Preferences is your tool in Paragon to add your picture and office logo and customize how Paragon will work for you specifically. There are three (3) Preferences Wizards in Paragon to help you set up your personal branding and function settings. They are Preference Wizard, Client Connect Wizard and Comparative Market Analysis (CMA) Wizard. This Quick Start Guide does not cover the wizards.

This Quick Start Guide covers the general User Preferences section of Paragon including the following areas:

• User Preferences: Office Logo Image, Agent Image and Login Maintenance
• System Preferences: Market Monitor, Search Options, Result Options and User Interface
• Report Views: Spreadsheets, Details, Multi-Ups, Tour/Open House and Specialty Views
• E-mail: Verification, Standard Message Body, E-card Options and Notify Agent by Default
• Client Connect: Agent Information, Home Page Message, Links, Office Information and Agent Notification Options (see Quick Start Guide for Client Connect and wizard for additional information)
• CMA: Presentation Setup, Page Layout, Adjustments and Report Setup (see Quick Start Guides for CMA (Comparative Market Analysis) and wizard for additional information)

To set up your personal branding and to customize how you want to use Paragon, click Preferences and under the Preference column click User.

User Preferences

Logo Image: Allows you to change your office logo. When you click the Update Office Logo button or click the image, Paragon will open your picture library. You can choose an image already in your picture library or you can upload a new image.

Note: The guidelines for the images in Paragon are displayed to the right of the image, as shown above. They are also listed below. The guidelines for Listing Images are the same as below, except for the maximum uploaded image is a 2 MB file size.

Image Requirements:

Logo Format

You can upload JPG, PNG, and GIF images, however you can only use a JPG image for the logo. By default Paragon will convert all images to JPG unless you check the “Preserve Original Image Format” (Do not select) option when uploading your image.

Logo File Size

In order to succesfully upload a logo to Paragon, that logo must be below 1 MB in size.

File Name Special Characters

Special characters, such as \\/:*?\"<>| etc., cannot be used in the logo file name.

Steps to upload a new image into your picture library

1. Click Update Office Logo. Your picture library is displayed.

2. Click Upload Image to browser your computer for the new image.

3. Browse your computer for the saved image you want to upload to your picture library.

4. Select the image on your computer and click Open. The picture is added to your picture library.

5. Click the image you want to add as your office logo. The background turns orange. Click Insert Image to make the selected image your office logo.

Note: Paragon will display the image in this location wherever office logo is used.

Agent Image: Allows you to change your Agent Image. The process to add or update your Agent Image is exactly the same as adding or updating the Logo Image (office logo) outlined above.

Login Maintenance: allows the member several options relating to their logging into Paragon.

Auto fill Input Maintenance: If allowed by your MLS, check the box to automatically adds your login ID or Username to the Paragon login screen.

Change Password: If allowed by your MLS, you can change your password without MLS assistance. Enter your current password, enter your new password and then confirm your new password.

Click Save to apply your changes.

Note: Your MLS, Board or Association determines your ability to change your own password.

System Preferences

Allows you to determine the function of several areas of Paragon including:

• Market Monitor
• Search Options
• Results Options
• User Interface

Market Monitor Filter is an electronic Hotsheet showing listing changes within the selected days back range. As a default setting, you can display listing changes between 1 and 7 days back. While using the Market Monitor on the Home Page, you can select up to 30 days back.

Note: When viewing My Info tab, the Expire Alert looks forward. You can look forward and see if any of your listings will expire within the number of days in the DAY(S) field.

Note: By default, the Market Monitor has empty criteria fields, which displays all Hotsheet data. By adding criteria to the fields, you are asking Paragon to display only listings with matching data.

You can filter your Market Monitor’s data by adding values to the following criteria fields: Teams, Classes, Type and Area.

The Market Monitor layers its data under the following tabs: My Info, Market, Office, Firm and Team Inventory. (Your tabs may be different.) You can select a tab to be the default displayed tab.

SEARCH OPTIONS allows you determine how certain search functions will work. Remember to click Save to retain your settings on each page.

• DEFAULT SEARCH CRITERIA allows you to determine if the Default Class Search Criteria Template will be initially displayed when you first open a specific class search. Checking the checkbox loads your Default Class Search Criteria Template.
• ENABLE SEARCH RESULTS WARNING MESSAGE will alert you if the number of results exceeds the MLS determined spreadsheet page size for results.
• CUSTOM MAP ADDRESS allows you to start your Map Search centered on an address other than your broker’s office address. Check the checkbox, click the link, click the signpost button, enter an address in the Get Address field and click the Get Address button to center the map on that address. Click Save to retain this new starting location for your Map Search.
• AUTO COUNT, if turned on by your MLS, directs Paragon to calculate the number of listing matches based on the criteria currently in your search criteria template. Checking the checkbox turns on Auto Count
• PARCEL LAYER allows you to determine if 2-types of Geographic Information System (GIS) data is automatically displayed on your Map Search Map and Results Bing Map. You can choose to have Property Boundary Lines and/or Property Tax IDs displayed, based on your zoom level. You can control the displaying of this GIS data while you on either of the maps.

RESULTS OPTIONS allows you to set up your results and the display of your contact information. Below is a screenshot of these options. On the next page, these options are described.

DEFAULT SEARCH RESULT - This is the report you will see when you click Search on the Search Criteria template.

DISPLAY PHONE NUMBER - Choose a phone number that you would like to use as your default displayed phone number. This is based on the phone numbers in your Agent Record. Check the checkbox to select 1 of up to 5 numbers from your Agent Record.

PREFERRED PHONE NUMBER – click the dropdown box to choose 1 of 5 phone numbers from your Agent Record. This is the phone number that is displayed for you in all reports.

GENERAL DISCLAIMER – Your MLS has created a short and long disclaimer (they may have the same text) to use on your property reports generated by Paragon. You can choose which disclaimer to use – Short Disclaimer or the Long Disclaimer.

SHOW FIELD NUMBER –If the checkbox is check, the Listing Input form’s field numbers are displayed on the All Fields Detail report. You can quickly find input fields when updating listing data.

DEFAULT DOUBLE CLICK REPORT – When you double click on a property on a spreadsheet, what report do you want to display? Use the dropdown box to select your desired display report.

SHOW STATS – Paragon allows you to choose if you want to display search results statistics on all spreadsheets and all other reports, by default. Check the checkbox next to each of the types of reports if you want the stats to display by default. While viewing a report, you can click the Actions button and toggle on or off the displaying of the stats.

SPREADSHEET SIZE – Paragon allows you to select the number of listings display on each page of your search results. Using the dropdown (below), you can choose the number of displayed listings.

SPREADSHEET PAGE TYPE – There are 2 spreadsheet types: Paged and Virtual. Paged will display results based on the Spreadsheet Page Size setting. Virtual enables a continuously scrolling page through all of the results.

BING MAP PAGE RESULTS – Your MLS/Board/Association has set a default number of search results listings to be display on the Bing Map. This Preference setting allows you to choose a different number of displayed listings on the map. The Results Bing Map displays a maximum of 100 listings.

Each listing on the Bing Map is numbered. The listing number is based on your default spreadsheet’s sorting. The first 100 lines on the default spreadsheet are the corresponding 100 properties displayed on the Bing Map. The spreadsheet line numbers are display in “For Sale” signs (actually, they are pushpins) on the Bing Map. As shown below, you can choose between 1 and 100 listings to be initially displayed on the Bing Map. While viewing the Bing Map, you can change the number of displayed listings using a similar dropdown box on the Map.

Remember to click Save to retain your settings.

User Interface – allows you two (2) settings.

1. Paragon Banner color - the default banner color is black. There are five (5) additional choices.

2. Tool Bar Icon Labels – checking the checkbox hides the icon labels.

Remember to click Save to retain your settings.

Report Views

Allows you to customize many of your Paragon reports without first running a search and customizing the report while viewing it. Not all reports can be customized. Sometimes, only sections of a report can be modified. Sections in white can be modified. Gray areas cannot be customized. Open the report category (I.E. Spreadsheet or Details) and select the desired report.

Note: See the Spreadsheet Quick Start Guide for more report customization details.

Report Categories

Custom Views and Reports Customization Tool

Spreadsheet and some Specialty Report Customization Tool

The Spreadsheet Customization tool allows you to add, remove or relocate fields. Select the field group (Listing, Agent, Office, etc) to locate the desired fields.

• Double click on a field to either add or remove a report field.
• Check the checkbox to add, remove or relocate multiple fields using the Customization Tool.
• Choose the type of field label to use in the report (long, short or none).
• Click Save to retain your changes.

Email

Allows you to set up your E-mail preferences including verifying your E-mail address status; creating your Standard Message Body for Automatic E-mail Notifications; creating your E-Card or Email signature and selecting your notification status.

Verification allows you to set the following preferences and verify the E-mail address

• Auto-Fill BCC (Blind Carbon Copy) – will automatically copy you on all E-mails you send out of Paragon.
• Read Receipt – you can request a “read” confirmation E-mail from the recipient of your E-mail. They must allow the read receipt to be sent to you.
• E-mail Verification Status – Paragon displays your current E-mail address in your Agent Record and the status of your E-mail address (Verified, Unverified and Invalid). To be compliant with the CAN-SPAM Act, Paragon will disable your E-mail privileges if your E-mail address is not verified.
• Verified – You have clicked the link inside the Paragon Web Services E-mail sent to your E-mail address in your Agent Record confirming the E-mail address is yours within 30-days of the sending of the verification request from Paragon Web Services.
• Unverified – You are within a 30-day window waiting for you to verify your E-mail address.
• Invalid – You E-mail privileges are suspended. Your E-mail address verification was not received within the 30 days of the request being sent to you.

To retain your settings, click Save.

Note: If your E-mail address becomes invalid, a re-verification E-mail does not restore your E-mail privileges. Once your E-mail becomes invalid, you must click the verification link within 72- hours of it being sent to you.

Standard Message Body – Allows you to compose the default message you want to send to your prospects when you set up an Automatic E-mail Notification (not Client Connect). This message is automatically inserted into the body of the Automatic E-mail template you complete for each client receiving this style of notification based on a Saved Search. After composing your message, save your message by clicking Save in the upper left hand corner of the window.

Note: On a prospect-by-prospect basis, you can customize this message or use an entirely different message.

E-Card or E-mail signature - allows you to create information that is added to each E-mail you send out of Paragon, if you enable this functionality.

Once you have uploaded your office logo, Paragon creates a default E-card that looks similar to the screenshot on the left, below. You can customize your E-card using the Rich Text Editor above the compose area of the page. An example of a customized E-card is shown on the right below. After customizing your E-card, remember to click Save to retain your newly updated Ecard.

Default E-card created by Paragon after you add your office logo.

E-card you created with the agent photo and office logo using the Rich Text Editor.

Client Connect

Is a new kind of Auto Notification with collaboration between you and your prospect. It is based on saved searches associated with your prospect or client. The saved search results are sent to your webpage that your client can login to using a username (their E-mail address) and password (they create).

Note: You can also customize your Client Connect webpage by using the Client Connect Preferences Wizard.

Below are the six (6) steps to customize your Client Connect web page.

1. Agent Information – populated from your Paragon Agent Record and your agent image you added to Paragon in Preferences.

2. Banner – select for a list of different scenes.

3. Home Page Message – your customized message to all of your clients that you invite to your Client Connect webpage

4. Links – you create links that appear in the left hand navigation. When clicked, these links open a new tab in your client’s browser displaying information about you and/or the area you service.

5. Office Information – populated from your Paragon Office Record and your office logo you added to Paragon in Preferences.

6. Agent Notification Options – you determine when Paragon and Client Connect will notify you about activities in Client Connect. The notifications include:

• New Listings sent to Client Connect
• Price and/or Status Changes to listing already sent to Client Connect
• Classification of Listings as Favorites
• Classification of Listings as Possible
• Classification of Listings as Reject
• Comments added to listings sent to Client Connect

Agent Information displays in the upper left hand corner of your Contact Information banner.

Agent Information – between your first and last name, you can have approximately 32 characters and still have a proper display of your contact information. You can customize your name to match how you have branded yourself in your trade area.

Phone Numbers – you can display a Primary and Secondary Phone Number in the contact information banner. Checking the checkbox allows you to select a phone number from the phone numbers in your Paragon Agent Record.

Display E-mail and Web Page – allows you to display your Agent E-mail address and Agent Webpage that is contained in your Paragon Agent Record.

Agent Image can be changed by clicking the link at the top of the page or clicking on your picture.

When you click your picture, Picture Library will open. You can upload a new picture or select and insert an existing image. You can have a different picture in Client Connect than what you have anywhere else in Paragon

Reports – Client Connect has three (3) different types of reports. Paragon has a default view for each of these reports. It is possible for you, your office or your MLS to modify and/or add additional reports. You can choose which report you want displayed for all of your clients when they visit your Client Connect web page.

Banner – you can choose the header image from a list of possible banners. You can change your selected banner whenever you want.

You may find greater return visits to your Client Connect web page as you change the banner, causing your client to look for other changes on your Home Page Message.

Remember to Save your changes before leaving this page.

Home Page Message – You can create any message you want. It can be instructions on using Client Connect. It can be your resume. It can focus on an upcoming event or activity in which you are involved. It can be a combination of the above or something totally different.

Use the Rich Text Editor to compose your message. Or, you can also use your favorite word processing program to compose your message. Then copy and paste it into the compose pane, shown on the right.

You may find greater return visits to your Client Connect web page as you change your Home Page Message, causing your client to look for other changes on your Home Page Message.

Remember to Save your changes before leaving this page.

Links – Allows you to add clickable links to your Home Page providing important website information for your prospects when they visit Client Connect web page.

You can have as many links as you want on your Home Page.

Add and Modify opens a modal so you can enter or update the details for your Client Connect link.

Web address is a placeholder for the web address/URL for the website you want your clients to visit. Be sure to include the http://.

Checkbox – The checked checkbox means the URL is the name of the label. Unchecking the checkbox allows you to add custom name to the link.

Preview – allows you to go to just entered/updated web page to verify it is the correct web page.

Remember to click Save in the modal to save the newly added or modified link.

Office Information is customized just like your Agent Information. It displays in the upper right hand corner of your Contact Information banner.

Office Image or Logo is customized under the User Preferences tab as described on page 3 of this Quick Start Guide.

Office Name can be approximately 26 characters and display your office contact information properly.

Phone Numbers – Primary and Secondary phone numbers are selected from phone numbers found in the Paragon Office Record.

Display Physical Address – checking this checkbox displays the street address of your Broker’s Office in the upper right hand corner of your Client Connect web page.

Display Logo – checking this checkbox displays the Office Logo

Notification Options – you can choose which events will send you E-mail notifications. When new listings are sent to Client Connect and when there is a price or status change on properties already sent to Client Connect, you can be notified. As your clients classify properties as Favorite, Possible or Reject, you can be notified. As your clients add comments to listing sent to Client Connect, you can be notified that comments have been added. That notification can also include the comments if the comments added are “50 or less” or “100 or less”.

Remember to click Save before your leave this page.

CMA:

In Preferences under the CMA section, you can create default reports that include three (3) Cover Letters, three (3) Resumes, Company Information (created by the broker, which populates out to all members of the office) and Final Comments. You can also customize your Subject Property Detail report, two (2) Comparable Reports (Horizontal and Vertical reports), CMA Summary, the CMA Theme, the report Footer, Disclaimer and Saved Adjustments. With the above items created and customized, your work in creating a CMA is greatly simplified.

The CMA Preferences Wizard assist you in doing the set up just discussed.

Paragon has a CMA Wizard, which guides you through the creation of a CMA for a specific property.

Some parts of the CMA are only customizable as you create a unique CMA. These include two (2) bar graphs (Comparable Property Statistics and Comparable Property Analysis), the Seller’s Net and the map showing the comparable and subject properties.

As you create each CMA, you can change values you have previously set up as a default value.

There are six (6) primary steps in creating a brand new Comparative Market Analysis. For more details about the creation of a CMA, please reference the Quick Start Guide for each of these steps.