The path ahead for property portals

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Property Portal Watch WorkshopSan Francisco - August 4, 2009

The Path Ahead for Property Portals

Who are we?

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and many more…

Clients:

We speak with everyone

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Regularly speak with 50+

portals in many markets,

media sites, etc

Current web thinking

OLD NEW

• Closed• Own the user• Brand• Offline advertising• Size• Pageviews/Display• Profit Driven

• Open• Let the user go• Experience• Word of mouth• Speed• Actions• User first

Topics

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• Is content king?

• Openness?

• At what cost SEO?

• Google?

• New models?

• Print?

Is Content King?

My database is bigger than yours

Is the database a differentiator?

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Do users care?

http://www.flickr.com/photos/fun3/417463333/

Maybe bigger isn’t better?

Definition of content has evolved

User Generated Content

Or is it user experience that matters?

http://www.flickr.com/photos/superbomba/3560084221

Discussion

Is database size critical?

How is community/UGC relevant for real estate?

What matters, size or speed?

facebook

Twitter

Yahoo!

Should you let the user leave your site?

http://www.flickr.com/photos/cpstorm/140115572/

Who owns the user?

Portal

Estate Agent

Seller

?

Discussion

Is “owning” the user still valid?

Should you let the user leave?

Should you let others in?

Friend or Foe?

Property Portal

http://www.flickr.com/photos/ittybittiesforyou/3528619275

Free!!!!

Free!!!!

Users!!!!

Free????

If Google had to do SEO

http://www.meangene.com/google/google1.html

The Cost of SEO

• time, effort

• expertise required

• lose control over product

• lack of transparency

Discussion

Is relying on SEO healthy?

Is there any alternative?

Should you diversify your sources of traffic?

Is it safe to rely on a potential competitor?

Keeping the users

Keeping the users (2)

Is this the internet users want?

Targeting SMEs

Targeting agents

Google Real Estate

How will Google get users?

“The ascent of Google Maps is a result of the shortcut in the search results on Google. 61% of visits to Google Maps came directly from Google last week.”Heather Hopkins, Hitwise

http://weblogs.hitwise.com/us-heather-hopkins/2009/02/google_maps_edges_closer_to_ma_1.html

The cream rises to the top, right?

Who owns the user?

Portal

Estate Agent

Seller

Current web thinking

• Closed• Own the user• Brand• Offline advertising• Size• Pageviews/Display• Profit Driven

OLD NEW

• Open• Let the user go• Experience• Word of mouth• Speed• Actions• User first

Discussion

Is Google a portal?

Is Google defending the user?

Is Google neutral?

What are the challenges Google Real Estate faces?

What should portals do?

New models?

http://www.flickr.com/photos/35421063@N00/2731757488

Inclusion• flat fee• ex: Yellow Pages

Audience• Pay for audience• ex: newspapers

Performance• results• ex: search

Free• ads• ex: globrix, gumtree

Is free really viable?

Registration

Detail pages

Financial servicesRelated info

Upselling

Adsense

Should you be thinking about performance?

Agents want the users

• Not all agents, but growing number

• Invested in website

• Google trains them with Analytics, Adwords

Migration is hard

http://www.flickr.com/photos/pnoid00/1909096140

What do you sell?

Performance

http://www.flickr.com/photos/al-stan/3093809724/

Branding

http://www.flickr.com/photos/funkyah/455336901/

Discussion

Are new models viable?

What do agents want?

Is it possible for giants to change model?

Print?

http://www.flickr.com/photos/bluefootedbooby/352172004

Print is dead

Interview of 1000+ German Estate Agents

00.5

11.5

22.5

33.5

44.5

5

Reach regional audienceReach national audience

Generate leadsBrand building

ROI

Performance

Newspapers

Online Portals

Source: ImmoStudie 2009

Search by id num, from newspaper

Offline and Online

Long live media groups!

Discussion

Is online AND offline more powerful than just online?

Has the window closed for old media?

Why are so many leading players pure online?

http://www.flickr.com/photos/fliegender/236372712

Conclusions

• Content still king, but less so

• Preference better than ownership

• Nothing is free

• New models coming

• Not all print is dead

• Speed is critical

Learn more

We’re here all week. Let’s chat.

http://blog.nestoria.co.uk

Twitter: @nestoria

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Questions?

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