Liz Hogan is a real estate associate with EWM Realty International in Coral Gables.

Every week, we ask a real estate professional for their Short List, a collection of tips and recommendations on an essential topic in real estate. This week, we spoke with Liz Hogan. Liz Is a member of EWM’s Chairman’s Club Diamond Level and is consistently ranked in the top half of 1 percent of Realtors nationwide. In 2013, Liz completed 54 transactions. Her average sale was $1,765,000.

Investing across all technology platforms is the best way for a Realtor to save time in what is a very demanding and time-sensitive business. Technology will never trump the relationship a buyer or seller has with their agent, but it is an integral tool in providing the best service. Here are three ways to use technology to help save time.

3. Upgrade to a Smart Phone. The technology makes life so much easier on multiple levels, such as searching for properties remotely; writing and forwarding emails (including contracts); saving and sharing prospective buyer and seller contact information; setting up and relaying appointments thru the phone’s calendar; accessing lock boxes; using calculator and mortgage applications; having a GPS system to find the fastest route to the next showing; and being able to integrate all of the above with your office.

2. Upgrade your office technology; it is important to do that continually. Walking around my brokerage, I see agents who have computers that are 10-15 years old! There is a lot of paperwork needed to meet FREC requirements, and if you have basic tech skills and knowledge, there are programs that can minimize the amount of time needed to complete the redundancy of many of these obligatory forms. Also, customer’s sensitive information is many times relayed between buyer and seller, so it is imperative to monitor and have updated software to encrypt and protect your computer from hacking and viruses. Back-up and storage capabilities are equally necessary. I’ve had customers call me five years after a transaction looking for their old survey or other information. To be able to pull the electronic file and send them what they need – when they haven’t retained it themselves – makes you invaluable. Finally, the emergence of e-signatures and electronic documents saves a tremendous amount of time, as you don’t have to print, scan and email paperwork that – if you have multiple signers – is basically illegible by the time it is executed.

1. Lastly, reach an audience through social media; that is one of the best ways to save time. Today, with a simple click, you can distribute information about a new listing to potentially thousands of people through various social platforms, such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, blogs, etc. Also, business networking sites such as LinkedIn are fabulous ways to get your name out to different spheres of influence you might never have had access to previously.

There are so many ways to leverage technology into our profession to create a better buying and selling experience for our customers, but it is equally important for us as agents to capitalize on how it helps us have a more productive business strategy.