Irrespective of the industry, mobile apps have transformed how business is conducted all over the globe. While some transformations are clearly observable, others are subtler but still making their mark. When we talk about the real estate industry, we can say that mobility and the internet have improved the process of interaction between property seekers and real estate agencies.
Leveraging the advantages offered by mobile applications is the need of the hour for every business owner. According to a report by PWC in 2017 on emerging real estate trends, failing to utilize customer-preferred technologies can lead to loss of significant opportunities for realtors.
The Real Estate Mobile Opportunity
Mobile devices have become the choice of millions of users for conducting an online search, worldwide. When it comes to searching for homes, 98% of the buyers find mobile devices to be really useful. Also, out of the ones who have not used mobile phones for digital house hunting, 85% believe they will be using mobile devices in the future.
Also, when it comes to realtors, they are also known to use mobiles extensively to conduct their business operations around the globe.
Source: JoinSRM
Mobile-first Strategy for Real Estate Business
Globally, real-estate businesses are realizing the need of an integrated solution and are investing heavily towards custom mobile app development .The success of a platform like Zillow has already provided sufficient proof-of-concept for mobile applications in the real estate industry. Fundamentally, when you have a real-estate business, there are two aspects that you need to take care of- firstly how you manage your business internally and secondly how you connect with customers and attract them towards your offerings.
While having a mobile-friendly website is a great first step towards enhancing discoverability, it does not handle other aspects of running a real estate business. Also, with the penetration of smartphones, users are accustomed to finding solutions to their needs using mobile applications.
Offering convenience and personalization to customers are the two most important factors for increasing revenues and profitability in the digital era. And with an intuitive mobile app, both the targets can be easily met as mobile apps promise simplified workflows and better engagement.
Benefits of Mobility-powered Transformation
Real-estate mobile apps can prove to be empowering for the property seekers. With the help of a mobile app, your business can nurture long-term relationships. Custom android or iOS mobile app development can help you embed various features and tools that can make a customer attracted towards your business. Apart from sales point-of-view, mobile apps can chart down a complete transformation path towards a digital future.
- Streamlined workflows & information sharing
Sharing information is one of the most critical aspects of operating a real-estate agency. Using primitive techniques that involved buyers to visit the property might have worked in the past but present times call for serious actions. Buyers are no longer patient and ill-equipped. They are used to conducting online research before contacting an agency.
With the help of a mobile app, you can also enable your prospects to browse available properties in a region, get detailed information, chat/video call with your representative. This will satiate their research appetite and improve your chances of closing a sale. Also, as most of the work will transform to be digitally completed, it will lead to enhanced employee efficiency and streamlined workflow.
- Better Sales Prospects
Mobile apps enable you to embed the latest technologies like augmented reality for your customers. Using such technologies help in improving customer experience and enhance convenience. You can ask the prospect for a virtual tour of the property at a convenient time from anywhere in the world. When a customer gets the feeling that your business is committed to serving them with his/her convenience in mind, he/she is more likely to move forward with you.
- Time & Cost Savings
As real-estate mobile apps have the feature of property listing as per location, budget and other preferences, prospective buyers can pre-screen available options by themselves. This means your sales team do not have to spend time on unqualified leads. Not only will it save you invaluable time and money but will improve your conversion rates. Instead of engaging yourself or your team towards non-serious buyers, you can create a digital sales funnel and follow up with pre-qualified leads, directly.
Also, as customers browse mobile app before making a contact, you have basic information about their preferences, budget, and expectations through mobile analytics. You can create demographic profiles and personalize their experience that will further improve your chances of closing a sale.
- Improved Communication
The whole point of transitioning to a mobile-first business model with a mobile app is to increase the convenience of property seekers. With a mobile app, your business has the power to stay in the mobiles of your customers all the times. They can connect with you day in and out and at the same time, you can send them counter-offers, best deals and property options that suit their requirements with the help of push notifications.
Not only will it grow your rapport with prospects but can even help you understand how often a customer wants to interact with you in real life. This realization will also help in improving your offline sales pitch process.
Just like many other industries, real estate will completely see a shift from an offline model to a digital business model in the future. As more and more technologies are being adapted for real-estate industry, every real estate business will have to take steps to stay abreast for delighting customers and improving profitability in the long run. At Intuz, we believe in digital empowerment and can help your business to grow through the mobile platform with the help of intuitive mobile applications. Let’s connect to realize your app development project.
