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Tip Sheet - newsletters

2009-12-07T03:31:00Z

The Campaign system update has introduced the concept of ‘Series’ and ‘Editions’ to building Newsletters and Magazines.
A ‘Series’ is a newsletter that you may reuse over and over again through the use of different ‘Editions’.

For example, you might like to send out a news update on the region you specialise in every month, or an update on your offices sales achievements every quarter. For this purpose, you would setup a Newsletter Series, and new editions within the Series for every newsletter you need to send.

Building a Newsletter

Creating a New Series

Click the "New Magazine or Newsletter Series" link at the top of the page.
You are prompted to choose either an email or magazine template.
Select an email template. Note: your office may have one standard template, or multiple templates. If you would like a custom template made for a specific purpose, please contact us.
Fill out the name of the Series in the ‘Name’ field, a brief description of your newsletter and the ‘From Address’ that recipients will see when they receive your newsletter emails.
You may also change the email template design selected for the series using the ‘Design’ drop down menu.
When you click ‘Create Series’ you are directed to the Subscribers tab. Here you may setup who receives each edition of your newsletter.
When you’re done, click ‘Save Newsletter’. You are then redirected to the Newsletters and Magazines home area where you will see your New Series in the list – as indicated here with the red arrow.

Creating Editions

Click the "Edit Next Edition" link within the Series you want to use.
You are directed to the email editor, displaying exactly the look and feel of the final output. Here you can change the email subject (it defaults to the Series name). Within the email body, you can change the heading and text content you want to send. You can format this content as you would in Microsoft Word – simply select the text and format it with bullet points, bold text, italicised text and even insert images using the toolbar.
If you would like to insert any properties into your newsletter, you may do so by clicking the House icon.
When you have finished writing your newsletter, you may proceed by clicking one of the 4 buttons above the toolbar.

Tip Sheet - automatic compositions

2009-12-07T02:54:00Z

Using Automated Compositions

The Automated Compositions area is a powerful tool that allows you to automate various types of email broadcast to appropriate contacts in your database.

Automated Compositions is broken up into 3 types of composition:

What’s Happening Summary – an automated email including upcoming OFI times, upcoming auctions as well as new, sold, and leased properties.
Requirements Match – an automated email showing properties, whether rental or for sale, that match the requirements of contacts who are subscribed.
Early Bird Alert – an automated email with Early Bird alerts to subscribers for properties which have just entered their early bird period.

Setting up an Automated Composition:

Click on the composition type you would like to setup.
For each of the 3 Automated Composition types, you are presented with tabs for Email Contents, Sending Settings and Subscribers.
In the Email Contents tab, you may edit the subject heading and create a standard message that sits above the properties that are in the alert.
You can also change the types of property included in the alert by ticking the appropriate boxes.
Before moving to another tab, be sure to click ‘Update Settings’.
Click on the Sending Settings tab. On this page you can edit the name of the composition so you may find it later, the from address and schedule to which the emails are sent.
Lastly, you can choose the recipients for your alert in the Recipients tab. Select from particular groups in your database or subscribers from previous campaigns.

Tip Sheet - general emails

2009-12-07T02:53:00Z

Using General Emails

The Campaign system update allows you to create one-off emails simply and effectively without leaving iDashboard.

The default screen for General Emails shows a "New Composition" link at the top of the screen, and underneath a list of all emails that have been sent or still in draft status. This allows you to quickly see what email template was used, the number of recipients assigned to it, as well as some useful tools including a preview link and copy function for reusing standard messages you might use on a frequent basis. Old emails that serve no purpose can also be deleted from this list.

Writing a new email:

Click "New Composition" at the top of the screen.
Select an email template. Note: your office may have one standard template, or multiple templates. If you would like a custom template made for a specific purpose, please contact support@iproperty.com.au.
Now you may edit the From Address, Recipients and Email Subject.
Clicking on Add Recipient brings up a screen that allows you to search for a specific contact, or add a new contact to your database using the same form as found in the main iDashboard Contacts area.
Underneath, you will see the main working space for editing the content in your email. To use this, it’s as simple as clicking on any heading, message area or line of text and adding your own text content.
You can format anything you write with the Microsoft Word style toolbar above the editing area. Simply select text and make it bold, italicised, underlined or change the font size and colour.
If you would like to add a property, add an image or add a website hyperlink – click on the House, Photo or Link icons in the toolbar to the right of the bullet point icons and follow the prompts.
When you are happy with your email composition, click one of the 3 blue buttons above the working space to send the email out, save as a draft, or send a preview of it to yourself.

Reviewing / Reusing existing emails:

To open up a draft email for editing or review the content of a sent email, simply click the appropriate email from the list presented in the General Emails home area.
Once inside, you may review or edit the content and or the recipients and choose a course of action using one the 3 blue buttons.
You may also preview or create a copy of an existing email by clicking the Magnifying glass or Copy icon from the list view. Clicking Copy creates another instance of that composition and directs you to the normal editing view.

Tip Sheet - email tracking

2009-12-07T02:52:00Z

The Campaign system update has introduced a simple yet powerful email tracking system to assist you with your marketing activities.

The default screen for the Campaigns area is a list of all previous email campaigns sent out. The list shows you the name of the campaign, the date sent, number of recipients, number of times opened, number of times someone clicked a link within it and the number of email bounces (due to incorrect email addresses or network errors).

Email Tracking System

The Campaign system update has introduced a simple yet powerful email tracking system to assist you with your marketing activities.

You can find out much more and make use of a range of powerful communication tools by clicking on one of the campaign links – read more below.

Making the most out of Email Tracking:

Click a campaign link on the Email Tracking home screen.
You are presented with a page showing 3 tabs – Recipients, Reports and Properties.
The default tab selected is Recipients. Information in this area is divided into a further 3 tabs – Opened, Unopened and Bounced. In each, it shows you a list of all of the recipients that fall into those categories. This allows you to identify which of your contacts can be followed up after opening a Campaign, other contacts you can prompt to take a look or present further marketing activities to, and contacts that may need their email address double-checked.
Click on Reports. Here you can view a simple, visual representation of the success of your Campaigns and health of your contact database. The pie chart shows the percentage of Opened, Unopened and Bounced emails. Clicking on the Daily and Weekly tabs allows you to see further information about activity in more specific time ranges – allowing you to make a call on the best times to send out your materials.
Finally, the Properties tab shows a breakdown of activity specific to individual properties in your portfolio – including Campaign views and Website views. You can also see a quick snapshot of key listing data, such as Address, Price, and Vendor.

Tip Sheet - new eMag system

2009-12-07T02:49:00Z

This article is currently being prepared.

It will be published shortly. Please check back later to help understand the great new benefits available to you with the latest iDashboard release. Thanks for looking!

Regards,

The iProperty Team

New Campaigns area in iDashboard

2009-12-07T02:45:00Z

In our upcoming release we've redesigned our Campaigns area from the ground up. We feel that what we've done will make it much easier to create and manage outgoing emails, and we've given you the power to control things which were originally fixed within the system.

Our new Campaigns area is broken up into 4 distinct areas which are used depending what types of emails you'd like to send out.

New Campaigns area

Over the last few months we've been working hard to improve upon some of the most popular features of iDashboard. As a direct response to some of your requests we have focussed our efforts in this area in order to make iDashboard an even better tool to use.

In our upcoming release we've redesigned our Campaigns area from the ground up. We feel that what we've done will make it much easier to create and manage outgoing emails, and we've given you the power to control things which were originally fixed within the system.

Our new Campaigns area is broken up into 4 distinct areas which are used depending what types of emails you'd like to send out.

1. Email Tracking - Learn how to use this here.
Formally dubbed "Campaigns", this is where the system keeps track of all your bulk emails, showing you who has opened what, and which properties they clicked on.

2. General Emails - Learn how to use this here.
This area is where you can compose bulk emails which generally are for a once-off purpose, such as letting people know about a price change, or any special deals or promotions you might be running.

3. Automatic Compositions - Learn how to use this here.
This area allows you to control your weekly automatic emails. Typically, this includes your "Whats On This Week" emails, and "Early Bird Alerts" if you've signed up for that service. Within this area, you're able to modify what kinds of properties you'd like to include.

With this flexibility, you can now take control of your own automatic emails, for instance may want your emails to go out on a Wednesday, or a Saturday (or even both) instead of a Thursday. Or you might want to create a special Commercial Properties email to go out to your commercial buyers. You may even want to include all your sold properties from the last 4 months.

4. Newsletters & Magazines - Learn how to use this here.
In this area, you'll manage any periodic emails you like to send out - either to your buyers or vendors, or both. This is where you can provide insights such as market updates or other information. Each type of newsletter or magazine you'd like to send is called a "Series" within the system, and each series can have any number of "Editions". This lets you easily navigate through and review past emails.

You'll also be creating your eMags from this area, if you've subscribed for this feature. Our eMag system has been improved greatly in this release, providing you with a real-time preview of your emag as you change it, as well being able to change any part of the email being sent. Learn how to use this here.

Subscriber Management
We have greatly improved our Subscription Management area by bringing in this feature into the Campaigns area. Automatic Compositions, Newsletters and Magazines each have their own subscriber lists, which can be changed right within the email itself. You are able to copy subscribers from other emails, as well as subscribe contacts in bulk by their group.

To access the subscriber management features:

In Automatic Compositions, click the composition you'd like to edit and then select the "Subscribers" tab.
In Newsletters & Magazines, click "Edit Series" for the series you'd like to edit, and then select the "Subscribers" tab.

Inserting Property Information
You may already be familiar with our property selector, if you've ever created your own custom handout reports. We've taken that selector and used it within the new Campaigning area as well - from within any General Email, Newsletter or Magazine Edition you'll be able to insert property listings right into the email. Simply click on the property icon while editing the email, select the properties you'd like to present and they'll instantly be inserted into the current cursor position within your email, where you can then modify or change the information just like a regular email.

Many Designs
We've also performed some major work from within the system which allows you to change the visual appearance of your emails. We are able to easily design a new or additional layout for your emails, you may want to have a Christmas or Easter theme, or even a special theme to congratulate a successful buyer. Contact us if you'd like any of these options and more.

Improved History
We've reworked the contact history area, placing more emphasis on whats happened to a contact in addition to just showing their contact information.

We've combined this with automatically updating a contact's history each time they're emailed from within our system. So now you'll be able to know what properties a contact has seen quicker than before.

How to - the new reports builder

2009-05-21T07:00:00Z

We have introduced a new report builder in iDashboard. This new report builder looks daunting, but it really is very easy to use, and best of all it gives your ageny loads of power when it comes to generating your report.

Basic home loans more popular than variable mortgages

2009-05-20T07:01:00Z

Home buyers are flocking back into variable rate mortgages, which now account for 91 per cent of the residential lending market, their highest proportion in four months, a leading mortgage broker says.

Mortgage broker Mortgage Choice reports that in April basic variable mortgages accounted for 48.15 per cent of all home loans approved – up nearly one per cent from March, while standard variable mortgages comprised 42.77 per cent of the market, down 1.47 per cent from March.

Basic variable loans generally have fewer loan features than a standard variable loan, Mortgage Choice says.

> click here to read full article

Tower of strength

2009-05-20T06:35:00Z

Affordable inner-city apartments are being snapped up.

Buoyed by the first home buyers’ boost and the lowest interest rates for 50 years, agents marketing inner-city apartments valued below $500,000 have reported their best couple of trading months since late 2007.

In several areas of the near and inner city during April the clearance rate of units reached 100per cent. Admittedly, this figure relates to low stock levels relative to previous years but it is, nevertheless, an exceptional result.

Apartments in the right price sector that had been lagging on agency books for five or so months have suddenly been selling, and Philip Middlemiss, of Stockdale & Leggo Melbourne, says that buyer inquiry levels are also at a three-year high. "We had a huge clearance in April."

> click here to read full article

Residential housing market holds up despite economic gloom

2009-05-19T03:26:00Z

THE housing market kept its head above water in the March quarter, as Australia was sinking into recession.

Data released yesterday by two of the largest property research groups confirmed residential markets were stable nationally.

Australian Property Monitors and RP Data were at odds as to whether house prices were up or down in Sydney and Brisbane, but they agreed the market had shown remarkable resilience.

"Housing and unit figures show a surprisingly resilient residential property market amidst the global and domestic economic turmoil,’’ APM economist Matthew Bell said.

> click here to read full article

Diamond in the rough

2009-05-18T07:01:00Z

Demand has never been stronger for renovator’s delights, with bargain hunters on the prowl.

There’s no kitchen, the upstairs windows are broken, plaster is falling off the walls, the bathroom is a shed in the backyard and someone has torched the living room.

This mouldy, unkempt and rickety terrace in Smithers Street, Chippendale, is in such poor condition that one of the upstairs bedrooms has been sealed to prevent would-be buyers from falling through the rotten floorboards.

"This is without doubt the worst place I’ve ever sold," says Walter Burfitt-Williams, sales executive from Ray White Double Bay. "And yet the response has been overwhelming. I had 62 groups through on Saturday I expect keen competition at the auction."

> click here to read full article

Low prices woo first-time buyers

2009-05-18T06:50:00Z

IT’S the best time in seven years for first home buyers to get into the property market, a survey says.

A combination of static house prices and low interest rates have improved housing prices, according to the Housing Industry Association-Commonwealth Bank housing affordability index.

The index for first home buyers rose 22.3 index points in the March quarter to 175.8 points.

> click here to read full article

The castle of your dreams

2009-05-12T01:26:00Z

First-timers wanting the most from the grant are flocking to the new-home heaven at Kellyville.

Aprocession of cars moves slowly up Blue Bell Circuit at 10.40am on a sunny Saturday. Some drivers pull up at the kerb, others continue leisurely along Halcyon Avenue, gazing at the parade of imposing houses with equally grand names: Sovereign, Newport, The Windsor, Omega Elan, The Celeste and, inevitably, The Castle.

> click here to read full article

Few auctions lift clearance

2009-05-11T23:30:00Z

Low auction numbers concentrated demand and produced some high prices on the weekend, with competition between investors and first home buyers pushing apartment prices above many reserves.

Agents also reported some interest from developers that they said was a sign of increasing confidence in an economic recovery.

> click here to read full article

Renters scaling back

2009-05-11T07:27:00Z

THE threat of pay cuts and unemployment are driving a growing number of young Australians out of rental properties and back to living with their parents or into shared accommodation.

The trend is adding to the downward pressure on rents sparked by the rising number of young people leaving rental properties to take advantage of the Rudd Government’s boost to the first-home buyers scheme and lower interest rates.

> click here to read full article