Lifestyle search is the new black
If the last two years were a race by the big portals to get listings into their databases, then 2009 is looking like it will be the year that the race shifts to who can add the richest context to all of that data (see Neighborhood Search Comes Back).
We’ve gone from the refrain being listings, listings, listings — to the more familiar; location, location, location.
Case in point, FrontDoor last week launched its new City Guides – an ambitious editorial project aimed at building up relevant content for all the major metro areas. The site has hired professional editors to curate stories and articles aimed at helping people better understand the cities that they are searching for online real estate.
A big part of the push seems to be on video content, which was another big trend emerging out of Connect last week — video seems be finally on the verge of more widespread adoption inside of real estate (check out what Halstead Property is doing with their ProperTV initiative, for example).
Curiously though, Frontdoor does not seem to have enabled embedding of their videos. I would have thought it would make sense for the company to enable brokers/agents to take and embed their neighborhood videos on their own sites through a customized player that drove links back to Frontdoor and through content that drove awareness of their brand. Just like what Trulia did with their market data widgets, when they first launched.
On a slightly different note, Onboard Informatics launched a new product they are calling their Lifestyles Listings Engine which enables their partners to take a real estate search beyond the ZIP code.
The key here is to enable consumers to discover more about the places that they want to live before they get to the actual property search. This is a trend we’re starting see more and more sites offer (see Estately Comes to Portland).
Finally, on a lighter note, for those of out there already on the hunt for a home and need more information about where you are looking, check out Lethal, a new application for the iPhone. With the push of a button, Lethal finds your immediate location and tells you how safe you are. It could just save you from a big mistake.
Photo by livinginacity
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9 Comment(s)
3 Trackback(s)
- From Can you find what you are looking for in international real estate? » Real estate market outlook | Jan 16, 2009
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Galen | Jan 15, 2009 | Reply
Nice find – lethal is brilliant.
Claudia Gonella | Jan 15, 2009 | Reply
The level of lifestyle data you can get at the neighborhood level in the US is extraordinary. We need more of this level of granulation in emerging markets.
Joseph Bridges | Jan 16, 2009 | Reply
This is great. My brother and I have always said that it was about the listings but about the content. The big guys getting involved in this shows that people want to know about their area. It will be interesting to see how this plays out.
The applications for the iPhone and real estate seem just about endless. Wonder who will have the killer app of the iPhone for real estate.
Ira Monko | Jan 16, 2009 | Reply
Thanks Joel. We realized the system was broken…consumers can’t find what they are looking for based on who they are and how they live. That’s why we developed the Lifestyle Listings Engine. In addition to enabling people to search for communities based on lifestyle preferences they can also find specific properties within those communities using lifestyle as their criteria. Essentially we believe its more a human centric approach.
Jennifer K Giraldi | Jan 16, 2009 | Reply
Wow! This is amazing! For someone who travels often this app just might save your life. I guess it was only a matter of time before someone incorporated tracking and info together.
Julia Miller | Jan 21, 2009 | Reply
I couldn’t agree more.
Also, Lethal is pretty fascinating, and could certainly benefit the real estate industry. Thanks for an interesting post!
Kevin Schmidtchen | Jan 27, 2009 | Reply
I agree that this is great news for the consumer. For me, providing this great info on the local level should be done by a true local to the area as well as an agent that is also on top of the market everyday….hence someone blogging about the area as part of their business model.
Kevin Schmidtchen
Sotheby’s Int’l Realty
http://www.SantaBarbaraRealEstateVoice.com
Kevin Schmidtchen | Jan 28, 2009 | Reply
I think “cityguides” are wonderful and a great tool for consumers. What I am seeming to miss here is that this is being done by good agents with a good focused blog….at least this should be what a blog about a certain neighborhood should be. A “cityguide” in my eyes should be a local who is also very much on top of the market.
Kevin Schmidtchen
Sotheby’s Int’l Realty
http://www.SantaBarbaraRealEstateVoice.com
Kevin Schmidtchen | Jan 29, 2009 | Reply
Lifestyle search is great but I will be curious to see how well this can be done. For me, the best lifestyle and city guide would come from a local agent who is on top of the market everyday and has a solid blog about the area. To me this will always be the best most updated…as I am almost certain that these city guides will only be updated here and there. Time will tell.
http://www.SantaBarbaraRealEstateVoice.com