Staying Competitive in a Saturated Market
The last few years have been great for real estate agencies, but increased profit acts as a double-edged sword. With more to gain, the market is growing increasingly saturated with new agencies, making the prospect of staying competitive an increasingly difficult task.
While there are many ways to stay ahead, our goals are to ensure maximum viability without having to compromise by reducing prices. Fortunately, there are ways that estate agencies can keep competing without having to put themselves in harm’s way.
Improving Your Online Presence
In the age of the internet, having a high level of online visibility is a must. This means going above and beyond mere listings websites, and maintaining an active site or set of pages that keep users updated. As a starting point, this should include a website that is updated constantly, quickly, and accurately. To go a step beyond, websites should also strive to include modifications for their site to include holidays or changing seasons. You’ve probably noticed Google Doodles as a fantastic example of this, where a little work goes a long way.
The other side of this coin is found in social media accessibility. As demonstrated by Rightmove, Zoopla, and Boomin, social media pages can act as a popular point of access for potential customers, and for good reason.
According to 2022 stats, there are currently more than 4.5 billion active social media users, with Facebook alone boasting nearly 3 billion. Adopting the big social media pages and keeping them updated can be just as important as with your website, forming two parts of a whole.
Offering Freebies and Support
While giving out free property and 24/7 support probably isn’t viable, there are smaller efforts you can make within your industry’s purview to keep customers engaged. The best path here comes from understanding both the message you want to send and working within your bounds.
For an illustration of bonuses, consider how online slot sites like Casino Lab and LeoVegas operate. Having run a cost/benefit analysis on their services, these websites offer free spins and deposit matches to maximise their user appeal. These bonuses tie into their hundreds of games and help spread word of mouth. Though not directly applicable to real estate, this same idea of free giveaways will still be widely appreciated. This could start as simple as pens and clothing, free consultations and competitions, and more.
In terms of support, a suggestion we commonly see undervalued is the implementation of guiding online support systems. Knowledge-based systems like Wix Answers and Notion that guide users to their own solutions are popular picks here. Aside from being helpful, these can also free up time for staff, so ongoing costs can be minimised.
Focussing on an Interpersonal Approach
The most important part of any business is the customers, and while it can be efficient to quickly move from one to the next, taking the time to build a relationship is going to be a better approach in the long term. Again, many different avenues can be taken here depending on your strengths, but they generally revolve around treating customers as people first, and wallets second.
This can mean customising the way you manage a customer depending on their needs. Some might be clueless about basic aspects, where you should share your knowledge without rushing them along. Other basic signs of respect like sticking to appointments and always being on time will also help show them your genuine concern for their best outcomes.
Each of these approaches can take some time to learn and implement, but each is also likely to have significant payouts in the long term. Even one sale made through these improvements will be enough to justify costs, and over time, even the most complicated processes will become simple second nature. For new agencies or those just starting, taking your business a step further can give you the edge you need.
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