SEATTLE, WA--(Marketwire - Jun 26, 2012) - (NASDAQ: [ LEDR ]) -- A recent survey of more than 2,000 real estate professionals has indicated overall spending on technology and technology-related marketing services is increasing, especially among the industry's most successful agents, but real estate professionals continue to invest in direct mail as a preferred marketing vehicle.

Collected from among the more than 220,000 ActiveRain real estate professional community members as well as Market Leader customers, the survey focused on measuring what software and marketing support real estate agents are using in their business and how much they are spending on these necessary tools of the trade.

An infographic and deeper summary of the survey's findings can be downloaded at [ www.activerain.com/real-estate-marketing ].

"Real estate professionals are accelerating their investments in technology-based marketing options, but there's not always a direct correlation between where they're spending money and where they're getting value," said Nikesh Parekh, chief executive officer for ActiveRain. "More agents are investing in the technology and pipeline management systems necessary to build successful, long-term businesses."

Other highlights from the survey include:

• IDX web sites, CMA software, contact management, and email marketing continue to be the most important tools in the real estate industry with the highest overall usage
• Real estate agents earning more than $100,000 per year are willing to pay a premium for top IDX web sites, contact management solutions, virtual tour software, and team management
• Most other categories of software / technology show a reasonable fixed price per month regardless of the annual income of the agent
• More kinds of marketing and advertising solutions are used by agents with no single solution having dominant share
• Online agents are spending the most on lead generation, national real estate web sites (Zillow, Trulia, Realtor.com) and pay-per-click advertising
• Social media, blogging, and SEO have the broadest agent participation but low monthly spend, due to the predominance of free tools
• Direct mail has the largest agent participation of any offline marketing & advertising solution, regardless of agent income
• Top producing agents earning more than $100,000 per year spend more in general across all categories but spend more money on online lead generation, national real estate web sites, and search engine marketing. Top producing agents spend significantly more per month on marketing personnel and training/coaching

About ActiveRain Corp:

Founded in 2006 and located in Seattle, WA, ActiveRain is the world's largest [ real estate social network ] and [ real estate blogging platform ]. The ActiveRain community is composed of more than 220,000 real estate agents and affiliated real estate professionals. ActiveRain empowers experienced and new [ real estate agents ] to connect with home buyers and sellers, share real estate-specific information, and learn the best practices of real estate blogs, social media, and search engine optimization. For more information on ActiveRain, visit [ www.ActiveRain.com ].

About Market Leader

Market Leader, founded in 1999, provides innovative online technology and marketing solutions for real estate professionals across the United States and Canada. The company serves more than 100,000 real estate agents, brokerages and franchisors, offering complete end-to-end solutions that enable them to grow and manage their businesses. Market Leader's subscription-based [ real estate marketing software ] -- including websites, contact management, a marketing center, and lead generation services -- helps customers generate a steady stream of prospects, plus provides the systems and training they need to convert those prospects into clients. In addition, the company's national consumer real estate sites, including [ www.realestate.com ], give its customers access to millions of future home buyers and sellers, while providing consumers with free access to the information they seek.

For more information on Market Leader visit [ www.MarketLeader.com ].