I just read the recent posting to Joel Burslem's blog, Future of Real Estate Marketing, Millions of Listing Oh My regarding the lastest statistics regarding the total number of listings now available online from the real estate search portals.
I read the numbers and I can't help but yawn. So what. So now consumers can have access to all the available properties online - there's plenty of data now available online. But is Web 2.0 solutions for real estate really all about the data?
1000Watt consulting has developed a Real Estate Web 2.0 mindshare map which classifies the players in the real estate technology space and where they play. As a real estate practitioner, I come across both buyers and sellers who are actively engaged on many of the sites on the map searching for their new home - doing the comparisons and grinding out the data. Why do I need a real estate agent when I can do my own search? I can do my own comps - all real estate agents do is look up property on the MLS and drive me around to look at houses I have already found.
Wait one cotton-pickin' minute Guggliomi! Do consumers really think real estate agents just look for property - property listings already available through many of the players on the Web 2.0 map? I think someone with the experience who does the analysis on a day to day basis has a better basis for assimilating the data personally, but that's my opinion.
Regardless, I still don't think the Web 2.0 data driven solutions are the answer. As I scour the map of players, I am struck by the scope of the playing field - and the categories. It simply hit me that there really is no comprehensive solution which is addresses the real estate landscape. No current offering provides an intuitive process approach that follows the natural progression of a real estate transaction.
While many sites such as Trulia allow users to interact and share knowledge and expertise in TruliaVoices, it is generally disjointed and lacks the context within the natural progression of the process of buying or selling real estate.
Why is this important? Because consumer still don't know what they don't know. They think the process is all about the data. Who's fault is that?
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4 comments:
Good post, Tom. Everyone is so focused on listings right now. Are listings important? Absolutely. If a consumer real estate website is going to be successful, being able to browse for homes is a critical component, but it's no longer a significant competitive differentiator. There will be sites out there with cool and flashy ways of looking at listings that will set an offering slightly apart, but the key is how those listings are integrated into other products offered in my opinion.
David - greatly appreciate the comment! In your opinion, what are other products that should be integrated?
Tom:
In my experiences as a Realtor and Broker over the past 11 years...consumers could care less about how the data is presented. All they really want in a real estate site is to find the home that matches their criteria. This is a very simple process that almost any real estate website can deliver. Local keyword optimization seems to be the best way to gain those buyers online. Otherwise, growing your network is the best way to gain them offline.
Brad - thanks for the comment - glad to be connected.
T
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