REINSW Journal Jan-Feb 2017

3
Understanding your customers – and targeting more
people like them
How much do you know about clients you’ve had in the past –
or even those you’re working with now? Big data can take your
existing client list – going back as many years as possible – and analyse it
according to demographics and consumer behaviours. By overlaying it with
property market data to understand property features, recent sales and
what’s sold around them, you begin to get a real understanding of the types
of clients your business attracts and their trigger points for deciding to sell,
buy, rent or invest.
Once you know how your existing clients behave – including the best times to
re-engage with them and the type of client (buying, selling, renting) that they’re
most likely to become – you can target your marketing accordingly, whether it’s a
digital or traditional campaign.
The final step is to take your knowledge of existing clients and ask the big data
algorithms to find non-clients who match the same criteria, so you can also target
new prospects.
CoreLogic’s Re-Engage, developed in partnership with Greater Data, uses big
data and analytics to help you connect with past and future customers.
Final note
Big data isn’t a magic bullet, nor a cure-all. The agents who understand
the power of big data are winning in their markets – not just because
they know how to work the numbers, but because they then amplify their
personal skills in marketing, negotiating, and supporting and helping
clients. No matter how good the algorithms are, real estate is primarily
about relationships – so use the data to enhance your relationships, not
replace them.
What is big data?
Big data is a term that describes
the large volume of data – both
structured and unstructured – that
inundates businesses daily. It’s
being generated by everything
around us at all times. Every digital
process and social media exchange
produces it, and systems, sensors
and mobile devices transmit it.
It’s collected in hundreds of ways
including surveys, online audience
tracking, industry statistics, client
feedback and more.
But it’s not the amount of data
that’s important. It’s what
businesses do with the data that
matters. Big data can be analysed
for insights that lead to better
decisions and strategic business
moves. It can also be used to create
insights into consumer behaviour,
patterns and even trends.
For the real estate industry, a major
drawcard of using big data is being
able to predict who is more likely to
sell their house and zero in on them
before they even decide they want
to sell.
REAL ESTATE JOURNAL / Jan–Feb 2017 / 33