PORTals
“We give everything away for free, to a Zoopla’s CEO
certain extent,” says Globrix CEO Dan Lee. Alex Chesterman
He believes a portal needs a critical mass of sees a big market
properties for consumers to be interested shake-up coming
in it, and the easiest way to get 100 per cent
coverage is to list for free. Admittedly, he
reckons at the moment he has 80-90 per
cent of all properties for sale in the UK
represented on the site. By listing them for
free, Globrix saves the cost of a sales team.
Globrix is funded by providing special
promotion services for agents and by
advertising for ancillary services such as
mortgages, conveyancing, insurance and
house moving. Dan points out that
Rightmove doesn’t do that, as it is
constrained by its relationship with agents.
It’s difficult to see what will threaten Primelocation, as well as Hot Property
Rightmove. In addition to being number merging with Propertyfinder. June saw
one in terms of web traffic, it’s also highly REA Group announce Propertyfinder is
profitable. Dan Lee says, “being on under review – it could be sold, or closed if
Rightmove is a hygiene factor for the a buyer isn’t found, as it has been loss-
agent” – even if it didn’t get them business, making for some time.
the agent’s clients know the name and want Daniel Lee, CEO of Globrix, says the
to see their agent is on Rightmove. And he news is interesting. “They were number
claims, “Rightmove’s business is two or three, and it proves the first
overpriced; if it wasn’t they wouldn’t be generation model isn’t necessarily
making 52 per cent margins.”
If agents want to
sustainable.” He points out that if
Rightmove has also moved into the
lettings business – it’s increasing the
attract the widest
Propertyfinder has been driving traffic by
pay-per-click marketing, it may have
number of offices represented by 10 per
cent to 3,500 since the start of 2008. That’s
audience, it makes
generated web traffic too expensively. “If
you buy traffic in, you have to sell at a
very much the trend for most UK portals,
sense to be on more
higher price to make a profit; it’s a kind of
which – like many agents – expect the arbitrage really.”
lettings market to be far more active than
than one portal. An
He believes that over the next year,
sales in the near future. However, they will Propertyfinder won’t be alone. “There’ll be
have to compete with a specialist, agent’s toolkit really more closures and there will be smaller
Lettingsearch.co.uk, which sales and
marketing director Peter Everett says gets
needs to combine
sites starting up and closing down.”
Although there’s been significant price
2.8 million visitors a month.
multiple routes to
pressure in the market, leading portals
But it does look likely that there will be don’t seem to have cut their rates. Digital
consolidation among some of the other
attract leads.’
Property Group has changed its fee
portals. Some has already happened – structure to try to align rates more closely
2008 saw Findaproperty merge with ALEX CHESTERMAN, CEO ZOOPLA to the value delivered, taking into account
the agent’s location and the number and
average value of the properties listed.
However some agents have said this
increases their fees up to 20 per cent,
though it is in others’ favour.
Martin Dell of Kyero, the Spanish
property portal, says he’s been able to
maintain prices too. “We’ve seen a lot of
price pressure in the last couple of years,”
he admits, “but our pitch is that we price
for what we deliver.” He’s lost very few
Jon Notley of customers on price, though some have
Findaproperty gone out of business.
recognises Most of the first generation of portals in
the value of the UK have now begun to expand into
establishing a international property, though this still
strong brand accounts for only a small proportion of
PROPERTYdrum JULY-AUGUST 2009 13
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