Skype Fans… for those of you that have been wondering when you’d be able to use Skpye from your mobile phone via your regular cell service plans – the time is here! Verizon recently inked a deal with Skype to provide Skype Mobile for Blackberry Phones and Android 3G Smart Phones.

Most anyone with a Smart Phone can install a Skype application and use it regularly. However, this method has always required that you be within range of a viable wifi network. For Verizon users this will no longer be necessary – you can use your Skype applications directly via your wireless network. Sorry iPhone users – we’ll have to wait for AT&T to get with the program.

Verizon Skype Mobile now allows users to do the following without a WiFi connection:

• Free Skype to Skype calls from your Verizon Wireless smartphone with anyone in the world.
• Skype Mobile is “always-on” so answer your Skype calls anytime from anywhere within the Verizon Network.
• Call internationally without using your wireless plan minutes! Call global landlines and cellphones using Skype rates (very inexpensive!)

Download Skype Mobile for Verizon Smart Phones now – it’s free!

For those of you that have no idea what we’re talking about – take a first look at Skype. Skype is a VOIP (Voice Over Internet Protocol – technology that allows telephone calls to be made over computer networks) service that allows you to dial regular phones locally and internationally using your internet connection. Just like any regular phone service you can have a phone number for people to call you at, voicemail, call-forwarding, even regular phones using Skype. Calling rates are very inexpensive – locally and internationally. When you call anyone else that also has the skype service, your calls are free anywhere in the world.

We use this service exclusively in our business. Call clarity is typically great (speaker phones sometimes throw a wrench) and very few calls get dropped. If your internet service is reliable or if you are a Verizon smartphone user, take a look at Skype.  It might save you a bundle.

Did I just find a little known real estate technology secret?  Perhaps, read on…

In a quick search for real estate apps in iTunes, you get a menu of about 135 available applications (to do this you must have itunes installed locally).  Still surprisingly few.  By far the most interesting trend comes from enterprising agents racing to the real estate app scene with mobile access to their online IDX property search portals. Simple applications that funnel the “downloader” of the app to those personalized online real estate searches in various geographical regions.  Not a bad idea, in fact – why not?  A branded presence in the iPhone App Store – pretty darn smart.

So how are they doing it?  It seems many are using a service called MobileAppLoader.  I have no personal experience with this company so can’t give it a thorough review but a large percentage of the real estate companies listed in the iPhone App Store have used it.  This might not mean much other than that the process is easy and attainable.  It seems most of the apps they build follow a simple format:

• Contact page with one touch calling
• Info Page with active web links
• About Page with active web links
• Social networking profile pages (Twitter, Facebook, YouTube)
• Notifications which send alerts to customers
• Property Feedback function
• Loan calculator

Maybe a little clunky but a way to quickly and easily get in the game while not only branding your company but grabbing your main geographic target phrases for the name of your app – Maui Real Estate Search, Chicago Home Finder, Las Vegas Foreclosures.  There are a few different price levels for real estate as well as a fixed cost versus a monthly subscription.

I installed one of these real estate applications on my iphone just to check out the interface.  Not bad (nice graphics are important to the overall feel).  You will want to make sure that your existing IDX search website works well with mobile browsing before you jump on board.  All the app does for real estate search is provide a web link to your existing website’s IDX search page.  You will also benefit from having Facebook, Twitter, a YouTube page and a business blog setup before you jump into real estate iPhone app development.  This real estate app provides exposure to those mediums so be prepared!

Another real estate app developer visible in the app store is IDX, Inc.  These real estate applications seem more robust with potentially better connections to an IDX search interface.  They appear to really just be an IDX website search provider and serve the following MLSs.  Not too pricey; if you also need an MLS search website tool – might be worth a look.

I started this post with the intention of reviewing a few useful iPhone apps for real estate and ended up with a much different result.  Guess we’ll save that one for next time.  Perhaps this information can get you started developing your own iphone application for your real estate business, good luck!

If you need help developing your business social networks or creating a branded real estate blog, we can help – call or email us today.