How to adopt new technology in your estate agency

So, you have taken the decision to invest in new software within your estate agency and of course want to ensure you make it work. At Iceberg Digital, where we constantly lead the industry with new innovative products, we understand that this process is particularly important. So, how do you make your new software adoption a success?

By following these tips below, you will be able to create a clear understanding of why your new investment is valuable to the business and team.  

Include your team

Many estate agency owners can find it daunting to think just how their staff will react to new software. However, if you do not innovate out of fear of how your team will react and them potentially not being happy about the change, this can be very dangerous. It can result in either owners trying to adopt to new software themselves or never doing anything with it at all.

Make sure you include the whole team and explain your decisions and why. Explain to them not just the how to use it but why it is important to the business as well. Allow your team to ask questions or discuss concerns so you can speak to your new supplier about them and provide a response. That way the whole team will feel included and it will not just fall on you to try and adopt it.

Find a champion

Within each organisation you will find either one or two people who can become champions. Whether that is a junior member of staff or someone at management level. These people will understand the new technology and why it is needed within your business, they are excited about it and want to help. You can then allow these champion members in your team to help, train and encourage other team members to understand the new software. This will help the whole company and show that if certain staff members can use it, others can too.

Create a strategy

Make sure you create a strategy around adoption. Depending on the technology, ensure a process is in place for training the whole team and also a follow up process after. Book time in the diary to review who is logging in so you can identify, train, and help members who are not. Work out their concerns and reasons as to why they are being resistant to change. Do they need more training? Is it a mindset challenge?

Make sure you update your processes and procedures to include the new technology, don’t try to work around it and avoid it, embrace it so it becomes a natural habit for the whole team to use it.

Accept change

With the adoption of innovation and technology, your company will be moving into a new way of thinking so accepting change will need to happen. Old processes or workflows will need to be updated and new training plans implemented. For innovation to take place, you will not be able to apply old methods to new technology since these will be outdated and just simply will not fit. If this happens, frustrations will occur towards adoption, so instead accept and understand the new way in which it needs to work, if the right technology is in place, this will be better for everyone longer term.

Allow time

With any change it will take time for you and your company to adopt the technology and any new way of working. New habits and being comfortable with using it will come in time so trust the process and ensure commitment is made. Set timelines to review how you have adopted and where improvement or training needs to be given.

Adopting new technology is a way of future proofing your business and by embracing change and applying new features and new ways of working are just some of the principles of what’s needed if you want to modernise your estate or letting agency and begin your digital transformation.

Great leadership, good training and support for the team and an understanding of the ‘why’ behind the new software and the changes ahead will make a huge difference to the success of the implementation of any new tech to your estate agency.