Why Agent Reviews Take Top Priority in 2016

Hi Kelly at BoomTown completely agree with you 

Kelly, You pose an interesting question. In your hypothetical example of a seller looking for the agent/agency with the most experience in selling their "specific" property, this would come from interviews with different agents who would provide the quantifiable evidence. An agent called in to "pitch" their qualifications would show Ms. Seller that they sold 6 properties between $550,000 and $750,000 in her specific "neighborhood.

Fortunately for Realtors today, we are still a people business and an especially personable agent could convince Ms. Seller that they will "try harder" and that they possess the skills to market her property despite not having sold a single home in her neighborhood. 

Transparency is good. We do find, however, that most sellers and buyers are unfamiliar with the landscape of a real estate transaction and they depend on their chosen Realtor to make them "comfortable" during the process. Statistics cannot elicit this feeling. Only an experienced empathetic person can accomplish this.

If the transaction is all about the Benjamins, then lift the curtain and expose all the sold data and let the chips fall where they may. 

My personal feeling is that the best person should "win" the listing and have the opportunity to prove they are up to the task. We will "presume" they can do the job if they got in the door in the first place.

Word and numbers can be crafted by people that are good with them. You can make anything sound good if you want to. Sometimes a great agent that does not work hard or takes a easy will get outclassed by a hard working new person. Its hard to be great all the time.

In competitive urban areas with real estate agents, brokers on every corner. Boatloads of part time real estate dabblers. It seems to be branding to be heard above the din. In small rural areas, less layers of players and all about how you do your job that differentiates.

If there are 36 image sockets, fill them all and make sure bright, wide, helpful. Not a cell phone image that looks like bear grease is smeared on the lens pin hole. Lots of extra narrative way way beyond the yes, no, maybe and room/bathroom count. Video, real video.

Plats, maps, and links to area info for the never been to your town before. Those folks needing info on your area before jumping out of the real estate buyers plane. To rip cord and drift into your marketplace.

Do a better job with far reaching, million watt transmission with no boundaries, no limitations for time of day, weather, location of your buyer or the device they hold, sit in front of... make it easy. Don't tease, be skimpy or generic leaving anything out. Be specific so each property listing is flushed out online and easily differentiated from all the others on the cake walk. Knock on doors, get more listings, have more sales. It is a delicious cycle.

How will this affect the circle of an agents work cycle.  What I mean is, how about newer agents.  They are green, no experience, and this will not show.  Will they ever be able to gain experience?

I see both sides on this one.  What I don't like is 3rd party providers that can come in and make a ton of money, taking advantage, and not giving much in return.  

This seems to be a double edged sword. There is benefit to the consumer if empirical data is accurate and available. However numbers can be manipulated to fit virtually every scenario conceivable. This is still a business about relationships first.  I really don't see anyway to fairly and justly quantify that  "gut" feeling that clients and agents get at first meeting or during the process which ultimately binds them together or puts them on separate roads. There are too many variables that numbers just can't reveal

The reviews is one way to select the agent over others for bench marking.

The commission, how you present yourself is more important.

Zillow is most credible.  Unlike restaurants, Yelp is the last place you want to use the reviews .... Want to bad mouth an agent that is the source.  Even HD, LOWE I was surpised some of the very positive comments appear to be bogus.

In Public library there are plenty of professessional reviewers will write you one for money.

Real estate is still a word of mouth type operation........