"New age" estate agency launches

The PropertyCloud philosophy and system was developed as a result of a collaboration between experienced real estate professionals and specialised digital system developers, who understand the need for professional property consultants to position themselves to meet the shopping needs and trends of a developing real estate market.

New operating tools are necessary for property professionals to perform successfully and grow in their income market share, and that is where PropertyCloud fits in. The current buyer behaviour demands that properties viewed will increasingly be searched for online, and that the real estate professional's role in the buying process is integral to a successful sale. It is therefore important that sellers appoint real estate professionals who are able to market homes to an audience that utilise a convenient and new-age approach to real estate shopping, and couple it with traditional marketing channels currently used.

The CEO of PropertyCloud, Lyle Voss, said that a factor that sets PropertyCloud apart from other real estate agencies is the fact that it is to empower its agents and equip them with the tools and the platform to build their own personal brand, while working with the latest online marketing methods.

"In the fast evolving property marketplace, it is important that real estate agents adapt their approach to keep up to date with current market trends in order to serve buyers and sellers better. Having said this, we identify the importance of implementing relevant operating and marketing methods that will serve our estate agents better by co-branding themselves, raising their profile and driving awareness for their own brand, which, in turn, increases property professional earning and promotes career longevity. It is time that agents become their own brand," said Voss.

Designed to empower property professionals

The PropertyCloud business model has been designed to empower property professionals to position themselves more effectively in the real estate arena, and to drive awareness and credibility of their own personal brand. Real estate agents who are part of the PropertyCloud team will have access to their own co-branding platform whereby each agent will have his own micro-site promoting his personal profile and property portfolio, which will lead to increased visibility, credibility and awareness of that agent's personal brand within the property space.

Through agent branding and empowerment, PropertyCloud aims to attract and develop a better quality of agent. Voss understands that the sale is a consequence of the agent: "It's for this reason that we have set out to equip our agents with the right tools to best and most effectively, serve buyers and sellers, and to ultimately build each agent's personal brand. The digital platform we have built will be at each agent's disposal, and will provide them and the agency with increased exposure within the marketplace."

Sergio Pellegrini, lead developer of PropertyCloud, said that the platform and concept has been a long time coming. "The real estate market in South Africa is changing, and we are excited to be a part of this change. In essence, we are empowering real estate agents through technology.

Website

www.propertycloud.co.za is the website where the properties are listed, which is one aspect. Alongside this, we aim to position the agent and the properties in smart ways, where you then begin to leverage the possibilities of the internet - and this is what gives PropertyCloud a competitive edge. That, and the fact that agents get to self-brand themselves," said Pellegrini.

When it came to creating the online platform, the purpose was to create a website that was easy for agents to use; to minimise the amount of time it takes agents to figure out the system; and to maximise the amount of time agents are out selling houses and signing deals - which is what they are best at. In addition to this, PropertyCloud has placed focus on effectively making use of search engine optimisation (SEO) that will further drive promotion of the agents, and allow the marketplace to find the agent, and properties, online easily (and efficiently). This is not to say that the traditional methods of real estate promotion and practise will be pushed to the wayside. The PropertyCloud team aim to combine new age marketing strategies with traditional operating footprints that meet the evolving market behaviour of modern consumers.

As much as the launch of PropertyCloud is of value to real estate agents, it also holds tremendous benefit for home sellers and buyers. Through the PropertyCloud philosophy, system, and the empowering of property professionals with a new age operating ability, the process and navigation of selling and buying property will alleviate anxiety experienced by people involved in the marketplace.

The digital positioning of PropertyCloud estate agents online will: allow buyers and sellers easily to find an agent online, while at the same time browsing through that agent's current property portfolio; enable a higher demand channel for home sellers on the market; and will prove to be a convenient, quick and effective platform for buyers who are searching the market for homes to buy. Sellers are always concerned about under selling in price, and buyers are wary of overpaying for a home. The optimised marketing and digital positioning of sellers homes, through PropertyCloud online, will swiftly and accurately determine the correct pricing through buyer response diagnostics, which will be shared with PropertyCloud sellers, to determine the correct market related price levels for their homes.

Highly skilled and carefully selected individuals

The property professionals (estate agents) who have partnered PropertyCloud are highly skilled and carefully selected individuals who understand the concerns and needs of home buyers and sellers, and who understand the immense responsibility placed upon them by their clients, which is why they set out to ensure that all parties are happy in the negotiation process.

PropertyCloud is a company with estate agent partners, who have started their operation within the southern region of Johannesburg and will be branching into other regions soon. PropertyCloud is able to generate the best results quickly for sellers, buyers, landlords and tenants alike.

For more, go to www.propertycloud.co.za