We think we have found our sad.
Cue: sound of sobbing violins, plus scraping of bottom of silly season news barrel, as it’s that time of year.
In a sign of only slight desperation for something to write about in August, EYE inquired about the Rightmove happy campaign.
As agents will know, everyone who ever pens an email from Rightmove always signs off with whatever makes them happy.
It is all very wholesome. No one ever finds their happy for example through prodigious intake of alcohol on paydays, gambling, or activities involving people taking their clothes off.
However, absolutely everyone at Rightmove has found their happy – with one exception.
Step forward Miles Shipside.
His emails are, well, hapless. Not exactly miles of smiles.
We hastily inquired through the press office as to whether Rightmove’s official spokesperson is happy.
Back came the answer that he has not mastered the technology that allows him to add his happy to his email.
When and if he manages it, he can take inspiration from his colleagues’ happies which include:
My Happy: yay I’m a homeowner, paint it any colour I fancy happy
My Happy: It has to be, a place by the sea, Seaside living happy
My Happy: Walk to the station, outside space, country kitchen happy
My Happy: No wonky fixtures or fittings, the place is all mine happy
My Happy: kids playing in the garden, kitchen fit for a chef happy
My Happy: Great big kitchen, real open fire, glass of wine happy
My Happy: Big kitchen diner, children’s play room, big garden happy
My Happy: Loud, noisy family, can’t hear the neighbours over the din happy
My Happy: 20 floors up, views of the city happy
My Happy: Views of the ocean, children playing in the surf happy
My Happy: Private garden, close to town and natural light happy
My Happy: Disco ball in the bathroom, dancefloor in the kitchen happy
My Happy: A room that’s mine, sunshine in the garden happy
My Happy: Room for the snooker table and mini bar happy
My Happy: My own piece of London happy
My Happy: A view of the ocean, crashing of the waves happy
My Happy: Roof terrace by the beach, outdoor living in the sun happy
My Happy: Gather all my shoes and get them into a walk-in wardrobe happy
My Happy: Big garden, plenty of room to kick a football happy
Comments (34)
It’s interesting reading all the agents having trouble finding their happy with RM. It surprises me that they’re still at number 1 and getting stronger. Has anyone been watching the British awkwardness thing on the TV, the one where being British we whinge and moan like crazy to ourselves but never actually do anything about it – what a strange world we live in.
Thanks Smile, I support the whole OTM thing and ummed and aaahed over the proposition but ultimately decided against for now, as I wasn’t a two portal agent and dont feel I need to be.
I am now at the point where I am very likely to drop xxxxmove. I have been with them more or less since they started, and am not a happy client of theirs. I have recently taken up an offer from Z, who have impressed me on a number of levels including number of leads. As lettings only I am not under the same ‘new client’ pressure to be on a particular site.
This opportunity has come about on the back of the increased competition from OTM. My only concern is if I wanted to go back to RM in future how much worse would/could they make it for me? Anyone got any experience of this? Thanks
Beano, I would encourage you to make the leap!
Sales in my patch (very competitive) you need to be on RM from what i have seen in lettings (we do not offer) it is not as important.
I know Z are offering fantastic deals at the moment so why not make the switch. If you do drop RM have you given any thought to advertising on OTM? to increase your portals presence?
In regard to going back to RM it will likely cost you more, but probably not a great deal more as they will want you back, I know an agent near me just opened i am friendly with and RM gave them 50% reduction for first 6 months.
My Happy: Disco ball in the bathroom, dancefloor in the kitchen happy
Best.Happy.Ever!
I’m not happy now! I didn’t get a happy on my email reply when in asked why two fairly much identical local agents had a near £700 difference in their subscription charges per month.
The agent certainly isn’t happy he is paying over £8300 more than a local competitor.
Is the local competitor a corporate? If not the standard response i get from RM when i have questioned them on dual pricing is “Oh they have been a member long so we offer a loyalty bonus” – Obviously its all rubbish!
Agents have to have a rate card and work from it and offer all sellers the same deals, why is this not the case for service providers? Why are they allowed to walk into a business and thing “Hmmmmm i wonder how much i can bleed these guys for?”
The solution is to get everyone in the locality to agree to boycott RM until they equalise prices.
Q: will everyone do this?
A: Of course not.
The result is that RM take exactly the approach you have described as they know that local agents will not gang up on them.
The solution is to get everyone locally to boycott RM and JOIN OTM forcing fees down.
Q: Will everyone do this?
A: Of course not.
😉
if they ALL boycotted RM for a month we wouldn’t need OTM!
If i had a real choice i would love to loose RM.
The very demanding Peebee can confirm I have demonstrated to him an agent centric search result at postion 5 on a natural google ranking ahead of Zoopla, Primelocation, On the Market, Nestoria etc, not just an agency but a single property using my natural search term technology.
I can put you at the top of Google search and I am about 10 minutes away of seeing if I have taken top spot from Rightmove and their mighty ( and expensive) SEO machine. Generation 5 technology works and all of the generation 3 portals now have to catch up with property ‘sortal’ technology.
100% of agents who have been allowed to see the full Rummage have signed up. I am not asking anyone to drop any portal and am recommending they don’t but I am handing agents a choice.
So is that if they search through Google you can achieve that or if they search through the sortal?
Plain old fashioned 1 box Google, no bells, no whistles other than being part of Rummage4.
Apparently the world wants 16,600 spurious, not really related results so instead of delivering 4 results using the Rummage4 veracious I have built a demonstration system to show the most critical of eyes (Peebee) that I can achieve 4th place behind 3 not really specific Rightmove results.
So in theory i could be showing for my areas top 4 on google by just signing up to Rummage?
And this will be for member of the public typing into google ‘Estate agent in XXXX’
Have i got that right?
It very much depends on your area, if you contact me quietly through Ros I can assess what is needed in your area. Paul H is a real challenge will take a bit of work , but I have demonstrated a 4th position property search against all of the other portals for a small agent in my area.
Interesting, i will give it some serious consideration …….
If you come via twitter or the contact form on R4 you will remain anonymous. There is no hard sell just enthusiasm, respect and kept promises.
Hi ‘smile please’ – I start the post with the phrase that I usually end up with – I AM NOT Robert’s BDM!!
Robert asked me to search – in the ‘traditional’ way (via Google) for a particular type of property in a particular location.
The search turned up some 19,300 ‘results’ – first three were RM but irrelevant to either the type of specific property or the specific location. In position #5 was a ‘property’ created by Robert for the specific purpose of demonstrating what IS possible.
Today, by the way, the ‘property’ has moved up to THIRD place in a Google search.
I’d say that is pretty impressive.
I wouldn’t want to be competing AGAINST that kind of #smartbomb marketing!
Oh… that’s what happens when I START to post something at 10am and don’t finish it until 4.30 – things move on!
smile please – here’s the deal. You are rightly concerned about protection of your identity.
IF Robert was to ‘out’ you here on EYE, Tw@tter or anywhere else for that matter – I will drop my cloak of invisibility also.
Either he IS one of the ‘good guys’ – or I’m a worse judge of people than I ever believed possible…
…and I don’t think I can display my faith in my judgement any better than that.
You make a compelling case!
JFDI, will you!! ;o)
Since the control test was created the search is now being powered by 4 properties on the market with one agent. The digital for sale boards on the properties are working as are the adjective tagging SEO and the click through to the agent’s own web site.
Actually when Northcliffe tried this very same thing in 1992/93 everyone locally did boycott Northcliffe for a full year. And when they tried to divide recently, the bigger agents (Webbers) Malcolm Prescott stood firm and insisted on the same rate for all agents big or small.
This levelling of the playing field isn’t an AM/OTM initiative it’s mine; just as I had a quiet individual words with Lenny Dunn, Richard Smith, Clive White, Phillip Thornton, Danny and Charles, Mike and Tim, Simon and Sally, and the boys from Webbers way back when the effects can be the same. If competing agents just talk to each other and understand the benefits of being allowed to compete on service not service costs change will happen and will happen quite rapidly.
There are now 3 solid viable alternative competitive solutions to any individual service supplier. The duopoly is broken so subscriptions will now become equitable and realistic, agents are once again in control of their service suppliers.
As the market quietens down and genuine applicants will find property wherever it is listed not just the most convenient place, now is a very good time to test that theory.
Just as when the refineries are blockaded you and I will find a petrol station with fuel, we will queue and will pay the price just to fill up so it is with buyers.
An agent with stock is holding a Royal flush and both Jokers (pun intended) in their hand.
No they are two, like for like, near identical independent agents.
It seems if you buy a bundle of services you get 50% discount off all services, but if you add services as you need them or as they are introduced you pay full whack.
Yes that is true. They try it every time we come up for renewal to up-sell us.
You’re anonymous on here Smile please so no harm done, just out of curiosity what do you pay for what service?
I am happy to answer, wish others would so we got a clearer picture.
I am paying for a standard set up for sales with no extras apart from logo (how they can charge for that is beyond me!) £720 p.m plus VAT
So a full suite including features and pro (list price £1502) for less than £820 per month would seem like a big advantage for one of your competitors?
core membership alone is below £500!
It would, How have RM justified it?
I am a third party, RM terms and conditions stop them explaining the huge disparity of over £8000 a year between two firms to me, despite my being authorised to query the matter on behalf of the agent. That is understandable but it would probably have been better, more diplomatic, less adversarial and obstructive to be dealing with this quietly. They can hardly put the rate up beyond card rate on the disadvantaged agent and any action against the benefitted agent will result in an anaphylatic reaction from a close knit but competitive group of agents where AM has an 80% penetration
Keep us posted Robert, Be good to hear any comments RM finally decide to make on this. I know from my time in corporate agency the “discounts” they get and you would not believe it!