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Real estate companies need to catch up with the desires of modern consumers who have grown accustomed to engaging products in meaningful and personal ways before making a purchase, a panel of experts said on the first day of Inman Connect New York on Tuesday.
Take Warby Parker. The eyewear company allows buyers to upload a picture of themselves and see what they’d look like in a pair of glasses without needing to step foot out of the house.
The same goes for other low-entry consumables. But historically, according to Pam Zucker, chief strategy officer with the Interactive Advertising Bureau, real estate agents and brokerages haven’t offered homebuyers the same level of immersive shopping experience they desire.
“Consumers are just used to the experience of interacting with products they are looking to buy,” said Zucker, whose firm researches digital marketing trends. “That’s true across the spectrum from low point entry things like glasses or shoes to very high point things.”
Emerging technology gives homebuyers the opportunity to envision themselves living in a home that’s for sale. Providing that ability gives buyers a better opportunity to connect with a house and potentially make an offer, said Gary Reisman, chief operating officer of Modwell.
Gary Reisman, COO of Modwell, talks about the importance of using new technology to help consumers connect with homes for sale during the first day of ICNY 2024. Photos by AJ Canaria Creative Services
“Think about it: It’s incredibly strange that we can go to the Warby Parker website and try on a pair of glasses before I buy it and see what it looks like, but when I’m buying the most important investment of my life that is going to change and alter the trajectory of my life, I can’t really touch and feel that offline,” Reisman said.
Modwell creates immersive 3D listings that help buyers see what it would be like to walk around a home that’s for sale, all online. They can also help visualize alterations that can be made to a property.
“If it’s outdated,” Reisman added, “I need to see what the future of that house is going to look like. That’s what creates the emotion.”
Real estate companies and agents need to find ways to use technology to create an emotional bond, both to form a stronger relationship with clients and to help them envision living in and feel connected to a home, the experts said.
This kind of rebrand might even benefit companies in the eyes of consumers, who tend to value industry disruptors, said Donald Williams executive vice president of Horizon Media.
“There’s also the hip factor, which I think shouldn’t be underestimated,” Williams said. “Brands that innovate tend to get positive feedback from consumers from just taking a shot and for kind of thinking about the future of an experience and or disrupting an existing experience.”
“You see that a lot in sports,” Williams added. “The NBA does a great job of continuing to reinvent itself … they’re constantly trying to break new molds and create different types of opportunities.”
“Whether those are driving tune-in or driving ad revenue for the NBA or versatile revenue streams that are associated with business,” Williams said, “what they do get is a lot of youngsters being like, ‘The NBA is really cool. The NBA has got a good handle on this stuff.’”
