Homes Portal Jumps Into Responding to Consumers

The top online real estate search destination Homes.com recently announced a new lead conversion tool that solves one of the industry's most puzzling weaknesses—timely consumer responsiveness. More than half of real estate consumers consider response time before selecting their agent. Yet, research by WAV Group indicates that 48 percent of buyers never receive a response and those that do wait an average of 15.5 hours.

The Instant Response Technology (IRT) by Homes.com, comprised of a fresh Lead Concierge service and a location-based application called TalkNow, aims to boost REALTORS' ability to successfully capture those leads by enabling faster direct communication with online leads. Zillow has been doing this for a number of years now.

The Lead Concierge service saves REALTORS' valuable time by pre-qualifying online leads before transferring them directly to the agent. Experienced call center assistants answer initial inquiries from prospects and vet their home-buying readiness by eliciting information such as whether they already have agent representation or financing. Qualified leads, or those that do not have a REALTOR and are poised to buy soon, are immediately connected to an agent or broker. Leads that are less time-sensitive are forwarded to the REALTOR's online dashboard for later follow-up.

"In effect, we're providing real estate agents and brokers with a personal assistant to help them never miss a call," says Homes.com President David Mele. "No one can always be available; if they're actively engaged with a client, they can't stop to answer a call or respond to a text. Homes.com Lead Concierge will perform that service for them, and more importantly, will help qualify and prioritize leads."