Baron Briefs

RealtyBaron made a strategic pivot in 2009 with the launch of not one, not two, but three web service APIs.   That decision paid off for us in 2010 in the form of three new strategic partnerships.   Our first partner implemented a pay-per-lead model using our Auction API to introduce consumers to agents.  Our second partner — a licensed broker — is using the same Auction API to introduce consumers to agents based on a referral fee at closing.  Our third partner is launching a real estate Q&A service using our Answers API.

Of those API uses,  the success of the pay-per-lead model was most surprising in 2010.  To be fair, it was the first and had time to undergo several iterations.  In fact, it was a downright rocky start last January when it first went live.  However, the pay-per-lead model had a strong finish.  Here’s a sampling of what agents said after paying for leads from our first partner in the final quarter:

• “It is nice to work with referral partners that make it a win win for everyone.”
• “It seemed like a serious lead. Yes, I liked the quick bid response and the quility [sic] of the lead seemed good.”
• “I am still new to this but I have been able to meet two excellent sellers in my market area. One resulted in a short sale listing and one meeting is today.”
• “The qualty of the leads are good. Better than any I used in the past. All the info wth the leads was correct.”

I expect an even better 2011 as we continue refine the process.

Happy new year!

We first opened our auction platform to other websites last year.   Inman News picked up the story in July calling it a “widget”.  However, it’s more than just a “widget”.  It’s a full on, double rainbow web service that can be seamlessly weaved into a website to add any type of real estate agent finder/matching feature you can possibly dream up.   Since the launch of the Auction API, we’ve added two partners and have begun discussions with another website whose monthly traffic is consistently above 500K unique visitors about integration early next year.

Our second Auction API partner, ExpertHomeOffers, went live with its integration yesterday. ExpertHomeOffers is using our Auction API to automate the matching of their buyers and sellers with RealtyBaron agents based on a referral fee paid at closing. But RealtyBaron’s platform doesn’t stop at just matching consumer and agent. RealtyBaron also tracks the progress of the referral on behalf of ExpertHomeOffers to ensure referrals are paid when a sale transaction is closed from the referral.

ExpertHomeOffers.com is a company that connects motivated home buyers and sellers with local real estate professionals nation wide. The company was formed in 2007 in an effort to bring quality and honesty to the real estate lead generation industry. Since its inception the company continues to consistently increase its placement on the major search engines and lead volume.

Welcome aboard, ExpertHomeOffers!

….as I outlined almost two years ago in our discussion group:

1. Agents/Brokers can leverage our ZIP code notification system to instantly alert agents of an available referral and don’t need to seek out individuals on the Web/mailing lists.
2. Agents/Brokers can leverage AgentRank(TM) to ensure they are handing the referral off to an agent/broker with a proven track record.
3. Agents/Brokers can maximize their potential referral fee by leveraging the auction platform.
4. Agents/Brokers can utilize our feedback system to rate brokers/agents who both offer and accept referrals. Similar to eBay, a feedback system can be nice leverage to keep both parties of a referral transaction honest.

Today, we’re expanding our patent-pending auction platform to include business referrals among Realtors®. The new product, ReferralAuction™, allows real estate brokers and agents to efficiently find and qualify out-of-town agents to handle their referrals.

As a Realtor®, you likely already swap referrals both on-line and off. However, when referring your client to an agent whom you’ve never met, two questions remain:

1. Is the agent qualified to handle the referral?
2. Will the agent pay my referral fee if a deal is done?

A ReferralAuction™ uses the AgentRank™ algorithm to ensure a referral is awarded to an agent who has a proven track record to make a sale.

Both the referral source and recipient have the opportunity to review the performance of each to discourage deceitful behavior.