Coldwell Banker Real Estate has launched both a mobile application and an interactive advertisement for the Apple iPad, the franchise giant announced Monday.
Coldwell Banker’s free iPad app allows users to search for property listings, agents, and local franchise offices in either map or list view. The app highlights the company’s "On Location" videos that feature agents, listings and local communities in search results.
"Two years ago, we entered the video content world with our Coldwell Banker On Location YouTube channel, and we now have more than 40,000 agent, community and listing videos on the site. We set out to combine this content with iPad’s ability to deliver a great video experience," said Michael Fischer, spokesperson for Coldwell Banker Real Estate, in a statement.
"While we have the traditional real estate information, it’s the use of video that defines our app."
Users can save searches, listings, agents, offices and videos in a "Favorites" section. They can also contact an agent or office directly from the app and share listings across various social media sites. The app includes neighborhood ratings and amenities information from Yelp.
Coldwell Banker also worked with Apple to create a full-page interactive advertisement, called an iAd, that is now being featured in several news-related iPad apps, including apps for the New York Times, the Huffington Post, USA Today and Condé Nast.
The iAd builds on the rising trend of lifestyle search among real estate sites. Within the ad, users can design their ideal neighborhood by dragging certain community elements onto a canvas: home, travel, shopping, education, restaurants, and active living.
"Purchasing a home is a lifestyle decision that involves an array of factors such as schools, restaurants, transportation and other amenities," Fischer said.
Consumers use a sliding scale to determine what neighborhood characteristics are important to them — for example, whether they’d like to live in a place that’s car-dependent or accessible by mass transit. If they’d like to see a random "dream" neighborhood, users can give their iPad a shake.
Once they’ve created their ideal community, users can save it to their photo album or email it.
Users are encouraged to download Coldwell Banker’s iPad app throughout their experience on the iAd to find their own home.
