As 2014 comes to a close, it's time to develop personal and business resolutions for 2015 that aim to streamline your business processes and increase your productivity.  With that said, there are a myriad of widgets and apps that can truly help you meet those resolutions.

During the 2014 National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) Expo in New Orleans, Homes.com researched a number of apps and presented the top 15 that are sure to help you optimize your marketing and productivity efforts in 2015.

1. Pro HDR (iPhone/iPad | Android) - Listing photos are a significant component of marketing your properties.  Snap pictures like a professional with the Pro HDR app that can turn property photos into high resolution masterpieces (up to 12 megapixels).

2. Storehouse (iPhone/iPad) - This free, award-winning app allows you to combine photos, videos and text into a beautiful story that you can share with your Storehouse community.  This app is a quick, easy and illustrious way to share a home's story with potential buyers.

3. Phramed (iPhone/iPad) - A new photo collage app, Phramed allows users to arrange up to five photos, create a custom frame and share to your social media networks.  This is another great app to showcase a property's amenities.

4. GoPro (iPhone/iPad | Android) - Get instant access to the GoPro channel and remote capabilities to all camera functions like previewing shots and sharing via social channels, text or email.  For all you "DIY video enthusiasts," this one's for you.

5. Nest (iPhone/iPad | Android) - This app is great for tech-savvy homeowners who can control their thermostat and receive notifications about emergencies like smoke, fire or carbon-monoxide risks right from their mobile device.

6. Pebble (iPhone/iPad | Android) - If you're into wearable devices, the Pebble smartwatch app is a must-have.  Customize your Pebble smartwatch with over 1,000 apps covering a wide-range of categories like notifications, fitness, daily use, tools and utilities, remotes, games, and more.

7. IFTTT (iPhone/iPad | Android) - This app, which rhymes with "gift" and stands for 'IF This Then That,' automates services for small tasks between apps, or services.  For example, if you make a status update on one social channel (a trigger), IFTTT will make sure that the action takes place on another app like reposting that update.

8. Carrot (iPhone/iPad) - Your virtual (and snarky) assistant has arrived.  Carrot is a "to-do list with personality."  This talking app rewards you for completing tasks and berates you for being a slacker.  REALTORS® with resolutions to get things done next year will certainly appreciate this unique app.

9. Genius Scan (iPhone/iPad | Android) - Need a portable scanner?  Look no further than the Genius Scan app that can scan your documents and export them as JPEG or multi-page PDF files right from your mobile device.  This is perfect for REALTORS® who need to send time sensitive contracts, sales agreements or even hand-written notes on the go.

10. Waze (iPhone/iPad | Android) - Save precious driving time with the Waze app that gives you real-time traffic updates from drivers in your area.  Get reports from your community about road closures, accidents, police traps and more from your mobile device and desktop computer.

11. Commute Time (Widget) - Add value to your website by embedding this commute time widget that allows your visitors to calculate a property's distance from their office, school and other important locales.

12. MailTracker (iPhone/iPad) - This app is like your secret agent for monitoring when and if people read your email messages.  This tracking application monitors your email analytics so you can see when someone has opened your message, how many times the email was viewed, how long they viewed it, the recipient's location information, and their device details.

13. Cloze (iPhone/iPad | Android) - Organize your social feeds and mail according to who matters most to you.  This free app consolidates your relationships from social networks and email contacts, and tracks them by message, tweet, social post and job change so that you won't miss an opportunity to connect with them and strengthen that relationship.

14. Dashlane (iPhone/iPad | Android) - This top-rated password manager is a must-have for improving your productivity.  More than just a place to store your passwords, Dashlane offers additional room to save multiple logins, credit cards and other payment methods, receipts, and notes.  It even includes an auto-fill feature for online forms so you don't have to type in your personal information repeatedly.  Its sleek design, cloud syncing capability and alerts for potential security breaches also set it apart from the other players.

15. Slide Bureau (iPad) - Bring your content to life in eye-catching multimedia formats.  Create listing presentations, property flyers, CMA reports and other marketing materials and share online as a slideshow, webpage, PDF, JPEG or video from this easy-to-use iPad app.

Bonus! 5 FREE Must-Have REALTOR® Apps:

• Realtor.com® Collaborative Search (iPhone/iPad | Android) - Suggest multiple listings to multiple clients, have instant conversations with your clients, get immediate notifications of your clients' inquiry actions, brand the app with your photo and contact information, and receive showing requests from your clients.
• REALTOR® Property Resource (RPR) (iPhone/iPad | Android) - Instantly access property information on the entire market while out with your clients, quickly send company branded reports to your clients from anywhere, and add photos and notes to your reports.
• Realtor.com® Social Connections (Facebook app) - Gather and manage recommendations with HyperSocial™ Tools, create real conversations with real consumers, automatically update your Facebook page with reliable listing and market information, and capture leads with Top Producer®.
• REALTOR® Action Center (iPhone/iPad | Android) - Receive a notification alerting you whenever there is a new Call for Action, track how RANM and GAAR are doing in terms of their advocacy efforts, and find out what tools and programs NAR is providing for GAAR and how much the programs cost.
• Realtor.com® Find™ (iPhone/iPad | Android) - Invite and connect with clients right away, receive showing requests and "ask my agent" messages, draw your own custom search area with your fingertip, and view private listing information.

(Source: rismedia.com)