Estate agent unveils Kenya’s first interactive touch screen window display

Coldwel Banker IT Director, Eric Muli and Administration Manager, Sheiliza Shamshudina demonstrating how the touch screen works. PHOTO | COURTESY

What you need to know:

  • The firm, Coldwel Banker, recently launched the technology in Kenya as its first entry point into Africa.
  • It is enabled by a projection foil which is applied directly to a glass surface, for instance a window, and a projector mounted from behind to make an interactive projection display.
  • She added that this innovation will take real estate promotion to the next digital level, while reducing its carbon footprint, and connecting more customers, developers and agents.

THERE IS A NEW technology in town, one that transforms a window’s glass surface into a touch screen, the latest technology in touch sensitive display.

According to the American estate agency firm that has invested in this technology, this interactive window is making property searches and market information easier and more accessible, since clients can get the information they need even after office hours.

The firm, Coldwel Banker, recently launched the technology in Kenya as its first entry point into Africa.

It is enabled by a projection foil which is applied directly to a glass surface, for instance a window, and a projector mounted from behind to make an interactive projection display.

“This demonstrates the new level of advances in technology that Coldwell Banker, Kenya, is bringing to the East African real estate sector, with innovation that spans into real estate management systems, marketing tools and activities, and customer-centric services,” noted Ms Daniella Callaway, the managing director of the firm.

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She added that this innovation will take real estate promotion to the next digital level, while reducing its carbon footprint, and connecting more customers, developers and agents.

 “The purpose of this screen is to allow for direct customer interaction with us any time, any day. One can access property listings, profiles, videos and pictures, real estate market information, and even the company’s profile, commitments, campaigns, and a lot more, including downloading our app.”

The screen will also make it possible for the firm to collect valuable customer data, including enquiries and contact details.

“Our goal is to make the real estate process as easy as possible from the level of the developer, the estate agent, to particularly the buyer. Currently, in the current real estate market, everyone is targeting the developer, leaving the buyer unmotivated.”

There is more to this technology. Unlike paper-based branding and promotion in real estate window displays, the interactive screen provides a special and personalised user experience, giving it an edge over other marketing methods. The information from the screen will connect one to the agency, and subsequently to the developer, allowing for more interaction.

The touch foil is fixed from inside, and projects on the outside on the screen calibrated to be touch sensitive, so even after office hours, anyone can conduct searches on property and industry information freely, without the risk of the technology being destroyed. It also acts as a promotion front for Coldwell Banker when the offices are closed over the weekends or on public holidays.

The screen has been installed at the company’s head office in The Oval, Westlands.