An Apple store for real estate?
Posted in Real Estate Brokerage of the Future By Daniel Rothamel, the Real Estate Zebra, Friday, November 21, 2008.Innman reader Sean O'Toole left a very interesting comment on a recent Inman article that lays out his vision for what a bricks and mortar real estate office could be.
"The debate on physical space above is interesting, but perhaps the real problem is that today's use of physical space simply isn't compelling to consumers. It has always seemed to me RE offices have been about attracting agents and there may be ways to do that now which are less expensive and more compelling.
It would be interesting to see physical space used in a manner that was actually consumer focused. Perhaps instead of large offices with desks for agents, the focus should move to smaller retail spaces. Think Apple Computer stores. And not just for style, but what they offer. An experts bar - where you can go to get questions answered. MLS search stations which consumers can use themselves (yes they could do this on your website, but maybe here you allow them to do it in a pair of comfy chairs and a large shared screen and someone a few feet away to answer questions if needed). Plasma displays with rotating featured homes. Large area maps with info on neighborhoods. And importantly - no reception desk, instead just let folks wander and view uninterrupted with help available when they are ready. I'd locate this cool, inviting, retail space downtown, next to restaurants and open late so folks can wander in after a dinner."
To me, that sounds like a really cool idea. My brokerage is out in a rural area, so a physical space is a necessity. We have done what we can to make it more inviting for consumers (we have a flat panel with rotating listings, and nice comfy couches, for example), but Sean's idea takes that one step further. So my question is, could this work? Is is possible to create a real estate brokerage office that would actually attract consumers and get them to interact? How can we make this happen?
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Submitted by Missy Caulk on November 24, 2008 - 5:26am.
IMO, that is thinking outside the box. Of course it would depend on the area, you found this main street at for some it could be the mall, and others downtown. When I first got in the business folks use to talk about walk-in's. I've never seen walk-in's but when you are located in space that there is no way to "walk-in", what would you expect?
Being open when the consumers are out would be critical. Not always 8-5.
One office I was in was in a strip mall, then Chuckie Cheese moved in and the parking was horrible. Agents hated it. Me, I am mostly at my home, just go in for turning stuff in and picking up commission checks.
Interesting thought...
Missy Caulk
Ann Arbor, MI
Missy@MissyCaulk.com
www.AnnArborRealEstateTalk.com
www.SearchAnnArborHouses.com
Submitted by Marc Diaz on November 24, 2008 - 7:13am.
The notion of this really appeals to me as a broker owner. As brokerages push their agents back into their homes or ad hoc meeting spaces, I think they need a different value proposition to their agents - lead generation could be it. Not the half baked online leads for Bob Buyer though, but the kind of leads generated from a retail operation described above. The cost for running such a store I think would be pretty expensive; however, the costs could be shared with some closing partners. In this model, you could offer agents really great commission splits on "their" business, but less favorable on leads generated in the retail store. Surely somebody has tried this somewhere? I'd like to, but I don't want to be the first.
Marc Diaz
marc@closetrak.com
www.CloseTrak.com
www.MidSouthResidential.com
Submitted by REALonomics .net on November 24, 2008 - 7:41am.
Actually, the retail store brokerage model has been tried a number of times and ways, each time it failed. Coldwell Banker tried it in Sears outlets as did their mortgage wing. Home Depot has tried it. The notion of the consumer going anywhere to find property information is antithetical to what we have called "The New Real Estate Economy" (see www.epartnerusa.com/presentation.htm).
The era of the "Four B's" (Brokers, Boards, Books and Buildings) is decidedly over and is being replaced by a new era where the consumer controls the profitability joy-stick in a cyber game for market control. See http://realonomics.net/2008/05/realonopoly-does-anyone-still-wanna-play-...
However, having said all of this, the lead gen game that was being played out is now an invalidated model because Internet leads are the worst leads ever generated by the industry.
Marc is right with respect to creating relationships with consumers so that we can create leads with true revenue potential..."not the half-baked online leads..." as he put it.
www.ePartnerUSA.com
www.REALonomics.net
Submitted by Marc Diaz on November 24, 2008 - 8:31am.
I remember reading about SOMA Living and it seemed like a real cool space backed by some major players - but it failed for some reason. The idea seems to make sense to me so I'm still not certain whether to fault the idea or the execution. Gateway and Dell failed at their retail efforts but Apple seems to be doing great with the Apple stores.
Marc Diaz
Submitted by Bruce Hiatt on November 24, 2008 - 2:27pm.
Depends on the market. For Las Vegas, it is a second home market primarily and buyers come from all over the world. Having a retail store brokerage would fail for sure in that market which is Internet driven.
Regards,
Bruce Hiatt - Broker/Owner
Luxury Realty Group LLC
Las Vegas, NV
www.LuxuryRealtyGroup.com
Submitted by Sammy Wolcovinsky on November 27, 2008 - 4:02pm.
Excellent Idea!
Sammy Wolcovinsky
Panama Flat Fee Realty
www.panamaflatfeerealty.com
Submitted by Marc Diaz on December 11, 2008 - 5:33am.
What do you think about a shared work environment with other real estate professionals - coworking? The concept is catching on and is well suited for our industry. Check out this blog post at www.rebuildingrealty.com
Marc Diaz
www.CloseTrak.com
www.MidSouthResidential.com