2.16 External Lead Sources (e.g., Zillow, Realtor.com - Setup by The Close Agency)

Purpose:

Automatically capture leads into Close Master that are generated by major third-party real estate portals or potentially other lead generation platforms your agency invests in (like BoomTown, kvCORE, etc., if configured).

Setup (Typically Handled by The Close Agency Admins):

Since these platforms often don't have direct, one-click integrations listed in the Settings menu, The Close Agency administrators usually configure these connections using more advanced techniques behind the scenes:

  • Email Parsing: This is a common method. Lead notification emails sent from the portal (e.g., Zillow's "New Lead Alert") are automatically forwarded to a unique, dedicated email address associated with your Close Master account. Close Master then "parses" (reads) the content of these emails, extracts the relevant lead details (Name, Email, Phone, Property Inquired About, Message), and uses that information to create or update a Contact.
  • Webhooks: A more direct method where the external portal, if capable, sends the lead data in real-time directly to a unique URL provided by a Close Master Workflow trigger (Inbound Webhook). This often allows for faster and potentially more reliable data transfer.
  • Middleware (e.g., Zapier, Make.com): An external automation tool might be used to connect the portal's API (if available) or email notifications to Close Master's API or Workflow triggers.

Your Experience as an End-User (Agent/Broker):

  • Seamless Capture: You generally don't need to worry about the technical setup of these integrations. Leads from correctly configured external sources should simply appear automatically in your Contacts list within Close Master.
  • Source Identification: These leads often arrive with a specific Tag automatically applied (e.g., Source: Zillow, Source: Realtor.com Lead) to help you identify their origin.
  • Automated Follow-Up: The Close Agency may have also configured specific Workflows to trigger automatically for leads coming from these sources, initiating tailored follow-up sequences.
  • Reporting Issues: If you expect leads from a particular external source (that The Close Agency has confirmed is integrated) and they are not appearing consistently in Close Master, report the issue to The Close Agency support team. Provide details like the expected lead source, approximate time the lead should have arrived, and any lead notification emails you might have received directly, so they can investigate the parsing rules, webhook connections, or middleware setup they manage.