Inman

Brokers should focus on providing support tools to agents, not leads

NEW YORK — Today’s high-tech brokers often tout their ability to generate leads for real estate agents.

But speaking onstage at Real Estate Connect, Robert Reffkin, CEO of New York City-area real estate brokerage Urban Compass, revealed that, rather than scaring up leads for real estate agents, the company’s robust technology team focuses more time on developing support tools that can help free up agents to spend more time advising and building client relationships.

In interviews with over 1,000 agents, Reffkin said he learned that agents want additional free time more than leads or tools for converting leads.

The average agent spends only 11 percent of their time advising and building client relationships, Reffkin said.

That’s led Urban Compass to hunker down on building tools that will help agents do things like create listing presentations in less than 24 hours, quickly price properties and determine what day of the month to list a property.

“We’re constantly walking around saying what can we do to make your lives easier,” Reffkin said.

Not a month goes by when Urban Compass doesn’t roll out new business, technology and marketing products that are based on this feedback, Reffkin said.