Realtor.com is at it again! Their goal to match consumers with the right Realtor continues to fuel efforts to create the perfect agent ranking platform. The backlash against AgentMatch, a Realtor search tool that was shut down last year due to vehement protest, has served as the building block for Realtor.com’s newest platform. New agent profiles are expected to to be released, followed by a better agent search platform. Lessons learned from their first experiment with AgentMatch is expected to shape both new updates.
Realtor.com will now give agents the ability to highlight their transaction data, team info and client recommendations with the updated agent profiles. This feature is expected to roll out in the third quarter, and must be approved by each individual agent to be displayed. When the feature is authorized by an agent, the platform will rely upon multiple listing service data such as current available listings, showings, closings, and price ranges of homes they have helped buy and sell.
This update is in response to a trend amongst consumers during the trial run with AgentMatch. They found that people spent much of their online time delving into agents’ online profiles that included recommendations, biographies and other qualitative information.
According to the National Association of Realtors, only 9% of buyers and 4% of sellers found their real estate agent on the internet while 89% of consumers searched for homes online. This gap is expected to shrink, and Realtor.com wants to be the bridge. Along with Zillow and Trulia, their desire is to be the number one matching platform between consumers and Realtors, believing that better agent profiles will make this happen.
Currently, all three of these companies use agent ads and lead forms that appear next to listings online, but complete,rich profiles continue to become more important when driving consumer contacts to agents.
The current “Find a Realtor” tool on Realtor.com is limited, and only allows for a few filters such as sorting alphabetically or searching for certifications. Trulia’s and Zillow’s agent profiles on the other hand, are a more in-depth and thorough, featuring bios, ratings, reviews, active listings, etc.
In response to this disparity, the new profile pages on Realtor.com will feature much more information than before. It will be powered by SocialBios, a platform that includes updates from social media platforms like Linked-in, RealSatisfied and will give consumers the ability to connect with agents on Facebook, Google+ and more. By providing valuable information and content, Realtor.com hopes to display the value of each agent no matter their experience level.
For example agents will have the ability to “check-in” to areas where they are working, and this will help newer agents by displaying their activity as they grow their career.
Newer Agent profiles will include:
* Cover photo
*Call to action buttons: one that prompts consumers to ask the agent a question and another one that directs users to agents’ contact info.
*A short biography
*years of experience
*specializations
*geographies
*designations and certifications (these sections will include icons that give consumers more info when they tap or roll over with the cursor).
*”Vitality” towards the top of the page. (includes the last time agents checked in to a home, price range experience, number of recommendations they have).
*listing activity including all listings, just current listings, showings and closed listings (individual agents and teams)
*incorporation of Facebook posts and personal blog on profile page
*the ability to show where an agent has “checked-in” via Facebook or Foursquare.
If an agent wants to steer clear of statistics, they will have the option to do so. Unlike it’s predecessor AgentMatch, the new platforms will give agents the ability to share details about their involvement in a team, including a team bio and a list of team members with links to profile pages. Agents also have the option to show their own activity only if they would prefer to do that as well.
Top-Level Domain Options
Agents will be given the choice to turn their Realtor.com profiles into a stand-alone website featuring a web address that ends in “.Realtor.” This new top-level domain name is expected to come up by the NAR in the 3rd quarter. Realtors will be able to register a domain with NAR with their name, carrying the form “(first name)(last name).realtor,” that they can choose to use as their realtor.com profile page.
Move Inc., which also operates realtor.com under an exclusive agreement with NAR, will host the .Realtor profile sites for free for those agents who choose to use them. The new profiles are expected to be released when the .Realtor sites become available.
For more information, check out this article by Inman News
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