Ten Technology Tips & Tools For Builders

If you are as busy as I am, you don’t have time for technology to make your personal and professional life more complicated! In fact, great technology is supposed to do just the opposite, make life simpler and smoother.

In this post, I am going to give you my top 10 technology tips and tools; things I use on a daily basis to save time and money. I don’t represent any of these tools or receive any kind or commission or referral fee. I just love them and hope you will too. I use technology to help me multi-task so I have time for the most important things in life namely my friends, faith and family.

Tip #1 – Ditch the dinosaur computer

If your computer is as slow as Christmas, ditch it! Do you build houses with old, slow equipment that doesn’t work efficiently and effectively? No! You build homes using the best tools available so you can maximize your time and labor.

Today a fast, powerful computer is just as important power nailgun. Your computer should be the backbone of your business operations. If you need to replace your computer, the good news is that with the down economy the whole world is on sale! You can get a fantastic laptop computer for less than $1,000. That’s a deal!

I recommend you invest in the fastest, most portable, powerful laptop computer you can afford. I personally prefer Dell to other brands because they custom build computers and ship it immediately.

Tip #2 – Dump the dial-up connection

More than 60% of consumers are on high-speed Internet connections at home, why aren’t you? Dial up is slow and unreliable. Not only do you need a high-speed Internet connection but you need to be wireless. Hire an IT professional to set up a wireless router in your office so you have high-speed Internet in every room. That way you can take your smokin’ fast laptop (refer to Tip #1)  anywhere and conduct business. You’ll find you will utilize the computer and Internet more when it is convenient and easy to use.

Tip #3 – Reach out and touch someone “virtually”

Why pay long distance for phone calls when you can talk over the Internet for FREE? And, unlike a cell phone, if you use a Webcam, you can see the other party and they can see you. The most popular Internet calling service is Skype.com. It’s easy to use. You set up an account with them and the other party does the same. Follow the instructions to set up a call and bam– you are talking over the Internet with crystal clear sound for FREE! To use Skype you will need an Internet headset with a microphone to plug into your computer. I recommend the Logitech Clear Chat Comfort, $39.00. It’s available at most of the big box office supply stores. You will also need a webcam. Many laptops have a webcam built in, but if you need an external webcam, I recommend the Logitech Quick Cam Pro 9000, $99.00 also available at the office supply stores.

Tip #4 – Don’t “snail mail” cards and invitations

Want to recognize your employees’ birthdays or invite everyone to a company picnic? There are great online tools to help you connect with the important people in your professional and personal life. I highly recommend SendOutCards.com for all of your birthday, anniversary, get well etc… cards. If you have an account with SendOutCards.com, you simply log into the website and choose from literally thousands of cards or upload your own photo and make a custom card. The staff at SendOutCards.com print the cards out, stuff and mail the cards for you! Nice! The even use a real stamp so the cards have a high tech and a high touch feel. For invitations, I highly recommend Evite.com for free online event invitations and RSVP tracking. Great tools to save you time and money!

Tip #5 – Make sure you have total recall

Your computer files are a tangible asset worth thousands of dollars to your business. Don’t leave them unprotected. Make sure you have a data back-up plan in place that accounts for theft, hardware malfunction, fire and employee tampering. I think the easiest data back-up system is an online back-up Website that does the work for you, AUTOMATICALLY! I recommend either Carbonite.com ($54.95/annual) or Mozy.com ($4.95/monthly). After you set-up your account, simply leave your computer on overnight and connected to the Internet. The back-up Website looks for new data on your hard drive and backs it up to offsite, secure servers. Should you ever experience a computer malfunction or any other type of data loss, your data will be safe, secure and ready for recall when you need it.

Tip #6 – Save a click, save your sanity

This is one of my favorite tools. I use it daily! Roboform.com is a safe, secure Website where you can store all of your account user-names and passwords in one master account. You can store up to 10 for free or have unlimited password storage for a one-time fee of only a $29.95. After you sign-up, Roboform asks you to create one master mac-daddy, super secure password for your account. Then you load all your Internet account user names and passwords into your account. Each day when you turn on your computer you will be asked for the master Roboform password. The rest of the day it will automatically log you in to all the websites you visit using the information stored in the account. Nice! This has literally saved me hours of hassle and down time while I tried to remember an important password or waited for an email reminder.

Tip #7 – Avoid the “Jack of All Clicks” Syndrome

Everyone is a twitter with the latest and greatest in social media and you just can’t do it all consistently and effectively. I recommend selecting one or two social media sites that are the best fit for your target audience. Social media works best when you use it creatively to promote your business without being overly “salesy” and that takes time and forthought. Participate on one or two of the social media sites and do them well. Otherwise you are going to find social media is a major time killer!

Tip # 8 - Invest in technology products that do it all

Many offices are cluttered with separate printers, fax machines, scanners etc and many of you carry around multiple gadgets at a time– a digital camera, mp3 player, camcorder and a phone. Some of you have multiple cell phones and pagers (yep, you read that right I know people who still carry a pager, go figure). Consider combining your various old devices into the new multi-function gadget that does more than just one task. Smartphones like the iPhone are a great example. With an iPhone you can talk, surf the Internet,  get email, get GPS directions, make dinner reservations, keep up on sports scores, text, take pictures, play music and record/watch video! Holy mother of multi-tasking! And’s that all while you are in the drive-through at Starbucks getting your morning coffee! Imgaine what you could accomplish in a day. Other multi-function devices include printer, fax and scanner combos as well as digital cameras that also record video.

Tip #9 – Learn to think like a teenager

“IDK my BFF Jill” is a line from one of my favorite television commercials where the mom and daughter are having trouble communicating because the teenage daughter is always texting!  Texting is a fast and easy way to communicate. Texts never get buried in email inboxes or stuck in a spam folder. Its instant, easy and forces you to be concise and to the point. Of course it is not a high-touch communication method, but for figuring out where someone is or when they will be back, there is nothing more efficient than texting.

Tip #10 – You’ll flip over The Flip!

This is my favorite tool of all! The new Flip Mino video camera is amazing. As small as a cell phone, it is the easiest point and shoot video camera I have ever used. It only has one BIG red button. You can’t mess up! Once you film your video, click open the USB on the side of the video camera and connect it directly to your computer. Your videos will upload to your Website or YouTube in just one click. You can easily create movies and edit video clips. Imagine what your salespeople could do gathering testimonials with a Flip or how many appointments they could book if they emailed video tours out to prospects. For more information, go to TheFlip.com. I like the Flip Mino for it’s compact size and that starts at $179.

Don’t tolerate outdated technology that causes daily frustration. You have enough hassles in your life without technology that is slow, cumbersome and difficult to use. Do you have a favorite technology tool? Please write a comment and let us know what you can’t live without.

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Tags: Creating Wow, Home Builder Marketing, home builder sales, Meredith Communications, Real Estate Marketing, web site technology, website technology