How Real Estate Agencies Leverage Online Bookings in 2021: Scheduling Showings

Real Estate Showings in 2021: Online Booking

Preparing a home and working one’s schedule around last-minute viewings can be stressful for real estate agents and homeowners alike. Fortunately, modern technology has made it possible to stay on top of showings and provide prospective buyers with an easy, convenient appointment booking solution. Additionally, as we begin to see the rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, there is no telling how long people will be encouraged to continue social distancing in 2021. For this reason, it has become imperative for agents to schedule showings apart, allowing enough time to sanitize the home before their next appointment.

OnSched offers a 100% white labeled appointment booking API, which can be seamlessly integrated into any real estate broker’s website for fast and convenient scheduling. Our API is sure to help agents and clients gain additional interest in properties by providing a non-intimidating online appointment booking solution for potential buyers. Continue reading to learn more about why online appointment scheduling is the way forward for the real estate industry as we head into 2021.

Why Real Estate Agencies Are Turning to Online Booking

Better communication between agents and homeowners

One of the most stressful elements of selling a home is coordinating schedules with your real estate agent. Putting a property on the market can cause serious disruptions in one’s work schedule, leave families scrambling to get out of the house at a moment's notice, and make it difficult to organize after-school care for children. For this reason, agents who do not have the convenience of online booking are responsible for notifying homeowners of showings in advance and manually sending reminders closer to the appointment time. This outdated and disorganized system of communication leaves far too much room for human error and can result in a variety of mishaps. By implementing an online appointment booking solution, real estate agents no longer have to hold themselves accountable for contacting homeowners and confirming showings on time. This allows agents to focus on the task at hand when showing buyers a property, rather than spending their time on the phone. OnSched’s highly customizable API is able to send out appointment confirmation emails to agents, homeowners and prospective buyers, and allow for changes or cancellations to easily be made online. Agencies can also take advantage of our calendar-syncing feature, which keeps appointment changes updated across all devices. All parties can therefore stay informed about showings and confirm or deny appointment requests with a few clicks of a button.

Consistent branding

Real estate is a highly competitive and fast-paced industry, which makes branding extremely important for brokers to stay relevant and gain a larger client base. For this reason, many agencies hesitate to implement a third-party API into their website, as it could disrupt their brand image. OnSched has solved this problem with an entirely white-labeled API and customizable email templates, which allows real estate agents to maintain a consistent brand image across all elements of their website. This is especially useful for smaller real estate brokers to develop a professional online presence.

Further buyer interest

When selling a home, it is always in the best interest of the client to attract as many potential buyers as possible, even once offers start to roll in. The more prospective buyers that come through the door, the greater chance there is to initiate a bidding war and value the property at a higher cost. Unfortunately, buyers who are new to the market and choose not to work with a realtor may turn down opportunities to view properties out of nervousness or lack of knowledge. The easier it is for prospective buyers to view listings and book appointments online, the more likely they will be to pursue viewing opportunities. Our appointment booking API offers a user-friendly interface, which allows buyers to view available time slots and work around their schedule rather than calling an agency and hoping for a time slot that works for them. This is a great way to create a buzz around a property.

Social distancing in the wake of COVID-19

It’s no secret that COVID-19 has drastically changed the way the real estate industry operates. Sanitation and social distancing measures have become central to a successful showing. This means there is no longer room for accidentally overlapping appointments or showing multiple parties the same home at once. In order to stay safe, real estate agents are responsible for maintaining a structured schedule that considers the time it takes to sanitize a home properly before the next group can safely view it. Although the pandemic is winding down with the rollout of vaccines, 2021 is sure to bring at least a few more months of social distancing measures and other sanitation protocols. Furthermore, there may be social pressure to continue these measures even after they are no longer mandated by the government. The best way to address and prepare for further changes is to make sure you have a reliable appointment booking solution in place. This will minimize human error, allow for a clear view of appointment times and allow for changes to be made easily.

Creating a realistic schedule

While homeowners ideally want to have as many prospective buyers walk through their home as possible, there are times that simply aren’t suitable for showings. For example, parents with young children may need to put their kids to bed in the early evening. Unfortunately, it can come off as unprofessional if prospective buyers are constantly turned away every time they call your realtor for a showing. The best way to keep buyers interested and allow them to quickly view time slots that work for all parties is to provide an online appointment booking API, which accounts for these blocked off periods of time. This way, homeowners can prepare to leave the property during certain hours of the day in the event that a showing is booked, and not worry about turning people down when they need to be at home. This allows the realtor to build a rapport with clients and create a positive reputation by presenting a professional, organized system. Additionally, OnSched allows agencies to track no-shows so that no appointment times are wasted on uninterested parties.

Gain an edge against the competition

Selling a home in 2021 will require agencies to keep up with the ever-evolving online marketplace. As young, first-time buyers begin to enter the market, they will expect convenience, speed and reliable appointment booking technology while searching for their first home. Online appointment scheduling has given restaurants, hotels, medical clinics, salons and many other businesses an edge against the competition in recent years, and there is no reason to think that the real estate industry will be any different. Real estate agencies that offer convenient online booking will undoubtedly be the first point of contact for modern buyers.

Choose OnSched for all your appointment booking needs

Our developers have created a highly customizable appointment booking API with a plethora of useful features for real estate agencies. From chatbot integration to calendar-syncing, we have provided all the tools agents need to seamlessly organize showings in 2021. Our online guides walk you through all the necessary steps you need to integrate our API into your website and launch your online booking feature. Contact us today to request a demo and try the product in our sandbox environment!