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TODAY'S OTHER NEWS

Thousands of HIgh Street agents want to join Purplebricks - claim

Purplebricks is claiming that literally thousands of High Street agents from conventional bricks-and-mortar firms are applying to the agency.

It says this is down to the success of its transformed operating model, which last year moved from a largely self-employed workforce in the field to an employed model.

“We already have in excess of 95 per cent of our required sales workforce in place and applications to join Purplebricks are higher than ever, with over 4,500 applications from the High Street received since September” says chief executive Vic Darvey.

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He says the agency’s new operating model enables us to deliver a much more consistent service for  customers and also creates “the most compelling employee value proposition in the industry.”

Darvey adds that it’s “attracting the best agents across the category looking to combine the flexibility of working from home with the opportunity to earn uncapped commission. We have re-designed our field and support functions, grouping together the right capabilities in the right places, to enable our field to focus on valuing and listing houses and ensuring a successful outcome for our customers.” 

He adds: "New training in the PB Way and ongoing performance management is starting to yield results across our key performance metrics.”

The upbeat sentiment from Darvey appears at odds with a downbeat trading statement issued by the company yesterday, but the chief executive insists that the half-year figures delivered 24 hours ago are lagging behind current performance.

In a presentation to shareholders, Darvey has explained the structure of the new operating model.

Firstly there are six Divisional Sales Directors.

Below those come 43 Area Directors, overseeing the work of Senior Property Partners, Local Property Partners, and Local Property Agents;

There are 420 Local Property Partners - these conduct and deliver valuations, manage instructions and marketing reviews and negotiations to reach property sale targets; in addition the LPPs sell ancillary products to customers and collate property listing and advertisement content;

Next in the hierarchy come 120 Local Property Agents - these conduct accompanied viewings for Purplebricks’ Pro Package properties, manage customer relationships post-instruction, provide marketing advice to customers, and sell ancillary services. 

Darvey says: “Whilst we are very pleased with the impact that moving to a fully employed model is having, it did cause short-term disruption to our business and trading, resulting in Purplebricks underperforming the market during this [half year] period. 

“This disruption was short-lived however, and since September we have started to see the benefit of our new operating model with an improvement in performance across a number of our leading KPIs. 

“From the period September to December 2021, our conversion rate has improved by 4.0ppts, and we have regained some lost market share, with share of new instructions improving by 0.6ppts, a lead indicator metric on our ability to convert valuation opportunities into instructions. 

“Launched as Pro Package in July, our assisted viewings attachment rates have increased by 8.4ppts since May. Whilst it is still early to predict our performance for the second half, we are encouraged by the impact of our change in operating model. 

“We now have much greater alignment between the aspirations of Purplebricks and our field workforce and it is enabling us to deliver a far more consistent service to our customers. 

“Our employees are more incentivised than ever before through our uncapped commission structure to self-generate business, to sell mortgages and conveyancing services and to engage with customers throughout the whole house purchasing process, all of which we believe will enable us to return to market share growth."

  • Colin Bain

    THOUSANDS ??? Really - I mean Really??

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    Well if Purple Bricks say its thousands it must be true! (-:

  • Simon Shinerock

    Yes, there may well be several thousand non performers queuing up for a free ride

  • Vilesh Rew

    We should probably try to find a bit of context here. 4500 human being would be a more accurate description - working at an estate agent office does not necessarily make you an estate agent. Then consider that “since September” means during one of the biggest stock droughts in living memory - resulting in insane pressures on corporate staff to achieve unrealistic targets, and increased fear of being given the boot. Then consider if the 4500 just applied to PB or if they applied to a dozen other agencies as well. I don’t know the facts because the article contains few, but the reality is that desperate staff from novices to journeymen, will apply to work anywhere if times are hard. It does not mean PB is a beacon of vertue transforming the lansdscape of agency employment as we know it 😂🤣😂

  • Chris Arnold

    "Modern marketing has split. One the one side are the roboticists. They test and measure and do what works. They do it with no interest in how people decide, or what they believe, or what story they tell themselves. Instead, they treat the human as an ant in an ant farm, a robot that does this or that.

    On the other are those that seek to get to the heart of what makes us human... They know that truly understanding our narratives is the essence of doing work that matters, that connects and that
    spreads. ". Seth Godin.

    The narrative from day one at Purplebricks has been one of being the same, but cheaper. Without other people's money, they would have disappeared within a year. No amount of technology, no matter how amazing, can by itself Ignite the shift from good to great. No technology can turn the wrong people into the right people. No technology can instill faith and trust.

    It doesn't matter how figures are spun, if the strategy is wrong, you're default dead.

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    As someone who has worked at a high level in marketing, I can tell you that Godin is talking nonsense, probably in the interests of furthering this air of mystery that people seem to think surrounds him. The fact is, that good marketers have ALWAYS done both.

     
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    You're two months early with this one.

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    🤣🤣🤣🤣

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    • N W
    • 01 February 2022 12:50 PM

    April 1st?

    That came around quicker than I thought.....

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    Never seen a PB sign for months,

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    Never seen a PB sign for months,

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