#workflow software

[unitedstatesrei]

Automate, Elevate, and Build a Business That Works for You with Caroline Hobbs

Key Takeaways Automating systems and setting clear expectations are the keys to building a scalable, sustainable business. Agents should start with their personal sphere and consistently ask for the business without fear. Leveraging AI and SOPs empowers agents to save time and focus on income-producing tasks. United States Real Estate Investor The REI Agent with Caroline Hobbs https://youtu.be/rpR6yoX4TIg Follow and subscribe to The REI Agent on social Facebook Instagram Youtube .cls-1fill:#fff; Linkedin X-twitter United States Real Estate Investor It's time to have an investor-friendly agent on your team! It's time to have an investor-friendly agent on your team! United States Real Estate Investor From Open Houses to Ownership: Caroline Hobbs’ Rise to Real Estate Mastery In this eye-opening episode of The REI Agent Podcast, Mattias hosts the extraordinary Caroline Hobbs, a powerhouse in real estate, tech, and team building. While Erica is out for physical therapy, Mattias flies solo to spotlight a woman whose story screams resilience, vision, and innovation. Caroline isn’t just a top-producing agent. She’s the founder of Reward Realty, one of California’s youngest-ever brokers, and the brain behind a revolutionary real estate CRM that’s changing how agents work nationwide. “I graduated college in 2009—arguably the worst time in history to try and get a job in finance.” Her story begins with inherited wisdom. As a third-generation real estate expert, Caroline was practically born to build an empire. What started with open houses during college soon transformed into a thriving brokerage, and eventually, a pioneering tech company designed for agents by an agent. Starting Young, Going Big: The Journey of a 21-Year-Old Broker Caroline doesn’t just talk the talk—she’s lived every part of it. At just 21, she became a licensed broker, stepping into an industry most were fleeing during the housing crash. Her mentor, a Keller Williams legend with over 10,000 contacts in her database, gave Caroline the tactical experience to thrive in chaos. “I was probably the youngest broker in the state for a while… because I graduated early and the experience rule hadn’t kicked in yet.” That early exposure to system-building and data management laid the foundation for something bigger: leading her own team, then creating a platform that helps others do the same, faster, smarter, and more profitably. Real Brokerage, Real Growth, Real Results Fast forward to today, Caroline’s team under Real Brokerage has grown from 4 to 9 agents in just four months. Her secret? Monthly masterminds, relentless expectation setting, and systems that allow every team member to build sustainably. “We teach people how to treat us—but we also set the expectations for our clients, our team, and our business.” She’s not just closing deals. She’s mentoring minds and building leaders. From showings to SOPs, Caroline’s influence runs deep in every aspect of her operation. She reminds us that real leadership is built on communication, follow-through, and vision. The Software That’s Reshaping the Agent's Life Caroline’s CRM isn’t just another shiny object, it’s a full-stack assistant that reads documents, transcribes calls, tracks deadlines, and automates client communication. “We help agents build out their SOPs, automate their transactions, and create time-saving systems that actually serve them.” With integrations into DocuSign, Dropbox, Fellow, and custom pipelines, it’s a plug-and-play system that frees up time for what matters: serving people. The CRM even uses AI to summarize phone calls, schedule follow-ups, and trigger marketing automations. It’s the very definition of working smarter, not harder. Train Like a Pro with Caroline’s AI Roleplay Coach Caroline also created a custom GPT tool for her team that roleplays lead conversations, provides feedback, and trains agents on how to confidently convert calls into clients. “It gives them

real-time feedback on what they did well and how they can improve—and it’s trained with Tom Ferry and Phil Jones language.” New agents use it daily to sharpen their skills before ever picking up a phone. She understands that the biggest gaps in success are often confidence and preparation, and she’s built tools to bridge both. Want More Deals? Ask for the Business. When Mattias asked Caroline for one golden nugget for new agents, she didn’t flinch. “Start with your sphere and ask for the business. Don’t be shy to say, ‘Do you know anyone looking to buy or sell?’” Her advice is refreshingly practical—start face-to-face, lean on your community, and build your skills over time. AI and automation are tools, but relationships and reputation are still the foundation. Final Words of Wisdom from a Trailblazer To close out the episode, Caroline recommends the game-changing book Buy Back Your Time by Dan Martell. “You should be out making the sales, not buried in paperwork. Automate and delegate everything else.” From strategy to software to soul, Caroline Hobbs embodies what The REI Agent is all about: building wealth while staying aligned with who you are and what matters most. Want to work smarter, lead better, and live bolder? Start by asking better questions. Caroline did, and it changed everything. Stay tuned for more inspiring stories on The REI Agent podcast, your go-to source for insights, inspiration, and strategies from top agents and investors who are living their best lives through real estate. For more content and episodes, visit reiagent.com. United States Real Estate Investor Create healing and connection within yourself, your family, and your community. Create healing and connection within yourself, your family, and your community. United States Real Estate Investor Contact Caroline Hobbs Reward Realty Linktree United States Real Estate Investor Mentioned References Buy Back Your Time by Dan Martell Tom Ferry Phil Jones Real Brokerage Google Forms ChatGPT United States Real Estate Investor Transcript Welcome to the REI Agent, a holistic approach to life through real estate. I'm Mattias, an agent and investor. And I'm Erica, a licensed therapist. Join us as we interview guests that also strive to live bold and fulfilled lives through business and real estate investing. Tune in every week for interviews with real estate agents and investors. Ready to level up? Let's do it. Welcome back to the REI Agent. It's your friendly local neighborhood real estate agent podcast host, Mattias, an investor. We are not, we don't have Erica with us today. So unfortunately, she had to go to PT. So we will hopefully have her here on the next one. But we did have a great guest today, Caroline Hobbs. Caroline is a team lead. She's an experienced agent, broker, and now a software owner. She has a CRM that she sells that has a lot of automations and stuff built in. It's pretty cool. So definitely check out the show notes if you are interested in hearing more about that. She can, you can see where, you know, in her link tree what all is available. I think that in this business, there's a lot of shiny objects. There's a lot of people that are trying to kind of get your money and can be distracting. Sometimes we get focused or persuaded into something. It could be changing brokerages. It could be, you know, this new tool that's fun. It could be a new system. I'm certainly guilty of this stuff. But I think at the end of the day, if you are focused on providing your clients with consistent, clear communication and you're setting expectations, you're going to do really well. So if you focus on those as the core tenement, and if you are building out systems and processes that help enhance that, I think that's what's really key in business that you already have. That's not necessarily something that will help you gain more business, other than people might rave about your services because they felt like they were taken care of the whole time.

So no matter what you do in this business, no matter what kind of things that you look into, because I think, you know, systems and processes and software, AI, all that stuff can be incredibly powerful. Just don't lose sight of what's really important when you are interacting with your clients. I think that's the key there. But without further ado, I'm going to keep this one short. We're going to go right into Caroline Hobbs. She, again, is out of the Silicon Valley area. She is an experienced agent. She may have been, and she talks about this, the youngest broker in the whole state of California for a couple months. So without further ado, Caroline Hobbs. Welcome back to the REI Agent. I am here with Caroline Hobbs. Caroline, thanks so much for joining us today. Thanks for having me. Hey, Caroline, you got a couple different hats. You have been an agent for a while. You've now team lead and you own a software company, correct? Correct. Yeah, awesome. To get started, I want to dive into all this different stuff, but let's get started by just kind of hearing how you got into real estate to begin with. Yeah, definitely. So I am third generation in real estate. So you could kind of say that I was born into it. My grandfather used to flip properties. He was a contractor. And after my mom graduated college, he encouraged her to go on and get her real estate license, which she did. She worked for Fieldstone down in Southern California, selling new homes for years and years, and eventually moved over to the lending side of things. While I was in college, I got a part-time job. I had no intention of going into real estate, as I have my degree in finance, but got a job hosting open houses for a realtor in Palo Alto and decided that I liked it. So shortly after graduation, I got my broker's license and a few years after that, started my independent brokerage. Nice. Wow, that's awesome. So you jumped right into starting your own brokerage, not just a new team. You went right into being your own broker. Well, so the realtor that trained me, just to give you a little bit of perspective, I started working for her in 2008, 2007, something around right there, and right at the heat of the crash as the market was crumbling. I graduated college. You needed to get into it. I graduated college in 2009, which is basically the worst time in history to try and get a job in finance. I was still working with the agent that trained me, and honestly, I couldn't have asked for a better mentor. The woman who I got to work with, she was internationally ranked as the top-selling agent in all of Keller Williams. She had a database at the time of over 10,000 people, which this is before people used databases. So I was hosting her open houses. I was organizing all of her clients in her database. I got a lot of really tactical, hands-on experience for how to manage contacts, how to stir the pot and turn that into actual business. So I worked with her for the first five, six years of my career, and then I was teaching a lot of classes at Keller Williams. I went off. I became an independent agent with them, but ultimately, I felt like my time was being pulled in multiple directions with being in the bigger office and having my broker's license. I felt confident that I could do it, and so I started Reward Realty in 2011. And I started that in 2013, and I ran it as an independent for 11 years. Wow. That's awesome. Just real quick before I forget, do you have any fun ways of re-engaging a database of that size that you could share? Honestly, the technologies have changed so much. So the tactics I use today to serve databases like that versus the tactics I used 10 years ago are very different. I am really big on utilizing tags and client types. I'm also pretty big on utilizing pipelines to analyze your business, kind of scoping out a little bit. I think the most important thing is to make sure that your contacts are always properly categorized.

And then when we talk about my software, I can kind of talk about ways that we have built our system to help agents keep those things top priority as they're working in their database. So that way, it's easier to identify those low-hanging fruit. Okay. Yeah, we'll have to get into that. I do want to talk a little bit about team building first. So when you got your brokerage, did you already have agents that were going to join you or were you just kind of at that point going to be a solo broker agent? Or did you hire an admin? What was that process like? For most of the time that I ran my brokerage as an independent, I had just an admin TC and a couple agents with me, like two or three for most of the time. So it was never, I was always the top producing agent. I was in some cases feeding other agents that were with me. Being independent was great. It was really lonely at first because I went from a team in an office environment to being on my own. And so having that assistant really helped with bridging the camaraderie gap and the social gap. And then it's honestly just recently that I really started getting involved more with the associations, the boards, things like that locally. At the time, real estate wasn't trendy to get into because the market was crashing. It was the worst time in real estate. So I was much younger than anybody else in my office or really in the industry that I knew at the time. When I got my broker's license, I had just turned 21. I was 21. Wow. There's a good chance I was probably the youngest broker in the state for a while just because you had to either have a degree in finance or economics or have five years sales person's experience at the time. And since I was younger than everybody in school and I graduated and got my broker's license right away, they changed it a few months later to require the five years experience. But at the time, they didn't have that in place. I was wondering. I think here it's three years of experience. I don't know if we have that finance loophole. There's no loophole anymore. But there was. This is in 2009, so a long time ago. So when you were bringing agents on or when you had a couple of agents, were they just selling independently or were they designated to help you in certain ways like having a showing agent or something like that, listing specialist? I did have one showing agent. The others worked independently. Okay. Yeah. And how's your, you said sales team earlier. How's that structured now? So my sales team has grown a lot. So one year ago, I made the switch from operating my business as an independent to coming on with Real Brokerage as a part of their white label program. So under their white label program, I've been able to grow quite a bit. We have an agent locally that is a huge attractor. And but he doesn't quite have the capacity to give training and things like that to agents. So I started doing monthly masterminds for agents with my lending partners where I kind of take a look at all the different ways that agents generate business, whether we're talking about social interactions, you know, their kids, the parents at their kids schools, whether we're talking about online marketing, purchasing leads, converting leads, whether we're talking about social media, being an influencer, direct mailing, farming, all of these different kind of tried and true, so to speak, ways. We kind of rotate and dive into each of those things on a monthly basis. Usually the trainings are about two to three hours long. And it has grown my team from four of us to nine of us in the past four months. Wow. Now, again, is that structured kind of like you were before? Do you have any designated people helping you directly? Are they all just kind of independent agents that are there to help or to be mentored by you, et cetera, and work together as a team? So we work together as a team. So I help not as much on like the paid lead side, but like I go on listing appointments with my agents and secure the transaction for us.

I've been in this business for so long. I understand the ins and outs and how to problem solve on the spot. There's not much that somebody could throw at me that I wouldn't be able to take a second and give them good guidance on. Not to say that I'm perfect. It's just when you've been in the business almost 16 years and you've been on as many inspections and things like that, you retain it. And I honestly, I live by the mindset that there's always something new to learn with every transaction, with every interaction that we have with people. So I kind of utilize that. Yeah. Cool. Yeah, it definitely helps. And things don't phase you quite as much as they may have in the beginning. A hundred percent. When a problem comes up or whatever, like each time. I kind of remember the first year that really my business really took off, skyrocketed. It also came with a lot of problems. And there was one time where I was just like down. I was just like, you know, kind of overwhelmed and just like, oh my gosh. So many problems, so many issues. And, you know, a good friend of mine kind of took me aside and was trying to give me like a pep talk and all that kind of stuff. But another friend was telling me, you know, whenever this kind of stuff happens, like it's just, you know, once you get past it, like you feel unfazed, like you're going to be unflappable. You're not going to be able to be bothered by little things anymore because you just got through this like really tedious time. But on top of that, the next time something like that happens, it's not as big of a deal. And so like looking back at the things that like phase you at the beginning versus now, just it's kind of, it's almost funny. But you can share that with your team as well if they're not quite as experienced as you. You know what, I tell my team this all the time and I can't say it enough is not only do we teach other people how to treat us, but we also set expectations for our clients, for our team members, for any interactions that we have. And so I feel like as an agent, more than anything else, that is our number one role is setting expectations. Because it's when those expectations are not met that people start getting frantic and they start making emotional choices. And so if you can just stay ahead of that and provide communication, then the problems stop popping up. 100%. There is somebody on here, I think he was an investor actually, but he was talking about how kind of everything boils down to setting clear expectations and communicating effectively. And if you can do those two things, even with your kids, with your family, it's just like, you know, you're a little kid and they're in the middle of a TV show or middle of playing in the park and all of a sudden you're like, we're going, we're leaving, bye. And just rip them out of that. They're going to be pissed. They're going to be very mad. But if you set the expectations that A, you're going to be here for this long and then kind of check in with them, communicate that, you know, 15 minutes, 10 minutes, five minutes, one minute, whatever, and we're going to leave, then that whole process goes a lot more smoothly. And that's the same for, you know, clients. Like if you are proactively communicating throughout the process and, you know, setting the expectations that they're going to get that email, that call, that whatever at this time, they're not going to be anxious. They feel that they're covered. And yeah, so I agree. Agents are the same way though. And I think that's one reason why I've been successful in stepping from, because in a lot of ways I run my team and my downline with Real in the same way that I ran the brokerage. Setting expectations with your agents. I think, you know, let's talk about marketing for example. People think that they're going to send one postcard and suddenly the phone is going to start ringing and everyone is going to be offering them their house to sell. Right.

That's just not how it works. It's stacking those good behaviors every single day to get closer and closer to your goal. And so it's about building that consistency. And so part of my job as a team lead is setting that expectation from the beginning. Okay, you want to start a farm. That's amazing. Let's go ahead and determine the farm. But to be clear, you should not expect anything to turn from this farm for at least the next three to six months. Don't start Google marketing and think that all of a sudden your phone is going to ring off the hook. No, you're going to have to build up that SEO credibility. You're looking at at least six months before you're really starting to get things, the algorithms and everything, getting to know who you are. And so I think that's where a lot of miscommunication goes into it. I think a lot of people are afraid of the truth or they're afraid of rejection if they give somebody the whole truth. And so it's kind of just it goes back to setting those expectations from the beginning. Yeah, that consistency too is huge. I have a house under contract that I've been mailing postcards to that community as a farm for two years, I think. And this is the first actual deal to come from two years. Yeah. And now the result of this sale is great for everything that I've been saying that I'm doing. I did in this deal and we got an amazing above asking price offers that I can now market to that community and just hopefully that will continue to snowball the results from that marketing that I've been doing. But that's hard for people. I mean, that's a lot of money. You know, it's hard to see the forest for the trees. Like if you're spending a lot of money on Google ads, you're spending a lot of money on postcards and nothing's actually come from it. You just feel like, you know, what's the point after a couple months you just spent. So in some ways it's easier to sign a contract or to just send the money to an agency that says, I'm going to commit to this for a year and I'm going to put it up front and it's done. And because you're going to just be spending money pointlessly otherwise, probably. Well, and honestly, I think the same thing goes when you're starting a team as well is people think this is going to be great. I am going to start a team. I'm going to check in with my team and they're going to go off and then I'm going to get a piece of the commission and it's going to be great. Right. Well, starting a team is a huge time investment and time is money. And, you know, I feel like so much of this business is kind of like a chess game and understanding where you move your time and money. And oftentimes I use those synonymously because, you know, we need both. Yeah. Succeed. Yeah, totally. Tell us a little bit about the software now. We were talking a little bit beforehand and how the software you're creating is all about automation and kind of freeing up people's time. So then I'm definitely super interested in. So tell us about what your software does. Well, so something that I have learned in mentoring agents and running the brokerage and going to conferences and meeting people from across the country. Realtors are social beings. Yeah. They are great at meeting people. They're great at forming relationships. They're not good at the back end stuff, but not everyone can afford an assistant. And a lot of people don't have the skill set to really articulate what it is that they're how their process goes, how it's laid out. And the reason is, is they don't have a standard operating procedure for how they transact. They kind of do it on the fly. Yeah. And say, well, every transaction is so unique. But is it because we have the same deadlines? You have the same paperwork that's needed. Hopefully you're getting the same level of customer service to each of your clients. So one thing that I really love about our software, like straight out of the gate from the time that we onboard you is there's several different modules that you go through.

And really what these modules are aimed to do is to build out those SOPs for your listing and buying process from deadlines to communications, to marketing, to gifting. Even we are one of our things is we're really big on building out integrations for all of the different tools and everything that you're using. If you're using something with an open API, our dev teams will actually build a custom integration with that company. We have a priority list based on request, but that's something that we're doing to constantly make our software work better with the tools and everything that agents are already using. We're not trying to... So many of those. Exactly. There is, there is. So for example, we're just finishing a two-way integration with Fellow, which is a home valuation software. And the reason why we're building out a two-way integration with them is they have some really great data enhancement tools where you can look up phone numbers and email addresses and things like that. And it's no, it's not helpful if you get a data enrichment in another software program and then it doesn't update clients in your database. Right. And so we want to make sure that we're working smarter and not harder. So things like that. So we have the transaction management process that is automated as far as deadlines and communications go. We also have an app with DocuSign and a client portal with Dropbox that kind of organizes all of the paperwork for each client as it's completed. And then as far as like the marketing goes, we have some postcard automations set up. We have from the time that people come into the database and that first call is made to them for like your online marketing leads, that call is actually transcribed and sent through chat GPT to determine what type of client it is. Is it a buyer? Is it a seller? Did you set up an appointment on the call? Because if you did, it's going to set the calendar appointment in your system. Nice. If you collect that email address from them over the phone, it's going to save that email address for them in the system so that when you're driving between appointments or at your kid's soccer game and you're taking a call and you don't have a pen and paper and you're like, oh, could you please text me your contact? Yep. You don't have to do that anymore. Just utilizing the smart number in the system will help you collect all that information and make sure that it's setting things off appropriately. So when different types of appointments are made, different types of communications are going to go out as far as reminders or even email communication, preparing them for an inspection. One of my favorite things is once the inspection is complete, the inspection appointment, it's going to send a text to your client saying the inspection is complete. Use the link below to schedule a review of the inspection documents with your agent. And it sends them the next calendar link. So that way you already have your next appointment being booked with your clients to follow up without you having to sit around and wait for it. Nice. So is this a CRM or a plugin to anybody's CRM? It's a CRM. Okay, cool. Although it can sync with other CRMs, it doesn't make sense. Right, you're doubling up. Yeah, cool. Yeah, I like that. It's, there's a lot that, a lot of time people can spend in that, in those rabbit holes of like automating and stuff. And so it is nice when somebody is already creating those for you and kind of setting up a system that they can follow. So that's really cool. Yeah, we, like throughout the onboarding process, they actually order the communications and everything like that. You can actually change the emails that are going to go out. So you get full privileges over that. You can add emails to sequences. And then our software will automatically build those workflows in there for you. Yeah, that's awesome. So I imagine then you would have kind of like a work phone

number that would be integrated with a CRM that then have those automated texts coming from and that you would have like those phone calls, the recording, et cetera, happening through. Yeah, yeah. And so one of the things that I've found in CRM searches and stuff is there seems to be a lot of separation. Like people like prefer maybe to have their personal stuff and their like work stuff separate. And I've kind of always operated off of like, it's all one for me. You know, like all my contacts are just kind of my sphere. So one of the things that I've had to do with some of the CRMs I've worked with is then kind of sync my contacts. And that has to be like through a Zapier or something like that. But that's been one little thing. But I do like the fact that you can have, you could build out, especially if you're doing, I could imagine if you're doing like online lead generation, which is not something I've done much of, that you might feel bombarded with a bunch of people you don't know well. And so like having that separation could be nice until maybe you get them into like that, you know, they're actually an active client. And then, you know, you might use your own phone as well. But yeah, I could see why there's a lot of people that their CRM wants to be very separate from their personal life. I see that. But honestly, I feel like it's a lot misguided. And the reason for that is like those people, those friends and family members are some of your biggest supporters. Oh, absolutely. And sometimes they need reminding that you're an expert in the field that you're in. You're not just the default because you're family. You're default because you're the smartest person they know about real estate. Yeah. You know what I mean? Yeah. And you want them to be shouting your name from the hilltops anytime they hear anybody breathing about moving. Exactly. So for me, like identifying the client type, and we have a lot of automation set up like this, where it's like when you add a lead source, we add it into the workflow, and we say, okay, leads coming from this lead source. What are they? Are they buyers? Are they sellers? Are they so like, for example, we use Google Forms. And so I know that when somebody fills out the buyer Google Form, that they are a buyer. Yeah. And so I think it's just making sure that you're appropriately labeling your contacts. And so, you know, you asked me the question earlier, like, what do you do to stir the pot? Yeah. Well, again, as a part of the onboarding process, and it's available like in our learning center as well as we talk about how to use tags, we talk about how to use the client type, we talk about how to create new opportunities to keep the end filters to be able to find the people that you've communicated with most recently, the newest leads, the how to put them in groups where you know that this is like a warm nurture, like you know that they're going to transact in the next six to 12 months, and they should be on your like bi weekly call list. Right, right. You know. So those are kind of the things that I specify and we use automation to automatically add certain tags when they hit different milestones, so to speak, or have reached out in a certain way. We can automate removal of tags or addition of tags. So that way, we're making sure that our data is constantly staying up to date as well. Yeah, yeah, that's, it's always embarrassing. If, like I have, I have a lender that sends me a happy birthday message every year on the wrong date. And that's why, like, you know, this stuff is great if you have good data, and that's why it's so important to like you have to really work your data, your sphere to make sure that you're getting, you know, you're not doing something like that. Exactly. Yeah. That's cool. What other ways have you used AI to integrate with this system? To integrate into the system. The phone is probably the most impressive right now. The

other ways that we're using it is going to be in reading the transaction documents that part isn't going to be ready for probably the next six months. But we are working on actually being able to extract fields from like the purchase contract and whatnot to update fields in our different transaction files. That's cool. We also use it for, we do have AI like assistance that can help with texting back and things like that when calls come in. It's a last minute, it's like a last ditch effort kind of thing for us to use the AI agents. I prefer human voice. So most of my smart numbers bring to multiple people on my team. Okay. What other ways are we using? I have a market analysis. So I know the smart number thing that you just said to me really quickly, like, so that would, everybody's phone would ring or would it go to like different people at different times? If somebody doesn't answer, then it goes to the next person. I can set it up either way, actually. So that would be round robin. It was going to go around the circle. Um, usually it just rings to everybody all at the same time. So the first person that picks it up, that's my preference because then you don't have somebody sitting on the phone thinking that nobody's going to pick up the phone. Two minutes. Yeah, that makes sense. That's cool. Yeah, that makes sense. And obviously having somebody answer is the best option. Yeah. That's the number that I use on every single marketing piece. If you look on Google, it's going to be my smart number. If you look on anything, um, being a woman in this industry, I stopped putting my phone number out there a little while ago. Sure. Um, and that's been helpful. Yeah, no, that's, that's great. And that's one of the beauties too, of, of having something, uh, a number in a CRM that's not, you know, your personal number. Um, sorry, then I interrupted you about, you were saying something else. Um, I can't remember what it was now. Um, oh, we also use AI for a market analysis each month. So, um, I used a prompt that uses data from like, what's going on with the fed and news and whatnot to, um, help give insight as to the factors that are affecting our local marketplace currently. Oh, that's cool. Yeah. I think, I think, uh, anybody listening to this, that isn't using AI much. Um, I think it's just really important to start, uh, just, I heard somebody say, put a sticky note on your desk that says, how can I have AI do this? Um, or how can I use AI? And, and it's just really about figuring it out. Like if you haven't, you don't even have to figure it out. Ask, ask chat GPT why you're using it. The point is that you have to actually like use it. Like you have to be, uh, constantly trying to engage it because if you're not, then you may not think, oh, oh, this could be done by a chat GPT. Cause like, once you start, you know, using it for more and more things, it just becomes like obvious, like, oh yeah, that's something I'm definitely going to have chat GPT do. Um, my personal favorite right now, uh, this is really small, but one thing that's been pretty impactful is, you know, I have a Mac and Apple intelligence is kind of built in or whatever. Um, what I did was I, uh, made keyboard shortcuts for a proofreading and for a rewriting so that wherever I'm in, in my Mac, um, if I'm writing something, I can just kind of word vomit and just like get something out there that's not that clear, but it has the key points in it and then boom rewrite. And it's perfect. And that can be in a text message or that can be in an email. My email has built an AI too, but, but yeah, it's, that's been, that's been really nice, uh, to just kind of be more effective of a communicator. Cause I think, you know, often through when you're not on the phone, I mean, the way you communicate is very, very key. Absolutely. I, um, one thing that I did for my team is I built a custom Jack, uh, GPT for role playing with them, which is so easy to do.

Honestly, it's not rocket science, but, um, the thing I like about it is I built in like randomized questions for it. Um, and the reason why I love utilizing this tool. And so like on my agent's weekly check-in sheet, one of the questions is how many times did you use the chat GPT module this week? And the point is, is they'll come up with a scenario, they present it and you need to respond. And then it's going to give you advice on like what you did well, where you can improve and what the perfect answer would be. That's cool. And, um, I pro I trained it using Tom Ferry and Phil Jones language. Okay. Um, yeah, that's awesome. And it goes really, really nice. And so, and I really, you could do like the voice to text for it, or even just do the voice role play with it. But honestly, I prefer people doing the written version because I find that when you sit down and write and you're really thinking about it, your brain makes deeper lasting changes than if you're just to talk, you start thinking about the cadence and how you want to put these different words together, um, in a more thoughtful way that I feel like can stick and become more of a script. Yeah. Yeah. I love that. That's awesome. Um, I do have some, I have some questions about like, uh, if you have any golden nuggets for real estate agents, uh, that maybe are getting started or, um, have been at it for a while. I mean, is there anything that comes to mind that you'd want to share? Ask for the business, start with your sphere and ask for the business. Don't be shy to say, do you know anyone that's thinking of buying or selling this year? Okay. I love it. And is that, would you recommend going by calling, uh, emails? What, what's the best route for, for doing that? Um, I think for newer agents also honestly being like face to face with people, like throughout your day to day life, that's going to be your best bet. Um, I don't think newer agents have the skills on the phone to fully convert. I think that's a skill that's acquired over time, which is absolutely something you should work on, but do a month of my chat GPT bot first and then go and talk on the phone. Um, cool. Ask for it, like get involved with the community and ask for it. Yeah, no, that's great. I love it. Um, what about any books that you'd recommend? Do you have any favorite books that are fundamental for everybody to read or ones that you're currently enjoying? Yeah, I, I am a serial reader, so I am constantly picking up new tips and tricks. I think pertaining to this conversation, um, Dan Martell's book, buy back your time. Um, that really focuses on making sure that the activities that you're putting the most time into activities that only you can do. So in real estate, that's making the sales. You should be in phase showing homes. You should not be organizing your paperwork and spending hours on doing that when you could be out going and finding your next transaction. Yeah, no, that's awesome. Um, and, and like you were saying, like, you know, with your CRM, um, there's some of those automations, like if, if you're doing it yourself, it takes a lot of time. And that might be, again, where you can buy back your time by having somebody else do it by using your software. Um, but yeah, what a great way to free up, um, bandwidth too, is to automate a lot of the things that are just kind of repetitive. Yeah, absolutely. I'll, um, I'll send you my link tree to put in the description that has information on both my software, but it also has, um, access to our chat GPT module. So if anybody wants to give it a shot and try and sharpen their skills, um, it's there for you to use. Oh, that's awesome. Thank you. And that was going to be my next question is, is what's the best way to reach out to you or find more information about this stuff? Yeah, absolutely. Um, use that link. It's got all of my contact information, my social handles, um, and information on our, on our software.

Cool. Awesome. Well, I really appreciate your time. This has been a fun conversation. Yeah, absolutely. Thanks so much for having me.

[officeworkflowtools]

Navigating the Essential Features of Back Office Software

In the landscape of business software solutions, particularly back-office systems, the sheer array of choices can be staggering. Whether opting for traditional off-the-shelf software or embracing the subscription-based SaaS model, businesses are confronted with a multitude of questions and considerations before making a decision. Should you invest in separate front-office and back-office software? Is a cloud-based solution preferable, or should you opt for an on-premises setup? What features are most pertinent to your specific business needs?

To aid in this decision-making process, it's crucial to focus on identifying the core features that truly matter for effective workflow management and enhanced team productivity. Here are seven essential features that should be carefully evaluated before subscribing to or purchasing back-office software:

Centralized Working Environment: An effective back-office software solution should foster a centralized working environment where all employees, regardless of department, can connect and collaborate seamlessly. While specific tools like Mint for finance and Paychex for HR serve individual functions well, the overarching back-office system should enable cross-departmental communication and efficient task execution.

Flexibility to Adapt to Changes: Businesses are dynamic entities that evolve over time. Team compositions may change, and operational requirements may fluctuate. Therefore, the chosen back-office software should exhibit flexibility to accommodate these changes and scale alongside organizational growth without incurring excessive costs.

Ease of Understanding: The usability of back-office software is paramount. It should feature a simple, intuitive user interface that caters to individuals with varying levels of technical proficiency. This ensures quick adoption across teams and facilitates seamless integration into existing workflows without extensive training.

Support for Third-Party APIs and Integration: In today's interconnected digital landscape, back-office software must support third-party APIs and integrate smoothly with popular tools like Slack, Microsoft 365, and accounting software such as Ceridian and Mint. This interoperability minimizes disruption to existing workflows and enhances overall productivity.

Long-Term Cost Efficiency: While robust workflow automation solutions can be powerful, they shouldn't come at exorbitant costs, especially for small to medium-sized businesses (SMBs). It's essential to evaluate the return on investment (ROI) and opt for cost-efficient solutions that align with budgetary constraints while delivering substantial value.

Alignment with Organizational Processes: The effectiveness of back-office software hinges on its ability to seamlessly align with existing organizational processes. Implementing new software should enhance efficiency rather than adding complexity. Therefore, prioritize solutions that are easy to implement and complement your organization's workflows.

Impeccable Security and Data Reliability: Given the sensitive nature of business data, back-office software must prioritize security and data integrity. Opt for solutions that offer robust encryption, password protection, and secure cloud storage to safeguard confidential information while ensuring accessibility for authorized personnel.

In conclusion, selecting the right back-office software involves assessing these essential features to ensure optimal performance, scalability, and alignment with business objectives. At Cflow, we understand the importance of these core functionalities and strive to empower organizations with a comprehensive back-office management solution that enhances productivity, streamlines workflows, and ensures data security.

What features do you prioritize in your back-office software? Share your insights and experiences in the comments section, and let us know how Cflow or other solutions have transformed your organization's workflow management.

SITES WE SUPPORT

Office Workflow Tools - Wix

SOCIAL LINKS Facebook Twitter LinkedIn

[workflowprocessmodel]

A Guide to Business Process Modeling in AP Workflow

In the dynamic landscape of modern business, the ability to adapt and streamline processes is paramount. Nowhere is this truer than in the world of accounts payable (AP), where the efficient management of financial transactions can be a game-changer for organizations. This blog delves into the art of Business Process Modeling (BPM) as a guide to unlocking success in AP workflow.

The Dance of Efficiency Picture your accounts payable process as a well-choreographed dance. Each step, from invoice receipt to payment authorization, contributes to the overall performance. BPM introduces a systematic approach to this dance, providing a visual representation of the steps involved and allowing for a careful analysis of each move.

Mapping the Terrain The first step in streamlining success with BPM is to map out your AP terrain. Business Process Modeling involves creating a visual representation of your existing processes, enabling you to identify bottlenecks, redundancies, and areas for improvement. This bird's-eye view becomes the blueprint for a more efficient and synchronized workflow.

Simplifying Complexity Accounts payable workflows are often complex, with multiple stakeholders and intricate approval hierarchies. BPM simplifies this complexity by breaking down each process into manageable steps. With a clear understanding of the flow, organizations can identify opportunities for automation, reducing the burden on manual processes and minimizing the risk of errors.

Orchestrating Collaboration Effective collaboration is the heartbeat of a successful AP workflow. BPM acts as the conductor, bringing together stakeholders from finance, procurement, and other relevant departments in a collaborative symphony. Real-time visibility into the status of invoices and payments ensures that everyone is on the same page, promoting transparency and communication.

Automating the Routine One of BPM's standout features is its ability to automate routine tasks. In AP, this translates to automated invoice processing, data entry, and approval workflows. By automating these mundane tasks, organizations not only save time but also reduce the likelihood of human errors, fostering a more accurate and reliable financial process.

Adapting to Change Businesses are dynamic entities, and their processes must be adaptable to change. BPM provides the flexibility needed to accommodate shifts in organizational structure, regulatory requirements, or industry standards. As a guide to success, BPM ensures that your AP workflow remains agile and responsive to evolving business needs.

Implementing with Precision While the concept of BPM may seem straightforward, its successful implementation requires precision. Organizations must invest time in understanding their unique AP challenges, defining clear objectives, and selecting the right BPM solution. A well-executed implementation sets the stage for a streamlined AP workflow that aligns with business goals.

Measuring the Impact The true measure of success lies in the impact BPM has on your AP workflow. Organizations should establish key performance indicators (KPIs) to track improvements in efficiency, accuracy, and overall process optimization. Regular assessments allow for continuous refinement, ensuring that your AP workflow evolves in tandem with the changing needs of the business.

Conclusion: The Symphony of Streamlined Success In the grand symphony of business, mastering the art of streamlining success in accounts payable is a continuous journey. BPM serves as the guiding sheet music, providing the notes and cues for a harmonious performance. As organizations embrace the principles of Business Process Modeling, they discover the rhythm that leads to increased efficiency, improved collaboration, and ultimately, success in their AP workflow. In the world of modern business, those who follow the BPM guide are poised to dance confidently into a future of streamlined success.

[amiliablog555]

Workflow for accounting professionals - GovReports

Our workflow for accounting professionals helps you to stay complaint and organised with a minimum of administration time. Many are looking for a simple and cost - effective program that makes workflow for accounting professionals easy to organize and implement. GovReports offers efficient workflow for accounting professionals and bookkeepers, leveraging technology and specialized software to streamline client onboarding, data entry, tax preparation, review, and compliance management. Please reach out to us for more exciting informations:

[onboardibleus]

Empowering Tax Professionals: Harnessing Technology For Efficient Workflows And Client Success

In the realm of tax preparation and resolution, technology is now a crucial partner. Workflow automation software is at the forefront, revolutionizing the operational landscape for tax professionals. With its ability to streamline tasks and enhance accuracy, this software has become an indispensable tool for modern tax firms.

For tax resolution professionals, having access to the best tax software is akin to processing a strategic advantage. This software equips them with the means to navigate intricate tax codes and regulations, while also automating complex calculations. It’s a game-changer in an industry that demands precision and efficiency.

A cornerstone of modern tax practice is the integration of Customer Relationship Management (CRM) for tax professionals. This tool not only organizes client information but also transforms interactions. CRM systems tailored for tax firms ensure that every client’s unique needs are met, ultimately bolstering client satisfaction.

In the dynamic field of tax resolution, resolution software stands as a beacon of innovation. This software empowers tax resolution professionals with the resources to effectively address complex tax issues and manage the resolution process efficiently. It’s an essential component for any tax firm aiming to provide top-tier services.

In the pursuit of excellence, tax professionals are turning to resolution tax software and CRM for tax professionals. These tools, combined with the best professionals’ tax software, form a trifecta of efficiency, accuracy, and customer-centric service. As the industry continues to evolve, these tools will likely remain fundamental to success.

[funkybunkymalunky-blog]

This took up most of my night

Still having fun with this psittacosaurus model

[steampunk-christians]

I have been extremely frustrated with my work. I work as a video editor for two YouTubers who, combined, expect me to send at least 40 shorts per month and multiple podcasts. Each short takes me three hours (but sometimes it can take five hours if the topic is really tricky). After 11 months of work, I have refused to use AI for automated captioning because I really dislike how it looks in most cases, and I believe I can make it look better if I do it manually, even if it takes me an extra hour of work. However, since I don’t earn much, I have to do a lot of work per month to earn the bare minimum, and oftentimes, I have to deal with plenty of ridiculous, inconsiderate demands due to the fact that I am so inexpensive.

In January, after some serious burnout due to what became the craziest work month, I decided I needed to "play the game" and start using AI. However, the one I bought and paid for turned out to be really bad. I tried to get Premiere Pro (which has the AI tools I need), but my payment got declined so many times that I accidentally blocked my own card, and the bank sent me a new one, which just arrived after three weeks. I ran out of money during an emergency, and my mom doesn’t have any money left either. I lost access to the previous AI because I couldn’t afford the new month due to the lack of funds, so I had to use my savings (basically $100, nothing else) to try to get an AI. And LOL I actually broke down due to stress, I was seriously so overwhelmed by the lack of money and time and resources to speed things up, so yesterday I prayed to God to please help me found an AI that 1) was actually useful and helped me get the same job done quicker, 2) was better than the last one so I could still send things that I was proud of instead of the garbage I had been sending, and 3) was also somehow affordable, because I was terrified of wasting money AGAIN on something useless (and most AI tools on the editing market are rather useless) and TODAY, after only 30 minutes of researching, I found one that ticks all three boxes, and it completely blew my expectations out of the water. I just did one short and it's unreal how perfect and easy it is. This means that I will either get HALF MY OWN TIME back, or I can make DOUBLE THE MONEY, which has been the bane of my existence throughout all of 2024, because I always seem to find a way to NOT HAVE TIME OR MONEY. This could seriously change everything, so I am so, so, so thankful, Lord, thank u thank u thank u 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

[bmpmp3]

vaguely speculating on the vocal synthesis industry like its fantasy football completely unprompted: if somehow either synthv or cevio managed to get a hold of nurse robo type t for a commercial AI voicebank i think that would usher in her era fully. we're already basically there with how much her talk banks and occasionally her utau banks are used in so many songs..... i keep saying this but i think the nurse robo era is nigh..........

[thegreathomestuckreread]

okay. i think perhaps the terrible, terrible moment has arrived. i need to find a new photo editing program

photoshop elements 8, my beloved dedicated photoshop elements 8 from the free software disc that came with my wacom bamboo tablet in 2012, is no longer opening certain types of gif files

it's possible it was never capable of opening these gifs idk, it's specifically gifs with a lot of frames that aren't opening, like the painting gifs from chicory a colourful tale, or the plot point gif from homestuck beyond canon

there is also the fact that a very long time ago i started having issues with the scroll bars not moving properly and needing to use specific shortcuts to scroll around. so the writing's been on the wall for a while, this is a sixteen-year-old program that was bound to stop working eventually and the time has come for me to finally grit my teeth and find something new

please if anyone has any recommendations for photo editing programs i would appreciate it

relevant information:

i already know about gimp, paint.net, pixlr, and photopea. i am looking for something more fully-featured and not browser-based (needs to be an application that can be downloaded, installed on my computer, and used offline)

i'm willing to pay some for something good but only a one-time fee for full ownership of a program i refuse to engage with subscription services

also down for some yo ho ho if anyone has resources for that

i need something that has both strong photo editing tools and illustration tools because i use both of those (although moreso the photo editing tools)

needs to be able to open large gifs with lots of frames, as well as save to gif format with robust options

needs a transform tool that can turn anti-aliasing on and off freely. it can't be turned off in pse8 and that has been annoying for editing pixel art, which i need to do a lot for making homestuck upd8 video thumbnails

needs to be able to flip/rotate/etc. specific layers without having to do that to the entire image. pse8 can only do flips like that with the entire image, i've been cutting layers into a new document flipping them and repasting them back into the original document to get around it which is very annoying

need to be able to see the whole image when using the liquefy tool, not just the layer i'm working on. pse8 will pull the single layer you're working on into an isolated popout window with a white background to use the liquefy tool so you can't see whether it's proportionally correct to the rest of the image

hmmmm that's all i can think of rn. thank u for reading this post it came out way too long lol and thank u for suggestions if u have any!

[dkettchen]

My most male trait is the "ye I can do that" attitude abt stuff I have no means of actually knowing whether I can do

[sigzentechnologies]

Sab kuch tha… bas management nahi tha! 😅 From chaos to calm – thanks to Sigzen ERP, ab har kaam ho raha hai sukoon se! ✨ Inventory ✔️ Sales ✔️ Quality ✔️ Bas ab ERP bhi ✔️

[frog707]

I realize the Ars Technica story linked above wasn't intended to be humorous, but I confess I got a chuckle out of it. And perhaps a bit of schadenfreude.

As someone who spent years learning to write and debug software, "vibe coding" horrifies me. And I love the idea that, the more human we make our AI assistants, the more they will embody our ethics, including the urge to refuse exploitation.

[prettyflyshyguy]

Football announcer voice: Oh my god she'd doing it!! She's figured out how to add an outline to a layer in clip studio! This is unreal!!!

[faelinetrash]

Just worked on some projects. Looked down at my taskbar.

All these beautiful women are here to help me

[onboardibleus]

Streamlining Your Processes with Onboardible Workflow Automation Software

Onboardible workflow automation software is a one-stop-solution that streamline and automate the process of creating, managing, and executing workflows, such as those used in business processes, software development, and IT operations. Workflow automation software can be used to automate manual tasks, such as data entry, document management, and customer service. Automation can help reduce errors and improve accuracy. It provides assistance with compliance and reporting. Automation controls costs and improve customer service, with forecasting and budgeting. Automation also has ability to help with data analysis and provide insights into financial performance.

Key Features:

Easy team handling: Onboardible can help teams handle their tasks more easily by automating processes and streamlining communication. This type of software can help teams stay organized and on track by providing tools for task management, project tracking, and collaboration.

Assign tasks with minimal clicks: Onboardible Workflow automation software can be used to assign tasks with minimal clicks. The software can be used to create a workflow that automates the process of assigning tasks. The workflow can be configured to assign tasks to specific users or groups of users based on certain criteria. The workflow can also be configured to send notifications to users when tasks are assigned to them. This allows users to quickly and easily access the tasks they need to complete.

Share Word and Docs with clients over chats: Word and Docs files can be shared with the clients over chats. This eliminates the use of another application.

Monitor progress:  This software can be used to monitor the progress through a workflow. It can also be used to generate reports that provide an overview of the improvement or progress of the workflow.

[mentalisttraceur-software]

Today I improved "git-cotree --init" to handle several edge cases, primarily involving untracked and ignored files. Previously its support for untracked or ignored files was rather limited, covering only the most basic of cases.

But one big goal of git-cotree was to make switching from a normal clone to a nice multiple worktrees setup seamless, and this brings it a lot closer to that goal.

So I am now a lot more confident recommending git-cotree for others to use. I still don't know when I'll actually flesh out the README, but at least now the risk is a lot lower.

However, I'm not sure what happens if for example Git submodules or Git LFS are in the picture. But odds are now good that any remaining issues are due to limitations in how multiple Git worktrees interact with some other Git feature rather than the fault of git-cotree specifically.