Five Things Realtor.com Could Learn From Zillow (800 Lb Gorilla vs Elephant in the Room)
Zillow and Realtor.com are at the top of the list for the most popular real estate destinations online. While Realtor.com has been the leader for years, Zillow’s skyrocketing success has recently had it matching or beating Realtor.com’s traffic numbers, and its current trajectory certainly points to a growing lead in the future.
Instead of lamenting the current outlook or ignoring the ever-growing elephant in the room, it would be wise for the folks at Move, Inc (the current operators of Realtor.com) to take a step back and recognize what Zillow is doing right–the things that create web traffic and repeat, loyal web users.
Five Things Realtor.com Could Learn From Zillow
Mix in a Bit of Entertainment With Your Real Estate
Real estate consumers want to be intrigued, educated, and entertained at the same time. Have you read the blog on Realtor.com lately? If you’re a consumer, the answer is almost certainly “No”. The majority of the content on Realtor.com’s front page is about Realtor designations, continuing education, and statistical reporting. (Edit: there is quite a bit of entertaining content, but you have to find the blog first.)
Zillow’s blog, on the other hand, is chock-full of celebrity homes, tweets of the week, video interviews, and home tours. It’s eye candy, and it’s visually intermixed extensively with the other elements of the site. It’s the kind of thing that visitors come back to every morning to see something interesting or exciting. They share it with their friends. Realtor.com has recently made an attempt to move in this direction, and my advice would be to get some entertaining writers on board, pronto. Building a loyal fan base is more than just displaying home listings.
Be Sociable
I’m not just talking about having Facebook and Twitter sharing buttons here. Every site can and must have a way for users to share the content they find interesting, but we also need humans who actually interact in the social web.
Look at Zillow’s CEO, Spencer Rascoff. He’s responding to not only questions on the Zillow advice forums, but also tweets from average consumers on Twitter. Call me naive, but knowing the guy, I believe Spencer is really the person sitting at a desk and responding whenever someone on Twitter writes something interesting about Zillow. Of course, there are dozens of other Zillow employees doing the same throughout the social media platforms.
Can you imagine the kind of trust and loyalty your business achieves when employees are having one-on-one communication with “non-paying customers”? I’m not saying that Move Inc’s CEO needs to be on Twitter 24/7, but building a personal face, with local or regional interaction, would be greatly helpful for Realtor.com to create a stronger connection with its users. We want to talk to people, not brands.
Mobile is the New Bookmark
The key to being successful with web traffic is to get repeat traffic. Businesses need to find a way to remind consumers that they are still available when it comes time for a consumer to take a second look online. Repeat traffic creates loyal users.
Zillow knows that by getting its app on a user’s mobile device, they have a permanent “bookmark” on that user’s most personal possession. They carry it everywhere. Every time they look at their mobile device’s desktop, there is a nice big icon begging them to come back to Zillow. When you look at Zillow’s traditional website, there’s no way to miss the ever-present ads for the free app. That app is a hook into a user’s online world, and it is worth its proverbial weight in gold.
Realtor.com actually has a very nice app. Most users who download it will probably enjoy using it. The problem is finding it. Sure, there’s a tiny text link in the corner of the screen, but this just crystallizes the importance that the site places on creating mobile users. Compare this to the four inch image of an iPhone on Zillow, and guess which site is creating more app downloads and mobile users.
Leverage Your Strongest Allies
Zillow has a huge ally in Yahoo right now. The two companies combined have access to untold finances and online visibility. The partnership might be the strongest we’ve ever seen online in the real estate world, and their combined influence is exponentially stronger than it was as two separate organizations.
Realtor.com, on the other hand, theoretically has/had a trump card. The site is supposed to be the face of Realtors nationwide, and has unmatched credibility when responsibly used. The 800 lb gorilla, so to speak, is the “official” real estate landing page. The problem is the disconnect that has been created between Realtors and the quasi-Realtor organization, Move Inc.
Let me preface this by saying that I am an unabashed advocate of the Realtor organization, have worked with the government affairs group, and published outreach efforts for the local and state organizations. The ever-growing ideological divide between Realtors and Realtor.com seems like a major disappointment that never had to happen. Realtor.com needs to be brought back into the fold, and the two groups’ goals need to be aligned to create real success. This leads us to the final point.
Focus on the Consumers – Agent Advertising Dollars Will Follow
Focus on what consumers want, and leverage your ultimate asset: Realtors working in the field. Get every listing from every MLS in the country, and don’t muddy the waters with silly premium listings that distort the listing inventory for consumers.
Keep listing agents happy by listing all of their homes, without exception.
Keep consumers happy by having the all-encompassing, up-to-date, accurate database that home buyers are searching for.
It’s fairly simple. Realtor.com would have a huge leg up on its competition if it focused on making both agents and consumers happy instead of resorting to a “pay up or else” sales model. Traffic will grow organically with a full database of homes, as agents and consumers alike gain trust in the site as the “official” database of homes. Advertising revenue could easily grow as traffic increases, but the model should again be like Zillow’s. Buyers’ agents can pay for advertising space, and rates will be set by demand. There would be no conflict of interest in artificially displaying one listing over another. Just present a consumer with the best list of homes for sale, and an opportunity to work with a buyer’s agent in the area.
Sometimes, an old dog has to learn new tricks. The 800 lb. gorilla would be wise to emulate some of the moves its competitor, because it just happens to be the elephant in the room.
Greg Fischer
Posted at 22:00h, 26 MarchSam, great post. I think you’re right – Realtordotcom could really gain some ground on Zillow if they spent the appropriate amount of time organizing and executing their web presence. By default, I think consumers would rather go to Realtordotcom to look for houses (the trump card you refer to). I also think agents would be more likely to support the site, at least over Zillow, but somehow Realtordotcom completely misses this opportunity. How silly. Yes, basically they don’t even need to be creative to improve their offering, they could literally copy every move Zillow makes and be wildly successful. Instead, Realtordotcom just sits there like a shiny new bicycle thats never even made it around the block.
The biggest opportunity out there is for brokerages to become local leaders in the online game. Not surprisingly, a lot are missing this completely. We are making a strong attempt to change this, but it takes time and dedication. IDX is much more reliable than either Zillow or Realtordotcom since IDX data comes directly from the MLS. Why havent brokers figured out how to become “The Best place to search (insert city here) real estate”? This is my plan, no doubt.
Zillow is polluted with outdated, under contract, and sold homes that display as “active”. Their model can and should be beat at the local level, and even Realtordotcom could possibly leverage this against them if they ever decided to improve their product.
Your premise is exactly right. Create a portal designed to please both consumers and agents. It’d be a perfect time for Realtordotcom to do this with so much Zillow bashing going on from the Realtor community. Great post, well written and executed.
Sam DeBord, SeattleHome.com
Posted at 07:10h, 27 MarchThanks Greg, great minds think alike. I think that half of the agent/broker bashing of Zillow is a sincere critique of business practices, while the other half is sour grapes. Their website and its functionality is leaps and bounds ahead of the rest. Listings and zestimates, we’ll agree, are less than reputable.
Zillow and Trulia will continue to be popular. Realtor.com and local brokers’ sites need to emulate their attractive personalities. Consumers will realize the IDX/MLS database is better, but you’ve got to bring them in first.
Robert Drummer
Posted at 06:56h, 28 MarchWell said, but it’s difficult for the ‘little guy’ (anyone other than Zillow, Trulia and R®) to execute. I clicked the link to SeattleHome.com expecting to see a Zillow killer but the site wouldn’t load in my browser (CuiCui on Kindle…I know, long story). The IDX plugin was stuck in a loop. It worked much better on Chrome this morning.
The brokers, agents and public-facing MLS sites are all trying to take on the big 3: “ZuliatTOR®”. I’m sure those 3 are quite happy watching everyone else battle for the long-tail table scraps of traffic. And by “battle”, I mean rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic.
Like them or not, Zillow is firing on all cylinders and is poised to dominate. I’ve been one of Zillow’s critics (mostly for the 3-headed monster) but you can’t argue with success.
Jay Thompson was drinking the Zool-Aid and built a business on it. Now he’ll be serving it with little umbrellas. It’s the epitome of “if you can’t beat ’em, join ’em”.
In the coming months you’ll be invited to join the Empire by Zillow’s Industry Outreach and your MLS leaders will be wined and dined by Partner Relations.
Classic combo pincher/divide and conquer….sorry, “Embrace, Extend and Exterminate.” (Homage to Zillow’s MSFT roots).
Sam DeBord, SeattleHome.com
Posted at 07:16h, 28 MarchGuilty: We do not test our site on CuiCui for Kindle. Our web guys don’t seem concerned, though.
I think our common goal would be to have Realtor.com and Realtors working together. That’s going to take some rearranging of business models.
Fred Romano
Posted at 11:49h, 27 MarchGreat article Sam! But I think those at the top of Move will never sway from the business model they have now. They need the revenue from all their “showcase” subscribers to keep paying for all their sales/customer service staff. I know agents that are paying over $2,000 a MONTH and it makes me sick. Realtor.com’s service is NOT worth that money, but they hold all the cards (extortion IMO) and because someone has a lot of listings, they whack them harder!.
I pay just over $300 a month, but would much rather spend that money on marketing in other ways than “enhancing” my listings. I think all Realtors should have the enhanced option for free. Maybe they could make money by up-selling like Zillow, but I don’t see it happening anytime in the near future.
– Fred Romano, Owner http://flatfeerealty.com
Sam DeBord, SeattleHome.com
Posted at 06:59h, 27 MarchWe can always hope that the folks at Move will see the light, Fred. I’m of the opinion that on the “official Realtor site”, there should be no showcase listings. Consumers can choose which homes they want to highlight.
You are right that they have a large sales staff. If they’d just create a friendlier model, the traffic numbers would be so large that buyers’ agents would be clamoring to pay for a zip code. Less salespeople are necessary when your customers actually want your product.
Todd Shipman
Posted at 14:34h, 27 MarchSam, You mention the REALTOR organization and the experiance you have had working on issues relevant to home ownership. REALTOR.com could leverage all the good work REALTORS do everyday to advocate for Pvt. Property Rights! REALTOR.com should be telling that story, it could be done on a local level and highlight the REALTORS that actually step up to the plate and spend countless hours working on behalf of home owners, with only a hope that one day this work will result in a client sale and a commission. Now there is a “showcase” story that ZILLOW will never tell.
Spencer Rascoff
Posted at 09:54h, 27 MarchSheesh Sam, thanks a lot for giving them our playbook! 😉
Sam DeBord, SeattleHome.com
Posted at 10:50h, 27 MarchThere are far greater minds in your offices coming up with the next big thing, Spencer. Imitation is far easier, and less expensive, than innovation. That’s the price of being on the leading edge, right?
Drew Meyers
Posted at 11:01h, 27 MarchI wouldn’t be too worried 🙂
Lani Rosales
Posted at 12:37h, 27 MarchWe’ve found that giving our entire playbook out all the time has yet to hurt us – no one knows WHY we (or you) are personally motivated to do what we do, thus replication is near impossible, and most people are lookers not doers.
Audie Chamberlain
Posted at 10:49h, 27 MarchHi Sam, We’re really
excited about what we do here at Realtor.com. We are the industry-friendly
solution for connecting brokers, MLSs, and agents with serious home buyer and
sellers. We know your site is always going to be your first priority but we absolutely want to be your second option to help you grow your business.
By industry friendly I mean Realtor.com respects the rights of all content owners and their responsibility to market their listings. Our data comes directly from +850 MLSs and is always accurate, we display real prices of a home for sale from real
professionals and the seller, not a mechanized “estimate” and we only accept listings from brokers, no FSBOs from homeowners.
Our model is a
traditional subscription-based eCommerce model that respects the broker’s
rights as the content owner and may not for everybody, and that’s OK. Every listing displays for free. If a broker or agent chooses not to work with
us as an advertising and marketing partner, they can opt-out or choose not
to opt-in.
I manage Realtor.com Blogs and think that you must have our blog confused with another blog. We’ve
been covering all thing RE (including “eye candy” celebrity, data, Q&A advice etc.) for years and have a loyal following of over 300k
serious buyers, sellers, investors, professionals and enthusiasts visit us each
month.
At Realtor.com we’re always working to improve things
and honest feedback definitely helps. I would love to hear more of your thoughts and
will give you a call.
Kind Regards,
Audie Chamberlain
Head of Social Media
Realtor.com
[email protected]
Sam DeBord
Posted at 13:11h, 27 MarchAudie, thank you for taking the time to respond, and a quick mea culpa: I went back to your blog and now see more entertainment-style stories than I had noticed in the past. It’s just not as obvious/easy to find as on other sites.
I think that most Realtors, including myself, have great hopes for Realtor.com. Unfortunately, I hear far too many agents disparaging the site. It really shouldn’t be that way, and both organizations would benefit from a stronger combined mission.
We both know that many complaints are associated with the cost of advertising. Businesses need to profit to survive, and advertising is clearly the revenue stream. However, it seems that “showcasing” certain listings over others, while perfectly reasonable for a private business model, actually decreases the credibility of the database and the Realtor name. Consumers don’t know if they’re only seeing the homes that the top advertiser paid for, or if they’re really seeing the whole market.
Realtor.com benefits when agents want to advertise, as opposed to begrudgingly pay their monthly dues. Buyers’ agents will pay handsomely for zip codes and buyer leads (which I know you’re pushing harder these days). Transparency on the listing side, in my opinion, would bring greater consumer traffic and greater revenue long-term.
Sam DeBord, SeattleHome.com
Posted at 21:28h, 27 MarchAudie, thank you for taking the time to respond, and a quick
mea culpa: I went back to your blog and
now see more entertainment-style stories than I had noticed in the past. It’s just not as obvious/easy to find as on
other sites.
I think that most Realtors, including myself, have great
hopes for Realtor.com, which is why I wrote this. The quality of listings is superior, and the integrity of the database is unmatched. Both organizations would benefit
from a stronger combined mission.
We both know that many Realtor complaints are associated with the
cost of advertising. Businesses need to
profit to survive, and advertising is clearly the revenue stream. However, it seems that “showcasing”
certain listings over others, while perfectly reasonable for a private business
model, actually decreases the credibility of the database and the Realtor
name. Consumers don’t know if they’re
only seeing the homes that the top advertiser paid for, or if they’re really
seeing the whole market.
Realtor.com benefits when agents want to advertise, as
opposed to begrudgingly paying to keep their listing visible.
Buyers’ agents will pay handsomely for zip codes and buyer leads (which
I know you’re pushing harder these days).
Realtors want to highlight Realtor.com as the model for a national real estate site. Transparency on the listing side would bring greater
consumer traffic, greater revenue, and more agent buy-in in the long-term.
Drew Meyers
Posted at 21:44h, 27 MarchI agree with your thoughts on the blog. When I go to the blogs page, it’s not as “clean”, nor is it clear what they want their audience to do as it is on Zillow Blog.
my 2 cents. i know a few design shops that could help improve the UI 🙂
Sam DeBord, SeattleHome.com
Posted at 12:40h, 27 MarchTodd, we would be ecstatic if Realtor.com got in sync with the efforts of the Realtor organization. Property rights, community involvement, and many other issues would benefit from the synergy of the two organizations. All we can do is continue trying.
Bend Oregon Real Estate
Posted at 00:11h, 28 MarchExcellent, well thought article. Realtor.com needs to take off the tie, relax, and have more fun. This isn’t the 80’s guys. Get a young, creative marketing team behind Realtor.com and go crazy. Have you seen Google’s Office and laid back environment? The last time I checked, they were doing just fine. Maybe there is something to be learned here? Greg Broderick, Bend Oregon.
Sam DeBord, SeattleHome.com
Posted at 10:07h, 29 MarchI think there are plans in the works, Greg. They are starting to see the light, we’re just encouraging them along the way. Thanks for the input.
Teyona
Posted at 05:57h, 28 MarchThe things are all really valuable. Realtors must know these two important things in real estate. Zillow always amazed us.
Propertystr
Posted at 04:17h, 30 MarchSuch a nice
post, I like your post so much.
Dolce21gabbana
Posted at 14:47h, 05 AprilI personally disagree with the author of this blog. I am part of the Real Estate Industry, and could not agree with these talking points; however, it may something for Realtor.com to consider.
1. Mix in a Bit of Entertainment With Your Real Estate – As a real estate professional and home buyer, I personally have no interest about a blog’s website. I look at blog’s as a website’s effort to gain SEO. I do agree that it attracts other “bloggers,” but that’s that. I would be curious to ask different home buyers that did their home shopping efforts to these site, whether they paid attention to the blog or not.
2. Be Sociable – No comment. I personally do not find this relevant. Why is the CEO of Zillow going to help me find a house by replying to post on Facebook. In my mind, only social media geeks care about things like that, not home buyers. Zillow did follow me on twitter due to a comment I responded to. How does that help me? Hmmmm
3. Mobile is the New Bookmark – Zillow has had great traffic success due to the implementation of mobile technology. Also, Zillow has had a lot of money injected into their business, which can result in better SEO. I have helped a lot of businesses develop Real Estate websites as well as their mobile. In that I have performed a lot of consumer feedback and studies. While I do agree that Realtor.com could enhance the mobile app. Realtor.com actually has the best Mobile app in the market by consumer feedback. Also, consumers trust the data on Realtor.com, while the data from Zillow is very questionable.
4. Leverage Your Strongest Allies – I can’t personally give my opinion on this one as I do not know anything about both companies’ partnerships. I do know the Realtor.com has the ally consumers care about, the MLS.
5. Focus on the Consumers – Agent Advertising Dollars Will Follow I do think that Realtor.com cares about consumers, they just have a different business approach. In my case studies, I find that consumers have had bad experience with Zillow as far as content accuracy. I also worked with agents, whose listings had be claimed by a different realtor, just because they had a free account, and could do that. Realtor.com focuses on providing accurate and precise content. I hate to count people’s money, but both companies are businesses after all. I read reports that neither Trulia nor Zillow made a profit on 2011, and we all know that all businesses have to make money. Zilliow has booked losses of $6 Million +.
I would like to add that I am a fan of Zillow. I love their fun social media approach, and all of that. However, I am also a business person, and have helped developed and build MANY real estate websites, and personally, I find that Realtor.com has done a great job. I wouldn’t call Zillow an elephant, and Realtor.com a gorilla. I think both companies could learn from one another, but at the same time, we need to keep in consideration that these companies do not have the same business model. But, that’s just my opinion.
bubbag
Posted at 18:02h, 11 JuneRealtor.com is tedious in how frequently you have to re-login. Every two or 3 days, I have to re-login if I want to manage properties. Seems trivial, but it’s tedious, and contributes negatively to the user experience.
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