In the first post of this series, (How has the Real Estate Industry changed over the past 10 years?), we discussed how technology has transformed the real estate industry. Business success now coincides with the success of one's website, social media, and mobile accessibility. But what does this mean for the future of the industry? How can you take advantage of current trends, in order to excel in the future? We sat down with Bill Fandel, a top producing agent with over 22 years of experience in the industry, to get insight on what you can expect for the future of business through real estate.
To be a successful agent, you have to be able to create a relationship with your clients. In the past, this meant leveraging open houses to get to know your clients, which led to referrals and happy customers. Though this still remains effective today, it has more meaning now than ever before. On top of remaining in good relation with your clients, an effective agent now has to look to technology to further their knowledge of their clientele in order to be the most successful in the future.
So, what does this mean? Bill Fandel claims the future of real estate is knowing who is looking for what, and when and how they're looking to obtain it. It's one thing to be a friendly agent when clients come to you, but the most success in the future will come from agents who use digital platforms to learn more about their clients and potential clients. You have to understand who your client base is, and do so in the most effective way. "Metadata is the future of the industry." Says Fandel. "Platforms that would be most relevant are those that listen to the brokerage community and supply analytics." Products like rezora that render data are the future of the industry. Being able to see both your clients' demographics and the results of your campaigns all on one database is revolutionary for the industry. The more detailed that data is, the more able the agent is to hyper-target.
"Hyper targeting is a big part of the future." Fandel explains. "Being able to segment your audience so that you are targeting the right audience is going to be key moving forward." Hyper targeting refers to the ability to deliver advertising content to specific interest-based segments in a network. So that rather than targeting people who are just looking for a new home, agents can market to people who are looking for great public schools or prefer quiet neighborhoods. Sending ads to those who have actual interest in what you're selling is much more effective than mass advertising to the wrong audience.
So, how can you use these new upcoming trends to grow in the future? It all comes back to fostering a relationship with your clients, so you can really understand what they're looking for. Real estate platforms that provide metadata will allow you to connect with the right audience, and will in turn open the doors to learn more about them, create lasting relationships and earn valuable referrals. The more relationships you have in your specific market, the more successful you will become.
Be sure to look out for the last part of this 3-part series, where experienced real estate professionals give advice to those just entering the industry, and to those looking to grow and improve.