Leveraging automation and technology has become a powerful differentiator between success and failure for industry professionals, with those able to adapt finding themselves on the front foot while others play catch-up.
Speaking at the recent REB Innovation Summit in Sydney, CommBank head of real estate Monique McCullough said that understanding data had become key to agents' ability to leverage technology tools.
As the market becomes more competitive, she said that the way agents were utilising their datasets had created a point of difference in engagement with both clients and technology tools.
“It’s a gap in change that we all need to make a giant leap across. Some are going to be willing to do that and jump ahead with both feet,” McCullough said.
“It’s how you approach jumping that gap from an operational perspective, from a cash flow perspective and an innovation perspective.”
McCullough said agents needed to understand the value of the data they had in their possession and how to incorporate it into their strategies to attract and retain customers.
She said that agents needed to consider not only the transaction but also how they could use their information and resources to provide extra value to their customers further down the line.
“And I think that is a missed opportunity,” she said.
According to Sarah Bell, agents have been undervaluing latent data hidden within their existing databases, such as insights into where clients are in their property journey and whether they're likely to buy, sell, invest, refinance, or lease in the near future.
“When you look at data, all data is a story. It is just a structured collection of people’s stories and the story of your relationship with your customers organised into columns,” Bell said.
“It’s really special, but it’s not much use if you can’t scale it, distribute it or do anything meaningful with it.”
She said that agents needed to ensure that they were leveraging their latent data and including it in any of the systems that they had in place
Rather than relying on generic check-ins, agents can then use latent data to trigger timely follow-ups tailored to the clients, making conversations more relevant and increasing the chance of securing a listing or management.
McCullough said that agents who were leveraging their latent data effectively were able to set themselves apart from the competition and provide a valuable opportunity to reconnect with previous clients.
According to Bell, agents needed to be aware of the fine line between chasing efficiency and ensuring they did so effectively.
She said that prioritising pure efficiency would take away from the personalised approach that typically drew consumers in.
“What is effective is ultimately understanding that every single one of your consumers has a unique factorisation of needs,” Bell said.
Bell said that while automation had proven to be a productivity and efficiency booster, it was most effective when applied in combination with other technological tools.
“It’s difficult to deliver a holistic service when you have fragmented operations and a fragmented technology stack,” he said.
“Which is why I think we’re seeing more and more move to a platform where we’ve got intelligence layers that span the whole process to help bring a lot of it together.”
Similarly, Bell said that agencies needed to understand how to leverage technology to provide their staff with the best opportunities to perform the tasks they do that add value.
“It’s about understanding that the humans in our business, their time is best spent in the field creating relationships, ideally with each other at first, and then with the community and with their consumers,” she said.
Bell said that ultimately, the way to succeed was to find the right balance between automation and manually handled tasks.
“I think the step back is a really good idea, and artificial intelligence is not the destination. It is the vehicle by which we get there.”
“If AI is the only answer, then you don’t need to be here, and we don’t need you, and I disagree with that,” Bell concluded.
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