Friday 4 May 2007
May 2, 2007 – Sydney – Leading property group, McGrath Estate Agents, has developed Australia’s first search criteria-based real estate podcast, allowing buyers to request properties based on their specific requirements to be sent to the buyers’ iPod.
McGrath Chief Executive John McGrath said this capability will enable consumers to automatically subscribe to receive podcasts via McGrath’s advanced search mechanism in a mobile form. “We have worked closely with Apple to deliver our customers a better solution as they are clear market leaders globally in the podcasting arena. The internet has become a part of every buyers search process and I have no doubt that the ability to download their search results to their iPod will be the next big trend in the fast moving real estate marketing revolution,” Mr. McGrath said.
“It’s one thing to be able to view the properties on your computer but it’s far more efficient to be able to download them, carry them with you and show them to your friends and family. It gives people incredible convenience and portability to look at the properties on a train, on a plane, or at the beach.
“Podcasts are becoming an integral part of urban consumer’s daily lives, so we are ensuring that can access information on demand. The easier we make it to buy a property, the better service we are providing to our vendors as we provide them with a material advantage in the market. Likewise we see it as a valuable tool for buyers. It’s like a mini-video of your short-list of properties you can carry around.”
This groundbreaking technology markets the first time a real estate agent has given buyers the chance to refine their search by lifestyle, number of bedrooms and property type, and have the list of properties sent to their iPod.
Mr. McGrath said “Whilst there have been a few real estate sites around the world that have allowed very basic downloads, we have developed a world-first in being able to refine the download properties to exactly match your search criteria and have them sent to you weekly. All other iPod capable sites that we have seen required buyers to virtually download every listing with a couple of basic options.”To access the service, buyers will key in their property search criteria on the McGrath website mcgrath.com.au which will feature a ‘download to iPod’ link. The server will then send a podcast alert via the iTunes software which you can then download to your personal iPod. Buyers will be provided with a list of available properties that match their entered search criteria and all properties with video attached will be available for download to iPod.
The McGrath website mcgrath.com.au last year launched a “lifestyle” property search engine to tailor the list of properties to match the buyer’s specific search criteria.
The feature is highly interactive and gives the prospective buyer 12 different lifestyle criteria to choose from, including finding a property by selecting leafy suburb, short walk to beach, single level house, near to train station, near to ferry wharf, fixer upper, to name a few.
In creating its user-friendly site, mcgrath.com.au has moved away from the traditional online property catalogue to a more human and interactive experience. Under the advanced search, options for selection include architectural style, apartment features such as, pet friendly, security, gym and concierge.
A directory of quick links at the bottom of the home page cuts back on the layers and makes the site easier to use.
