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Chris Arnold
Chris Arnold
Content Creator
9240  Profile Views

About Me

Like everyone in this industry, I'm passionate - in this case about finding estate agents the right words.
Words that inspire rather than sell. Words that shine a light. So that you don't hide from view in the shadows.
Words that create a Personal Brand. So that vendors know who you are, rather than simply what you do. Or who you work for.

my expertise in the industry

Estate agency background in training and franchise services. Founder of Agency Negotiation, before finally finding my true love.

Chris's Recent Activity

Chris Arnold
Three reasons why market share was so low? 1) Competitor numbers: "fighting for the same morsel". Did they, or did they not have a U.S.P? Were they fighting for that very small morsel in isolation with other online agencies, or with every other agency out there? Estate agency is stuffed to the rafters with people that love nothing more than competition. As the saying goes, if you can't stand the heat, stay out of the kitchen. 2) Cost per customer: "money shoved into google and pay per click . Emoov, House Simple and YOPA have had to spend millions a month to acquire 800 new customers each month". No, they haven't had to. They chose to. It doesn't matter how much you spend on advertising, if the strategy is wrong you're default dead. No technology can instill faith & trust. There is ample evidence, for those interested enough to look, that advertising is almost dead. We live in a zero-attention culture. There are far, far better and much more cost-effective ways of not only gaining attention, but of creating engagement. I have yet to see any of the latter from any of the online agencies. It's the same old story: anyone with a warm pulse goes straight into the sales funnel and is spat out the other side. Transaction selling is something that for the moment persists in agency, despite all the evidence pointing to a requirement to build relationships. Spending all that money on ill-judged promotion is simply evidence of impatience, illusion and incompetence. I could go on at length, but the days of cherry-picking clients with more & more advertising are over. 3) Psychology of Pricing - a perception of too cheap & too good to be true? Again, there is ample evidence that higher prices are down the list of vendor requirements. Lower pricing is not wise, other than to strategically implement externality factors. It is simply trite to use that excuse when the overriding issue is one of message being poorly communicated, or even non-existent. The reason that Emoov failed is none of the three above. It is simply that they were unable to convince enough vendors to use their services. In the rush to scale and to leave a bigger footprint, the mindset appears mostly overlooked. Bizarrely, online still has a future if done correctly. There are too many average estate agents still in business for it not to be viable.

From: Chris Arnold 16 May 2019 21:30 PM

Chris Arnold

From: Chris Arnold 14 September 2018 07:00 AM

Chris Arnold

From: Chris Arnold 11 September 2018 08:20 AM

Chris Arnold

From: Chris Arnold 14 May 2018 05:54 AM

Chris Arnold
The basis of a review is that it is an example of another experiencing the service/product. It gives no credibility to the knowledge that reviewer has of the product/service. I might find the Dell laptop XYX to be a great experience. Others more qualified might disagree. So, we then turn to the experience of those vendors that leave 4/5 star reviews. What do they know about estate agency. Nothing. What do they know about the value of their home. Very little if, as seems the case, many are enticed into believing it is worth far more than it is. Why, then, should we believe these reviews from vendors that have sold their homes through any agency. It is the blind leading the blind. The same might be said for investment advisers such as Peel Hunt. What do they know of the estate agency model, other than historical financial data? Or what they are fed by opportunist hybrid agencies more intent on enriching themselves than on providing a superior service? As Seth Godin puts it: "That's the warning sign..when the rationale/logic/story happens after you've decided what you want to do, not before. This relentless re-framing of the truth into something else causes us to not ask the right questions. It prevents us from understanding our options and from making smart choices We're in danger of developing a culture where con men, hucksters and others desperately seeking power and influence have decided they can profit from making the truth seem relative." Online reviews of estate agency may well be the future. I, for one, will resist them with all my might.

From: Chris Arnold 03 May 2017 12:47 PM

Chris Arnold
Not withstanding the fact that this argument is illogical, it ill-becomes a respected publication such as EAT to be manipulated by this personal narrative. The more it is publicised and given exposure, the more it is perceived as fact, rather than fiction in the public eye. Donal Trump and Hitler is/was an authority on controlling the personal narrative and if allowed to flourish unhindered, such propaganda can damage the credibility of the media in which it constantly appears. The process of selling a home involves much more than simply uploading photos and progressing enquiries. It is incumbent on the high- Street agency sector to explain to the public what is entailed. Some do, most don't! Without getting into the specifics of all the work required, let us assume for one second that it can actually take 15 hours to sell a home. That equates to an hourly rate of £40 in some online cases. Not £40 for every single hour of every single day, but £40 per hour just for the hours involved in the process. Don't try to convince that technology is responsible for achieving that!! It is simply opportunist 'sales' people that think the ill-informed public can be fooled. I do agree that some high Street agencies are grossly overpaid for being mediocre. That, by association, does not make every high-street agency complicit and, hopefully the flicker of interest that online has created will see the demise of such agents. The good and the great high Street agents will do better, leaving the simply mediocre high Street agents to continually fight a battle with onkine for the minds of those consumers, not prepared to think.

From: Chris Arnold 26 February 2016 05:59 AM

Chris Arnold

From: Chris Arnold 12 February 2016 05:10 AM

Chris Arnold
You're right, Simon. Rolex was a poor example, dreamt up before the caffeine had time to kick in. How about UBER, the online taxi service that has recently dropped its fixed fee fare from Central London to Heathrow? They now rely on the traditional mileage plus time charging structure. Just as taxis shouldn't base their fare simply on distance and charge a fixed fare so fixed fee online/hybrid estate agencies might also have to consider the implications of a service that has variable input of time. For example, if the entire process from creative promotion, enquiry handling, gaining the instruction, servicing the client and progressing the eventual sale normally takes, let's say, 20 hours of combined effort, a £1000 fixed fee will generate an hourly rate of £50. However, if the agreed sale hits a problem and it takes 25 hours to complete, then the hourly rate achieved has reduced to £40. Bear in mind that the hybrid agencies are splitting this hourly rate with the local expert and whilst their admin costs will undoubtedly be covered, the issue will always be in attracting and more so retaining talented agents to service the potential vendors. Sorry to waffle on, but my issue isn't with the online or hybrid business model, its with a fixed fee for a variable time service. And, my issue then becomes if problems do arise, will the vendor be manipulated simply in order to facilitate a completed sale within the budgeted timeframe? I appreciate this might also apply to high Street agencies. Integrity is key, but with a higher fee in the pipeline, the temptation to apply pressure may be reduced. I don't know?? Final point is " when online becomes better than 80% of the local market". My response would be that if the local agents allow this to happen and can't or won't devise alternative ways to create community loyalty, then online will, indeed, eventually win the day. Local agencies have so many advantages over technology yet act like the proverbial rabbit in the headlights. Online grabs the headlines but the high Street needs to learn how to build their own media business. It's hard work, but build an audience of loyal followers and the horizon can suddenly seem brighter.

From: Chris Arnold 05 February 2016 20:11 PM

Chris Arnold
Simon, as always I very much value your opinion and agree with much of what you say. However, "increased time spent being no measure of value or performance, when it comes to selling" does convey a sense of mediocrity. It takes more time (apart from the components) to make a Rolex than a cheap watch and people will always value that, regardless of whether they can afford it. I tend to disagree that the biggest driver of change is higher levels of customer expectations with people demanding more for less. I believe the expectation level from vendors when choosing an agency is pretty low and unfortunately many agencies are happy to provide that service. An effective service is not a remarkable service and simply gets the job done. Can vendors not be inspired rather than manipulated in their choice? To move vendors away from their perception of estate agents being a commodity will require differentiation by individual agents and the tools to this are more down to earth than currently being touted. Humans have an innate desire to share community, values and beliefs that foster trust. Ruthless efficiency from machines might well work in a factory setting, but I believe that vendors need something more - someone that cares about the outcome and who is not just in it for the profit. There is, of course, a demand for the alternative and I am happy that vendors now do have choices. However, I remain firm in my view that time does have a bearing on the ability of an agency (online or traditional) to perform at its best. You do have, Simon, the advantage of many years practical agency experience and I am always eager to embrace the practical rather than theoretical. Appreciate your views.

From: Chris Arnold 05 February 2016 08:28 AM

Chris Arnold

From: Chris Arnold 11 January 2016 05:45 AM

Chris Arnold
All the more reason that potential vendors should know what questions to ask of any estate agency they may be considering. During the listing presentation, homeowners should ask whether the agency has a plan B if a home doesn't attract viewings and offers within the first two weeks. Of course, some agents will suggest the valuation was over-optimistic and pressure the vendor to reduce, but more sensible questions in the presentation should eliminate those agencies. The question then becomes more about the marketing. Might the agency change the photos, what was the CTR, does the property need superficial cosmetic update, can the home be better promoted with words than pictures? It is incumbent on any vendor to ask these questions: the fact that they don't demonstrates their inability to choose wisely! A professional high street agency might wish to suggest their plan B to the vendor, if they have one. The alternative for the vendor is that they consider an online agency that has no plan other than more exposure on the portals ( which as we know creates a stale offering). If a home isn't getting interest after a few weeks, there is something fundamentally wrong with either the promotion, the presentation of the property, or the ability of the agency instructed. Of course it's hard work selling any property, but agencies need to be paid more for their efforts, not less. Using an online agency is the choice of lazy thinkers that want instant gratification. Hopefully, high street agencies will come round to thinking that they have to offer more value and that this requires more, not less, effort on the part of agency. Vendors, for their part, have to stop being so naive as to think that a listing on the portals and a fee of a few hundred pounds is the answer.

From: Chris Arnold 25 November 2015 05:35 AM

Chris Arnold

From: Chris Arnold 16 September 2015 06:43 AM

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