Reply! Inc. has implemented a new lead validation process that aims to deliver high-quality real estate leads to its member agents and brokers. Through its new program, Reply.com reviews, qualifies and validates every consumer inquiry for realty services it receives.
Reply.com owns and operates two separate online real estate lead generation services: AgentConnect and RealtyNow. Through its new program, the company qualifies all leads by phone to find out whether the phone number provided by a potential home buyer is legitimate. If the phone number is invalid, the company will discard it.
Through industry research, the company found that lead quality is the number one concern for agents using online referral services.
“Agents are still looking for trust in a company,” Reply! CEO Payam Zamani said. “Long term, we think that agents will be most loyal to the company that provides the best leads.”
Reply.com’s screening process includes:
- Visual inspection for bad information such as a fake name, phone number or e-mail address.
- Phone confirmation: Reply! employees call every lead that comes through the network to verify the inquiry is valid.
- Target pricing: The company compares home buyer expectations of price with the median price of homes for the ZIP code in which they are searching. Any consumer who places a lead with a target price significantly different from the median price is alerted and educated on the actual median price for that area.
“Fifty-three percent of leads are rejected and only the best leads are getting through,” Zamani said.
He added that going forward, the company will focus on lead validation and adding content to its consumer Web site.
Reply.com, formerly Next Phase Media, has expanded from about 50 employees a year ago to 160 employees today, and recently opened an office in Scottsdale, Ariz. The company is headquartered in Walnut Creek, Calif.
The Reply.com Web portal includes information for consumers on residential real estate, automotives, home improvement, moving services, insurance and financing. Reply!’s online trade brands include iMotors, RealtyNow, AgentConnect, iCastle and CarClub.
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