Re/Max real estate agents to sport Passbook business cards on Apple's iPhone
Re/Max is turning to Apple's iPhone and the new Passbook feature of iOS 6 to equip its real estate agents with digital business cards.
Mobile business card maker Vizibility announced on Tuesday that Re/Max Regional Services, one of the real estate organization's largest franchisors in the U.S., is now offering digital business cards to its 4,500 real estate brokers and agents. Those agents are based in Georgia, Tennessee, Kentucky, Southern Ohio, and Southeastern Michigan.
With Apple's Passbook, agents will be able to share their mobile business cards through a feature dubbed "CardSense." That will allow Passbook users to select locations where their mobile business card pass can be accessed from the iPhone lock screen.
Passes featured on the iPhone include a scannable QR code. This allows anyone with a smartphone and QR code reading application to scan the code and obtain a copy of the business card.
"This capability makes it a snap to share contact information at the office, trade shows, networking events, open houses, or anywhere else frequent, fast access to a Mobile Business Card is needed," Vizibility said in a press release. "Locations are set right on the back of the Pass."
Vizibility claimed it is the first company to use Passbook for sharing mobile business cards, while Re/Max Regional Services is believed to be the first to implement the functionality on a large scale.
"Technologies like Vizibility's Mobile Business Card can help our agents get more opportunities to share their listings, provide mobile virtual tours and engage effortlessly with prospective home buyers," said Dane Ellison, CEO of RE/MAX Regional Services. "By making it a little easier to close sales, we're making it a lot easier for our RE/MAX agents to be more successful."
Mobile business card maker Vizibility announced on Tuesday that Re/Max Regional Services, one of the real estate organization's largest franchisors in the U.S., is now offering digital business cards to its 4,500 real estate brokers and agents. Those agents are based in Georgia, Tennessee, Kentucky, Southern Ohio, and Southeastern Michigan.
With Apple's Passbook, agents will be able to share their mobile business cards through a feature dubbed "CardSense." That will allow Passbook users to select locations where their mobile business card pass can be accessed from the iPhone lock screen.
Passes featured on the iPhone include a scannable QR code. This allows anyone with a smartphone and QR code reading application to scan the code and obtain a copy of the business card.
"This capability makes it a snap to share contact information at the office, trade shows, networking events, open houses, or anywhere else frequent, fast access to a Mobile Business Card is needed," Vizibility said in a press release. "Locations are set right on the back of the Pass."
Vizibility claimed it is the first company to use Passbook for sharing mobile business cards, while Re/Max Regional Services is believed to be the first to implement the functionality on a large scale.
"Technologies like Vizibility's Mobile Business Card can help our agents get more opportunities to share their listings, provide mobile virtual tours and engage effortlessly with prospective home buyers," said Dane Ellison, CEO of RE/MAX Regional Services. "By making it a little easier to close sales, we're making it a lot easier for our RE/MAX agents to be more successful."
Comments
Originally Posted by Gazoobee
Great, take a nascent feature that's already struggling and f*ck it up by using it for something it was never intended to be used for.
Sounds more like, "Hey, when you get around to updating Passbook, have a go at adding in specific support for business cards. We've tried out this new way of using it, and here's our results. See if you think it's viable," to me.
I agree that it shouldn't be used like this, but they've brought up a valid usability point with the platform.
Shouldn't?
This is a feature they have created on their own that doesn't require jailbreaking or any other kind of manipulation against what Apple would want them to use. And very likely doesn't use any private API. So why shouldn't they.
Just because its not something Apple mentioned on their own doesn't make it some now bad, just not something they perceived the greater mass using so why put it in at this point. But this kind of creative thinking is how the iPhone because a 'business' capable device and how many new features came to be native to iOS. Hell if folks back in the day had said that Apple does want users screwing with the software and they shouldn't jailbreak etc, we likely wouldn't had had an App Store as soon if it all. That folks did what they shouldn't have in noticeable amounts could have the straw that broke Steve Jobs 'web apps are all they need' back
I would rather see a feature like this built-into the contacts app, not in the passbook app.
Originally Posted by charlituna
Shouldn't?
This is a feature they have created on their own that doesn't require jailbreaking or any other kind of manipulation against what Apple would want them to use. And very likely doesn't use any private API. So why shouldn't they.
It's designed for what it's designed for. It's a sub-par solution for business cards. That's why I specifically mentioned that, if this method of presenting business cards is viable, Apple should consider adding specific support for them in a future update, with a specialized Passbook pass for this very purpose.
Top it all off, they look bad here. I'm not saying "the way business cards look now is they way they should always look", but if you're gonna change how they look, this isn't how they should.
Originally Posted by GadgetCanada
I would rather see a feature like this built-into the contacts app, not in the passbook app.
Truly it does make more sense there. Perhaps Passbook-like functionality, but designed specifically for contact cards and only in Contacts.
Downloadable, though, exactly like Passbook passes, either on your computer or iOS device. So you go to someone's website and can get their card like that. Or you have a personal representative for your insurance company or whatever; you can be sent their contact information to put in Contacts.
Ooh! And since it's separate from the Passbook paradigm, they could be auto-updating! On creation, have the creator choose whether or not to keep it synced across all devices that have that card. That's the first step to iCloud collaboration.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tallest Skil
Sounds more like, "Hey, when you get around to updating Passbook, have a go at adding in specific support for business cards. We've tried out this new way of using it, and here's our results. See if you think it's viable," to me.
I agree that it shouldn't be used like this, but they've brought up a valid usability point with the platform.
Yeah, I'm not really 100% against them doing it and it is interesting, but my first thought was that after you had five business cards in it, Passbook would become something that was hardly useable for it's original purpose. Then I looked at my 1,000 plus contacts and imagined Passbook holding a business card for even half of them and it just seemed ridiculous.
Happy it auto-adjusts brightness though...
I think the use case may be ok. The problem may be the Passbook client. Apple should enhance its capability (e.g., better integration with OS and other apps) and presentation (e.g., more sophisticated management and organization).
I agree in general. Boarding pass should not auto-delete immediately. The deletion time may need to be after 24 hours, or an option for the user to set. Sometimes, the boarding pass is used as a proof of purchase to get discount for airport car rental.
My gut feel is for financial transaction. Passbook should/will kick off a separate authentication, authorization and accounting process/protocol. The barcode in the Passbook should be for identifying the intent or parameters to transact.
Btw, Passbook is already integrated with web and email. You can send a pass to your iPhone by clicking on a URL, or a mail attachment on iOS and Mac OSX.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tallest Skil
It's designed for what it's designed for. It's a sub-par solution for business cards.
Oh so you've used it. You must have if you know that it's 'sub par'
Or perhaps this is just you saying 'it's not the way I would do it and so it's automatically crap'. Yeah that sounds more like it.
Quote:
Originally Posted by andre402
An advertisement disguised as pointless Apple news. That's how declined AI has become. I was once a big fan of AI for it's great content.
It's hardly an advertisment at all. If this is what you call such then this whole site is one giant advertisement. For iOS, Apple etc.
Now if this had been about some newly released game and how awesome it is, then your comment would be apt. Otherwise, seems more like the issue is that you don't like the site but for some reason keep wasting time coming back. Maybe what's needed isn't for AI to change styles but for you to find a new website to read. Or even make your own, the 'right' way.
Originally Posted by charlituna
Oh so you've used it. You must have if you know that it's 'sub par'
Y…eah. Obviously.
To each his or her own, if they like it, good for 'em.
To be honest, I was really excited about Passbook. Now that I've used it 9 or 10 times, it's sort of boring. This is MY opinion and experience. I'd like to see Apple do something more with iOS 7. I'm hoping Passbook is just a placeholder for something really big.
To further anchor the concept, I think Apple need to get companies like Yelp and Facebook to adopt the tech. I think website integration is more important than app integration.
For apps, they should allow developers to make specialized Passbook organization and redemption app, like integrating the Passbook protocol into Contacts for Vizibility's use cases.
Quote:
Originally Posted by charlituna
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tallest Skil
I agree that it shouldn't be used like this, but they've brought up a valid usability point with the platform.
Shouldn't?
This is a feature they have created on their own that doesn't require jailbreaking or any other kind of manipulation against what Apple would want them to use. And very likely doesn't use any private API. So why shouldn't they.
Just because its not something Apple mentioned on their own doesn't make it some now bad, just not something they perceived the greater mass using so why put it in at this point. But this kind of creative thinking is how the iPhone because a 'business' capable device and how many new features came to be native to iOS. Hell if folks back in the day had said that Apple does want users screwing with the software and they shouldn't jailbreak etc, we likely wouldn't had had an App Store as soon if it all. That folks did what they shouldn't have in noticeable amounts could have the straw that broke Steve Jobs 'web apps are all they need' back
I totally agree...
This is a very creative use of a standard iOS feature by a business sector. This should increase the attractiveness of the iPhone and iOS to the real estate sector -- a sector that is monopolized (the last time I looked) by Wintel.
There are a few excellent iOS real estate apps, especially for the iPad. But access to the various MLSes requires Wintel...
You get enough realtors networking with iPhones and iPads -- maybe they will crack that monopoly.
No it doesn't right now. I was saying should it auto-delete, it should not do so upon arrival. It needs to wait a day or two. Or even let the user decides. This is because there may be follow up workflow, like the proof of purchase discount I mentioned above.
Passbook is good for transferring/forwarding workflow between apps and business entities. For example, the airline's boarding pass may qualify for other discounts in the airport within the working day. Think of it like the HTTP cookie for mobile platforms. Some cookies can auto delete but not all.
As I understand the London Heathrow Airport is implementing Passbook support. Such boarding pass usage would encourage transactions within the airport.