Consumer Internet Fatigue
Real estate "media" follows themes based on current conversations. Several great threads illustrate the new positioning of the real estate agent playing the role of consultant as opposed to salesman. Their message is perfectly consistent with how the consumer will be begin to reward the value of specialists once they get tired with the do-it-yourself mentality the Internet implicitly promotes. Consumer Internet Fatigue is a trend that very few are discussing, but it's already evident in the comment streams of the three articles:
Why Agents will One Day Rule the Real Estate World/ 1000 Watt Blog
What Business are Realtors Really In?/ Notorious R.O.B.
Basta! Real Estate Marketing Enough/ Home Gain Blog
Updated 8/24/08 7:20am Monkeys with Megaphones/ Seth Godin
The simple basis of consumer internet fatigue - the more consumers know and understand about their world, the more they need guidance. Unless the topic is a personal passion, it's too tiring to figure it all out yourself. Real estate is generally not a personal passion for most people.
I have found balancing consumer and professional stories is a way to maintain readership in for a real estate blog. If you focus solely on the pro's you will have the same 500 people reading but very few new folks.
But if you add consumer stories you will attract a completely different demographic to the mix. And the pro's like to read these stories also.
Just my 2 cents but this formula is working fairly well...
Reply to this
This is an excellent idea
Reply to this
The more newer things look the older they are.Consultative selling is the only way to rise above a commoditized industry. A Realtor has been a commodity for several decades. Something like 1 of 50 adults in Cali currently.
Personally, I think the fatigue is that as the web expands(currently thru all the social stuff we discussed in the interview), it gets harder and harder to remember where and what you were reading minutes ago. Learning to focus is not just a good habit for the Realtor marketer. It is also neccesary for the consumer as we all suffer from online ADD. I call it click fatigue:
http://www.spiderworkz.com/arts/ten.htm
And as Godin asks in your link "how low is the average?" What we are seeing as everyone provides a blog(trulia) and social space and free this and that, is junk. And it isn't all just spam junk. IT is just not very well writing
We are experiencing the hyper extension of cable's famous, "57 channels and nuthin on" (with all due respect to Springsteen)
Reply to this
Net fatigue actually works to the benefit of consultative sales approach because the consumer will eventually be forced to trust someone to guide them through voluminous data. So the professional/consultant who can deliver trusted online presence will position themselves to advantage.
Reply to this