Meeting customer needs in the online property market

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With parts of the UK’s property market now reaching sky-high levels, it’s no wonder online property market startups are popping up more than ever before. And it’s not just them: many property market businesses are also trying out the online estate agency route.

For many digital entrepreneurs, setting up a property business online is a way to shake up the old system. In the UK, estate agents are legally allowed to work unregulated and totally unjustified heavy fees have unfortunately become the norm.

This has unfortunately contributed a lot to the “rogue agent” reputation and setting up a business online allows a number of property market entrepreneurs to clean the slate and start a fresh relationship with their customer base.

First class customer service

By exceeding customer’s expectations, online property market businesses can expect to improve conversion rate in return. Investing primarily in customer service is crucial, even for startups and very small business which may find it tricky to raise the necessary capital from the start.
To retain customers against potential competitors, making yourself and your business representatives available is key. This is especially true online, where customers are virtually at all times a single click away from any other competitor.

You should make it easy for people to contact you: contact details should be clearly indicated on the website. Live chat has also great potential: it’s convenient for your business and your customers.

Giving to the customer the opportunity to solve their queries immediately and making them feel supported with one of the most important transaction in their lives creates a smooth and engaging online experience while driving up conversion rates.

Get property owners and buyers to trust you

In order to gain traction in the property marketplace, earning the trust of potentials sellers and buyers is essential.
This can be a little tricky to do online, but there are a few basics to get right: advertise your business so people get familiar with your services and use high-definition visuals and photos on the website.
Don’t forget about the importance of trust for the sales process: make sure to feature some great reviews and testimonials as well as a staff presentation page with friendly portraits. Security badges such as VeriSign are also helpful to establish a trusted internet presence.

Develop your own mobile app

Step up your marketing game with your own property business app. As an innovative online company, having your own application is becoming a must to stay ahead of the property market business.

Most of your customer base will be using their mobile on a daily basis and an app is another way to get to them directly into their phone and reinforce your brand, your message and ultimately your offer.

Endri Hasanaj
Financial Economy Blog
Endri is interested in digital marketing, particularly in CRM via brand acquisition. Being a trilingual helps him doing researches around Multicultural Marketing.

3 COMMENTS

  1. You’re quite right in saying that the level of service is paramount. As an Online Estate Agent, that last thing that you need is bad reviews when you are trying to gain the trust of the potential vendor. Because of this you will generally find that an Online Estate Agent will go the extra mile to sell your property.

  2. It’s absolutely true, smart technology is great but what defines a smart start-up is the company’s ability to challenge status quo on the market. Newcomers like 99.co, OnTheMarket, Spacious, Splacer and Surefield all share this trait: they save client’s time and money while bringing more transparency and competition to the market — good news for property buyers and investors alike.

  3. The entire make-up of the property purchase transaction is rapidly shifting from the street corner brokerage to that on-line.

    Investors are sourcing deals on-line as opposed to walking in to six real estate offices in search of deals.

    Technology is advancing and with that the Real Estate office of today must adapt and accept the change for what it is.

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