Having been licensed in Hawaii since 1979 as a real estate broker, I have seen incredible changes in the industry. Coming from the pre-cell phone, pre-fax, pre-internet era puts me back with the horse-and-buggy days of early real estate on Maui. We used to serve our clients by hoarding the MLS book that came out once a month that was the sacred repository of “what is for sale,” and doling out bits and pieces to keep our faces in front of our clients.
Perhaps the one thing I learned in Calculus is the meaning of the 1st derivative of an equation, the rate of change of the function. Well, the 1st derivative certainly has a much steeper slope to it in today’s real estate world; especially in Hawaii and on the neighbor islands of Maui, Kauai, and Hawaii even more so.
Hawaii Life has captured the essence of this first derivative and is in fact increasing the slope of the line through the technology advances they continually make every day. Buyers and Sellers look way ahead in the marketplace today and don’t rely on walk-in real estate offices, newspapers, or glossy magazines to search for real estate. They just “Google it,” “Yahoo search,” or use other search engines to find what they want. If you want to hoard the data, they just punt and go to the next site.
As the broker in charge of Maui, I have been gaining the benefit of the #1 placement of Hawaii Life’s site for Hawaii Real Estate. Every day this month, I have been getting calls from agents all over Maui inquiring about our model. Agents are calling because their clients keep inquiring about information they are getting from our site. It must be a little embarrassing to have your clients shopping on the competition’s web site. Perhaps it is time to re-think your business model.
Who is going to be in front of the client, faster, and more often? Is it the agent sitting floor at the office, waiting for a walk in client, or is it going to be the agent who is talking to the same client before they even get in their car or on the airplane?
Buyers, Sellers, and above all agents, please take a look at the rate of change going on in the world and our industry. You don’t even have to believe in evolution to see the slope of the line increasing, and if you aren’t in good enough shape to climb the hill, perhaps a little evolution is in order. Change is good. Maybe it is time for a change.
Talk to Hawaii Life!
Maui Family
February 2, 2011
It’s amazing how the industry has evolved over the years. I commend you for adapting with the revolution! Congrats
Maui Family
February 2, 2011
It’s amazing how the industry has evolved over the years. I commend you for adapting with the revolution! Congrats