Check Out Showami, an On-Demand Showing Service

Maintaining a healthy work-life balance is a non-negotiable for Sarasota-based Jessica Peterson. She’s a sales associate with Luxour Team brokered by eXp Realty, a real estate business consultant and trainer at Simply WOW Agency, and the CEO of her own vacation rental company.

To juggle all of these roles, she has developed her own blueprint for success. “Part of my coaching is that I teach people how to have nine weeks off every year,” she says. “It’s about [examining] your life and business to find ways to optimize your time, but it’s also about being of service.”

One key to achieving and sustaining balance, Peterson says, is knowing when to delegate certain tasks—and finding the right people to assist you. For years, she faced the hassle of scrambling to find someone to fill in for her whenever she was unavailable for a showing. “I remember being at a business conference, and it took me two hours to call around and find someone to show a property in my absence,” she says.

Jessica Peterson

Thanks to a showing agent service called Showami, which connects buyer’s agents with licensed agents who are willing to help for a fee, those days are now behind her.

“Showami is super easy to use,” Peterson says, adding that she simply signed up for a free account and she was able to submit showing requests for a fixed $39 fee per showing. There’s also the opportunity to tip the showing agent. Showami gives preference to agents within the same brokerage, but if no one is available, the request is extended to agents from other brokerages. “It’s a tech service; I make the payment to Showami, and they take care of the agent,” she adds.

“Deciding whether to use this service was a no-brainer, especially if you have a last-minute showing request or someone who wants to see a house that’s 45 minutes away—that’s two hours of your time, plus your gas. Now, if I have a customer who needs handholding or who wants to see three, four or five houses [out of the area], I’ll obviously go. I create a relationship with my buyers, so it’s not an issue if I’m unable to show the home every time. If I’m already booked, I’ll tell them I can get someone else. Sometimes they will say, ‘Oh no, we will wait for you.’ People know that if you’re a good agent you’re going to be in high demand, and nobody complains.”

Showami offers free, platinum ($50 annually) and brokerage (from $50 to $350 monthly, depending on number of agents) solutions that are available online and via an app for both the Android and Apple iOS operating systems.

Here are some key benefits Peterson gains from the platform:

1. HANDLE MULTIPLE REQUESTS.

Peterson can’t physically be in two places at once, and yet with Showami she’s able to manage multiple requests simultaneously. “I’ve been out with people showing a house and someone else will text me, ‘Jessica, we are right in front of a house that we want to see very badly.’ Whenever a situation like that occurs, I turn to Showami to request another agent and then I text the person back to say, ‘I’ll arrange for someone to meet you there.’” The only challenge, she says, is that Showami requires at least an hour’s notice. There were also times when she wished she could’ve used it for showing a commercial property, but those features are still being worked out. Nevertheless, she has observed that her clients appreciate the platform’s value. “Some have said they think it’s the greatest thing ever, especially when I can get an agent who lives near the house they’d like to see,” she explains. “I always emphasize that ‘value’ is my niche, and Showami plays a significant role in delivering exactly that, although it’s just one tool in my toolbox.”

2. AVOID MISSED OPPORTUNITIES.

When an unexpected situation arises or Peterson needs to take time off, she can utilize Showami to ensure her clients still receive the service they deserve. “I recently hired Showami agents for three days,” she says. “We just wrote an offer on a home for my clients, and we are going under contract. But I didn’t have to be out there all four days. If another agent shows a property on my behalf, they’ll reach out and say something like, ‘Jessica, I just showed this house to your buyer; they liked it and want to put in an offer, so call them.’” Another time, right before a session with her own coach, she contemplated canceling to accommodate a 30-minute showing for a rental property. “My coaching and learning are priceless to me, so I decided to [enlist someone else] through Showami instead. I can be on vacation, and people won’t even know because I can have someone else step in on my behalf.”

3. OPEN HOUSE COVERAGE.

Open houses are another task that may not be the most efficient use of an agent’s time. Why sit at a property for hours, when that time could be spent on dollar-productive activities, such as prospecting or listing presentations? Showami recently added an open house service for platinum account holders that also includes services like opening doors for inspectors and appraisers. If Peterson has a schedule conflict or she can’t be physically on-site during an open house, she can use the platform to find someone suitable to cover it for her.

“Property managers should also take note of Showami,” Peterson says. “There are times when my customers are eager to see a place and, despite both of us calling, we struggle to find an agent. Once, it took three weeks before I received an email saying, ‘I can get you in.’” This creates frustration for consumers, she says, because agents rarely find it worthwhile to travel and show a property for the nominal fee earned on a lease. “Showami recently launched a feature that lets property managers send a link for consumers to register and pay $39 to get in to see a home for rent. That will be a game changer.”

4. PRACTICE SELF-CARE.

Peterson stresses the importance of building strong relationships with her clients while also establishing clear boundaries. “When you serve everybody, you serve nobody,” she says. “I’ve had to create systems, and Showami has helped me do that. For example, I live in a waterfront community that is in a mandatory evacuation zone, and on the very night that a storm was coming I got a call from a customer asking me to go show them a house. I said, ‘You do realize a hurricane is hitting tonight, right? I am evacuating so I cannot show the house to you this time.’ Fortunately, I went on Showami and found someone. It wasn’t an agent in the same brokerage but one who literally lived down the street [from the property]. Afterward, we did a video chat with all of us, and we put in an offer on the house. It’s plain and simple: Showami has been a game changer in my life and business.”

Peterson firmly believes that taking care of herself and pacing her workload are essential to providing the best service to her clients and customers. “I challenge anyone considering using a tool like Showami to look at their life and their business and consider ways to optimize their time. It’s OK to say, ‘I can have some time off; I can enjoy my friends and family or activities.’ It’s so important to look for ways to maximize every day that we can’t get back.”

Leslie C. Stone is a Vero Beach-based freelance writer.

4 On-Demand Showing Solutions

1. KeyPleaz, keypleaz.com

2. Quikshow, quickshow.io/   

3. Showami, showami.com

4. ShowingTime, showingtime.com

Watch, Listen & Learn:

Florida Realtors® Take 5—Videos for Learning
floridarealtors.org/videosforlearning

8 Tips for Attaining Work-Life Balance

Here are some strategies real estate professionals can implement to maintain a sustainable balance between professional demands and their personal life.

1. Prioritize Tasks: Focus on high-impact activities; delegate or postpone less critical ones.

2. Time Blocking: Schedule distinct blocks for work, family and self-care.

3. Technology Tools: Utilize apps and platforms for efficient client management and scheduling.

4. Set Boundaries: Communicate your availability to clients; don’t be afraid to say no when necessary.

5. Automate: Implement automation in marketing, lead generation and follow-up.

6. Self-Care: Make time for exercise, hobbies and rest to recharge.

7. Continuous Learning: Invest in learning to work smarter, not harder.

8. Network Support: Build a network of fellow Realtors® for mentoring, camaraderie and sharing responsibilities as needed.