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CT IDX Pro+

Our CT IDX Pro+ WordPress plugin offers MLS data coverage across all 50 states. That’s 650+ MLS Markets and we’re adding more all the time. It’s a direct plug-and-play IDX, with automatic site integration, giving you a beautifully designed cohesively branded website from end to end.

It also includes saved searches & alerts with email and SMS, favorite listings, compare listings, and recently viewed listings all packaged with CT IDX Pro+, making it an all-encompassing plugin that you can use on any WordPress website.

This guide is here to help you understand the process and configuration of the CT IDX Pro+ plugin, ensuring you efficient integration of MLS data into your website.

If you’re a legacy customer of CT IDX Pro and have an active license open a live chat with us to discuss upgrading to CT IDX Pro+.

Step-by-Step Process for CT IDX Pro+ Plugin Integration

  1. After Purchase & Receiving Initial Paperwork:
    • After you complete your purchase, we will send over paperwork or instructions depending on your MLS board in a separate email.
  2. Submission and Approval Waiting Period:
    • After you return the paperwork, we’ll submit your information to the local MLS office for approval.
    • Please allow 5-7 business days for this process; the duration can vary based on the office’s workload.
  3. Post-Approval – Setting up Your Plugin:
    • Upon receiving MLS approval, we will reach out to you via email for your WordPress admin login details to access your site.
  4. Plugin Installation:
    • Our team will then proceed with the installation of the CT IDX Pro+ plugin on your WordPress site.
    • This typically happens the same day as receiving your site’s admin details.
  5. Completion and Confirmation:
    • After the successful setup, we will notify you via a confirmation email that your site is now equipped with the CT IDX Pro+ plugin and is ready for use.

Plugin Requirements

  • PHP 8.0 or greater

Plugin Install

Although we handle the initial installation of CT IDX Pro+, the following is for reference.

  1. Login to your WordPress Admin
  2. Go to Plugins > Add New
  3. Upload the zip file you downloaded from your Account Dashboard > Downloads panel
  4. Activate the plugin

Plugin License

  1. Login to your Account Dashboard
  2. Go to License Keys > find CT IDX Pro+
  3. Copy your License Key
  4. Navigate back to your site’s admin > Settings > CT IDX Pro+
  5. Paste your License Key > Save Changes
  6. Click Activate License

Building Search Links “Find a Home”

You’ll use Appearance > Menus to build out your navigation. More on the Menus screen can be found here.

Examples:

  • All Listings or “Find A Home”:
    https://yourdomain.com/property-search/listings
  • Active & San Diego:
    https://yourdomain.com/property-search/listings?zip=92101&status=active
  • Coming Soon:
    https://yourdomain.com/property-search/listings?status=coming-soon
  • Has Pool:
    https://yourdomain.com/property-search/listings?pool=true
  • 3 Beds:
    https://yourdomain.com/property-search/listings?minBedrooms=3
  • Active, La Jolla, 2+ Beds, $500k to $650k:
    https://yourdomain.com/property-search/listings?status=active&zip=92037&minBedrooms=2&minPrice=500000&maxPrice=650000

Quickly & Easily Build URLs

To quickly & easily build out URLs, do the following:

  1. Go to the front end of your site and do a physical search for what you want
  2. Copy the URL
  3. Add that URL to your menu item, button, link, etc…

Tip: To share custom-drawn areas with your leads, start by searching and using the draw function. Afterward, simply copy the URL and share it with them.

Settings

We handle the initial install of the CT IDX Pro+ plugin, but there are a few settings that you’ll need to configure.

    1. Login to your WordPress Admin
    2. Go to Settings > CT IDX Pro+

General

  • License Key
    This is the key that controls the licensing of the plugin, if this is removed or goes invalid for any reason the IDX plugin and all of its features are disabled.
  • API Key
    Pre-set for connectivity to IDX data, requiring no modifications.
  • MLS ID & Office
    Internal identifiers that are pre-set and need no adjustments.
  • Domain
    Reflects your website’s domain name.
  • Global Assigned User
    Assigns a default user profile to all IDX listings on your site for consistent representation. The assigned user will be shown with their corresponding contact information, profile picture, etc…more on that in the Agents section of the documentation. If you’re running a brokerage site with multiple agents we suggest creating an “Office” user with general contact information and assigning that user under this setting.
  • Google Maps API Key
    This is for the mapping, to get your API key please see our Google Maps documentation.
  • Google reCAPTCHA
    This is for form spam protection, to get your public and secret keys you must first register your site with Google reCAPTCHA. During registration, choose reCAPTCHA Type > V3 and follow the simple steps provided. This process will give you the necessary keys for integration.
  • Yelp
    This is to display “What’s Nearby” data in your listings detail view, to get your client ID and API key from Yelp here.
  • Zapier
    Optionally use a webhook to send form data to Zapier which you can then push to outside services and applications.

    1. Log into your Zapier account and create a new Zap
    2. For the trigger, select “Webhooks by Zapier”
    3. For the event, select “Catch Hook”
    4. Click continue twice until you get to “Your Webhook URL”, copy it
    5. Go to your WordPress Admin > Settings > CT Valuations > General > paste into “Zapier Webhook URL” > Save Settings
    6. Go to the page where you have inserted the CT Home Valuations Elementor module or shortcode, and run a valuation test
    7. Go back to Zapier > click Test Trigger, confirm you see the data you just submitted
    8. Continue to set up your Action, and finalize your new Zap
  • Follow Up Boss
    Directly sync user registrations, forms, and lead activity to your Follow Up Boss CRM account.

    1. Login to your WordPress Admin
    2. Go to Settings > CT IDX Pro+ > General
    3. Enable Follow Up Boss > select Yes
    4. To generate your API Key please see this article
    5. Once you’ve done that copy & paste it into the API Key field
    6. Next to get your Pixel Code please see this article
    7. Once you’ve done that copy & paste it into the Pixel Code area
  • SMS Alerts
    This feature allows users to opt-in to receive new listing alerts via SMS processed through Twilio.

    • Twilio SID: Input your Twilio Account SID here. This is a unique identifier for your Twilio account.
    • Twilio Token: Enter the authentication token from your Twilio account. This token, along with the SID, is used for secure communication with Twilio’s API.
    • Twilio Number: Provide the phone number assigned to you by Twilio. This number will be used as the sender for outgoing SMS messages.

Search

  • Hide/Show Search Fields for Property Types
    Allows you to hide/show property types in the listings search.
  • Show only office listings in search results
    Allows you to limit the listings search results to only your office listings, no general MLS data will be shown.

Style

  • Primary Color
    Use this to change the plugin’s default blue (buttons, accents) to the branding of your site.

Login / Register

  • Log In Redirect
    Choose between “Current Page” (Default) or “Specific Page”.
  • Log In Redirect
    Choose between “Current Page” (Default) or “Specific Page”.
  • Forced Registration
    Optionally enable forced registration for users after a certain number of listing views.
  • Terms & Conditions Page
    Select the page you’d like to use for displaying terms and conditions.

Forms

  • Success Message
    The message displayed when the Request Info or Schedule a Tour forms are successfully submitted.

Emails

The following settings apply to the listing alert emails.

The Listing Detail > Schedule Tour & Request Information forms will be sent to the Global Assigned User as default. If you have our CRM plugin activated (Contempo Leads Pro) the forms act as lead magnets that feed leads into the system, reference How Leads Are Collected. If you’d like normal emails to be sent you can deactivate the Contempo Leads Pro plugin and all forms will automatically act in the normal fashion.

  • Logo
    This will be displayed in the new listing alert emails to your leads.
  • From Name
    This should be your name or your office’s name.
  • From Email
    This will act as the “from” and “reply-to” addresses.
  • Header
    This is the text displayed in the header of your new listing email alert. (HTML Allowed: h1-h6, p, a, strong, em, br, img)
  • Footer
    This is the text displayed in the footer of your new listing email alert. (HTML Allowed: h1-h6, p, a, strong, em, br, img)
  • Company Info
    This is the company info displayed in the header of your new listing email alert. (HTML Allowed: h1-h6, p, a, strong, em, br, img)

Pages

The CT IDX Pro+ plugin introduces several essential pages to enhance the user experience on your real estate website. These pages allow users to access various features such as viewing recently viewed properties, managing favorite listings, and setting up saved searches and alerts. Here’s an overview of these pages:

It’s important to note that these pages are exclusive to logged-in / registered users.

Recently Viewed

This page displays a list of properties that a user has recently viewed on your website. It’s a convenient way for users to revisit properties they are interested in without having to search for them again.

URL: /my/recently-viewed

Favorite Listings

Users can save their favorite listings on this page for easy access. It serves as a personalized space where users can keep track of the properties they are most interested in.

URL: /my/favorite-listings

Saved Searches & Alerts

This page allows users to view and manage their saved searches. Users can also set up alerts to receive email or SMS notifications when new listings match their search criteria, ensuring they don’t miss out on potential properties.

URL: /my/saved-searches

Compare Listings

The Compare Listings feature isn’t accessed through a direct URL. Instead, users utilize it through the Favorite Listings page. Here’s how it works:

  • On the Favorite Listings page (/my/favorite-listings), users can select up to five listings they are interested in by checking the “Compare” box next to each listing.
  • After selecting the desired listings, users can click on the “Compare” button.
  • This action redirects them to a comparison page where the chosen listings are displayed side by side, facilitating an easy comparison of features, prices, and other essential details.

URL: Not directly accessible, but integrated with Favorite Listings

Elementor Widgets

All of the available widgets are under the “CT IDX Pro+” section.

CT IDX Listings Search

This module allows you to choose from a Single Field (with typeahead) or Multi (typeahead, price, beds, baths, property type, more…).

CT IDX Listings Grid

This module allows you to display a grid of listings based on your chosen parameters.

CT IDX Listings Map

This module allows you to display a map of listings based on your chosen parameters.

CT IDX Item Grids

This module allows you to display beautiful grids of neighborhood or property type data from the MLS in layouts of 2, 3, 4, 6, and 8, with background image upload.

Shortcodes

Recently Viewed

This shortcode will display a logged-in user’s recently viewed listings.

[ct-idx-pro-plus-recently-viewed]

The plugin automatically generates a URL (/my/recently-viewed) for this view, so you don’t need to create a page manually. However, a shortcode is available if you prefer to set up a custom page with this feature.

Favorite Listings

This shortcode will display a logged-in user’s favorite listings.

[ct-idx-pro-plus-favorite-listings]

The plugin automatically generates a URL (/my/favorite-listings) for this view, so you don’t need to create a page manually. However, a shortcode is available if you prefer to set up a custom page with this feature.

Saved Searches & Alerts

This shortcode will display a logged-in user’s saved searches with options for email and SMS alerts.

[ct-idx-pro-plus-saved-searches]

The plugin automatically generates a URL (/my/saved-searches) for this view, so you don’t need to create a page manually. However, a shortcode is available if you prefer to set up a custom page with this feature.

Listings Search

This module enables you to choose from a Single Field (with typeahead) or Multi (typeahead, price, beds, baths, property type, more…).

[ct_idx_pro_plus_listings_search type="single"]

Listings Grid

This module enables you to display a grid of listings based on your chosen parameters.

[ct_idx_pro_plus_listings_grid type="single" minPrice="500000" city="la-jolla"]

Listings Map

This module enables you to display a map of listings based on your chosen parameters.

[ct_idx_pro_plus_listings_map type="single" minPrice="500000" city="la-jolla"]

Item Grids

This module enables you to create visually appealing grids showcasing neighborhood or property-type data from the MLS. You can choose from layout options such as 2, 3, 4, 6, and 8. Additionally, it offers the functionality to upload background images for these grids.

[ct_idx_pro_plus_item_grid layout="4" type="property-types" city="la-jolla"]

Login/Register Modal

To trigger the “Login/Register Modal” on your site, attach the class “login-register” to any element, like a button or link. Clicking that element will pop up the modal, enabling users to access login & registration forms directly on the current page.

login-register

Lead Alerts

For real estate professionals looking to maximize their efficiency, setting up lead alerts can significantly enhance your responsiveness to market changes and client interests.

  1. Create a New Lead: Go to your WordPress Admin > Users > Add New User > Enter their information, select the role “Buyer” > click Add New User
  2. Initiate a Search: While you’re logged in go YourDomainHere.com/property-search/listings/
  3. Configure Search Parameters: Utilize the available fields to tailor the search according to your lead’s specific needs and preferences.
  4. Save the Search: Once the desired parameters are set, click “Save Search”
  5. Assign the Search to Your Lead: Go to YourDomainHere.com/my/saved-searches/ and assign it to your lead.

If you’re running our CRM (Contempo Leads Pro) plugin you can also create a new lead in YourDomainHere.com/leads-pro/#/leads > Actions > Add New.

Off-Market & Pocket Listings

Off-market and pocket listings offer unique opportunities for showcasing properties outside the conventional MLS listings. With the Real Estate 7 theme, you have the flexibility to manually enter these listings directly into your website’s backend admin. Detailed guidance on adding and managing these listings can be found here.

In addition to manual entry, you also have the option to import listings via CSV for added convenience. Our integration with WP All Import simplifies this process, allowing you to efficiently manage your property listings. Learn more about this feature here.

Furthermore, if you’re utilizing our Real Estate 7 theme, you can access our innovative Single Listing Builder. This powerful tool enables you to create custom templates for pocket listings or exclusive properties. It’s an excellent way to highlight unique properties for prospective buyers or offer an exclusive marketing service to your sellers.

Off-market and pocket listings are not displayed in the IDX listings search. However, you can showcase them on your static pages using the Elementor modules available in Real Estate 7.

Common Issues & Fixes

If your website fails to display data or encounters other problems, they often stem from several typical issues. Fortunately, these can be quickly identified and resolved. Below, we outline the most frequent problems and their solutions:

  1. Invalid IDX License Key: This issue often occurs after moving your website from a development to a live domain, requiring an update of your license key. For instructions on how to refresh your IDX License Key, visit How do I update my CT IDX Pro+ license key?
  2. API Requests Blocked by Bot Protection: In this scenario, contact your hosting provider to whitelist the IP address 2600:3c02::f03c:93ff:fea4:d2ac.
  3. Office Only Data Enabled: If searches on your site are returning no data, it may be because the “Show Only Office Listings in Search Results” option is enabled in your settings. This setting restricts search results to listings from your office only. If your office currently has no listings, searches will appear as though there’s an issue. To display broader search results, navigate to Settings > CT IDX Pro+ > Search, and turn off the “Show Only Office Listings in Search Results” option.
  4. Unexpected Redirects: This can occur if your website has pages named or beginning with “listings,” leading to URL conflicts. To fix this, head over to your WordPress Admin area, then to the Pages section, and change the names of these pages to “properties” or something similar that works for you.
  5. My custom Elementor Pro Header & Footer is not showing: This is a quick fix, that requires two new pages to be created.
    1. Go to your WordPress Admin > Pages > Add New Page > name it “property-search”, slug is also “property-search” (screenshot) > apply the IDX Pro Plus page template (screenshot) > Publish
    2. Create another new page, name it “listings”, slug is also “listings” (screenshot) > set its parent as “property-search” (screenshot) > apply the IDX Pro Plus page template (screenshot) > Publish
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