How to automatically import data from Centris to your website

Over the past few years, we have worked on several broker projects that consisted of automatically importing data from Centris. After various tests and validations, we have finally succeeded in developing an easy and generalized import process. In this article, we will see how to automatically import data from Centris to WordPress websites. You can also apply this approach on any website using the Cron Job module.

Overview and need for using Centris

Centris is a web-based solution for real estate brokers, widely used in Canada. It is certainly the most popular database that brokers use to offer properties for sale or for rent to their clients.

How it works (Technically)

Brokers have access to their information from the Centris website. They can then either copy and add them manually, or import them. Note already that in the case of manual use of the information, adding the data will require an investment of time.

1. Indeed, in the case of the manual addition of information, the broker, or his team will be responsible for taking the data from the Centris site or from the location of their server to insert it into the website.
2. To automatically import data from Centris to a website, you will need to program a code that will take care of finding the information on your server’s location. Thus, the code will import into the database to create the pages.

We had the opportunity to experiment with both approaches in various projects. In the end, we find the second best. Therefore, in this article, we will introduce you to the latter in more detail.

Some difficulties in manually adding data

According to the remarks of several brokers, the manual addition of data has several disadvantages. Below are a few:

• An investment of time. Indeed, it takes a relatively considerable time to enter registrations manually on a website.
• The risk of not being up-to-date on its website. The data on the Centris website is constantly changing. To this end, if the broker does not include the information on his website in time, his clientele could have erroneous data.
• Various risks of errors when adding data. In addition, manual work generally presents errors insofar as one can forget to enter the correct information or to put all the data.

How to automatically import data from Centris to your website?

To import data from Centris to WordPress, we have developed a module that you will find via this link. Before we start explaining the steps to follow, we will first talk about the prerequisites:

• Have your website on WordPress (Open-source version). We did not install it on the wordpress.com version. In addition, wordpress.com will not give you access to the server to do your configuration. Download free WordPress from wordpress.org.
• You should have access to a web server. Indeed, via your server, we will have to configure the Cron Job functionality. This is a tool that automatically executes the codes according to a time frequency.
• Download our extension. You will find it in our online store.
• Install the extension and perform the configuration.

Below, we will see how the extension works and the steps to automatically import data from Centris:

Step 1 – Installing the Extension

After ordering and downloading the extension, you must follow the standard procedure for installing the extension. For example, you will need:

1. Import the extension to your website from the extension tab.
2. Install and activate it.
3. Perform some initial setup.

For the basic configuration, you must provide the path to your Centris repository folder, the name of the folder where you want to extract the data, and the key for the automatic import.

• Your Centris deposit file. This is the path to the folder in which Centris deposits your registrations at a certain frequency. We will briefly explain how it works when installing the extension. However, if you are familiar with a web server, you will easily understand what it is.
• Name of the folder you want to extract to. Before executing the import, the extension must first extract a zip file in a folder of your current theme. You will therefore need to enter a folder name for the extraction. Don’t worry, you can give any name. The folder will then be automatically created if it does not already exist.
• The key for automatic import. This is a secret key that you will use with the server functionality to perform the data import.

You will also have to fill in some fields such as the types of publications of your listings (Properties, Advisors, and Agencies). Plugin Setup Post Types

Step 2 – Create a “Cron Job” for the automatic import of your data

The cron Job is a server feature that is used to automatically execute codes. You can set a certain execution frequency and let the server take care of the rest. After installing the extension, you will then have the link to add to your Cron Job configuration. Below is an illustration of what will appear on your screen.

Step 3: Use WordPress Blocks to Insert Data on Your Website

We chose the shortcode option and the use of blocks. Indeed, this option does not require any advanced skills to understand the mode of operation. You will then be able to insert the elements on your web pages. To achieve this, consult the documentation to learn about the different block names you will need. For example, to display the list of registrations, we have provided the “registration” block.

Advanced options

If you have web development skills, you will be able to easily make design changes by adding CSS and JS. We will also provide you with documentation for this.

Conclusion

With our plugin, importing Centris data into a WordPress website is relatively easy. If you want to save time, it will be a pleasure to help you with the initial configuration. Contact us to find out more. In addition, you can consult our achievements on this page.