Case Study: Zephyr Real Estate
Founded in 1978, Zephyr Real Estate is the largest independent real estate firm exclusively focused on San Francisco. Zephyr maintains four offices, 150-plus agents, and generates nearly one billion dollars in gross annual sales.
With over 150 agents plus administrative staff in each of their offices, there is a tremendous need to have shared access to information, so that agents and staff can communicate with each other and their clients around the clock. At Zephyr, transactions happen swiftly and were heavily "paper" driven. Agents must be able to get their hands on information and the proper forms quickly.
"Several years back, our management team recognized the need to arm our agents with best-of-breed tools that would enable them to compete effectively," explained Ilse Cordoni, Sales Manager at Zephyr. "We envisioned implementing an Intranet that would be easy-to-use and allow our agents and staff to communicate and disseminate information from any remote area. Unfortunately, our intent was accurate, but the Intranet did not work, let alone accomplish our objectives."
In 2003, Zephyr decided to replace the current Intranet with a new solution that streamlines communication processes and meets the current and future needs of the agents and staff. Zephyr wanted an Intranet that was simple, yet rich in information -- one that agents would view as a valuable, important resource.
Zephyr put together an evaluation team to spearhead the search for a development firm that could meet their Intranet requirements. Based on recommendations and a thorough evaluation, Zephyr chose Marker Seven to develop and design their new Intranet and public web site. "Marker Seven's extreme professionalism, coupled with their experience and demonstrated success, made us confident they could meet our needs," explained Cordoni.
Zephyr had many sophisticated requirements for the new Intranet. It needed to support hundreds of independent contractors (agents), from anywhere they chose to work. Some of the requirements included: posting Zephyr real estate listings (new, current, sold) with a direct and automatic synchronization to Zephyr's Internet site; interactive floor schedule; categorized and pre-populated transaction forms in HTML and PDFs; agent and staff management/directory; employee training; events calendars; mail system; and administrative forms.
In addition, the system automatically updates the listings from the MLS daily and makes them available to both Zephyr agents through the Intranet and the public on the Internet site. "When we decided to implement a new Intranet, it meant more than just upgrading the old one. Most of the previous Intranet didn't even work so Marker Seven had to essentially rebuild it to provide full functionality that would greatly benefit our agents," said Cordoni.
Marker Seven deployed a team that provided Zephyr with project management, Intranet and Internet development and design (including content), training, testing and on-going support. Working according to Zephyr's requirements and functionality specifications, Marker Seven developed an Intranet and Internet that are tightly integrated, easy to navigate, and laden in functionality.
"Since we were embarking on a complete overhaul of the Intranet, we decided to upgrade and refresh our Internet site as well," explained Cordoni. "Marker Seven worked diligently to get both the new Intranet and Internet sites developed and implemented in a relatively condensed timeframe. Support has been terrific and our questions are always answered."
"With the Intranet, we see a great improvement in productivity and agent satisfaction," said Cordoni. "The Intranet is an essential tool to help attract and sustain quality agents. Marker Seven helped us realize our vision and we look forward to working with them to support and maintain the sites."
As the largest independent real estate firm serving San Francisco and with over one billion dollars in gross sales annually, Zephyr Real Estate understands the San Francisco market.
Over 160 full-time agents work in four offices throughout the City. Zephyr Real Estate offers the best in service and experience in a warm, friendly environment to transact real estate business.
For more information, see www.zephyr-re.com
About Marker Seven
Marker Seven is a premier provider of Web-based solutions designed to maximize business sales and communication efforts. Headquartered in San Francisco and founded in 2000, its skilled, cross-disciplinary team tackles every facet of Web development with a common bond and vision - to deliver value, high-quality work, and exceptional service. Marker Seven's professional team of business strategists, designers, and technical experts deliver solutions tailored to each client. Proven ability to understand client's business issues and technical needs allow its team to hit the ground running, take ownership and fully manage every project. Marker Seven remains focused on and dedicated to each project, delivering a polished look with clarity and consistency. Whatever the initiative, Marker Seven implements and delivers success.