After signing up fewer agents than desired and now planning to launch early next month, four months later than initially scheduled, Boomin has got off to a disappointing start.
The new portal, which was due to launch in December last year, will eventually go live on 2 April, but the majority of agents remain unconvinced that it will succeed.
Almost 500 readers responded to a Property Industry Eye poll yesterday which sought to find out what agents think about Boomin, and whether it will prove successful under the Bruce brothers.
Unfortunately for the pair, the survey found that just a quarter of agents think Boomin will succeed in creating a viable alternative to Rightmove, Zoopla and OnTheMarket, while only a fifth of respondents think the Bruce brothers’ involvement in the portal is a ‘positive’ thing.
Just 28.9% of the agents that took part in the poll have signed up to Boomin, with a further 8% saying that they may do so some time this year.
The problem appears to be that the majority of agents polled do not think Boomin will gain significant levels of consumer traffic by the end of 2021, and will therefore fail to provide a viable alternative to the main property portals.
Has your agency signed up to Boomin?
Do you think that Boomin will succeed in creating a viable alternative to Rightmove, Zoopla and OnTheMarket for agents?
Do you think that Boomin can gain significant levels of consumer traffic by the end of 2021?
Do you welcome the launch of Boomin on April 2nd?
It is clear from many comments that the Bruce brothers divide opinion within the industry. Do you think their involvement is positive, negative or neutral to Boomin’s future?
Comments (18)
Why do we need yet another portal? Especially not one that has anything with anything to do with the PB brigade. No thanks.
Any property endeavour by the Bruce Brothers was never going to get a warm agent welcome. Many, and I count myself in that foray, rallied against their ‘anti-agent’ marketing gimmicks whilst at PB. However, as much as I disliked their attack on our profession, they cleverly played on an embedded public perception of our industry. Personally, I felt far more betrayed by other parties who welcomed PB with open arms, especially certain trade body organisations, and the lack of regulatory enforcement than anything they directly did.
But, when you step back, in 3 years they took a start-up and turned it into a nationwide brand. Whether you liked PB (then or now) no one can argue that fact. A public brand in 3 years! In my eyes, this was their REAL success at PB- my questions around other ‘successes’ are well documented. However, for a challenger portal to succeed- it doesn’t need agents to love it, it doesn’t even need agents to like or want it- it needs the public to adopt it- everything from there falls into place. Responses to the cries coming…
They destroyed agency- they really didn’t. They took public perception, right and wrong, and held that mirror up to us. Was it painful at times? Yes. Was it unfair to tar every agent with the same brush? Yes. But was some of it bang on the money? Yes. Did it make us as an industry sit up and innovate and improve our offerings and performance? Yes. I dont know about other agents but in all the years since PB launched we lost just 1 listing and they came back
But they are doing it to float/flip- how is this different to the existing 3 major portals. 2 are pubicly trading and Zoopla was until the buyout. Unlike with RM every early agent gets a stake- a small one for sure- but a stake none the less. RM never offered small agents that.
If you’re not paying you (your data) is the product- yes and no. Free launches are common in every marketplace- its free for 12 months then priced. What is more, GDPR protects you and your clients’ data from being savaged. What is also important is that most small agents (and I include our agency in this) do little to nothing with our data- it is very difficult to leverage a small data set effectively- if this can generate me free & easy additional revenue I previous had no cut off/viable way to leverage- why not?
They will pivot to Online/FSBO- they’ve been there and done that. Online is yet to make profit but portals make a lot. Seriously, would you pivot your business from profit to loss? If you had had a massive (perceived) success in a sector, would you try and replicate it or go different?
I’ll never sign with a BB run business- if they succeed (and I totally understand that many would await this with enormous reluctance) and you genuinely refuse to sign up to a successful service at a fair rate the only person/business that will lose out is you.
We are signed up and I’m genuinely intrigued if it will and can succeed. But if it doesn’t- what have I lost? Not much I’d wager. But if it wins…..
Do you genuinely believe this will ever generate revenue for you? Do you think there is a realistic chance that in a couple of years you will be getting paid by Boomin ? I don’t mean knocking a bit of your bill I mean them sending you money every month ?
From yesterday’s “Puff Piece” –
“Agents signed up the portal before the end of March will have free use of the platform for almost 12 months.”
Assuming they do launch on 2nd April, I make it just shy of 9 months “FREE” usage 🙂
Yer Yer Yer a complete waste of time, how stupid are these agents, “lets saturate the internet with Portals” yes lets that will Kill Rightmove. NOT! still laughing all the way to the bank,, SUCKERS…
Hang on guys. Look beyond your dislike for PB. Whilst I am no fan of the Bruce brothers, I’m less of a fan of Dick RightmoveTurpin with his double digit increases year on year on year.
Zoopla seems to have stalled in its market share. OTM are still lagging being sadly and so we have no credible alternative to RM if we want volume leads. The just help them get stronger and stronger. every year.
The world is changing rapidly and for all the criticism of PB, as an industry we should not ignore what technology can do for us. The Bruce boys got quite a lot right with PB, but they failed comprehensively on the “people” side (staff and customers)
Their new venture is business to business and there is a fair chance that their advanced ‘tech” will work for the industry and they may prove to be our saviour from Dick Rightmove Turpin, who currently seems unassailable in his dominance. And that is VERY VERY unhealthy for our industry
I still haven’t had a reply to my question I have been asking for months …
When the agents have built-up Boomin, what is to stop the portal changing to a ‘for sale by private sellers’?
Like agents are doing with Rightmove. Can you not see the wrighting on the wall with Wromgmobe sucking our industry dry
Typhoon You must be one of the 3% that think so..
Sorry not sure yiu can really judge on a poll with such a short time lag
I was busy all day and did not get a chance to vote
28.9& of those who took part….. surely you should advise how many took part as well?
“out of 100 people asked” etc
In the 3rd paragraph. Almost 500
Why are you so obsessed with Boomin, Murray?
I know he made a donation to your just giving page, but do you know him? Is he a mate?
Lots of agents disagree with you….
Agree he is obsessed. He promotes it at every opportunity on all the news sites and social media. It is rather embarrassing and becoming a bit of an annoyance. And as for the charity donation, yeah right, done for being kind and caring no doubt!
Famoss proverb states: “The person who has the final decisive move or victory in a feud, quarrel, or competition is the only one who is truly successful. He may have won this round, but I’m going to come back with a vengeance in the final”
It’s like being invited to the school bully’s 18th birthday party! No thanks!
As I posted a couple of months ago – BOOMISERY! Cake all over Bruce faces. How stupid to expect professional estate agents to take part having been derided and insulted by those who would have had them out of business just a few months ago.
Boomisery! Love it. So much better than commisery.
No surprises there. Anything Michael Bruce and his army of failed Purplebricks IT developers get involved with is something I want no part of