Phones and IT support for estate agents moving

Estate agents spend a great deal of time away from their desks.

They may be conducting viewings, meeting vendors, visiting managed properties or travelling between branches.

Supported desktop and mobile applications can help authorised staff make and receive business calls wherever they are working.

This can allow staff to answer calls to their business number, make calls showing the agency number, check voicemail, view recent call activity, contact colleagues through internal extensions, and move between the branch and another working location.

Staff do not need to give customers their personal mobile number.

Not every call should follow an agent wherever they go.

We’ll help you decide which calls should ring an individual, return to the branch or move to another agreed team when someone is unavailable.

Your estate agent CRM may already contain the information staff need when someone calls.

ChromeX can connect with supported business and property systems.

Depending on the platform, staff may be able to see available caller information, open the matching contact record, view relevant properties or recent activity, click a telephone number to begin a call, add call information to the record, and access contacts through both systems.

This can help a member of staff understand whether the caller is a buyer, seller, landlord, tenant or existing applicant.

Functions differ between CRM platforms.

We’ll check the software your agency uses and explain what is supported before recommending anything.

Where available, ChromeX may also help your team send agreed text reminders for viewings, inspections or maintenance appointments.

Your agency remains responsible for the message content, contact permissions and information used.

Without reporting, it can be difficult to know how many calls went unanswered or whether someone returned them.

ChromeX reports can help authorised staff review information such as unanswered calls, the date and time, the number or branch contacted, queue waiting times, call volumes, activity by staff member or team, calls to selected campaign numbers, and missed calls that have not received an outbound response, where available.

The available information will depend on the reporting setup.

An outbound call does not always mean the enquiry has been resolved.

Your agency still needs a clear process for checking missed calls, assigning responsibility and recording when the follow-up is complete.

Chrome can help you choose reports that support that process.

Different telephone numbers can be used for selected campaigns, branches or advertising sources.

Reporting can then help your team compare the calls received through each number.

You may choose to track calls from property portals, valuation campaigns, boards and printed advertising, paid search campaigns, individual branches, or sales and lettings departments.

Call data should be reviewed alongside your CRM and wider marketing information.

A call does not always become a valuation, instruction or completed sale.

Chrome will explain what the reports show and where another system is needed to understand the full result.

A multi-branch agency should not have to manage every location through a separate phone system.

ChromeX can bring users, numbers and call routes together across several branches.

Depending on the setup, staff may be able to transfer calls between branches, share responsibility for busy queues, use a central contact directory, manage opening hours through one portal, view reports across selected locations, answer through supported applications, and keep greetings and call menus consistent.

One branch may also be able to help when another team is busy or short-staffed.

We’ll agree how calls should be shared before setting up any overflow route.

Call recording may help when there is a clear reason to listen again.

An estate or letting agency might use suitable recordings to check what was discussed with a vendor or landlord, review a complaint, confirm information given during an enquiry, support staff training, understand a difficult call, or review whether an agreed process was followed.

Recordings should not replace written agreements or proper CRM notes.

Your agency should decide why calls are recorded, who can listen and how long recordings are kept.

Chrome can explain the recording, access and storage options. Your organisation remains responsible for its data protection and employment requirements.

Legal or compliance advice may also be needed.

Recorded greetings and on-hold messages can confirm that callers have reached the correct agency.

They may also share branch opening hours, other ways to contact your team, information about valuations, lettings or property management services, details of other local branches, short answers to common questions, and temporary changes to opening hours.

The message should be brief and useful.

Someone calling about a maintenance problem or delayed sale may not appreciate a long advert while they wait.

Chrome can help prepare the wording, arrange the recording and add it to the agreed parts of the system.