Technological Dominance

With each passing year, technology and the internet take on greater significance relating to the real estate industry. We've known this for years, which is why we've invested so heavily in technology. As evidence that buyers are flocking to the internet to search for homes, the 2005 National Association of Realtors' "Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers" states the following:

• 82% of all first-time home buyers use the internet to search for homes
• 78% of repeat home buyers use the internet to search for homes
• These percentages increased dramatically from the prior year

Knowing that the internet is so critical to the long-term success of any real estate company, we spent several years studying the best real estate websites we could find. We traveled to other cities to meet with the creators of some of these sites to learn what we could from them. And then we set out to create the best real estate website in the industry: ProfessionalOne.com.

And, based upon the results we've obtained to date, we're very pleased with the results of our efforts. Specifically, note the following:

• We have a "page 1" ranking on Google for every community in our basic marketing area (and, in most cases, we have MULTIPLE page 1 rankings on Google for a given community, depending on the search terms that are employed)
• We've consistently maintained these rankings in the face of severe competition and against nationally-franchised competitors
• We're obtaining these rankings ORGANICALLY (that is, we don't use "pay per click" to obtain our rankings; we get the rankings because our site is so well designed)
• We are capturing potential client contact information at a rapid pace (during the first six months of 2006, we captured over 1,000 email addresses and or phone numbers of people searching for homes from within ProfessionalOne.com). We then distribute these leads to agents with demonstrated ability to adequately service this type of client (as tech-savvy clients require service that differs from traditional clients)

While ProfessionalOne.com is the crown jewel of our technology efforts, we do more - a LOT more - in terms of technology. Here is additional proof that we are on the cutting edge of real estate technology:

• We have an "upgraded" company package on Realtor.com, which is the number one-rated real estate website in the world. This directs a greater percentage of users of that site to ProfessionalOne.com, which is one more thing that we do to get maximum internet exposure for your home
• We are the first company in the State of Michigan to use the web-based version of "Showing Time," the single most sophisticated appointment setting/listing maintenance software on the planet. This software includes the following functionality:
  • Email notification of appointments to our sellers
  • Email notification of feedback that we receive from agents after they show a listing to the seller of the viewed home
  • On-line visibility for our sellers to see all of the activity that relates to their home, including:
    • Number of showings
    • Agents that have shown their home
    • Feedback that agents have provided on their home
• We train our agents to use "Call Capture" technology to follow up with potentially interested parties that call about our listings. Here's how this works:
  • We place a rider on top of the for-sale sign in the seller's yard that invites people to call for pre-recorded information about the home; this service is available 24/7
  • When such calls come in, the system we use captures the phone number of the caller (and, often, the name and address of the caller); this technology is unblockable, so we capture EVERY caller's phone number
  • We call these people back to offer them further assistance and to attempt to arrange a showing of the applicable listing
  • This DRAMATICALLY increases the chances that no interested party will slip through the cracks
• Because we are members of Michigan's largest MLS and provider of real estate information, Realcomp II, Ltd. Because of this membership, our sellers' home are available to over 14,000 brokers and agents in over 1,400 offices in Southeastern Michigan.