The Role of Web Analytics in Today’s Real Estate ROI
Interview with Stephen Oachs and Tina Bean, Co-founders of VisiStat, Inc.
I recently had the chance to chat with the co-founders of VisiStat™ about measurable ROI and online tools for the real estate sector. Through their Web analytics and Website management product, Tina Bean, Sales & Marketing Director, and Stephen Oachs, Technology Director, offer a unique and valuable insight into our industry.
REB: I understand you participated as a panelist at the 2007 Inman News Real Estate Connect Conference in San Francisco. Would you tell us about it?
TB: We were excited to participate in the Unraveling ROI: Tools for Measuring Online Success panel. It was standing room only, and the audience was savvy and engaged. The panel included Renwick Congdon, CEO of IMPREV, Derek Overbey, VP of Marketing for Intero Real Estate Services, and Eric Bryn, VP of Strategic Development for Leading Real Estate Companies of the World™. Ilyce Glink, President of ThinkGlink, Inc, moderated the panel.
I was invited to participate because I come from two arenas, real estate and Web analytics. Having been an active REALTOR® with Alain Pinel Realtors in Saratoga, CA, for years, I have personally experienced the benefits and success of merging online technology with real estate business models for the agent and brokerage. Web management and data tracking (analytics) are undeniably a real value proposition.
The discussion on the panel centered on being a visionary. Agents can’t be complacent, and brokers need to align their agents with great search tools like Trulia® and Zillow™, and powerful tracking tools like VisiStat™, in order to effectively create measurable ROI.
SO: Brokers are seeing that agents are becoming more aware of technology, and are realizing that their agents will be looking to them for their online tools and how to use them most effectively. A successful broker keeps his or her agents on the cutting edge. Eric Bryn had said, "The members of my network tell me that VisiStat is made for sales and marketing people, that’s why realtors grasp it so quickly." This makes sense and is the reason why we heard, especially from brokers, how VisiStat has become such a powerful tool for them. They use it to quantify and measure the effectiveness of their online ad spend, and to substantiate the outreach and usage of their Website by viewers all over the globe.
TB: Yes, and like Derek [Overbey] said, "…if we didn’t have agents we wouldn’t have a brokerage, so it’s up to me to go out and find the best tools possible for my agents." Brokers now have better tools and online venue opportunities — they have a responsibility to their agents to watch trends, seek out the most cutting-edge and effective tools and technology, and bring it to them. Industry studies show that homebuyers are going to the Internet and moving away from newspaper ads. It’s important that brokers look at the bigger picture and see how public behavior is changing; to be forward thinking and to stay aware of upcoming home buyer trends and behaviors. This message is resonating within the real estate community, which was proven to us by the questions and testimonials we heard from hundreds of agents at Howard Brinton’s STAR POWER® conference.
REB: You mentioned attending the STAR POWER® Annual Conference; can you tell us more about that?
TB: The STAR POWER® conference was great, with 1500 of the top producing real estate agents in the country attending. STAR POWER® is an event where agents have the opportunity to get the latest and greatest technology and business tools, information, news, and the chance to discuss industry-impacting issues. When we attended in 2006, we spent the lion’s share of our time introducing the concept and importance of Web analytics, explaining how crucial good Website data tracking and management is to real estate professionals. Analytics and tracking seemed to be a fresh technology to the real estate sector last year. We saw a real difference this year.
SO: There was a lot less education needed on the concept and need for measuring Website performance. This year the questions and conversations were more about how not having a Website is being seen as a credibility issue. In one year, the industry has gone from acknowledging Websites to realizing that Websites with accurate and understandable analytics tools are critical for tracking ROI. Agents are not just more aware, they are implementing the new technologies and making a real difference in their businesses. A great example is that we were seeing agents with multiple Websites consolidating their reporting across all sites into a single reporting area, using VisiStat to make multi-site management very simple.
TB: And we saw VisiStat being utilized in innovative ways. It was gratifying to hear people say that VisiStat was the best technology they walked away from the conference with last year. Agents showed us their marketing materials and how they were using VisiStat for improving sales, and we saw VisiStat featured in many of the panels throughout the show. These are tremendous indicators that the real estate industry is coming into its own online, and is fully able to keep in step and grow with the newest technologies.
REB: From your experience, what Web tools do you recommend, and what do you see as the coming trends for online growth and success of real estate Websites?
TB: For Web tools, following analytics, I can’t say enough in support of having a blog. The potential for marketing and networking connections is virtually unlimited. Bradley Inman made a great point when he said, "Blogging replaces what you did in church 25 years ago." I agree. Blogging replicates the type of social networking that used to occur in local churches. It opens community discussion, shares information in a personal, approachable way. Word spreads from person to person, e-mail to e-mail, and blog to blog. I feel it is an indispensable tool. Blogs give you the opportunity to build trust and to become a respected resource in your field. It also allows for immediate interaction through reader comments and spontaneous feedback. For a professional in a social industry, where the client is both business and personal, blogging is a tool that can connect on both levels, allowing that emotional connection agents build with clients to also build with readers…readers who are potential clients.
SO: With syndication feed (RSS) resources like Technorati™, and e-mail syndication services like FeedBurner™ or FeedBlitz™, a blog post can be all over the Internet within minutes. This is a tremendous marketing advantage, and with the new search trends and ranking parameters, blogging can get some impressive SEO (Search Engine Optimization) mileage with little more than decent, keyword-appropriate writing. With a blog, good information will get you good attention. It’s a solid, defining social networking tool.
As far as coming trends, without a doubt, it’s SaaS/Web 2.0, which is redefining the Internet and how businesses perform online. The SaaS (software as a service) model allows for unprecedented i
nnovation. Its real-time nature allows for the empowering of proactive vs. reactive decision-making. VisiStat, built with the SaaS model in mind, is a great example of this.
REB: Speaking of VisiStat, what are your plans? What’s next?
SO: I’d have to say, to continue what we’ve started, which is to take traditionally complex information and provide it in a way that is extremely easy to access and understand. By utilizing the SaaS model, we can bundle all current and future hands-on applications so our customers need to do nothing more than log in and learn about their businesses. We’ll continue to push the envelope and remain a visionary leader in Web analytics and Website management.
TB: I agree, and I’d like to add that, while doing so, we will continue to pursue our mission to meet and exceed the needs of today’s real estate professionals. This includes continuing to put the power of measurable ROI in the hands of brokers by introducing new tools and offering special broker-friendly pricing plans. In this way, we can make the power of VisiStat reporting, on both the corporate and agent levels, affordable and accessible like never before.
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