The Impact Social Proof Has on Real Estate Tech Vendor Selections

In the wake of the recent Booj acquisition to RE/MAX, it’s no secret that many brokerages have begun evaluating website vendor options. Here’s our take on how to make the most of your time if you’re considering a vendor switch, and how to cut through some of the misleading data online.

Don’t Let Yourself be Fooled

The idea of “social proof” has been around forever. Things that your friends like (or even that a host of strangers like) seem immediately more appealing to you — even if there’s no legitimate reason.

To quickly understand this concept, let’s take a look at McDonald’s, who was an early adopter of using social proof as a business strategy.

McDonald's Social Proof Sign

Obviously a multitude of others love McDonald’s burgers, so isn’t it about time you bought one? Maybe. But that decision shouldn’t be based solely on the fact that many others are on board.

Social proof is fine when used in an honest way, but many people fall for companies who use these tactics only for their own benefit.

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How Social Proof Impacts You

Social Proof Illustration

The graphic above is enticing, right? As you’re reading this post, you probably want to leave and go check out this product which so many people are signing up for.

There’s plenty of ways social proof can pull you in online, and it has become so common that the behind-the-scenes sales strategy may not be on your radar.

Here are a handful of ways that today’s sites use social proof. All are there to boost that brand’s credibility.

  1. Brands using the product
    Typically featuring a hand-picked list of the largest companies using a product.
    Brands Using Social Proof
  2. Celebrity and influencer backers
    These could come in the form of paid advertising, or just be displayed as featured content (similar to brands above). Remember, it’s not the fact that a celeb backs (or even uses) a product that should qualify that vendor — it’s how closely that customer’s needs are to your own.
    Influencer Social Proof
  3. Client testimonials
    Highlighting the best details that current clients (or past customers) have to share. Again, usually well-known brands or clients are featured, and negative reviews are hidden. Sometimes reviews are very dated, and are no longer reflective of current services and offerings.
    Review Social Proof
  4. Number of social likes, shares, etc.
    Displaying the number of times a webpage or product has been socialized, rather than just the sharing options. This tactic has actually been proven to have the least impact on consumers.
    Social Share Social Proof
  5. Product scarcity or limited availability
    This is by far the social proof strategy that I consider to be the worst, when it’s used to push web-based products. Choosing a real estate tech vendor is a big decision, and you shouldn’t rush it.
    Scarcity Social Proof

When you spot any of these strategies as you’re browsing a vendor or product website, use caution and make sure to take the data at face value only. Avoid the tendency to be misled based on what others may be doing.

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The Effect of Social Proof on Real Estate Technology

The unfortunate truth is that not everyone knows better than you – and you shouldn’t always be a follower. Remember your parents saying “If all of your friends jumped off a bridge, would you jump too?”.

Robert B. Cialdini, author of ‘Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion‘ put it perfectly when he broke this effect down into two statements.

“First, we seem to assume that if a lot of people are doing the same thing, they must know something we don’t. Especially when we are uncertain, we are willing to place an enormous amount of trust in the collective knowledge of the crowd.
Second, quite frequently the crowd is mistaken because they are not acting on the basis of any superior information but are reacting, themselves, to the principle of social proof.”

The stats are clear that consumers definitely take notice of online reviews (numbers spike much higher when the review also includes a photo), and backing from well-known brands makes a company more memorable. Check out the full study here (conducted December 2017).

The vast majority of consumers also make purchasing decisions based on what other people are saying about that product, regardless of whether or not they know them. More on that research here.

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Make Sound Decisions

When a broker is scouring a custom real estate brokerage websites vendor to find out more about their products and services, make sure you find the best source for valid proof of what people actually think.

  1. Call or email the vendor’s current clients for an honest review
    You’re not necessarily looking for quantity of customers — you’re looking for quality of service delivered for brokerage companies with similar needs to yours. If you can get time on the phone, ask about the most important features to you and see how the vendor has delivered on their promises.
  2. Find ratings on third party sites
    Client testimonials on a vendor’s site are common, but remember that they’re in complete control over their domain and they of course won’t publish anything negative. Compare reviews on a vendor’s site with an unbiased source like Google, Facebook, Yelp, etc. to see what customers really think. Are all sources consistent?
  3. Look for press, case studies and white papers about the company
    If a company is consistently innovative or has extremely happy customers, chances are that someone else has noticed and is writing about them too. If the opposite is true and the vendor has burned some bridges, it will be even easier to find that info. Before you believe what you find, make sure that the vendor doesn’t own or manage this content, and that they didn’t pay for it’s creation or syndication.

With usage stats and reviews, more isn’t always better

Gathering feedback is only worthwhile when the person you’re talking to is very familiar with the product or service you’re asking about, and has similar needs and expectations of that product or service as your company would. Shoot for similarities between you and the reviewer in brokerage size, provided services/tools/products, and capacity for your staff and agents to actually manage the tool (is it self-service or supported?).


 

If you’re looking for even more tips on how to choose the best real estate tech vendor for your brokerage’s needs, make sure to check out this article.

As a second generation REALTOR, Katie comes to TRIBUS after working for a major franchise brokerage and a prominent custom home builder in metro Atlanta, GA. While selling homes, she realized she had a passion for helping agents establish a meaningful web presence and build a CRM that worked. Since then she's become a Certified Scrum Master (CSM) and graduated from a UX program, all while staying grounded in real estate technology. Her background in the industry and her training in psychology have paved the way for her current user experience focused role, where she leads the product team at TRIBUS.

Katie has moderated and spoken at various events including the RESO Technology Summit and Hacker Connect - a tech intensive session of Inman Connect.
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