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1. Building Websites for the Real Estate Industry? You better contact us ... |
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Maps have always been a very useful tool for real estate, but lately they have become more of a necessity. Nowadays potential customers look for more than just a basic listing with some property details and pictures. The actual location of the property (its proximity to schools, the work place, the coast, the mountains, the center of a city, etc.) is a major factor when it comes to purchasing a home.
This is why at Flashmaps we take the real-estate industry very seriously; and this is exactly why we have developed solutions specifically for it.
When it comes to the real estate industry, our maps can be basically used in the following two manners: |
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Map filtered listings |
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This allows the potential home buyer to establish their exact listing criterias: type of home, number of bedrooms, size, price, area, etc.
As the website searches a database, the map is then automatically re-centered, and displays all of listings based upon the user's criterias.
At that point the potential buyer will have the ability to see each listing's geographic location. They will also have the ability to click on a listing icon and obtain detailed information, view pictures, and videos pertaining to the listing, as well as bookmark the listing, contact an agent, etc. |
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Map this listing |
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Within a list of properties, each one will have a button saying 'Map this listing'.
Once clicked, the map will center upon that particular property, displaying its exact location.
The potential customer will then be able to pan or zoom the map, getting a better feel for the listing and its surroundings. |
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Two very basic functions that once integrated with the rest of your website add a new dimension, increasing its functionality, ease of use, and the quality of the user interaction. DB Mapper truly takes your real-estate website to the next level.
Another important factor for the real-estate industry is the ability to geocode the listings (assign coordinates for each address). Whether you only need to geocode a few listings a month or you need to geocode hundreds of thousands of listings daily, don’t worry, we have a geocoding solution for you.
We are also very aware of IDX/web developers that need to service a large number of agents, and are looking for an economical, powerful and easy to integrate solution for their clients. Because of that, we have set-up a specific program for them which is based upon a small monthly fee that can be as low as $0.66 per realtor. Yes, that little!
We´re not here to tell you how to run your business, but with this pricing model you can provide our services to your customers for free, thus preserving your current client base, while attracting new agents as well. Note that IDX service providers that have chosen our Real Estate Tools Program are growing their customer base at a substantial rate, thanks in part to our products, and services. |
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Click on the following link to see an example of what you can offer your clients: |
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Show sample |
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On the support side, we also provide extra special attention to this industry. We work hand in hand with you to ensure that your project is up and running in no time, and that you get the most out of our solutions.
Don't wait a second longer, chances are your competitors either have a mapping solution in place, or are looking for one at this very moment. |
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If you'd like to offer your clients the best mapping solution available, let us help you.
Contact us toll free at 1-866-392-0071, or via e-mail realestate@flashmaps.com at your leisure. |
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2. Latest AreaSelector Enhancements |
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AreaSelector USA Single State and Counties is now available |
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A new member has joined the AreaSelector product line: AreaSelector USA Single State and Counties.
If you've been looking to just map a single state, and all of its counties, it is no longer necessary for you to purchase a full AreaSelector USA Counties project, which contains all 50 states, and 3400 plus counties. |
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This new product is much more cost-effective when your goal is to only display state or county level detail of a particular state with your project. It allows you to get straight to the point, by just mapping the state you need. |
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Customization enhancements |
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This new product is much more cost-effective when your goal is to only display state or county level detail of a particular state with your project. It allows you to get straight to the point, by just mapping the state you need.
In addition to the AreaSelector's existing options, you can now customize its tooltip, alert pop-ups and altering how the state abbreviations are displayed. |
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3. Latest DB Mapper Enhancements |
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Major improvements on high scale maps |
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DB Mapper now features brand new road network information, which is much more complete, useful and up to date.
DB Mapper now contains dynamic text information, which prevents city names from overlapping, and resizes them automatically based on the level of zoom being displayed, as well as the size/importance of the city.
A fairly decent amount of file size optimization has also been performed on the higher zoom levels, which implies faster map rendering and operation. |
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Custom layer management enhancements |
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DB Mapper custom layers consist of Flash movie clips that you can place on top of the standard maps to show developments, campuses or pretty much anything you want to display on the map.
You can either take advantage of this advanced feature by designing the Flash movie clips yourself, or let us do it for you.
Now you can also load several custom layers at once, and specify the zoom levels you want displayed. This gives you more power and flexibility for your custom layers. |
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Viewing customization |
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A bunch of new viewing customization features have been implemented: |
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Make the map initially focus on the POIs pertaining to a given category. |
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Set the transparency and scale to road signs when hovering over them. |
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Set the minimum scale allowed when zooming in. |
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Bring to front the POI when hovering over it. |
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Launch an event from outside |
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As many of you know, DB Mapper lets you click on a POI and get a customized pop-up with extended info, pictures, video, etc.
Now you can access this useful functionality from outside the map, calling the fmPOIEventTrigger API function directly from your HTML code. |
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4. Tip of the Month: Add Your Own Unique Background to Your AreaSelector |
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AreaSelector makes a killer solution when it comes to display your facilities, dealerships or points of sale all around the US, Canada, or even the world.
Did you know that you can alter AreaSelector's background? Make that deeper connection with your web site visitors by simply displaying an image behind your AreaSelector.
It can be anything from a picture of your headquarters, the company logo, or a landscape that connects with your visitors. |
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5. Case Study: Durham Public Schools |
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Durham (North Carolina) Public Schools system is made up of 4,600 employees and 31,000 students that attend a total of 46 schools respectively.
For the coming school year of 2006-2007, the school district coverage zones for various elementary, middle and high schools have changed. DPS wanted to provide their students with the ability to verify how these changes in coverage zones will directly impact the schools they will be attending in the coming year.
We at Flashmaps proposed DPS to take advantage of our DB Mapper, and one of its advanced features, the Custom Flash Layering System. |
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"We chose to work with Flashmaps because of our previous experience on another project. They went the extra mile to build a beautiful map and walked us through the process of integrating the system inside the website. On this current project they were the obvious choice because of their excellent customer service and their ability to listen to our requirements before making their recommendations.", said Jason Hare, webmaster at Durham Public Schools. |
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The key DB Mapper's features that DPS value most are: |
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- Ability to show and hide attendance zones over the map. |
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- Easy and integrated address lookup functionality. |
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- State-of-the-art interactive mapping functionalities. |
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- Customizable look and feel. |
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"The advantages of working with Flashmaps include a deep expertise of flash and working with geospatial data. Sometimes we deal with complex mapping issues. With them, Durham Public Schools created an interactive student assignment application that is well used by site visitors. We get a lot of positive feedback, this project has saved everyone countless hours of both running around, and answering all sorts of attendance zones related questions", said Jason. |
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Another key technology DPS is taking advantage of is the address lookup functionality that is offered by DB Mapper. Via a simple call to the JavaScript API, DB Mapper focuses on a requested address, thus allowing visitors to easily check out what his or her attendance zone is.
Take a look at the great integration job DPS has done: |
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