One of the more interesting (and repeated) debates/discussions/arguments at the Bloodhound Unchained conference had to do with property search registration... and whether to require it or not.
In this and the next post I am going to explore and debate myself about the pros and cons of each side of this question.
Registration requirements for search are a great idea...
Let's think about this for a minute. THE single most valuable thing that we have as real estate agents is the IDX (or whatever method we use to allow MLS searches). What consumers want is to be able to see listings. They are willing to reveal themselves to us if that is what it takes for them to get access to the listings.
I am absolutely willing to admit that many consumers will just leave instead of giving up their personal information... but some won't. Let's say that 100 people hit your site looking for property. If you require registration, 90% will probably bail... but you will have contact info for the other 10%. If you don't require registration, 100% may stay... but you will have contact info for 0%. When you look at it, 10% is way better than 0%. So, even though it will alienate many potential buyers, it will result in actual leads.
Some also call out a side benefit. Those that are willing to jump through a couple of hoops and provide their private info are also likely to be serious buyers. They can be prioritized at the top of the list because they are real and serious.
Giving that information away for free is squandering our greatest resource.
**Before you go off on me, you need to read the other part...**
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