Comments on: How Rightmove will beat Google http://www.backboneitgroup.com/blog/how-rightmove-will-beat-google/ Fri, 30 Jul 2010 00:24:04 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.7.1 hourly 1 By: Gavin Mitchell http://www.backboneitgroup.com/blog/how-rightmove-will-beat-google/comment-page-1/#comment-238 Gavin Mitchell Wed, 09 Dec 2009 14:39:20 +0000 http://www.backboneitgroup.com/blog/?p=300#comment-238 Every service has to be paid for somehow - even those of Google. Whether it is by paid subscription or advertising, the cost is always passed on. Estate agents might bitch about Rightmove's fees, just as homeowners bitch about estate agent fees, but a job is being done and needs to be paid for somewhere. The question of whether estate agents are necessary or useful in the house buying/selling process is another argument altogether, but it's worth noting that non estate agent options have been around for years, but haven't managed to gain much traction - suggesting there is a demand for what is being offered. A major reason for this is that although avoiding hefty fees is very tempting for the seller, the buyer only really sees the asking price, wants a big range to choose from and to have the ability to browse professional photos and descriptions. Estate agents and Rightmove are currently where most people turn when looking to buy a house - they have the biggest share of eyeballs. You can stick your house on a site like Tepilo (which has negligible traffic, mostly coming from another Sarah Beeny site, and isn't showing strong growth) and watch it sit there for months or years. Sure, it's free (bringing us back to the questions "What is the business model? How is this service paying for itself?") but not much use if you need to sell your house. Personally, I have my doubts whether Google is the company to drive fundamental change within the property industry, but you never know. The Google solution might blow everything else out of the water - the next generation might not even understand the concept of an estate agent - but I wouldn't hold my breath. I don't claim to know much about the dynamics of the UK property market (that's one thing Google and I have in common), so it's really just idle speculation based on their past exploits. I would still argue though, that Google taking over, or even having a major impact, is certainly far from a foregone conclusion, which is the main point of the article. Every service has to be paid for somehow - even those of Google. Whether it is by paid subscription or advertising, the cost is always passed on. Estate agents might bitch about Rightmove’s fees, just as homeowners bitch about estate agent fees, but a job is being done and needs to be paid for somewhere.

The question of whether estate agents are necessary or useful in the house buying/selling process is another argument altogether, but it’s worth noting that non estate agent options have been around for years, but haven’t managed to gain much traction - suggesting there is a demand for what is being offered. A major reason for this is that although avoiding hefty fees is very tempting for the seller, the buyer only really sees the asking price, wants a big range to choose from and to have the ability to browse professional photos and descriptions.

Estate agents and Rightmove are currently where most people turn when looking to buy a house - they have the biggest share of eyeballs. You can stick your house on a site like Tepilo (which has negligible traffic, mostly coming from another Sarah Beeny site, and isn’t showing strong growth) and watch it sit there for months or years. Sure, it’s free (bringing us back to the questions “What is the business model? How is this service paying for itself?”) but not much use if you need to sell your house.

Personally, I have my doubts whether Google is the company to drive fundamental change within the property industry, but you never know. The Google solution might blow everything else out of the water - the next generation might not even understand the concept of an estate agent - but I wouldn’t hold my breath.

I don’t claim to know much about the dynamics of the UK property market (that’s one thing Google and I have in common), so it’s really just idle speculation based on their past exploits. I would still argue though, that Google taking over, or even having a major impact, is certainly far from a foregone conclusion, which is the main point of the article.

]]> By: Mr Trigger http://www.backboneitgroup.com/blog/how-rightmove-will-beat-google/comment-page-1/#comment-237 Mr Trigger Wed, 09 Dec 2009 10:08:13 +0000 http://www.backboneitgroup.com/blog/?p=300#comment-237 This article misses a pivotal point. Rightmove model: charge estate agents to be on their site. However, estate agents simply pass on that cost to the house seller. I could wax lyrical about the resultant cost per lead, but lets just say it ain't great. So if there was a viable alternative to selling via estate agent then the Rightmove business model starts to be eroded. And there are alternatives - www.tepilo.com is becoming increasingly popular for instance. Exposure is the critical issue - and google maps will give that. Rightmove have nowhere to turn - they cant start accepting listings from individual homeowners because that cuts out their core client base. In searching for a house "location location location" is the cry. So a geographic information system (i.e. a map) is the way people want to look for a house. It's not about soup, and homeseekers will go whereever the homes are advertised in the most easily digested fashion. Lastly - Rightmove is an excellent business and a great website, but it's built on the falacy that people need an estate agent to sell their home. And poor foundations have a habit of crumbling.......... This article misses a pivotal point. Rightmove model: charge estate agents to be on their site. However, estate agents simply pass on that cost to the house seller. I could wax lyrical about the resultant cost per lead, but lets just say it ain’t great. So if there was a viable alternative to selling via estate agent then the Rightmove business model starts to be eroded. And there are alternatives - http://www.tepilo.com is becoming increasingly popular for instance. Exposure is the critical issue - and google maps will give that. Rightmove have nowhere to turn - they cant start accepting listings from individual homeowners because that cuts out their core client base. In searching for a house “location location location” is the cry. So a geographic information system (i.e. a map) is the way people want to look for a house. It’s not about soup, and homeseekers will go whereever the homes are advertised in the most easily digested fashion. Lastly - Rightmove is an excellent business and a great website, but it’s built on the falacy that people need an estate agent to sell their home. And poor foundations have a habit of crumbling……….

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