Online Real Estate Technology

Hello, I’ve been threatening to do this for months and now, and today,I’ve taken the plunge and recorded my first video. I’m currently in Perth WA doing some seminars for domain.com.au and after spending today talking about the impact of social media and how you can use this tool to drive additional leads and prospects as part of your office marketing, I was inspired to record my first attempt. So sitting in my hotel room with a nice glass of red wine, thanks Katie at C21, here it is. Now I’m no Mel Gibson, so please remember, it’s been recorded on my web cam at 6:30 in the evening, but it goes to show that no matter where you are you can still use this technology to communicate with your customers.

I’ll improve on this, I hope, lol, but at least it’s a start.

This promises so much, the virtual agent, no shop front, all properties marketed exclusively on the web, all promising the newest technology to sellers and buyers, sounds too good to be true? and you’re right it is!!!!

I’ve spoken before in a post a few days ago about making sure you are what you say you are, and not trying to pretend that your agency offers the best technology when in fact it doesn’t live up to the hype. Well that has just happened to me. I’ve just checked out a web site from a Brisbane based company supposedly pushing the boundaries of the traditional agency by promoting themselves as “the” virtal agency. Here again is a sows ear being marketed as a silk purse. If these agents are going to survive in the virtual world they are going to have to learn some lessons in real estate technology and on line marketing, because from what I’ve seen so far, they won’t be here in the next 6 months, not with the market the way it is and the vendor and consumer will see through the hype. 

Firstly, their web site opens with flash, come on team, flash hasn’t worked for real estate web sites for years, get me to the property with 1 click, secondly, their listings are substandard, Incomplete property descriptions, they promise the best in technology, OK, no video, no suburb data, no 15+ photos, no HDR photos,no virtual tours, a blog that hasn’t been updated since August, standard email alert set up, do I really need to go on about this? 

If you are thinking of going virtual, and to me as we stand here in 2008, that means leaving more traditional advertising formats behind, then you need to really have a 2 year strategy in place, and more importantly, you need to live the promise. 

In this case, the agent sold up his shop front business and decided the next step was virtual, and that’s a great dream in my mind, but the execution is all traditional thinking, not virtual thinking, and that is the big difference. 

Don’t be tempted to go virtual without thinking through what you do and how you will execute the plan and the vision, If in doubt ask me, I won’t hold back on telling you the truth!!!

The content that consumers look for in your property listings is constantly changing and more often today is being driven by what market forces are at play. For instance in the new NAR 2008 Home Buyers survey, a very important consideration is the suburb and the properties location to the buyers workplace. This is being driven by the higher price of fuel, yet how many real estate agents reflect these social changes when writing copy for the net? 

Do you change your copy content to match the market? Well, after conducting some real estate office audits this week on the Sunshine Coast, the response to that question from me would be no! So lets look at what should be included as part of your on line copy to maximise the response from buyers to your listing. 

Suburb choice is now very important in the selection of a home, what schools are in the area, how far is the local shopping centre or local transport, what is the street appeal of the suburb and the list goes on.

I’ve just recieved the October 2008 PRD Nationwide consumer research on this and have included the results for you below:  

What are the features you would find most important when deciding to purchase a unit or apartment?

Whilst this is aimed at the unit/apartment buyer, location of schools, cafes and shops is very high on the priority list and I don’t believe this is very different from those priorities of the home buyer.  

57% of people who will click on your listing during the search process will be female, so write your listing with the demographic and gender in mind. These people are in research mode and will be researching properties and suburbs to see what information they can find about lifestyle conditions in the area, as well as practical considerations such as travel time etc. Use www.walkscore.com to help generate local area information, walkscore will tell you the distance to local amenities such as parks, shopping centres, local transport etc.  Cut and paste the images of the maps in your photo selection to indicate the local area and provide this under “your local expert” tag.

The best layout of your listing, should be as follows:

Headline – Sells the lifestyle and gets attention so make it strong

Property Information – This is the nuts & bolts of the property.

Suburb and lifestyle Expectation – This is the what’s in it for “me” section and why i should buy here, more importantly, this is the part that provides the emotion and expectation of what the area provides, so use this section wisely.      

Call To Action - This is where you market yourself, don’t leave this out, this is where you ask for the order or the lead, and way too many times agents leave this off. In the recent CAR home buyers survey, 45% of consumers said that agent contact information was a very important part of the information provided to them on Internet listings.

Real Estate agents should market themselves as the local experts in the area, but make sure you are what you say you are. 

Now one word of warning with all of this, don’t go and write War & Peace, make sure you provide succinct information that is relevant to the search and selection process. If you add too much waffle, the consumer will close you down, make it relevant information that will assist them in making the decision to go to the next step and that is to contact you. 

I’ll cover the new NAR 2008 Home Buyers Survey in more detail for you in the next few days.

I was quite excited about this story back in June/July, when I first came across the story of Dash, the web enabled GPS unit which allowed users to search for real estate via the web and the GPS unit. In fact I reported back then that Coldwell Banker had signed a deal to distribute their properties exclusively, which I thought a great idea and a real win for them. Well it seems that the company were a little ahead of their time with the concept but not with the hardware. The company had commenced selling their units at $600 each plus the monthly subscription fee, which it seems a lot of consumers thought too expensive. There are now a lot more slicker units on the market which incorporate GPS and don’t charge consumers above their monthly fees for connection.

News this week from gigaom.com, is that due to the sluggish economy, the company is slashing 50 jobs and changing it’s business model from consumer to B2B. So we’ll now have to wait for the big names in GPS units such as Tom Tom or Navman to look at integrating this into GPS units. The big companies are now offering traffic network updates on their units and this has rolled out in NSW,Victoria and Qld, so don’t despair, the Iphone and other new GPS enabled phones are having an impact on the mobile search platform and hopefully with new software applications coming out all the time, such as Utoprias The Future of The Mobile Real Estate Search on Iphone  all may not be lost.

Hi All, just wanted to advise the breakfast seminar in WA is next Wednesday morning 12th November at Frasers Restaurant, King Park West Perth.

Proceedings will kick off at 7:15am for a 7:30 start, I’ll be presenting the “Impact of New Media and Technology on real estate offices” and also presenting the “Power of Blogs and podcasts on real estate office marketing in 2008 – 2009″ 

If you happen to be in Perth next week and would like to attend, please contact Sarah Hopkins domain.com.au on 08 9423 8909

Last Monday I flew Jetstar to Newcastle and I was motivated to write this post after seeing an add on TV for Jetstar last night, the TV commercial portrays them as the fun airline with smiling staff and offering great service etc, I’m sure you’ve all seen commercials like this one, with companies all pretending to be something in reality, they are not. On the way back from Newcastle, I flew VirginBlue and in the inflight magazine, there is a article from Brett Godfrey their CEO talking about their new service to LA being delayed by a strike at Boeing in Seattle, and then he goes on to to mention how we will soon be able to experience their great service on long haul flights, well, as a very frequent flyer with both VirginBlue and Jetstar, I’d have to say, “What Service”, at best most of their staff are pleasant, there is the odd one who really doesn’t want to be there, the cabin service is adequate at best, and with my company having just paid over $300 for the return fare, I still had to buy my coffee and wait an eternity for my baggage. I’veencountered Jetstar refusing to take a passenger who turned up 5 minutes late for her flight from Tasmania, because she was late checking in, and then the flight was delayed by 30 minutes, so who then compensates us for their non on time performance? Now if you flew each airline once or twice a year you probably wouldn’t notice these little niggles, but as a frequent flyer I notice, and really the fares aren’t that cheap and the service, is almost non existent, especially for what I pay for that service.

So what’s the point to this post?     

Over the years I’ve encountered real estate agents who have advertised how they use the latest technology to market properties, and work with buyers and sellers. There is in fact, one agent in the South of Brisbane, who advertises himself as Mr Technology and his marketing is all based on how he uses the latest technology to market on behalf of his vendors and respond to buyers enquires. well, I have to tell you that over the past 3 years I’ve sent him numerous emails about his properties advertised on the net, and I’ve never had a response yet from him, in fact it has become my lifes mission to get him to respond. Sadly I have to report, I’ve still been unable to get him to do so, and if you look at the number of email enquiries that still go unanswered today, about 30% of emails sent to agents go unanswered, we still have some way to go in eductating agents on how to deal with the internet consumer and their changing communication needs.

So again, “What’s the Point of this post?” It’s to raise with you the point, that if you advertise you, your agency or your service, then be true to that advertising. If you are marketing yourself as an agent who uses technology then make sure you use that technology correctly.

Have a best practice policy in place that ensures response times to emails is immediate, make sure your listings are complete and contain all the information that today’s internet consumer is looking for, and make sure your agency is what you say you are.  

This is most important when marketing on the net, because the internet consumers first experience with you will be what they see on the net. Are you using technology in your agency to it’s best potential?  Are you offering your vendors/clients all the newest technology to market properties?, are you using social media networks effectively?

If not, then rethink your strategy, be what you say you are, because when times are really tough, the consumer will look more closely at you and your service.

Don’t let them down!!!

I’ve long been a believer in the power of positive thinking and in my business career,taking positive action when it seemed that the odds were against me succeeding. That is why, today, I’m very positive about real estate agents maintaining their advertising spend on the on line space and not cutting subscriptions to the main real estate portals. If you are wanting to cut expenses, look at how much you spend in press for an add in the real estate section each week, and I’ll bet that you spend as much, or probably more, on that add than you do on your on line subscription. 

The other area that will help you is training, seeing how other people can overcome the hard times or even to succeed when the market is tough, is inspiring to us. I know that I get inspired by the power of positive thought and positive actions by those around me. The Domain breakfast series that we have been running is part of that positive approach and it never seems to amaze me that some of you out there, yes, real estate agents, can’t see the big picture, and can’t be bothered attending a 2 hour breakfast to learn, or to discover new ideas and concepts that will actually help you and your business. To those that do attend, and are always willing to push the boundaries or look at how they can improve in the current economic slowdown, i hope you get what you deserve, and that is success!!    

To that end, I spent some time in September on a seminar series with Grant Thorpe, Life Coach and Business Mentor, and Grants approach to life and assisting his clients build success stories around them is a positive experience that in tough times can help you weather the storm.  

Grant recently wrote an article on his blog about surviving the tough times and shared his strategies for gaining on and beating your competitors in tough times. I thought I would share this article with you, I hope it inspires you, I hope it gives you strategies to power forward in what you do in your life and your business.

Heres the link to that story, please enjoy: http://grantthorpe.typepad.com/life_coach_and_business_m/2008/10/index.html

Hi All, I’ve now got the final dates for the follow up seminars to our recent presentations on the future of internet marketing. These are the special request seminars and the subject is ”Writing Copy for The Internet” and I’ll also cover what content consumers want and how your on listing should be formatted. There will also be a few other little surprises on the day. The follow up dates and locations are listed below:

Sunshine Coast: Wednesday 5th November 9:00am to 11:00am - Creek Hotel Karrawatha Drive Buderim

Toowoomba:  Thursday 27th November 9:00am – 11:00am Toowoomba Showgrounds

Bundaberg: Tuesday 9th December 9:00am – 11:00am Spinnaker Restuarant Bundaberg

If you would like to attend, please contact David Foki at Domain.com.au. His number is 0458 220 091

I don’t often post news from other sources mainly because I’ve set this blog up as a technology resource, but reading the following story it got me thinking about why, you as real estate agents, really need to continue to market and promote yourself agressively in the market. Wether you do this in traditional media or on line, it’s imperative that you keep your profile high, because when the consumer does start to look at buying or investing, you want to be the one they’ll use. So keep your profile “TOP OF MIND”, use the tools I’ve posted about on this blog and let me know if you need help. I’m only a comment away.

So on that note, here’s the story from the domain.com.au property newsletter.

To buy or not to buy? That is the question…or is it?

There’s so much going on in the economy at the moment as a result of the global financial crisis. The headline news talks daily of recessions, comparisons to the great depression, stock market plunges, rising inflation, increasing unemployment, the collapsing Australian dollar, freezes on management funds, record lows in consumer confidence, low retail sales, the biggest car financing companies pulling out of the Australian market and the list goes on and on and on. So what’s one supposed to make of all this?!

There are always a lot of things you naturally consider when you decide to invest in property. For many the prospect alone can be quite daunting, especially when you consider that it is usually the single largest purchase you will make in your lifetime. Add to that the fact that the average person will spend most of their life paying it off unless of course you inherited wealth, were fortunate enough to marry into it or you successfully created it yourself.

We asked Domain.com.au users if the recent global financial shake-up has changed their property investment plans. The resounding result? Schreeeeeech! Half of Australians have put their property investment plans on hold. 48% said they are delaying their property investment plans and are not making any big decisions right now. 17% of people said they are going to continue with their existing property portfolio and 19% signalled their intention to grow their property portfolio as planned.

While many blame the US property market and its irresponsible lending institutions for causing the financial crisis in the first place, it has come full circle and has now resulted in significant cuts to interest rates here (my rate has reduced 1.3% in just a few months), with more rate cuts expected in both November and December this year.

Enter Mr Rudd to the rescue, who is now guaranteeing your bank deposits and boosting the first home owners grant from $7 000 to $14 000, or if you purchase a new home or newly constructed home you’ll get a nifty $21 000 in your pocket.

Are these new measures enough for you to screen out everything else going on in the world at the moment despite the uncertainty of it all? It would seem for some that the answer is a simple YES. 17% of respondents indicated that they are going to invest in property sooner that they otherwise would have.

This weekend I was at the Home Buyers Show in Sydney and I was very interested to see what the attendance at the show would be. Would it be quiet? Would anyone turn up? By the end of the weekend I would have a clear signal as to how people were feeling about the property market right now. What happened? There were a lot (and I mean a lot) of people at the show, the tide may have turned. It was standing room only at all of the seminars and I nearly lost my voice from answering so many questions. 

Thanks to Jeff Lim for his insightful look at the current property market.

I highlighted in an earlier post a company in the US called Utopria and their mobile search platform for the Iphone, The Future of The Mobile Real Estate Search on Iphone  , well the company has released an update on their software, and given that Google have released Google Earth as a free application for the Iphone, I thought it relevant to revisit the post.

I’ve included a video for you to view and see how the software and application called mediapod works, lets hope they have plans to release this in Australia in the near future, but until then, enjoy the future of mobile searching for real estate properties. This allows the agent to include a video introduction as well as including a host of features for the consumer.