How to sell more houses with digital signage
Estate agents... Here’s why you should be using digital signage to sell more houses and increase your commissions.
Before property websites like Rightmove and Zoopla existed, properties ‘for sale’ were listed in local newspapers and in the shop window of estate agents. These methods are still used today. However, rightmove.co.uk has since emerged as the market leader for property listings with over one million properties advertised, closely followed by Zoopla.
The surge in online property listings has certainly contributed to making house hunting more streamlined and convenient for potential homebuyers, reducing the need to trawl through newspapers saturated with property listings to find a new home. After a while, every house tends to look like the next one.
For estate agents, property websites have helped to enhance the reach of homes they’re selling on behalf of clients, allowing them to branch out from their own individual website to appeal to a wider audience. This has been good for business, allowing agents to increase fees by adding a property listing in as part of their overall service charges.
However, estate agents haven’t forgotten the importance that the high street plays in pulling in prospective home buyers. In fact, the emergence of ‘virtual estate agents’, such as ‘Your Online Property Agent (Yopa),’ has created an urgency among ‘traditional estate agents’ to reinvent the way they publicise properties for their clients on the high street.
The estate agent shop window is changing
To appeal to homebuyers, property needs to be ‘brought to life.’ It’s fair to say that listing a property in a newspaper or using a static image in a shop window is about as inspirational as a trip to the dentist. Lifeless forms of advertising properties are making way for online virtual tours of homes for sale, and are threatening to leave the traditional agent behind.
The reality is, the high street estate agent has to up its game. A recent poll, carried out by propertyindustryeye.com, revealed that nearly half (42%) of 2,000 vendors polled had said that their agent ‘wasn’t worth their fee.’ Obviously that extends beyond poor advertising, but it paints the picture that vendors are losing faith in high street agents.
Add that to the increasing number of savvy vendors who have ventured out in selling their own properties, and the traditional estate agent is fighting for its existence on the high street.
So, what are estate agents doing to arrest the slump in customer confidence? Some are turning to digital signage, which has become a real game changer in terms of enhancing the kerbside appeal of estate agents.
With the average age of first time homebuyers slotting into a demographic that is digitally savvy, estate agents are able to target a new audience with a modern medium. The shop windows of some estate agents have been transformed into interactive, digital experiences enabling prospective homebuyers on the high street to see properties brought to life.
On screen virtual tours, touchscreen interactivity, high resolution images all contribute to enhancing the appeal of the traditional estate shop window. It’s possible that digital signage has directly contributed to the sale of homes without the need for a buyer to visit because the advertising is of such high quality.
'The contrast: Digital signage sat next to the old way of advertising. Which is more appealing?'
Sell more houses
It’s safe to say that those estate agents upgrading their shop windows to feature digital signage are part of an upward trend. Those who got in on the act early are reaping the benefits. The shop window of the estate agent is now on point with the digital age, giving them a new status and reinvigorating the role they play in the buyer process.
The standout benefit of digital signage for estate agents is that it allows them to tie in an online presence with their digital activities, cutting out the need for pre-prepared brochures and reducing costs that can help to reduce fees charged to customers.
Streamlining the process and being able to reduce fees increases the incentive for vendors and homebuyers alike to use the services of an agent. Essentially, it’s all well and good having virtual online agents and customers going it alone, but there’s no substitute for experience, right?
Equally, vendors and homebuyers don’t really want to have to do the leg work, but have grown disillusioned with traditional real estate agents and their commitment to selling their properties. If you could regain their trust, you’re halfway to increasing your sales and commissions.
What better way to showcase your commitment to selling property than a massive overhaul of your ‘shop window?’ Every vendor on your books get their property listed professionally and in a way that’s much slicker than traditional methods. Equally, what better way to leave the competition trailing with a smart shop window and streamlined process?
Start your digital signage journey today
It’s a myth that upgrading your shop window with digital signage is expensive. The reality is somewhat different and all it takes is the installation of simple to use LCD advertising displays or digital signage posters to give your shop window a real edge.
Most of these digital platforms come with built in media players, which allow you to display images, videos and play audio content. All it takes is a memory card to be inserted and voila, your content is on display to the public. You can change it at your convenience to display the latest properties, reducing the labour time associated with changing printed posters.
With everything built in, you save time on having to source digital signage equipment separately. Additionally, you keep costs down on delivery by being able to purchase an all-in-one solution from one vendor, speaking of which...
...You can speak to Armagard about our estate agent digital signage solutions.
Call +44 (0) 121 608 7226 for more information on using digital signage to sell more houses.
