This morning I read the interview of Matthew Shadbolt, Corcoran’s director of interactive marketing. Corcoran is a real estate group based in New York City.
I found it very interesting that they use social media tools for their business. They use geolocation tools like Foursquare and Gowalla to offer to their clients tips about the neighborhood. Corcoran differentiates itself from its competitors with those kinds of tools by seeing an apartment not just with 4 walls but with the neighborhood where it is located.
They provide detailed information with the “what’s nearby” concept. They give recommendations for nightlife, shopping, restaurants and more content about the neighborhood.
They created that on an Iphone App so that clients can have access to their tips wherever they want and whenever they need them. Corcoran focuses on sharing local expertise rather than on the traditional way of meeting customers in their own offices, that is why tools like Foursquare work perfectly. As it is new, it is more fun and attractive for them; they want to try this innovation.
Besides, today people are in a hurry all the time and setting up a meeting for hours describing what do they want it is not so convenient. This application allows them to get information whenever they want and as soon as they find a minute to check it.
Matthew Shadbolt said “Our almost 1,000 tips around New York have proven very popular with our over 5,000 followers, and it’s been a very powerful and fun way to grow our brand presence”.
I think this new way to use social media tools for real estate industry is brilliant and successful. As I said, people don’t really want to waste their time to meet real estate agents for hours; so that this application can help them to find everything they want thanks to the tips on the neighborhood and local expert recommendations.
This is new for now, but it is going to become a necessary and very helpful tool in the future.
When I was looking for an apartment in Lyon, which is a pretty big city for France, this tool would have helped me so much in my research, and I would have found one probably quickly than in the traditional way… What do you think about this app?
I think this is a very neat tool! I think neighborhood and nearby surroundings are essential to picking out where a person wants to live. I'm moving this summer and a tool like this could really help if other companies invested in something like this!
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