Inman

Opening FrontDoor.com

Company name: FrontDoor.com, Scripps Networks

Company headquarters: Knoxville, Tenn.

Number of offices: 7.

Web site: http://www.frontdoor.com.

Company description: FrontDoor.com is an online real estate information service powered by Home & Garden Television (HGTV). FrontDoor.com is the recipient of the 2008 Inman Innovator Award for "Most Innovative Media Site." The site allows consumers to search more than 3.4 million residential real estate properties for sale across the country.

In addition to free access to for-sale property information, the site also offers "how to" housing advice, video series featuring HGTV experts and nationally known real estate talent, and a library of interactive tools and guides that are intended to engage consumers before they contact a real estate professional to get more details about a neighborhood or listing.

FrontDoor.com is part of Scripps Networks Digital, which attracts a monthly average of 18.5 million unique visitors across all of its online properties. Scripps Networks Digital Web sites include HGTV.com, FoodNetwork.com, DIYnetwork.com, FineLiving.com, GACTV.com, Recipezaar.com, HGTVPro.com and FrontDoor.com.

Launch date: December 2007.

Origins: HGTV founder Ken Lowe had a vision of creating not just a home inspiration and ideas brand, but also brand offshoots that speak to demographic niches in the home space. The evolution of the Internet has brought that original vision to life with interactive content and service sites such as FrontDoor.com and HGTVPro.com.

Web visitor statistics: 18.5 million unique visitors on average per month within the Scripps Networks Digital family.

Who are your customers? Real estate consumers, broker and agents, home enthusiasts.

Revenue model: Advertising.

Geographic areas served: United States.

Expansion plans: Going international in 2009.

What is unique about your business model? FrontDoor.com is part of the Scripps Networks family, which reaches into more than 95 million U.S. households and 170 countries internationally and delivers home and lifestyle programming and information via television, the Internet, retail and mobile. FrontDoor.com and its sister sites offer real estate brokers and agents the opportunity to connect online with an audience of about 18.5 million home, food and lifestyle enthusiasts in various stages of the "home-ownership lifecycle."

What’s unique or interesting about your office? The Scripps Networks headquarters in Knoxville were originally founded as the home of Cinetel Productions’ "Club Dance." For the first few years, even after Scripps took over the building, the studio continued to host taping of the line-dance show and staffers would leave work early on Friday as the parking lot filled up with cars, trucks, motorcycles and motor homes from all over the country, with dancers eager to participate in the live program.

Unique office traditions/rituals: Each year the executive team takes on a group of employees in a unique challenge — some of the past challenges have included a 5-on-5 basketball tournament and a Big Wheel relay race. The 2008 challenge will be a Family Feud-style quiz game.

Employees’ favorite nearby restaurant: Employees in the New York City office enjoy Chelsea Market, with its various restaurants and food vendors.

Company news:
Frontdoor signs deal with Relocation.com
Just who is the online real estate consumer?
What’s Behind Frontdoor
Connect San Francisco 2008: Radical Marketing for Real Estate
Getting listings noticed: something old, something new

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Information compiled by Pooja Kumar, Inman News.

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