As new technology is changing the way we do everything, the boss of UrbanX thinks the sector is in for evolution.
Many agencies put a lot of effort into having prime locations with an eye-luring shopfront to display all those listings proudly. However, Dan Argent thinks that model is dead.
“Technology has reached a stage where today’s real estate agents work on the go – visiting clients at their properties while coordinating marketing programs and coordinating negotiations from wherever they’re needed,” the UrbanX CEO with 16 years of real estate experience said.
“I literally can’t remember the last time I had a client in our office. In my mind, having them attend the office is actually poor service because we should be going to them.”
He believes the work put into shop window displays is irrelevant because computer screens are the new shop windows.
“You have to be where the eyeballs are,” Mr Argent said. “As a real estate business, you are a marketing business first and an agent second,” he said.
If agencies spent less money on rent and more money on advertising, they would be able to attract more eyes to their listings, he said.
“If you spend $12,000 on rent a month, as we have been, why don’t you scrap that and spend half on rent and the other on advertising,” Mr Argent said.
He believes the future is with hot-desk facilities, where real estate agents can come and go as they please with support from head office.
Mr Argent has embraced this sort of business, and it has been proven a winner with the 15 agents who have signed on in the last five months.
Additionally, the company has seen 200 per cent growth since May.