"To Sign or Not To Sign, I Mean DocuSign! That is the ???"
In Today's ever changing world of real estate and technology, 
there always seems to be next Shiny Object coming out all the time, in order to succeed in today's business environment you are either progressing forward and innovating your business with cutting edge technology or living under a rock! At John Hrisco & Associates we strive to take an Avant-Garde approach when it comes our business in general, by always trying to improve our customer's experience with us.
One of the ways we have done that is by using a product called DocuSign. DocuSign makes it easy to close real estate transactions faster, anytime, anywhere, and on any device. Yet, while building client loyalty by enhancing customer satisfaction and reducing overall operating expenses. DocuSign is the world's most trusted electronic signature solution. Here are just a few of the many things that DocuSign allows us to do for our customers.
- Re-Assign Signers: it enables the recipient to re-direct the signing to a more appropriate signer.
- Signer Attachments: We can request our signers to to provide additional documentation by upload or fax return to us through DocuSign.
- Account Branding: It allows us to customize our DocuSign account with our own company branding so there is no mistake as to whose documents the customer is signing. Presents a more professional image.
- Forms Integration: It allows us to integrate all of our real estate forms along with additional data to reduce our workload and provide better customer service to our clients.
- Authentication Options: We can identify who is signing our documents as well as choose from various authentication options ranging from an email account to even more cryptic type options.
- Paperless: It allows us to create an almost paperless office environment.
- Simultaneous signing: Multiple signers can be in totally different locations and all end up signing at the same time just by accessing their email.
- Completed PDF: Once all parties have signed, we receive a completed PDF document as well as the signees.
- Clean, Legible document: Much cleaner contract for everyone involved, no cross-outs, strike-throughs, etc...
- Eco-Friendly: with such an emphasis on our environment these days, DocuSign users have saved over 60,000 trees.
- Customers Prefer DocuSign: If asked, the majority of clients and customers prefer DocuSign over traditional faxing of paperwork.
Fast forward to 2011, where I was presenting an offer for the very same client mentioned above in 2006 on another property where we were also dealing with multiple offers, contingencies, back-up contracts, and of course time was of the utmost essence in this case. We were also dealing with sellers who no longer lived at the property for sell and lived over an hour south of Fort Worth, Texas. With the help of DocuSign, what would normally have taken us several days of faxing contracts back and forth for everyone to sign, we were able to get done in just a few minutes, even in time for some parties involved to: receive the documentation, sign it and continue on with their evening and their previously scheduled dinner engagement. We ultimately were able to execute the contract, and close in a little over two weeks and I can honestly say that if we were not using DocuSign on this transaction, due to the nature of it, I don't know if it would have executed and closed as we did. This particular lifelong client of mine even requested or asked in the very beginning of this transaction if I was still using DocuSign as he knew the benefits of it, to which I assured him I was.
Let us look at another example from a recent in state military relocation client of mine who was purchasing a short sale. You will understand the reason for my statement below. This particular situation involved a seller who lived 5 hours away in Houston, TX and my buyer who lived 3 hours south of Fort Worth, TX. Originally, I prepared all the necessary paperwork through DocuSign when the initial offer was submitted and both parties signed it. However, because we were dealing with a Short Sale lender who was still LIVING UNDER A ROCK, my client then had to: print the contract I sent her, physically sign it, then scan each page, and email it back to me to which I then forwarded it to the listing agent who then sent it to his seller, who then had to print it, again, physically sign it, and then either scan and email it back or faxed it back to the listing agent who then had to forward it on to the short sale lender. This whole process took several days to complete and because of this, you have some very frustrated clients and customers involved.
I just wish some of these financial institutions would come out of the dark ages and start accepting electronic signatures. It would make our job as a REALTOR (R) a lot more easy for us as agents and our customers in a lot of aspects. It would also speed up a very much needed area of real estate in regards to foreclosures and short sales, where time is of the essence in almost every single case. Electronic signatures are good enough for millions of customers in many different industries and for thousands of real estate agents and title companies out there, yet some financial institutions will still not accept them. Really, what are they thinking?
"This post is a submission to the DocuSign/ActiveRain Electronic Signature Stories Contest, (but the stories mentioned here are true). It's possible I will win a prize for writing this post. You could win a prize too by going to the Contest Announcement and sharing your own story"
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John Hrisco & Associates: When experience counts, the sign you want, the agent you need. Licensed Texas Real Estate Broker #0480703, with over 13+ years experience buying & selling real estate in the D/FW Metroplex. Integrity, Professionalism, Results & Charity is our Mantra. It is how we go about our lives and our business. We undertake a specialized set of tasks and orchestrate them with uncommon skills. Whether you are buying, selling, or investing in real estate, if you are not doing business with John Hrisco & Associates, you are losing money.
servicing the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex: including Northeast Tarrant County, Ft. Worth, Keller, Southlake, Colleyville, Grapevine, Haslet, Trophy Club, Roanoke, Westlake, NRH & Surrounding areas
John Hrisco & Associates
RE/MAX Heritage
4200 Heritage Trace Pkwy., Ste. 100
Ft. Worth/Keller, TX 76248
