Purplebricks is to exit Australia after 2.5 years. I don’t think too many in the real estate industry are going to be surprised by this news.
It just goes to show the importance of understanding your market and target audience, which is where I think Purplebricks missed the mark.
I know that as a buyer’s agent, when dealing with any property being sold by Purplebricks, it was such a convoluted, frustrating process tangled up in excessive admin and gate keeping.
Add to that, I’ve heard from several different places that Purplebricks were not very complimentary when they spoke about the real estate industry as a whole, but more worryingly, what they said to prospective vendors about other agents they were competing against. That’s never good.
Selling real estate using an agent is not always going to be perfect. There are too many moving parts for that.
But what the Purplebricks exit does reinforce is that vendors are savvy. They value great service, a proven track record and, probably most telling, vendors are prepared to reward experienced negotiators for their expertise. As is the case with any excellent service based business.
It seems Purplebricks is a huge success in the UK and even Canada. But despite having a massive marketing budget here in Australia behind them (reportly to have spent circa $200M), the model and the offering ended up being well wide of the mark in regards to what Aussies want, expect and indeed choose when it comes to selling their homes.
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By Wendy Chamberlain
Copyright 2019 | All Rights Reserved
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With a passion for all things real estate spanning over 20 years, Wendy loves that her role as a Buyers Agent and Sellers Advocate gives her buying and selling clients an experienced voice they can trust when it comes to negotiating to buy or sell something as important as their home or investment. Wendy considers it a privilege to be asked to help others realise such an important goal as home ownership and to be trusted with that honour. Get in touch today via www.chamberlainadvocates.com.au for a no obligation chat about how Wendy can work with you and help you save time and money to secure your new home sooner.
