When you meet someone for the first time, it is not uncommon for the question to arise “What do you do?” The answer that I should use is, "that we run a research company that informs business strategy in real estate for the capital markets, brokers, MLSs, REALTOR® Associations, and the technology companies that serve them."
Eric Forsman, Vice President of Technology Services of the Florida Realtors, echoed what I was thinking when I bumped into him at the inaugural National Association of REALTORS® iOi conference in San Francisco. “I didn’t know what to expect,” he said. And like Eric, I had the same reaction: we were both remarkably impressed.
When it comes to social media marketing, I tend to watch the strategies of teenagers more than real estate social media gurus. The gurus are great at what they do, training agents and firms on how to run successful campaigns and build authentic audiences. But the kids are where innovation comes from.
While I was sitting in the NAR Innovation conference, news came across the wire that News Corp, operators of Realtor.com and the realestate.au, acquired Austin based OPCITY for $210 Million. On the very same day, it became official that Pacific Union would be acquired by NYC based brokerage COMPASS. Like OPCITY, the trade was reportedly struck for north of $200 Million. Congratulations to Ben Rubenstein and Mark McLaughlin. WOW – Over $400 Million in deals done in a single day.
RE/MAX of Texas in concert with MooveGuru™ launched a new customer for life program available to over 5400 RE/MAX of Texas agents. Under the new program, agents may invite home buyers and sellers to save up to 15% or more on moving expenses and home ownership-related expenses though the partnership with MooveGuru.
Broker Public Portal with Homesnap is delivering remarkable results for agents and brokers across the country, delivering 1 million leads since its inception less than one year ago. This affordable, yet highly effective program is now available in 145 markets serving nearly 900,000 REALTORS today.
With planning for 2019 on the horizon, now is a great time to reflect on the best ways to help prepare your organization for the evolutions and revolutions which may happen next year.
Effective July 1, 2018, a licensee may subscribe to the MLS of his or her choosing, providing their broker participates in that MLS too. Under this new policy, the MLS must offer no-cost waivers to licensees who currently subscribe to another MLS.
Companies spend a lot of time and money focusing on their Elevator Pitch. As a PR professional, I can appreciate that and endorse the value of a key, succinct messaging to describe your company. My guess is so much focus has been placed on a strong Elevator Pitch because it's highly valued when a firm is out raising capital. I just wished more folks paid attention to their boilerplates.
In the media, you hear that Compass is a traditional brokerage driven by incredible technology that gives their agents an advantage in the marketplace. Frankly, I have registered for Compass’ website and mobile apps as a consumer and have not experienced anything extraordinary yet. We will continue to watch how they evolve their technology. It takes a very long time to do this, especially if you are trying to keep up with the data integrations driven by their market growth. Compass has Ori Allon as their Founder and Chairman. He founded Orion (search algorithm company acquired by Google), and Julpan (a product that analyzes social information on social media, acquired by Twitter). We have not seen Compass reinvent real estate search or do anything that integrates advanced social integrations yet. But it is part of the founder’s DNA. I am looking forward to what they bring to market.
Midwest Real Estate Data(MRED) has launched a new website, inspired by simplicity, convenience, and a full dedication to serving its customers.
REAL Trends, in collaboration with BoomTown, dotloop, and ERA Real Estate, in 2016 to conduct a terrific study of real estate teams. Called The Real Estate Teams Playbook, perhaps real estate’s most comprehensive look at teams, REAL Trends said it surveyed or interviewed thousands of real estate professionals “to understand the foundation and characteristics of today’s most successful teams.”
