Any BetterTrades student who uses Real Time Markets is assured of getting better results than they would obtain from a typical online brokerage firm. That's because the information that streams into the tool comes directly from the floor of exchange. It doesn't make an interim stop anywhere, which ensures the information is fast and accurate.
There is much emphasis placed on speed in the stock market. Traders know they will get better results when they have the tools that provide the fastest information and the most accurate fills. When watching a stock on Real Time Markets, a trader can send an order to buy or sell, and can then expect to have it honored immediately.
Some online brokerages erroneously claim to have fast fills, while they actually have a deal with a specific exchange which sends all the transactions to them. Such a kickback deal benefits the brokerage house and the exchange because each makes a little extra money, but it is done at the detriment of the trader, who probably isn't even aware that they've been duped. This sort of foul play goes against everything for which BetterTrades stands.
Real Time Markets does allow a user the option to specify which exchange will handle the transaction, but that aspect of the tool is usually passed over by BetterTrades students in favor of the "default" selection. This default setting specifies the trade will be conducted by whichever exchange offers the lowest price (when buying to enter a trade) or the highest price (when selling to exit a trade). The default setting ensures a trader will be getting the best price, thus a better result and placing the trader in a better position to make a profit. Speedy and accurate transactions are important to BetterTrades and are a critical part of Real Time Markets.
Why is it important to get a better fill in order to obtain better results? It all has to do with an option's spread. Since you buy at the ask price and sell at the bid price, BetterTrades students are taught to buy or sell at the most profitable position. If you can get filled for 10 cents less through a specific exchange, that's a $100 difference on ten contracts. That puts a trader closer to actually being able to make a profit. Since Real Time Markets interacts with multiple brokerages, it makes it easier to squeeze better profits from a stock market transaction using the exchange with the most enviable price.
The versatility of the tool also makes it easier to squeeze better results out of the market. It comes with five sets of customizable screens, which can allow a trader to actively watch approximately 200 stocks. Each of the screens can be set up to provide important data about each of the stocks, including the last price, the bid and ask prices, the high and low price, and volume. Students can use the tool to set an alert, which notifies a trader when a stock has reached a predetermined point that may signal a good place to enter or exit a trade.
