Customer relationship management software provider Knock has launched Knock Now, an API platform that provides an an on-demand, real-time apartment tour booking platform for apartment search and ILS sites. The platform launches with its first integration partner, ApartmentGuide and Rent.com operator RentPath, starting this month.
“This solution solves a major pain point for both the renter and the apartment community,” says Krista Nordlund, RentPath’s chief product officer, consumer. “With millions of visitors to our sites each month, we enable a huge number of connections between apartment communities and prospective renters. The ability to book a confirmed tour allows renters to immediately guarantee their appointment, without waiting for a call or email back, and it streamlines the process for the apartment communities by automatically confirming these appointments.”
The Knock Now platform uses a given property’s live calendar to schedule, book, and confirm tours entirely online. Listing services that integrate Knock Now will offer online tour booking as an option alongside existing services, such as email forms or making a call to the property.
According to Knock, this service reduces the need for back-and-forth scheduling communication between renters and managers.
“We started Knock to improve the experience for both apartment renters and managers, and build on-demand tools that have become the standards in our lives, like booking a restaurant reservation or fitness class with one click,” says Tom Petry, Knock’s co-founder and CEO. “We’re thrilled to be taking the next leap forward by partnering with apartment search sites to automate self-scheduling across the web, where most renters start the apartment hunting journey. And our property management customers can now provide renters the on-demand experience they expect.”
Knock Now will be available to select users starting this month, with a wider release, new integration partners, and self-guided tour support through 2019 and beyond.