In
a recent post on Inman.com,
the author asked Matthew Shadbolt
–
director of real estate products at the New York Times
– to list the three trends agents should look out for in 2016, and Mr. Shadbolt
kindly replied with these items:
1. Virtual
Reality: “We’ve reached a tipping point with virtual reality,” says Shadbolt
and
goes on to explain that he believes this technology will gain traction and have
a significant impact on the business landscape at hand. He suggests this technology will be
especially valuable to buyers who are relocating and adds that he foresees
agents sending VR headsets to buyers to streamline the search.
2. Peak
Content: The availability of information continues to grow – especially due to
online media platforms and social networks – thus
the challenge to determine what should and should not be shared continues to
grow. Shadbolt
suggests that an effective strategy for brokers is to “digitize what’s in your
agents’ heads” to display their “unparalleled knowledge of neighborhoods.”
3. Curation:
Much like the challenge presented in point #2 above, since consumers can access
so much data online, that amount of data can be overwhelming. Agents should seize this opportunity and help
both the buyers and sellers to receive the information that is most applicable
to their needs – he calls this the “key point of differentiation between an
agent and a portal.”
I
believe Mr. Shadbolt
is a really smart guy (the fact he left a very successful brokerage – The
Corcoran Group – to go to work for the New York Times
MIGHT cause some to question that), and I agree with the insights he shares
above . . . to an extent. The second and
third items he says are trends to watch out for in 2016, in my opinion, are
things that good and great agents have already been doing for the past year or
so – nevertheless, their importance will undoubtedly grow and those who embrace
these behaviors will increase their ability to stand out from the crowd. I do, though, have a slight tweak to his
prediction concerning virtual reality.
Even
though technology and its availability to “the masses” is increasing by the
day, I still believe it’s a bit cost prohibitive to have a number of headsets
just lying around waiting to be sent to Mrs. Johnson in Akron, OH, and Mr.
Daniels in Boca Raton, FL, to “view” a house here in our backyard. Sure, for the higher-end properties and the
brokerages that represent those sellers, this is closer to being a reality than
for the sizably larger group of homes that are listing at $250,000 in a
middle-class neighborhood. There’s an
alternative, though.
I
recently met an agent who can take 3-D photos of your clients’ homes and
publish them online so potential buyers can walk through the entire home –
without the need for a VR headset. The
pool of properties available to “walk through” for people looking to relocate
just went from “kiddie” that can be filled with a garden hose to
“Olympic”. Diving is allowed!
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