For Debora Flores, and many others in real estate, time is money.
When she talks about her new website, Flores is excited by the possibilities of a heightened ability to produce. What used to take her a day and a half to complete can now be accomplished in minutes with a few clicks, she said.
Flores's company was among the 50 small businesses to have their websites juiced up and made ready for mobile and tablet use. The Buda Area Chamber of Commerce partnered with Duda, a Palo Alto-based company whose website builder is streamlined for multiple screens.
Flores said Duda's drag-and-drop site builder made it possible for her to manage the contents of her site from her phone or tablet.
"I can put in a [real estate] listing into a [multiple listing service] on the go," she said. "The listing I put in yesterday has already gotten three offers. It excites me to have something like that at my fingertips to help me with my business."
J.R. Gonzales, managing director of the chamber, said the collaboration sprang from last year's South by Southwest Conferences and Festivals when Duda presented its product at the Interactive portion.
"Someone noticed a speck south of Austin called Buda," Gonzales said. When Duda approached the chamber about the initiative, "I just jumped at the opportunity, and we launched the Duda Loves Buda campaign."
In just 72 hours, two Duda trucks combed the city and surrounding area. Flores said her redesign took less than an hour. The campaign culminated March 6 with a presentation of the 50 websites the company redesigned.
"From my take, it's absolutely the greatest thing that they've done this," Gonzales said. "It's just serendipity, if you will, that the name of their company and the name of the city rhyme. And being so close to SXSW, it was a win-win."
Gonzales said the Duda team captured the 72-hour expedition on film and will present it at SXSW Interactive.