new RealBird service as amazing as we do. We worked a lot on it :) Should you have feedback or questions please do not hesitate to comment, call or email us. We are here to help.
Enjoy !
-- Zoltan
RealBird.com
Nice post today. THanks for getting it out to us today.
Patricia/Seacoast NH
Thanks Patricia ! Glad you like it
Zoltan, you guys are terrific! You're bookmarked. I need to spend some time on this. Great features. Thanks!!
Lee & Pamela - Thanks !!!
Very nice Z. The map based search feature looks terrific. I hope things are going well with you.
Zoltan, thanks. I'll have to spend some time on it.
Another wonderful Realbird product, thank you! Now to go and play with it.
Thanks Zoltan! Love Realbird!
Wow Zoltan this is very cool. Bookmarked for when I can spend some time learning more - thanks! I am not currently using realbird and I'd like to learn more.
i dont use Real bird and is amazed by the features it offers. Thankyou.
Would like to learn more....
That looks great! Thank you for sharing. I'm going to try it out today and see what I can do with it.
Zoltan this is awesome and I look forward to the CRM. Your hard work is really appreciated.
Bill - Thanks for the kind words. Things are going very well
Ted - Please do. Let us know if you need help with the features
Andrea - Thanks
Janis, Marty and Mike - Thanks. More features are coming ...
Anne and Linu - Thanks for both of you.
In short: RealBird provides both online listing marketing services (value for listing agents and brokers) and private labeled property search services for your website and blog (value for buyer's agent) We have a free service that allows you to try most of the features, so you can register with RealBird and in few minutes you can create single property websites, virtual tours, Facebook Page and other social media and blog widgets. If any time during the process, you need assistance, we are here to help. Just call toll-free or email and we'll get back to you ASAP. It is also a good practice to search AR for the keyword realbird, there are many AR members who write about their experience with RealBird including great case studies and tutorials. Again, just register for free and contact us anytime for help
Thanks again for your interest
-- Zoltan
Vicki - Great. Let us know if you have it live on your blog or website
Jennifer - Thanks. More features (and products) including CRM is coming...
I have to look into it more. Too tired tonight to even think very much. Hitting the hay.
Thanks Zoltan! I really enjoy using realbird and will definitely use this map search on my websites & posts. Hi to Gabe for me... Celeste
I must be doing something wrong... 1 get 1 listing... not even mine... and it is a lot...that is placed in the middle of the ocean.... but its not...its on east end road in city limits...
I have several lisitngs I have done with you guys but none show up on the map... what do I need to do?
Help! zip code 99603
Debra
Please call me at your convenience (Sunday is OK) and I will help you. 866-551-2934 or support@realbird.com
Best Regards
Gabe Gross
I have a free account, but have been meaning to tune it up some more... Another reason, thank you.
Zoltan - you guys are amazing. I will need to try this out. ~Rita
I just added the map on a blog post here on AR and it looks great! Now I probably should have made it narrower so it looks ok in localism.... hmmm. Looove it. ~Rita
I remember reading a previous post from another AR member who uses it, but had the caveat that not all MLS data was in there, perhaps due to GoogleBase not having it all? If it doesn't contain all the listings that one would see on a normal website, it kind of defeats the purpose. Does anyone know how to determine if Googlebase does have all the data the RB sources from?
Yay I can't wait to have time to figure this one out!
Thsi looks pretty good. Gonna have to go check it out !
Zoltan - The map based search is a great program, it help the real estate community a lot.
John
Russ - Thanks. I am about to hitting the hay too now :)
Celeste - Glad that you like it. Gabe says hello too. Just call us or email if we can help to best utilize the new service. If you have examples kindly share...
Debra - Gabe already commented. Please call or email and we'll help
Lane - Much appreciated. We are running a special for RealBird Pro. Again, just let us know if support is needed
Rita - Perfect. People, go see Rita's post about Greenwood Village, CO luxury homes for sale. It demonstrates a great use of the new RealBird service in the context of her luxury market update post.
Chris - It is true that Google Base does not replace MLS data and IDX services: in some markets the coverage is comparable to the local IDX data, in others it is less. There are major MLSes (MRIS, MLSPin etc.) who syndicate to Google Base already. I will have to check on your local market. However, this private service RealBird service shows identical data to Google's own (non-branded) search on Google Maps. It clearly shows that Google is now behind real estate search and info distribution and I believe that the trend is that more and more MLSs will syndicate their opt-in data to Google Base and hence to Google Maps and the RealBird Property Search. I hope that the coverage in your market is already good enough to provide a valuable service to your blog readers.
Sherry - Sounds good. Let us know if we can help
Roland - Please do. Thanks
John - Thanks !!!
-- Zoltan
Cheryl - Thanks for the reblog. Much appreciated.
-- Zoltan
I'll give it a shot today...
Thank you for sharing, will take a look at it later this week-end-
A lot of software never works for Manhattan real estate, we don't have a typical MLS so it seems more difficult to pull the information. I am going to take a look to see if you guys have NYC as a part of your services.
Yes I really like this added feature especially for blog posts.
Thanks for demonstrating the program. I'm going to go to your website and check it out!
Hi Zoltan! I love, love, LOVE my RealBird and have referred many to you too--in fact, my entire 'mini-bar' group (Connie Harvey, Thom Abbott...)! Not only do the presentations look fabulous in my blog, they make my PHONE RING!
As well, the customer service is phenomenal! I don't think I've made such a worthwhile investment since ActiveRain!
Have a wonderful day...
Zoltan - Rock on ! Awesome !! Our virtual assistant just added Realbird to our Facebook fan page and it looks terrific ! Realbird is certainly ahead of the curve. Great features !
Zoltan, Looks great. I have bookmarked it and will go back and check it out. Thanks!
Zoltan - great stuff...as usual. These maps really simplify the "Home Search" process. It's nice to see the map first, instead of last after you've done an entire search only to find that the property in question might be located in an area or next to something where you might not want to live. I like the "Mouse Hover" option that shows the photo and the property price, and the ease of 1 click to get the rest of the property details. This is one tool that will always benefit both the user and the consumer.
This is an awesome feature. I LOVE realbird. Keep up the good work!
Claude - Please do and let us know how it goes
Cathy - Thanks
Morgan - I zoomed into Upper East Side of Manhattan and the map shows 600+ listings in that area only (no search filter). Many sources syndicate to Google Base including for sale and rental sites. I hope the RealBird service is indeed usable in Manhattan. Please note that all inquiries go to you. That's the core value proposition
Corinne - Indeed. Providing niche listing map set up to match the content of the blog post is a great way to provide additional services to your readers.
Melissa - Thanks
Debe - Thanks for your kind words ! We are always glad to hear that the RealBird services actually deliver results for you
Christopher and Stephanie - Sounds great. Please feel free to share your Facebook Page with the RealBird app as an example here
Marcia - Thanks. Let us know if we can help
Brad - Thanks a lot. We value your opinion very much ! We designed the UI with ease-of-use in mind, to keep the required clicks as few as possible. One of my favorite features is the fact that - thanks to Google - the full text filtering is very powerful. One can preset complex query expressions, just like with Google itself. E.g. you can search for "ocean view" OR "waterfront" properties at the same time.
Tni - Thanks for the kind words. And thanks for the Tweet as well !
-- Zoltan
Zolton - just checked out Realbird - I see an old and sold listing of mine, I guess I have been there before :)
Rita, Debbie and Katerina are using Realbird so it must be valuable! I don't like the search that I use on my webpage....
Where do you get the MLS for the searches? - I don't think RB has access to our MLS.
Virginia - If you have an old listing in RealBird (via the RealBird Listing Publisher service) you can log in and change the status to sold. It will be excluded from syndication then but can still be used in portfolio widgets (e.g. your RealBird sold listing map). Of course you can also delete the listing, but we suggest to change the status to sold, so that it can benefit you as a portfolio marketing tool
The RealBird map-based property search service uses data from Google Base. Sources vary form market to market. In some markets, MLSs syndicate to Google Base, so the coverage is comparable to IDX. But pretty much all virtual tour and single property website companies and also brokerages syndicate to Google Base too. It is the same data source that is now used on Google's own Google Maps when showing real estate matches. Except our service is private labeled for you. I hope this answered your question.
Thanks
-- Zoltan
Thanks for the post and the tip on these maps today. I'll give it a try.
Patricia/Seacoast NH
Zoltan, we just SOLD our most recent property in FIVE!! 5 DAYS and it had a RealBird website with neighborhood information, map search, you name it. I embedded the site on my AR blog that I always post on listings.
Fellow AR people, RealBird is a great investment.
This looks like a very interesting tool for something that I have been working on. I will be taking a closer look.
Patricia - Thanks
Frank & Sharon - That sounds amazing. We are really glad when we hear success stories regarding RealBird (needless to say, but to you and your expertise and AR's search engine reach, of course).
Christine - Please do and let us know if you questions or need support
Thank you for the information, working on using it now.
Thanks for sharing. Can't wait to try it out!
It is wonderful to have another tool to add to my arsenal... I look forward to checking it out. Thanks.
I just signed up for RealBird this weekend and am working on getting it set up. Looking forward to it!
Zoltan, Great work as usual.
Hi there,
I just learned about RealBird, and signed up today. Love it already. I think the kansas city market does infact syndicate to google base. Is it possible that one day, we will not need idx service on our websites?
Looking for ways to save money this year!
thank you very much!
Zoltan, Great info; I bookmark for future review.
Kristie - Thanks. Let us know if you need help
Marcie - Please do
Jinx - Glad that you like it
Bill - Welcome to RealBird. Please let us know if you need assistance with the service
Jirius - Thank you for your kind words !
Kim & Kelly - Welcome to RealBird as well. What is your MLS name/abbreviation, I try to see if I can find some reference to their Google Base syndication
George - Thanks. We are here if you need more info
-- Zoltan
Site seemed incredibly slow. This is from the links as well as Rita's blog.
Is this a traditional IDX that pulls from the MLS? From your description it does not appear to be. How much does the Pro version cost and where does it pull from? I will give it some thought.
Mike - Sorry for the inconveniences. Was it slow when you clicked-through to RealBird? Or the embedded map loaded slow? We do not see any performance issue currently. Please advise, which action resulted in slow loading?
Gene - Data is through Google Base, which is populated by 3rd party sources including virtual tour companies, single property website companies, large and small brokerages and also by MLSs. Coverage varies from market to market, so the best thing to do is to check out the demo for your market in RealBird and see if the coverage is good for you. Google Base has millions of records nationwide and on many markets it's comparable to your local boards IDX coverage. Please let us know if you need more information.
Thanks
-- Zoltan
This looks like a great tool. Custom search links, and mapping is a good tool for my blog.
Hopefully, Google Base is picking up most of the listing data in my area. I will be looking further into Realbird search. Thanks
Really good use of technology and it looks good. Didn't know all of this was possible. I will keep checking it out. Not ready to purchase, but interesting.
Mary - Thanks. Let us know how it works out for you
Bev and Bob - Glad you like it. If you are not ready to purchase, you can still sign up with RealBird. We have free products as well
Thanks
Zoltan, my friend (and yours) Janie Coffey has raved about you for soooooooo long. I ended up creating a free account but never really using it. I need to make some time to fully integrate your resources into my marketing.
The property searches alone and what you can do with them seem incredible. What valuable tools! Add to that the marketing available for my listings. It seems a no-brainer.
And then Jennifer above states you're working on CRM too? WOW. Do you have an ETA on that? or any further info. I'd love to find out more about your plans for a CRM solution.
thanks for sharing with your fellow Realtors..I have book marked it and i am going to put it on my face book page
Hi John,
Do you have a sample link we could take a look. The map should not recenter when the info box opens. It pans a little to get the infobox into the viewport, but upon closing, it should move back to the original location. Try one in the map embedded above in the post. If you click on a house icon close to the top of the map, the map pans a little, but after closing the infobox it pans back to the original location. Am I missing something in your scenario? Please share a link and we'll see what might be the problem
Thanks
Hi Zoltan, here's the page I put it on: Steamboat Landing .
I think I've found the problem to lie solely with my MS FrontPage Previewer, and not the live production version.
Sorry about that - I better have another cup of coffee! Thanks! John
PS - this particular community is gated, and the roving google streetview cameras did not get in. Would it make sense for the RB flyer to have an Alt Image for these subdivisions (maybe something we local agents could "fine-tune" when we create the flyer)?
Hi John,
Re: Street View in gated communities - it's a good idea to have local agents provide such optionally, but we'll have to spend some time to figure out how to best implement this. I am afraid that it won't be used too much, but nevertheless, it's a good idea. BTW: a brand new RealBird listing website is in the development process (retains all existing features and will add more)
Thanks !
Thank you for checking into this. I understand the effort vs reward for exceptions... and am looking forward to the new listing website!