Words: Ashley Rigg
Published: 6th March 2008
Is this the Facebook for overseas property
Successful overseas property businesses are built on strong personal relationships and word-of-mouth recommendation. Client referrals often account for a significant chunk of sales and large agents like MRI invest large sums of money in client referral programs. We believe that, executed correctly, social networks offer huge potential to facilitate client referrals. Buyers want to tell their friends and family about a new property purchase and social networks offer an efficient way to communicate it.
VillageMaker is a new tool that enables agents to offer buyers a social platform to tell others about their purchase. Agents can give every buyer a personal website to show off their new home. They can invite friends and family into their semi-private network to view pictures, videos and property descriptions. Members can then interact with each other, make comments, blog, upload photos from their PC or mobile phone and invite others to join. The realtor sponsors the website, increasing brand awareness and potential word-of-mouth business.
It’s a great idea and the reaction from US agents has been extremely positive. Sam Miller, an agent with RE/MAX, trialled the software in January. “It’s super-clean, very easy to use, and very smooth and straightforward. I’ve used MySpace and Facebook but I couldn’t wait to roll VillageMaker out to my clients, even before the Beta period was over,” he says.
Although the software is aimed at helping domestic agents in the US develop a local following, it is easy to see how overseas property agents could take advantage. Buyers could be offered an incentive payment if any of their “friends” on the network bought a property, to encourage them to spread the message and participate. Many new overseas homeowners would be keen to update friends at home about their new life abroad and this tool provides a forum for them to do so.
As a white-branded offering to smaller agents,
VillageMaker will never develop the brand recognition to become the Facebook for overseas property. However, it does offer agents the opportunity to leverage the benefits of a social network at an incredibly reasonable price. The makers of VillageMaker, Real Pro Systems, are offering an introductory price of $495 for the software, then $50 a month for ongoing maintenance.