13 Nov What’s Going To Change?
What's Going To Change?
Instead:
"What's NOT going to change in the next ten years is a question I almost never get asked" - Jeff Bezos.
That question, what's NOT going to change, is particularly relevant to the estate agency/real estate sector.
In the mad rush to embrace technology that changes by the minute, we are in danger of losing sight of what makes this industry so special.
The 2023 EA Masters Innovation Awards is a case in point.
One agency apparently leading the way by using Artificial Intelligence to customise the Salesforce CRM system.
Another service provider that has developed a network, built on enterprise-grade blockchain..
How about a comparison site for tech that features the irrelevance of net promoter scores.
Here's a cracker - software that allows users to create compelling and comprehensive property descriptions and client-facing emails in just a few clicks that "most importantly aren't obviously generated by ChatGPT".
The clue is in the word obviously - it's not a subtle point they're making. Provided technology hasn't already robbed you of the ability to still think for yourself.
Technology, loudly proclaimed to be changing the face of estate agency. Until eventually it largely replaces the human element.
Jeff Bezos went on to say that you can build a business strategy around the things that are stable in time.
Estate agency has always been termed a "people" business - even if the people delivering it weren't all that transparent, or all that competent.
"All things being equal, people will still do business with a friend. All things being unequal, people will still do business with a friend." - Mark McCormack,
Homeowners want an agent they can trust and that was true ten years ago and will still be true ten years from now. They want an agent that will protect and guide in ten years as much as they do today.
Build a strategy around the people. Not the Marketing expertise. Not the data. Not the local market expertise. Not the perceived value. Not the customer service. Not the business model. Not the brand awareness and certainly not around the technology. Every one of those can be easily replicated and when it can be replicated, your agency is in competition.
A strategy built around people, a culture if you will, is not replicable - because people are unique.
Category leadership as a Marketing strategy can be simplified as Biggest (Market Share), Better (Technology) or Different (People).
Biggest seeks dominance of a market. Which is only ever temporary. Competing, winning - and losing. It's expensive.
Better seeks to bring efficiency through automation. The next shiny object that will "transform" the industry. Incremental improvement.
Different, by its very definition, does not compete and when there is no competition, strange things can happen.
Less marketing spend because consumers instinctively seek out and are curious of things that are not part of the common.
Higher fees because we are willing to pay more for something that is unique.
A more stable work environment - attracting and retaining the people who are the best fit for our unique culture.
Freedom, for those employees, to express themselves as brand ambassadors without fear of censorship. How scary is that?
Trust and loyalty from customers who instinctively spread the word within the community.
"Picture a business built on love and care rather than on stress and fear whose team members are passionate about their work. Think of a business that cares profoundly about the well-being of its customers, seeing them not as consumers but as flesh-and-blood human beings whom it is privileged to serve. It would no more mislead, mistreat or ignore its customers than any thoughtful person would exploit loved ones at home. Imagine a business that views its competitors not as enemies to be crushed but as teachers to learn from and fellow travellers on the road to excellence." - excerpted from Conscious Capitalism by John Mackey & Raj Sisodia.
One thing is for certain - that's not modern day estate agency. Not by any stretch of the imagination.
But it could; in ten years from now.
A focus on the people behind the brand. A focus on what matters to those people.
Radical transparency in all things. After all, what is there to hide?
Ditching the Act - of being a "local property expert" and instead being seen as someone who doesn't have all the answers, but someone that is implicitly trusted for Who they are.
Someone for whom Integrity, Honesty, Accountability, Collaboration, Kindness and Communication matter more than profit.
Someone that will help lead the industry from bottom-three on The Veracity Index Of Trusted Professions to top-three. Replacing mid-table taxi-drivers as a more trusted profession (twice as trusted) would be a start.
It's a long hard road to travel. Selling ideology instead of services.
One that won't be made easier by technology, irrelevant and unreliable surveys or by the idiocy of competition.
When there is reliance on technology, the human element so essential to building sustainable relationships and loyal clients is apt to disappear. Making it ever more a simple transaction and playing into the hands of those that seek to control and manipulate through owning the data.
A reliance by agencies that has bordered on addictive when we consider the frightful power Rightmove and other digital platforms hold.
Technology won't make you a better estate agent or realtor. It might make you more competent, or efficient. The one thing we look for in agents is character. Do we instinctively like them? That's the question that really should be asked now and in ten years.
What's going to change in ten years is one question.
What's Not going to change is a better one to ask.
Build your business strategy on that.
Thanks as always for reading this far.
Here's how to contact me if the need arises:
chris@andsothestorybegan.co.uk
Mob: (44) 07369251435
Look it up if it isn't familiar.
Chris.
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