‘Proptech’, industry shorthand for ‘property technology’, has revolutionised the UK housing market, with services like Rightmove, Zoopla and Emoov receiving justifiable praise and accolades for transforming the way in which sales are transacted.
Significant problems
Despite these advances, Professor Andrew Baum of Saïd Business School at Oxford University has argued that there remain significant problems with the way we conduct property business in this country and has set out his vision for the future of the market. Proptech is, of course, at the very heart of his thesis.
While tools for the specific refinement of the property market are being developed, however, many resourceful industry participants are harnessing technology designed for more general use, like Twitter, Facebook and, interestingly, Instagram. The latter, as readers are no doubt aware, is a hugely popular photograph sharing application which enables users to allow circles of friends or the public at large to view their pictures of people, places and things. Predictably enough, there are huge volumes of photographs of pets, travel destinations and food, in other words, snapshots of the the day-to-day interests of users. But there is a major commercial benefit to be derived from using Instagram, especially if you are an estate agent. Why?
Kerb appeal
Location is a key factor in house prices so a property situated in a beautiful old city, for example, Like Bath with its Georgian Building, Roman baths and excellent university plus a popular shopping Centre. This Comes with an inbuilt advantage, as estate agents in Bath like http://www.pritchards-bath.co.uk/ can readily confirm. This being said, it’s a well-established fact that house hunters make a decision about whether a property warrants further investigation within seconds of seeing it. And local estate agents can give advice and answer questions on local schools, bus routes and local amenities
Accordingly, ensuring that the residence is smart, attractive and carefully maintained – that it has kerb appeal – is just as important. Buyers, though, need to be aware of a residence’s availability for sale before they can appreciate its kerb appeal. This is where Instagram can be invaluable.
Firstly, the service allows sellers to market a house to thousands of potential buyers, a feature which in itself greatly enhances the chances of a quick and lucrative sale.
Secondly, Instagram permits sellers to show off a property to its best advantage at different times of the day, for instance, or from unusual angles. Showcasing a house or apartment’s most appealing idiosyncrasies is more difficult with standard estate agent photography. A huge boon indeed.