Industry Interview: Sarah Beeny, Founder of Tepilo.
What made you come up with the idea of Tepilo?
The idea for my online estate agency grew from my astonishment at how much ‘traditional’ high-street estate agents were charging to do things that vendors could do themselves, and in fact, do better! For example, who can give as thorough and detailed information on a property and area when conducting a viewing as the vendor themselves?!
I think selling a home and the words ‘Estate Agent’ had grown to have connotations of negativity and fear. I wanted to change the face of estate agency and make the process fair, affordable and as stress-free as possible, whilst also maintaining a strong sense of support and personality.
Within the industry, there is a debate whether online agents are in fact actually Estate Agents at all, what’s your thoughts on that?
Just because we’re online doesn’t mean we’re not just as good and if not better than the high-street agents! The Tepilo team are experienced, fully trained and dedicated to giving our vendors the best (24/7) support and sell their home at the best price as possible.
How important do you feel social media is and will be to the estate agency industry?
Social media is a very focal point of most people’s lives these days and seldom an hour goes by where your Twitter feed isn’t refreshed.. So of course it’s an important factor. At Tepilo we use Instagram to communicate what I like to call our ‘Tepilo Property Porn’ and Twitter, Facebook to communicate any news and updates from Tepilo, as well as general property news which we think our audience will find relevant and interesting. They’re also fab platforms to quickly and publicly respond to any consumer questions and queries.
Innovation in Estate Agency we strongly support and showcase on our website, is innovation key to Tepilo’s future ongoing success?
Of course. We’re constantly discussing our next steps and ways to improve, and always encourage feedback from users of the site/process as well as our staff.
We consistently work to think outside of the box and develop the system towards the needs and wants of our vendors, and this will always be at the forefront of our processes. In fact, keep an eye on the site as you never know, new things might just be on the horizon.
Thank you Sarah for answering our questions!
Find out more about Tepilo by following them on Twitter here @Tepilo or visiting their website: www.Tepilo.com
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