Why I LOVE Zillow!
When I list a property, I promise the homeowner that I'll do everything reasonably possible to get qualified buyers to know about their home, and to be sure its presented in the best possible light.
Zillow, Trulia, Realtor.com, and literally hundreds of other search sites have created a modern real estate selling environment where more than 90% of home buyers report they found the property they ultimately purchased on-line.
So making good on my promise means I'll do everything to ensure my properties are on those sites, with great pictures, enticing copy, and accurate facts. We do that through a process called syndication, where data that I input into the MLS is fed to these sites.
Zillow has the most buyers currently searching, and even if large numbers of them are just starting out in their search - so be it. Every purchase has begun with the decision to begin a research process, and Zillow has a great site that consumers love.
And when the next big thing comes along, I'll embrace that, too. Because I keep my promises.
WHY I LOVE ZILLOW!
(I recently posted this on a popular Facebook group, where it illicited quite a bit of response. Fortunately, most of the comments were positive and supportive. I though it would be helpful to post it here as well.)
With so much vitrolic criticisms of late, and calls for Spencer to be burned at the stake, I thought it would be nice to balance out the conversation, and tell you why I personally LIKE and APPRECIATE Zillow.
So many spend inordinate amounts of time and energy consumed in complaining and lashing out against Zillow. Their Zestimates come under tremendous scrutiny & criticism for being misleading or innaccurate. Others accuse Zillow of stealing our listings, and selling leads back to us. How dare they!
Regardless of how you may feel, syndication is a good thing. It provides our Sellers, and their homes, with additional exposure, on sites that generate scary good traffic.
But more importantly, its folks like Zillow that help to better establish and affirm my value as a local real estate expert.
At every listing appointment, I bring the Zestimate for the property (Chances are the Seller already knows what it is!) I use it as a starting point in my conversation about market value. I also discuss the current County Assessed valuation, and share the RealAVM from Core Logic.
But when my detailed market analysis is complete, and I share my findings, I have become the knowledgeable local real estate expert. This is a big part of what differentiates me, and establishes my value proposition with my clients.
Zillow does an admirable job of creating content & tools that consumers like. Their platform has tons and tons of data. But someone has to interpret that data, and apply it to specific local market dynamics.
Rather than belly ache and complain about Zillow, I use their platform to my advantage. I turn a perceived negative into a positive, and spend my valuable time and energy doing other things more vital to the success of my business.
Here is a link to the group on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/groups/NARMembers/
Comments (2)Subscribe to CommentsComment