A contact and property database should be an integral, seamless part of the work brokers and other CRE professionals do every day, not just an additional responsibility to maintain.
That’s why it’s time to change the conversation around CRMs for commercial real estate.
A database that adds to a brokerage team’s working experience, not workload, is possible. Here’s how.
Business insight, not company oversight
A broker’s database is a library of their expertise, and that library should help them run their business more effectively.
So far, a common challenge with CRMs for the CRE industry has been the question of who the database works for. Brokers often secure their own tools, working in a silo where their prospecting efforts don’t get the full support of the brokerage—or worse, actively slow down the deal process because data can’t easily be shared from personal CRMs.
Some brokerages also need multiple databases for different teams within their office, with the flexibility to share comps and market research but still be able to organize contacts and other data the way each team needs.
Many brokers also believe a database should help them accumulate and revisit key insights into their own business and prospect more effectively. So, to be most useful for brokers, databases for CRE should not only keep track of property and contact data, but give brokers the opportunity to
- Quickly see where their deals are in the pipeline to help them determine their projected commissions for the month or even a full year
- Curate call lists with targeted searches and keep all records, activity logs, and notes together in one place
- Instantly create winning proposals with accurate data
- Associate related contacts to all relevant properties without requiring a company field
Better together: integration with all the tools a brokerage uses
A database should live at the center of a deal’s lifecycle, connecting important information to every other phase. That’s because property and contact data is more than just information. Property and contact research moves with a broker and brokerage throughout the day—and a broker’s entire career—serving every aspect of their work.
A broker’s deal data directly informs property marketing and brokerage back-office tasks, so the database they use should connect to those tools as well. If it doesn’t, a separate CRM is burdensome to use.
When a database can seamlessly share data with a marketing team and vice versa, not only does it save time for marketers and brokers, but it means brokers can easily add marketing leads back to the database. Then, they can quickly and easily make connections with buyers.
And when accountants and back-office teams can access data directly from a broker’s deal information, the back office saves time calculating payments.
Buildout is a better database for CRE
Traditional CRM platforms built for sales teams in other industries simply don’t operate the way CRE professionals need them to. So why should a CRE database use one of those platforms as a model?
Buildout’s suite of features, including its CRM + Database, wasn’t built on top of existing CRM platforms or without software expertise. It was custom-built by tech developers who understand the industry.
This is what makes our CRM + Database unique:
Flexible databases that work like brokers do
With Buildout’s CRM + Database, brokers can shape their data however suits their working style.
Every record in the database includes industry-specific data prompts, dynamic fields based on property type and subtype, requirements, and more. And with smart search features—anything entered into Buildout’s CRM + Database can be returned as a search result or filtered into a new group.
Property records can even be directly associated with contact or company records to allow brokers to look at a map view, select every property within a chosen area, and instantly create a call list of their owners.
Buildout’s CRM + Database is designed to make it as accessible and easy to use as possible. Integrations to email services like Outlook reduce the hassle of logging activities with contacts. A centralized task view keeps to-dos front and center. Contact previews can stay visible while executing call lists.
A new CRM doesn’t have to disrupt the way brokers work—it can elevate it.
Projects and connections to integrate all brokerage tasks
Once you’re ready to create a proposal or take a listing to market, property information from your database can be easily transferred and accessed in the rest of the app. Then, marketers can quickly create all documents and digital materials in the brokerage’s brand standards.
Every time a new property lead comes through the website or an email, the listing broker can add that contact to their database, or associate it with an existing contact. This direct connection between database and marketing lets brokers immediately identify the best opportunities and pursue the right buyers.
Finally, when a listing is closed, the comp data is saved in the company database, and the sales information is automatically shared with the brokerage’s back-office staff for billing and commission payouts.
Because all of these tools are built on one platform, there is a seamless working experience through the entire deal cycle. And that means everyone at a brokerage’s time is well spent.
At Buildout, we wanted to make sure brokers’ and brokerages’ CRMs and databases work for them.
Talk to our sales team to learn more about how our CRM + Database works within our suite of features, including marketing and back office, and how you can get started using it at your brokerage.