Zoopla boss Charlie Bryant has pledged that there will be no across-the-board price rises for agents.
CEO Bryant said that agents would only be asked to pay more if, for example, their businesses had grown faster than originally envisaged.
“An agent might have signed up with us to 100 listings, but their business might be doing 200 or 300,” said Bryant. “In that case, we would go back to that agent on an individual basis to discuss their subscription.
“But I can confirm that we are not on a round of price increases.”
He said that, in general, price rises would be firmly linked “to an increase in service”.
He said: “Our proposition is that we offer clear value for money where agents can see a return on their investment.
“We will be bringing out new products to maximise value for money – and we will be tying in price rises not just to those new products but to an agent’s use of them.”
As a company that is no longer on the stock market, Zoopla does not regularly have to report to shareholders what its advertisers are paying (ARPA).
However, Rightmove does and its agents are paying on average over £1,000 per month per branch.
Bryant said that this was about three times the Zoopla average.
He also said that Zoopla continues to be successful in winning back agents that it previously lost to OnTheMarket’s ‘one other portal’ rule, with some 2,000 branches rejoining in recent months.
While Bryant was speaking about Zoopla’s pricing amid on-going – and long-standing – controversy over portal costs, he would not be drawn into commenting on competitors’ pricing policies.
Comments (14)
‘An agent might have signed up with us to 100 listings, but their business might be doing 200 or 300,” said Bryant. “In that case, we would go back to that agent on an individual basis to discuss their subscription‘
Translation: If you turn out to be successful, we’re having a bigger share of the spoils.
Property Pundit,
IMHO, that seems like a reasonable approach to me…
I suspect what irks most RM customers is that conversely, RM will increase fees on a scheduled/annual basis, irrespective of individual performance or economic/market conditions.
In the north listing registers are much larger than in the south; 100 terraced houses isn’t uncommon. In central London an agent might survive on selling 5 or 6 properties a year. Without the value of the 100 listings considered, the average fee and the number of sales it is difficult to build a fee structure that is fair to all agents.
Please can we have your word you won’t ever be going direct to vendors? this is the biggest worry for me with Zoopla, and would be a big positive if you’d make such a statement
The clear question to ask yourself is, why would a business go and acquire other businesses such as PSG/ Hometrack/ Technicweb etc which supports agents; to then undermine agents by going straight to consumer?
It simply wouldn’t make sense for them to go directly to vendors. Their whole business is centred around servicing agents, so it would be commercial and financial suicide. What facts or past actions has Zoopla done to make you think they might do that?
Be more interested to see them ban pay any way agents .. show some ethics and agents will swarm over to them
Realistically how would a private company police that though? If there was a government or industry body putting sanctions on these agents, it could be feasible, but without that I can’t see a realistic way for that to happen.
Its a simple act of the portal asking the agent: Do you charge anyway or are you no sale no fee?
done.
I have seen this mentioned time and time again. Also seen Zoopla, both with previous and existing management clarifying just what you are asking. As already mentioned by others here, why on earth would they want to do that? Also, why them and not Rightmove? I must be honest, I have never see other portals mentioned in this line of questioning, so why Zoopla specifically? Or is this a cleaver ongoing RM ploy… 😉
Question, do you buy / sell / rent your own properties to compete and knowingly damage your paying customers? Pushing them to no longer use your services? I expect not, it would not be at all logical for any major portal to ever do this.
I can only imagine if any major portal did, which they won’t, the agent members would break contract and take properties off site in an instant! And rightly so too!
Charlie?
Here’s a serious question from a non-Zoopla User
Do you have the ambition to overtake Rightmove or are you happy to remain No 2 Portal?
While on the market exists this conversation is irrelevant.
Onthemarket now they are public are not acting in agents best interests.
Kill on market, zoopla will get stronger again.
Rightmove will have to cap rates.
…..and if OTM are going nowhere, which based on current performance seems a fair assessment.
Rightmove keep shafting their Subscribers annually, so I have no issue saying farewell to Rightmove and moving to Zoopla, purely from an overall UK Digital Advertising Platform perspective.
I don’t need 3 UK Digital Advertising Platforms.
Rightmove have beaten the living daylights financially out of Agents, and show no sign of changing course. OTM launched/changed direction, promised a revolution, stuttered/stalled and are currently adrift.
In my humble opinion…. Zoopla has an opportunity to step in and offer agents a single UK Digital Advertising Platform, subject to transparent conditions which Agents find acceptable.
Clearly the 1, 2, 3 Portals arrangement is NOT working.
It’s time for change.
Is it Zoopla time?
correct.