Feedback from property buyers is all-important as moving priorities change

Due to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on property buyers’ priorities, collecting feedback from prospective purchasers is now a more powerful tool than ever before for estate agents, according to Rex.

The software provider says that buyer feedback reports can help agents provide visibility to sellers, engage with applicants more effectively and build up insight in a rapidly changing market.

Research from Savills shows that since the start of the pandemic, buyers are more inclined to look for bigger homes and widen their search areas.

The same study found that gardens and outdoor space have become more important to 71% of under-40s, while almost half of buyers deem wireless internet and separate space to work from home as priorities.

Moreover, research from Rightmove over the last six months has consistently shown that buyers are increasingly looking to move to rural and coastal areas.

“Since March, buyers’ priorities in terms of location and property features have changed more quickly than ever before,” explains Anton Babkov, CEO of Rex.

“Agents need to do everything in their power to understand market changes and use this information to help sellers market properties more effectively.”

Buyer feedback demonstrates shifting priorities

According to Rex, agents can better understand an evolving market by tapping into feedback from prospective property buyers. Being able to provide sellers with instant feedback helps them to see how buyers are reacting to their property.

“Sellers want to hear what applicants are saying about their home – it allows them to understand key priorities and deal-breakers,” says Babkov.

“They can use this information to focus on certain areas of the property when preparing for viewings or making sure buyers see the most popular features – such as potential office space or gardens – at the end of a viewing to leave a lasting impression.”

The visibility and transparency that buyer feedback provides also helps agents to have difficult conversations with vendors around sensitive issues such as price reductions.

Getting inside the buyer’s mind

Buyer feedback reports provide agents with rich data to build up a picture of local market trends and the most popular features among different buyer demographics.

“Understanding what buyers like and don’t like about a property they’ve viewed, enables agents to have more effective conversations when they re-engage to find out if they are making an offer. Feedback can help agents to lead the conversation, overcome objections and ultimately achieve more positive better outcomes,” says Babkov.

He adds that gaining feedback from buyers has taken on more importance in recent months as the government continues to advise buyers to carry out virtual viewings where possible and only attend in-person viewings for properties they are really keen on.

“Virtual viewings are a fantastic tool and have been vital during the pandemic, but there is likely to be less communication between agent and buyer and it can be more difficult to gauge how someone is feeling when they are not physically present.

“That’s why making sure feedback is collected and reported on is so vital in understanding what a buyer is thinking. That feedback will also influence the remainder of the marketing campaign,” he says.

“Building up these kinds of insights can inform future appraisals and help agents to win more instructions by showing a deeper understanding of buyers’ priorities and what is happening right now in the local market.”

Incorporating reports into daily processes is vital

Automating buyer feedback and reports to vendors and integrating it with a CRM is invaluable for agencies seeking to provide an outstanding service despite increasing workloads.

“Collecting feedback and recording it against listings enables agents to build up a full picture of how a property is performing, while providing extra value to clients,” Babkov continues.

“It is also a great way of demonstrating just how much work is going on behind the scenes in order to get a property sold.”

He adds that with consumer expectations rising and increased demand for tech, agents can thrive by seamlessly providing key data in an easy-to-digest and instantaneous format.

“With buyer priorities likely to shift further over the coming months, it’s crucial that agencies have the tech in place to stay ahead of the curve and pass on this insight to their clients,” concludes Babkov.