Comments on: “Any Site Requiring a Log In Is Death For Lead Generation”

By: Chris from Serron serviced offices and virtual offices in australia

Chris from Serron serviced offices and virtual offices in australia — Sun, 22 Jun 2008 09:26:49 +0000

I couldn’t agree more with this posting.
Log-ins indeed kill leads big time.

By: Stephen Jagger

Stephen Jagger — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 11:52:21 +0000

@ Brad Lambert – That’s great. Congratulations.
My main point is that I think the technology is on its way out and that your average user is to savvy to put their contact information into an online form that only provides them listing data.

We push agents to put their thoughts/feeling/ideas/interpretations of the market and real estate in general on their website in a blog/video/text so that potential buyers and sellers can get a feel for the specific agent. From your 2 stories above, it sounds like both of those clients if they ended up on any website that had property search functionality they would have used that agent.

Our push is that agents should focus on search engine optimization and differentiating themselves from other agents. Access to the listings is not a differentiator; I could be a real estate agent in 4 weeks. That would give me the same access to the data as any other realtor; does that make me as good at the business as you? I don’t think so. I think the data is just a commodity that anyone can have access to. The important part is your interpretation of the data.

Thanks Brad for commenting here. Look forward to future discussions. If your ever interested in taking the Ubertor system for a test drive let me know as I would be pleased to help you get setup.

By: Brad Lambert

Brad Lambert — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 23:50:41 +0000

On another occasion, I contacted a lead generated on my site from Virtual Office which resulted in a showing of one of my Listed properties in Rosemary Heights in South Surrey – after an itial showing, they came back with their own agent but I still sold the property as a result of following up on the lead generated by my VOW – Success in this business depends on how you follow-up on your leads.

By: Brad Lamberet

Brad Lamberet — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 23:43:02 +0000

I have had my website lead directly to a sale to a client transferred here from Calgary – they liked my website and the fact that they could use the Virtual Office to search for properties in my area (South Surrey/White Rock, BC. Their company said they could use any Royal LePage agent they wanted, and after viewing my site and using the Virtual Office service, they called my office and told the secretary that they (very specifically) liked my website and would like me to call them directly. When I spoke to them, they told me they were coming in to Vancouver to look at houses in the South Surrey area on the weekend and asked me “would you be available? I met them at a local Starbucks with a number of houses lined up to look at and they bought one that weekend. My writing the offer on that home resulted in a $10,000 Commission – SO, OBVIOUSLY, THIS SERVICE HAS WORKED FOR ME.

By: Stephen Jagger

Stephen Jagger — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 18:14:00 +0000

@ MJ – I hear that all the time… lots of wasted time trying to follow up on “leads” that have come through a vow. We have lots of clients that have moved over to Ubertor and followed our philosophy of creating value by showing expertise in specific long tail markets/topics.

By: MJ Ankenman

MJ Ankenman — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 17:19:37 +0000

I am not convinced about the value of a listing appearing before it shows up on MLS. I have my buyers on auto notification and the listing always appears before any photos or showings are happening. It may not show up on MLS.ca as fast but if you are working with a good Realtor they will have the info to you as quickly as VOW. I too had a password projected sight and did get emails but they never produced a single lead. A lot of wasted time.

By: Mark Eckenrode

Mark Eckenrode — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 16:57:28 +0000

@Greg - the idea that MLS data provides enough value for someone to give up their anonymity is flawed. MLS data is a commodity... something any agent can provide and available on most any other agent site. but, you are correct in that if you offer something of enough value people will pretty damn nearly give you whatever information you ask for. what it comes down to is what REAL value can you provide... MLS data is a crutch for the poor agent marketer. here's an example of a lead-generation/conversion process

By: Stephen Jagger

Stephen Jagger — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 16:48:41 +0000

@ Matthew – I have seen lots of web 2.0 people push vow solutions. I just disagree with them and I think that the day of the vow is coming to an end. There are better ways to get leads (and better quality leads) by putting information and your opinion out there. People will come to you when you have something to say.

I’ve always said that if you need to hide information to gain the lead then you’re in for a tough time in real estate. A good Realtor with something to say, something worth listening to will get the leads. People will flock to them.