A version of this blog first appeared on News2Me.
We understand our members have many questions about the new CREA WEBForms®. Because of this, we reached out to the CEO of Lone Wolf Technologies, Jimmy Kelly, and asked him some of the most popular questions our Member Support team has received. You can read his responses below.
Our members are asking why the old WEBForms® needed to be changed and what the value is in learning the new WEBForms® powered by TransactionDesk. Can you explain?
“As I understand it, the original version of WEBForms® was a standalone forms product that did just that: forms. It was very good at managing forms, but it did not manage other aspects or stages of a transaction, so agents ended up having to find other solutions and manage all those steps themselves.
CREA really wanted to ensure members have the best of what’s out there on the market, and wanted to give them a way to save time and money by eliminating the need to purchase additional solutions to meet the needs of today’s consumers, who quite frankly, have come to expect a more full-service experience from their agents. Ultimately, the new version of WEBForms® helps CREA’s members stay competitive as new business models, such as iBuyers, start to enter the Canadian market.
We’ve heard time and time again from agents that there are just too many tools and places they need to go when handling a transaction. That’s what this new version of WEBForms® is designed to solve. It’s built on TransactionDesk, which brings all of their contacts, transaction details, forms, signings, and any required brokerage compliance resources into a single solution, saving time and effort and reducing risk. We are also working with third party providers to bring more integrated services into the platform – such as commonly used web/CRM platforms, home inspection, title insurance, home warranty, moving concierge services, and more.”
Our members also want to know why they are the ones who are subject to beta testing.
“There are a few things I’ll say on this.
We understand some of the forms rolled out with errors and caused several agents quite a bit of inconvenience. The product was tested in multiple rounds by Lone Wolf and by a group of volunteer agents from each provincial association before rollout, but clearly, this was not enough—and for that, I apologize. This was certainly not the first impression any of us wanted, and I take responsibility for that.
While TransactionDesk has been around for more than 20 years, these required forms have not. Each form was coded from scratch for the new version of WEBForms®, and the Lone Wolf team has been working around the clock to fix these issues. We have undertaken an effort to retest every single form—whether or not an error has been reported—prior to releasing it to CREA. The CREA team is also validating every form we release to ensure the forms meet a high standard of quality prior to deployment.”
Why is Canada an important market for your company?
Lone Wolf was founded in Canada more than 30 years ago. We take great pride in helping our own neighbours bring an exceptional experience to their own clients. We understand the Canadian market and we’re proud that many of our employees live in this market. It is not a stretch to say that no other real estate technology company understands better than we do the unique dynamics here and what it means to be Canadian.”
Why did you buy zipLogix™? What can you share about the future of both zipLogix and TransactionDesk?
Last year’s acquisition of zipLogix™ has a bit of a story behind it. It was actually the second step in our journey toward building a single source for the best technology in the industry, following up on our acquisition of Instanet Solutions in 2017. With two top solutions that seamlessly connect to our back office platform, we are simplifying the real estate experience for agents, for brokers, and ultimately, for clients. Our goal is to give the real estate industry the unlimited flexibility and functionality it needs.
As for the future of zipLogix products and TransactionDesk, it looks a lot like the present. We plan to continue to offer, support, and build upon both platforms, so agents and brokerages can continue to have the freedom to choose what they want to use without having to sacrifice the ability to connect to the back office.
What do you want to say to Canadian REALTORS® who depend on WEBForms® for their livelihood?
To every Canadian REALTOR® who relies on WEBForms®, I’d like to thank you for being patient with us. We know exactly how important these forms are to you, and we know how important it is that they’re right. We’re going to continue to bring the best in real estate technology to you—new functionality and more integrated solutions from leading providers so you truly have that lead-to-close experience in one platform.
When will it be fully working on my iPad?
Hi Vivien, CREA WEBForms® should work on your iPad. Please contact our Member Support team at support@crea.ca or 1-888-237-7945.
I am very unhappy with the new webforms. There are so many issues; I don’t know where to start. The shrinking wording looks terrible. We are sending clients documents with different size lettering. It is most unprofessional. The fields for typing are often not large enough to fit the wording that is required in the fields. My assistant has sent in a number of complaints and a few have been dealt with.
When you test the products, it would be helpful to have at least some Commercial Realtors involved in the testing, as some of our forms have different requirements than those for a residential agent.
Hello Mary,
We’re sorry that you are experiencing issues with WEBForms®. The font resize issues will be addressed but we do not have a firm ETA just yet. This is a project that will take a little more time.
We suggest contacting Member Support for all specific issues at 1-888-237-7945 or support@crea.ca. They can escalate your concerns and provide updates as fixes and updates are introduced. Our WEBForms® team is working tirelessly to address all concerns and issues. Please don’t hesitate to contact our Member Support team!
For the Toronto Regional Real Estate Board, there are 2 programs/systems that are very similar and in my research, they appear to both be developed and maintained by the same programers. The 2 programs/Systems I am referring to is “Instanet/Authentisign” and “WebForms 2019”. I understand through my training that Instanet only works if you have an authentisign account and WebForms works for a variety of signing programs. I have Authentisign. My question is will one of these systems/programs be faded out? If so, which one? I don’t want to set up my templates and checklists twice. Also, why is Instanet/Authentisign the one that is right on the front page of the TREB Stratus where WebForms is more hidden?
Hello Karri,
TRREB has it’s own version of WEBForms®. The reason your Authentisign account is merged in that program is because TRREB has provided this account to all of their members. CREA WEBForms® is powered by LoneWolf Technologies which is the same company as TRREB’s version. You will see the TRREB version more pronounced on the TRREB site, but you can still access CREA’s version in your quick links.
We can’t really make a recommendation around which version you should be using to create templates, this will depend on your preference. If you have any questions about the TRREB version, you can contact their helpdesk at 416-443-8111.
If you have questions about CREA WEBForms®, you can contact our Member Support team at 1-888-237-7945 or support@crea.ca.