Syndication & Your Business
RISMEDIA
Today, the word “syndication” is used in the
real estate industry to express the distribution of listing information
to various websites and/or Web portals.
While it was once thought that exposing a listing in one spot on the
Internet and driving consumers to that spot (the early theory for
Realtor.com) was the best way to market a listing on the Internet, in
today’s Internet environment, this no longer makes any sense. Why?
Because a real estate listing is a marketing asset owned by the listing
broker, and, in addition to the direct economic benefit of having a
listing, it provides other, less tangible benefits, including increased
brand awareness and the ability to attract new buyers and sellers.
On the Internet today, distribution trumps destination as content
moves to where users go, and users go to many different sites-Yahoo!,
Google and Craigslist, for example.
Remember, a listing is a marketing asset. It is important to note
that not all listings sell and, consequently, commission dollars are
not earned on every listing. However, costs are incurred for every
listing. Part of the value proposition in the taking of a listing, and
the advertising and marketing of that listing, is the marketing and
brand benefit the brokerage derives. Multiple sites result in maximum
exposure.
Having to enter listing data at multiple Internet locations is time
consuming, and more companies today are providing a “single point of
entry” and then distributing the content to various websites for
brokers. One of these syndication companies is Point2 Technologies
(http://Point2.com), which currently syndicates to 29 partners.
The various websites to which Point2 customers can syndicate their
listings not only gives the broker (and agents) greater branding and
exposure, but it also generates leads. These leads are then seamlessly
passed back to the members.
Additionally, when a listing broker advertises their listing or
listings on syndication partner websites, the listing exposure is
tracked. As a result, the listing broker can see which syndication
partners provide advertising and marketing value to the listing broker.
The listing broker can use this information in a variety of ways,
including providing feedback to sellers as to the traffic the listing
generated.
Saul Klein is a Realtor and nationally recognized speaker and
consultant. He is CEO of InternetCrusade as well as Point2 Technologies.