It’s STILL all about the LEADS
The portal race in SA is getting really interesting with our “would be competitors” laying claim to the Number 1 spot, while increasing their prices by double digits! A sign of things to come, I suspect.
While the competition’s been making lots of noise, we at Privateproperty.co.za have quietly gone about our business of providing more VALUE. I thought it would be a good idea to highlight some of the VALUE wins we've made for you over the last few months:
We've launched a new pricing model that will allow you to list ALL your properties at a fairer price.
This month we released the “upgraded” version of Featured Listing. Please see the article from Simon explaining how it all works. Early signs have shown that using this feature will increase the views on the property by 50%!
We released a “Leads per office” report that will help you track the leads you receive from Privateproperty.co.za better.
We SMASHED ALL previous web performance records in October.
We Sponsored FREE training sessions in collaboration with IEASA with the aim of both supporting the institute and providing much-needed inspiration for our deserving customers.
We launched a national radio ad campaign, targeted at browsers, on the major radio stations in order to boost online activity. It has really made a BIG difference!
So as you can see we have been busy providing more value at a cheaper price, while the competition has been busy putting up prices and adding no extra value. Makes you think!
Mobile revolution
We have always taken mobile development very seriously. But recent spikes in the use of our mobile platforms have really made us sit up and take notice. It seems as if South Africans have really started embracing mobile as a preferred platform to browse online. We can report a 500% growth of mobile app users during 2012 and iPad usage already constitutes more than 10% of our total browser base.
iPad Usage – Oct 2011 to Oct2012
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iPad browsing stats for Privateproperty.co.za users[/caption]
What is interesting is that usage on a tablet spikes at its highest between 8pm and 9pm. My assumption is that this is really a great time for couples to sit together and view good-quality images of prospective properties. These devices have really enhanced the browser experience and highlight further the need for you to get good quality pictures and, where possible, add virtual tours to your listings.
Our belief is that mobile will soon become the preferred platform for browsers, so we will be working extra hard to make sure that we again lead innovation on this platform. Look out for another upgraded release of our iPad application. Already we are the only portal to have features like augmented reality which allows a house hunter to point the device at a property and see the sales information. Amazing stuff!
Some interesting stats
I’ve spent some time analysing the areas in SA that are consistently receiving the highest activity on our portal. I thought it may be interesting to understand where people are shopping most and what price range people are most interested in. The results are interesting ...
Area _ _Average listing price
JHB
1) Sunninghill and Lonehill: R2.1-million
2) Sandton and Bryanston: R3.1-million
3) Roodepoort: R1.2-million
Pretoria
1) Centurion West: R1.4-million
2) Pretoria East: R1.8-million
3) Centurion East: R2.3-million
Western Cape
1) City Bowl, Atlantic Seaboard: R4.6-million
2) Durbanville: R2.4-million
3) Bellville: R2.1-million
KwaZulu-Natal
1) Durban Northern Suburbs: R2.5-million
2) Durban Central: R1.3-million
I hope this will help you focus your attention toward the right price range when hunting for those mandates!
I wish you happy selling.
Regards, Mark